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?

 

[imahistorygeek]

After thoroughly boring the DW it was time to make our way to TGMR, by way of the most indirect route of course!

It wasn't boring, just not my thing. It was...interesting. The half-face Han Solo...not a fan and he's my favorite character.

 

[imahistorygeek]

It sits in the old queue warehouse left behind from the backlot tour.

You can still see the Flight of the Navigator pod out there as well as some other items.

 

[Mom@disney]

You're not alone I'm sure...my husband would easily spend his entire day in Watto's Grotto. The artwork is beautiful.

 

[lostpro9het]

So I’m disappointed in myself for taking so long to post this pic, the reason we're going from Bubble to Boat. All because that girl who sat in front of me in the 5th grade said yes.

Like I said before, we took the Loooong way to TGMR by way of the Streets of America.

Some prep for Osborne. I’m happy to say we will be back here Christmas week to enjoy the final showing of the Spectacle before it is gone.

Had a good chuckle at this and suggested we should have used Venture to book our Dream trip!

Can’t come this far and not visit this. Anyone else mildly underwhelmed with the new Muppets primetime show? The DD is pretty disappointed by the lack of Walter.

Just some Muppet laundry set out to dry

And finally we arrived. Standby was short and we enjoyed the revamped opening previews again. I’ll never understand the queue logic they use for this ride sometimes or how that maze works. All I know is it seemed sometimes we would maze through and skip one row then three then two

During this tour we had the most energetic and enthusiastic guide we’ve ever had. He was so into every moment of the experience, made for a very enjoyable time.
TGMR Selfie

This tour had us drive right through the gangster scene without stopping for a shootout. I don’t believe this had happened to us before. We did stop at the bank robbery scene and picked up a new passenger only to be lost to the gods later on.

Still to come: Best lunch we’ve had at HS, some excellent street performers and we check in to the 1-bedroom at AKL.

 

[ScarletBegonias]

We so wanted to do TGMR this trip, but missed it. The wait was surprisingly long, and we just never got around to it.

 

[fractal]

Watto's Grotto looks awesome - thanks for all the pics!

 

[FlaggNL]

Wow! Thanks for sharing this marvelous TR! You pictures are great and love the way you describe things! The Flag part was great. We were in WDW October 14th (and will be in just 8 days ) and we were aware of the ceremonie. We wachted it all and it was special, kinda emotional! That's surely a great USA thing. You know how to respect veterans! Als love the Watto's Grotto pics! Can't wait to be there!

 

[lostpro9het]

Wow, what a week! It has been crazy on campus, midterms and all. Anyway, for those still following along, I apologize for the delay, for those that jumped ship, well, you’re not reading this anyway so never mind…
Let’s see, we last left off with a decent trip through Hollywood and we have just received notice that our room is ready!! The text reads 5135 and the DW and I are excited to try our first 1-bedroom deluxe inside the bubble. But first, it’s time to eat! I had been dropping some subtle hints about how we should go back to AKL and eat at Sanaa while we wait for our room notification. Since we got the notice I felt Sanaa was still a good choice, I can’t help it Im hooked on that place its awesome! Anyway, the DW says we should branch out again and try something new and I give in. I mention to her about some of the great looking items the Brown Derby Lounge had and she is for it. So, 2 minutes later we are being seated and checking out the offerings:

Its warm so we order two waters and two La Fins, my second favorite Unibroue behind Trois Pistoles, coming soon BTW ;-)

If you’ve read any of my previous TRs you know I like to go tapas and try a lot of different things, if you haven’t read any of my previous TRs…what’s is wrong with you? The DW and I decide to split the Derby Sliders and Crispy Bites. It was all amazing!
Here are the Derby Sliders: Wagyu Beef with Gouda, bacon, and avocado on the left. Duck confit with chipotle slaw and taleggio cheese on the right

The Crispy Bites include Parm/goat cheese risotto sticks, Brie cheese, and Blue Affine-Mushroom Arancini. Each had a dipping sauce.

Sooooo good!

Belly’s full, we were ready to checkout our new room but not without stopping and enjoying some of the acts.

These two were hilarious and some fantastic jokes about the current state of our educational system. I believe it was all ad libbed which made it that much more cool. Pay note to the sidearm…

When we arrived at AKL we decided to see if the gift shop had any of the blended wine we tried at Jiko. Sadly they didn’t but they did have this merlot which was a fine substitute.

In addition to the wine, my DVC slider I received for my MB was damaged either in production or shipping so I inquired about a new one and they had plenty, just needed the one of course:

Still to come: Our first 1-bedroom and a wet journey to Shula’s!

