Trip Report Tu in ‘25

Ever just the same
Ever a surprise
Ever as before
Ever just as sure
As the sun will rise
Tu in ‘25

These lyrics came to mind when I thought about my trip reporting. (I also thought, Here we go AGAIN but the above sounds much more poignant.) It’s now that time of year when my Disney trips are frequent. And this Disney Senior loves sharing her visits with y’all because your engagement makes it fun!

Yes, there will be stuff that’s the same. Yes, there will be surprises (too soon for the reveals). And yes, there will be sun rises!

Spring break countdown is at 4 days.

Since this intro needs a picture, here are Tu.

 

[Tuvalu]

Saturday, con’t

The dark clouds were arriving quickly as we made our way outside the pool gate and onto the walkway along the beach.

Woody helped me figure out where our room was from outside. It’s the third balcony down from the top next to the viewing area.

 

[Tuvalu]

That has to be the BEST view I've ever seen from a room at WDW!!! I don't think I would have wanted to leave that balcony during my stay especially as day turned into night!

Oh we got our money’s worth from that balcony!

It looks like a beautiful pool area. It's too bad that the thunder chased you away so soon.

The Cove pool is a blend of the Lava and Oasis pools. It has the beach/castle view of the Lava pool, without the chaos of a slide and pool games like the Oasis quiet pool. Of the three pools, Cove would be my #1 choice.

Honestly, I was delighted to have had any time at the pool since summer afternoons in WDW are a crapshoot in terms of thunderstorms!

 

[littleroo]

I had to shake my head over the avocado wrap! It is kind of hard to miss the main ingredient!

Or in this case "where's the avocado "?

That view is amazing!! Stunning!

 

[Tiggerish]

I am delighted that you enjoyed such a spectacular view!

 

[donaldtoo]

And in the category of signs we never expected to see…..

View attachment 881324

SERIOUSLY??!! Is this a problem? Woody said it must be, otherwise there would be no need for the sign.

In regard to the sign…
Pretty sure it’s in reference to the lounge shelf (we called it a “beach” when I was in architecture - retired last year).
In residential pools, people tend to move pool furniture to the beach, or already have designated furniture for it, which I’m sure you’ve seen before.
Not sure if there’s any kinda’ liability involved, but they’re probably concerned that if the furniture makes it to the beach the next step may be in the middle of the pool…!!!!!

For anyone who may not be familiar…

 

[Tuvalu]

Saturday, con’t

After cleaning up, Woody and I pondered where to eat dinner. Though the thick, dark cloud-cover had not departed, there had not been any rain. It was very odd.

We decided on the Contempo Café, a quick monorail ride away. A question loomed - which monorail station was closest to the PIT? It seemed counterintuitive to walk essentially backward to the Poly station when the Grand Floridian station had us heading in the right direction.

We took the walking path to the GF. It was a longer walk than I expected and watching the black sky - expecting a downpour any minute - did not help. The lobby was in full construction mode.

The grand staircase was walled off, and the line for the elevator was LONG. We chose to get upstairs via the stairwell in the back of the lobby.

Looking down into the lobby affirms how difficult it would be to have the gingerbread house this year. (Even having enough space for the giant Christmas tree seems questionable to me.)

We boarded the monorail and disembarked at the Contemporary. The Contempo Café was as crowded as I’ve ever seen it - all tables were occupied and guests with food trays were wandering through the dining area, ready to pounce the moment one opened up. All registers were staffed with at least 8-10 people waiting in line. It was madness!

I did a quick look into the bakery case for my beloved chocolate muffins. If anything would prompt me to wait in a crazy line it would be those muffins! The manager was standing beside the case and noticed me. She asked if she could help. When I inquired about the muffins she turned serious with angry eyes and said, “They were discontinued on July 1st. The chef decided he wanted to go in a different direction, despite the chocolate being our best seller.” Clearly she was just as unhappy as I was!

(The “different direction”? Blueberry. )

I told Woody to turn around, we were getting back on the monorail. Our new destination would be Capt. Cooks.

 

[Tiggerish]

The “different direction”? Blueberry.

SRSLY???

That direction deserves at least one more eyeroll.

Maybe two.

 

[donaldtoo]

What about chocolate blueberry muffins…?!

