Trip Report But who's keeping track?

I will make my 43rd (ish) trip to Walt Disney World (still not totally sure how many Florida trips in my youth actually involved WDW)

I will write my 26th Trip Report (re-reading those old ones, what was I thinking?)

We will drive 940 miles, only stopping for quick food and bathrooms (if making good time, maybe a short sleep break)

We will stay in our 21st different WDW resort (depending on how you count DVC vs hotel for some)

We will experience 1 brand new attraction (hopefully more than once)

We will experience 1 favorite attraction that has recently be changed (and are a bit scared by it)

I will experience at least one brand new table service restaurant (and a surprising one, at that)

Our daughter will experience her first true backstage WDW tour (@MeffysMom and I did this one before)

We MAY have our first Genie+ experience (and maybe our last as well??)

But there's really no reason to keep track of all these things. Just join me for a brief pre-trip and then live reporting from WDW.

Couple additional pre-thoughts (that didn't have good Disney pictures to go along)... We will spend far too much money (although we've got quite a bit stored up on Disney Rewards). We will partake in too much food and drink (always claim that I won't, but good luck with that). We will have a heckuva good time despite some obstacles (I think I'm willing to guarantee that, we always do). See you soon!

 

[Swissmiss]

Here in Maryland, our school districts are by county, so they are pretty large. The first district I was in (for 20 years) had 178 schools and over 100,000 students. The one I'm in now (past 8 years) is much smaller, but still has 44 schools and 25,000 kids. Local schools have almost zero control over things, there is a bureaucracy of administrators in a central office who are overseen by an elected school board. It makes decisions take FAR too long to happen. We generally get the next year's calendar in January, but there is never a set end date pending snow days and then an annual early Spring petition to the State BOE to get some snow days forgiven and not have to be made up. No idea why this year took even longer than usual since they didn't actually petition this year, but given the chaos of the past 2 years it's really no surprise that we didn't know for certain when our last day would be until so late.

That’s so crazy. School schedules here are posted at least 2 academic years in advance! As a parent, I can look online to see when all the various breaks are, as well as start and end dates for the year.

 

[Katiekitten]

Enjoy your trip, I loved the keys to the kingdom tour when I did it!

 

[brifraz]

Enjoy your trip, I loved the keys to the kingdom tour when I did it!

We loved it also when we did it a number of years ago. Our daughter anxiously waited to be old enough to do it and then COVID happened, so she had to wait a couple more years! She is quite excited for it.

 

[rshell68]

Safe travels! Looks like a great plan! Can't wait to read full report.

 

[erstwo]

I am so excited! Love reading about your family trips!
So exciting about Spain!! These late nights at Disney will be good practice for her! I have a friend in Spain for most of the summer and I told her I think my Spain/ Portugal days are over - I simply can't hang anymore. I'm more of a dinner at 5pm than dinner at 10pm kind of girl (old lady?? ) now!! Although, I am totally into the 5 meals a day thing. Haha She is going to have the BEST time! Oh to be young and free........

 

[brifraz]

I am so excited! Love reading about your family trips!
So exciting about Spain!! These late nights at Disney will be good practice for her! I have a friend in Spain for most of the summer and I told her I think my Spain/ Portugal days are over - I simply can't hang anymore. I'm more of a dinner at 5pm than dinner at 10pm kind of girl (old lady?? ) now!! Although, I am totally into the 5 meals a day thing. Haha She is going to have the BEST time! Oh to be young and free........

One of her biggest concerns is the late dinner time! She gets very 'hangry' at times and we are 5-6pm dinner people. There's definitely some anxiety right now, but once she gets there and things are rolling it's going to be awesome for her.

 

[brifraz]

As is always the case, just a couple days away and some possible changes to the plans... the evening that we have Hollywood Brown Derby booked, we were a bit concerned that it was a very late seating and we want to get a start on the shorter line attractions before the Moonlight Magic starts. Plus, there was definitely some interest from certain family members in going to 50s Prime Time which is a family favorite. We found an early ADR for Prime Time that evening. For the moment we have both reservations (sorry if anyone was hunting for either of those!) and will make our decisions on the ride down tomorrow.

 

[erstwo]

One of her biggest concerns is the late dinner time! She gets very 'hangry' at times and we are 5-6pm dinner people. There's definitely some anxiety right now, but once she gets there and things are rolling it's going to be awesome for her.

Sending all the positive vibes her way for a perfect study abroad experience!

 

[cgersic]

What a great opportunity in Spain!! Hoping we get a report on that too! I'm along for this ride for sure though!

 

[Steve690]

Safe travels, we stayed Coronado Club level in April, loved breakfast in the lounge, I hope you enjoy!

 

[brifraz]

I95 South!

