Pre-Trip It’s been 2 long years… Watch out Disney, here we come! 😉

Hello my fellow Disney lovers!
I’m excited to say that my family and I are going to Disney in less than 3 weeks.
Who’s going? Me (Stephanie) and my dh, Scott

We’re bring along these two monkeys, Cassidy (7) & Chelsea (4). And yes, they drive us “bananas”.

I’m doing this “pre-trip” report for a couple different reasons.
1. I’m super excited to be going to Disney again and want to share my excitement with you all.
2. I have been a part of this forum for a long time and have never posted a pre-trip or trip report.
3. I wanted to see how difficult or easy it would be to do it with pics… so far so good

Okay, here’s what I have planned… the 411, if you will……….
when: Friday, August 13th - Friday, August 20th
where: staying all 7 nights at the always wonderful Swan hotel
why: because we love Disney and can’t wait to spend some actual quality family time together after this crazy past year and a half.
who: see above

enjoy some pics of the Swan (from our trip 2 summers ago)

more to come……
stay tuned

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

Day 2: EPCOT- Sunday, August 15th~ 11am- 10pm

I know this isn’t a popular opinion at the time, but I kind of like that the park doesn’t open until 11. It makes our Epcot mornings more manageable, especially with little kids. Now, I’m not saying my kids sleep in (wouldn’t that be nice), but it will be nice to not have to get up and go, go, go.

The plan is to set the alarm for 7:30, just on the chance that we actually sleep until then . We will then go have breakfast at the Dolphin at either Fresh Mediterranean or Picabu. Fresh Mediterranean is a lovely buffet. About 30 feet from Fresh is the “cafeteria” style restaurant, Picabu. My husband and I really enjoy Picabu and their food is reasonably priced and super yummy. Hubby loves the afternoon/evening taco bar, too. If you haven’t noticed already, Mexican food is a staple in my family (Pecos Bill’s at MK, taco bar at Picabu and later on San Angel Inn at Mexico in Epcot)

Anyway, from breakfast, we‘ll walk to International Gateway, past Yacht and Beach Club. (We might take the Friendship Boat, if the timing right). Either way, I want to be inside the park by 10:30.
We will hit up Test Track first, as I haven’t ridden it in about 7 years. We love Figment, Spaceship Earth, Nemo & The Donald Duck ride as my kids call it (Three Caballeros). Soarin’ is a must do as well. Once again, I’m super excited that my youngest daughter can do all of these things and we don’t have to waste time waiting or ride swapping.

The following pics are from 2 years ago when we were there:

At the Boardwalk!

Meeting Ariel at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall.

Cassidy as Tinkerbell.

Walking with my babies to Mexico.

Me and Donald!

At the Family Play Zone at Epcot (The girls loved this).

Walking back from Epcot. Boardwalk in the background!

A coworker of mine is meeting us there. Not sure if she’s coming to the Swan and coming with us from there or meeting us in the park.
This is me (on the left) and “Spice” — a nickname of hers, on a girls‘ night out. Her and her daughter, Ava (9) will be joining us for the day at Epcot. Can’t wait to show her how to do Epcot the right way!

We will spend the first half of the day in Future World and then head on over to World Showcase. Planning on getting margaritas in Mexico, other drinks in other countries. Eat dinner in America pavilion… head to France for my favorite Grand Marnier slush drink and watch the France show (legit my favorite thing). Maybe by then it’ll be time for fireworks or close enough to it…. All of our plans are super flexible. We tend to go with the flow. I’ve never been during the food and wine festival, so I’m excited about that too.

Up next: Day 3~ Hollywood Studios

 

[bee]

I know this isn’t a popular opinion at the time, but I kind of like that the park doesn’t open until 11.

I am with you and I don't even have kids! I am NOT a morning person so rope drop at 8am ain't happenin.

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

Day 3: Hollywood Studios- Monday, August 16th~ 9am- 9pm

We will be eating breakfast in the room.
We plan to leave the room by 8 at the latest. Hubby and I have watched a YouTube video of RoR and although Scott absolutely loves Star Wars, he says he won’t be mad if he didn’t get to ride it. He says he wants to ride the other one… Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. He will probably do single rider for that while the girls and I check out something else. I might ride it with him and the girls… it’ll be a game time call as I’m not a huge fan of simulator rides. He will try to get onto RoR using the virtual queue but won’t be mad if he doesn’t get it.
My ultimate goal at HS is to rope drop and get to Slinky Dog Dash first thing and then get onto MMRR. We plan to eat lunch there and bounce back to Swan to swim and rest.
I want to go back to HS at night, but that will be a game time call too. Depends on the kids and their stamina and what we ultimately want to do… I totally see us going back though….
No plans for dinner at the moment… I’m leaving that open based on what we decide to do.

Plus, I’m hearing there’s a light show on the Chinese Theatre?

 

[amjt660]

Looks like a great plan so far

Following along

Max

 

[BigDis]

Looking forward to the full report and signing on for the full adventure!

