In the Home Stretch Now - A Very Princess Pre-Trip Report

My original "Very Early" PTR started almost a year ago. I figured it was a lot to slog through at this point. So now that I am under 50 days, I thought I'd start with a clean slate.

If you have read my 2010 Trip Report, you know most of the players this time around.

There's me. I'm the resident Disney World fan and obsessive planner. Yep, I'm the guy who started a Pre-trip report in Nov for a trip that wasn't scheduled yet.

There's my wife, Mindy. How do I put this delicately? Disney World is not her thing. In 2010, she vowed never to return again. Gradually, her position on the subject softened because the kids wanted to go back. But I doubt Mindy will ever be happy to go to Disney World. Hey, it usually makes for an interesting Trip Report.

Our oldest daughter, Josie, is 7 years old. This will be her 4th trip to WDW. She has memories of the previous trips, but more from hearing us tell stories about them. Some of her "memories" never actually happened. Incidently, we call her Joey at home. So, if I start talking about Joey, I'm referring to her.

And our youngest daughter, Kara, is three. To a large degree, she is the reason we are taking this trip. About this time last year, she became utterly fascinated with princesses. Fortunately, that fascination has only deepened in the past year. She can't wait to see all the princesses in person. She won't be able to ride a lot of rides (and sometimes won't ride the rides she is able to) but watching her tap into her inner princess should be lots of fun. She has also developed a fascination with Jake and the Neverland Pirates lately.

Finally, there's my mom. Mom's a teacher at Josie's school. Since we scheduled our trip during a rare "fall break" when Mom was also off work, she decided to come along. Mom power walks every day, so she is actually the person I am least worried about slowing us down. If anything, we could have trouble keeping up with her.

Having Mom along brings with it a lot of benefits. For one, we're splitting the cost of our room at Art of Animation. We would never have ponied up for a suite if not for that. For another, she'll help with the kids. But better still, Mindy will be far less likely to complain with my mom around. So, yay Mom!

At present, we're counting down from 49 days. I have started a countdown on my blog if anyone is interested. I am going to go over the plan in 49 parts leading up to the trip. So feel free to follow along there for daily updates. Naturally, I'll be posting frequent updates here as well as the final details of planning get hammered out.

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, we had just completed what will hopefully prove to be a very relaxing afternoon break. Mom has the kids. Mindy and I will either meet her at the hotel or back at Hollywood Studios depending how things go.

We should be back at the park in the late afternoon with some time to kill before dinner. Odds are, we will have completed all of our must-dos for the day. So we can really just do whatever interests us. We may have some Toy Story Mania FastPasses from before the break if the timing worked out. Or, we may go see Beauty and the Beast Live.

One of the advantages to moving our dinner reservations to a later time is that we should be able to take advantage of Characterpalooza. Never heard of it? That’s because it is not officially announced.

​

Depending on when the first showing of Fantasmic! is scheduled, Disney holds a massive meet and greet with many of the characters appearing in the show. This tyipcally takes place in the Animation building, although Disney has been experimenting with outdoors locations recently.

Because Fantasmic starts at 7:30 tonight, Characterpalooza should take place about quarter-to-five. It only lasts 20 minutes, so you have to make the most of it. Because it is not commonly known, you can usually meet a lot of characters with little to no wait.

If everything goes according to schedule, we should wrap up with Characterpalooza just in time for dinner at the 50s Prime Time Cafe.


There are very few things we have done on every single Disney World trip. But one of them is to eat at the 50′s Prime Time Cafe. It’s comfort food which tastes great after a day in the parks. And the atmosphere is loads of fun.

The conceit is that you are in the 50′s. There are black-and-white TVs everywhere playing clips from old sit coms. The decor is right out of my granny’s kitchen with nick nacks everywhere. And the wait staff pretends to be family. They will have the kids set the table and give you a hard time if you don’t clean your plate.


In the past, I have sampled three of the more popular entrees at the PTC; the meatloaf, fried chicken and the pot roast. Ever since I first tried the pot roast, I have never strayed. But now the menu includes a sampler plate. So I will probably go that route and enjoy the menu’s greatest hits.


For dessert, Mindy likes the s’mores. But as good as they are, I always come back to Dad’s Brownie Fudge Sundae.


This thing is a monster topped with whipped cream, hot fudger, M&Ms and carmel corn. Yeah, it turns out carmel corn on ice cream is awesome. They will be rolling me out of this place tonight.

Next up: Tower of Terror might not be the best idea.

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, we had just stuffed ourselves with comfort food at the 50′s Prime Time Cafe. Fantasmic! starts at 7:30, so we should have enough time to squeeze in one more attraction before we need to line up for the show.

According to my agenda, the one must-do attraction left to do is Mindy’s favorite ride in all of Disney World, the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. Tower of Terror is to other free-fall rides what Splash Mountain is to log flumes. Disney took the basic idea of a drop ride and built a themed attraction around it.


The queue takes you through an abandoned hotel lobby down into a creepy boiler room. From there, riders are loaded onto an elevator by a bellhop. The cast members here have a lot of fun playing up their parts like they do at the Haunted Mansion. The elevator stops at the Twilight Zone. Riders see the ghosts of the former hotel guests.


And then the elevator does something elevators don’t normally do. It rolls forward out of the shaft. What follows is a sequence of dizzying drops. The sequence is randomized, so you never know how many times you will rise and fall. There are also special effects in the drop area if you can keep your eyes open to see them.
Josie has been talking bravely about riding this with her mom because she knows it is Mindy’s favorite ride.

I’m not 100% certain she’ll make it through the queue, but we’ll see. If she does make it through, I’m sure she’ll be rewarded with something from the gift shop to commemorate her achievement.

Odds are actually pretty good we will have crossed ToT off the list before dinner even though it’s not on the schedule. So in reality, this could be an open time to re-ride something everyone enjoyed earlier in the day. The Great Movie Ride always makes for a pleasant after-dinner experience.

Right aroung 7:00, we will face a decision point. Do we want to line up for Fantasmic! or not? Disney recommends getting a place in line an hour before show time. We’re not about to wait in line for an hour for anything, so that’s not happening.

Since we are no longer participating in the F! dining plan, we won’t have a reserved seat. So we’ll need to decide how badly we really want to see the show. How long do we wait to get in line at the risk of being turned away?

The odds are, we’ll be able to walk in just before the show starts. We may not get the best seats, but we should be able to get in. (It might help that Disney will be operating the first official preview of the new Fantasyland over at the Magic Kingdom today.)


Aside from the line, there are two other considerations. One, staying for the show means dealing with the crush of people leaving the park all at once. There’s no getting around the fact that the bus will be crowded after the show.

Two, Fantasmic! might be a little too scary for Kara. She’s fascinated/terrified by Disney villains. Maleficent in particular. I think the fact that the stage is so far away will make it okay. But there is the possibility of a freak-out when the dragon shows up.

I have been preparing Kara for what she will see should we stay for Fantasmic! She knows that Mickey fights the villains, slays the dragon and wins. But knowing that and experiencing it are two different things.

In our nine years of family trips, we have missed Fantasmic! every single time. I am not sure what our odds are for seeing it this time. I’ll definitely prioritize it. But I won’t force the issue if it doesn’t look like things are going to work out.

If we do skip the show, we can take it easy on the bus ride home. Because we have another early morning waiting for us.

Next, Morning at Animal Kingdom.

 

[NewfieFan]

The kids can choose between mac and cheese, pb&j or a pizza (cheese or pepperoni). Kid’s menus at Disney World tend to be exceptionally limited. They usually offer three or four choices per restaurant. But it’s the same three or four items everywhere you go. Typically mac and cheese and pb&j are available everywhere. And then you get either pizza, nuggets or a hot dog. There are a couple of places that offer something unique, but they are relatively scarce.

Next up: First we rest, then we go back for more.

I'm with you, that's been one of my main complaints since I've started visiting WDW. They've added a few unique items here or there (the Mickey shaped tuna sandwich at Colombia Harbour House is a hit, as well they have a kids version of the grilled vegetable sandwich at Backlot Express which my son enjoys) but other than that it's the same old, same old! And when you have a son allergic to peanuts well that reduces the choice ever more!

Concerning your plans of taking a break back at the hotel, I think you're underestimating how long it's going to take. Trust me, I've done the same thing with every trip. It's hard to be realistic when you're looking at it from home. You mentioned you'd like a 2-3 hour break back at the resort but you want to be back at the MK by 4pm (I'm still on your first full day - catching up). If you're back in your room by 1:30pm, I'll be impressed (it will probably be closer to 2pm)! There's no way you'll be able to change, swim, change again and get back to the MK by 4pm (unless you meant leave by 4pm which is a little more doable, rushed but doable). The MK is always the furthest away and the longest bus ride, it seems.

Yeah, the Elephant Grave Yard is not really a playground, is it!?! If you view it as a themed element and not a playground you won't be so horribly disappointed in it!

 

[brifraz]

Really enjoying it, Lebeau. Although, the planning sounds really familiar. It sounds just like our planning. Lots of specific detail with the full realization that most of it won't happen that way. We are at the point now where we actually plan a bit less. We know our progression of headlines and also our progression of C-tickets.

When our DD was under 6, we were much more detailed (at one point, I was planning every 15 minutes of the day, following 'lines' updates to estimate wait times and FP availability). She now knows fully well that she has done everything at least once and will get to do everything again someday. The moment that she started realizing that was a beautiful moment. The only 'must-do's' for our trips now are things are about to be closed or refurbed and she wants to check them out one more time (Snow White and Test Track last trip).

Our DD never had Fantasmic issues. She didn't like the dragon at first, but dealt with it so long as we sat far enough away. Now, F! is very low on the priority list for her (and us). Osbourne lights are even more of a draw for us!

Looking forward to the rest of the plan.

 

[lebeau]

I'm with you, that's been one of my main complaints since I've started visiting WDW. They've added a few unique items here or there (the Mickey shaped tuna sandwich at Colombia Harbour House is a hit, as well they have a kids version of the grilled vegetable sandwich at Backlot Express which my son enjoys) but other than that it's the same old, same old! And when you have a son allergic to peanuts well that reduces the choice ever more!

I can't even imagine dealing with allergies on top of the limited selection.

Kara will eat whatever I put in front of her. So, I'm not really worried about her. But Josie is picky and fickle. Even if she likes something, she might just decide she doesn't feel like eating it that day. Even if she orders it, she might change her mind when she sees it. It's made planning counter service meals very challenging.

Concerning your plans of taking a break back at the hotel, I think you're underestimating how long it's going to take. Trust me, I've done the same thing with every trip. It's hard to be realistic when you're looking at it from home. You mentioned you'd like a 2-3 hour break back at the resort but you want to be back at the MK by 4pm (I'm still on your first full day - catching up). If you're back in your room by 1:30pm, I'll be impressed (it will probably be closer to 2pm)! There's no way you'll be able to change, swim, change again and get back to the MK by 4pm (unless you meant leave by 4pm which is a little more doable, rushed but doable). The MK is always the furthest away and the longest bus ride, it seems.

You are probably right. My intent with the planning is to over-pack the schedule. Then we'll drop stuff as we go. I figure it's better to have too much to do than too little. Basically, I want to avoid those awkward time-wasters where everyone is standing there looking at each other asking "what next?"

So, I'm planning on breaks being 3 hours. 1 Hour of travel, 1 hour in the pool (I doubt I'll be able to handle more than an hour of pool time in Nov) and 1 hour of whatever. If breaks run an extra hour, that's okay. We'll just drop some of the padding from the schedule. If breaks start running over 4 hours, that could be an issue. But I don't think that will be a problem. The breaks were the one thing that worked out effortlessly in 2010.

Yeah, the Elephant Grave Yard is not really a playground, is it!?! If you view it as a themed element and not a playground you won't be so horribly disappointed in it!

I think that's got to be your out look on the thing. Which is fine by me. Frankly, my kids are going to avoid it like the plague. They would be way to scared to play in it even if it had slides.

Really enjoying it, Lebeau. Although, the planning sounds really familiar. It sounds just like our planning. Lots of specific detail with the full realization that most of it won't happen that way. We are at the point now where we actually plan a bit less. We know our progression of headlines and also our progression of C-tickets.

When our DD was under 6, we were much more detailed (at one point, I was planning every 15 minutes of the day, following 'lines' updates to estimate wait times and FP availability). She now knows fully well that she has done everything at least once and will get to do everything again someday. The moment that she started realizing that was a beautiful moment. The only 'must-do's' for our trips now are things are about to be closed or refurbed and she wants to check them out one more time (Snow White and Test Track last trip).

Our DD never had Fantasmic issues. She didn't like the dragon at first, but dealt with it so long as we sat far enough away. Now, F! is very low on the priority list for her (and us). Osbourne lights are even more of a draw for us!

Looking forward to the rest of the plan.

Thanks for the kind words.

You hit the nail on the head with regards to my approach to planning. There is no way the actual trip will line up with what I am detailing here. It's just not going to happen.

I actually have several reasons for the detailed planning and write-ups. One, I wanted to make sure I was allocating sufficient time to the right parks for our "must dos". Two, I want to make sure there is always something "to do next" lined up so we're never stuck deciding where to go.

But more importantly, this is preparation for the other members of the group. I'm letting the girls (all of them) know what's on the agenda and hopefully getting them excited about it.

Kara and I talk about the trip a lot. Even though she has been, she was too young to remember it. So she really has no idea what to expect. I am trying to prepare her for everything she is going to see so she won't be too overwhelmed.

As it turns out, she is easily the most excited about the trip. I can tell, she's going to be the other WDW fan in the family. She gets excited when she sees pictures of Disney World and recognizes characters, rides, etc. She and I look at pictures in the photo threads all the time. We watched a Travel Channel show the other day and she was bouncing up and down telling me all the things she wanted to see and do (and all the things she doesn't want to see.)

So, it's not really about having a set agenda. It's more about mentally preparing everyone for every eventuality before we are in the middle of things.

By the way, we got our Mickey Mail yesterday!

 

[NewfieFan]

You are probably right. My intent with the planning is to over-pack the schedule. Then we'll drop stuff as we go. I figure it's better to have too much to do than too little. Basically, I want to avoid those awkward time-wasters where everyone is standing there looking at each other asking "what next?"

So, I'm planning on breaks being 3 hours. 1 Hour of travel, 1 hour in the pool (I doubt I'll be able to handle more than an hour of pool time in Nov) and 1 hour of whatever. If breaks run an extra hour, that's okay. We'll just drop some of the padding from the schedule. If breaks start running over 4 hours, that could be an issue. But I don't think that will be a problem. The breaks were the one thing that worked out effortlessly in 2010.

Well, you are being realistic! I help so many first-time families and they just really underestimate how much time everything takes (especially with young children). I hate to see people disappointed and it can really put a damper on the vacation when you feel you're not accomplishing what you set out to do. At least you're planning what to do if time permits, not "we have to do x amount of attractions in x amount of time". My best friend is taking her family for the first time in Dec. (before the Christmas rush) and I've tore apart her itinerary more times, the poor dear must be sick of me! She has so much on her list that she wants to do. She is an uber-planner, which I keep telling her is a good thing b/c so many people go to Disney without a plan. The key is to have a plan but prepared to throw it out too!

(Btw, I got my fingers and toes crossed that you will get a sneak peak of the New FL!)

 

[lebeau]

Well, you are being realistic! I help so many first-time families and they just really underestimate how much time everything takes (especially with young children). I hate to see people disappointed and it can really put a damper on the vacation when you feel you're not accomplishing what you set out to do. At least you're planning what to do if time permits, not "we have to do x amount of attractions in x amount of time". My best friend is taking her family for the first time in Dec. (before the Christmas rush) and I've tore apart her itinerary more times, the poor dear must be sick of me! She has so much on her list that she wants to do. She is an uber-planner, which I keep telling her is a good thing b/c so many people go to Disney without a plan. The key is to have a plan but prepared to throw it out too!

(Btw, I got my fingers and toes crossed that you will get a sneak peak of the New FL!)

Thanks for the well-wishes. Hope it pans out. But if not, that just gives us an excuse to go back.

It sounds like you're providing a priceless service. Even with experience, I find I underestimate travel times. I have gone back and checked and double checked the estimates in the Unofficial Guide. What those don't account for is just plain bad luck. When you get to the station just as your bus is pulling away and then you watch helplessly as bus after bus for other parks blows by. Seems to happen at least once a trip.

On the whole, I think I have a healthy outlook towards the trip and planning. (Mindy would differ with that assessment.) I am fully prepared to toss the plan at a moment's notice. Especially with little kids. It's unavoidable. Kara has a bladder the size of a thimble. We have to be ready to scramble at a moment's notice.

Kids are just unpredictable. (Especially mine?) You never know when one of them will refuse to do something they had been looking forward to for months beforehand. Or when something will catch their eye and they just HAVE to do it NOW. On our 2008 trip, Josie decided we had to drop everything and take the Backlot Tour at DHS (???). We hadn't even planned to do this attraction and I have no idea what about it caught her fancy. But at that moment, there was nothing more important than taking that tour. So, take it we did.

There's an old bit from the making of Apocalypse Now that comes to mind with regards to Disney planning. Francis Ford Copola told Dennis Hopper to learn the lines and then forget them. Hopper showed up to shoot never having learned his lines and it was a complete disaster. If you don't plan at all, you risk a complete disaster. But if you plan ahead and are still willing to toss the plan and go with the flow, you should be all right.

That's my approach anyway.

For me, if everyone has fun, I'll have fun. Doesn't matter if I don't ride a single ride.

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, we had just wrapped up our day at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Even if we stay for Fantasmic!, we should be back in our room and in bed at a decent hour. Which is important because we have another early morning ahead of us.

On our last trip, we skipped Disney’s Animal Kingdom entirely. With two little kids (one still an infant), there wasn’t enough to do there to lure us over. That may sound odd considering the amount of time we spent at Epcot. But Epcot is surprisingly child friendly when compared to Animal Kingdom.


The problem with Animal Kingdom is the lack of rides. The only ride I could have gotten my kids on in 2010 was Kilimanjaro Safaris. Everything else had height restrictions and/or was deemed “too scary”. Hollywood Studios has a similar problem, but at least it has a couple of dark rides. Strip away the rides, and Animal Kingdom starts to look like a very lush zoo.

Which is fine. We like zoos. But the problem is, we have a very nice zoo locally. So the appeal of Animal Kingdom is greatly diminished when we can see similar exhibits in our own backyard.

The original plan for this trip regarding Animal Kingdom was to visit it in the morning and then park hop somewhere else. That is partially because Animal Kingdom always closes early. If you’re park hopping, it makes a lot of sense to start at Animal Kingdom and then end your day at a park like Epcot which is open late.

​

Early on in my planning, I started asking everyone in the group what they wanted to do at each of the parks. The purpose of this was to make sure I had allotted enough time at each park to do everything everyone wanted to do.

Slowly, it became apparent that we didn’t really need a full day at Epcot. We spent a lot of time there in 2010 and Mom had spent an entire day there in 2011. But we hadn’t been to Animal Kingdom since before Kara was born. And Josie was too young to remember the half day we spent there in 2007. Mom had never been. So, a full day at Animal Kingdom seemed like the way to go.

That left us with another problem. With park hours from 9-5, it would be difficult to squeeze in our afternoon break. When you’re relying on Disney transportation, you have to allow at least a half hour both ways to get to and from the hotel. So even a two hour break is going to eat up at least three hours of your day.

​

That would leave us with three hours in the morning (9-12), three hours for our break (12-3) and then two hours in the afternoon before park close. At that point, it is barely worth getting back on the bus for two more hours in the park.

I drew up a plan that did not include an afternoon break. It allowed us to see and do everything we wanted to in the park. But I was worried about a full day on our feet without the break in the afternoon. Animal Kingdom is notoriously hot and exhausting.

Fortunately, as our trip approached, the park hours changed. First, Extra Magic Hours were announced for that morning extending our arrival time to 8am. Then an extra hour was added in the afternoon. We now had from 8am – 6 pm.

The extra two hours make all the difference in the world. With the extended hours, we should be able to see everything we want to see and still have room for our afternoon break.

As with the previous morning, it could be a struggle to make it to the park at 8:00 am. But unlike Hollywood Studios, it is less critical that we arrive right on time. Animal Kingdom doesn’t have attractions like Toy Story Mania that build up lines early. Also, this should be a relatively light day for attendance.

I’ll still do everything in my power to get us out to the buses by 7:30. But this time if we roll in at 8:15 instead of 8:00 sharp, it won’t set us behind for the day. Animal Kingdom rewards a more relaxed touring style. So I won’t be quite so strict about sticking to the schedule.
Next, we start touring Animal Kingdom.

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, I outlined why on earth we were spending an entire day at Animal Kingdom after skipping the park entirely in 2010. Now, it’s time to get down to monkey business. I crack myself up.

“The plan” today is really a bit of a formality. There is a good chance we will chuck the plan and wing it. For one thing, there are attractions on the plan that I am not sure anyone will actually want to ride once we get there. I basically have the plan to avoid that uncomfortable moment when no one knows what to do next. When in doubt, we’ll consult the plan.

The plan has us starting out in Dinoland, USA. Our first stop is Primeval Whirl, a roller coaster with cars that spin like the tea cups. I know Mindy won’t ride this ride or any other ride that spins. I am not sure if any one will ride PW.

We’ve never been on it before. Odds are pretty good we’ll skip it today. So, why include it on the schedule? Well, if anyone does want to ride it, now is the time. PW has low capacity and attracts long lines later in the day. If everyone looks at it and decides to skip it, we’ll just move on to the next attraction on the list.

​

Mindy and I had a good time on Dinosaur in 2003. But we haven’t ridden it since. To a large degree, I think we enjoyed it as much as we did due to low expectations. I assumed that since it had a tie-in to a rather dull cartoon, that the attraction wouldn’t have much going for it. With that mindset, I was blown away. Both Mindy and I are looking forward to riding this again.

I know Josie and Kara won’t ride although Josie is tall enough. She has just barely gotten to the point where she can walk past T-Rex. Not sure if Mom will want to try this one or not. If she does, we’ll be doing a child swap.

​

We’ve got one last “big person” ride to cover first thing in the morning and that’s Expedition Everest. Mindy and I rode this one back in 2007 just before the Yeti broke. We haven’t ridden since, so we’ve never seen the infamous “disco yeti”.

I have to admit, for me, the yeti at the end made the ride. So I won’t be all that heart-broken if we end up skipping this one. I’ll try to squeeze it in because it’s one of Animal Kingdom’s headline attractions. But if the girls are in a hurry to move on to things they can do, I’m willing to sacrifice this coaster.

Technically, Josie’s tall enough to ride. But she has been saying for months now that there is no way she’ll ride it. If she pulls off Tower of Terror at Hollywood Studios and enjoys it, I’ll suggest she might be ready for Expedition Everest (or the “yeti ride” as she calls it.) But I don’t think there’s too much chance of that happening.

​

After riding some thrill rides, the plan has us stopping by the Maharajah Jungle Trek to see some tigers. This is really on the list as a place-holder. Time permitting, I’m sure we’ll stop in and see the tigers. But it won’t necessarily be a scheduled visit.

Having finished with Dinoland (for now) and Asia, the plan has us crossing the park. The Jungle Trek is on the way, which is why it’s included in the plan here. But it’s hardly a vital step.
Next up, we venture into Africa.

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, we got an early start on some of the big-ticket attractions at Animal Kingdom. We’ve got a plan to follow, but I’m not sure how closely we’ll be sticking to it. Animal Kingdom is the Disney park that most rewards exploration.

With that in mind, I’ll continue outlining the plan we are not especially likely to follow. Having visited Dinoland and Asia, we will next head over to Africa. According to the estimates at Touringplans.com, we should get there by roughly 9:30 am!. If true, that’s the beauty of efficient use of Extra Magic Hours.
The plan has us grabbing FastPasses for Kilimanjaro Safaris. If waits are reasonable, we’ll probably forgo that step and just hop in line. Assuming we stick to the plan, we will kill some time exploring some of the nearby animal exhibits waiting for our FastPasses to kick in.


We’ll work our way down to Camp Minnie Mickey. The primary goal there is to catch The Festival of the Lion King. The Festival is generally considered one of the best if not the best show on property. It’s basically a Lion King sing-along, but it incorporates impressive acrobatic acts. It’s a poor man’s Cirque du Soleil.

The only other thing there is do see or do in Camp Minnie Mickey is character meet and greets. Good thing we like those, huh? During the downtime when we are either waiting for the show to start or waiting for our Safari FastPasses, we’ll visit with the characters. There are camp gear versions of Mickey and Friends and characters from The Jungle Book.


Once we have finished in Camp Minnie Mickey, we head back up into Africa for Kilimanjaro Safaris. I haven’t been on this ride since our honeymoon in 2003, so I am looking forward to riding it again. Mindy and Josie rode in 2007, but I’m sure Josie doesn’t remember. It will be a new experience for my mom and Kara.

When we get done, we will have reached a decision point. I have actually outlined two plans for the day. One includes pretty much everything, but skips are usual break. Normally, I would never even consider such a thing. But since Animal Kingdom closes so early, it might be possible to just power through the day.


If we decide to take a break (and odds are we will) we’ll probably take it a little earlier than usual to allow time for us to get back with a few hours before the park closes.
Next, I’ll cover what we’ll do if we don’t take that break.

 

[harveyt0206]

Your trip is getting so close! I love all the detail you have included here. Just a brief note on Primeval Whirl...I have motion sickness issues and usually I avoid anything twirly things like the plague. In 2010, my mom and I took a girls only trip to WDW and for some reason she really wanted to ride PW. I reluctantly agreed and ended up loving it. It really is a silly midway type ride, but it's a blast. My mom and I laughed the entire time.

Hubby and I completely skipped AK this year, so he hasn't had a chance to experience the PW fun. He sort of has the " that ride looks ridiculous" mentality about it anyway so it may be awhile before he gives in and rides it with me.

Following along with your trip countdown.

 

[lebeau]

Your trip is getting so close! I love all the detail you have included here. Just a brief note on Primeval Whirl...I have motion sickness issues and usually I avoid anything twirly things like the plague. In 2010, my mom and I took a girls only trip to WDW and for some reason she really wanted to ride PW. I reluctantly agreed and ended up loving it. It really is a silly midway type ride, but it's a blast. My mom and I laughed the entire time.

Hubby and I completely skipped AK this year, so he hasn't had a chance to experience the PW fun. He sort of has the " that ride looks ridiculous" mentality about it anyway so it may be awhile before he gives in and rides it with me.

Following along with your trip countdown.

Thanks for the kind words and the tip on PW. Personally, it looks like fun. Mindy won't ride the tea cups, so I imagine she'll skip it no matter what. Kara's too short, so that leaves me, mom and Josie. Basically, if Josie is feeling brave, we'll ride it. If not, we'll save it for another trip.

Josie does fine with spinning. In fact, she loves spinning rides. On the tea cups last trip, she screamed "faster, daddy faster". And at Kings Island, she rides The Scrambler till daddy can't stand it any more. It's just a matter of how she's feeling about the coaster component that day. Which is hard to predict. Some days, she's ready to tackle that stuff and other days, not so much.

By this point in the trip, we should have a pretty good idea of how brave Josie will be. If she followed through on her boasts to ride Tower of Terror, PW should be a piece of cake.

It does look "ridiculous" in a good way as long as you don't mind spinning. So, hopefully we'll get to check it out.

Thanks for playing along with the countdown!

 

[NewfieFan]

We didn't find PW bad at all. In terms of coasters it is pretty tame one and even the spinning is not as bad as it looks from the outside (and I don't like spinning). However the ride jerks you and throws you around. One kid knocked his head and the other kid hit her leg, by the time the ride was over both kids were crying. Which is too bad b/c besides for the injuries they were having a good time and enjoying the ride.

(I really think they need more padding or softer padding on the ride!)

 

[lebeau]

We didn't find PW bad at all. In terms of coasters it is pretty tame one and even the spinning is not as bad as it looks from the outside (and I don't like spinning). However the ride jerks you and throws you around. One kid knocked his head and the other kid hit her leg, by the time the ride was over both kids were crying. Which is too bad b/c besides for the injuries they were having a good time and enjoying the ride.

(I really think they need more padding or softer padding on the ride!)

Sounds like!

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, we stormed the Animal Kingdom during Extra Magic Hours in the morning. In theory, we should have ticked off all the must-dos on our list. But even with the E-tickets out of the way, there’s still plent for us to do. And now, it’s time for us to decide exactly how ambitious we feel.

One option is to take our usual afternoon break. If we do that (and we probably will) we will head back to the hotel a little early. We might even head back before lunch in which case we would have lunch at the Landscape of Flavors. After the usual resting and relaxing, we’d return to the park in the mid-afternoon in order to hit a few more highlights before the park closes.


But for the purposes of today’s entry, we’ll assume that we skip the break. The first order of business would be to grab lunch in the park. There are some decent counter-service options in Animal Kingdom. Flame Tree Barbeque is considered by many to be the best counter-service restaurant on property. Personally, I have never eaten there (although I have made the sauce at home and it is yummy). So, that would be my first choice.

But once again we run into the limited choices for kid’s meals. Josie’s a picky eater and there’s just no telling in advance what she will or won’t eat that day. So I am going to have to be flexible. It may be that only pizza will do the trick in which case we’re headed Pizzafari. If Josie wants a burger, we’ll go to Restaurantosaurus. Seriously, that’s the name.

If the kids are satisfied with a hot dog or PB&J, it’s Flame Tree all the way. But that seems unlikely. Which is fine by me. I can find something on any menu. Restaurantawhozits has an angus bacon cheeseburger that has my name all over it. And Pizzafari has, well, pizza. Even the worst pizza I’ve ever had (and Disney pizza is pretty darn close) is still decent.


Once the herd has grazed (see what I did there?), we’ll hitch a ride on the Wildlife Express. This train connects the rest of the park with Animal Kingdom’s animal facilities. Disney has labeled this area with names that make it sound more exciting than it is. There’s Rafiki’s Planet Watch, Conservation Station and the Affection Section. But don’t expect to find much in the way of attractions out here.


Instead, what you’ll find is the stuff of zoos everywhere. There’s a nursery which may or may not have something exciting going on. There’s a petting zoo and some educational exhibits you can tour based on your level of interest. Disney has also stuck in some character meet and greets to lure guests out to Rafiki’s Planet Watch.


You may sense a lack of excitement regarding these offerings. I actually enjoy them quite well. But I can experience pretty much the same thing at our local zoo. Only at the zoo, I don’t have to sit through an extended train ride to get there and back.

Here’s my problem with this set-up. If you want to experience the petting zoo, you have to spend about twenty minutes on a train just getting there. And there isn’t a lot to see on that train. You get a brief glimpse of some of the backstage animal pens which is interesting enough. But most of the train ride is pretty uneventful. And it’s a big chunk of your day just to pet goats.


On the upside, Kara loves trains and Josie loves goats. So if we decide to make time for this, I’m sure everyone will have a good time. And should we decide to forego our daily break, the train ride should prove to be relaxing.

I better stop now before I convince myself that skipping our break is a good idea.

Next up, we continue on with the Animal Kingdom.

 

[lebeau]

When we left off,we were looking at a “what if” scenario. What if we decide to skip our afternoon break to fully explore the animal facilities at Animal Kingdom? This really depends on how the kids are holding up. They both react to exhaustion in different ways.

Josie gets whiny. And that is to be avoided at all costs. I’ll give you an example. Yesterday, I took the kids out to shop for Halloween costumes. We didn’t like anything at our local Target, so we went to Halloween Express. Kara was completely freaked out about the animatronic witch that kep cackling in the center of the store. But Josie loved it. She eventually picked out a vampire costume.

(I very nearly bought a life-size Captain America shield. I’m going to have to go back closer to Halloween and see if they discount that thing!)

Since Kara was such a trooper at Halloween express, I promised to take her to the Disney Store. She already has a full collection of Disney princess dresses. So I wasn’t all that worried about buying her a costume. I told her if she wanted a dress she didn’t have, I would buy it for her. Or if she wanted an accessory to compliment a costume she already had, she could get that.

She tried on a Rapunzel braid that goes down her back to just about where her feet are and fell in love. A sales girl pretended like she was actually Rapunzel and Kara was sold. She would not take the thing off. Since Josie already had her vampire costume in the trunk, I was ready to go. But Josie wanted to try on shoes. Since I’m a sucker for the Disney Store, I let her try them on.

Here’s the thing about the girls and Disney Store shoes. Every time I have let the girls buy shoes there, they decided when we got home that the shoes didn’t fit. So I make them try the shoes on in the store before I will buy them. And they have to be very certain that the shoes are a Cinderella-like perfect fit. This gets me out of a lot of shoe purchases.

Josie was trying on any and all shoes that even came close to her size. This in spite of the fact she doesn’t really like princesses all that much. She had become obsessed with the idea that she just had to buy some shoes. The size 12s were too small and the size 13s had extra room in them. They didn’t carry size 12 1/2. So, basically nothing was going to fit.

Josie had a mini-melt down on the floor that was completely unacceptable from a 7 1/2 year old. I have a mantra that I drill into the girls, “No fussing, no fighting, no fits.” Josie was breaking 2/3s of my mantra. I asked her as I frequently do what I could do to make her happy. She demanded a trip to the shoe store which just wasn’t in the cards after a busy day of soccer games and Halloween shopping.

And that was the problem. She was worn out. I recognized this and headed home. Point being, we run the risk of a similar melt down at Animal Kingdom if I let Josie overheat. And that’s just not allowed.

Speaking of overheating, that’s how Kara reacts to exhaustion. She doesn’t complain. But eventually, she’ll say, “My belly hurts.” Once she says that, it’s already too late. She’s going to start projectile vomiting any second. It is very important to keep Kara hydrated!


Getting back to the touring plan, we should be returning from our break some time in the middle of the afternoon. The park closes at 6, so I’d like to get back no later than 4. Earlier if possible. Which shouldn’t be too big of a problem as I intend to start the break earlier than usual. This leads us up to Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade.

The afternoon break has meant skipping all of the afternoon parades so far. I don’t see this as a tremendous sacrifice. The kids have limited patience for parades (especially Josie). And the parade at Hollywood Studios is pretty sad these days. But I like Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade reasonably well. It starts later in the day than most afternoon parades, so there’s a pretty decent chance we could catch it.


If we skip the break, the parade is almost unavoidable. It shuts down most of the walkways in the park. The one time we ever watched it was in 2003 and we were practically held captive as we were trying to leave the park. If we take the break, we could arrive just in time for the parade to start. Although I won’t push for us to see it if it looks like some extra down time would do us some good.

As I was writing this entry, I was interrupted by the girls. I showed them a video of the Animal Kingdom parade. It held Josie’s interest for a couple of minutes and she said she wanted to see it. It captivated Kara who then spent the next hour watching parade videos. I may have to rethink my position on the afternoon parade at the Magic Kingdom. That girl loves her parades!


I originally intended to finish up Animal Kingdom today, but I got sidetracked on a tangent. That’s okay. I still have 24 more countdowns to fill and only a little more trip to cover. I’ll save the rest of the Animal Kingdom for tomorrow’s entry.

Next up: More Animal Kingdom

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, we either took a break or we didn’t and we either watched Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade or we skipped it. How’s that for planning? Either way, we’re winding down our day at Animal Kingdom. And there’s only a few attractions left for us to see.

I actually have It’s Tough to Be a Bug on the schedule. But it’s mostly a place-holder. Mindy and the girls are all deathly afraid of bugs. I realize the bugs in this 3-D movie are of the cartoon variety, but I think some of the in house effects might freak the girls out. So, realistically, we will probably give this a pass.


After Bug, the plan has us headed back to Dinoland. The two attractions we are scheduled to see in Dinoland are Finding Nemo: The Musical and The Boneyard playground.

Once again, the Boneyard is just on there as a place-holder. Odds are we’ll let the kids run around The Boneyard at some point during the day. I’m not sure it will be at the scheduled hour. If any adults opt out of Dinosaur or Expedition Everest in the morning, we’ll probably head to The Boneyard to let the kids play while the big people ride the big rides.


If not, we’ll stop by whenever it’s convenient based around the showtime for Finding Nemo. Nemo (the movie) is a family favorite. So I expect the stage show will be a hit with us. The last time we were at Animal Kingdom (2007) the show was brand new and the line to see it was prohibitively long. So after five years of waiting, I look forward to finally seeing the show.

I have watched it on You Tube and I find the songs to be catchy even if they weren’t in the original movie.
Depending on how the day has gone, we might revisit some favorite attractions or take in something that isn’t on the schedule. I have heard good things about the Flights of Wonder bird show, for example. Or we might just let the kids go crazy at The Boneyard until dinner time.

Dinner was another tough decision. Originally, we had planned to park hop over to Epcot and have dinner with Chip and Dale at the Garden Grill. But as the plan came together, we realized we didn’t need the park hopper option. I also considered heading over to the Animal Kingdom Lodge for dinner at Boma. We haven’t been there since our honeymoon in 2003 and I thought it would be nice to go back.


But ultimately, we decided to play it safe and eat within the park. That way, if we’re dead dog tired after a day at Animal Kingdom, we won’t have to drag ourselves on a bus anywhere else. We can just plop down and enjoy a relaxing meal. Of the in-park options, there was a clear choice. Despite the name, Yak and Yeti is where we wanted to eat.

This will be a new dining experience for us. And by and large, I am pleased with it. The reviews sound very promising. While not as “fun” as a character meal or the 50′s Prime Time Cafe, the place has a cool atmosphere. And I hear good things about the food.


Given that I am obsessed with maximizing my dining plan credits, I’ll be looking at the two most expensive entrees on the menu. That means it’s a choice between the baby back ribs and Shaoxing Steak and Shrimp. From the reviews I have read, the ribs win.


Dessert choices include cheesecake, sorbet, chocolate cake and mango pie. But the one I have to try is the fried wontons. The menu describes them as follows, “Skewers of fresh pineapple and cream cheese wontons, vanilla ice cream, honey vanilla drizzle.” This is the dessert everyone raves about.

Our dinner reservations are at 5:45 just before the park closes. Once we finish dinner, we will probably just head back to the hotel. However, if we plan to visit Downtown Disney at all this trip, this would be the best night to do it. That all depends on how much gas we have in the tank at the end of the day.

Next up, a look at Downtown Disney.

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, we just finished up our day at Animal Kingdom with dinner at the Yak and Yeti. It should be roughly 7:00. Early enough in the evening that we might decide to go to Downtown Disney. Late enough that we should probaly just go home and get some rest.

Here’s the problem with being sensible. The girls might get a little stir crazy in the room if we head right home. Odds are, we wouldn’t get back to our room till close to 8:00, so that probably wouldn’t be an issue. But bored kids in a hotel room (even a themed suite) is to be avoided at all costs.

Plus, Mindy and the girls like Downtown Disney. This is our earliest free evening of the trip. So if we are going to visit DTD, this is our best opportunity to do so. I’m going to wager we won’t go. But just in case, here’s a look at some of the things we’ll see and do there.


There’s no two ways about it. If we go to Downtown Disney, we are going to spend some time (and most likely some money) in the World of Disney Store. My kids love the Disney Store. And this is like the Disney Store on steroids. You can get lost (and loose your wallet) in the place. It has happened on previous trips.

​

My girls aren’t all that into Legos. But those gigantic Lego sculptures are too great a lure to resist. I guarantee we’ll look around. The girls might even play with some of the display parts. Odds are, we can get out of this store without making a purchase.

​

On our last trip in 2010, Josie became obsessed with Vinylmation figurines. She bought one (or rather, we bought one for her) every day of the trip on average. She calls them “Mickey guys”. We’ve been picking them up from the Disney Store for special occasions and lemme tell ya, she has quite a collection!
Since that trip, Disney opened a store named D-Street which specialized in Vinylmation figures. If we go to Downtown Disney, this store is unavoidable. Purchases will be made.


Once Upon a Toy is a toy store. There is no walking past a toy store without entering. Fortunately, I will probably have spent enough money at World of Disney and D-Street that I won’t need to buy anything more here. Notice I said “probably” and not “definitely”.


If you have seen the lebeau family Christmas tree, you know I am stopping by Days of Christmas. This may be the year in which we have two trees; one for Disney ornaments and one for everything else. This may also be the year in which my wife leaves me. But hopefully not.

In 2010, one of Josie’s favorite parts of the trip was playing in the “laundry” outside the Design a Tee store. We didn’t even step inside, but we spent quite a bit of time doing what you see pictured above.


We watched an episode of the TV show Unwrapped about food at Disney parks. They did a segment on Goofy’s Candy Company and now Josie is dying to come here and make her own treat. Odds are, she won’t even eat it. She just wants to make it.

So, those are the stores we’re likely to hit if we make our way over to Downtown Disney this year. It’s probably best for my wallet if we don’t.

Next, the last full day of our trip.

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, we had visited all 4 parks in 3 1/2 days. This is the last full day of our trip. So naturally, we’re going to spend it at the Magic Kingdom.

Our first day at the Magic Kingdom will be cut a little short due to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party which we will not be attending. We should have no problem knocking out Fantasyland and Frontierland in that time. Not to mention Mainst Street USA and the Mansion (the only attraction in Liberty Square we are likely to visit).

That leaves us with Adventureland and Tomorrowland left to visit. Two lands in twelve hours (less time for a break) sounds like a piece of cake. And for the most part, it should be. However, this is probably the most jam-packed day of our trip. We’re packing in some extra bells and whistles to end this thing with a bang. (Yes, that means fireworks. No, that was not intentional.)


One other factor. Have I mentioned the Fantasland expasion? Only every time I talk about the Magic Kingdom? Oh. Well, we’ll still be looking to sneak into the new Fantasyland attractions in an unofficial soft open. I won’t give up on that possibility until we are on the bus to the airport. Once again, I apologize in advance to the castmembers I will politely pester at the Magic Kingdom.

On the off chance that we should get into Fantasyland before it officially opens, all best are off. Plans are out the window. I will bump Jack Sparrow off the agenda so fast it will make his rum-soaked head spin.
But for the time being, let’s assume that doesn’t happen. We’ll stick to the plan which does not include Fantasyland soft openings.

After two days in a row of getting up early for morning Extra Magic Hours, we’ll be able to sleep in a bit. The Magic Kingdom doesn’t open until 9:00 am. That plus the fact that Animal Kingdom closed early the night before should mean we’ll be well rested and ready for a big day.

Typically, when given a choice between Tomorrowland and Adventureland, my choice would be to start the day in Tomorrowland. Both Space Mountian and Buzz Lightyear are popular attractions which can build up long lines later in the day. However, Touringplans.com has us going to Adventureland first. The reason for that is Tinkerbell.


Certain meet and greets have longer lines than a lot of rides. And Tinkerbell is one of them. Lines to see the popular fairy can stretch on for over an hour when the park is busy. It is recommended to line up to see Tink and friends early in the day or just before park close.

While not a princess, Tink still ranks pretty high on our must-dos. So we’ll be headed to her Nook in Adventureland early.


Tink doesn’t start meeting and greeting until 9:15. This gives us time to take a ride on The Magic Carpets of Aladdin before we line up. Like Dumbo, the Magic Carpets are a low capacity ride. That means the line can get pretty long later in the day.

Kara has recently discovered and become obsessed with Aladdin. She talks about freeing the Genie all the time. And how at the end of the movie, he says “Made you look”. So even though she has never ridden a spinner ride, she is interested in riding the magic carpets like Aladdin and Jasmin.

A lot of people hate this ride because they feel its placement in Adventureland disrupted the flow of the land. I can’t really argue with that. But I know in 2008, it was the first ride I could coax Josie on. She had a blast. It was a turning point in our day when she decided she loved rides. So, I have a soft spot for the spinner even if it doesn’t necessarily fit in with its surroundings.

Once we have seen a whole new world via magic carpet, we have a date with a fairy. One of Kara’s other obessions these days is the show Jake and the Neverland Pirates. Her favorite character on the show, Izzy, has a stash of pixie dust she uses in emergencies. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Kara asks Tink for a sprinkle of dust when we see her.


Another one of those meet and greets that gets long lines is Ariel. This one is tricky. Both the girls love Ariel, so we have to see her. Hopefully, she will be in attendance at our royal banquet at Akershus. If so, seeing the little mermaid at the Magic Kingdom won’t be such a priority.

However, Ariel’s meet and greet is in a state of flux. Currently, she meets along with Prince Eric at the Adventureland Veranda. If that remains the case and we have yet to see her, we’ll head over to the Veranda next.

At some point in the near future, the meet and greet is going to change. The location will switch from Adventureland to Ariel’s Grotto in the new Fantasyland. Eric will retire from meet and greets and Ariel will revert to her fishtail look.


If this change is in effect, we will have to go to Fantasyland to see Ariel even if we already saw her at dinner. Kara really wants to see her in mermaid form. So, it will be worth a repeat visit. On the upside, this will likely mean that Fantasyland is in soft openings. So, score!

Assuming that Ariel is still meeting with Eric in Adventureland and that we already saw Ariel at dinner in Epcot, we probably won’t bother going to see her again. In which case, the plan has us grabbing a Fastpass for Jungle Cruise and heading over to Tomorrowland.

Next up, Tomorrowland.

 

[lebeau]

When we left off, we started our morning off in Adventureland. It’s the last full day of our trip and we’re cleaning up what’s left to do in the Magic Kingdom.

Before I get started, I wanted to note a few things. One, three weeks from now, I’ll be sitting in a plane on my way to Orlando! Two, rumor has it soft openings for Fantasyland will be starting soon if they haven’t started already. This turns all my Magic Kingdom plans upside down - in a good way. For now, I’m going to continue on as if soft openings are not an option.


With that out of the way, we’re moving on to Tomorrowland. Most guests make a beeline for either Frontierland of Tomorrowland in the morning. That because that’s where the “mountains” are. Having already ridden Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain on our first MK day, we’re headed to Space Mountain.


Well, that’s how the plan reads anyway. Truth is, we may skip Space Mountain. Mindy doesn’t like it. Kara can’t ride. It really depends on whether Josie or my Mom have any desire to ride it. I haven’t ridden it since the refurb a few years ago. But from what I hear, the refurb did a pretty lousy job of updating the ride. They seem to have focused on the queue instead.

Long story short, if I’m the only one who wants to ride Space Mountain, it won’t be a priority. We’ll see how brave Josie is feeling at this point in the trip.

The next stop on our itinerary is Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. This is the predecessor to Toy Story Mania at Hollywood Studios. While the lines don’t get as long as they do for TSM, they can get long later in the day. So it’s important to knock it out early if possible.

Having said that, neither of the girls is all that excited about Buzz Lightyear. Based on pictures, they are worried it might be scary. So, this too could be on the chopping block. We’ll have to see how they did on Toy Story Mania in Hollywood Studios. If they loved that, I’m sure they will do fine on Buzz. If not, we won’t even bother coming to Tomorrowland until later in the day.


Assuming we do go to Tomorrowland, we will then double back to Adventureland. By this point, those Jungle Cruise FastPasses we picked up in the morning should be good to go.
I don’t really expect to need them this early in the morning. But the Jungle Cruise is one of those rides that can just be brutal once the line gets long. My dad still complains about its deceptive switchback line.


The Jungle Cruise isn’t a must do for us by any means. But it is a ride that everyone can enjoy. So odds are we will be seeing the backside of water this trip. Hope we get a good skipper.


After Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean is a no-brainer. It’s right there. Disney has been working on installing some new features in Pirates. I’m not sure if they will be ready by the time we get there or not. But in theory, we could see the new mermaids from On Stranger Tides. If so, I hope they aren’t too scary.

The scare factor is a bit of a concern for Kara on this ride. Both the girls have been on it in the past. But Kara has expressed some reservations about riding it this time. I have been showing her the scene of the dog with the key and trying to sell her on seeing the “silly doggie”. Hopefully by this point in the trip, she’ll be comfortable enough with rides to enjoy it. Or at least not be scared.

Next up, afternoon in the Magic Kingdom.