Trip Report COMPLETED Once Upon a Christmas Time...A Very Merry Trip Report

Matt and Kelly · Jan 12, 2018

Sorry for such a gap in posts. Settling back into work after the holidays and a week-long very, VERY cold weather front here at home has made me a little neglectful in continuing to share our visit. That and for some reason, I’m having issues uploading photos from the trip to Flickr. So much so that I may have to come back and add photos I thought I uploaded but don’t seem to be showing up.
Bah, enough of my issues, back to the good stuff.

Saturday, December 9 – Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom

After what was a pretty successful first park day, we crashed pretty hard when we finally got back to the hotel after our quick visit to Epcot the night before. We were up again early to try and take advantage of EMH at Animal Kingdom and our first adventure in Pandora!
Same type of routine from the previous morning. Kelly and I up and getting ready while the kids slept as long as we could let them before getting them up, fed and dressed to catch the bus as quickly as we could. We knew the day was going to be chilly, at least from Florida standards, so it was long pants for the kids and jackets/sweaters for all of us. Even with the chilly weather, no chance a Canadian like me was coming to Florida and not wearing shorts. I did get a chance to wear some Edmonton Eskimo gear which is always good in my book.
As we made the walk to the bus stop, it started to drizzle a little bit. Nothing crazy but the gloomy sky and strong gusts of wind signaled we may be in for a frosty day at the park. There were already a few families waiting to catch the bus over to AK and thankfully for all of us the bus arrived pretty quickly after we made it to the stop. It wasn’t overly busy on the bus which kinda left me hopeful that maybe the crowd wouldn’t be so crazy when we arrived at the park.

15 minutes or so we had pulled into the stop at AK and made our way through security and the front gate. Typically I would be ok stopping for a few photos as we strolled through the entrance or finding a photopass photog to grab a Tree of Life shot. Not today…quickly into Pandora to get our first look. Most people were clearly on my train of thought as well as the stream of folks were all leading to the same place.

Leading up to the trip I had tried to avoid as much of Pandora as I could with the exception of reading about others experience through trip reports here. Having seen some of the photos that were highlighted in other reports, I couldn’t wait to see it for myself. As we made it over the bridge I was immediately blown away when first seeing the floating mountains, the detail in the landscaping and the theming throughout the land.

I was awestruck, and it was amazing!

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Disney World - 2017 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Even though we had FP+ for Flights of Passage, our first move was to find the entrance and get a return time with Ella’s pass. We did that quickly and jumped into the standby line for the Na’vi River Journey.

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

It was only about 20 minutes at this point so no big worry. The Queue was really cool and things flowed really quickly. After about 20 minutes we were loaded into our boat and were on our way.

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

While I doubt I would stand in line for multiple hours for this ride, it was most impressive. Lennon immediately became obsessed with it. Her new favourite ride. The detail was awesome, the lighting was great, the AA’s were stunning, the projection scenes we super cool…it just felt really well done to me. I couldn’t see any shortcuts taken like they did with the Frozen overlay. This was really a great first taste of Pandora.

As we got off the ride Lennon was quick to shout “Let’s do it again!”. We told her we would try to come back if we could get the chance. We had some time to kill before our return time for FoP opened up so we made our way back towards the Tree of Life to see if we could find some characters and to get out of the cold weather for a bit by watching It’s Tough to be a Bug.

We made a quick stop in a shop and ended up picking up some souvenirs to take back with us and the girls found some new friends.

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

As we stepped out of the store there was a very short line to meet Russell so we stopped to say hello.

Disney World - 2017 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr
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AK_OUTFITTERSCHAR1_20171209_407010119728 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

From there we walked down to Tough to be a Bug. It was pretty chilly at this point, even for me, so any chance we could get to warm up was most welcome. The theatre offered a nice reprieve from the weather. I had come to learn it was warmer in Edmonton than it was in WDW that day…crazy!

TTBAB was hilarious. I think I watched the girls more than the show. Both Ella and Lennon were jumping all over the place. Made for a good laugh!

