Trip Report *COMPLETED* 6 Parks, F&W Fest, MNSSHP & One HUGEEE Surprise!!!

Hi everyone! We got back from our Disney vacation two days ago and I am still exhausted and unfortunately sick, but I wanted to jump right into the report because if I don’t do it now, it will never get done!

You can find my pre-trip report here, http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/first-trip-in-6-years-with-a-wdw-first-timer.915675/ but here is a quick recap:

Who: My boyfriend, Mark, and yours truly

What: 5-Day Park Hopper Tickets, Food & Wine Festival, One night at Mickey’s Not-So-Scary-Halloween Party, One day at Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure and one HUUUUGE surprise, but I’m not giving anything away just yet!! You’ll have to follow along J

When: September 26th-October 3rd

Where: POP Century

Why: Mark’s first trip to Disney, and my first time back since being an AP 6 years ago!

Now that we have the particulars out of the way, let’s dive on in!

 

[Second Star to the Right]

We made it!!!

Again, you can tell how tired I was from the lack of pictures...this is the first picture us for the day. At this point on any other day I've taken like 12 selfies lol. These are also some of my favorite ears!

We agreed that the first stop we needed to make was for food. We were starving at that point! On the bus ride over I pulled up some of the QS options for Mark and let him pick. He opted for Fairfax Fare which was great because that was my selection too, so we started heading that way.

It's so nice that the BAH is gone!!

How can you NOT stop to take a picture of this beautiful sight??

This is the view from Fairfax Fare which Mark didn't realize had outdoor seating only. Strike 1. At this point we were also starting to notice how much more crowded DHS felt than our other days in the parks which surprised the he** out of me considering there really isn't THAT much to do in DHS right now.

We were standing in line behind a family for at least 5 minutes before someone there told us they weren't taking orders at that window and to go to the next window There was no sign indicating that window was not open, and I can't believe it took that long for someone to tell us they weren't taking orders. Strike 2. We were going to get into the open line, but there was only one open and it already had a line of 10 people. Strike 3. It was also blazing hot so we decided to just skip Fairfax Fare all together and go eat somewhere inside even if it meant crappier food.

The next option we chose was the ABC Commissary since it wasn't too far. I don't really love the food options there, but nothing at DHS for QS is all that great. We caught Goofy on our way!

 

[Second Star to the Right]

I have friends like that too...you make plans for a little further out to make sure everything gets accomplished, and then they backtrack on you. SOOOOO frustrating, but you definitely took it in stride. Hopefully your day improved!

I really tried to be in better spirits that day, but the heat, the crowds and the lack of sleep really got to me. It was really disappointing too because there were several things I wanted to do at DHS that just didn't happen. At the end of the day, we were still at Disney and that was fun.

 

[Tiggerish]

I'm exactly the same way when plans get messed up because of other people. It takes a long time for me to get over it.

Your Ariel ears are adorable!

I've always had good luck with the food at Backlot Express. They have a chopped salad there that's really very good.

 

[Second Star to the Right]

I'm exactly the same way when plans get messed up because of other people. It takes a long time for me to get over it.

Your Ariel ears are adorable!

I've always had good luck with the food at Backlot Express. They have a chopped salad there that's really very good.

What made it worse is that Mark isn't a planner either so he couldn't understand why I was upset.

And thank you! My Ariel ears were possibly my favorite out of my collection! I definitely need an excuse to wear them again.

I'll have to keep Backlot in mind for the next time we are there!

 

[Second Star to the Right]

When we arrived at the Commissary it was PACKED! I mean, peak of spring break, every Brazilian tour group-packed! I couldn't believe it. We were both starving at this point though so we didn't feel like finding another place. After we got our food we had to search around for 5 minutes looking for a place to sit. Luckily we found a seat inside!

Mark got a chicken sandwich with some type of berry dessert. Can't remember the specifics.

I was starving so I ordered the bacon cheeseburger with the peanut butter and chocolate cupcake

Both of our meals were fine. Exactly what we expected. My cupcake was super yummy though. Incredibly rich! I couldn't even come close to finishing it.