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

Looks like a great plan so far

Following along

Max

Thanks Max! I’m glad you’re following along

Looking forward to the full report and signing on for the full adventure!

Glad you’re here!

 

[TheMouseFan]

I'm here too! I tend to get behind reading other reports when I am writing one of my own. I agree that it's never too early to start packing, or at the very least, making piles! And I always carry my Disney planning binder with print outs of everything!

Sounds like you have a great trip planned!

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

I'm here too! I tend to get behind reading other reports when I am writing one of my own. I agree that it's never too early to start packing, or at the very least, making piles! And I always carry my Disney planning binder with print outs of everything!
View attachment 576916

Sounds like you have a great trip planned!

What is in this binder? I must know?
<<<<< curiouser and curiouser >>>>>

 

[TheMouseFan]

What is in this binder? I must know?
<<<<< curiouser and curiouser >>>>>

I have tabs for resort reservations, dining reservations, miscellaneous items (maps, airline reservations, ticket reservations, etc), and one for cruise info. I also keep my Disney Visa rewards redemption card in it so I don't lose it between trips!

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

Okay… it has been a morning, a real crappy morning. As I said before, we’re flying out of Philly on Spirit Airlines in less than 2 weeks…. and now with all the issues with Spirit, Scott and I have decided to book flights through American Airlines. It has been a rough morning booking new flights, worrying if it’s the right thing to do and KNOWING we don’t want to be stuck in an airport at all going or coming home. We want confidence that we will get to MCO and start our trip when we’re planning.
So, original Spirit flights were about $1,100 - I got $500 in credits now So, we’re out $600 from that… and the AA tickets were some of the last seats on those flights and it was roughly $1,300…. Sounds like we’re crazy, but we don't want any more hiccups.

 

[RememberWhen]

Okay… it has been a morning, a real crappy morning. As I said before, we’re flying out of Philly on Spirit Airlines in less than 2 weeks…. and now with all the issues with Spirit, Scott and I have decided to book flights through American Airlines. It has been a rough morning booking new flights, worrying if it’s the right thing to do and KNOWING we don’t want to be stuck in an airport at all going or coming home. We want confidence that we will get to MCO and start our trip when we’re planning.
So, original Spirit flights were about $1,100 - I got $500 in credits now So, we’re out $600 from that… and the AA tickets were some of the last seats on those flights and it was roughly $1,300…. Sounds like we’re crazy, but we don't want any more hiccups.

So frustrating! But I definitely wouldn’t want to get stuck in an airport right now, especially with kids. Sometimes you just have to change things up.
Hoping the trip goes well!

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

So frustrating! But I definitely wouldn’t want to get stuck in an airport right now, especially with kids. Sometimes you just have to change things up.
Hoping the trip goes well!

Thank you. This means more than you know.

 

[InLovew/disney]

Okay… it has been a morning, a real crappy morning. As I said before, we’re flying out of Philly on Spirit Airlines in less than 2 weeks…. and now with all the issues with Spirit, Scott and I have decided to book flights through American Airlines. It has been a rough morning booking new flights, worrying if it’s the right thing to do and KNOWING we don’t want to be stuck in an airport at all going or coming home. We want confidence that we will get to MCO and start our trip when we’re planning.
So, original Spirit flights were about $1,100 - I got $500 in credits now So, we’re out $600 from that… and the AA tickets were some of the last seats on those flights and it was roughly $1,300…. Sounds like we’re crazy, but we don't want any more hiccups.

I would do the same. Good you’re being proactive. Hoping other airlines are doing better than Spirit. We flew this past weekend and several flights into Chicago O’Hare were cancelled. Not weather related.
Best of luck to you with your travels.

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

I would do the same. Good you’re being proactive. Hoping other airlines are doing better than Spirit. We flew this past weekend and several flights into Chicago O’Hare were cancelled. Not weather related.
Best of luck to you with your travels.

Thank you… I think that’s the point, I‘m trying to be proactive but I don’t want to break the bank So many scenarios ran through my head and what ifs, so it is just easier to do this and have peace of mind.

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

Day 4: Animal Kingdom- Tuesday, August 17th~ 8am- 7pm

I originally had breakfast reservations at Trattoria al Forna at Boardwalk. We were going to go there early and then hop on the bus from there to AK (bc of the Mears situation at Swan), but after reading some posts about crowds and whatnot, we thought it best to get to AK as close to rope drop as possible. We will possibly have reservations at Trattoria al Forna at a future date….. stay tuned

****** We have chosen to skip AK in the last 3 trips we’ve been on. It just isn’t our favorite park, especially from our experience with small children, in the past, that aren’t able to ride half the rides there. We haven’t been there since our February 2016 trip…. So roughly, 5 years. We are excited to go this year and see what it has to offer for our non-baby family

So, rope drop it is for us; set the alarm for 6am; wake up & eat in the room and head out by 7am.
We are going to head straight to FoP (like everyone else ). I want to ride both rides back there and then head to Kali River Rapids or Kilimanjaro Safari. Scott wants to ride Expedition Everest, but it’s not on my must do list… I’m sure he’ll get on it with Cassidy. Chelsea will sit it out because I think it’s too intense for her. I guess we can see how she reacts in earlier days on other things at other parks. It will def be a game time call for me to do a rider swap or not and/or if Chelsea rides it too. I do like the ride, so we’ll see.

