Trip Report Forget about your worries and your strife. 🌞 Live trip report.

Quick recap of my pre-trip report to refresh memories or as just as catchup.
I (Mimi) am going on a solo trip to Disney World, 14 glorious days at AKL to do what I want, when I want.

This morning I woke up excited and ready to go, I threw the last things into my suitcase, double checked everything and happily went out in the rain to catch the bus to the train station. I gave myself plenty of time to get to the airport incase of delays etc. but luckily everything went smoothly and I arrived at the airport with plenty of time to share.
I looked around the shops a bit and took some photos to kill the time.

These cups in a cafe don't spin but are cute none the less.

Finally it was time to board my first flight.

This add made me smile as it was spot on.

The flight from Amsterdam to London was only 50 minutes and kind of boring except for the 2 Dutch ladies sitting in the row behind me. They were very unhappy that none of the flight attendants spoke Dutch,keep in mind that this was a British Airways flight, and complained loudly that it shouldn't be allowed for airlines to fly out of Amsterdam without at least one Dutch speaking crew member and the ladies refused to speak English to the crew. I didn't understand their logical at all and was happy the crew members didn't understand what they were saying. I was tempted to turn around to point out their stupidity but refrained.

Soon enough we landed safely at Gatwick, my hotel was easy to find and the check in staff were friendly and professional. My room is as expected, small and modern.

The shower is right in front of the toilet without a barrier not the best layout but fine for just a night.

No view as my room doesn't have a window.
Now I am just watching some TV, wishing it was tomorrow.

 

[geebee721]

I’m currently at MCO waiting to board my plane back home and i’m so depressed I’ll be catching up on your trip report on the flight home.

 

[prfctlyximprct]

That dive looks amazing!! Someone paid it forward by sending you trip
Pictures! Your trip is seriously one for the books!! Checking off all those bucket List goals I have! I’m going to kwwl
Living vicariously through you

 

[Gabe1]

By now I was getting a little hungry but only wanted something light, a few taps on the app allowed me to order my food while walking to Pinocchio Village Haus.
I had ordered a bowl of tomato soup and it was waiting for me when I arrived , it was surprisingly good with a tiny bit of a kick to it.

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I managed to get a windowvtable overlooking IASW. These were laying on my table.
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I hadn't planned on holding them up but clearly people on IASW knew about them and kept gesturing me to hold them up.
My soup finished I made my way over to my dining reservation and the reason I had such a light lunch.
Knowing @Tuvalu is never wrong I had to sample a Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake. I didn't want the full meal at LTT so just went for dessert with coffee. Behold the gooey goodness!
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I was happy I just ate the soup for lunch because this was delicious and I ate every last crumb but was very full afterwards.
What to do when you have a tummy full of cake and coffee?
Bounce along with Tigger of course, my last FP of the day.
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It was getting close to 5pm so I headed out of the park and boarded the resort monorail to the GF. Walking into the lobby is quite impressive and it smelled wonderful courtesy of the Basin shop.
The band was playing when I arrived.
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An amazing chocolate egg in the lobby.
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I checked out the other shops and the beach and concluded that although it is a beautiful resort I am much happier staying at AKL.

I got back on the monorail to make my way to BLT where I was meeting @Big Hair , @Pardonmypixiedust and cohorts to watch HEA from the Top of the World lounge. We talked Disney over some drinks and watched the fireworks on the viewing platform. I now love HEA! It took me awhile but after just seeing the fireworks while listening to the music I am fully converted from a Wishes lover to HEA.
It was EMH in the MK so we went and rode BTMR in the dark, I liked it even better then during the day! Next we all faced our inevitable demise in HM, after a lengthy discussion about the Tangled bathroom while waiting for HEA to start we had to stop there. @Pardonmypixiedust will post pictures of the men's room in his trip report. It was 9.55pm after our Tangled break so we only had time for one more ride and it had to be close by, so we chose Peter Pan. That que might be my favorite of all the rides.
Sadly that was the end of our park time together, it was such a blast hanging out with people that get it. On our way to the bus stop the electric water pageant came floating by. A perfect ending to a wonderful evening. View attachment 259132

Yikes! Fell behind again...What a great meet up you all had. Curious as to the Tangled attraction discussion and what is in store in @Pardonmypixiedust resulting in photos of the men's room. Love Intrigue.

Is the GF already decorated with Eggs for Easter???

 

[12in12]

I NEED to do that diving experience!! Omg, it looks amazing!!

It really was the best dive I have ever done, so much to see in the aquarium.

That dive looked very very cool.

It was very cool, figurative and literally since the water can't be too hot or the fish will die.

Glad you enjoyed your experience
It was great that you got so many pics

Max

Yes, I was really lucky to get those photos.

 

[12in12]

Wow! What an awesome experience.

