I set a personal record Saturday for my shortest trip to Walt Disney World. A few weeks ago, I was planning a December trip to WDW. I thought about using a voucher for a free roundtrip flight earned through Southwest's Rapid Rewards program. It turned out that Southwest had a great deal through their Ding! software on the morning that I checked on my flight, so I decided to save my Rapid Rewards voucher for later. I got a roundtrip ticket from Nashville to Orlando for $83 and some change including taxes and fees.
After booking my December flight, I started looking at other dates. I wanted to spend a little time at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival, and I realized that I could fly to Orlando on the morning of Saturday, November 12 and return the same evening for $75.40 roundtrip. I would also receive double Rapid Rewards credits for this trip. The morning flight wasn't as early as I would have liked, but I decided to try it.
I got up on Saturday morning and drove from Kentucky to the airport in Nashville. I had already printed boarding passes for both flights on Friday evening. My plane left at 11:10 a.m. With the change to Eastern time, I arrived in Orlando at about 1:40 p.m. There was no line at the Dollar counter. I reservered an intermediate class car, which is usually something like a Dodge Stratus through Dollar. I didn't plan on being in the car much, so I just wanted something cheap. The total was a little over $36. When I got to the garage, they gave me a key to a new Dodge Charger, so I think this was an upgrade.
I pulled on to Disney property from the Crossroads entrance at 2:30 p.m. I wanted to stop for a quick bite at Earl Of Sandwich before heading over to Epcot. Parking was a nightmare. Even the West Side lots seemed to be pretty full. I decided to skip Downtown Disney and head over to Epcot. I walked into the park at 2:45 p.m I made a quick stop in The Art Of Disney, and headed toward World Showcase after checking the board for attraction wait times. Soarin' had a standby wait of 110 minutes, so I knew I wouldn't be riding it again on this trip.
I couldn't believe the crowds in World Showcase. After seeing a couple of the food booth lines, I wasn't sure that I would be able to eat as much as I had hoped. The weather was beautiful though, and it was nice just to be there. I did stand in a few lines and ended up trying the Coco Rico (Coconut Soda), Samuel Adams Chocolate Cream Stout Cake, Chocolate Creme Brulee, Cheddar Cheese Soup, and the Maple Walnut Fudge.
After about an hour and 45 minutes at Epcot, I decided to try Downtown Disney again. I hated to waste the time, but I needed to top off the gas tank in the rental car, so I pulled into the gas station across from the Boardwalk. There were lines at all of the pumps, but I didn't have to wait long. It only cost a little over a $1.00 to fill up, so I probably should have just paid extra when I returned the car.
I found a parking spot at Pleasure Island, and walked toward the Marketplace to eat. The Festival Of The Masters was this weekend, so I stopped a few times on the way to check out the chalk drawings on the pavement. I was pleasantly surprised at the lack of a line at Earl Of Sandwich. The food was good as usual (I had The Frenchy), and I walked back through Pleasure Island to West End. Ragland Road looks like fun, and I hope to try it in December when I go back for a few days. By the time I got to West End, I had started looking at my watch. I had an 8:00 p.m. flight and it was about 5:40 p.m. I didn't really have time to drive somewhere else on property, so I looked around the Virgin Megastore for a little while.
By 6:00 p.m., I decided I had better make my way back to the airport. I already had my boarding pass, and I didn't have any luggage to check, but you never know what traffic or the lines through the security check will be like. It only took a couple of minutes to return the rental car, and I still had a little over an hour to spare before my flight left. I was home by 10:15 p.m.
I kept track of my expenses for the day. Airfare, tolls, rental car, airport parking, and food came to $142.82. Was it worth it? I think it probably was. I have made a couple of day trips in the past, but I have always been able to get an earlier flight. I have had as many as 8 hours in the parks on previous trips. This trip was way too short, but it was a very enjoyable day. I don't mind flying, and I was able to read a book while I was travelling.
Thanks for reading.
Stuart
After booking my December flight, I started looking at other dates. I wanted to spend a little time at the Epcot Food & Wine Festival, and I realized that I could fly to Orlando on the morning of Saturday, November 12 and return the same evening for $75.40 roundtrip. I would also receive double Rapid Rewards credits for this trip. The morning flight wasn't as early as I would have liked, but I decided to try it.
I got up on Saturday morning and drove from Kentucky to the airport in Nashville. I had already printed boarding passes for both flights on Friday evening. My plane left at 11:10 a.m. With the change to Eastern time, I arrived in Orlando at about 1:40 p.m. There was no line at the Dollar counter. I reservered an intermediate class car, which is usually something like a Dodge Stratus through Dollar. I didn't plan on being in the car much, so I just wanted something cheap. The total was a little over $36. When I got to the garage, they gave me a key to a new Dodge Charger, so I think this was an upgrade.
I pulled on to Disney property from the Crossroads entrance at 2:30 p.m. I wanted to stop for a quick bite at Earl Of Sandwich before heading over to Epcot. Parking was a nightmare. Even the West Side lots seemed to be pretty full. I decided to skip Downtown Disney and head over to Epcot. I walked into the park at 2:45 p.m I made a quick stop in The Art Of Disney, and headed toward World Showcase after checking the board for attraction wait times. Soarin' had a standby wait of 110 minutes, so I knew I wouldn't be riding it again on this trip.
I couldn't believe the crowds in World Showcase. After seeing a couple of the food booth lines, I wasn't sure that I would be able to eat as much as I had hoped. The weather was beautiful though, and it was nice just to be there. I did stand in a few lines and ended up trying the Coco Rico (Coconut Soda), Samuel Adams Chocolate Cream Stout Cake, Chocolate Creme Brulee, Cheddar Cheese Soup, and the Maple Walnut Fudge.
After about an hour and 45 minutes at Epcot, I decided to try Downtown Disney again. I hated to waste the time, but I needed to top off the gas tank in the rental car, so I pulled into the gas station across from the Boardwalk. There were lines at all of the pumps, but I didn't have to wait long. It only cost a little over a $1.00 to fill up, so I probably should have just paid extra when I returned the car.
I found a parking spot at Pleasure Island, and walked toward the Marketplace to eat. The Festival Of The Masters was this weekend, so I stopped a few times on the way to check out the chalk drawings on the pavement. I was pleasantly surprised at the lack of a line at Earl Of Sandwich. The food was good as usual (I had The Frenchy), and I walked back through Pleasure Island to West End. Ragland Road looks like fun, and I hope to try it in December when I go back for a few days. By the time I got to West End, I had started looking at my watch. I had an 8:00 p.m. flight and it was about 5:40 p.m. I didn't really have time to drive somewhere else on property, so I looked around the Virgin Megastore for a little while.
By 6:00 p.m., I decided I had better make my way back to the airport. I already had my boarding pass, and I didn't have any luggage to check, but you never know what traffic or the lines through the security check will be like. It only took a couple of minutes to return the rental car, and I still had a little over an hour to spare before my flight left. I was home by 10:15 p.m.
I kept track of my expenses for the day. Airfare, tolls, rental car, airport parking, and food came to $142.82. Was it worth it? I think it probably was. I have made a couple of day trips in the past, but I have always been able to get an earlier flight. I have had as many as 8 hours in the parks on previous trips. This trip was way too short, but it was a very enjoyable day. I don't mind flying, and I was able to read a book while I was travelling.
Thanks for reading.
Stuart
