Trip Report Florida Fresh Spring March 2018

Hello all and welcome to my trip report! I've been back for about a week but I've been slow to upload pictures and I actually caught a pretty nasty cold that has had me down the last couple of days.

So here's the intro:

Who: Me (Amy) and my husband (Brad)
Where are we from?: Northern Wisconsin (So were were definitely in need of some Florida sun.)
When: March 10-17, 2018
Resort: All Star Sports (we stay value because it is the cheapest and we can use that extra $$ for good food and drinks)

Start of the journey:

We actually started our trip on Friday March 9 and drove up to Minneapolis and stayed at a hotel near the airport. Our flight was leaving early in the morning and we didn't want to have drive early in the morning to the airport. So we relaxed at the Hilton by the airport and had a nice dinner at the Mall of America. We did have a crazy experience at the pool area here...we were just getting into the pool and we saw a pre-teen girl get out of the hot tub and was walking quickly (not running) towards the pool and she slipped and her head banged like a basketball on the pool area floor. It was pretty horrifying. I was about to get out of the pool and go help her but her parents were there and helped her and got medical help. So that put a little bit of a damper on what turned out to be our only pool time of the trip but I'm sure the girl had a worse time of it then we did.

Me with my first beer of the trip at the Mall of America. It was a Surly Furious, a local brew.

Relaxing at the Hilton with a drink. A fancy rum and Coke for hubs and a Grain Belt (another Minnesota beer) for me. This was at about 7:30-8pm and we were basically falling asleep.

At the airport bright and early for our flight! The Caribou coffee place wasn't open yet, but I like their coffee so much better than Dunkin', Starbucks, or even McDonald's so I waited about 15 minutes for it to open before heading to the gate.

All aboard! We splurge a little bit and always get the big front seat when we fly with Spirit, it is almost like first class but without the booze and the meal.

Bye bye!

 

[krisri18]

We're booking the World Showcase tour for our October trip now too! Your review made it impossible to skip and I got the rest of my travel party on board (although I was just going to do it alone if they didn't want to). Thank you!!!

 

[JenniferS]

Another HEA picture, it turned out a little blurry but in a way it looks kind of cool too, like sprinkles on a cupcake exploding.
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After the show we let the crowds clear a bit, but not enough. We saw an altercation between two guys with strollers. There was a lot of incoherent yelling, but no punches. But it was close.

We got a snack by the train station and sat up at the train station for awhile. We ended up leaving in the middle of Once Upon a Time. It was a little chilly but I needed a little ice cream. I'm sure @Longers would understand the need for some ice cream!
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And we are out for the night.
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Mike looooooves popcorn, so I bought him this for Christmas:

Now he eats it every day. And he’s lost 10 lbs.
Sometimes I really don’t care for him.

 

[JenniferS]

We're booking the World Showcase tour for our October trip now too! You're review made it impossible to skip and I got the rest of my travel party on board (although I was just going to do it alone if they didn't want to). Thank you!!!

I know, right?
I literally booked our tour within half an hour of catching up on this trip report today.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

We're booking the World Showcase tour for our October trip now too! You're review made it impossible to skip and I got the rest of my travel party on board (although I was just going to do it alone if they didn't want to). Thank you!!!

I know, right?
I literally booked our tour within half an hour of catching up on this trip report today.

I hope you all enjoy the tour. Let me know your thoughts.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Mike looooooves popcorn, so I bought him this for Christmas:
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Now he eats it every day. And he’s lost 10 lbs.
Sometimes I really don’t care for him.

I remember you posted about this at Christmas and I looked up popper as a possible birthday present for brad. Mike might be starting a new trend, the popcorn diet!

 

[PrincessJasmyn]

And a duck.
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Im sorry, but I just laughed out loud reading this at work!!
You're going to get me in trouble haha!!

Also, how early were you at Happily Ever After for that spot? Seemed quite early!!

 

[Gurt]

All the food looks so good, especially as I am really hungry and I am at work with my breakfast in my locked desk draw and iv left the keys at home hurry up lunch time!

 

[Longers]

I’ve cream is acceptable at any time of the day!

 

[joshsprincess921]

Absolutely loved the empty Epcot pictures from your tour. That tour is definitely right up my alley and I hope to try it out one day.

And you two do look very nice and friendly!

