Trip Report A Jingle BAM Birthday! *COMPLETED*

*Sorry for the bump. This TR is from December 2016*

Let me begin by giving a shout out to all park commandos ~ those who arrive at the parks at opening and stay until closing ~ those who only use the hotel room to sleep and shower ~

We SALUTE you!!!!!

After a whirlwind 48 hours in the world, we have a new appreciation for the stamina of a park commando. We gave it our all and had a blast ~ though a third non-stop day would have likely killed us!

So do your warm-up stretches and prepare to join us on a quick jog through three parks as we celebrate the quarter-century of a wonderful gal named Em.

Cast: Tuvalu and TrolleyFollower91
Date: December 1-3, 2016
Resort: Coronado Springs

Ready, Set, GO!

 

[Tuvalu]

Stopping in to see the gingerbread carousel is paramount during the holidays. Each year the horses have a different theme. This year the horses are modeled after the Fab 5 ~ so clever!

First up, the Big Cheese (note each character molded in chocolate beneath their respective horse)

I liked the Donald horse best.

If Woody had been with us, Goofy would have been his favorite.

Sweet Em loves her Minnie.......

......especially the shoes!!!!!!!

Though not part of the turning carousel, Pluto had a horse of his own......

.....equipped with a couple of friends!

Worth the extra steps? Absolutely!

 

[Tiggerish]

I love that the Pluto horse was carrying Chip and Dale! What a great callout to some classic cartoons!

 

[Tuvalu]

Sadly, it was time to consider our best option for returning to Coronado Springs. Knowing we had plenty of airport walking ahead of us, the thought of going back through Epcot to get the CSR bus made our feet ache. Sure we could grab an Uber, but what fun would that be? There was a lovely boat dock just a few steps away and we could take a relaxing boat ride to the Studios and catch a bus from there.

This pic was taken from....wait for it.....a BENCH!!!!

Em and I were one of the first guests on the boat when it arrived.....full! I managed to find a seat but Em had to stand. There were at least a dozen guests that boarded after we did and we were packed in like sardines....so much for a relaxing ride!

But it got worse. No one got off at the stop for the Swolphin ~ yet the skipper opened the gate and allowed more guests to board! Only two of the 8 or so got on though....there was literally NO ROOM.

Em's expression says it all!

 

[LadyBelle]

So does the guy next to her...

What do they do with the carousel after the holidays? Do they sell pieces? Donate it?

 

[prfctlyximprct]

Em's shirt is awesome!!!!

Just saying!

 

[Tuvalu]

What do they do with the carousel after the holidays? Do they sell pieces? Donate it?

I have no idea.

Anyone? Anyone?

 

[Tuvalu]

The ride from Swolphin to DHS seemed to take forever ~ probably because the boat was so weighed down! The interior of the boat was rather warm too, thanks to the heat from 200 bodies and the late afternoon low-on-the-horizon sun.

What a welcome sight!

I made her pose in front of SSE; she made me pose in front of the tree. Payback

Having ridden the bus back to CSR last night, we knew the CSR stop was close to the entrance. Straight ahead!

 

[Tuvalu]

Em and I must have just missed the bus because there was no one else at our stop and we ended up waiting awhile. But it gave us a chance to enjoy the new signage on the buses.

Here's the bus for Port Orleans Riverside:

I made notes of the other buses we saw:
MK ~ Charmed To See You
Epcot ~ Welcome World Travelers
DHS ~ Smile For The Camera
AK ~ Hakuna Matata
WL ~ The Wilderness Awaits
SSR ~ Welcome Race Fans
Pop Century ~ Have A Groovy Day
All Star Sports ~ Welcome Sports Fans
All Star Music ~ Welcome Rock Stars
All Star Movies ~ Welcome Movie Stars
POFQ ~ Bonjour
CSR ~ Bienvenidos

The signage may be a small thing, but a fun example that the "Disney touch" is still alive, despite what the naysayers think.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Em and I must have just missed the bus because there was no one else at our stop and we ended up waiting awhile. But it gave us a chance to enjoy the new signage on the buses.

Here's the bus for Port Orleans Riverside:
View attachment 185473

I made notes of the other buses we saw:
MK ~ Charmed To See You
Epcot ~ Welcome World Travelers
DHS ~ Smile For The Camera
AK ~ Hakuna Matata
WL ~ The Wilderness Awaits
SSR ~ Welcome Race Fans
All Star Sports ~ Welcome Sports Fans
All Star Music ~ Welcome Rock Stars
All Star Movies ~ Welcome Movie Stars
POFQ ~ Bonjour
CSR ~ Bienvenidos

The signage may be a small thing, but a fun example that the "Disney touch" is still alive, despite what the naysayers think.

I think the signs on the bus are really cute and a nice touch. Sometimes it is the small stuff that makes the guests feel special and wanted by Disney.

