Trip Report 50 Firsts for the 50th Anniversary Completed

Tiki Traveler · Jan 29, 2023

Day 1 cont. - HS to Epcot

Our morning had been fantastic - three new rides and the Muppets! Hoping our luck would continue we rode the rides stacked through Genie+.

DH beat me on TSM but I earned Most Accurate.

Never thought I would see Gertie in her Santa hat!

Then it was time for TOT. Not so fun fact about me - I developed a fear of heights about 10 years ago.

The person on your ride photo who has a death grip on the ride bar with either their eyes squeezed shut or a look of abject terror - that’s probably me. I try and push past it. Knowing I’ve ridden (and survived) a ride before helps. I prefer sitting anywhere but the first row in any ride off the ground. Starting with TOT and throughout our trip all the CMs were very sweet about my request.

After TOT the park heated up in terms of crowds and temperature/humidity. We stopped at Dockside Market for a break. While DH found a table I ordered a frozen margarita, Diet Coke and pretzel for us to share. The pretzel came with plastic cheese. I thought DH would comment but it was the first thing he dug into.

Thoroughly refreshed we watched Beauty & The Beast Live on Stage. Great voices!

We wandered through several stores and I was temporarily reunited with my elementary school lunch box.

Next we had an early dinner at ABC Commissary. We mobile ordered the Chicken Club sandwich w/fries (me), Mediterranean Salad w/Chicken (DH) and a Diet Coke. And here is where we found the winner of Silly Human Tricks at Disney.

Now whenever you overcrowd an area people get stressed, right? Some don’t understand societal norms and some choose to ignore them. During our trip there were a number of contestants but the first day is when we encountered most of them - was it because of Fantasmic? was there a full moon? This group won because of their uniqueness.

It turns out you can eat AND SLEEP in the restaurants now. The only table available at ABC Commissary was next to a table with three women sleeping. This reminded me of sleeping on a train because they had their purses strapped across their shoulders with their arms folded in front of them to prevent theft. Their bags were placed underneath the table between their legs. There was no food or drink on their table. My guess is that they started at rope drop and were resting up for Fantasmic. The woman sitting behind my husband almost fell over into him at one point but jerked herself up. Dining room staff ignored them despite numerous people with food trays looking for tables. Oh well, at least they didn’t snore.

We also met some really nice people and I’ll mention them too.

Finally it was time for Slinky Dog which I had booked oh so early in the morning. I proudly kept my eyes open for most of the ride. As I was getting out I heard a pop and my left knee wrenched to the side. What?? Somehow I twisted my knee. It was uncomfortable but with no prior knee issues between us we decided to continue and hope it would resolve itself.

Late that afternoon Disney had been sending park texts about Fantasmic. At about 6:15pm they announced the line for the second show was forming. As we took a leisurely stroll to the Skyliner we noticed it was out to Hollywood Blvd. Pics as we left.

From the Skyliner we could see cars continuing to pour into HS. Riding over the Caribbean resort from the Skyliner was cool. The cars swung more than expected when returning to drop off but we both enjoyed our ride.

Epcot was very crowded. It was hard to get close to read the F&W booth signs. We walked through the World Showcase and took a Gran Fiesta tour in Mexico. They must have overcounted because they didn’t have room for DH and me once on the boat platform. They had us stand with the CM at the control booth and then get on the next boat. Even though there was a long line they sent us out alone sitting in the front row. I joked this was our anniversary cruise.

We walked back to Norway and toured the Stave Church Gallery. Then we got our first school bread - it was wheatier than expected and we couldn’t place the filling but very good.

We watched Harmonious by Norway. Since our trip Disney announced they will replace Harmonious. It was a far cry from Illuminations but I liked the fireworks and the water patterns. The movement of the projection arms was kind of cool. Beside displaying the equipment during the day, I thought the worst part was the musical program. It could have been called “Happily Ever After Lite” or just “Movie Clips”. We both enjoyed the colored water projections that continued after the show. They reminded us of the Bellagio fountains in Las Vegas and gave off a cool, quiet vibe.

