Trip Report COMPLETED:The “who told him about the panoramic setting on his phone?” Surf n’ Turf Anniversary trip

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Trip Report Table of contents (this will grow as I add to the TR)
Our Room
MK day one
Flag retreat
Jiko
HS part one
HS part two
Watto's Grotto
HS part three
Brown Derby Lounge
AKL 1-bedroom, room 5135
A rainy Boardwalk
Shula's Steak House
AK part one
AK part two
Trails End lunch
MK again part one with Casey's
A Pirate's Adventure
Kona Cafe and The Dream at first sight
Disney Dream Boarding
Disney Dream room 7528
Setting Sail and room service
Dream Shopping and Mirror Mirror
Animator's Palate
Evolution Match Your Mate and Cabanas breakfast
Senses/Rainforest
Nassau from Senses
District Lounge Tequila Class
More DVC swag and meeting friends on the way to Palo
Palo
Pirates Night Fireworks
Castaway Cay 5K
Serenity Bay & BBQ
More of Castaway
Shopping and spouts
Midship Detective Agency
Royal Palace Dinner
Royal Palace Breakfast and Disembarking
Bay Lake Tower Room 7514
Citricos and Wishes from BLT
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All the covert pains in futility leading up to this ball of awesomeness can be had here:
Those banked points aren’t going to use themselves Part II: Code Name DMCA
You may or may not be happy to know that I’ve finally gotten past the pains of Operation DMCA failing at the hands of DCL. DCL’s inability to keep a secret allowed the DW to plan and draw out a long sense of anticipation and excitement, but I digress we’re here to move forward…right?

Flashback to September 15th, it’s time to blow this pop stand! I made every effort to load the car up as much the night before to reduce the scrambling we would have to do this morning. We had but two or three small bags to deal with still. While we were finishing up with the small bags the DD walks in and notices I’m packing the Magic Bands and TiW card. Mind you, she knew we were going on this cruise AND that we were staying at AKL before the boat. It wasn’t until this moment, though, that it hit her we would be visiting the parks too! She let out a “you’re going to the parks too!” which we delicately told her “yes we are”. I mean, hello! APs + three nights in AKL = “We going to the parks girl”. Obviously, I didn’t put it that way to her I was just surprised she hadn’t put it together that we would be visiting the parks. She would later call me that day to tell me that it “took her all morning to get over the devastation of us going to the parks without her”. Wow, punch in the gut right there! But moving on, the car is packed, we load up the DD, and head to the bus stop at 06:45 and wouldn’t you know the bus driver is early, almost as if that crotchety old guy knew we had places to be! So a quick hug and kiss goodbye and the DD is on the bus and the DW and I are Disney bound by 06:50, ten minutes ahead of schedule! The ATL, however, would soon squash my excitement. So after a QuickTrip visit in Dawsonville we got smashed in the face by probably the worst traffic east of California. What normally take 18 minutes, at 6AM, to get from North perimeter to south perimeter takes us an hour and twenty minutes! I was not happy to say the least but also not surprised, just foolishly optimistic. Once we hit 75 on the south side it was smooooth sailings all the way to the bubble! A few hours later and we were crossing the line:

Seeing this sign always triggers that “Final Countdown” feeling in my head while the band Europe starts jamming out subconsciously. I’ve noted this in previous TRs but it’s worth point out again; SunPass is awesome! I fully regret not adopting the SunPass a lot sooner. It can be hard to express the feeling of joy while one just cruises through all those toll stops, ahhhhh. While I was enjoying the ease of SunPass I got “The Text”! You know, the room is ready! So the final countdown was short and despite the high levels of excitement we had arrived at the bubble and it was soon that our gaze fell upon the sign:

I promise I was a good Disney citizen and did not stop to snap this picture. A few minutes later and we were arriving home!

I always love seeing this sign and hearing the CM’s welcoming us home when we arrive! Another thing I love, specifically about Jambo, is as soon as you pass through those sliding doors you’re hit with one of the most beautiful scents ever. The wood burning fragrance is all around you in the lobby and it works! Speaking of the lobby, I’ve been to all the deluxe lobbies and I still don’t think there is one that rivals AKL, I am biased of course

Coming up: $88 gets you what?

 

[lostpro9het]

I'm debating whether or not to try Citricos on my trip in January and the grouper sounds and looks pretty good. I actually don't mind the crunchiness in clams or scallops - I guess I'm weird that way.

If you've never done it then do it! The meat and cheese boards have been consistently good. FYI, the crunchy was sand, hardly a signature ingredient!

Never been in Bay Lake Tower, but I wasn't exactly thrilled with the interior decoration of the room you had. My impression was that it seemed a bit stark. I'm sure it had all the amenities you wanted and all, but I wasn't a fan of the design.

I share your sentiment with the room. We were unimpressed with it last year and only chose it this year out of convenience.

 

[catmom46]

If you've never done it then do it! The meat and cheese boards have been consistently good. FYI, the crunchy was sand, hardly a signature ingredient!

I share your sentiment with the room. We were unimpressed with it last year and only chose it this year out of convenience.