 

[Tuvalu]

Our DME pick-up was 6:15 pm and we were back at the resort early enough to grab dinner at Pepper Market again.

Bird with b-oobs?

The deliciousness of the pork carnitas still lingered in my mind and I had to order it again (yes it is that good, @MinnieM123 and @Gabe1 ). Em went with chicken nachos. And we got an Oatmeal Carmelita to go.

When we finished, we retrieved our bags from Bell Services and joined the other sad guests at the DME stop.

The Tragical Face

What an exhilarating 48 hours! We had "gone hard" and now we had to "go home". But as you know, I wasn't home for long ~ 6 days to be exact.

To Be Continued.....in another trip report
(Cause I'm not like @Tony the Tigger or @BuddyThomas who chronicle their multiple adventures in novel-sized trip reports! )

 

[LisaBelle]

So glad that Em's wish to spend her birthday at Disney came true at last! You covered a lot of ground and had some awesome meals! I enjoyed reading about your adventures! Loved the "throwback Thursday" photo of Em longingly looking at the castle at the end of your last trip. As always looking forward to the next TR!

 

[Tuvalu]

So glad that Em's wish to spend her birthday at Disney came true at last! You covered a lot of ground and had some awesome meals! I enjoyed reading about your adventures! Loved the "throwback Thursday" photo of Em longingly looking at the castle at the end of your last trip. As always looking forward to the next TR!

Thanks, @LisaBelle! I can't wait for you to book your next trip....it's been almost a year, you're due!

 

[Tuvalu]

I neglected to mention one important fact from our trip....

No Red Cards!

 

[MegRuss626]

I neglected to mention one important fact from our trip....

No Red Cards!

Oh no! Getting those red cards is so exciting...we call it getting chosen for "a top secret mission!" Haha And it's always documented with a photo with said red card!

 

[MinnieM123]

I neglected to mention one important fact from our trip....

No Red Cards!

What's the matter with those CMs?? Don't they know you're a red card VIP??!!!

 

[MinnieM123]

Em and I must have just missed the bus because there was no one else at our stop and we ended up waiting awhile. But it gave us a chance to enjoy the new signage on the buses.

Here's the bus for Port Orleans Riverside:
View attachment 185473

I made notes of the other buses we saw:
MK ~ Charmed To See You
Epcot ~ Welcome World Travelers
DHS ~ Smile For The Camera
AK ~ Hakuna Matata
WL ~ The Wilderness Awaits
SSR ~ Welcome Race Fans
All Star Sports ~ Welcome Sports Fans
All Star Music ~ Welcome Rock Stars
All Star Movies ~ Welcome Movie Stars
POFQ ~ Bonjour
CSR ~ Bienvenidos

The signage may be a small thing, but a fun example that the "Disney touch" is still alive, despite what the naysayers think.

In all the times I've been to WDW, I've never seen those signs on the buses. I've only seen the actual resort name, or park name that was their destination. This must be something new? Do they charge you more if you get on one of those buses?

 

[MinnieM123]

What do they do with the carousel after the holidays? Do they sell pieces? Donate it?

I have no idea.

Anyone? Anyone?

Although I don't know what they do with the carousel, specifically, I do recall reading that the GF (and other) gingerbread houses are dismantled, broken up into pieces, and put out for the birds. (It was somewhere on one of the forums about a year ago, that I remember reading this.) So the gingerbread houses anyway, serve a dual purpose--decoration, and munchies for the birds after the holidays!

 

[blreinsel]

The carousel is adorable! Love the Minnie horse. I think the new bus signs are great, too!

 

[Tony the Tigger]

Em and I must have just missed the bus because there was no one else at our stop and we ended up waiting awhile. But it gave us a chance to enjoy the new signage on the buses.

Here's the bus for Port Orleans Riverside:
View attachment 185473

I made notes of the other buses we saw:
MK ~ Charmed To See You
Epcot ~ Welcome World Travelers
DHS ~ Smile For The Camera
AK ~ Hakuna Matata
WL ~ The Wilderness Awaits
SSR ~ Welcome Race Fans
All Star Sports ~ Welcome Sports Fans
All Star Music ~ Welcome Rock Stars
All Star Movies ~ Welcome Movie Stars
POFQ ~ Bonjour
CSR ~ Bienvenidos

The signage may be a small thing, but a fun example that the "Disney touch" is still alive, despite what the naysayers think.

I just noticed this yesterday and wasn't sure if it was new or if I had just never noticed before LOL. Very cute.

To Be Continued.....in another trip report
(Cause I'm not like @Tony the Tigger or @BuddyThomas who chronicle their multiple adventures in novel-sized trip reports! )

I like your way better! But I'm trapped in a giant never ending trip report now LOL.

I neglected to mention one important fact from our trip....

No Red Cards!

I've never gotten one ever ever ever.

 

[myhappyplace]

Interesting! We went and saw the gingerbread carousel, but I was unaware the theming of it changed from year to year!