Once we were done with lunch it was about time for our Star Tours FP+. The new queue is much more fun than I remember and I was excited to see the new simulations.

I always enjoy Star Tours, so this is always a fun one for me. Plus it felt nice to sit in the AC I didn't realize there are different simulations depending on which "tour" you take, and that is really fun! Great idea to keep that ride fresh. I'll be excited to see DHS once the new Star Wars area completed.

 

[MinnieM123]

Both of our meals were fine. Exactly what we expected. My cupcake was super yummy though. Incredibly rich! I couldn't even come close to finishing it.

I'm drooling over this picture -- the Darth cupcakes are my FAVORITE!!! (P.S.: You're not expected to finish one--they are a challenge, but wow, they are so delicious!!)

 

[Second Star to the Right]

I'm drooling over this picture -- the Darth cupcakes are my FAVORITE!!! (P.S.: You're not expected to finish one--they are a challenge, but wow, they are so delicious!!)

It was definitely the best part of the meal! I wish I had eaten it first instead of the burger!

 

[Second Star to the Right]

Now that the weekend is over, time to get back to the report!

We just finished up our adventure on Star Tours, and since we were that close to Muppets 3D and it's one of my favorite shows, we just had to go check it out. I figured this would be something Mark would find endearing. The next show was set to start in 10 minutes, so the timing was perfect.

I love this area

My favorite people in the show I love these cranky curmudgeons!

I love this show, it's just so simple and cute. Mark really liked it as well, but we had a woman seated directly behind us who LOVED it. It's clear she has seen it before, but she made a comment at every single point of the production. Things like, "oh my god, they are just so clever!", "Look at bean up there in the seats, he's so funny!", and "I LOVE Ms. Piggy!!!" She was very loud too, it was a bit distracting, but it didn't ruin the show. If anything, it gave us something to laugh about when we were exiting.

After Muppets, we started making our way back to Sunset Boulevard and did some perusing in the different shops along the street.

This is the only important picture I took Back to the Future II is one of my all-time favorite movies

When we were done shopping it was time for our Tower of Terror FP+. The Stand By line was at a 60 minute wait, so I was very happy we had the FP+ since this was one of Mark's must-do rides.

The theming in this queue is just awesome. I don't really know anything about the Twilight Zone, but I still appreciate all of the detail that went into making this look incredibly rundown and spooky.

I have a love-hate relationship with ToT. Sudden drops scare the bejesus out of me, but when I get off the ride I'm always laughing and had a good time. It's just the initial terror leading in that makes me so anxious! I was white-knuckling Mark the entire time!

Even with that extra surge of adrenaline from ToT, we were both dragging our feet. The exhaustion had officially set in. I swear, my body just kept moving throughout the day by sheer will and determination.

We had one more FP+ for Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, but our window wasn't for another hour+. I suggested to Mark that we skip that FP+ (it actually pained me to say this, since that is my favorite ride at Disney), go back to the hotel for a nap, get refreshed for our ADR at Bongo's and then return to DHS after dinner since they had EMH that night. Hopefully, we would be able to take a ride in the limo later that night He was equally exhausted so thought this was the best idea at that point.

 

[Second Star to the Right]

We poured ourselves into bed and immediately passed out. It was amazing! We could have napped for a bit longer, but we would have pushed it with our ADR.

When we emerged from our room, we awoke to this lovely weather

For the first time on the trip, we broke out the ponchos! We don't look too happy about our needed outfit-change. Considering this was our 4th day there, I was shocked we hadn't needed them before this. Mark hates ponchos.

We decided to Uber there since we were running a bit late and the next DS bus wasn't scheduled for another 20 minutes. Plus, why wait in the rain?

This place looks fun, and I would definitely like to try it on another trip

We made it to Bongo's with plenty of time to spare and were seated almost immediately. That was a plus! I had eaten here once before, but don't remember much about my food and whether or not I liked it. As I said earlier, this was Mark's pick as he really likes Cuban food so he was excited to try it out.

I forgot to take a picture of the back of the menu...ya know, the side that lists the actual entrees? Duh.