Hoping to reduce our bus wait we shopped in Creations and purchased an opalescent 50th anniversary coffee mug.

Things were a little strange when we walked into the bus area about 45 minutes after Harmonious ended. Except for a lot of Riverside and a few French Quarter guests there was no one else around - no CMs, no security, no other guests.

We were in the middle of the Riverside crowd which spilled beyond the bus fencing. After about 10 minutes a bus pulled in for French Quarter and some of the Riverside crowd got on. Then nothing and no one else around for another 15 minutes. It didn’t look like we would make it on this bus but the driver asked for two more people and no one in front of us wanted to break up their group.

When we got back we grabbed our drink mugs and headed to the Riverside Mill food court. We also checked out the River Roost lounge. On stage a man was playing classic hits on a keyboard. The unexpected music was a nice surprise. We stood in the back for a few songs and then headed to bed for another early morning.

# of Private Tours in HS - 7
20,362 steps - 8.63 miles

Thanks for reading! Next up - Somewhere out there….I think

Tiki Traveler · Jan 31, 2023

Day 2 - Friday, Nov. 4, 2022 - How Well Do You Know Disney World?

Can anyone guess where we were on our second day from this photo? Did we follow our itinerary or did we change our park reservations? Stay tuned!

k8einwdw · Jan 31, 2023

Tiki Traveler said:
Day 2 - Friday, Nov. 4, 2022 - How Well Do You Know Disney World?

Can anyone guess where we were on our second day from this photo? Did we follow our itinerary or did we change our park reservations? Stay tuned!

View attachment 695816

Epcot - Norway?

Tiki Traveler · Feb 3, 2023

k8einwdw said:
Epcot - Norway?

Yes, you’ve got a great eye! It’s the waterfall outside of Puffin’s Roost/Fjording Gift Shop after you exit Frozen. With the tiered fast passes we always opted for Test Track and never knew this sweet area existed.

Tiki Traveler · Feb 5, 2023

Day 2 - Friday, Nov. 4, 2022 - Somewhere Out There….. I Think

Even with two phone alarms and a Mickey wake-up call urging us to, “Get up big doins’ ahead” we made the sleepy decision to forgo rope drop and get to Epcot shortly after the main opening at 8:30am. Shortly before 7am I purchased Genie+. Unfortunately I did not secure a boarding group in the GOTG Virtual Que. Since we were going to park hop to MK for the evening I purchased LLs for 10:30am and then used Genie+ to book Rat for 12:30pm.

We ate breakfast in our room and walked behind our building to the East bus stop and caught a bus to Epcot. It was shortly after 8:30am and we breezed through the entrance gates.

We got right on TT. As we walked over to Soarin’ we got a park text that our LL for GOTG had been cancelled and we should see a cast member. It didn’t mention anything about the ride being down. It was strange because the reservation still showed up on My Disney Experience. We didn’t run into any Customer Service booths so we just kept going.

After Soarin‘ we rode LWTL and decided to make our way back to Guardians.

Now everyone else has beautiful pictures of SSE at night but we have SSE with the lovely construction wall. What can I say? The PPP looked lonely. Why put them there?

Sometimes it’s best to not overthink things and since the GOTG reservation was still on My Disney Experience we followed people into the LL entrance and tapped in green. We were in!

I was so excited that I forgot to ask for the second row in the car. We were on the platform when I asked the young women behind us if they wanted the front row. They were happy to switch since they had forgotten to ask for the very first row.

Best Ride of the Trip! Blondie’s One Way or Another was playing and we definitely moved one way and another and another and another… The music also helped lessen my nerves. Happy to report we both walked off the ride feeling just fine.

The young women in our car waited for us at the exit so we could compare notes on the ride. Very sweet.

We mobile ordered two French Bistro Burgers with fries and a Diet Coke at Connections Eatery. No sleepers at this restaurant as a dining room manager only gave you access to the main dining area once you had your food. We thought Connections had a nice slightly futuristic look.

Just as we started to explore the countries of the world we got a text that Rat was down. Rats! We decided to wait it out so we explored the details of every country. We also split a delicious neopolitian in Les Halles Boulangerie Patisserie.

