Trip Report 97 fast passes and 97 pounds later, I'm back! March 2018 Trip Report Updated 6-4

NotZacHoward · Apr 5, 2018

Day 3 Part 1: Boma and Animal Kingdom

We woke up bright and early for our breakfast reservation. We had a reservation at Boma at 7:45 which was nice since we did not have to worry about travel time to the reservation. However, it was spring forward so we lost an hour of sleep, which meant the morning came a lot earlier than we were anticipating. I finally rolled out of bed around 7:30 which wasn’t awful since it is not hard to get ready for me in the morning. We got to Boma around 7:50 so not bad all things considered. The layout was AMAZING. It was a huge selection of your basic breakfast foods as well as some African inspired food. It truly was the best breakfast buffet I have ever been too and I am looking forward to going back the next time. The best part was obviously the Simba waffles, anything with a face makes it 100 times better. Seeing something different from the mickey waffle was also a welcome surprise. They also have pancakes with m&m’s in them from the kids section but I thought was a nice unique surprise. We were there for about an hour and decided to head over to Animal Kingdom to start using our FP’s and just explore the park.

The bus was ready for us right when we got to the bus stop and the ride was only 5 minutes, max. Obviously this is probably the best perk about staying at the AK lodge, how close it is to AK. It is quite far from the other parks but not as dreadful as some people make it out to be. We got in the park a little after 9 and were ready to head to our first FP at Everest. I believe they had EMH this morning because all the rides already had a bigger line than I was expecting. On our way to Everest we stopped and met mickey and Minnie in their safari outfit which was precious as ever.

We used our Everest FP and an unfortunate event happened during the ride. I lost my Baymax ears

. I was distraught when I was walking around the gift shop and realize that I did not have them on my head anymore. Sigh.

After the heartbreak weheaded over to Dinosaur since it was reported with only a 10 minute wait, which was true. We walked through the gift shop near the Chester and Hesters part of the park and there they were, more Baymax ears! I obviously could not go on without these ears and I immediately bought them.

We rode PrimeEvil Whirl after that which I think is an underrated ride. Sure the theming really is not the best and it make cause you whiplash BUT I thoroughly enjoy it each time I ride it. It just makes me laugh so hard for some reason. We then had our FP for the Safari which had a lot of animals out and I was extremely excited for how many animals were out! Even the driver seemed to be pretty impressed with the amount, or maybe I was just too excited that I just assumed everyone else was just as excited.

While I was in line I was just checking MDX to see if I could get the 2:00 PM Flight of Passage any earlier. I obviously was extremely grateful that I even had this fastpass but I did not want to wait for that long without any other fastpasses. To my surprise, one at 10:40 opened up! It was only about 10:20 while we were in line so we were not going to have to wait at all! I was super excited!

Pretty uneventful morning for this part of the trip, however I was on the edge of my seat because Pandora was up next and more importantly: Flight of Passage!!

Day 3 Part 1 Vlog:

FP count for this section: 2

FP count for the trip so far: 24

NotZacHoward · Apr 8, 2018

Day 3 Part 2: Pandora and Jiko

The time has finally come! It is time to ride Flight of Passage!! I was giddy with excitement to ride this ride and just see what everyone has been talking about. We used our fastpass and I was extremely excited walking through the gorgeous line. I was kinda bummed I couldn’t see the Avatar animatronic BUT I also did not want to wait in the line so I will just wait to see that. We finally rode it and it literally was FANTASITIC. I cannot explain how amazing it was. It truly was one of the most mind blowing things I have ever experienced. If you have not rode it yet, you must on your next trip!!! Totally amazing. We then got a fast pass for the Festival of the Lion King which is a must to watch every time I am in Animal Kingdom. It is a beautiful show and really really well done. My favorite part is the “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” segment! If I was a performer I would want to be one of those birds. While in line we got a fast pass for Na’vi River Journey that was in an hour.

It was around 1:30 and we were needing a little snack to hold us over until dinner. For a snack credit each, we got Mac n Cheese! One came with pulled pork and the other was a shrimp with a sweet and spicy sauce. Literally this was such an amazing use of a snack credit and a delicious one as well. If you are on the dining plan and want a snack for lunch while in Animal Kingdom, use it on this mac n cheese. It truly was delicious and a huge portion as well.

We then headed back to Pandora to ride the river journey. We used our fast pass on this and while it was exhilarating or mind blowing, it was nice for what it was. The animatronic was great and I loved the ending song. I probably wouldn’t wait hours for this ride but I would try to snag a fast pass for it every trip.