 

[Second Star to the Right]

I love seafood, so I opted for the Cuban Criollo Seafood Combo since it comes with lobster, shrimp, scallops, mussels, clams, calamari and fish in a criolla sauce...sounded like it would be delicious!

Mark got the Cuban Style 11 oz. Skirt Steak with a chimichurri sauce

Mark said his was good, nothing amazing. The chimichurri sauce was very oily, which he isn't used to. He said the chimchurri sauce at the Patagonia booth in Epcot was much better than this.

Onto my meal...it started out fine. I didn't really taste any Creole flavor though, but that was okay because seafood can carry itself when done well. As I continued on in my meal though, I bit down into a couple pieces of shell and that was a real bummer, but there was a lot of seafood on the plate, so I gave them the benefit of the doubt. Then, a little bit later I bit into three pieces of fish bones. Ooook, not ideal, but again, fish can be difficult to clean...I guess. THEN I bit down into three more pieces of shell and that was my breaking point. I couldn't eat anymore.

I explained this to the waiter so he could pass this information on to the kitchen in hopes it wouldn't happen to the next customer. He looked surprised and didn't really understand how disappointed I was. He barely acknowledged it and made me feel like I was just making this up. Since we were on the dining plan, I wasn't really expecting him to be able to do anything for us, but he didn't even attempt to right the situation. I really wanted to like this place after seeing such mixed reviews, but so far I wasn't impressed.

While we were waiting for our desserts, the flamenco dancers came out to entertain everyone. This was fun, a bit loud, but that doesn't bother us.

Our dessert came out, and that cheered me up...how could the sight of chocolate NOT cheer me up?

Mark chose the Churros with the trio of dipping sauces, left to right: condensed milk, strawberry and a chocolate sauce.

Mark said the churros were good, but didn't care for the strawberry sauce with them. I think he actually just preferred them on their own.

Of course, I chose the chocolate cake. This was slightly like a chocolate lava cake as it was served warm and had a gooier center. It was very good, and was definitely the best part of the meal.

Overall impression: This was our worst meal of the trip. I absolutely wouldn't go here again and neither would Mark. I took a chance after reading some very mixed reviews, but Mark wanted Cuban food, so we took a shot. The ambiance is fine, nothing spectacular. I can see how some people would find the level of noise disturbing, but it doesn't both us so that wasn't a factor in our disappointment. The oily chimichurri sauce, shell-filled seafood platter, and un-empathetic waiter are really what turned us off. It's also a shame because so many new restaurants have opened up at DS and I would have much rather tried one of them than Bongo's. Live and learn!

 

[Trisha Lynn]

I don't really know anything about the Twilight Zone...

*cries into my tea*

OMG, you are in for a real treat--that is, if you like short fiction, spooky stories, seeing actors in roles "before they got famous," and the kinds of stories where you think you know where the plot is going and then the story goes a different and very plausible way. It was an anthology TV series where you don't need to have seen the previous week's episode to know what's going on in the current week's episode. Anyone in my generation would have spent their after-school time or their Saturday afternoons being spooked by the stories.

I remember one where the conceit was that a girl had disappeared into a dimensional door in her bedroom and her dad had to go into the wall to get her out. My older sister pranked me after we saw that episode by hiding under our bed and pretending the same had happened to her. I was so mad at her at the time!

 

[Second Star to the Right]

After dinner, we did some window shopping around DS. We had to stop at the Christmas shop to pick up an ornament as a souvenir for this trip. We've started collecting ornaments from different places we travel as our one souvenir. It took us forever to pick which one we wanted. I could have easily walked out with at least 15 different ornaments.

In the end, we chose the hitchhiking ghosts from the Haunted Mansion as our ornament. It doesn't exactly scream Christmas, but we figured it would be fun since we went to Disney during their Halloween celebrations. Nice way to commemorate. Plus, we look for funky ornaments, and that was perfect. The only other stop we had to make was over at the Alex and Ani store to pick up a Jack Skellington bracelet for Mark's mom. We gave it to her last weekend and she loves it! That's her favorite Disney movie.