Then in the miniature trains of Germany we saw him - the living, breathing train conductor!! He was wearing his train overalls, train hat and red neckerchief. He was having a detailed discussion with a boy about 10. Best yet the conductor went to a side cabinet and pulled out some train controls and let the boy run the trains while the boy’s mother took pictures. Is this a Disney World bingo square? (This is DH’s dream retirement job.)

We also took our first ride on Frozen (outside picture posted earlier) and I got my back and bottom pretty wet. I vaguely remember Maelstrom but don’t remember getting wet. Oh well, it was a warm, sunny day so I dried as I walked.

After about 2 hours Rat came back and we braved the kitchen of Gusteau’s famous Paris restaurant.

We decided to head to the front of the park so we could Monorail to MK. On our way we caught a ride on SSE and got our zoom video.

Even though it was a Friday night I thought MK might be a little less crowded because it was only the second day of Fantasmic at HS and Boyz2Men was the featured concert at Epcot. Wishful thinking MK was still crowded.

We were thrilled to see the Christmas decorations but it was getting dark so decided to take pictures another day. We mobile ordered dinner at Pecos Bill’s. DH had the Sun Bonnet Trio Salad with Chicken and then helped me finish my fajita platter.

Then we visited my favorite attraction of all time.

Yes, it is my all-time favorite attraction for sentimental reasons.

After seeing the birdies sing on my first trip in 1978, my cousin and I proceeded to sing the catchy tune, In the Tiki Tiki TikI Tiki Tiki Room, for a week straight. My grandparents were . P.S. Grampa smoked a cigar throughout MK.
We missed seeing these talented birds on our trip in August 2019. During the Halloween party Moana was in the pre show area for photo ops and a college aged CM explained to me in all seriousness, ”The birds are sleeping and they need their rest.” #CMGold

Once again we witnessed young and young at heart smiling and swaying to the music and animatronics. To the Disney Execs who read trip reports mining for ideas, okay scratch that, more realistically, to the Disney Interns who read trip reports mining for ideas - Don’t tear down an original attraction just because it’s an original attraction. Add some overlays and show options with varying characters, songs, etc. similar to GOTG and the former Adventurers Club. Guests will visit repeatedly for different versions of the show. Much cheaper than adding a totally new attraction.

Of course we had to have a Dole Whip to celebrate seeing my beloved show.

Enchantment was going to start in about 20 minutes. We knew we weren’t going to get the best view but….. this was a little ridiculous. We were herded through the service road behind the Casey’s Corner side of Main Street. I joked that this was quite the behind the scenes tour as we saw the backs of all the buildings on Main Street. They aren’t decorated and we saw lots of pallets and boxes. Merchandise must be flying off the shelves.

I also joked we were going to be walked right out to the busses which we almost were. We came out by the Firehouse. I thought we could watch from the Train Station but that was roped off for five people. There was already a crowd in front of the Christmas tree so we were behind the Christmas tree to the right. If you look at an aerial shot there are decorative trees and benches on the right and left. I was peering underneath the decorative, live tree on the right to catch a glimpse of the castle.

It was still pretty bright in that area and people were continuing to leave so we didn’t get the full Enchantment experience. I just remember white umbrella fireworks. I’ve tried watching Enchantment on YouTube a few times to patch together what we saw but I always lose interest.

Watching a video of the Tiki Room Show on the other hand, always has my full attention.

We used Genie+ to book The Jingle Cruise for 10:15pm so we had to somehow fight the mass exodus and get back to the rides. There was a 20 minute wait to meet Mickey & Minnie in their anniversary finery at the Town Square Theatre so we ducked in there. Unfortunately the standby line grew to 45 minutes as the people who booked through Genie+ came in. There were people in front and behind us hacking up their lungs so we reluctantly stepped out of line. We stayed to the right and waded through stores and construction to get back to the castle area.

We rode POTC and then I tapped out. Even though we had booked The Jingle Cruise my knee was done for the night. We walked (hobbled) to the bus around 10pm.

