Occasional reader, first time reporter.
The players (names changed to protect something something): Don, 35, lifelong WDW traveler, native NYer, living in Brooklyn with his new fiance Joelle, 27, Indianapolis born/bred and a WDW newbie.
Background: I've visited WDW with my family countless times from my childhood through my teenage years and my most recent trips were in 2008 and 2014. Joelle had never been to any Disney Park until our trip last year when we visited WDW around Memorial Day utilizing a stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge to lower her Disney defenses. Delightfully, this plan worked. A slight travel snag during that trip gave us the opportunity to stay an extra night at Coronado Springs and we loved that resort as well. Which brings us to....
Travel Details: We left LGA at 9:30am and arrived in MCO at around noon on Monday, May 25. We stayed at Coronado Springs until Thursday May 28 when we packed up and headed to the Wilderness Lodge to stay Club Level in one of the Honeymoon suites until we left on the morning of June 1.
Day 1 - Epcot - As referenced subtly above, last year's trip to MCO contained some real no joke delays and did not kick the trip off on a positive jam. This year we experienced blissfully fuss free travel vibes, landing ahead of schedule. Utilizing Hertz's Gold Whatever Rewards program our car was ready with the keys in the car as soon as we landed and within 30 of hitting the ground we were headed to Coronado Springs.
Coronado Spring ("CS") in my eyes, is an extremely underrated Disney resort. The majority of complaints that I read on the interweb seem to focus on the fact that there are often conventions held at the resorts and if you're utilizing the buses, it can be inconvenient because of the internal loop. I'm not really sure how conventioneers could possibly affect one's vacation but the convention center is far more tucked away than any of the large rent-able rooms at the Contemporary. I can assure you there was no one crunching numbers at the pool bar. The bus complaint may be valid but I have not experienced it myself so I don't have much to say on that. It does seem like having a car at CS makes it infinitely easier.
The crown jewel of CS is definitely the Mayan Temple Pool and water slide and the beautiful Southwestern architecture and color scheme of the resort buildings. In addition, the Pepper Market is a solid if not slightly confusing quick-service cafeteria and the path around the lake is perfect for a morning run. My one complaint would be that children seem to be constantly running around in flip flops in the evening hours which can impede sleep. It's possible that it was just one child and not a regular occurrence though, it's hard to tell.
After an easy check in we headed to Epcot (the theme park formerly known as EPCOT) via Monorail. While it might not make much sense to drive to the TTC to take the Monorail I knew we'd be watching Illuminations and wanted to avoid a parking lot mass exodus at night's end. We had FP+ reservations for Spaceship Earth, Turtle Talk with Crush and for Illuminations and a 7:30 ADR for San Angel Inn in Mexico (or so we thought). For the reader who is wondering why we didn't FP Test Track or Soarin' I should mention that we feel those attractions are incredibly overrated and that we knew we'd be returning on Sunday with a FP for Soarin'. If I want to experience the "thrill" of Test Track I'll simply drive quickly on the highway.
We headed over to the (Living) Seas pavilion which I had not been inside of since my trip in 2008. The Finding Nemo dark ride is cute albeit simple and the manatees were tremendous and wondrous. We had a great time looking at the various fish tanks and then ducked into Turtle Talk with Crush. TTWC works similarly to the Monster's Inc. Laugh Floor at the MK in that a video screen interacts seamlessly with the audience. Even though TTWC is geared more to children than MILF (unfortunate acronym) we found it charming nonetheless. If you're a couple looking to avoid children, this is definitely not the place for you.
After the Seas we headed to Spaceship Earth with Judi Dench (NOT Helen Mirren as I had incorrectly remembered) filling in for Walter Cronkite. SE still perfectly encompasses the educational entertainment vibe of EPCOT 82 and makes me nostalgic for the World of Motion, as well as the slightly newer but still extinct Kitchen Cabaret and Cranium Command or as I like to now think of it, proto-Inside Out. Please note this nostalgia does not carry over to Horizons as that ride was dated from the moment it was constructed. The "new" interactive part of SE where they take your photo and ask you questions that "customize" a story for you is infinitely more fun if you make a goofy face while taking the photo.
Since we didn't do Club Cool the last time, I took Joelle for her first Beverly that she was predictably repulsed by. We also checked out the new Starbucks and snatched up one of those nifty "You Are Here" mugs that 1 in 5 people seemed to be buying. Doppio doppios later we headed to the Refreshment Port for a Not-A-Cronut. The Not-A-Cronut was flaky and sugary and fantastic and from there we were headed to Canada for some La Fin du Monde and the new lumbershack show which we found to be perfectly complimentary. From there we strolled over to Paris to ogle the pastries, snagging a dreamy bacon and cheese wheel from the bakery in the back. For some reason when we came last year we never made it past the Parisian ice cream shop but this year we pushed on through to that back bakery. It was the very definition of "worth it." The struggle is real.
At this point it was time to head over to Mexico where I quickly realized I'd booked our ADR for La Hacienda instead of the San Angel Inn. Thankfully, when I explained this to the cast member at check-in we were seated at San Angel anyway. The margs and food were delicious, especially the Queso Fundido and basking in the perpetual evening sky with Joelle is always lovely.
From here it was onto the FP+ Illuminations spot for a thrilling rendition of WDW's most esoteric firework display. The lull in the middle with the projections on the spinning Earth still doesn't work but the moment all the lights get blown out gives me chills every time. It was the perfect end to our first day.
Tomorrow I'll hammer out Day 2 which includes a trip to the Magic Kingdom and our first visit to Trader Sam's.