This was our second time at DS that day, and it was nice getting to see it at night and in the daytime. The springs are gorgeous, but I just don't love the outdoor mall-feel. If you brought me there without telling me it was owned by Disney, I would have NO idea it was Disney-run until I got over to the Marketplace area. I'm not sure how I feel about that. It's a great spot for locals and a nice break from the parks and I would definitely go back and maybe even build in a day to do more shopping/looking around.

From DS we took a bus to one of the Boardwalk hotels so we could just walk to DHS from there. I didn't want to be at the mercy of anymore buses that day. Going back and forth from DS was a pain!

The rain had stopped and the walk over was so pretty. We missed Fantasmic, but Mark was okay with that since he has seen it before.

When we got to security I encountered my first rude CM. I stepped up to give him my bag for inspection and said "Hello!" and he didn't even look at me or say anything back. To quote Stephanie Tanner, how rude!

Our first stop was to pick up our souvenir at ToT. We saw a Do Not Disturb sign in there earlier, and we both liked it a lot but we weren't positive that was what we wanted as our DHS souvenir. After looking at all the other options, we thought that was the best choice and we didn't want to run the risk of the shop being closed later so that was a must.

I kept checking wait times for RnR and TSM, and RnR was at 90 minutes, and TSM was at 60. It was 9 pm and EMH ended at 11 p.m. so we didn't have that long in the park. I couldn't justify waiting 90 minutes even if it is my favorite ride.

We hadn't been on The Great Movie Ride yet, and that only had a 20 minute wait, so that was the next stop.

 

[Second Star to the Right]

I think I take this picture every single time I am on this ride

Our driver was good, but he spoke a little quickly so it was hard to catch everything he said. I also think our boat was half asleep because no one was really reacting to anything. I'm glad we got to ride this before it's replaced.

 

[Second Star to the Right]

After The Great Movie Ride, I had a tough decision to make. TSM had a 45 minute wait, and RnR was down to a 15 minute wait. This might seem like a no brainer, but we wouldn't be able to do both rides as the park would be closed by the time we were done with either ride. RnR is my favorite ride, but I have never been on TSM. It was brand new when I had my AP and the wait was always at least 2 hours when we were there.

In the end, I couldn't be at DHS and NOT ride RnR. Plus, I had a picture I really wanted to try out.

This was fun!

I really wanted to wait in line for the first row, but I didn't want to ask Mark to wait, so we just took the seats we got. It's still an amazing ride.

Since this was Mark's first time, I tried distracting him so he didn't notice the limo zipping off from the start. I figured that would be a nice surprise! I knew I wanted to take a fun picture, but I didn't know if I would be able to keep the face when we actually took off.

I'm proud to say, mission accomplished:

It took a lot of effort to look bored. Mark's face is great, but no one beats the girl directly in front of me. Her face is AH-mazing. I might have just convinced myself to buy the digital copy.

The park was officially closed after we got off RnR, and we had already done our shopping earlier in the day, so we decided to call it quits and head back to the hotel for an early night. We were excited at the prospect of getting to sleep in! Tomorrow was our day at Universal and we didn't have to meet my family until 10 a.m.

Since we were leaving right at park closing, the bus lines were crazy long. It also started raining again, which wasn't good timing. I got into the POP line and had Mark get into AoA because they are right next to each other. My devious plan worked because an AoA bus came within 5 minutes and I was still at the back of the POP line. We even got to sit on the bus. Score!

At this point, we had taken the walk from AoA to POP more times than I can remember, but I hadn't taken a picture of my favorite little duuuuude yet:

Recap on Day 4: I don't do well when people mess with my plans, and staying up past 2 a.m. two nights in a row just to get back up at 7 a.m. is not a good way to avoid crankiness. DHS was by far the busiest park of the trip, and it's a shame because there was still several things we didn't do: Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular, The Frozen Sing-a-long Celebration, Fantasmic, the Star Wars fireworks, and TSM to name a few. I also wanted to get a PB&J milkshake from the 50's Prime Time Café Tune In Lounge, and I REALLY wanted a cupcake from Starring Rolls Café. These are all things that will be added to my "must-do" list the next time we go. I figured pure adrenaline would have kept me going, but the heat and exhaustion finally set in. The nap really did help, so I'm glad we made the decision to leave instead of trying to stick it out and see more attractions.