Now I have read Disney employs PHDs who specialize in crowd management and yet the best thing Disney can come up with is to put masking tape on the ground of the overflow Riverside bus bay?? The Riverside bus area was a mess. One CM was working a series of ropes and latches to have the two bus bays work as one and ensure people in the front of the line got on the first and then second busses. The system fell apart as the CM was getting two people in their scooters on to the first bus. Isn’t that the bus driver’s job? While the CM was on the first bus the second DISNEY bus driver got off and randomly unhooked some of the ropes so the people in the middle of the line got on. Then some guests unhooked other ropes and people around them surged on to the first bus. The first DISNEY bus driver did nothing to stop them. There was a lot of yelling as those of us near the front of the line who followed the rules were somehow near the back of the line again.

Josh D’Amaro & Team - Do better

The first DISNEY bus driver finally got up and announced he had space for two more. I grabbed DH and somehow got on the bus. The bus driver went the wrong way on the internal Riverside loop and dropped us off at the last stop. Part of me says we should have Ubered from MK but why should we pay for something that is included?

The beauty and tranquility of the Riverside grounds helped melt the bus stress away. DH grabbed our drink mugs and we had some iced tea before we went to sleep.

I refuse to end a report grumpy so here’s a joke, What is Olaf’s favorite cereal? Frosted Flakes

Disney Frozen Film GIF by Walt Disney Animation Studios

# of Private Tours in Epcot - 3
25,830 steps - 10.95 miles
Yes, light housekeeping per moderate hotel housekeeping policy

Thank you for reading! Next Up - Pool Day or No Big Doins’

amjt660 · Feb 7, 2023

Tiki Traveler said:
Then in the miniature trains of Germany we saw him - the living, breathing train conductor!! He was wearing his train overalls, train hat and red neckerchief. He was having a detailed discussion with a boy about 10. Best yet the conductor went to a side cabinet and pulled out some train controls and let the boy run the trains while the boy’s mother took pictures. Is this a Disney World bingo square? (This is DH’s dream retirement job.)

I have never seen this character near the railroad.
Glad you were able to witness it first hand.

Tiki Traveler said:
Don’t tear down an original attraction just because it’s an original attraction. Add some overlays and show options with varying characters, songs, etc

Be careful what you wish for.....

enchanted tiki room jose GIF by Disney Parks

Max

Darstarr · Feb 7, 2023

Tiki Traveler said:
I purchased Genie+ bright and early

Tiki Traveler said:
but why should we pay for something that is included?

k8einwdw · Feb 7, 2023

amjt660 said:
Be careful what you wish for.....

You beat me to it!

Tiki Traveler · Feb 7, 2023

amjt660 said:
I have never seen this character near the railroad.
Glad you were able to witness it first hand.

Be careful what you wish for.....

View attachment 696925

View attachment 696924

Max

k8einwdw said:
You beat me to it!

I never knew there was a train engineer in Germany either.

Apparently I missed the attempted Tiki Birds update the years I was away from Disney and maybe that was a good thing??

Tiki Traveler · Feb 7, 2023

Darstarr said:

Definitely! The struggle is real….

Tiki Traveler · Feb 10, 2023

Day 3 - Pool Day and Disney Springs

How nice to sleep in on vacation! We looked forward to having breakfast outside of our room. We usually have at least one TS breakfast but with trying to get to the parks early and booking rides with Genie+ each day we dropped trying to schedule a TS breakfast.

Fortunately CS breakfast was quite nice in the Riverside Mills food court. We mobile ordered two waffle bounty platters and asked for plates so we didn’t have to eat out of boxes. We used our drink mugs for iced tea and coffee.

Then it was pool time! We moved a chaise lounge so we could sit together in the pool area with our backs to the main building. There was actually room to swim and move around in the pool. We both went down the water slide which may have been the slowest water slide ever but the 12-and-under crowd seemed to love it.

Everything was great! The activity director was playing music and coordinating children’s game and the music volume was just right. For us, swimming in November is a novelty. Eventually we got out. I began to read as DH waited for the waiter to come over to order drinks.