We then got a fast pass for Expedition Everest and then Kali River Rapids to round out our day at Animal Kingdom before dinner at Jiko, which I was extremely excited about since I have only heard amazing things about it!

We headed to the room to get cleaned up and to enjoy the balcony a bit before dinner. This was one of the only times we saw animals outside our room but it was a cool experience! It definitely made it worth it for having that view of a room.

We arrived at Jiko and were sat by a window and met our server Shellie. Before I begin about the food, if you eat at Jiko ask for Shellie. She truly was AMAZING and went above and beyond on everything as well as asked about our pace for the meal before ordering anything. She brought us out a Champaign toast for my birthday since I was already getting dessert while on the dining plan! I was thrilled and it truly is the little things at Disney that make it amazing. She also brought out our bread service which I think was the best bread of the trip! Except Ohana of course since that is just heaven of a place.

For our appetizer we both got the Grilled Wild Boar Tenderloin. It was what Shellie recommended and it truly was delicious! Extremely tender and delicious.

For our main courses I got the Elk which was my first time have Elk and it did not disappoint! Juicy and delicious and just melt in your mouth.

Rachel got the Filet with mac n cheese (she obviously loves mac n cheese, two times one day?! What a life). She said it was extremely good and really different than the filet she got at California Grill, obviously because of the seasoning.

For dessert Malva Pudding, which I was a little apprehensive about but it shocked me in the best way! It was so cute on its presentation and the flavor was great. I wasn’t a fan of the birds nest since it was a different texture but everything else was amazing!

Rach got the Safari Sunset and said it was fine. Nothing amazing but nothing bad as well.

After dinner we headed over to the Magic Kingdom to catch Happily Ever After again and then ride some rides! We got a fastpass for Haunted Mansion after the fireworks and then headed over to ride buzz again since I am obsessed after getting galactic hero the other night! I did not receive it tonight but I did come close again. We then got a fast pass for splash mountain, big thunder mountain and then rounded out the night with a fast pass for Peter Pan. And with that, the time was about midnight and it was time for us to get to sleep and try to catch a nap before our breakfast reservation at 8:30 the next morning!

Day 3 Part 2 Vlog:

FP count for this section: 10
FP count for the trip so far: 34

NotZacHoward · Apr 11, 2018

Day 4 Part 1: Whispering Canyon and 10 Fastpasses?!

The exhaustion from being on the go for so long was finally catching up to us. We had a breakfast reservation at Whispering Canyon at 8:45 and we did not roll out of bed until 8 ish so we knew we were going to be late but it just was so hard being on the go for so long!

We finally made it to the Wilderness Lodge and we checked in without a problem. We did apologize for being late and would totally have understood if they could not have sat us.

We started out the morning with some mimosas to perk us up a bit and get us ready for the day! The really were delicious, but I mean how can you mess up a mimosa? Its Champaign and orange juice.

For our main dishes, I got the Eggs Benedict and if you want to know one thing about me it is that I generally do not care for breakfast food EXCEPT for eggs benedict. I happily will eat breakfast food, it just is not my go to.

Rachel got the skillet and she knew she would probably only get one round of it she just really wanted everything that it came with. The good part about this is they did portion it out (American portion sized obviously) for one person and it was perfect.

We then headed to Hollywood Studios just to enjoy the park and reminisce about me working there way back when. I love the feel of the park and while a lot of it is dated, I still thoroughly enjoy it. We had a fast pass for Rock N Roller Coaster and then Tower of Terror right after that (two of my all time favorites) While in line for Tower I moved our 2:15 fast pass for Star Tours to right after we were to get off Tower (I think like 11:15). We headed to Star Tours and really enjoyed the Last Jedi additions, especially the red salt portion! We then got a fast pass for Toy Story and I did not get best of the hour but I did get best in car so I knew I had to ride it again to get best of the hour.

It was about 1ish by the time we got off Toy Story so we made fast passes for the Muppets at 2 and headed to get a Mickey pretzel as a snack. This is obviously a must for every trip and even though some people don’t like the “plastic” cheese it comes with, I do happily! We enjoyed our pretzel and then headed to the Muppets.