 

[donaldtoo]

And yes, that lobby is a mess.
What exactly are the “improvements”, please, as I haven’t kept up with that situation…?

 

[Tuvalu]

What about chocolate blueberry muffins…?!

Actually that combo might not be bad! I do enjoy blueberries on a Nutella spread waffle!

And yes, that lobby is a mess.
What exactly are the “improvements”, please, as I haven’t kept up with that situation…?

The former bird cage was removed and is being replaced by a (shocker!) bar. The Front Desk is being replaced by the current trend of “pod” areas to check in. It has not been disclosed what the refurbishment of the previous Garden Tea Room will be. The lobby and staircase were due for a refresh, as it’s been many years since the last one.

 

[donaldtoo]

Actually that combo might not be bad! I do enjoy blueberries on a Nutella spread waffle!


The former bird cage was removed and is being replaced by a (shocker!) bar. The Front Desk is being replaced by the current trend of “pod” areas to check in. It has not been disclosed what the refurbishment of the previous Garden Tea Room will be. The lobby and staircase were due for a refresh, as it’s been many years since the last one.

Maybe I should send the chef an email…!!!

Shocker indeed…!!!!!

I guess the least they could do is name the bar “The Beak and Birdcage”…!!!

 

[amjt660]

Love the view from the tower room
Still do not like the look of the tower itsef
Great start!


Max

 

[Tiggerish]

I guess the least they could do is name the bar “The Beak and Birdcage”…!!!

That deserves a too.

 

[lindawdw]

I am praying that the lobby construction is done by the time we stay there in December because that construction looks terrible! Ugh, the lines at Contempo Cafe sound awful so I would have done the same thing as you. It's not exactly the way you wanted your first dinner to go but I have a feeling the rest of the evening was spent on your beautiful balcony!!!

 

[donaldtoo]

That deserves a too.

At the very least a , but I couldn’t resist…!!!!!

 

[Tuvalu]

Saturday, con’t

Much to my frustration, Capt. Cooks was worse in chaos and crowds than Contempo Café. That quick service has always been too small for the number of Poly guests and the addition of PIT certainly hasn’t helped matters. Eating at one of the three full service restaurants - ‘Ohana, Kona or Wailulu - wasn’t an option as they were booked solid.

So we placed a mobile order at Cook’s and waited while pressed against the ice cream freezer (the only available floor space) for 45 minutes. It was a nightmare. I had forgotten to bring our refillable mugs so I ordered two fountain drinks ($5 each) which we filled on our way out. It wasn’t until we were back in the room and tasted our drinks that we discovered we had paid $10 for Cokes with no syrup! Down the drain that disgusting concoction went!

For the record, it is a shorter distance and faster walk to utilize the Poly monorail station (rather than GF) when staying at PIT.

Now for the happy!

We went out on the balcony to dine. Both containers of Pan Asian Noodles were generously portioned with lots of chicken and veggies, very savory and most important - they had stayed hot. At least we’d been rewarded with good food after the horrible wait!

@lindawdw we’d missed most of the transition from day to dusk, but enjoyed the remnant before total darkness fell.

Then we were treated to the most incredible lightning show we’d ever seen! Big bolts of bright white lightning flashing every few seconds in the night sky, all around Seven Seas Lagoon. No thunder. It was absolutely breathtaking.

Unfortunately the lightning must have canceled the Electrical Water Pageant, which I was looking forward to watching from my high vantage point. But the lightning show was definitely worth forsaking the EWP!

A little past 9 pm Woody pointed towards the right and said, “Fireworks!” Sure enough, we could see some of the bursts from Luminous at Epcot.

A hidden Mickey!

The moment I’d been waiting for - and the reason I wanted a PIT theme park view room - arrived at 10 pm with the start of Happily Ever After. The soundtrack rose up to us from the speakers on the beach. And the view was spectacular.

Tink flew, which surprised us given the lightning in the area.

This fireworks gal was happy. I now have a core memory I will never forget.

 

[Tuvalu]

Sunday, August 17

I made sure to be up before dawn. With an east-facing room, I wanted to watch the sunrise. I stealthily slipped out onto the balcony (so not to wake Woody) at 6 am. It was so quiet that I could hear a pin drop…

…or a sweet little boy’s voice from below. He couldn’t have been older than four and was pulling his tiny suitcase behind him as he walked with his family.