And then….drip. It started to rain.

Being hearty Buffalonians we felt compelled to wait out bad weather (and keep our good lounge space). We stowed our belongings under our chairs and smiled at the other stalwart souls around us. And then the rain came down harder until it bounced off the pavement. We reluctantly abandoned our seats, threw on our cover ups and left with the stragglers.

We grabbed towels and ran back to the food court. We dried off as best we could, sat on our towels, and split an order of chicken strips and fries. DH’s total pool time - 1 hour and 20 min. I asked if he wanted to change our plans for additional pool time and he declined.

The rain let up and we changed for Disney Springs. As an aside, I can’t speak to staffing numbers but throughout our stay we saw plenty of housekeeping and grounds keeping staff at Riverside. We even dodged golf carts as in preCovid times.

Goofy appeared behind the main building as we boarded the boat to Disney Springs.

We inadvertently visited Disney Springs in June 2018 trying to boat back to FQ from Olivia’s in OKW. The only store we stopped in that visit was the Lego Store. (Photo from 2018 visit.)

Now there is only one dock instead of separate drop off and pick up docks. Before the trip we scanned the DS store listing and were on a mission for a few items.

First we found Basin and I used the 10% off coupon that came with our magic bands to buy Mickey soap slices. Among other things the coupon was good for a free round of miniature golf (backup activity).

Then we got our free photos from the PhotoPass Studio. The web site said you can pick from hundreds of backgrounds but the greeter immediately suggested a default package of five seasonal and popular backgrounds. I’m sure they do this to move people along but the only other customers were leaving. I asked for one background of a romantic 50th anniversary Cinderella’s castle and the greeter told me to mention it to the photographer. Below are two of the shots.

The other shots were Santa’s Workshop, Frozen Snowy Woods and Tower of Terror (??). There was another photo area with actual autumn theming. We sat on a small bench for those photos. One word - Posture.

As we headed to locate The Boathouse a couple w/a toddler stopped us. We chatted with them the first morning at the Riverside bus stop. The husband was a big Star Wars fan and wanted to find out how we liked Galaxy’s Edge. They were from California and visited Disneyland many times but this was the wife’s and daughter’s first trip to Disney World. We chatted for about 10 minutes before we went our separate ways.

We completed our mission of DH buying shoes from the Sperry store and wandered through more stores before arriving for our 6:15pm dinner reservation. The hostess asked if we wanted to sit outside and we enthusiastically said yes since it was still nice and warm. It was so pretty to look out over the water.

DH ordered a Chardonnay and I perused the cocktail menu looking for the perfect drink. What is the saying? Perfection is the enemy of the good?? Our waiter (sorry first time reporter mistake no name) even nicely described what two women at adjacent tables were drinking. I settled on the Duck Duck Razz cocktail because of the ingredients - Stoli raspberry, blue curaçao, etc. Many of you probably know what it is by now…

Yes, there was an actual rubber duck in a smurf blue cocktail. It was very sweet (and pretty strong) and I added a lot of ice to cut the sweetness.

I ordered the Maine Style Lobster Roll with the ubiquitous french fries. DH ordered the Cedar Planked Gulf of Maine Salmon which came with tricolor baby carrots and broccolini and an order of split grilled asparagus with hollandaise for us to share. The waiter also brought warm rolls with citrus butter.

The meal was very good and we especially enjoyed sitting outside. Some of the inside rooms seemed loud but the seafood bar area was interesting. We would eat there again.

We explored Disney Springs some more and eventually stopped at Sprinkles for dessert where we shared a cupcake sundae consisting of a chocolate marshmallow cupcake and cookies and cream ice cream. We purchased the 50th Anniversary blend coffee at Joffrey’s but I was too full for a character foamed cappuccino which has always been on my bucket list - next time. Our final stop was Amorette’s Patisserie to check out the bakery and see the anniversary cake up close. I think it’s a work of art.

The boat line for FQ looked long but was orderly and there were two CMs on the dock plus boat staff. We were on the third boat that came in. It’s always interesting to see the treehouses on this ride. Below is a picture of FQ from the boat.