^^^This

That dive looks amazing!! Someone paid it forward by sending you trip
Pictures! Your trip is seriously one for the books!! Checking off all those bucket List goals I have! I’m going to kwwl
Living vicariously through you

Honestly that dive was so much fun! The fee you pay goes towards preservation of aquatic life so Disney doesn't actually make money from it.

 

[12in12]

Is the GF already decorated with Eggs for Easter???

No, they just have this egg out as decoration where you can have princess afternoon tea.

 

[12in12]

I’m currently at MCO waiting to board my plane back home and i’m so depressed I’ll be catching up on your trip report on the flight home.

I'm sorry your trip is over, hopefully you had a magical time. Have a safe journey home.

 

[mouse_luv]

The dive looks awesome!! That is something I have on my bucket list along with the Dolphin thing that they have.

I love the sea turtles and the rays and would have seriously been so, so happy swimming with them for a short time.

 

[12in12]

Feeling super happy after my dive I went back into EPCOT last night. I was hungry and there was still lots of food I wanted to try.
First the tacos from the Mexico booth. These were delicious!

Second a curry pocket from China, I ate mine before I remembered to take a picture but went back and took a picture of the display.

These were flavorful but a bit dry.

Next up dessert in Japan.

The "fish" was filled with red bean paste. I loved the fish but the whipped cream and raspberry sauce didn't go with it at all.

And because it is Disney, second dessert was from Karamel Kuche since it is a Magic forum favorite. This was a salted caramel pecan bar. So, so, so good!

I washed this down with a Viking coffee from Norway, that I didn't take a picture of because my hands were full.

I didn't go on any rides because I was enjoying WS, EPCOT is beautiful at night.
I did see a lonely PP photographer in Germany.

And saw these cute bowls in Japan.

 

[12in12]

The dive looks awesome!! That is something I have on my bucket list along with the Dolphin thing that they have.

I love the sea turtles and the rays and would have seriously been so, so happy swimming with them for a short time.

I hope you get to do the dive one day, it is an amazing experience.

 

[12in12]

I started today by leaving the bubble for a quick run to Target. I had a list of things I needed to get that we can't get at home.
Shopping dropped off in my room I hopped on the bus to DS, this is the longest bus ride from AKL coming in at 30 minutes.
This is just my opinion but I don't care for the expansion, the new shops are regular high end brands that I can find at home. It do like the look of some of the new restaurants.
I was getting hungry so decided to eat here.

It looked and smelled nice inside.

I chose a slice of pizza with fresh mozzarella cheese and a free cup of water.

The water was the stand out item of my lunch, it was filtered and had no chlorine taste at all. The pizza was , the dough tasted like cardboard, hard and chewy.

I checked out a few stores including Basin.

I passed the World of Disney and thought of you @Songbird76

And I bought a much coveted ornament.

 

[Gabe1]

The girl sitting next to me was wearing pajama pants, is this something people do now?
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Well, casual clothing is one thing, but too casual clothing in the daytime is another. Hopefully, it's not a trend. Although, nothing surprises me anymore; I think I've seen just about anything when it comes to style these days.

I saw a family of five (3 were teens) in pajama pants in Epcot last month. And not Mickey themed.

Last Saturday a man brought his two school aged children into a breakfast buffet (after 10 am) in their PAJAMAS!!

Decorum has completely disappeared from society.

We wore our jammies to Disney

Spoiler

we slept outside DHS for SWW

Yep! That is us. The family that lacks decorum on a extremely cold night the second week of December. They are Mickey Fleece. Yes that is my ManChild 5 years older than my DD and Em. The young man that has 250+ employees that report to him, wears busness attire to work 3/4 of weeks...not so much in the summer months.

Actually I've never seen Jammies disappear from the young. Both of my kids had friends that wore sweats, flannels and fleece pants with hoodies from Middle School through college. My DD didn't but I know my son did on occasion in high school and certainly in college. Disney is a whole different world when you're in the parks and it is the 30's. Actually I didn't have an issue with his pants in the photo. I have been more taken aback by so many with very little clothing on and parts of their bodies that should be covered far better than they are in the summer hot/humid months of Florida. Disney has gone to actually drawing the line on swim suit bottoms by clearly stating no sting bottoms allowed.

We stayed at an Upscale hotel on the Magnificant Mile of Chicago on NYE. Buffet Breakfast and the man behind me was in his Thick Terry Cloth robe and Jammies and even had his hood up to hide his head and slippers on his feet. Nobody really batted an eye. He filled his tray and was off to his room.

 

[12in12]

My feet were tired off walking up and down DS so I thought I would follow several Magic members advice and head to the Poly.