True, I wouldn't call sand a signature ingredient either, but I've come to accept it as part of the shellfish experience. The one time I got sick from scallops there wasn't any sand in them, so I'm guessing I just got served bad ones.

I love the decor at BLT - it's pretty close to how I'd like to decorate my home! And since my current home looks nothing like it, staying there makes it feel more like a luxurious vacation to me.

 

[lostpro9het]

Yikes, ten days!!!! I need to wrap this beast up!

Final thoughts
Overall I’d say this was a pretty good trip. The sad truth with the bubble is there really is no slow time anymore but most all of you know this by now. I am still not a fan of FP+, the DW is. I think I would be more a fan if it acted like it did in the old days and I could bounce from park to park using one off FPs; but having to go to a kiosk and waste time there is just dumb to me! I do feel park dining overall is suffering/lacking compared to 5 years ago but am thankful that most of the resort restaurants are still holding up well. Some of the new standouts we found on this trip would have to include the Hollywood Brown Derby Lounge and Jiko. This has been an interesting year for us and Disney. We purchased DVC, twice, and we’ve been three times so far this year and still have trips in December and April coming up. This will put us at 5 trips inside 12 months and I’m not sure that is really a good thing. I start looking at things differently and have changed expectations. Heck, even trip reports start feeling less fun. I know, I know, I know

Going more often does have a silver lining, besides going often that is, and that is we never feel rushed anymore which is a great feeling. We never feel the need to get every ride in every day. We find ourselves now exploring new facets of the parks and resorts we never did before, you know, stopping and smelling the roses. AKL is still as beautiful as ever and still ranks #1 for us in the DVC rankings. BLT may have moved down a slot or two for us. We are in no rush to go back as the cons outweigh the pros for us. As for the Dream, Still love it! I still think the perfect cruise length for me might be around 4-5 days and that is it. Im not sure I could handle a 7-10 trip. We had a great time exploring the ship even more this time and not rushing to try everything. Palo is still a must for us each cruise to have at least one chaos free night. I think we will be adding senses day passes on each cruise we take going forward. Having access to those amenities is wonderful!

Thank you for following along and the next PTR is coming soon to cover the funtivities we plan for Christmas week!
Until then....

 

[Zipadeelady]

LEGGO MY EGGO!!!

Sorry.. it's all i could think about when I saw pics of your "goodbye" breakfast on the cruise.

 

[lostpro9het]

LEGGO MY EGGO!!!

If only it were an Eggo! It was more like the Walmart "great value" frozen waffle

 

[catmom46]

Great TR - another triumph sir! Looking forward to next month's installment! Although at the rate you're going I suspect you'll soon be announcing your new career as part of the DVC sales team.

 

[lostpro9het]

Great TR - another triumph sir! Looking forward to next month's installment! Although at the rate you're going I suspect you'll soon be announcing your new career as part of the DVC sales team.

You know what....that is a career path I never considered....hmmmm.

 

[Zipadeelady]

Thanks for the report!! I loved how @imahistorygeek chimed in with her two cents, if gave both perspectives and I liked that. My husband likes Disney more than he lets on but there's no way he's going to join a forum. I'll keep working on him but it may be awhile.

 

[catmom46]

You know what....that is a career path I never considered....hmmmm.

Oh no!! I just unleashed a mighty force. Please forgive me @imahistorygeek!!

 

[BigHero4]

Yes! You ended with DKM!! I can't imagine two things that are so different, but are as awesome as Dropkick and Disney... and yet you found a way to melt them together. Amazing.

 

[MinnieM123]

Heck, even trip reports start feeling less fun. I know, I know, I know

Well, if it makes you feel any better, I had fun reading your TR! It was both interesting and informative, and I'm happy you shared your experiences with us. After the grind of the work day, it's quite uplifting to me to read about people's vacations. Thank you.

 

[imahistorygeek]

Oh no!! I just unleashed a mighty force. Please forgive me @imahistorygeek!!

I'm not even mad. We retire in 15ish years, so maybe this will be a second career!

 

[imahistorygeek]

Well, if it makes you feel any better, I had fun reading your TR! It was both interesting and informative, and I'm happy you shared your experiences with us. After the grind of the work day, it's quite uplifting to me to read about people's vacations. Thank you.

I frequently go back and read our trip reports. It's so much fun to relive the memories.

 

[wdisney9000]

Going more often does have a silver lining, besides going often that is, and that is we never feel rushed anymore which is a great feeling.

I think it takes visiting more than three times in one year to reach this plateau. You eventually have that moment when you enter the park and find yourself NOT rushing to an attraction, but instead, grabbing a drink or a snack and strolling around listening to the park music and just taking a deep breath as you sit down in your favorite area to soak it all in.

Its at this plateau that you can discover an entirely separate experience from what you were used to. Its actually more enjoyable when your not slaved to FP+/MM+. You see the parks in a different light, you notice things you had never seen but walked past a million times, and everything seems to slow down.

 

[fractal]

Great report! Thanks for sharing and looking forward to the next!

 

[ScarletBegonias]

Loved the TR! Look forward to reading more in the future!