Now our philosophy since Covid hit has been…

Over dinner we talked about the rest of our stay. I was thrilled to see all the Christmas decorations at MK. For the next few years it would be very difficult for us to visit DW after Thanksgiving. I suggested we change our plans and DH agreed. We changed our park reservations for MK on Sunday and AK on Monday. This meant a second trip to HS was probably out because of MK Christmas.

10,751 Steps - 4.56 Miles
No Light Housekeeping, None Expected

Thanks for Reading! Next Up - A Merry Magic Kingdom

Tiki Traveler · Feb 11, 2023

Day 4 - Sunday, Nov. 6, 2023 - Merry Magic Kindom

We had seen few guests in our hotel wing but Saturday night we certainly heard them. Around midnight the room above us was not feeling well. The sound from their room magnified because it was dead quiet waking both us and the other rooms around us.

At 2am I considered knocking on the door of the room above us and offering them our OTC medicines in an effort to help them (and get them to go to sleep).

At 3am DH and I decided to adjust our morning plans to include sleeping in.

At 4am things finally quieted down above us and we slept uninterrupted. From the noises of the last four hours fanning out around us our resort wing had a very restless night.

At 6:55 am I purchased Genie+ and then bought LLs for 7 Dwarfs for late afternoon, booked Jingle Cruise for early afternoon and went back to sleep.

We had another delicious late breakfast at the Riverside Mill Food Court. I had the Mickey waffles with bacon and sausage. DH had the waffle bounty platter and we split an extra side of scrambled eggs.

We walked to the East bus stop about five minutes before it was scheduled to come around 10:45am. Unfortunately the bus time for MK kept getting pushed back in 3 to 5 minute increments so it wasn’t worth going back to the room. It finally came at 11:15am but in the meantime three empty or nearly empty Epcot and two HS busses went by.

Enjoy all the following Christmas and 50th Anniversary goodness.

BTW - the masking tape waiting in line markings failed here as well.

This was a Disney marathon weekend so it was fun to see people in their running costumes at our hotel. In MK we saw many people sporting their medals.

The Buffalo Bills (NFL) played the New York Jets that day. I knew many Buffalo fans wore their gear in the parks. DH had brought a Buffalo Sabres (NHL) shirt. He declined wearing it this day saying he did not want to mix his sports.

Earlier I offered to find a place to watch the game but DH said he would check his phone for updates.

I don’t know if this is just a Buffalo thing but at the start of the game when we ran into Bills fans (appropriately dressed) we would greet each other with smiles and yell, “Go Bills”. If we were in line together then we’d make small talk. By the end of the game when the Bills were losing we would just nod and shake our heads. This Bills sub thread is now closed until next August.

In Tomorrowland it started to rain so we ducked into Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor. It had been terrific during the Halloween party. Besides the rides mentioned above we also rode IASM and BTMR. Waiting for HoP we sat on a bench with a lovely couple from the midAtlantic states. They arrived early for a trip with their five grown children and their families. This was the first time they were all together since Covid and the trip had been rescheduled twice. They had a wonderful trip planned with plenty of individual and group activities. I hope we can do something like this for our family someday.

We also caught the Festival of Fantasy parade. No pictures of Maleficient because I wanted to focus on the fire breathing dragon. It had been benched on our June 2018 trip having caught on fire that May.

Yeah I finally maxed out the photo limit! A few more MK pictures to come.

Tiki Traveler · Feb 16, 2023

Day 4 (cont.) - Magic Kingdom

A few more pictures from our day.

No, this isn’t a picture of our children.

It’s to remind me to mention the MK train photo we received. I thought it a bit odd to include a ride that had been suspended for over two years so I didn’t download it. Shortly after Disney announced the train would resume. Check for spoilers in your Photo Pass photos. Or have they included it the entire time the ride was closed??

We planned to ride Little Mermaid to see how it incorporated the former 20,0000 Leagues Under the Sea site but needed to get to our 6pm reservation at Be Our Guest.