Trader Sam's or Tambu Lounge???
I was in the mood for some silliness so Trader Sam's it was.
First drink

Second drink

There was also a third drink but I was too busy chatting and forgot to take a picture.
I ate the tacos

I understand now with this place is so popular, I had a great time.

My plan was to get on the monorail and get the bus home at the MK to watch the sunset from my balcony.
A monorail was just pulling in when I got to the platform and we boarded quickly, and then we waited and waited and waited some more. Turns out the fire alarm was going off at the transportation center and no monorail was allowed to run until the fire crew gave the all clear. After 20 minutes the announcement came we all had to get off the monorail and use alternative transportation, while leaving the staff handed out 1 FP per person to make up for the inconvenience. I hadn't made it off the platform or the announcement came that the monorail was up and running again so I headed back but it was another 15 minutes before we actually left in an almost empty monorail. I had time to take some pictures while waiting.

I hadn't planned on going to a park today but since I had gotten a FP I made a quick stop in the MK, I looked on the app to see what ride had the longest wait and used my FP for that.
7DMT was at 170 minutes but with my FP I was done in 15.

The people sitting behind me had never ridden before and were amazed you could rock the cart, luckily they loved it because I was really going for it. Great ride!

 

[Gabe1]

Continuing on from yesterday afternoon, I wanted a little power nap because I had a unusual experience scheduled starting at 4.30pm.
I did rest for a bit on the sofas and then headed out of the park. On the way I heard a girl say "Daddy, I didn't know Disney World had homeless people."
I could see why she was confused.
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I arrived at Guest Relations on time for my Dive Quest. I had high hopes for this experience and it did not disappoint!
We were taken backstage, first order of business was checking everyone's diving certification and second was wetsuit and shoe sizes. There were 7 in our group so it didn't take too long. After that We got a tour of the facilities, showing us the very large filtration system, the isolation pools and the kitchen among other things.
Finally it was time to get changed and make our way over to the aquarium. Disney had made it super easy to get in, there is a walkway on top of the aquarium with a slope that allows you to be submerged up to your knees so you can put on your scuba gear and flippers and then swim into the aquarium.
Like all backstage areas we were not allowed to take pictures but rebel that I am I asked the only other lady to take a quick pic of me in the changing room. Since she only took one I will share it even though I don't really like it.
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When you go diving you always buddy up for safety and luckily my buddy's wife took a lot of pictures of him from the viewing area and they were kind enough to email me some.
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Disney makes a video of your dive but it was $35 and I didn't want to buy it.
This dive was truly amazing since there are so many different fish in the tank. On several occasions the sharks swam so close to me I could count their teeth, I saw a sleeping giant sea turtle that was hiding in the corner plus huge stingrays would swim under me. I was sad when the dive master signalled for us to go back out but so happy I was able to see all that I did.

How awesome! This is on my bucketlist, So Much Fun!

 

[Gabe1]

I’m currently at MCO waiting to board my plane back home and i’m so depressed I’ll be catching up on your trip report on the flight home.

 

[Gabe1]

My feet were tired off walking up and down DS so I thought I would follow several Magic members advice and head to the Poly.
View attachment 259487

Trader Sam's or Tambu Lounge???
I was in the mood for some silliness so Trader Sam's it was.
First drink
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Second drink
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There was also a third drink but I was too busy chatting and forgot to take a picture.
I ate the tacos
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I understand now with this place is so popular, I had a great time.
View attachment 259491

My plan was to get on the monorail and get the bus home at the MK to watch the sunset from my balcony.
A monorail was just pulling in when I got to the platform and we boarded quickly, and then we waited and waited and waited some more. Turns out the fire alarm was going off at the transportation center and no monorail was allowed to run until the fire crew gave the all clear. After 20 minutes the announcement came we all had to get off the monorail and use alternative transportation, while leaving the staff handed out 1 FP per person to make up for the inconvenience. I hadn't made it off the platform or the announcement came that the monorail was up and running again so I headed back but it was another 15 minutes before we actually left in an almost empty monorail. I had time to take some pictures while waiting.View attachment 259496
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I hadn't planned on going to a park today but since I had gotten a FP I made a quick stop in the MK, I looked on the app to see what ride had the longest wait and used my FP for that.
7DMT was at 170 minutes but with my FP I was done in 15.
View attachment 259497
The people sitting behind me had never ridden before and were amazed you could rock the cart, luckily they loved it because I was really going for it. Great ride!
View attachment 259499

I am so happy you took the advice and made a stop at Trader Sams!!! Like you said it is fun and silly-laid back little corner. We too had so much fun. Glad you did too!

No, they just have this egg out as decoration where you can have princess afternoon tea.

*phew* Know Disney pushes their seasons but was thinking Easter in January would be a leap even for them. Nice that you were able to see one though.