As we exited the theatre it was time for FLIGHTS OF PASSAGE! I was jacked! We trekked back to Pandora, parked the stroller and went through the FP line. All four of us were excited for something new. The excitement of some would quickly turn to flat out terror but before then the walk through the queue was really cool.

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

The ride itself was absolutely amazing. Easily the coolest ride I’ve ever been on. The only thing I didn’t like throughout the whole ride was Dr. Stevens in the pre-show. He started out fine but became increasingly annoying with the “uh’s and um’s” as the show went on. Certainly doesn’t sour my ride experience but I wouldn’t have any issue if they made a change there. I vote for Patrick Warburton to take over…the more Puddy the better.

Again, the ride was fantastic. Everything about it was almost perfect. Me, Kelly and Ella especially had a blast. Lennon…not so much. She was completely freaked out by it and vowed never to ride again. At least she did it once! Ella on the other hand definitely had the “Let’s go again!” reaction. Luckily for her, we had an FP+ coming up in the afternoon.

dclfan · Jan 12, 2018

OMG we both rope dropped AK on the same day and went straight to Pandora and Na'Vi River Journey. How did we not run into each other? On a side note how cold was this day? By 4:00 I was downright freezing and by the time Rivers of Light started everyone was shivering.

fractal · Jan 12, 2018

Matty30 said:
Continuing on.

As I mentioned, we were at the front desk, checking in with a terrific CM named Stephen, who informed us that he had bad news about our reservation. Apparently, all the one-bedroom villas were occupied. Upon hearing this the smile on my face quickly disappeared but as Stephen continued, "I made the decision around 2 pm this afternoon to move you guys to a two-bedroom suite here at the hotel, not in the villas. I hope that's ok with you?"

I looked at Kelly and laughed. On the bus ride to the resort, Kelly mentioned something about how cool it would be to find out we were upgraded when we checked in. I said we are already in a lake view one-bedroom, what more could you want?! Well it turns out that she was prophetic and Stephen informed us that we would be spending our short time at the Grand in the Cape Coral Suite with full concierge access while we were there. He mentioned it was a $1,700/night upgrade on top of what a one-bedroom would cost so that right there gave me an indication we were in for something special.

We didn't quite know what this meant but he assured us that as soon as we walked in the room we would be more than pleased. I was happy to take his word for it as we finished the check-in process and he gave us a few suggestions on how to spend the evening. I had planned on making the trip over to the Poly to grab some pulled pork nachos for our first meal but he thought our time would be better spent by grabbing something from Gaspirilla's and watching the fireworks from our private patio!

As we left the front desk we were pretty anxious to see just where we would end up for the night. We walked through the lobby into the courtyard and made our way towards the room.

We figured any room that had its own sign had to be pretty great...
Disney World - 2017 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Stephen was right. The room was unreal. I did take video of us entering the room for the first time which I'll soon upload to YouTube and share the link. I have no doubt the one-bedroom villa would have been fantastic but this place was something else.
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on FlickrUntitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on FlickrUntitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Huge living space greeted us as we entered. Found out as we explored that there were four separate entrances from the hallway and four sliding door access to the patio area.

The girls' room was amazing...
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on FlickrUntitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on FlickrUntitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

and so was the master...Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on FlickrUntitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

But the view, and the private patio with the unobstructed Magic Kingdom view from across the lake was the best feature...
Disney World - 2017 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

I guess if we didn't have access to the villa that this would make for sufficient accommodation for our brief stay. We were so pumped up to start the trip like this. We did another quick FaceTime tour for our parents before finally leaving the room to look for something to eat before returning to watch the fireworks.

wow! Now that's an upgrade!

Matt and Kelly · Jan 12, 2018

fractal said:
wow! Now that's an upgrade!

We were beyond lucky! Will never happen again but at least we can share the story of when it did!

Matt and Kelly · Jan 12, 2018

dclfan said:
OMG we both rope dropped AK on the same day and went straight to Pandora and Na'Vi River Journey. How did we not run into each other? On a side note how cold was this day? By 4:00 I was downright freezing and by the time Rivers of Light started everyone was shivering.

HA! Not sure how we could have missed each other. Too bad we did though.

From what I remember at one point I had checked the weather and it was 9 degrees Celsius (10 back home in Edmonton at the time) which is what...48ish Fahrenheit? With the rain and wind it seemed pretty nasty, especially in the morning.

And frankly, I would take those temps in a heartbeat. Today is -31C, as it has been for the last three days, so I guess about -23F. I'd be most pleased to be back in the "chilly" Florida weather!

fractal · Jan 12, 2018

glad you had a great time at Whispering Canyon! I think Ella's showing some great photographer potential!

This is really making me wish for a WDW Christmas trip - also making me look back and miss when mine were this age. Loving the report and all caught up!

Matt and Kelly · Jan 12, 2018

fractal said:
glad you had a great time at Whispering Canyon! I think Ella's showing some great photographer potential!

This is really making me wish for a WDW Christmas trip - also making me look back and miss when mine were this age. Loving the report and all caught up!

Thanks for reading! Christmas in WDW is definitely a special time.

Ella has really picked up the photography bug lately. She has an iPod that controls her constant glucose monitor but she pretty much uses it for selfies and random pictures of whatever she comes up with. Santa even delivered her first camera from Christmas. She loves it and some of the pictures she takes are really quite good!

Matt and Kelly · Jan 16, 2018

We had an FP for Kilimanjaro Safaris and the window was quickly closing so we once again set off to leave Pandora and make our way over to Africa. Before we left we found a PhotoPass spot with nobody around so we figured why not.

AK_PANDORASMFALLS_20171209_407011070306 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

We also decided to grab a return time for the River Journey for later in the day which definitely made Lennon happy. We hustled through the mist towards the Safari and just made it before the window closed on our FP. By this point in the day, it was really chilly so we weren’t too sure how many animals we might encounter during the trip but nonetheless I was looking forward to what has become one of my favourite attractions in the parks.

We handed off our stroller and were loaded onto the truck quite quickly. We ended up in the final row, something I don’t recall us ever doing on this one before but it turned out quite well for being able to turn around and take a look at things as we drove throughout the reserve. We were on our way!
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For what was a gloomy, cold day I was surprised by the activity throughout the journey. Tons of animals within a close proximity to the trails which made for some cool sights as we drove through.

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Disney World - 2017 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Our ride came to a close, we gathered up our stroller and we tried to figure out where to next. It was about lunchtime now and Kelly has become a massive fan of Flame Tree Barbecue, well a fan of anything that has to do with pulled pork really, so it was decided that we would make our way towards the restaurant to grab a bite to eat before forging on to other parts of the park.

Along the way we ran into some hairy friends that really took a liking not only to our girls but the girls newest plush friends as well.
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AK_UPCOUNTRYLANDINGCHAR_20171209_407013553350 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

AK_UPCOUNTRYLANDINGCHAR_20171209_407013576552 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Many of our friends always ask us why we go to Disney Parks as often as we do. I know I don’t need to explain why this place is the ultimate vacation destination around these boards but the pictures often tell the story. The look on our girls’ faces always paints the picture as to why we loved it. Pure joy…can’t beat that.

AK_UPCOUNTRYLANDINGCHAR_20171209_407013411747 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

After feeling like jungle VIP with Baloo and King Louie we made it the Flame Tree and jumped in line. The lineup was a decent size but nothing crazy yet. We had a nice knack of arriving just before major hordes of hungry people were looking for a bite to eat.
Kelly ordered the Pulled Pork Sandwich; I ordered the sampler plate and the girls both decided to go with the hot dog meal. We also threw in a side of onion rings as a snack credit. TO our surprise Lennon now has a favourite side, she can’t get enough onion rings! For a girl that desperately needs to put on weight that’s a-ok by me!

Disney World - 2017 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

The food was great. Kelly is never disappointed by the pulled pork and I was most pleased with all the offerings on my plate. All that was left were the bones.

As we finished lunch we had another FP window nearing its end, this time for Expedition Everest. For a few months leading up to the trip I was doing everything I could to convince the girls, Ella mostly, that they had to try EE. Offering bribes to get them to ride, stretching the truth about the ride itself and leaving out details about going backward and the big drop towards the end. Nothing worked. I gave it one last shot before climbing the forbidden mountain. I thought I had them…I was wrong. Even Kelly decided not to ride so I huffed it over alone and actually ended up jumping in the single rider line as opposed to FP.

Disney World - 2017 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Wasn’t a long wait before I was loaded on to the train and off I went. Easily one of the best rides on property. That feeling of going backward at a pretty high speed is thrilling. I’m hoping the girls will be up for it next time we visit. They’re really missing out!

AK_EXPEDITIONEVERESTRIDE_20171209_8140320049 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

I exited the ride and quickly found Ella watching near the big drop. She said she saw me as I went down which she thought was pretty cool. I told her next time she has to ride with me but still not budging! From there we walked down toward Dinoland to look around. I figured we might jump on a few rides there but instead the girls wanted to do something a little different.

IMG_1477 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

They looked great! But it was a challenge for them not to scratch their faces for the rest of the day! We strolled around a little bit to check things out but didn’t end up on any rides. We thought about getting in line to see Santa Goofy but the lineup was massive. Ella knew we had our final FP coming up for FoP so that was all she wanted to do but Lennon was insistent that she would not ride…no chance!

We made the leisurely stroll through AK back, once again, towards Pandora. Still chilly but the rain that was off and on was off again. We seemed to be cutting it super close all day for our FP windows and since Lennon didn’t want to ride I stayed out with her and Kelly took Ella on the ride.

Lenny and I rolled around every nook of Pandora checking things out and taking pictures before settling in near the exit of the ride to wait for the others to meet us. All our exploring must have wiped her out.

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Kelly and Ella found us after about 25 minutes or so. The window had just closed but we thought we would take a chance and see if my band and Lennon’s would still be accepted. Ella was all for another flight if we could sneak on and thankfully the Mickey head turned green when we scanned. Amazing that this little girl was able to ride FoP 3 times within half a day!

The second time through was almost better than the first. New detailed emerged that I missed the first time and I was even more taken back by the detail of the ride. Still not a fan at all of Dr. Stevens but what can you do? I really couldn’t get over just how much fun that ride is.

It was mid-afternoon now and we figured it was about time to head back to warm up. I had a haircut booked at the Harmony Barbershop that I was really looking forward to and we wanted to grab some warmer clothes for a night at MK. Of course, before we left we had to make good on our return time for the River Journey and you better believe sleeping beauty bolted up from that power nap to speed through the line. Just before we loaded on the couple in front of us asked if I was an Eskimo fan. I responded that I am and he proceeded to tell a story about how he went to college with one of our players, Brandon Zylstra, who happened to lead the CFL in receiving this year (1,700 yards) and recently signed a contract with his home state team, the Minnesota Vikings. Cool to see that folks from the US are being exposed to the CFL more and more these days.

Now that Lennon was happy with one more trip down the river we made our move to head back to the Beach Club to prepare for a night at MK. Animal Kingdom has always been a top-notch park in my mind, even if it was lacking something “big” in the past. Pandora is a game changer in my mind. Elevates the park to a truly can’t miss stop as opposed to a half day type visit. Fingers crossed DHS has that same feel once the construction is completed in 2019.

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

PacNWTigger · Jan 16, 2018

I'm officially all caught up! Your girls are so adorable, and it looks like they had a wonderful time. Super jealous about the GF upgrade. My fingers are crossed for some pixie dust to come my way in May.

Matt and Kelly · Jan 16, 2018

PacNWTigger said:
I'm officially all caught up! Your girls are so adorable, and it looks like they had a wonderful time. Super jealous about the GF upgrade. My fingers are crossed for some pixie dust to come my way in May.

Thanks for reading along! We will definitely keep our fingers crossed for you when your trip comes around!

Figment Forever · Jan 16, 2018

The girls are so adorable!!! Your upgrade was so exciting - that was really awesome! I've always wanted to try Flame Tree and something always happens and we don't make it there. I really have to try to make it a must do next time.

amjt660 · Jan 16, 2018

Matty
Loving your great day at AK
I am sharing the family shot with my crew and we all agree your daughters are adorable.
The stuffies were a big hit with the Jungle Book duo.

Keep wearing the Eskimos jersey - keep the Patriot ones in the closet back home.

Max

Matt and Kelly · Jan 17, 2018

Figment Forever said:
The girls are so adorable!!! Your upgrade was so exciting - that was really awesome! I've always wanted to try Flame Tree and something always happens and we don't make it there. I really have to try to make it a must do next time.

Thank you so much! We're lucky to have such vibrant girls who make our life that much better. I would highly recommend Flame Tree. Many great options on the menu and I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

amjt660 said:
Matty
Loving your great day at AK
I am sharing the family shot with my crew and we all agree your daughters are adorable.
The stuffies were a big hit with the Jungle Book duo.

Keep wearing the Eskimos jersey - keep the Patriot ones in the closet back home.

Max

Those stuffies ended up going everywhere with us the rest of the trip. Lennon is obsessed with Dumbo, she has well over 10 stuffies at home already but there was no way she was passing up another.

As for the Pats, no chance any of my gear is staying in my closet at this time of year! Already jacked up for Sunday. #NotDone

Matt and Kelly · Jan 17, 2018

We arrived back at the Beach Club around 330 or so and had a few moments to relax quickly before gearing up for an evening visit to MK. With no Christmas Party planned and the park open late we were looking forward to seeing MK after dark. That and a trip to Harmony Barbershop, a tradition for me on any WDW visit.

We had enough time at the hotel for the girls to hang out for a bit while Kelly and I put together some warmer clothes for the evening. I may have had just enough time to sneak a Blue Moon before putting on a warmer hoodie (or bunnyhug for any folks from Saskatchewan who may be reading along) before we raced down to the bus stop shortly after 4.

We arrived to find that a bus was not scheduled to stop at BC for another 20 or so minutes which had me panicking about missing my appointment. While waiting we tried to summon a Minnie Van but like the first time, we tried a few days earlier, no luck. I put in one more chance request before opening the Uber app. Still nothing from Minnie Van so Uber it was. We ended up walking back to the main entrance as a Minnie Van pulled up. I told Kelly to go ask if he was waiting for someone or if he was open for business. He said he was waiting for a gentleman named “Matt”. I laughed and re-opened the Lyft app to see my request was received and this was our driver. I quickly canceled the Uber that was a minute away and we loaded in for our first Minnie Van ride.
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Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

Roomy vehicles, super clean and, as you would expect, a very friendly driver named Philip. We chatted the whole way to MK about the service and the plan to expand. He was most knowledgeable about the resort which was nice to get some insight on all the road construction going on as we drove through the detours. By the end of the ride, which takes you directly to the MK bus stop area, I was ready to swipe the USB that was programmed full of Disney World themed music but instead opted to simply thank our driver and unfold our stroller.

Security was minimal and soon I had made my way to the barber shop to check in for my cut.
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I had a few people in front of me that I had to wait for but after about 10-15 minutes my barber, Susan, called my name and welcomed me to her chair. Here's the before...yikes
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Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

I told her what I was looking for, she spun me away from the mirror and got to work. This was my fourth (I think) haircut at Harmony and Susan was definitely the best barber I’ve had so far. We spoke about our morning at AK, how Pandora is all that people are talking about and she gave us some fantastic tips on how to view the castle lighting later that evening. She even made sure Lennon and Ella had toys to keep them occupied while dad was getting his hair cut. She was really great.
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Disney World - 2017 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

When she was all finished she asked the girls if they wanted some pixie dust in their hair and whether dad should get some “Jingle Jam, Jingle Bam” spray. Of course, the kids were all over it and so was I. Not too shabby…
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Once we left the Barber Shop we really had no plans. No dining reservations, no FP’s, nothing. All we wanted to do was ensure we had a good spot for the castle lighting, maybe meet a few characters and get on a few rides throughout the evening.

We set off down Main Street towards Fantasyland, stopping to take some quick shots around the hub of the castle.
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IMG_1480 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]
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IMG_1481 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

Then it was off for a tour of Fantasyland. Lennon immediately started bargaining for a ride on the Mine Train but the standby was quite lengthy (easily the longest anywhere within the park) and since we used Ella’s guest assistance to our advantage earlier in the day we figured we didn’t need to do so again. This, of course, didn’t sit well with her but oh well! As we walked past the diamond mines she kept harping on us but for once we didn’t give in. Instead, we made the tour of FL, jumping on Dumbo, the Barnstormer, Ariel’s Undersea Adventure and finally took a spin on a classic we had yet to ride.
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IMG_1488 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]
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Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

MK was busy, but not crazy. It was still very chilly so I think the weather kinda hindered some of the crowd. Had it been nicer I’m sure the park would have seemed much busier. We walked over to see what the line to meet Merida was like but it was packed down the walkway towards the castle. It was like this most of the trip so we sadly didn’t get the chance to meet Merida this trip and one of Kelly’s custom pages stayed blank.

At least I was able to use the trip near the line to try a few goofy pictures that I thought were creative.
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We then decided to find a spot near the castle for the lighting. Kelly found good real estate even with people filing in trying to stake out their vantage point. We had yet to eat dinner and while nobody was really starving, the girls wanted popcorn (again) so off I went to find a cart. I ended up near the Hall of Presidents in a decently long line. As I waited the people behind me were talking about the weather and how cold it was. The gent mentioned how much he liked the weather as he was from New York, now living in Florida, so it felt like home. His girlfriend made a comment about how she can easily pick out the Canadians as they are the only ones wearing shorts when it’s cold like this. I turned around laughing as I was still in my shorts and acknowledged I was Canadian.

I’d grabbed the corn and was back to the girls just in time for the ceremony to start. The Castle looked amazing before Elsa, Anna and Olaf took the stage to lead everyone through the lighting ceremony. The hub was packed by now, barely any room to move, but we still had a great view of everything.
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As good as it looked before, the castle looked even better once it was all lit up.
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With the lighting ceremony completed we made our way back into Fantasyland to for a few more attractions. We set sail on the Happiest Cruise on Earth before hopping in the queue for Mickey’s PhilharMagic. Figured the more time we spent indoors the better and PhilharMagic is one of my favourite 3D shows so it worked out well. Even found a picture I could send back to my dad at home. This is the nickname the players refer to him as in the locker room at Commonwealth Stadium. He got a good laugh out of it.
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Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

Once the show was over we decided it was likely time to head home. It was around 10 pm, we still really hadn’t eaten dinner and it was still freezing. We kinda wanted to stay for fireworks but all the good spaces were taken along Main Street and we thought we could beat some of the crowds heading back to the bus stops if we left now. We toured quickly through the shops to avoid traffic but found a chance or two to take photos before leaving the park.
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Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

We left the park just as the fireworks we starting up so we could still see some of the show as we waited for the bus and on our way down the road as we pulled away. We arrived back at the hotel around 1030. Kelly and I were hungry, as were the girls, so Kelly ended up grabbing us a quick service meal at the marketplace. We both had the Philly cheesesteak. The girls just had applesauce and granola bars that we purchased as sides with the meals.
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I grabbed a beer and turned on the replay of the Saints/Falcons game the NFL network while we all ate before bed. The cheesesteak was not something I would order again but for as hungry as I was it was sufficient.

Once we were done we pulled out the bed and tucked in the girls. It was long, cold day, but we had a blast in Pandora and at MK. On deck was Epcot in the morning but first I had to make sure I got all the Jingle Jam, Jingle Bam spray out of my hair before climbing into bed!

krause · Jan 17, 2018

Matty30 said:
We arrived back at the Beach Club around 330 or so and had a few moments to relax quickly before gearing up for an evening visit to MK. With no Christmas Party planned and the park open late we were looking forward to seeing MK after dark. That and a trip to Harmony Barbershop, a tradition for me on any WDW visit.

We had enough time at the hotel for the girls to hang out for a bit while Kelly and I put together some warmer clothes for the evening. I may have had just enough time to sneak a Blue Moon before putting on a warmer hoodie (or bunnyhug for any folks from Saskatchewan who may be reading along) before we raced down to the bus stop shortly after 4.

We arrived to find that a bus was not scheduled to stop at BC for another 20 or so minutes which had me panicking about missing my appointment. While waiting we tried to summon a Minnie Van but like the first time, we tried a few days earlier, no luck. I put in one more chance request before opening the Uber app. Still nothing from Minnie Van so Uber it was. We ended up walking back to the main entrance as a Minnie Van pulled up. I told Kelly to go ask if he was waiting for someone or if he was open for business. He said he was waiting for a gentleman named “Matt”. I laughed and re-opened the Lyft app to see my request was received and this was our driver. I quickly canceled the Uber that was a minute away and we loaded in for our first Minnie Van ride.
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Roomy vehicles, super clean and, as you would expect, a very friendly driver named Philip. We chatted the whole way to MK about the service and the plan to expand. He was most knowledgeable about the resort which was nice to get some insight on all the road construction going on as we drove through the detours. By the end of the ride, which takes you directly to the MK bus stop area, I was ready to swipe the USB that was programmed full of Disney World themed music but instead opted to simply thank our driver and unfold our stroller.

Security was minimal and soon I had made my way to the barber shop to check in for my cut.
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

I had a few people in front of me that I had to wait for but after about 10-15 minutes my barber, Susan, called my name and welcomed me to her chair. Here's the before...yikes
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

I told her what I was looking for, she spun me away from the mirror and got to work. This was my fourth (I think) haircut at Harmony and Susan was definitely the best barber I’ve had so far. We spoke about our morning at AK, how Pandora is all that people are talking about and she gave us some fantastic tips on how to view the castle lighting later that evening. She even made sure Lennon and Ella had toys to keep them occupied while dad was getting his hair cut. She was really great.
Disney World - 2017 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

When she was all finished she asked the girls if they wanted some pixie dust in their hair and whether dad should get some “Jingle Jam, Jingle Bam” spray. Of course, the kids were all over it and so was I. Not too shabby…
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Once we left the Barber Shop we really had no plans. No dining reservations, no FP’s, nothing. All we wanted to do was ensure we had a good spot for the castle lighting, maybe meet a few characters and get on a few rides throughout the evening.

We set off down Main Street towards Fantasyland, stopping to take some quick shots around the hub of the castle.
IMG_1480 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr
IMG_1481 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Then it was off for a tour of Fantasyland. Lennon immediately started bargaining for a ride on the Mine Train but the standby was quite lengthy (easily the longest anywhere within the park) and since we used Ella’s guest assistance to our advantage earlier in the day we figured we didn’t need to do so again. This, of course, didn’t sit well with her but oh well! As we walked past the diamond mines she kept harping on us but for once we didn’t give in. Instead, we made the tour of FL, jumping on Dumbo, the Barnstormer, Ariel’s Undersea Adventure and finally took a spin on a classic we had yet to ride.
IMG_1488 by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

MK was busy, but not crazy. It was still very chilly so I think the weather kinda hindered some of the crowd. Had it been nicer I’m sure the park would have seemed much busier. We walked over to see what the line to meet Merida was like but it was packed down the walkway towards the castle. It was like this most of the trip so we sadly didn’t get the chance to meet Merida this trip and one of Kelly’s custom pages stayed blank.

At least I was able to use the trip near the line to try a few goofy pictures that I thought were creative.
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

We then decided to find a spot near the castle for the lighting. Kelly found good real estate even with people filing in trying to stake out their vantage point. We had yet to eat dinner and while nobody was really starving, the girls wanted popcorn (again) so off I went to find a cart. I ended up near the Hall of Presidents in a decently long line. As I waited the people behind me were talking about the weather and how cold it was. The gent mentioned how much he liked the weather as he was from New York, now living in Florida, so it felt like home. His girlfriend made a comment about how she can easily pick out the Canadians as they are the only ones wearing shorts when it’s cold like this. I turned around laughing as I was still in my shorts and acknowledged I was Canadian.