 

[lostpro9het]

As I said, we received the text that 5135 was ready for us to enjoy. A short walk from lobby to room and had to stop to check out this chap having a snack.

On to our room.

We loved this room and the Jacuzzi tub was enjoyed many times! The two days here was really a test drive to see if a 1-bedroom would be fitting for our small family with a growing teen. Im pretty sure the DD is going to love having a whole room/tv all to herself when we return.

Still to come: A rainy trip to Shula’s and a visit to AK

 

[catmom46]

As I said, we received the text that 5135 was ready for us to enjoy. A short walk from lobby to room and had to stop to check out this chap having a snack.

On to our room.

We loved this room and the Jacuzzi tub was enjoyed many times! The two days here was really a test drive to see if a 1-bedroom would be fitting for our small family with a growing teen. Im pretty sure the DD is going to love having a whole room/tv all to herself when we return.

Still to come: A rainy trip to Shula’s and a visit to AK

Sniff, sniff...it's just like the one we stayed in for our July trip. I miss it so much!!

 

[MinnieM123]

You must be in a DVC unit, correct? The last time I stayed at AKL was back when they were just starting the conversion of the top 2 floors (I think it's the top 2) at the lodge. (I stayed in a regular guest room without any kitchen, etc.)

What I found attractive in your pictures was the photo of the table seating area--I thought that was nicely designed, especially the bench up against the wall, behind the table. The three plates (looked like some sort of basket weave) on the wall added some colorful interest, and I like the low-hanging, rustic chandelier above the table as well.

 

[lostpro9het]

You must be in a DVC unit, correct? The last time I stayed at AKL was back when they were just starting the conversion of the top 2 floors (I think it's the top 2) at the lodge. (I stayed in a regular guest room without any kitchen, etc.)

Correct, its a DVC room in Jambo.

What I found attractive in your pictures was the photo of the table seating area--I thought that was nicely designed, especially the bench up against the wall, behind the table. The three plates (looked like some sort of basket weave) on the wall added some colorful interest, and I like the low-hanging, rustic chandelier above the table as well.

Yes, they were woven plates. The color was interesting as none of the AKL rooms we've stayed in had such vivid colors but it worked well in the setting.

 

[lostpro9het]

So after a fun morning at HS we relaxed for a bit in the room, enjoyed our African wine, then got ready for our first time at Shula’s. The skies looked a bit ominous so we opted to poncho up for this trip. Since we wanted to take advantage of the complimentary Disney Visa photo at EC we decided to take a bus to EC rather than drive to the Dolphin. We also had some FPs for Soarin and Mission Space. So we hopped on a bus to EC and learned an interesting fact about the Richard Petty experience. According to the bus driver Disney wanted NASCAR to invest more money in the endeavor and NASCAR declined and that is why the track is going away ;-)

So we arrived to EC with a modest drizzle and popped on our ponchos and made way for the Visa photo spot.

This was the pic taken with my phone, the “professional” photo came out a lot better obviously.

We were quickly approaching our ADR time and, despite the lite rain, opted to walk the boardwalk to Shula’s rather than test our luck with a boat.

As you can see from above I’ve yet to commit to the panoramic just yet…

Up next: Shula’s may have just knocked out Yachtsman!

 

[lostpro9het]

We arrived at Shula’s right on time!

Despite the restaurant looking quite dead inside they made us wait a few minutes to be seated. So our time had come and they started walking us to our table, again, the place was a ghost town. Soon we were stopped and seated right in front of the kitchen!

I thought this was very strange as there were MANY tables away from the kitchen open. I was actually put off by this a bit but figured I’d just go with it. So they seated us with a Shula football that had a list of all their steaks and we were quickly introduced to Nick who brought over the steak cart. Nick seemed very disinterested in us as he echoed his steak script before asking us what we’d like. We knew well ahead of time what we wanted and we explained it all to a less than thrilled Nick. Soon after we were presented with our drinks and bread service.

I opted for the Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale

The DW went with the pineapple fruit mojito

It wasn’t long before our order came out, again we tried a few little things to experience their offering. We shared the tomato mozzarella salad, creamed spinach, and the Steak Mary Anne.

This salad was massive and could have been shared by 3-4 people!

The creamed spinach rivaled the Yachtsman’s creamed spinach and, like the salad, was a huge portion.

