Trip Report Another Jolly Holiday ~ JOY From the World ! *COMPLETED*

At the conclusion of my last trip report
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/a-jingle-bam-birthday-completed.922901/
I ended with To be continued....

Well, here's the continuation. :) Though to be fair, the trips were totally different and not connected in any way except they both included Me (yep, a humble one I am!) And for the second time in a year, I left WDW only to return a week later. I am very grateful that I can visit my favorite place as often as I do and am honored that y'all follow along.

I booked this trip on a bounce back offer while vacationing last year:
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/its-a-jolly-holiday-completed.909445/

And this year I may have booked a bounce back offer for December 2017. Okay, I did book. But my love/hate relationship with traveling in December and a few unknowns for the fall may cause me to cancel. Time will tell.

Ready to read about our latest adventures? There's DRAMA :jawdrop:. And ELEVATOR COOKIES :confused:. And maybe even a RED CARD ;).

Dates: December 10-15, 2016
Resort: Disney's Wilderness Lodge (duh....it's Christmas!)
Cast: Tuvalu and Woody

IMG_5522.JPG


Who's in?
 
Click to expand...
Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Gabe1 said:
Are you going to sneak some kitties in the tree photo's again? :D
Click to expand...
I was very apprehensive about putting up a tree this year with Poly the tree-climber and a copycat kitten. I found a narrow 7 ft. tree to replace our wide 9 footer and we did not put it up until after we were home from WDW. The shape of the new tree deterred Poly from climbing (thankfully) and it was great to see cats under rather than in the tree!

IMG_5400.JPG

That's Poly on the left, Kona on the right. He's technically still a kitten, even though he's Poly-sized! :cat:
 
Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Saturday, December 10

We awoke to a cold Georgia morning ~ 25 degrees! Lows in December are usually in the 40s (Christmas morning it was in the 60s) so this was a chilly surprise. We were on our way to the airport before 7am and were shocked at the crowds in the terminal. TSA pre-check saved us! It wasn't long before we were chowing down our favorite on-our-way-to-Disney breakfast.

IMG_4740.JPG


I had checked in for our Southwest flight exactly 24 hours in advance and still ended up in B group. B17 and B18 didn't seem too bad, until Woody and I boarded the plane and discovered there were no available seats next to each other. :(

We ended up across the aisle from one another.
IMG_4741.JPG


IMG_4744.JPG


We were still able to hold hands during take-off. :inlove:

The flight was uneventful and we nervously made our way towards DME ~ and were greeted with this
IMG_4745.JPG


and this
IMG_4746.JPG


I've concluded that mid-day on a Saturday is NOT the ideal time for utilizing DME. :banghead:

Once we were on the bus, we were happy to hear that Wilderness Lodge was the first stop. And of course we got even happier when we saw this ~
IMG_4750.JPG


IMG_4749.JPG
 
Last edited:
Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I was texted our room number while we were on the bus which meant no storing stuff with Bell Services, yay! Our plan was to have lunch in Roaring Fork upon our arrival but now we could check out our room first.

The giant wreath on the port cochere is illuminated at night.
IMG_0235.JPG


The majestic lobby all decked out in holiday beauty is the reason we keep coming back.

IMG_0071.JPG


IMG_4756.JPG


IMG_0076.JPG


IMG_4758.JPG


The lodge has 3 sets of public elevators. One is on the lower level just past Roaring Fork (north wing). The other 2 are located in the south wing, which is currently under construction for DVC units.

All 3 Lobby elevators are walled off. They are located just behind this temporary wall where the small table and chairs are. The other elevator in the south wing (halfway down the hall) is closed as well.

IMG_4753.JPG


The upper floors of the south wing currently look like this:
IMG_5385.JPG


With 2 sets of elevators out of commission, that meant only the ones near Roaring Fork could be used by guests. How many elevators are near Roaring Fork? There are two. Now imagine how you would feel upon reaching those elevators and seeing this ~

IMG_4759.JPG


:jawdrop: WTH?!! Has WL suddenly become the Tower of Terror? Six floors of guests are supposed to use only ONE elevator???!!! I immediately wished we'd been assigned a room on the first floor....but no, our room was on the fifth. Were endless waits for an elevator in our future? You'll have to wait and see. I will say our first wait was over 7 minutes. :bored:
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom