Trip Report “Excuse me ma’am, can you put your phone away? Snow White doesn’t like apples” March 2019 *COMPLETED*

Sadly, I’ve been back in the real world for 4 days, but I’m glad to say that it was a great trip! Different, but still great. Surprisingly, the Disney depression is not very high (not sure if that’s a good thing ), but I don’t want to take any risks, so let’s get this TR started!

For those of you who are just joining, I’d like to say welcome and feel free to read my PTR for background info.

Pre-Trip - Birthday, spring break, R.I.P. IllumiNations

So this happened today. :joyfull::joyfull::joyfull::joyfull::joyfull::joyfull::joyfull::joyfull::joyfull: More details including the who, when, and where to follow soon!

forums.wdwmagic.com

Before I start, I want to warn everyone that I only have a month left before the semester is over. With that being said, the next 4 weeks might get extremely busy and I may not have a lot of time to post, so please bear with me. I don’t want to drag this TR out like I did with the last one, but I make no promises.

Up next: Travel Day

 

[heatherhy01]

I have just finished marathoning your whole report. I love your way of reporting, you are very detail oriented and it was easy to immerse myself and be in the moment with you. Thanks so much for allowing us to tag along

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Merch continued

Pressed Penny book (purchased from World of Disney)

Needed to get a new one because my other book was almost full at the time.

I love how each park is represented, along with the opening dates.

I only made 6 pennies this trip. I put half of them in the last few open spots in my other book and the other 3 in this one.

The inside looks just as good as the outside.

All-Star Resorts pin (purchased from Maestro Mickey’s)

Here’s the new All-Star pin that I got that came out this year along with some other new All-Star merch.

Up next: More Merch!

 

[Swissmiss]

That pressed penny book is so cool - I’ve never seen one before.

 

[DisneyLover]

I just finished marathoning your TR (the first I’ve read in its entirety), and I felt all of the emotions that went along with it, particularly the interlude where Maggie passed away. (I’m so sorry for your loss. I will definitely be praying for you...losing a friend that loyal and dedicated is no small deal, and I know you will cherish memories of her for years to come.)

I was impressed with the quality and quantity of the photos you took; you’re quite the photographer. I particularly liked the ones of SE at night! And the IllumiNations ones were perfect.

Also...those pins at the end...made me have serious pin envy, lol. I have a pretty large collection myself, and that Pirates one looked like a nice find.

When I went to Disney in April, we stayed at All-Star Music (large group trip). Normally, my family stays at resorts on the other end of the price spectrum, but I have to say that ASM managed to impress me greatly. It still had the magic and service that I’ve come to expect from Disney-caliber resorts. The Broadway section looked neat! I was hoping we’d stay there, but we were Building 5, Country.

You asked about SS...my family stayed there one night a few years ago, and it was an awful experience. The CM at the desk was rude and unhelpful. See, we’d been waiting for our room for four/five hours, and it was long past the normal time when rooms are ready. We were tired, and we wanted our luggage. When my mom spoke to the CM at the desk, there was some type of blow up that ended when the CM said “Don’t come back if you don’t like it.” Yeah. Not the best experience. But they were nice enough to compensate us for the troubles, Disney-style. I also have friends who are DVC members that own at SS, and they have had great experiences there. So not everything about it is awful...hopefully, just a fluke experience.

So...I’m going to Disney in September (Land and Sea, mostly for GE), and reading your TR made me want to write my own in Sept. Got any tips for a first-time-reporter? Can’t wait to see IllumiNations too, but it’s gonna be an emotional one. I still can’t believe they’re replacing it, it’s been around for as long as I can remember.

Oh, and I wanted to ask you, what’s the significance of the Tiger Rag in the photos? It’s a cute tradition to have.

I look forward to reading any more TRs that you may post in the future!

~ Aurora

 

[Captain Barbossa]

I have just finished marathoning your whole report. I love your way of reporting, you are very detail oriented and it was easy to immerse myself and be in the moment with you. Thanks so much for allowing us to tag along

Thanks for reading! I’m glad you enjoyed it! I try to be as detailed as possible. Glad to hear that it paid off!

That pressed penny book is so cool - I’ve never seen one before.

I’m kind of torn between this book and my other book. I like this one because of the specific park sections on the outside, but I also like my other book because it has more rides/attractions on the cover.

 

[Captain Barbossa]

I just finished marathoning your TR (the first I’ve read in its entirety), and I felt all of the emotions that went along with it, particularly the interlude where Maggie passed away. (I’m so sorry for your loss. I will definitely be praying for you...losing a friend that loyal and dedicated is no small deal, and I know you will cherish memories of her for years to come.)