We each received a 5oz filet

The steaks were cooked to perfection! The food here was amazing but the service left a bit to be desired. I think the food was better here than Yachtsman, just barely, but the service fell far flat! Additionally, near the end our meal they seated a trio of over inebriated 20-somethings right next to us. Again, the restaurant is pretty empty and they could have been seated at over 20 other tables but they put them right next to us. So we got to enjoy 10 minutes of how they were so F’in hungry and how they wanted the biggest F’n steak they had. We might give Shula’s another go in the future but I don’t know. The main reason we chose it was because of its reputation and the fact “free” dining shouldn’t have ruin it. Anyway, the food was great but suspect service left me not sure I wanted to return.

Up next: How many pictures of birds and primates can one take!?!?

 

[imahistorygeek]

Shula's was great but definitely NOT Disney. The service was mediocre at best. If Nick was our only server (he wasn't the head server for our table), he would have received no tip. As he explained the steaks, and while he was still talking, he kept looking at the restaurant entrance.

The pineapple mojito was very good. The meal was excellent and if you've never tried it, you should, especially if you like steak. Our steaks were a perfect medium. No other steakhouse has ever cooked them this perfectly.

 

[catmom46]

Shula's was great but definitely NOT Disney. The service was mediocre at best. If Nick was our only server (he wasn't the head server for our table), he would have received no tip. As he explained the steaks, and while he was still talking, he kept looking at the restaurant entrance.

The pineapple mojito was very good. The meal was excellent and if you've never tried it, you should, especially if you like steak. Our steaks were a perfect medium. No other steakhouse has ever cooked them this perfectly.

Yay, someone else who believes in the "no tip for terrible service" motto! While I know there are others who vehemently do not believe the same, I cannot wrap my head around tipping someone who isn't even doing their job adequately.

 

[catmom46]

We arrived at Shula’s right on time!

Despite the restaurant looking quite dead inside they made us wait a few minutes to be seated. So our time had come and they started walking us to our table, again, the place was a ghost town. Soon we were stopped and seated right in front of the kitchen!

I thought this was very strange as there were MANY tables away from the kitchen open. I was actually put off by this a bit but figured I’d just go with it. So they seated us with a Shula football that had a list of all their steaks and we were quickly introduced to Nick who brought over the steak cart. Nick seemed very disinterested in us as he echoed his steak script before asking us what we’d like. We knew well ahead of time what we wanted and we explained it all to a less than thrilled Nick. Soon after we were presented with our drinks and bread service.

I opted for the Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale

The DW went with the pineapple fruit mojito

It wasn’t long before our order came out, again we tried a few little things to experience their offering. We shared the tomato mozzarella salad, creamed spinach, and the Steak Mary Anne.

This salad was massive and could have been shared by 3-4 people!

The creamed spinach rivaled the Yachtsman’s creamed spinach and, like the salad, was a huge portion.

We each received a 5oz filet

The steaks were cooked to perfection! The food here was amazing but the service left a bit to be desired. I think the food was better here than Yachtsman, just barely, but the service fell far flat! Additionally, near the end our meal they seated a trio of over inebriated 20-somethings right next to us. Again, the restaurant is pretty empty and they could have been seated at over 20 other tables but they put them right next to us. So we got to enjoy 10 minutes of how they were so F’in hungry and how they wanted the biggest F’n steak they had. We might give Shula’s another go in the future but I don’t know. The main reason we chose it was because of its reputation and the fact “free” dining shouldn’t have ruin it. Anyway, the food was great but suspect service left me not sure I wanted to return.

Up next: How many pictures of birds and primates can one take!?!?

3 things:
What's a Shula football?
That is one big pat of butter!
Based on the "knocked out" statement in your previous post, I thought this was going to be a stellar experience. Perhaps it should have a question mark rather than an exclamation point? Or did you purposely want to mislead us?

 

[lostpro9het]

3 things:
What's a Shula football?

That is one big pat of butter!

Yes!

Based on the "knocked out" statement in your previous post, I thought this was going to be a stellar experience. Perhaps it should have a question mark rather than an exclamation point? Or did you purposely want to mislead us?

Ill be honest, I was only remembering the food when I wrote that and should have clarified by saying Shula's food! As I wrote the review all the service memories came rushing back...

 

[Zipadeelady]

SB!!

 

[DisneyGigi]

Enjoying the report! Love the photos, especially the food and drinks. One of my fave things to take pics of at the World. I also loved the AK DVC photos. Our family has grown to include a whole new crowd since our son has married and it just seems rather than pay for two sets of rooms in a moderate, that the DVC makes more sense. Did you guys buy direct or from the resale market? We are looking at resale for AK specifically. Can't wait to read the rest and a belated Happy Anniversary. No better place to spend it.