We were both looking forward to our Universal day so sleep came very easy that night! See you tomorrow, Potter!

 

[Second Star to the Right]

I had to make a stop on my way home tonight and I picked us up a treat

Let the vacation continue!!

 

[Second Star to the Right]

Since I was talking about our souvenir-shopping earlier and a few of them were readily available for pictures I figured I would include them in the post:

Our newest Christmas ornament for the fun tree

Our ToT Do Not Disturb sign that hangs on our bedroom door

And our souvenir from Epcot, the Italian eyes to keep evil spirits away

 

[MinnieM123]

We made it to Bongo's with plenty of time to spare and were seated almost immediately. That was a plus! I had eaten here once before, but don't remember much about my food and whether or not I liked it. As I said earlier, this was Mark's pick as he really likes Cuban food so he was excited to try it out.

I've never had Cuban food before. But the menu you posted sure looks like they have plenty of delicious choices! I think I might like Cuban food!!

But as I read further in your post, it sounds like you didn't care for the food. That's disappointing, and sorry you had a bad meal there.

 

[Second Star to the Right]

I've never had Cuban food before. But the menu you posted sure looks like they have plenty of delicious choices! I think I might like Cuban food!!

But as I read further in your post, it sounds like you didn't care for the food. That's disappointing, and sorry you had a bad meal there.

Cuban food is delcious! I was so disappointed with the food quality, but if you can find a good Cuban restaurant I highly recommend taking a shot! Sweet plantains are delicious!!!

 

[prfctlyximprct]

*cries into my tea*

OMG, you are in for a real treat--that is, if you like short fiction, spooky stories, seeing actors in roles "before they got famous," and the kinds of stories where you think you know where the plot is going and then the story goes a different and very plausible way. It was an anthology TV series where you don't need to have seen the previous week's episode to know what's going on in the current week's episode. Anyone in my generation would have spent their after-school time or their Saturday afternoons being spooked by the stories.

I remember one where the conceit was that a girl had disappeared into a dimensional door in her bedroom and her dad had to go into the wall to get her out. My older sister pranked me after we saw that episode by hiding under our bed and pretending the same had happened to her. I was so mad at her at the time!

Everyday New Years my mom and I would be watching the twilight zone! I remember that wall episode!! And talking Tina! And the little boy and girl who escaped from their divorced parents by jumping into their pool and going to eat cake at this old lady's house. Man I could go on and on lol! They can never leave the twilight zone theme!!

 

[Second Star to the Right]

Day 5: Universal Studios & Islands of Adventure

We got to sleep in until 8 a.m. that morning!! It was glorious! As I mentioned earlier, we were planning on meeting my family there around 10. My brother, sister-in-law, niece and my mom all live down by Vero and we usually visit them when we make a FL trip. This time, since we weren't renting a car, we told them up-front if they wanted to see us, they would have to come to Orlando. During our planning we found out we were able to get free Universal tickets from one of Mark's friends at work, so we took advantage of that and asked for two additional tickets. My mom and sister-in-law love Harry Potter as well, and my mom hadn't seen the new Diagon Alley side, so this worked out perfectly.

Just a couple of Hufflepuffs waiting for an Uber. What a muggle thing to do!

We weren't meeting them until 10, but we figured we would get to the park a bit earlier if we could, get the tickets and maybe go on a ride. My sister-in-law is pregnant and my mom doesn't like rides, so we figured we could get 1-2 out of the way before they got there and that way they wouldn't have to wait for us.

My Harry Potter arm-candy

We breezed through security, metal detectors and all (take a hint Disney) and made our way toward Islands of Adventure. Our plan was to spend as much time at the Wizarding World sections, and there isn't a whole heck of a lot to do on the IoA side, so that would be first up.

CityWalk

Highly recommend the volcano nachos here, and any margarita!

Yay! This has been my home-away-from-home the past few years

The new Chocolate Emporium that replaced NBA City.

I love these views