The park had filled up by late afternoon and I caught myself walking with my arms out, palms up to try and stop people from walking into us. Between the crowds and lack of sleep we decided to skip Enchantment and leave MK right after dinner.

The BOG hostess informed us they were running behind and it would be another 30 minutes. They would text us when our table was ready. Part of me wanted to ask if they could just try and squeeze us in somewhere, especially since I had taken time off of work to make the ADRs, but I had visions of eating in the kitchen (not the chef’s table) or outside by the bathrooms. Looking at the tip board wait times there weren’t any rides available soon within hobbling (my knee again) distance either.

DH and I decided it was time to move on and the hostess cancelled the reservation. Since it was on Disney we were not charged a cancellation fee. DH wanted to try for another sit-down restaurant but all the restaurants in MK, on the monorail loop and by our hotel were booked for the next few hours. The Plaza restaurant didn’t have walk-in availability either. We decided to head back to the hotel and see if Boatwrights had walk-in availability. If not, Riverside Mills food court by default.

There were a number of groups waiting outside of Boatwrights. The hostess referred us to the on-line reservation system which did not have openings until 8:30pm. I grabbed a table in the food court while DH dropped off our backpack and grabbed our drink mugs from our room. We didn’t mobile order because our choices were not listed on-line. DH had the beef tips, mashed potatoes and green beans. I had the gumbo. We split a cookies and cream cupcake.

We had lunch at Be Our Guest on a previous trip and will probably eat there again someday. I think we didn’t get the evening we planned but got the evening we needed. We were sound asleep by 9pm.

16,192 steps - 6.84 miles
Yes, light housekeeping as expected

Thanks for reading! Next Up - Happy Birthday Betty!

Tiki Traveler · Feb 17, 2023

Day 5 - Monday, Nov. 7, 2022 - Animal Kingdom

We woke up refreshed after a great night’s sleep. Shortly before 7am I purchased Genie+ and booked Kilimanjaro Safaris. “Add-on fatigue” was starting to hit so we skipped the Avatar LLs. If the Avatar standby line got to less than an hour we would get in line.

DH picked up a bagel sandwich for us through mobile order and we ate while getting ready. The only snafu with mobile ordering the entire trip was that the sandwich was missing bacon. We ignored the mistake as the bus to AK was arriving soon at the bus stop behind our building.

Starting on the bus the main topic of conversation around us was the impending tropical storm. Many people were adjusting their plans to leave the next day before the storm hit the following day. Fortunately we had a midmorning flight out Tuesday and the car service had already confirmed our return trip to the airport.

We walked right through the AK gates shortly after the main opening.

Our rides/attractions were:
- Kilimanjaro Safaris
- Dinosaur - During the pre show w/Phylicia Rashad a CM announced the ride was temporarily down because a guest’s purse had flown off the ride. They had to find the purse and then send a test ride through. They opened the doors on both sides of the room to make it less claustrophobic. We sat on the floor and texted our children. After about 20 minutes the ride resumed. Does this count as a ride breakdown?

The rest of the rides/attractions worked more or less as planned continuing with:
- Majarajah Jungle Trek
- Expedition Everest

We mobile ordered lunch at Flame Tree Barbecue. We split the Smokehouse Chicken Salad, Baked Mac and Cheese w/Pulled Pork, AK Autumn Spice Cupcake and a Diet Coke.

Beside tasty food FTB has some of the prettiest views.

After lunch we watched Feathered Friends in Flight for the first time. Cute but avoid middle floor seating if you don’t want big birds flying over you.

We spent time on Discovery Island exploring the Tree of Life and then browsed through a few stores. Our dinner reservation was at 5pm. We had never been to the Crescent Lake area so we left AK around 3:15pm to give us time to explore.

Until we meet again AK…..

We bussed over to Board Walk and checked out the Board Walk and Dolphin resorts. I think our children would like the Crescent Lake area due to the proximity of the two parks.

I thought I had read that men were required to wear collared shirts so DH changed into a dri fit polo he had brought in our backpack.