After the Muppets we headed over to sunset to shop and wait for our Rock N fast pass. Now here is the part of the trip where we were EXTREMELY lucky! I am not sure if the fast pass gods were on my side or what but we kept getting fast passes for either tower or rock n roller coaster. While we were in line for one I got a fast pass for the other that would start in 5 minutes. We scored 3 Rock N Roller Coaster fast passes and 2 Tower of Terror fast passes. I obviously enjoyed it thoroughly and was hoping I could do that at every park!

After our last ride on Rock N Roller Coaster, we stated to walk to our dinner reservation at Sci-Fi dine in theater. This would be Rach’s first time and she was extremely excited! I have been there multiple times before.

Day 4 Part 1 Vlog:

FP count for this section: 10
FP count for the trip so far: 44

slipperalwaysfits · Apr 15, 2018

WOW! Sounds like an amazing trip so far! Lucky you for being able to use your family's DVC points! Also, I'm totally taking your fast pass strategy for my trip in the fall. I'll just keep refreshing until I get an earlier one for the ride I want! Hope R's ankle heals enough for her to fully enjoy the trip!

Pardonmypixiedust · Apr 16, 2018

You're a FP master !

NotZacHoward · Apr 17, 2018

Day 4 Part 2: Why Do I Feel Like I'm In Antarctica?!

We arrived at Sci-Fi Diner promptly at 5:15 and we were sat within 10 minutes of our reservation time so not bad at all given there was a mob of people standing around the check in desk. Since it was so dark in the area and I did not want to ruin the mood, I did not get any pictures of our food but you can kinda see it in the vlog. For appetizers we got the fried pickles (absolutely delicious and cooked perfectly) and we also got the boneless wings. This was our most “basic” meal of the trip so we stuck to theme with the food we ordered. I got the seasonal burger for my entrée and it had pimento cheese, a friend green tomato and bacon. Extremely good and cooked perfectly medium. Rach got the spicy pasta, I cannot remember the name off the top of my head. She said the heat was there and it was really delicious, just a huge portion, especially for pasta! For dessert we got the candy bar as well as the doughnut with ice cream. While these were good we were just so stuffed we could barely eat them!

After dinner we had a fast pass for toy story and I FINALLY got best of the hour! It is always my goal but it is hard to achieve at times. While in line for Toy Story we snagged a fast pass for Fantasmic! While I do not think it is totally necessary to get a fast pass for Fantasmic, I do like having one just so I know I at least am guaranteed a spot even though it might not be the best.

We enjoyed Fantasmic however the weather was getting very cold so I obviously HAD to buy a blanket just to make sure I stayed warm and I HAD to get the more expensive one since I liked it more and the print was even better.

We tried to get out of Fantasmic as fast as possible to catch the bus to magic kingdom and this is where madness ensued. We were about 24 people back so we knew we would get on the first bus to come; however, with all the construction happening and all the giant tour busses that were there is was taking FOREVER to get buses in and out of the circle. They had to drive down and do a bit of a circle and then back it up and then go forward and usually back up again. It was an extremely long process and while I am excited for all the things to come, I think the bus situation should have been sorted out a bit more while thinking of all of this.

We finally made it to Magic Kingdom and had a fast pass for Buzz Lightyear and unfortunately I did not get galactic hero but I came SO close! So disappointing :/ We then got a fast pass for the speedway since we had not rode that yet and I enjoy it with all its nauseating fumes that come with it. We then rode Big Thunder and it was FREEZING. I had never been so cold on Big Thunder in all my life! But obviously, I would rather be cold riding rides at Walt Disney World than to be cold sitting at home. We then rounded out the night with back to back fast passes for Splash Mountain because I wanted my own log and I knew not many people would be riding a water ride when it felt so cold out. We did not get home until 1:15 is but it is okay because it is FINALLY sleep in day! We did have anything planned until 11 the next day so we could sleep in and just slowly get on up before starting the day.

Day 4 Part 2 Vlog:

FP count for this section: 7
FP count for the trip so far: 51

NotZacHoward · Apr 25, 2018

So it is finals time here at college so I have not had time to set aside to type out these trip reports! It is much faster for me to edit the vlogs than to type these out. BUT none the less here is Part 1 and 2 of Day 5! (Which will have 3 parts so we aren’t too far behind). But anyway, ON WITH THE SHOW!

Day 5 Part 1&2: EPCOT and Lots of Food!

We finally got to catch up on our sleep and sleep in until around 11:00 am. It was seriously so needed and we both slept like a baby until our alarms started going off. Definitely need a sleep in day, even though we are younger it was starting to catch up with us for how little sleep we had been getting.