 

[brifraz]

I know what the usual followers of my Trip Report are thinking right now... it's right about 6am, where's the post? For those who aren't usually along - I'm an early morning person. And today, it's extra early time!

As you saw in my last post, it was a fun filled Tuesday and overnight of I95 goodness. Actually, I'm not sure that putting the word 'goodness' that close to I95 is legal on the East Coast. But, actually the drive was quite successful. We got out of our house in northern Maryland right about 2pm and pulled into the parking lot of Coronado Springs at 4:30am.

Most important to some of you out there is the fact that we made two real pit stops for gas along the way and they were both at the Super Wal Mart of gas stations:

(Florence, SC and Daytona, FL if you have some strange fascination with Buc-ee's... which I know some people do).

Of course, pulling in to a Disney Resort at 4:30am means that it is pretty empty everywhere, so you can get some nice pictures of things!

As always, I need to make sure to give credit where credit is due and most of the photo credits in my Trip Report go to @MeffysMom since she has the nice camera on her phone and takes the most pictures! I had intended to bring my nice SLR down this trip, but totally forgot about it... so iPhone pictures it is!

While it certainly doesn't scream 'DISNEY,' the lobby of the tower is very beautiful and certainly quiet during the early morning hours.

As the only people at the front desk, we had the full attention of the entire crew of cast members.

And, as always, their work was exemplary. Yes, that's right... we were in our room at 5am. For real! No kidding! Seventh floor with a view that encompasses Studios, Epcot, and maybe a bit of Magic Kingdom way off to the side. I'll get some pictures when there is daylight and share (and maybe some firework pictures tonight!). The room is quite nice and it did not take long for both my wife and daughter to get themselves to some bonus sleep. As a morning person, I find it tough to get to sleep at this time of day (even though I only got about 4 hours overnight) so here I am posting for you.

In another hour we will head up to the Chronos Club and grab some breakfast goodness while we try to Guardians virtual queue and then head to Epcot for a morning of touring. See you soon!

 

[Swissmiss]

Love the « empty » pictures. And I really appreciate your early morning posts which give me something fun to read at lunch when I am teleworking.

 

[brifraz]

Ready to get to Test Track.

And Guardians group 73 secured.

 

[joshsprincess921]

following along! Have a great trip!

 

[ferbtones]

Following along and enjoying as usual.

Can’t wait to hear your thoughts on Guardians.

 

[brifraz]

Got a car all to ourselves.

It opened up a little late (maybe 8:05) so we got that ride in and then a ride a little further. These two got to go to Mars while I just circled the Earth once.

After all that traveling we were pretty thirsty, so we made a quick pit stop.

Actually two of us made good choices while @MeffysMom continues to insist that this is a good choice. Please note she is wrong.

After a little shopping time in Creations, we crossed Future World to the Land pavilion. More on that soon!

 

[cgersic]

So excited for your report on Guardians! Great job on getting in!

 

[brifraz]

At a bit after 9am this morning we headed across to The Land, but had to make a brief pit stop.

Love the butterfly garden!

We were in The Land about 9:15 and decided to bravely take on the 45 minute standby line for Soarin’. Except it actually only took 20 minutes and we got very lucky with center section front row- no feet above us and a (relatively) straight Eiffel Tower. Next up was the best ride in WDW.

There is no debate. Living with the Land always wins. We still had a few hours to kill before Guardians so we headed toward Spaceship Earth, but upon seeing the 30 minutes wait in full sun we bailed out and put in a mobile order for a snack at Creations and went to shop at the Guardians store.

Our daughter added a tank top and pin to her fashion wardrobe and then we all added a kids Chicken Bao bun with cole slaw and fries plus the Liege waffle to our bellies. The Bao is pretty small but perfect for a kid and good for a snack for us.

Next up was a brief trip into World Showcase. Mexico was nice, but these three were having a tough time (perhaps too much time in La Cava?).

That was their position and they did not move at all. Poor birds. Then it was to China for a quick tour via circlevision. Love the entryway.

As we headed back toward Guardians, we stopped off at Norway to pick up a new bottle of Laila for @MeffysMom. It was about 12:30pm and app was still showing our likely call time as 1:05pm, but then we magically got the call! Off to help the Guardians.

The queue is pretty cool and interesting.

And while the story is a bit flimsy, the ride is excellent.

And, while not totally comfortable for the stomach, it wasn’t too bad! Definitely will do it again.

It was about 1:30pm and over 92 degrees, so time to bail out. When we got back to Coronado, I was greeted by a very helpful front desk CM who aided me in figuring out what to do and where to go.

And while it may be a bit of a surprise, this is what I’m doing and where I am now. Using the Club level to the utmost degree.

Now, it’s about nap time!

 

[Dez1978]

Your school just got out Mid June? goodness. We've been out for a month. But you may start at a much more reasonable time than we do. We go back late August. Hope you enjoy your trip