I had also read that Todd English’s blue zoo was designed to look like the bottom of the ocean. I couldn’t confirm that until I peeked in the main dining room after the meal because they placed us at a booth in the bar area. Even though the bar (about 10 seats) was full most of the time and there was a corporate event going on on the other side of the booths (we were separated by a stylized wall) it was never overly loud.

I played it safe and ordered a Citroen Cranberry. DH ordered the Barrel Aged Manhattan which came in a small martini glass. DH said the cherry was smoked and was the best manhattan he ever had!

We both ordered the Butler Steak and split an order of Roasted Brussels Sprouts. We planned on having dessert at Epcot. The food, the service, and the atmosphere were all very good. We would happily eat there again!

We walked right out of the Dolphin and took a boat back to Epcot. The Assistant Captain announced that it was Betty’s birthday. He had Betty wave and then he led us in singing Happy Birthday. Betty, if you are reading I hope you had a great night!

Happy Mickey Mouse GIF by Feliks Tomasz Konczakowski

The Epcot countries were the busiest I had ever seen. Strange for a Monday night but the Food & Wine festival was winding down and perhaps people were attending before the storm? It was a sea of people, lead with your shoulder through the crowd crowd. We knew we were not going to get close to any desserts so we bussed back to Riverside and split another Cookies and Cream cupcake. Those of you who have gotten Karamell-Kutche treats I’m jealous. We were shut out two nights!

We were sad to leave but knew it was time to go home as we were both scheduled to work on Wednesday.

18,424 steps - 7.81 miles
Yes, light housekeeping again, bonus day

Thanks for Reading! Next Up - Travelling Day & Trip Wrap up

Tiki Traveler · Feb 25, 2023

Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022 - Departure & Final Thoughts

Our departure went smoothly. The car service arrived behind our building 10 minutes early. The airport was busy but our plane took off on time. I mentioned there was little leg room on our first flight. On this flight, from Orlando to Chicago, United had removed two regular, non-emergency exit rows from coach so although the plane was full the ride was comfortable.

We made our connection and arrived home as planned.

Final Thoughts

Thank you for reading my first trip report! I hope you found it enjoyable and/or informative. My advice to first time reporters is to take LOTS of photos, take notes, and expect the report will take longer than planned.

DH and I are both happy we took a post-Covid vacation even though it was the first without our children. I was also glad we got to experience Disney World’s 50th anniversary.

When choosing the title of this report - 50 Firsts for the 50th Anniversary - I made a list of all this vacation’s “firsts” so the title would be accurate. I stopped counting after #52 which points out one of my favorite things about DW - there is always something new or new to you.

Shortly after our trip Disney sent us a survey about our resort. It focused on the buildings and grounds but I included comments about the bus service in several places.

According to our credit card we spent $247.12 on 8 Genie+ passes and 6 Lightning Lanes. Our children were surprised at some of the rides and attractions we missed. Hurting my knee on our first park day hampered us more than I care to admit. Fortunately it healed on its own.

As many others have reported park overcrowding makes it difficult to navigate the parks and is our main complaint. I think this gif describes our attempts at rope drop.

I suggested to DH that we plan another Disney trip so I can redeem my trip reporting skills.

Currently we have no plans but I hope we visit sooner than later and of course, if presented with the opportunity I can be packed in an hour!

Take good care!

mpaulam · Feb 25, 2023

Thanks for sharing your trip

amjt660 · Feb 25, 2023

Great trip reporting- did not feel like a first time report at all
( and I agree with your advice on how long it takes to do the report - it is a balance between getting enough detail in but not talking about a trip too long after it actually happened)

Hope you get back and do a second report

Max

k8einwdw · Feb 25, 2023

Great first report! Thank you for sharing your trip with us!

MickeyCB · Feb 25, 2023

Really enjoyed your TR, thanks for sharing!

Wicked Sisters · Feb 26, 2023

Your first report was really enjoyable. We go in September but I am not brave enough to do a report. Thanks for sharing your adventures.

Trip Report 50 Firsts for the 50th Anniversary *Completed*

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Trip Report 50 Firsts for the 50th Anniversary Completed