Celebrating Christmas at the Cape: A December 2009 Trip Report

Woohooo… Christmas at Disney World. Is there any better way to celebrate the season?!

I’m a little late posting, but that’s because about a week after we returned from Disney we left again… this time for a New Year’s Eve cruise! Now that I’m back and reality has set in, I’m excited to relive all our adventures through both trip reports! It’s hard to believe after just over a year of trip reporting I’m typing up my sixth installment. I really enjoy writing up the reports when we return and I even create printouts in publisher when they’re finished. So, if anyone is interested, the previous Disney reports should all still be intact:

Living the Life at the Contemporary: A September 2008 Trip Report
The Making of Disney Dreams and Christmas Memories: A December 2008 Trip Report
Going the Distance… From Mile 1 to 26.2: A Marathon 2009 Trip Report
Lodge-hopping from the Pacific Northwest to an African Savannah: A July 2009 Trip Report

Now let’s get to the latest… our Christmas 2009 trip report! Tacky t-shirts, pixie dust upgrades, and santa hats all make an appearance this holiday season! For those of you who aren’t familiar with us, the cast includes myself, Holly, and my boyfriend, Brett. Both Disney freaks and young at heart. Also with us for the annual Christmas trip are Brett’s parents, Kathy and Danny, and his brother, Derek. A Disney family for sure!

From left, Derek, Brett, myself, Goofy, Kathy and Danny:

This trip kind of snuck up on us. Brett’s been working in Atlanta for the past four months so my countdown was focused more on him coming home than it was on Disney. Disney was certainly the icing on the cake! Our trip was planned for Sunday, December 13-Friday, December 18 at the Beach Club Villas, but Brett and I decided to head down a day early and stay at Caribbean Beach for one night.

 

[HollyBelle]

Kathy got the text during lunch that our room was ready so we headed off for the Villas! We met up with Ariel along the way, and Brett proceeded to sing until the evil sea witch stole his voice:

BCV breezeway:

We were on the fourth floor in a two bedroom dedicated unit looking over the quiet pool! It was a great view. Zoomed in, you can see Spaceship Earth and The Land pavilion peeking out.

A model size view of the pool below:

Here are pictures of the villa bedrooms (for some reason I didn’t really get any of the living room/kitchen area). Now that we’ve stayed at both, I much prefer the décor and colors of these rooms over the Wilderness Lodge Villas.

After we got the car unloaded and suitcases unpacked, Brett and I decided to go ahead and give his mom a Christmas gift from us. The first part of the gift was a scrapbook of last year’s Christmas trip. Not exactly a surprise to anyone; however, the second part certainly was. To fully grasp the importance of this gift you have to understand that every single time we pass a family in a park that is wearing matching t-shirts, Kathy goes on and on about how cute it is and insists upon us doing it. The thing is… the rest of us balk at the idea and insist just as strongly that it’ll never happen. Over time it has become quite a joke and we’ve convinced her we’d never ever be on board with the idea. At some point during our July trip, Brett and I decided we’d gift her matching t-shirts for Christmas because she’d never expect it. It was so worth it… Kathy was so freaking excited when she opened up the box! Seeing that we didn’t warn Danny or Derek of the impending doom… their reactions were a little more subdued!! And much more fun to watch.

More about the tacky t-shirts when we wear them on Day 3!

 

[Nicole220]

Awesome report so far! It's making me miss the Yacht and Beach Club area.

 

[Brett]

Mmmmm... Beaches and Cream. Let's go there for lunch tomorrow!

 

[mouselvrmom]

Can't wait to see the matching shirts!

 

[angieandtrevor]

Woohooo… Christmas at Disney World. Is there any better way to celebrate the season?!

I’m a little late posting, but that’s because about a week after we returned from Disney we left again… this time for a New Year’s Eve cruise! Now that I’m back and reality has set in, I’m excited to relive all our adventures through both trip reports! It’s hard to believe after just over a year of trip reporting I’m typing up my sixth installment. I really enjoy writing up the reports when we return and I even create printouts in publisher when they’re finished. So, if anyone is interested, the previous Disney reports should all still be intact:

Living the Life at the Contemporary: A September 2008 Trip Report
The Making of Disney Dreams and Christmas Memories: A December 2008 Trip Report
Going the Distance… From Mile 1 to 26.2: A Marathon 2009 Trip Report
Lodge-hopping from the Pacific Northwest to an African Savannah: A July 2009 Trip Report

Now let’s get to the latest… our Christmas 2009 trip report! Tacky t-shirts, pixie dust upgrades, and santa hats all make an appearance this holiday season! For those of you who aren’t familiar with us, the cast includes myself, Holly, and my boyfriend, Brett. Both Disney freaks and young at heart. Also with us for the annual Christmas trip are Brett’s parents, Kathy and Danny, and his brother, Derek. A Disney family for sure!

From left, Derek, Brett, myself, Goofy, Kathy and Danny:

This trip kind of snuck up on us. Brett’s been working in Atlanta for the past four months so my countdown was focused more on him coming home than it was on Disney. Disney was certainly the icing on the cake! Our trip was planned for Sunday, December 13-Friday, December 18 at the Beach Club Villas, but Brett and I decided to head down a day early and stay at Caribbean Beach for one night.

WOW, great report so far Holly. So what cruise did you guys end up going on? Trev and I are heading out on the Liberty (Half Moon Cay, St. Thomas, San Juan and Grand Turk) on Feb 6, we have been to all of these ports twice already but we planned this trip last minute as a relaxing vacation before the baby comes. Looks like I finally got myself a really good excuse to drag my hubby to Disney (well at least in a few years anyway) :sohappy:

 

[disneyfamilyjd]

Holly, I have been checking trip reports for the last 3 weeks bc I knew you guys always do your holiday trip with Brett's fam. So you can imagine how excited I was when I logged on and saw it tonight. Looks and sounds great so far can't wait for more!!

 

[HollyBelle]

Awesome report so far! It's making me miss the Yacht and Beach Club area.

Thanks, Nicole. I'm thoroughly enjoying yours, as well. And I have to agree with you on the Animal Kingdom Lodge. There's just something special about that place.

Mmmmm... Beaches and Cream. Let's go there for lunch tomorrow!

If only... if only.

Can't wait to see the matching shirts!

We tried to make them as inconspicuous as possible when designing them.

WOW, great report so far Holly. So what cruise did you guys end up going on? Trev and I are heading out on the Liberty (Half Moon Cay, St. Thomas, San Juan and Grand Turk) on Feb 6, we have been to all of these ports twice already but we planned this trip last minute as a relaxing vacation before the baby comes. Looks like I finally got myself a really good excuse to drag my hubby to Disney (well at least in a few years anyway) :sohappy:

Thanks, Angie. And congratulations on the baby!! We booked a fairly last minute cruise on RCI's Monarch of the Seas with my parents. It went to Nassau and Coco Cay. When I'm finished with this trip report, I'll be posting the cruise one over on cruisecritic.

I'd love to hear about your upcoming trip, as that's one of the cruises we are considering for May. I really want to go to all those ports!

Holly, I have been checking trip reports for the last 3 weeks bc I knew you guys always do your holiday trip with Brett's fam. So you can imagine how excited I was when I logged on and saw it tonight. Looks and sounds great so far can't wait for more!!

Thanks! Even though I started it late, I hope to finish it at a faster pace than usual. We'll see how that goes.

 

[HollyBelle]

Eager to get into a park, Brett and I went off to Epcot while everyone else headed down to Stormalong Bay for the afternoon. It was a really hot day and it seemed that many of the people in World Showcase had been drinking through the countries for quite some time already that afternoon. It appeared as if Food and Wine Festival was in full swing, but without the kiosks.

We took off for Maelstrom where the projected 20 minute wait was anything but… it looked more like 45. So we grabbed fastpasses and started off with the Gran Fiesta Tour instead.

Walking through the center of the park was a little sad. While I knew the Lights of Winter wouldn’t be up, it was still hard to take because it was such a great addition to the holidays at WDW. The whole area was lacking in a big way. There was a stage set up behind the Fountain of Nations with random choir groups performing. Not even close to an acceptable replacement, in my opinion. And to top it off, the tree was also stripped of all the international presents that used to be underfoot. It gets my “Most Disappointing Tree” award this trip. And that’s just depressing, because it’s usually my favorite.

In Future World we enjoyed a slow-moving journey to the past that explores how the future was invented! Next up we built a city in Project Tomorrow. The wait times for all the bigger rides were more than we could handle so we went to play a little in Innoventions. It was our first time checking out the Smarter Planet games. I must admit it was fun to record our own image and then watch ourselves move through the video game! I like that they’ve been adding new stuff and while the product placement is a little over the top… I still like the changes they’ve been making to the area.

After picking up a Figment plush for our Christmas tree collection we headed back to World Showcase to partake in a high seas adventure. I still wonder if the people of Norway are put out by the over abundance of trolls and Vikings in their pavilion. It seems a bit overkill. By this time it was closing in on 5pm so we headed back to the Beach Club to get ready for dinner.

 

[ClemsonTigger]

...so quit the chit chat and on with the report!











....kidding....kidding
I like the suspense :lol:

 

[HollyBelle]

We decided to check out Paradiso 37 for dinner. We arrived around 6:30pm with no reservations and there was absolutely no wait; it was rather empty, which surprised me.

I was really excited for this meal because the menu I found on allears showed such a great selection. Unfortunately, the menu at the restaurant didn’t match up. There were far fewer options and I found it lacking in comparison to the one found online. Brett and I split the Chilean salmon with cilantro rice and roasted veggies. It was good, but not what I was expecting. Certainly not something I would consider to be “street food of the Americas.” The margaritas on the other hand… delish! Yummmo!

My half of the salmon entrée (they split it for us before bringing it out):

Alcohol!

After dinner we dropped Kathy and Danny off at the Studios so they could check out the Osborne lights, while Derek, Brett and I hit up the Boardwalk to see if we could get a seat at the ESPN Club for the Sunday night Eagles/Giants game. There weren’t any seats at the bar so we grabbed a table in front of a nice HDTV outside on the Boardwalk. The weather was perfect and we had a server willing to bring us all the beer we could pay for! I actually preferred the outside seats because it was nice to watch the game while taking in the Boardwalk atmosphere. Woohoo. Of course it didn’t hurt that the Eagles were having a great night!

Note: Brett's reaction to this past Saturday’s game was much more subdued.

After the game we headed back to the villas. I still can’t get over how nice it is to just walk off the Boardwalk and to the room. Fabulous!

So for some reason I’ve become obsessed with taking mirror pictures. I guess because it’s a way to get everyone in the frame. Anywho. Here’s the first in my Beach Club Villas Elevator series. The color is all off, but I still like it:

 

[HollyBelle]

Day 3 – Monday, December 14: Animal Kingdom/DHS/Magic Kingdom

Up at 6:30am, and I was ready to go! As much as I liked the relaxing pace of the first couple days, I was so ready to open a park. First though, we had 7:30am breakfast reservations for the Captain’s Grille.

With Boatwright’s no longer an option, Brett and I are in a fervent search for another mouthwatering breakfast that keeps us coming back for more. So when making dining reservations, we added three new-to-us sit down breakfasts to the lineup: The Captain’s Grille, Kouzzina, and Olivia’s.

First up was the Captain’s Grille. It’s time to put the brioche French toast with cinnamon maple butter to the test.

While it looks very tasty… it wasn’t all that great. Actually, it was somewhat of a disappointment when compared to my expectations, which admittedly are quite high when one is looking to find a replacement for the heaven sent cinnamon and sugar French toast baguettes. Oh well. The other thing is we had to wait about 25-30 minutes after ordering for our breakfast to arrive. And the restaurant was near empty. I know they do a buffet and maybe that’s a good choice, but I don’t think we’ll be going back. We tend to avoid buffets unless characters are present!

 

[ClemsonTigger]

For your breakfast search...have you tried Kona Cafe at the Poly?
Some folks here insist on 3-4 visits every trip (MontyMon)

 

[HollyBelle]

So Kathy decided she wanted us all to wear our shirts on the first possible morning! We kept telling her to choose wisely because she only got ONE day. Back when we were designing the shirts, in a stroke of genius, Brett suggested we add the year so she can’t bust them out for us again next Christmas! Smart thinking, as she was so tickled with the shirts she spent the whole day telling us how we should wear them ALL week. She must have missed the part where we explained the shirts were made of a special fabric that disintegrates after one day’s wear. :lookaroun

Each shirt featured a character and nickname (to a degree). Danny’s (Mr. Moneybags) featured Scrooge McDuck for the obvious reasons; Derek’s (Beefy) featured Hercules because of the nickname Brett adorned him with back when he started working out all the time; Kathy’s (Kitty Kat) featured Tigger because he’s one of her favorites and represents her love of all things Clemson; Brett’s (#%@&$!) featured Donald because he and the Duck share the same sentiments about having to wear matching t-shirts; and mine (#1 Tink Fan) featured Tinkerbell because Brett’s parents (especially Danny) get the biggest kick out of my complete and total distaste for all things Tink.

As we were walking through the baggage check at the Animal Kingdom, the security guard shouted out “Tinkerbell’s biggest fan, right here!” I looked back at Kathy who was doing nothing to suppress the fit of giggles that had come over her. Shaking my head I thought to myself “What have we done!?”

Once in the park, Brett took off to Expedition Everest to pick up fastpasses for everyone while the rest of us took a leisurely stroll to Dinoland, USA. Anxious to get on a ride, Kathy and Derek got in line for Primeval Whirl, while Danny and I waited up for Brett. When he got back with the fastpasses we got in line as well. From our vantage point (about 20 people back) we could see Kathy talking to the CM and pointing our way. Brett took a quick guess that she was talking about my shirt. Turns out he was right. Because when the three of us approached the load area the CM asked me how I could be so sure there wasn’t a bigger Tinkerbell fan out there than me. If only she knew. She then proceeded to shout out to everyone in the load line… “This girl up here thinks SHE is Tinkerbell’s #1 fan, does anyone have a problem with that?” Needless to say… it was going to be a long day.

Kathy and Derek were about to unload at that very moment so she got to witness her handy work!

After Primeval Whirl we headed over to meet Pluto and Goofy. They now have a whole backdrop set up for these two in Dinoland. Of course this frustrates me to no end because it’s another sign of the permanency of certain character in certain locations. Later in the trip I also noticed Buzz Lightyear’s new setup over in Tomorrowland. And of course the MK Town Square set has yet to change since before I started writing up these here trip reports. It’s exasperating!

We headed to Discovery Landing next to make sure we got a picture of us all in our extremely hip t-shirts with Tigger.

Next up was Dinosaur, which was completely walk-on. I must say, the Dinosaur pre-show is probably the attraction pre-show we quote most often. “Flash photography? I wouldn’t. It alters the homing signal. And that’s not good.” I love the audio track on this ride. It’s ridiculously silly. "Not our dino."

From Dinosaur, we made our way to Asia for an expedition to the top of the forbidden mountain. Brett and I were seated in the front row, and while I prefer the back, it was neat to watch the tracks switch before the big drop. As soon as we got off we wound our way around and hit up the single rider line. Love single rider lines!

It’s Tough to be a Bug was up next. I always think it’s such a great example of how the location/queue set up really enhances an attraction. The Tree of Life Repertory Theatre definitely makes those spiders and bugs a little more believable! Don't take my word for it, ask the kiddies!

 

[HollyBelle]

Brett and I split from the group after we turned in our honorary bug eyes. We were on a mission to find Thumper over at Camp Minnie Mickey. On the way we noticed the Camp Minnie Mickey canoe now has the Festival of the Lion King showtimes on it instead.

Miss Bunny was doing meet and greets when we got there and eventually she switched out with Thumper. Back when the news got out that Thumper and Miss Bunny would be arriving at the Animal Kingdom, I was extremely puzzled. I mean… Thumper, yes. Great new character! But when you mention Thumper, the next character that comes to mind is Flower. I just don’t understand why they created a Miss Bunny when Flower would have been the perfect companion for meet and greets with Thumper. Oh well… I should just be thankful there’s some new blood around!

I love the Camp Minnie Mickey area at Christmastime. There’s just so much detail on all those trees.

In an attempt to save a little money Brett and I caved and ordered lunch at the Yak & Yeti counter service area instead of going inside to eat. The honey chicken is prepared the same way at either place, right?! WRONG! It’s definitely not the same. As we were sitting out in the hot sun eating our lunch we realized how snooty we can be when it comes to food. We’re not the type of people that eat just for fuel, but rather, eating is an event in itself for us. So from our perspective, it would have been worth the extra $20 for the sit down restaurant! That being said, there are some counter service options that are spot on. Sunshine Seasons and Earl of Sandwich both come to mind.

After lunch, we stopped by the Island Mercantile before going back to the resort to cool off at Stormalong Bay.

 

[HollyBelle]

...so quit the chit chat and on with the report!

....kidding....kidding
I like the suspense :lol:

For your breakfast search...have you tried Kona Cafe at the Poly?
Some folks here insist on 3-4 visits every trip (MontyMon)

Oh... well there will be lots of suspense then!!

As for Kona, we love the place and make sure to visit for breakfast on every trip. I'm a big fan of the tonga toast, but I don't like it as much as the Boatwright's French toast. And Brett isn't a fan of bananas so we don't split a meal at Kona. That's one thing that was nice about Boatwright's... not only was it delicious, but it was also economical because we could split the meal and with TiW, we were talking only $10 for a sit down breakfast.

 

[Brett]

That definitely was a better performance by the Eagles than the last two. Maybe that's our lucky spot? We'll just have to watch every Iggles game from the ESPN Club next season!

 

[BlizzardPoke]

Great trip report as always, I can't wait to read more! I agree with you 100% about the Beach Club/Boardwalk area. I love just walking around there at night, maybe sitting in the sand for a while and relaxing, and having so much basically right outside your room makes it even more magical.

 

[njDizFan]

I'm also still upset about losing the breakfast options at the Riverside. Fried french toast baguettes and the stuffed french toast were awesome.

I had the same experience as you at Jellyrolls. Love a good piano bar but it was completely empty when I was going to enter. You really need a fun and filled audience to really get the most of that experience. Maybe they could drop or lower the cover charge and get more people in there.

BTW, love your reports and this one is no exception.

 

[TakeMeThere81]

Hey Hollybelle!! Great to see a trip report from you!

How awesome was that surprise upgrade??!! I also love Yacht Club, I love the nautical theming! All of your pictures were just beautiful!

I, too love the International Gateway, something we discovered for the first time last trip!!:sohappy:

The t-shirt idea was cute...I love the Tinkerbell shenanigans! :drevil:

 

[disneygirl1]

Hey Holly!! Loving the report as always!!! Brett I feel your pain... Saturday's Eagles game was a disgrace... We have been season ticket holders for 14 years, and we hate handing over the $$$ especially when they let us down like this!!! Such a love hate relationship isn't with the Eagles?!!? LOL!