The players (names changed to protect something something): Don, 35, lifelong WDW traveler, native NYer, living in Brooklyn with his new fiance Joelle, 27, Indianapolis born/bred and a WDW newbie.
Background: I've visited WDW with my family countless times from my childhood through my teenage years and my most recent trips were in 2008 and 2014. Joelle had never been to any Disney Park until our trip last year when we visited WDW around Memorial Day utilizing a stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge to lower her Disney defenses. Delightfully, this plan worked. A slight travel snag during that trip gave us the opportunity to stay an extra night at Coronado Springs and we loved that resort as well. Which brings us to....
Travel Details: We left LGA at 9:30am and arrived in MCO at around noon on Monday, May 25. We stayed at Coronado Springs until Thursday May 28 when we packed up and headed to the Wilderness Lodge to stay Club Level in one of the Honeymoon suites until we left on the morning of June 1.
Day 1 - Epcot - As referenced subtly above, last year's trip to MCO contained some real no joke delays and did not kick the trip off on a positive jam. This year we experienced blissfully fuss free travel vibes, landing ahead of schedule. Utilizing Hertz's Gold Whatever Rewards program our car was ready with the keys in the car as soon as we landed and within 30 of hitting the ground we were headed to Coronado Springs.
Coronado Spring ("CS") in my eyes, is an extremely underrated Disney resort. The majority of complaints that I read on the interweb seem to focus on the fact that there are often conventions held at the resorts and if you're utilizing the buses, it can be inconvenient because of the internal loop. I'm not really sure how conventioneers could possibly affect one's vacation but the convention center is far more tucked away than any of the large rent-able rooms at the Contemporary. I can assure you there was no one crunching numbers at the pool bar. The bus complaint may be valid but I have not experienced it myself so I don't have much to say on that. It does seem like having a car at CS makes it infinitely easier.
The crown jewel of CS is definitely the Mayan Temple Pool and water slide and the beautiful Southwestern architecture and color scheme of the resort buildings. In addition, the Pepper Market is a solid if not slightly confusing quick-service cafeteria and the path around the lake is perfect for a morning run. My one complaint would be that children seem to be constantly running around in flip flops in the evening hours which can impede sleep. It's possible that it was just one child and not a regular occurrence though, it's hard to tell.
After an easy check in we headed to Epcot (the theme park formerly known as EPCOT) via Monorail. While it might not make much sense to drive to the TTC to take the Monorail I knew we'd be watching Illuminations and wanted to avoid a parking lot mass exodus at night's end. We had FP+ reservations for Spaceship Earth, Turtle Talk with Crush and for Illuminations and a 7:30 ADR for San Angel Inn in Mexico (or so we thought). For the reader who is wondering why we didn't FP Test Track or Soarin' I should mention that we feel those attractions are incredibly overrated and that we knew we'd be returning on Sunday with a FP for Soarin'. If I want to experience the "thrill" of Test Track I'll simply drive quickly on the highway.
We headed over to the (Living) Seas pavilion which I had not been inside of since my trip in 2008. The Finding Nemo dark ride is cute albeit simple and the manatees were tremendous and wondrous. We had a great time looking at the various fish tanks and then ducked into Turtle Talk with Crush. TTWC works similarly to the Monster's Inc. Laugh Floor at the MK in that a video screen interacts seamlessly with the audience. Even though TTWC is geared more to children than MILF (unfortunate acronym) we found it charming nonetheless. If you're a couple looking to avoid children, this is definitely not the place for you.
After the Seas we headed to Spaceship Earth with Judi Dench (NOT Helen Mirren as I had incorrectly remembered) filling in for Walter Cronkite. SE still perfectly encompasses the educational entertainment vibe of EPCOT 82 and makes me nostalgic for the World of Motion, as well as the slightly newer but still extinct Kitchen Cabaret and Cranium Command or as I like to now think of it, proto-Inside Out. Please note this nostalgia does not carry over to Horizons as that ride was dated from the moment it was constructed. The "new" interactive part of SE where they take your photo and ask you questions that "customize" a story for you is infinitely more fun if you make a goofy face while taking the photo.
Since we didn't do Club Cool the last time, I took Joelle for her first Beverly that she was predictably repulsed by. We also checked out the new Starbucks and snatched up one of those nifty "You Are Here" mugs that 1 in 5 people seemed to be buying. Doppio doppios later we headed to the Refreshment Port for a Not-A-Cronut. The Not-A-Cronut was flaky and sugary and fantastic and from there we were headed to Canada for some La Fin du Monde and the new lumbershack show which we found to be perfectly complimentary. From there we strolled over to Paris to ogle the pastries, snagging a dreamy bacon and cheese wheel from the bakery in the back. For some reason when we came last year we never made it past the Parisian ice cream shop but this year we pushed on through to that back bakery. It was the very definition of "worth it." The struggle is real.
At this point it was time to head over to Mexico where I quickly realized I'd booked our ADR for La Hacienda instead of the San Angel Inn. Thankfully, when I explained this to the cast member at check-in we were seated at San Angel anyway. The margs and food were delicious, especially the Queso Fundido and basking in the perpetual evening sky with Joelle is always lovely.
From here it was onto the FP+ Illuminations spot for a thrilling rendition of WDW's most esoteric firework display. The lull in the middle with the projections on the spinning Earth still doesn't work but the moment all the lights get blown out gives me chills every time. It was the perfect end to our first day.
Tomorrow I'll hammer out Day 2 which includes a trip to the Magic Kingdom and our first visit to Trader Sam's.