Thank you for such kind words.

I was impressed with the quality and quantity of the photos you took; you’re quite the photographer. I particularly liked the ones of SE at night! And the IllumiNations ones were perfect.

Thanks! I sure do love me a good nighttime picture of SE! I would definitely put that up against any nighttime pic of Cinderella’s castle, not that I’m hating on the castle or anything. The castle is stunning at night too, but I like SE a tad bit more.

And thanks for your complements on my IllumiNations photos! I think that most of them turned out ok.

Also...those pins at the end...made me have serious pin envy, lol. I have a pretty large collection myself, and that Pirates one looked like a nice find.

Haha, yeah I really like the ones that I got on this trip. I’ve been very pleased with the new POTC pins that have been released.

When I went to Disney in April, we stayed at All-Star Music (large group trip). Normally, my family stays at resorts on the other end of the price spectrum, but I have to say that ASM managed to impress me greatly. It still had the magic and service that I’ve come to expect from Disney-caliber resorts. The Broadway section looked neat! I was hoping we’d stay there, but we were Building 5, Country.

We really enjoyed the Broadway section and Music as a whole. I’ve also stayed at Sports and Movies, but Music is now my favorite of the All-Stars. Would definitely stay there again.

You asked about SS...my family stayed there one night a few years ago, and it was an awful experience. The CM at the desk was rude and unhelpful. See, we’d been waiting for our room for four/five hours, and it was long past the normal time when rooms are ready. We were tired, and we wanted our luggage. When my mom spoke to the CM at the desk, there was some type of blow up that ended when the CM said “Don’t come back if you don’t like it.” Yeah. Not the best experience. But they were nice enough to compensate us for the troubles, Disney-style. I also have friends who are DVC members that own at SS, and they have had great experiences there. So not everything about it is awful...hopefully, just a fluke experience.

Sorry to hear that you had an awful experience. No CM should ever treat a guest like that. Ever. I hope the CM got fired or at least a good chewing out.

I just think that SS looks pretty and I like the close proximity to DS.

So...I’m going to Disney in September (Land and Sea, mostly for GE), and reading your TR made me want to write my own in Sept. Got any tips for a first-time-reporter?

Well, this is just my 2nd TR, so I’m no seasoned veteran , but I will tell you this, JUST BE YOU! There’s no wrong way to write a TR! Everyone has their own style, which makes every TR different and unique. Maybe you like to take a lot of pictures, like me, or you might be more of a heavy text/lot of details person. I like to do a good mixture of both. But most importantly, write it how you want to and have fun while writing it! And don’t worry about what other people will think of it. It only has to suit you.

Can’t wait to see IllumiNations too, but it’s gonna be an emotional one. I still can’t believe they’re replacing it, it’s been around for as long as I can remember.

Can’t talk about this. I’ll start to cry.

Oh, and I wanted to ask you, what’s the significance of the Tiger Rag in the photos? It’s a cute tradition to have.

Haha, I’m actually glad that someone asked this question. It’s pretty interesting. Ok, so I’ve always been a Clemson University fan and that’s where I currently go to school. So our fight song is Tiger Rag, which was made famous when the Original Dixieland Jazz Band first recorded it in 1917. It became Clemson’s official fight song in 1942. Clemson was, and still is, a big textile school, so in 1976 the university’s textile club made and sold cloth Tiger Rags as a fundraiser. They were a big success and quickly became popular. Anyways, us fans, students, and alumni can be seen waving them at sporting events, particularly football games, and displaying them around the nation and the globe whenever we travel.

I look forward to reading any more TRs that you may post in the future!

Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

 

[DisneyLover]

Thanks! I sure do love me a good nighttime picture of SE! I would definitely put that up against any nighttime pic of Cinderella’s castle, not that I’m hating on the castle or anything. The castle is stunning at night too, but I like SE a tad bit more.

And thanks for your complements on my IllumiNations photos! I think that most of them turned out ok.

True, the castle is stunning, but I think SE looks more majestic at night than the castle. I feel like the castle’s star-power is in daylight, not moonlight.

Sorry to hear that you had an awful experience. No CM should ever treat a guest like that. Ever. I hope the CM got fired or at least a good chewing out.

I just think that SS looks pretty and I like the close proximity to DS.

Ugh, me too. But I’d be willing to give it another try on a short weekend or something, since our friends that own through DVC love it.