 

[Gabe1]

Honestly that dive was so
much fun! The fee you pay goes towards preservation of aquatic life so Disney doesn't actually make money from it.

I know 2 people that are or have been dolphin trainers at Epcot. My DD friend and co worker in high school worked at ClearWater, SeaWorld and Disney over the last 7 years and just took a job Dubai this last year. Those CMs love those little critters and those critters become attached to them. She was a trainer of the dolphin from 'Dolphin Tail.'
A experience she will never forget. So much goes into attractions like the Seas.

 

[Tiggerlovr90]

Had to join this site to see your amazing pictures. Your trip report is very enjoyable. Thanks for taking us along. We went to wdw in sept/oct 2017 and after 8 plus trips we did a lot of first time activities, such as sushi and karaoke at the Swan and Dolphin. It was so much fun. We also almost always get the free ice water and carry our own ice tea mix to put in it. As far as pajama pants, would much rather of seen that then the skimpy outfits we saw on our trip. Looking forward to reading more.

 

[Gabe1]

I started today by leaving the bubble for a quick run to Target. I had a list of things I needed to get that we can't get at home.
Shopping dropped off in my room I hopped on the bus to DS, this is the longest bus ride from AKL coming in at 30 minutes.
This is just my opinion but I don't care for the expansion, the new shops are regular high end brands that I can find at home. It do like the look of some of the new restaurants.
I was getting hungry so decided to eat here.
View attachment 259484

It looked and smelled nice inside.
View attachment 259485

I chose a slice of pizza with fresh mozzarella cheese and a free cup of water.View attachment 259482
The water was the stand out item of my lunch, it was filtered and had no chlorine taste at all. The pizza was , the dough tasted like cardboard, hard and chewy.

I checked out a few stores including Basin.
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I passed the World of Disney and thought of you @Songbird76
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And I bought a much coveted ornament.
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I love to hear what people can't purchase overseas. Years ago my sister lived in
Brownsweg Germany and I use to send her care packages. Way back then she intro'd me to Gummi Bears from Germany. Years and years later they were at the Germany Pavilion and I bought them and sent them to her in Ohio. She was so freak'n excited. Now you can buy them here anywhere from Target to Walgreens.

And I too wonder about the high end everywhere stores. It was fun to explore the first time but in our two trips in the fall and winter we kinda just walked past most. We have a fondness for the Uniqlo the store from Japan, it has fair pricing and some pretty darn good pricing on Disney Tshirts. The shirt my son is wearing with jammie pants I posted came from there, purchased because it was so freak'n cold and he didn't want to spend a lot of money on something he would likely not wear again. This he would wear again and was about $20 to keep him from freezing in Disney. We also for some dang reason have a fondness for the Coke store. Can't Explain. But I'm not likely to spend $100s of dollars at Disney on shoes, boots or purses, well maybe a purse but I'd think about it long and hard. I want to see 5 years up the road how some of the high end stores fair....I feel the same way about the Edison and other more high end restaurants. For us that is alot of money to spend times 3 for food. You see places like Blaze Pizza in that area packed to the Gills and the more fairly priced Homecoming also sought after. Not saying the over the top restaurants are not awesome but OUCH!

Hopefully Enzo's will get better over time. The reviews for the special guests before opening were great but once the 'public' was allowed in the reviews seem to change. Maybe too many venues within Edison opening too much to fast for quality. I have found Via Napoli to be hit or miss over their life span at Epcot too. Italian seems to be hard for Disney to Duplicate in Florida, the restaurant I will not return to is MK's Tony's as it reminds me of my high school cafeteria version of Italian food. Heads up Tutto Italia Ristorante Epcot gets it right if you need an Italian fix. Their portions are huge. Be hungry.

Love your Christmas ornament!

 

[Gabe1]

Knowledge and reality don't always go hand in hand. Lol

The rest of us still laugh about it, but he's 18 now and still gets all tight lipped if you mention Tough to be a Bug. Lol

Awe. I'm sorry. That is really sad at 18 he still can't go to Bugs. It is a must do for us every trip. My DD was just 5 years old when AK park opened and we were there for it and she was fine. For the Grandkids some day I suggest 2 sources we used to help our 2 kids in their early years. All Ears has an awesome section on scare factor. All Ears is an awesome website that helps guest along with anything from weight/fitting into attractions to kids that have special issues, etc. Back in the day Birnbaum books were our go to resource in the Disney World. They had a special book for Kids and children rated them for fun and fear/scare factor and why.

I read a lot, and I prep'd my kids and I was fortunate to only have one chicken escaspe on Space Mt. in all the years my kids went to Disney and they went from 14 months and the second from 2 months old. And maybe that was it??? They rode them all before they knew what fear factor was. I hope your son someday will beable to take his kids into Bugs. {{{HUGS}}} for him.