 

[Tuvalu]

Caught up.....finally!
Yes, @Gabe1, I recognized the Voices of Liberty singers as Dapper Dans. It’s not unusual for them to switch roles. Kevin, a VoL leader many moons ago, made a permanent switch to DD because he said the roles was easier and less demanding than VoL.

How was the service at Brown Derby? Our last two horrific experiences have caused us to cross it off the list.

I swear those Biergarten performers NEVER get a day off! Every time I see them in person (or in someone’s TR) it’s the SAME guys!

Love all the “empty” Epcot pics!

I must try different restrooms in Future World on my next trip and see me some flowers!!

Em and I did not share your enthusiasm of the ham and cheese pretzel from Germany.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Im sorry, but I just laughed out loud reading this at work!!
You're going to get me in trouble haha!!

Also, how early were you at Happily Ever After for that spot? Seemed quite early!!

I'm glad I made you giggle a little. I hope you didn't get into trouble.

We got into our HEA spot about 80 minutes before showtime. We like to stand along the rail in the hub though at least once per trip, the garden space in front of us is so nice because no one is directly in front of us. And I like having a rail to lean on. The spot we found was one of the last spots along any of the railing in the hub area. It quickly filled in after that.

Oh a quick story I forgot to add to my post about that night. About 30 minutes after we sat down, I went to the bathroom and when I came back hubs told me of a "fun" encounter he had with a lady in a scooter. Apparently the lady came up to Brad and told him that she needed him to move over because she needed to park along the rail so she could see the show. He politely (at least he said it was polite and knowing him it probably was) told her no as there wasn't anywhere he could move to and that the open spot next to him was for his wife. She then said that she promised not to stand up during the show and we could stand behind her. What?!!? That is when he said he was a little more forceful and told her no and that he wanted a spot along the rail to watch the show and that is why he arrived 30 minutes ago to get a spot and if she had wanted that spot she should have arrived earlier. Then he said he just went back to playing his game on his phone as she huffed and went away.

When I came back he told me the story and pointed her out. She had conned a family a little ways away into letting her have her rail space. And guess what. She stood as she watched the show. I can't believe she had the nerve to tell people to give up their spot for her.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

All the food looks so good, especially as I am really hungry and I am at work with my breakfast in my locked desk draw and iv left the keys at home hurry up lunch time!

I hope you were able to have a good lunch! Sorry I made you hungry, but if it is any consolation I made myself hungry when I posted the pictures.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Absolutely loved the empty Epcot pictures from your tour. That tour is definitely right up my alley and I hope to try it out one day.

And you two do look very nice and friendly!

Thanks!

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Caught up.....finally!
Yes, @Gabe1, I recognized the Voices of Liberty singers as Dapper Dans. It’s not unusual for them to switch roles. Kevin, a VoL leader many moons ago, made a permanent switch to DD because he said the roles was easier and less demanding than VoL.

How was the service at Brown Derby? Our last two horrific experiences have caused us to cross it off the list.

I swear those Biergarten performers NEVER get a day off! Every time I see them in person (or in someone’s TR) it’s the SAME guys!

Love all the “empty” Epcot pics!

I must try different restrooms in Future World on my next trip and see me some flowers!!

Em and I did not share your enthusiasm of the ham and cheese pretzel from Germany.

The service at the Brown Derby was pretty good. The waiter was attentive and friendly enough, it wasn't as spectacular as the service we got at the Boathouse but it was just right. We have had good service at the Derby Lounge too.

The ham and cheese pretzel in Germany was really good the first time we got it and that is why I was complitmentary here. We did go back for another the next day (spoiler alert) and it wasn't as good. It was like it had been sitting out for a while. So maybe we got lucky the first time with a fresh one.

Oh and we met up with a friend the other night who is an aficionado of German things. So we showed him a little video of the German band and the first thing he said was, "Oh I remember them!". He recognized them right away. He went to Epcot at least 5 year ago! That band has some hard working guys!

 

[riverside]

I'm glad I made you giggle a little. I hope you didn't get into trouble.

We got into our HEA spot about 80 minutes before showtime. We like to stand along the rail in the hub though at least once per trip, the garden space in front of us is so nice because no one is directly in front of us. And I like having a rail to lean on. The spot we found was one of the last spots along any of the railing in the hub area. It quickly filled in after that.