I want to try some of the adult beverages there and get some yummy treats for the girls. We will pack lunch this day, so we‘ll need to find somewhere to eat . We have 3:45 Yak & Yeti reservations. We’ve never eaten there before, so we’re excited about that. Afterwards we’ll head back to the hotel for night swimming and ice cream at The Fountain at the Dolphin.
Enjoy some pics from recent trips:
Magic Kingdom… didn’t feel like getting kids out of the stroller

Waiting for the Frozen Sing Along with 2 y/o Chelsea

Behind the grotto at the pool

Gorgeous nighttime views of S&D

More of the same

A sleepy 5 y/o Cassidy in Swan’s heavenly beds

Me! Enjoying my Corona Light on the walk to Epcot‘s International Gateway.

Scott, at his favorite place- Mexico!

Up next: MK

 

[bee]

ice cream at The Fountain at the Dolphin

The Fountain has our favorite ice cream on property! We also like the food at the restaurant.

 

[cfry06]

Loving the plans thus far - can’t believe it’s been 5 years since you’ve been to AK! I know many are iffy about it, but we love the park. The ambiance and attention to detail just speak to us. The animal walk throughs are fun if your kiddos like animals! Up close to gorillas (and I think they have a new baby!) and the tigers can be hit or miss (2 separate walk throughs).
As for adult beverages - we are big fans of the Dawa Bar! We might have used to roll the sleeping toddler in his stroller right in with us and under the bar ledge by us where it was quiet , but now it’s a family break for a Safari Amber or two and a popsicle break for our guy. We all enjoy it - was even better when all of the ongoing entertainment would happen in Harambe. Hope it can come back soon!
My fave snack-turned-meal is at AK too, but not sure if it’s open right now. I hope it is when we arrive next week! The snack hut across from the Mickey/Minnie meet and greet has Mac and cheese with pulled pork - and ask for a side of the chili sauce from their other option, Mac and cheese with shrimp.

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

Loving the plans thus far - can’t believe it’s been 5 years since you’ve been to AK! I know many are iffy about it, but we love the park. The ambiance and attention to detail just speak to us. The animal walk throughs are fun if your kiddos like animals! Up close to gorillas (and I think they have a new baby!) and the tigers can be hit or miss (2 separate walk throughs).
As for adult beverages - we are big fans of the Dawa Bar! We might have used to roll the sleeping toddler in his stroller right in with us and under the bar ledge by us where it was quiet , but now it’s a family break for a Safari Amber or two and a popsicle break for our guy. We all enjoy it - was even better when all of the ongoing entertainment would happen in Harambe. Hope it can come back soon!
My fave snack-turned-meal is at AK too, but not sure if it’s open right now. I hope it is when we arrive next week! The snack hut across from the Mickey/Minnie meet and greet has Mac and cheese with pulled pork - and ask for a side of the chili sauce from their other option, Mac and cheese with shrimp.

I’m looking forward to going to Dawn Bar and trying something from there. We are so ready to try new things this time around… and my kids LOVE animals, so I know the animal walk through are going to be fun for them! Thanks so much for all your recommendations!

 

[cgersic]

I’m looking forward to going to Dawn Bar and trying something from there. We are so ready to try new things this time around… and my kids LOVE animals, so I know the animal walk through are going to be fun for them! Thanks so much for all your recommendations!

If you're not already aware, right across from Dawa (which I am also a BIG fan of) is Tamu Tamu refreshments that has Dole Whips with rum that are delicious!

 

[DiSnEyF@n]

1 WEEK TO GO! I can hardly contain myself!

Day 5: Magic Kingdom- Wednesday, August 18th~ 9am- 9pm

ROPEDROP morning again, so we’ll eat on the go or in the room. I did some research and found that Friar’s Nook in Fantasyland has breakfast items… I plan to order some things from there on our way to the park. Depending on how well Mears has been working for us, it’ll be a game time call whether we walk over to Boardwalk and catch a bus from there (bc it puts us at the park and not at the TTC) OR if we take Mears from the Swan. (Probably Boardwalk).

There is no concrete plan for what we’ll do first… We typically do Fantasyland first, but this will be our second MK day of this trip, so who knows . Now that the girls are older and tall enough to do other things, we might want to do something that we didn’t get to the other day.

Lunch will be at Pinocchio’s Village Haus (their pizzas are sooooo good) and then we’ll head back to the hotel for rest in the afternoon. We will return to the park before dinner time and figure out food on our way…. We will close out the park that night and watch the nighttime show. In the past, we’ve had babies that kind of kept us from staying and enjoying this, so this is another nice thing about our girls being older.

Leaving MK is always hard to do when I know I’m not going back for at least 2 years (doing Cali next summer and DL), so I will glance back at the castle 769,546 times on our way out