I’d grabbed the corn and was back to the girls just in time for the ceremony to start. The Castle looked amazing before Elsa, Anna and Olaf took the stage to lead everyone through the lighting ceremony. The hub was packed by now, barely any room to move, but we still had a great view of everything.
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

As good as it looked before, the castle looked even better once it was all lit up.
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

With the lighting ceremony completed we made our way back into Fantasyland to for a few more attractions. We set sail on the Happiest Cruise on Earth before hopping in the queue for Mickey’s PhilharMagic. Figured the more time we spent indoors the better and PhilharMagic is one of my favourite 3D shows so it worked out well. Even found a picture I could send back to my dad at home. This is the nickname the players refer to him as in the locker room at Commonwealth Stadium. He got a good laugh out of it.
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

Once the show was over we decided it was likely time to head home. It was around 10 pm, we still really hadn’t eaten dinner and it was still freezing. We kinda wanted to stay for fireworks but all the good spaces were taken along Main Street and we thought we could beat some of the crowds heading back to the bus stops if we left now. We toured quickly through the shops to avoid traffic but found a chance or two to take photos before leaving the park.
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

We left the park just as the fireworks we starting up so we could still see some of the show as we waited for the bus and on our way down the road as we pulled away. We arrived back at the hotel around 1030. Kelly and I were hungry, as were the girls, so Kelly ended up grabbing us a quick service meal at the marketplace. We both had the Philly cheesesteak. The girls just had applesauce and granola bars that we purchased as sides with the meals.
Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr

I grabbed a beer and turned on the replay of the Saints/Falcons game the NFL network while we all ate before bed. The cheesesteak was not something I would order again but for as hungry as I was it was sufficient.

Once we were done we pulled out the bed and tucked in the girls. It was long, cold day, but we had a blast in Pandora and at MK. On deck was Epcot in the morning but first I had to make sure I got all the Jingle Jam, Jingle Bam spray out of my hair before climbing into bed!

Ummm that sandwich does NOT look good :depressed:

Matt and Kelly · Jan 17, 2018

krause said:
Ummm that sandwich does NOT look good

It really wasn't. I will say it tasted only slightly better than it looked but even so, it was subpar. Really the only "bad" thing we ate all trip and under the circumstances, I guess it wasn't too big a deal.

Matt and Kelly · Jan 17, 2018

Well wouldn't you know it...my memory deceives me. I somehow completely forgot that we actually did give into Lennon's constant whining for the Mine Train during our evening at MK. I couldn't find the photo evidence to prove that we did ride but leave it to my lovely wife to point out when I'm wrong. Very rare occasion, so I'm sure she's quite pleased with herself.

At any rate, this pic just goes to show how brave these little ones are getting. Now that I see the photo the memory does come flooding back. Must have been a brain freeze moment.

[url=https://flic.kr/p/23vMSpW]

Untitled by Matt Mandrusiak, on Flickr[/URL]

amjt660 · Jan 17, 2018

Looking good Matty 3
Looking good !!

Max

fractal · Jan 17, 2018

Love the Christmas decorations at BC!

I'm glad you got a Fruity Pebbles fix.

Nice CM hookup for the 7DMC! Looks like your little girls are growing up.

Sorry Disney - that is NOT a Philly Cheesesteak!

Nice haircut - have to get that done one of these trips.

Enjoying the report!

Matt and Kelly · Jan 18, 2018

amjt660 said:
Looking good Matty 3
Looking good !!

Max

Thanks buddy!

fractal said:
Love the Christmas decorations at BC!

I'm glad you got a Fruity Pebbles fix.

Nice CM hookup for the 7DMC! Looks like your little girls are growing up.

Sorry Disney - that is NOT a Philly Cheesesteak!

Nice haircut - have to get that done one of these trips.

Enjoying the report!

Loved those fruity pebbles! I think I was actually having a bowl before Kelly brought up the "sandwich". It was definitely not what I would expect from a cheesesteak but at that point, I was too hungry to really care.

And I would totally recommend a visit to the barbershop to anyone who hasn't done it yet. Cool experience and pretty solid value at $19.

Trip Report *COMPLETED* Once Upon a Christmas Time...A Very Merry Trip Report

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Trip Report COMPLETED Once Upon a Christmas Time...A Very Merry Trip Report