Oh a quick story I forgot to add to my post about that night. About 30 minutes after we sat down, I went to the bathroom and when I came back hubs told me of a "fun" encounter he had with a lady in a scooter. Apparently the lady came up to Brad and told him that she needed him to move over because she needed to park along the rail so she could see the show. He politely (at least he said it was polite and knowing him it probably was) told her no as there wasn't anywhere he could move to and that the open spot next to him was for his wife. She then said that she promised not to stand up during the show and we could stand behind her. What?!!? That is when he said he was a little more forceful and told her no and that he wanted a spot along the rail to watch the show and that is why he arrived 30 minutes ago to get a spot and if she had wanted that spot she should have arrived earlier. Then he said he just went back to playing his game on his phone as she huffed and went away.

When I came back he told me the story and pointed her out. She had conned a family a little ways away into letting her have her rail space. And guess what. She stood as she watched the show. I can't believe she had the nerve to tell people to give up their spot for her.

People never cease to amaze me...

 

[MinnieM123]

I'm glad I made you giggle a little. I hope you didn't get into trouble.

We got into our HEA spot about 80 minutes before showtime. We like to stand along the rail in the hub though at least once per trip, the garden space in front of us is so nice because no one is directly in front of us. And I like having a rail to lean on. The spot we found was one of the last spots along any of the railing in the hub area. It quickly filled in after that.

Oh a quick story I forgot to add to my post about that night. About 30 minutes after we sat down, I went to the bathroom and when I came back hubs told me of a "fun" encounter he had with a lady in a scooter. Apparently the lady came up to Brad and told him that she needed him to move over because she needed to park along the rail so she could see the show. He politely (at least he said it was polite and knowing him it probably was) told her no as there wasn't anywhere he could move to and that the open spot next to him was for his wife. She then said that she promised not to stand up during the show and we could stand behind her. What?!!? That is when he said he was a little more forceful and told her no and that he wanted a spot along the rail to watch the show and that is why he arrived 30 minutes ago to get a spot and if she had wanted that spot she should have arrived earlier. Then he said he just went back to playing his game on his phone as she huffed and went away.

When I came back he told me the story and pointed her out. She had conned a family a little ways away into letting her have her rail space. And guess what. She stood as she watched the show. I can't believe she had the nerve to tell people to give up their spot for her.

Wow. Some people just suck, period. Glad to hear that Brad declined her request.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Friday March 16

It was the last full day so of course we headed to the Magic Kingdom. It opened early today and yep, it was still dark when we got there, and then we entered the park.

Brad waiting to get in, all by himself.

And me

Once we got in we took this path into Fantasyland, it was how we were directed. Sorry for the blurry pic, we were on the move.

And we went right to Peter Pan!

Afterwards the sun was rising, it was pretty cool to be there at sunrise.

I took a couple spins on the teacups.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Then on to Dumbo!

The Barnstormer was down but we looked around in the water play area for a bit in case it came up again. It didn't so we left.

We were a bit hungry so we shared a cinnamon roll at Gastons. I like the cinnamon roll but also dislike it at the same time. I wish it was a little warmer and came with butter.

Then we moseyed over to Big Thunder Mt and the wait time wasn't too bad. So we did standby. The wait ended up being around 30 minutes.

And without asking the Big Thunder gods smiled on us and granted us the back row! Wahoo!

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

We headed back to Fantasyland to use our Seven Dwarfs fast pass.

And Brad now has a new favorite on ride picture of me.

We headed back through the castle and to the train.

On the train we did a grand circle tour plus one as we waited for our Big Thunder Mountain fast pass to start. We didn't mind we love the train, and hubs took a little nap.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

After Thunder it was time for our Jungle Cruise.

This was the fast pass line.

We had a good skipper and cruise. We got stalled for a bit by Trader Sam, so I actually got a decent picture for once.

After Jungle Cruise we headed over to the Skipper Canteen for lunch. I had made the ADR while we were on the train. I was hoping to eat there this trip but we never booked it before we left, and none of the counter services were appealing to us today so we lucked out with Skipper Canteen.

Shortly after we checked in we were taken to our table. I still feel a little naughty having a beer in the Magic Kingdom.

I like the detail in this restaurant, and it has good food. So it's a win win. Even the carpet has good details.