We got to EPCOT around 12:00 and had a FP for Frozen Ever After. While I do miss what used to be there, I do not think Frozen is as tragic as some people make it out to be there. I may be biased however because I do LOVE Frozen still and I will forever fanboy about it.

After Frozen, we got a FP for Mission SPACE! While this ride sometimes does get me motion sickness, I still always choose the Orange Team side and will just deal with any consequences that I have to for choosing to ride the more intense side.

We then headed back to World Showcase to snack around the world a bit for Flower and Garden Festival. We had Ohana that night, and y’all know how I feel about Ohana (if you don’t just watch any of my vlogs, I probably mention it twice in every vlog), so I did not want to over stuff myself so that I had an empty stomach for the wonderful meal that evening. We went to the German (I think) pavilion to get our first snack. I got the warm pretzel bun and rach got the potato pancake. Both were pretty good, nothing spectacular but nothing disappointing either!

We then headed Lotus House because I wanted to try the Fried Chicken Dumplings because they just sounded so good on the description. It had a strong peanut butter taste! Not that I do not like peanut butter but it was a lot stronger than I was anticipating. (Pictured in the vlog, I couldn’t find a decent photo of them.)

Rach wanted to try something from the Mexican pavilion. I do not really remember what she got (what it was called) however I do remember that it was pretty tasty, it reminded me of corn bread just smothered with cheese.

We then got a FP for Test Track so we made our way over there. It has been a dream of mine to create the top design of the day so I went in with all this research in hopes that I would be the top design of the day. Unfortunately I came close but did not hit the mark :/ But it was still fun!

We headed over to the Seas with Nemo and Friends so I could have my annual karaoke session of In A Big Blue World since that is seriously my JAM! We also had time to kill before our Soarin FP. After those rides we made our way onto the monorail and over to the Polynesian because it was finally time for the dinner reservation I was looking forward to the most: OHANA!

Day 5 Part 1 Vlog:

Day 5 Part 2 Vlog:

FP count for this section: 4
FP count for the trip so far: 55

NotZacHoward · May 7, 2018

Day 5 Part 3: My Dining Dreams Came True!

Ah the time was finally here, the moment I had been dreaming about for about a year, OHANA! Ohana is my favorite meal I have ever had and I constantly think about it when I am not eating there. I truly enjoy it every single time I am there and just love every single thing about it. I was honestly to excited to eat to even take pictures of the food, I didn’t even vlog a lot of it! But I did get a photo of the most delicious part of the whole meal, the bread pudding! I could eat this for hours and never stop. It just tempts me so much and I never ever want it to end. The banana fosters sauce is to DIE for and the ice cream just really tops it all off.

After dinner we decided to head to Animal Kingdom to ride some rides and explore Pandora at dark since it seems to be a whole new experience. We got FP’s for Everest and Primevil Whirl before heading over to Pandora to walk around. Pandora was actually not to crowded relatively speaking of course. I thought it was really neat at night! However I was expecting just a bit more from it BUT it still was amazing to walk through and see. It truly was beautiful as well.

We hopped on the bus and ended the night at, you guessed it, Magic Kingdom! If you can’t tell, I never really know when to stop and just rest for the night. I just want to get the most out of my vacation and Magic Kingdom at night just has a special feeling and I really thoroughly enjoy just walking around and hearing the music. The temperature was realllllly cold! Well not actually that cold but it just felt really cold. We hopped around the park for a while and got some FP’s for Haunted Mansion, Peter Pan, and Buzz Lightyear. When we got off Buzz it was around 11:45 so we decided to call it a night and head back to the hotel. I am not sure if it is because we were always out so late or what but we hardly ever had issues for the bus back to the hotel. There was one there waiting and if it wasn’t then one was just around the corner coming. Hopefully this is a sign that they have bumped up their bus system!

Day 5 Part 3 Vlog:

FP count for this section: 5
FP count for the trip so far: 60

NotZacHoward · May 26, 2018

Day 6 Part 1: Panic and Adventure

So this whole day was an interesting and exciting one from the food to multiple lost items.

We woke up around 8:30 to head to Animal Kingdom to catch our FP's for Expedition Everest, Flight of Passage and Dinosaur. Everything was going great and Flight of Passage was even more mind blowing the second time around. My wish came true and I finally found a spirit jersey in my size and in the color I wanted! It was still pretty chilly out so I had no problem getting it right then. We went to the check out and everything was great. I was so excited to finally get it and just walked away thinking everything was great.