“Goodbye castle!” he began. “Goodbye Magic Kingdom! Goodbye everybody!”

As tempted as I was to reply, “Goodbye!” I did not want to freak out a little boy or his family. Like I said it was extremely quiet - the resort music didn’t begin to play until after 7 am.

For the next 40 minutes, I sat in awe and wonder at the beauty unfolding before me.

I watched two of the large ferryboats crossover the water bridge that connects Bay Lake to Seven Seas Lagoon. One of them continued towards the TTC, the other was MK bound.

Then I watched the smaller ferry arrive at the Poly to transport guests to MK.

There weren’t any guests waiting on the dock. Though MK early opening was at 7:30 am (it was a party day), it was just 6:35.

The boat waited 10 minutes before departing at 6:45.

Confidential to @MissingDisney - Polynesian sunrises are bat-free!

 

[Swissmiss]

That looks like it was an amazing start to the day. I feel peacefulness in the photos.

 

[the_rich]

Sunday, August 17

I made sure to be up before dawn. With an east-facing room, I wanted to watch the sunrise. I stealthily slipped out onto the balcony (so not to wake Woody) at 6 am. It was so quiet that I could hear a pin drop…

…or a sweet little boy’s voice from below. He couldn’t have been older than four and was pulling his tiny suitcase behind him as he walked with his family.

“Goodbye castle!” he began. “Goodbye Magic Kingdom! Goodbye everybody!”

As tempted as I was to reply, “Goodbye!” I did not want to freak out a little boy or his family. Like I said it was extremely quiet - the resort music didn’t begin to play until after 7 am.

View attachment 881733

For the next 40 minutes, I sat in awe and wonder at the beauty unfolding before me.

View attachment 881734

View attachment 881735

I watched two of the large ferryboats crossover the water bridge that connects Bay Lake to Seven Seas Lagoon. One of them continued towards the TTC, the other was MK bound.

View attachment 881736

Then I watched the smaller ferry arrive at the Poly to transport guests to MK.

View attachment 881737

There weren’t any guests waiting on the dock. Though MK early opening was at 7:30 am (it was a party day), it was just 6:35.

View attachment 881738

The boat waited 10 minutes before departing at 6:45.

View attachment 881739

View attachment 881740

View attachment 881741

Confidential to @MissingDisney - Polynesian sunrises are bat-free!

So has your view changed on the tower?

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Sunday, August 17

I made sure to be up before dawn. With an east-facing room, I wanted to watch the sunrise. I stealthily slipped out onto the balcony (so not to wake Woody) at 6 am. It was so quiet that I could hear a pin drop…

…or a sweet little boy’s voice from below. He couldn’t have been older than four and was pulling his tiny suitcase behind him as he walked with his family.

“Goodbye castle!” he began. “Goodbye Magic Kingdom! Goodbye everybody!”

As tempted as I was to reply, “Goodbye!” I did not want to freak out a little boy or his family. Like I said it was extremely quiet - the resort music didn’t begin to play until after 7 am.

View attachment 881733

For the next 40 minutes, I sat in awe and wonder at the beauty unfolding before me.

View attachment 881734

View attachment 881735

I watched two of the large ferryboats crossover the water bridge that connects Bay Lake to Seven Seas Lagoon. One of them continued towards the TTC, the other was MK bound.

View attachment 881736

Then I watched the smaller ferry arrive at the Poly to transport guests to MK.

View attachment 881737

There weren’t any guests waiting on the dock. Though MK early opening was at 7:30 am (it was a party day), it was just 6:35.

View attachment 881738

The boat waited 10 minutes before departing at 6:45.

View attachment 881739

View attachment 881740

View attachment 881741

Confidential to @MissingDisney - Polynesian sunrises are bat-free!

Cute story about the little boy. You totally should have said goodbye back and then hid. The little boy probably would have thought it was the magic of WDW! I remember being in bed as a little girl on Christmas Eve and I totally heard "Santa" yell out Merry Christmas and I thought it was magical but in reality, it was probably someone just driving by but I thought it was magical.

Also, I love that Poly mornings are bat free.