Well, this is just my 2nd TR, so I’m no seasoned veteran , but I will tell you this, JUST BE YOU! There’s no wrong way to write a TR! Everyone has their own style, which makes every TR different and unique. Maybe you like to take a lot of pictures, like me, or you might be more of a heavy text/lot of details person. I like to do a good mixture of both. But most importantly, write it how you want to and have fun while writing it! And don’t worry about what other people will think of it. It only has to suit you.

I see. My writing skills are definitely better than my photography ones, so those will probably be what I go with. Thank you for the advice and encouragement. I’m now really excited to write one!

Haha, I’m actually glad that someone asked this question. It’s pretty interesting. Ok, so I’ve always been a Clemson University fan and that’s where I currently go to school. So our fight song is Tiger Rag, which was made famous when the Original Dixieland Jazz Band first recorded it in 1917. It became Clemson’s official fight song in 1942. Clemson was, and still is, a big textile school, so in 1976 the university’s textile club made and sold cloth Tiger Rags as a fundraiser. They were a big success and quickly became popular. Anyways, us fans, students, and alumni can be seen waving them at sporting events, particularly football games, and displaying them around the nation and the globe whenever we travel.

That is really interesting history, and it’s neat that this tradition sprung from it. (I love learning fun facts like these...call me a nerd, but I think they’re cool.) Thanks for sharing! If you don’t mind my asking, what’s your major? I’m always interested to learn more about my fellow Disney fans.

Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

You’re welcome, I thoroughly enjoyed myself as I did so.

 

[Captain Barbossa]

If you don’t mind my asking, what’s your major?

Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management. (PRTM for short)

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Merch continued

Reusable Shopping Bags

So the last thing/things that I bought that I’m gonna show y’all are the “controversial” reusable shopping bags. Not sure what all of the hate is about. They’re cheap in price and make a great souvenir.

So there’s 7 different designs and I got all but the DHS one, because we obviously didn’t go there. I bought 2 of each, 1 medium and 1 large (12 total) and gave half of them to M.

AK bag

Purchased from Island Mercantile. Only sold at AK.

EPCOT bag

Purchased from Mouse Gear. Only sold at EPCOT. I wish this one had some color though.

MK bag

Purchased from the Emporium. Only sold at MK.

DS bag

Purchased from Disney’s Pin Traders. Only sold at DS.

WoD bag

Purchased from/only sold at WoD.

Up next: Last bag

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Last bag

WDW Resort bag

Purchased from Maestro Mickey’s. Only sold at resort gift shops.

So yeah I like the bags. The only negative thing that I’ll say is that they’re cheaply made, as expected, and aren’t as durable as the other reusable tote bags that they sell. But overall, they look great. I wonder if they’ll come out with new designs next year or if they’ll continue to sell these?

Well, that’s all the merch!

 

[riverside]

My vote is new designs. People who want to collect them will spend the money to buy them. Kind of like the Starbucks “you were here” mugs that I get for my sister every time they come out with new ones. I think there’s been three different sets of Disney mugs....

 

[DisneyLover]

I like them, I just think they’re a little pricy when they aren’t going to be used. But if you’ll get a lot of use out of them, then yeah, they’re a great thing!

 

[krisri18]

I've got the small Epcot one that a friend gave me a baby gift in. I'd say they are an upgrade for gifting souvenirs in, definitely nicer than just handing over a plastic shopping bag

 

[Darstarr]

I use them for my grocery shopping.
But, as the captain said, they are not very strong. For instance, the medium bag can not support the weight of two bottles of Titos, a half gallon of lemonade and a small bottle of pomegranate juice

 

[Captain Barbossa]

My vote is new designs. People who want to collect them will spend the money to buy them. Kind of like the Starbucks “you were here” mugs that I get for my sister every time they come out with new ones. I think there’s been three different sets of Disney mugs....

I’d think that they’d come out with new designs too, or at least that’s what I’m hoping for.

I think the “you were here” mugs look really cool. I don’t have any but I wouldn’t mind starting to collect them. (really want the Epcot one)

I've got the small Epcot one that a friend gave me a baby gift in. I'd say they are an upgrade for gifting souvenirs in, definitely nicer than just handing over a plastic shopping bag

I like the Epcot bag, but I wish it featured some other colors besides black, white, and grey.

I use them for my grocery shopping.
But, as the captain said, they are not very strong. For instance, the medium bag can not support the weight of two bottles of Titos, a half gallon of lemonade and a small bottle of pomegranate juice☹

I’m hesitant to use mine. I’m pretty sure that with enough weight the handles will rip clean off.

 

[Back!Elbow!Shoulders!]

I’ve primarily used mine to carry a change of clothes to and from work. This past week we used a small one to carry books and it held up pretty well. It was super full of mostly hardcovers and suffered no damage.