We got 2 more fast passes for Expedition Everest and then when we were walking towards the front I realized, I didn't have my GoPro! I started panicking and of course went straight to the worst scenario possible. Rach calmed me down and said we should look at the store first to see if they had it. We went there and while they did not have it, they actually saw it on the counter and turned it into guest services. So now that debacle was all over, we could finally head to Sanaa for our lunch reservation.

I had heard rave reviews about Sanaa and was extremely excited to try it out! We got the Lamb skewers and the full bread service for our appetizers. I absolutely LOVED the lamb skewers and could have had a whole meal of them. The bread service was really good too, I just am not a spicy eater nor an adventurous one either so I liked about half of them.

For our entrees we both got the journey. I do not remember what Rach got and I think I got the African cheese thing, butter chicken and the chickpea lentil. While the everything tasted delicious, it was just sooo much food and I was not sure how to actually eat it all haha. I saw some people dump it together and others just eat pieces of it so it freaked me out a bit haha.

For dessert, Rach got the Chocolate Mousse and I have the Caramel N'dizir. Mine was delicious!! The banana flavor was throughout and it has a really good consistency as well. Rach really enjoyed hers as well.

Day 6 Part 1 Vlog

FP count for this section: 5
FP count for the trip so far: 65

NotZacHoward · Jun 4, 2018

Day 6 Part 2: Shopping and Elegance

After an awesome time at Sanaa, it was time to go shop till we drop at Disney Springs! I love going to Disney Springs during the day because it is not as crowded and seems more peaceful to just walk around. I absolutely adore what they have done down there and it is one of my favorite places to just chill out. We went into the current disaster zone of the World Of Disney to try to see if there was the Baby Pua in their because I saw it online and I just HAD to buy it! It literally is so precious.
With no luck, we just wondered around for a while and stopped into a lot of the shops, especially Goofy's Candy CO because that place smells like heaven and basically is my own slice of heaven. The create your own station was where I LIVED during my college program, especially when we got the really good discounts.
After a relaxing afternoon is the Springs, it was time to head over to the classiest reservation I think we made, Narcoossee's at the Grand Floridian! I have heard amazing things about this restaurant and being an avid lobster lover, you knew I was going to get the 2 pound Maine lobster!
I love where the restaurant was located, since you can see around Seven Seas Lagoon and even see the tip of the castle. Extremely amazing location!
Our server was extremely kind and was very knowledgeable about the menu and any questions we had (we never really have many questions since we aren't the biggest foodies but the ones we did she knew!).
For our appetizer, I got the Chilled Shrimp and Rach got the crab cakes! Both were good, I am more of a red seafood sauce for my shrimp so the citrus sauce wasn't my favorite but still was delicious!

For our entree's, I got the 2 pound Maine lobster which was DELICIOUS! I am from the Midwest so I cannot really comment on if it taste like "fresh" Maine lobster like some people compare it to; however, it was delicious to me and I would definitely order it again in a heartbeat! I wasn't a fan of the souffle thing because it had jalapenos in it and i am not much of a spicy eater.

Rach got the Surf and Turf and said everything was equally as amazing but she would get the Surf and Turf over just lobster because she feels there is more variety with her choice (obviously not a lobster lover like some of us).

For dessert, I got the almond cheesecake. Let me tell you, this is a CLOSE second to the bread pudding at Ohana. I am not much of a cheesecake person but this was DELICIOUS! I literally never wanted it to end. I would make reservations just to get the dessert!! Truly incredible.

Rach got the sugar free chocolate option (I guess she decided she wanted to be healthy for a dessert). Since we both are sugar lovers, we both were disappointed with that dessert; however, I am sure people who typically get sugar free desserts would have enjoyed it thoroughly. I am just used to things being loaded with sugar!

Day 6 Part 2 Vlog:

FP for this section: 0

FP for the trip so far: 65

slipperalwaysfits · Jun 5, 2018

Yes, Disney Springs during the day is a great place to chill out and get away from the hustle of the parks! We always plan a morning where we can go to DS and wander around...

Narcossee's sounds delish! I'm a seafood lover myself!
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Trip Report 97 fast passes and 97 pounds later, I'm back! March 2018 Trip Report Updated 6-4

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Trip Report 97 fast passes and 97 pounds later, I'm back! March 2018 Trip Report *Updated 6-4*

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Trip Report 97 fast passes and 97 pounds later, I'm back! March 2018 Trip Report Updated 6-4