This is my first attempt at a trip report so I hope you guys like it. I'm sure it won't have the detail that others put into theirs but here goes nothing.
Me, my wife and her two cousins were all set to head to WDW on Friday, December 18th. We picked up my wife from work around 12:30 and headed to the airport to catch our 3:15 flight to Denver. From Denver, we were off to Orlando. We would have landed a little after midnight had everything gone according to plan. Unfortunately, our United flight to Denver was delayed thanks to mechanical problems. We waited around for about another hour and finally boarded. Once we boarded, the plane was still not ready to go, so after an hour in the jetway, they cancelled the flight, which left us stuck at home, trying to arrange a way out the next day.
We were able to find a flight that left at 6 the next morning, December 19th, that went to Phoenix, then Dallas, then Orlando. At that point, we were happy to take the mulitple connections to arrive in Orlando at around 7 pm. when we arrived back at the ariport for our first flight on the 19th, we were told one of the United representatives didn't book our entire party so we had to scramble to get everything taken care of in order for us to depart. We did get things straightened away, so we thought, and took off on time to Phoenix. Because we switched carriers in Phoenix, we had to find our way to another terminal and get new boarding passes. The layover time was onyl about an hour and we made it to the correct terminal but again ran into the unconfirmed passanger problem we had in Edmonton so we ended up missing our connection to Dallas.
We were stranded in Phoenix, not having any success finding a flight to Orlando because a lot of the connections were going throught the Eastern seaboard which, of course, was hit with the big snow storms. After hours of trying to find a connection, my mom called and found a Delta flight leaving Phoenix to Atlanta just after midnight, then connecting to Orlando, which got us in shortly after 9 am on December 20th.
We booked this flight, waited nearly 10 hours in a Phoenix hotel before we went back to the airport, and finally made out way to Orlando...the hard way.
Our biggest concern when we finally touvhed down in Orlando was if our luggage continued on even though we missed our connecting flights the previous day. After many phone calls before finally landing in Orlando, we were not given any updates on our luggage so we had to hope it made it there safely or we were in big trouble. Luck seemed to turn around when we were able to track down our bags in the American Airlines baggage services area. We all cheered and it seemed that even though we had been up for close to 36 hours, our energy levels skyrocketed and we were finally going to have soem fun in WDW.
We jumped in a cab and checked into the Swan Hotel, which was absolutely beautiful. Just the smell walking into the hotel will be remembered for a long time. We must have checked in around 10. We got to our room and quickly showered and changed to get to the Magic Kingdom as quickly as possible. We were on the shuttle by 11, which I thought was an amazing feat with 3 girls showering and trying to get themselves ready to go.
At MK around 11:30...so excited! We rushed to get to the gates and were blown away with the size of the tree on Main Street. It was a great sight considering the adversity we had been faced with just trying to get there. we didn't stop to take in much of the scenery right away as we all wanted to ride Space Mountain. I thought the referb that was completed was very well done. The games that were installed made the 40 minute wait seemingly pass pretty quickly.
From there, we tried to hit as much as possible...we worked our way through a few things in Fantasyland, went to HM, then off to BTMRR and Splash. Wait times were much more manageable then I was preparing for. True, the economy is not the greatest and I suppose people are not travelling like the could have in the past, but I was pleasantly suprised with the crowd levels the whole week.
We did get some weird looks from some of the other guests as we were all wearing shorts and short sleeved shirts while we toured MK. the weather wasn't bamly or anything, but considering where we came from, it was like summer in December. A lot of people guessed that we had to be from Canada. We had a good laugh every time someone would say something. When the sun started setting, it did get a little chilly so we quickly went back to the hotel to grab a sweater and went right back in order to make it back in time for the character dinner at Crystal Palace. Upon our return, seeing the Castle lit up was spectacular. We took a bunch of great pics (which I'll upload later). Our dinner at CP was very cool. Didn't mind the buffet at all. Actually thought the food was pretty decent. Much better than what we were eating at the airports!! We got some great pics with Winnie, Tigger, Piglet and Eeyore and really had a great time.
After dinner, we watched Spectromagic, then staked out a spot for the fireworks. Thanks to Extra Magic Hours, we stayed at MK until about 1 am before heading back to finally get some sleep!
December 21st started a little later than I wanted it to. We slept in to try and catch up on some z's before finally hitting DHS for the day. We arrived between 10:30 and 11:00 am and went right to Toy Story. We grabbed fast passes (for about 7 that evening) and stood in line for about an hour and ten minutes to make this the first ride of the day. We got around to pretty much everything in DHS, including RnRC and TOT, before returning to Toy Story to use our fastpass. When we returned the FP line was out the building so it was a bit of a wait but much better than the 110 minutes in the standby line. We finally left DHS around 9 pm and headed back to the hotel to grab some sleep.
December 22 was our Universal day. we were up way early and jumped in a cab to make it IOA for the opening of the park. We were some of the first people there so it made getting on rides very easy. Hulk was first, which we rode twice, then off to Spiderman and Dueling Dragons. DD was awesome. We rode it back to back, in the front of each side. It was great walking on everything and getting to choose where we would sit. We met the Grinch in Suessland, who was really hitting on my wife! He was hilarious. took some great pics and really enjoyed ourselves there. We pretty muched finished IOA by 11 and went over to Universal to take in the attractions there.
By this time, the crowds had picked up so wait times increased. No more walking on rides. We waited for the new Rip Rockit for close to an hour an a half and were near the front when it broke down. We waited another 20-30 minutes for it to run again but no luck...we jumped out of line and did the rest of the rides in the park. We went back later and it was up and running but we didn't feel like waiting a second time. A quick trip back to IOA to ride JP, the Hulk and Spiderman, plus do a little shopping had us out of the park by about 6 pm. We had dinner at Margaritaville, which was very good. This the first of three BBQ bacon burgers I would eat on the trip! good burger, but not he best I had throughout the week. After dinner, we cabbed it to Downtown Disney, shopped for a few hours and went back to the hotel to rest.
The morning of December 23 spent at Epcot. After the brisk walk from the Swan to the World Showcase entrance, we made it to the gates before opening. Upon entering the park, we went straight to Soarin'. I grabbed fastpassess while the group waited in line and I joined them afterwards. Soari' is one of my all-time favorites. Great way to start the day. After Soarin', three of us went to M:S, while my wife grabbed Fastpassess for Test Track. Although the Standby for M:S stated 20 minutes, we waited in line for close to an hour. Thought the wife would be made with how long we were gone but she saw a good fight while she waited for us so she wasn't upset at all!
Back to Soarin' for our FP's, then we did Nemo and Turtle Talk with Crush. We used our Test Track FP, then toured the showcase before heading back to the hotel to grab a sweater and head over to DHS for dinner at the 50's Prime Time Cafe. This was the highlight of the trip...the experience we had here was outstanding. I don't think we stopped laughing the whole time we were there. Our "Uncle Tim" served us and was very funny the whole night. From making us get up and wash our hands before dinner, to setting the table because our elbows were on the table top, to giving one of us a timeout in the corner for misbehaving, the meal was excellent. I ordered the Fried Chicken and was very pleased with the choice. Great portion size and the food was great. After dinner, we hit ToT and the RnRC. We watched the 8 pm Fantasmic before walking abck to the hotel around 9.
December 24 started off at Chef Mickey's for breakfast. Only three of us though as one of my wife's cousins woke up sick. She missed out cause breakfast was great. Read mix reviews before heading there but was very happy with everything. The food was really good and it was great getting pics with some of our favorites (Mickey and Donald) without having to wait in lines to see them in the park. After breakfast, we went to the Grand Floridian to take some pics of the tree and the gingerbread house. We got the pics we wanted, but unfortunately, I dropped the camera and busted it so we were camera-less for the rest of the morning. After the GF, we went to AK for a few hours before meeting up with our sick cousin. We hit Everest three consecutive times and toured Dinoland, taking in a few attractions there as well. After riding Kali River Rapids, Everest and the Safari, we went back to the hotel to grab another camera and check in on our sick cousin. She was feeling better and joined us back at AK so we could watch the Jingle Jungle Parade and get soem good pics of it. My wife loved the parade so it was nice to have another camera to get soem shots. From there, we went to the Boardwalk for dinner. We at the Big River Grille. Had my second BBQ Bacon Burger of the trip...was the best one I had! Nice Christmas Eve dinner...though we were all thinking about the family back home. Got back to the hotel relatively early so we went across to the Dolphin to see the set up there. What a nice hotel...the tree was very pretty. Took some pics there, then back to the room to get some sleep so we could get up early for MK Extra Magic Hours.
Ealry wake up call on Christmas Day. We were up by 5 so everyone scould get ready to catch the bus to MK for the 7 am opening. We missed the first bus from the hotel, but still made it to MK shortly after 7. Thanks to a pretty decent rainfall, the crowds were very slim for the first few hours we were at MK. SM was our first stop. Rode it twice and grabbed a FP for later. Again through fantasyland, riding pretty much every ride. HM was next, then BTMRR and Splash. Adventureland was next, hitting Pirates and the Jungle Cruise. Thanks to the rain, the longest line we waited in may have been 10 minutes. We pretty much did every attraction at MK by 11. Just in time to watch the noon Christmas Parade and take a bunch of pics. After the parade, it was over to SM one last time before saying goodbye to MK.
We spent the afternoon at DHS to get a couple of ToT rides in before heading to Muppets and watching American Idol. good to see a fellow Canadian take the win in the show we watched. At about 5 pm, we left DHS for Downtown Disney and the Rainforest Cafe for Christmas Dinner. The third and final BBQ Bacon Burger was the choice of the night for me. I'd have to say that this would probably rank third out of all the burgers I ate this trip. Though it wasn't as good as the Big River Grille, it was a good meal nonetheless. Some last minute candy shopping was done after dinner then back to the hotel to pack and prepare for our early, 6 am flight the next morning.
even with all the problems we faced on the way to WDW, I had a great time on the trip. It's always fun at any Disney Park and spending Christmas there, with loved one's, made it even better. It was too bad we missed out on a full day at the park early in the week, as it would have been very handy to have some extra time, we still accomplished a lot and made some great memories. I think it may be a long while before we consider going back at Christmas again, simply because of the flight trouble we had, but if given the choice, I would do it every year. Unfortunately, this may be the last Disney trip we take in some while as our focus will now be on starting a family. Vacations will be low priority for the next few years but the wife and I cannot wait to have a family of our own and take the kids to Disney for the first time.
Sorry that this is all text and no pics, but with the broken camera, it will take some time before I can upload everything. Hope you enjoyed the report as much as I enjoyed writting it!
Happy Holidays :xmas:
Me, my wife and her two cousins were all set to head to WDW on Friday, December 18th. We picked up my wife from work around 12:30 and headed to the airport to catch our 3:15 flight to Denver. From Denver, we were off to Orlando. We would have landed a little after midnight had everything gone according to plan. Unfortunately, our United flight to Denver was delayed thanks to mechanical problems. We waited around for about another hour and finally boarded. Once we boarded, the plane was still not ready to go, so after an hour in the jetway, they cancelled the flight, which left us stuck at home, trying to arrange a way out the next day.
We were able to find a flight that left at 6 the next morning, December 19th, that went to Phoenix, then Dallas, then Orlando. At that point, we were happy to take the mulitple connections to arrive in Orlando at around 7 pm. when we arrived back at the ariport for our first flight on the 19th, we were told one of the United representatives didn't book our entire party so we had to scramble to get everything taken care of in order for us to depart. We did get things straightened away, so we thought, and took off on time to Phoenix. Because we switched carriers in Phoenix, we had to find our way to another terminal and get new boarding passes. The layover time was onyl about an hour and we made it to the correct terminal but again ran into the unconfirmed passanger problem we had in Edmonton so we ended up missing our connection to Dallas.
We were stranded in Phoenix, not having any success finding a flight to Orlando because a lot of the connections were going throught the Eastern seaboard which, of course, was hit with the big snow storms. After hours of trying to find a connection, my mom called and found a Delta flight leaving Phoenix to Atlanta just after midnight, then connecting to Orlando, which got us in shortly after 9 am on December 20th.
We booked this flight, waited nearly 10 hours in a Phoenix hotel before we went back to the airport, and finally made out way to Orlando...the hard way.
Our biggest concern when we finally touvhed down in Orlando was if our luggage continued on even though we missed our connecting flights the previous day. After many phone calls before finally landing in Orlando, we were not given any updates on our luggage so we had to hope it made it there safely or we were in big trouble. Luck seemed to turn around when we were able to track down our bags in the American Airlines baggage services area. We all cheered and it seemed that even though we had been up for close to 36 hours, our energy levels skyrocketed and we were finally going to have soem fun in WDW.
We jumped in a cab and checked into the Swan Hotel, which was absolutely beautiful. Just the smell walking into the hotel will be remembered for a long time. We must have checked in around 10. We got to our room and quickly showered and changed to get to the Magic Kingdom as quickly as possible. We were on the shuttle by 11, which I thought was an amazing feat with 3 girls showering and trying to get themselves ready to go.
At MK around 11:30...so excited! We rushed to get to the gates and were blown away with the size of the tree on Main Street. It was a great sight considering the adversity we had been faced with just trying to get there. we didn't stop to take in much of the scenery right away as we all wanted to ride Space Mountain. I thought the referb that was completed was very well done. The games that were installed made the 40 minute wait seemingly pass pretty quickly.
From there, we tried to hit as much as possible...we worked our way through a few things in Fantasyland, went to HM, then off to BTMRR and Splash. Wait times were much more manageable then I was preparing for. True, the economy is not the greatest and I suppose people are not travelling like the could have in the past, but I was pleasantly suprised with the crowd levels the whole week.
We did get some weird looks from some of the other guests as we were all wearing shorts and short sleeved shirts while we toured MK. the weather wasn't bamly or anything, but considering where we came from, it was like summer in December. A lot of people guessed that we had to be from Canada. We had a good laugh every time someone would say something. When the sun started setting, it did get a little chilly so we quickly went back to the hotel to grab a sweater and went right back in order to make it back in time for the character dinner at Crystal Palace. Upon our return, seeing the Castle lit up was spectacular. We took a bunch of great pics (which I'll upload later). Our dinner at CP was very cool. Didn't mind the buffet at all. Actually thought the food was pretty decent. Much better than what we were eating at the airports!! We got some great pics with Winnie, Tigger, Piglet and Eeyore and really had a great time.
After dinner, we watched Spectromagic, then staked out a spot for the fireworks. Thanks to Extra Magic Hours, we stayed at MK until about 1 am before heading back to finally get some sleep!
December 21st started a little later than I wanted it to. We slept in to try and catch up on some z's before finally hitting DHS for the day. We arrived between 10:30 and 11:00 am and went right to Toy Story. We grabbed fast passes (for about 7 that evening) and stood in line for about an hour and ten minutes to make this the first ride of the day. We got around to pretty much everything in DHS, including RnRC and TOT, before returning to Toy Story to use our fastpass. When we returned the FP line was out the building so it was a bit of a wait but much better than the 110 minutes in the standby line. We finally left DHS around 9 pm and headed back to the hotel to grab some sleep.
December 22 was our Universal day. we were up way early and jumped in a cab to make it IOA for the opening of the park. We were some of the first people there so it made getting on rides very easy. Hulk was first, which we rode twice, then off to Spiderman and Dueling Dragons. DD was awesome. We rode it back to back, in the front of each side. It was great walking on everything and getting to choose where we would sit. We met the Grinch in Suessland, who was really hitting on my wife! He was hilarious. took some great pics and really enjoyed ourselves there. We pretty muched finished IOA by 11 and went over to Universal to take in the attractions there.
By this time, the crowds had picked up so wait times increased. No more walking on rides. We waited for the new Rip Rockit for close to an hour an a half and were near the front when it broke down. We waited another 20-30 minutes for it to run again but no luck...we jumped out of line and did the rest of the rides in the park. We went back later and it was up and running but we didn't feel like waiting a second time. A quick trip back to IOA to ride JP, the Hulk and Spiderman, plus do a little shopping had us out of the park by about 6 pm. We had dinner at Margaritaville, which was very good. This the first of three BBQ bacon burgers I would eat on the trip! good burger, but not he best I had throughout the week. After dinner, we cabbed it to Downtown Disney, shopped for a few hours and went back to the hotel to rest.
The morning of December 23 spent at Epcot. After the brisk walk from the Swan to the World Showcase entrance, we made it to the gates before opening. Upon entering the park, we went straight to Soarin'. I grabbed fastpassess while the group waited in line and I joined them afterwards. Soari' is one of my all-time favorites. Great way to start the day. After Soarin', three of us went to M:S, while my wife grabbed Fastpassess for Test Track. Although the Standby for M:S stated 20 minutes, we waited in line for close to an hour. Thought the wife would be made with how long we were gone but she saw a good fight while she waited for us so she wasn't upset at all!
Back to Soarin' for our FP's, then we did Nemo and Turtle Talk with Crush. We used our Test Track FP, then toured the showcase before heading back to the hotel to grab a sweater and head over to DHS for dinner at the 50's Prime Time Cafe. This was the highlight of the trip...the experience we had here was outstanding. I don't think we stopped laughing the whole time we were there. Our "Uncle Tim" served us and was very funny the whole night. From making us get up and wash our hands before dinner, to setting the table because our elbows were on the table top, to giving one of us a timeout in the corner for misbehaving, the meal was excellent. I ordered the Fried Chicken and was very pleased with the choice. Great portion size and the food was great. After dinner, we hit ToT and the RnRC. We watched the 8 pm Fantasmic before walking abck to the hotel around 9.
December 24 started off at Chef Mickey's for breakfast. Only three of us though as one of my wife's cousins woke up sick. She missed out cause breakfast was great. Read mix reviews before heading there but was very happy with everything. The food was really good and it was great getting pics with some of our favorites (Mickey and Donald) without having to wait in lines to see them in the park. After breakfast, we went to the Grand Floridian to take some pics of the tree and the gingerbread house. We got the pics we wanted, but unfortunately, I dropped the camera and busted it so we were camera-less for the rest of the morning. After the GF, we went to AK for a few hours before meeting up with our sick cousin. We hit Everest three consecutive times and toured Dinoland, taking in a few attractions there as well. After riding Kali River Rapids, Everest and the Safari, we went back to the hotel to grab another camera and check in on our sick cousin. She was feeling better and joined us back at AK so we could watch the Jingle Jungle Parade and get soem good pics of it. My wife loved the parade so it was nice to have another camera to get soem shots. From there, we went to the Boardwalk for dinner. We at the Big River Grille. Had my second BBQ Bacon Burger of the trip...was the best one I had! Nice Christmas Eve dinner...though we were all thinking about the family back home. Got back to the hotel relatively early so we went across to the Dolphin to see the set up there. What a nice hotel...the tree was very pretty. Took some pics there, then back to the room to get some sleep so we could get up early for MK Extra Magic Hours.
Ealry wake up call on Christmas Day. We were up by 5 so everyone scould get ready to catch the bus to MK for the 7 am opening. We missed the first bus from the hotel, but still made it to MK shortly after 7. Thanks to a pretty decent rainfall, the crowds were very slim for the first few hours we were at MK. SM was our first stop. Rode it twice and grabbed a FP for later. Again through fantasyland, riding pretty much every ride. HM was next, then BTMRR and Splash. Adventureland was next, hitting Pirates and the Jungle Cruise. Thanks to the rain, the longest line we waited in may have been 10 minutes. We pretty much did every attraction at MK by 11. Just in time to watch the noon Christmas Parade and take a bunch of pics. After the parade, it was over to SM one last time before saying goodbye to MK.
We spent the afternoon at DHS to get a couple of ToT rides in before heading to Muppets and watching American Idol. good to see a fellow Canadian take the win in the show we watched. At about 5 pm, we left DHS for Downtown Disney and the Rainforest Cafe for Christmas Dinner. The third and final BBQ Bacon Burger was the choice of the night for me. I'd have to say that this would probably rank third out of all the burgers I ate this trip. Though it wasn't as good as the Big River Grille, it was a good meal nonetheless. Some last minute candy shopping was done after dinner then back to the hotel to pack and prepare for our early, 6 am flight the next morning.
even with all the problems we faced on the way to WDW, I had a great time on the trip. It's always fun at any Disney Park and spending Christmas there, with loved one's, made it even better. It was too bad we missed out on a full day at the park early in the week, as it would have been very handy to have some extra time, we still accomplished a lot and made some great memories. I think it may be a long while before we consider going back at Christmas again, simply because of the flight trouble we had, but if given the choice, I would do it every year. Unfortunately, this may be the last Disney trip we take in some while as our focus will now be on starting a family. Vacations will be low priority for the next few years but the wife and I cannot wait to have a family of our own and take the kids to Disney for the first time.
Sorry that this is all text and no pics, but with the broken camera, it will take some time before I can upload everything. Hope you enjoyed the report as much as I enjoyed writting it!
Happy Holidays :xmas:
