Trip Report It's been almost three years! - Another Epic WDW Vacation

I'm getting so excited. We are 11 days out from my Disney trip (Dec 6 - 8th) and we've got lots of plans. The last time I was at WDW was last December 28th for just one day at the Magic Kingdom because my entire family was celebrating Christmas at a vacation home in Orlando. We also hit up Sea World and enjoyed the Florida sun. Because it was the week of Christmas and it was just a one day trip to the MK (and we left by 2pm), I technically don't count it as a "real" Disney trip. My last REAL trip was for my 40th birthday . . . I'll be 43 this March. So, it's obviously been way too long. I'm traveling with my friend, Connie, who is equally passionate about WDW as I am - but also just as independent. So we sometimes split up and do what we want and that's also awesome, too.

Here's what we're planning to do:

Thursday - flight arrives around 10:30. We are going to Magical Express over to Pop Century, check in to our rooms and hope they're ready (but not counting on it that early) and then head over to Animal Kingdom. We've got FastPasses for Na'vi River Journey at 2:40, Kilmanjaro Safari at 3:40, and dining reservations for Yak & Yeti (our first time eating here) at 5:00pm. We've also got a Fast Pass for Rivers of Light and hope we have enough time to eat and buzz over for the 6:15 show time. We'll probably call it an early night and get ready for three more days of non-stop fun!

Friday - EMH at Magic Kingdom with lunch reservations for Be Our Guest at 11am. Then we'll eventually make our way over to DHS for our Alien Saucer FP at 3:30, Tower of Terror at 5:05, and Rock and Rollercoaster at 6:40. I'd like to try to eat quick service at the Lunchbox, but we'll see how crowded it is.

Saturday - EMH at Animal Kingdom. This will very likely be our first chance to try to ride Flight of Passage without having to wait in a super huge long line and so that will be our first stop. We also have a couple friends who perform in Finding Nemo so we'll try to see it if we didn't get a chance on Thursday. Eventually, we'll make our way over to Epcot, where we have reservations for our traditional Le Cellier visit at 1:55. We love the soup and I've been saving up for an overpriced steak. We have FPs for 3:35 for Soarin, 5:45 for Living with the Land, and 7pm for Spaceship Earth. I also have not ridden Frozen Ever After so that's on my agenda.

Finally, Sunday we will start our day at DHS for EMH with Toy Story Mania at 10:00. We will have lunch at Sci-Fi at 11:05. We have FastPasses for Rock and Roller Coaster 11:35 and Tower of Terror at 12:40. Then we'll eventually make our way to the Magic Kingdom for MVMCP, including Tony's Most Merriest Two Square Party at 9:30pm.

We fly back on Monday mid-morning. We are NOT renting a car this time; the resort parking fee is frustrating so we are going to see if we can manage with just the buses and probably a lot of UBERing. I'll probably try to update while we're there but if not I'll post when we get back including photos and such. I've attached a photo from a previous trip for fun.

 

[kirksheppard]

I decided to treat myself to a first class upgrade on the flight down; it was about $100 and seemed like a good call. We'll see! I'll be waving at Connie, who's sitting somewhere back in coach. (She was sitting behind me anyway, because she's 1/10th the size of me and didn't need a ComfortPlus seat, so I'm really not being a jerk. Haha.)

 

[ThemedScream]

Treat yourself, don't cheat yourself! Looks like you're just about exactly one week out, eh?

 

[kirksheppard]

Yes! By this time, we will be getting ready for Rivers of Light to start!

 

[kirksheppard]

I'm currently sitting in Max & Erma's at the airport, waiting on my French toast and bacon. Parking was a breeze (always is here), security was quick enough and I got to go through the laptop-stays-in-the-bag line. So far so good. Now.... where's Connie?

 

[Rista1313]

Have a wonderful trip!

 

[Zipadeelady]

Have a great time!!! I'm very excited for you!!

 

[kirksheppard]

What a great first day. Its too late to get into all the details right now but some highlights: everything worked the way it was supposed to from ME, to FP+, to luggage services, to Uber and the buses. Tomorrow morning is MK EMH and lunch at BOG followed by our first time seeing Toy Story Land at DHS... more soon.

 

[LeighM]

Have a great trip!

 

[kirksheppard]

OK, here's a few photos to tide you over until I can type out all the details of the trip...

 

[kirksheppard]

 

[kirksheppard]

OK... let's recap a bit while I've got some down time in the room.

DAY ONE - We flew out of CVG with no issues; I was in first class and man, was it comfortable and nice to be given CranApple juice in a real glass on an airplane. Flight was mostly smooth and got there fast. We literally walked on to the Magical Express bus and waited maybe five minutes for it to take off. Art of Animation was the first stop, but only about 10 people got off and we headed to Pop Century. I checked my computer bag with luggage services and Connie checked her stuff, too. Then we immediately boarded a bus to Animal Kingdom.

Things are working so smoothly.

We got to Animal Kingdom and headed towards Pandora to scope out the line situation for Flight of Passage. 165 minutes was too long for us, knowing we had EMH on Saturday so we decided to eat lunch at the Santu'li Canteen. I had the roast beef with a salad base and green herb dressing. I also splurged on the blueberry creme cheese dessert because it looked so interesting. Connie had the grilled chicken on rice with the vinaigrette dressing. She liked hers very much. I'm a picky eater, but am trying to be adventurous... the beef was great. The rest... eh. The dessert just tasted like sugar. I'd get the beef again but maybe I'd try a noodle base next time. I did like the orange Boba balls.

After lunch, we walked through Africa and Asia to kill time before our 2:40 FastPass+. We'd made such good travel time that we were way ahead of schedule. We decided to see "It's Tough To Be a Bug," which always makes me giggle when kids run screaming from the theatre. It's intense!

After that, we headed over to "Up! A Great Bird Adventure Show." I liked it better the way it was before they shoehorned Russell and Dug into the mix. It was long and boring and I was falling asleep. (I work a weird 2nd/3rd shift hybrid so my body was not enjoying what I was doing to it so far on this vacation.). Connie was looking for a watch to buy so she browsed the shops. I had an ice cream bar and Coke and that helped perk me up a bit.

Finally, it was time for our Na'vi River Journey FP+ so we headed back to Pandora. We walked right on thanks to the FP and really enjoyed this peaceful, beautiful journey through Pandora's riverside. Afterwards, we took more photos and killed time before our 3:40pm Safari FP.

We somehow got behind an giant International teenage girl tour in the FastPass line but it still moved quick. This is a bad time to take a safari; most of the animals were hiding or not very active. We did see a couple rhinos up close, though, and I thought one was going to charge the vehicle for a minute. After the Safari, we headed to Yak & Yeti. Our reservation was for 5pm but it was 4:30 so we thought we'd see if we could come in early. They seated us about 4:45.

I'm not super adventurous food wise, like I said, so I settled on the Kobe Beef Burger with Gouda cheese and fries. I had a Berry Cherry Blast (Sprite with berry and cherry flavoring) to drink.

And then we split the most amazing fried wontons, pineapple, strawberry, vanilla ice cream, with honey vanilla drizzle dessert I've ever tasted.

What a great meal.

Finally, we headed to Rivers of Light; we had a 5:35 fast pass for the 6:15pm show. I was pretty tired but am glad I saw the show for the first time. It is pretty. Afterwards we walked back to Pandora again to see it at night. So cool. Then we walked to the park exit. Connie was going to go to Epcot to see Neil Patrick Harris at the Candlelight Processional while I went back to the room to go to bed. Her UBER app wasn't working so I ordered the UBER; when I didn't get in the car the driver freaked out for a minute but Connie - using her Jedi powers - calmed him down. He took her to the Swan where she walked to the International Gateway and watched from the back. She was super happy she did that. I took the bus back to the hotel but on the way to the bus station a man flew past me on a Rascal scooter. He then stopped and made a huge sharp right turn, catching the curb and flipping his scooter over. I was the only person near him so I went to him to help until others came running. His family came up and said he'd had five brain surgeries so they were worried he'd hit his head. He said he was fine. We got him up and his scooter turned up-right and then I left the scene. I waited for two buses because it was so full and busy. I finally made it back to the hotel and walked allllllll the way back to the 80s section to find my room. I was beat.

DAY TWO COMING SOON.

 

[kirksheppard]

DAY TWO:

Up early (we met by the computer pool at 7am) for Extra Magic Hours at the Magic Kingdom. We chose to go by bus, since it's more convenient to be dropped off at the park rather than the TTC, especially for EMH. We got held up in a very long security line but eventually made it into the park. It was pretty empty down by the castle so we got some photos.

They were ushering us to the right towards Fantasyland and Tomorrowland for EMH. I've not ridden Winnie the Pooh in years so we hopped on that first. Then we slowly made our way back to Gaston's Tavern for a cinnamon roll and a LeFou Brew.

Afterwards, we walked on Ariel's Undersea Adventure. We got stopped in the ride right here for an inordinate amount of time so I snapped a quick photo.

Then it was off to Dumbo, which I'd never ridden. I didn't realize you had to hold the lever to make the elephant fly higher; I just thought mine was broken. I eventually figured it out in time for one rotation. Afterwards we headed to Tomorrowland and rode the PeopleMover.

We walked on to Buzz Lightyear and then decided to head over to Adventureland. The Jingle Cruise was already at a 40 minute wait so we breezed past that and hit Pirates of the Caribbean, which was a walk-on. I like the new scene with Red. Afterwards we walked through Frontierland, stopped at the pin store to see what was new back there, and then stopped to watch the Muppets tell the story of the Declaration of Independence. I love the Muppets. We then walked on Haunted Masion and then headed back towards Be Our Guest. It was 10:30 and our reservation was for 11 so we sat in the shade and watched people for a bit.

Lunch was great. I had the Croque Monsieur and a Master's Cupcake with The Grey Stuff (which I thought was fine but not something I would order again). Connie had the Fench Dip and what she said was the best French Onion soup of her life. We sat in the West Wing, which I'd always wanted to do, and while it was very dark it was also very cool in there.

We had accomplished all of our goals and then some for the Magic Kingdom for today so we headed towards the bus back to the resort. I was tired and wanted a nap. We stopped in the Emporium on the way out and I bought a t-shirt (you'll see it shortly) and Connie bought a shirt, too. The bus was waiting for us when we walked alllllll the way down to stop 32 and we were back to the room in no time.

NEXT POST: Day Two Continued...

 

[kirksheppard]

DAY TWO (Friday) CONTINUED...

After my nap, we met around 3pm to head to Disney's Hollywood Studios. We had FastPasses for Alien Swirling Saucers, Tower of Terror, and Rock and Roller Coaster and really no major agenda. We took an Uber from the resort, but with the construction our driver got lost for a minute. He also didn't speak English, which makes things difficult. We eventually got there, though.

After a very thorough security search - he obviously had worked for the TSA at one point - we made it into the park and walked towards Toy Story Land. We wanted to scope the line for Slinky Dog Dash - it was 135 minutes - and we thought we'd wait til our FastPasses on Sunday morning. First, though, we stopped to watch the Star Wars show in front of the Chinese Theatre. We were not impressed. What we were happy about, though, is that our friend who is currently in rehearsals for the new Disney Jr. show opening in a couple weeks popped out to say hello. He said he'd find us after his rehearsal was over.

We walked on to Alien Swirling Saucers to use our FastPasses. What a fun little ride! It was better than I anticipated. We explored the area a bit more and got some photos.

We were getting hungry so we walked past the ABC Commissary, which was lined up out the door. We walked back to Grand Avenue to find Pizzerizzo closed so we ended up in a long line at Backlot Express. I had the bacon cheeseburger, which was fine. Connie had the Chicken and Waffles. They were just OK. I had trouble finding her because she was sitting behind a beam but eventually I sat down and scarfed down my food.

She wanted to take a look at Tatooine Traders. While we were there we got a notification that our FastPass for Tower of Terror had changed into a "multiple experience FastPass." Apparently when the ride goes down, they'll issue you a FastPass for anything else you want to ride good for the rest of the night. We wanted to ride ToT so we waited it out. More on that in a minute.

We walked by the Olaf meet and greet and it was just 10 minutes so we hopped in line. Note my new t-shirt!

We headed down to ToT and stopped to take a photo with the nicest PhotoPass Photographer ever. She raved about the Portrait mode on my iPhone and I have to agree - it's pretty amazing.

It was super crowded as the ride being down had caused quite the backup. The standby line didn't even have a time listed. We had a seat and waited for things to die down a little. Then we rode ToT; it was quite a wait even with our FastPass but worth it. So much airtime on a couple of those drops.

When we got off the ride, we had a few minutes to wait for our FP for Rock and Roller Coaster so we sat and watched the Tower transform with the projections. We rode Rock and Rollercoaster with about a 7 minute wait in the FastPass line and got the odd numbered row I asked for (note: if you have long legs or are extra large, ask for an odd numbered row on this one and on Test Track at Epcot.)

Dante, our friend, met us at the exit and we caught up with him. He was a performer at our local amusement park here and then started working on cruise ships before finally being hired by Disney. He sometimes performs in Finding Nemo: The Musical as Crush and is currently in rehearsals for the new Disney Jr. show. We all went into the Star Wars Launch Bay together and met Kylo Ren and some stormtroopers.

We also got great photos with him near the Disney Junior area that happened to be empty but featured great lighting.

We ended our evening by walking back to Toy Story Land to see it all lit up at night.

Finally we walked over by the DHS Christmas tree, which looks beautiful on the lagoon. We said our goodbyes, not sure if we'd get to see Dante again this trip. We decided to get a cab because it was the shortest walk to their area. The driver was quite professional and knew exactly where to go and came in at precisely the amount of money he promised it would cost for the trip ($15). Off to bed because tomorrow was to be yet another early EMH - and this time we wanted to make sure we were there really early. PANDORA here we come!

NEXT UP: Day Three (Saturday) at Animal Kingdom, Epcot, and a surprise!

 

[KellBelle]

Really enjoying your report so far. LOVE the shirt, Aladdin is my favorite!

 

[kirksheppard]

Sorry for the delay in posting - re-entry into life after Disney is often hectic!

On Day Three, we had one mission - ride Flight of Passage during EMH. Everything else that morning would be a bonus. So, we got even earlier, meeting at 6:45am and taking an Uber and breezing in past security. We were about 3 folks back from the front of the line, behind a very anxious but sweet lady who kept false-starting every time she'd hear a noise or see a light blink. She told us that the day before they waited over 90 minutes in line for Slinky Dog Dash and never did get to ride because they had dining reservations and so she was determined to make sure her kids got to ride Flight of Passage this morning. They were a fun family to chat with while waiting.

Perhaps the most impressive thing on this trip was the crowd-management for the opening of Pandora. We were safely, unhurriedly walked to Pandora right into the line for Flight of Passage, where we continued to move steadily without stopping right on to the ride. No one pushed, no one was rude, and we all got there safely. Kudos to those cast members who made this work.

We got through the long pre-show and settled in on our vehicles. I was a little worried that I wouldn't fit; I almost didn't. My calves were jammed so tightly into the ride that I thought I wouldn't be able to do it. But the ride operator clicked me in and we were off. What an amazing, thrilling journey. I get motion sick and Flight of Passage did affect me but for the sheer awesomeness of this attraction, a little dizziness was worth it. If this is the future of theme park attractions, I'm in - I just hope they can figure out how to make them perfectly synced up (for those of us who are sensitive to even a tiny difference, which is what makes me ill, I think.)

After Flight of Passage we walked on Na'vi River Journey. So relaxing and beautiful but I would be disappointed if I had to wait long for it I think. We then decided to walk over to Expedition Everest, as Connie wanted to ride it once this trip. I enjoy it but the backwards part makes me sick so I sat it out. On our walk, I told her about the Disney After Hours event I'd read about at DHS that night . . . and I could see her wheels turning.

It was supposed to rain the next morning, our EMH at DHS, which might interfere with our ability to ride Slinky Dog Dash. I told her I'd get more info while she was riding and also see if I could find us a good "real" breakfast to eat. She got off the ride, a little woozy herself, and I told her more details about the After Hours event. She said, "I think we should do it." I said, "I've got extra money for this trip. Let's do it."

So we went to Guest Relations, bought our tickets, and then went to Rainforest Cafe for a nice relaxing breakfast at the bar. I had the cinnamon pancakes with a side of potatoes and she had the traditional eggs, bacon, potatoes meal. It was fine, though her eggs looked rough. We decided that we should take a break before heading to Epcot for our 1:55pm reservation at Le Cellier and so we took our own private motor coach (meaning, no one else was on the bus with us) back to Pop Century for a nice long nap.

MORE SOON!

 

[kirksheppard]

After my nap, it was time to head to Epcot for our 1:55pm lunch reservation at Le Cellier. This has been a tradition for us for a long time and even though the prices have gone up, we still occasionally treat ourselves to a meal here. I was a bit worried; our friend Dante decided he wanted to join us but we only had a reservation for 2. Luckily he's quite charming and I'm fairly persuasive and we gently asked if they would be able to adjust our table to accommodate this surprise. They worked on it and were able to seat us at a four top. Score!

Connie and I decided to split the Porterhouse for 2, which included Brussel sprouts and mashed potatoes, knowing that I would eat more of it than her. Dante was not much of a steak eater so he had Brussel sprouts and some other side. I also had the Cheddar Cheese soup, which is really the reason we keep coming.

It was a great meal and I was definitely full when we left. We walked over by the Wreck It Ralph meet and greet and waited for a long time to get our photos taken.

I wanted to get a photo with Joy and Sadness, but that line was moving even slower than the Ralph line and we had FastPasses for Soarin. Plus, Dante had to be somewhere so we had to bail out of the line. We said goodbye to Dante and headed over to our Soarin' FastPass. I'd not seen the new film; I enjoyed it but I did miss some of the things in the old one like the golf ball with the hidden mickey. Afterwards, Connie had a friend in the park that she wanted to say hello to all the way back in Germany so she took off with my blessing. I told her I'd get back there eventually.

I thought maybe I'd grab the Friendship boat and go across the lagoon without exerting much effort. I decided I'd rather end up in Italy than Morocco if I was heading to Germany but wouldn't you know that the boat on that route was closed. So I pushed through Mexico and Norway and China and the African Outpost, through what felt like a bazillion people on my way to Germany. I got there and found Connie and met her friend. Had we still been in Future World, I would have scoped out the single rider line on Test Track or tried to ride Nemo or Spaceship Earth but it was so crowded that I just wanted to get out of World Showcase and sit down somewhere.

And then we started hearing cast members yelling behind us to get out of the way because the choir was coming through. I kept walking and pushed through, though it was obnoxious. Why they didn't have that area blocked off or had a better way to manage the crowd flow for the Processional is baffling. But I was also done - d.o.n.e. at that point. So I'm sure it was mostly me being grumpy that was the problem.

We were able to walk right on the Friendship boat that would take us to the Studios. We made all the stops and man, are they quick with loading and unloading. It's impressive. We walked right into the Studios and went to Guest Relations to ask where we were supposed to get our wrist bands. They told us to go to the the little shack in front of what used to be Starring Rolls Cafe. There was a pretty decent line there and it was taking forever, but finally reinforcements in Guest Relations vests appeared and we were able to get banded and go about our day.

We walked back to Slinky Dog; the wait was considerable and we still had awhile before the After Hours event would begin. Connie had a beverage with a glowing blue ice cube. I had a "Minnie Mouse," which is a Shirley Temple. It was flat and gross and way over priced. We sat quietly and watched the Jedi kids show for a bit and just relaxed in the park waiting for the crowds to die down.

Finally, we walked back to Toy Story Land and the Slinky Dog wait was reasonable. So we stood in the line and managed to ride during the fireworks, which was fun. It was a really fun coaster; much better than I anticipated. We then rode Alien Swirling Saucers again with literally no wait and we were the only two people on the ride.

We got our photos with Woody and Jessie and then rode Toy Story Mania and I was able to beat Connie soundly. (I don't think I told you that she beat me real bad at Buzz Lightyear the day before). We got a photo with Buzz and then found some free popcorn and soda.

Mickey and Minnie had literally no wait and we walked right in to say hi to them.

Connie rode Star Tours; I walked through the cue and took the chicken exit out. I just get too sick on it. There was literally no one but three cast members and I in the store. It was amazing to see it so empty.

We went over to the Launch Bay and had our picture taken (no wait again) with BB-8.

We thought we'd hit up Toy Story Land one more time (but on the way, I did grab an Ice Cream bar - included in our admission!) This time we walked on Slinky Dog and got to sit in the front seat. Connie wanted to ride one more time but I was a little woozy so I waited for her and took this interesting photo.

We then rode Slinky Dog one more time before heading up to Sunset Boulevard to relax and take some photos. We got our pictures with in front of the Christmas tree on the lagoon and watched the projections on the Tower of Terror for a bit. I ate another ice cream bar (it's vacation, shut up).

We decided it was time to go; it was almost closing time anyway. There were no cabs so we decided to hoof it to the buses. Wow, are they far away now due to the construction. It felt like miles. We pretty much had it to ourselves again, though, and made our way across the parking lot to our rooms in the 80s building and retired for the night.

NEXT: Last day! Rain, Sci Fi with no video, and Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party - including Tony's Most Merriest!

 

[kirksheppard]

It's our last day and we knew the forecast was bleak so we slept in a bit before our lunch reservations at Sci-Fi. There was a cab sitting at the Pop Century so we hopped in and headed to DHS. The cabs are the closest transportation option right now at DHS because the buses are so far away and UBER is also farther away.

It was pouring down rain; we got to the park about 10:00am and our reservation wasn't for 11:05. We walked through the shops but they were crowded and so we thought we'd try to go back and see if we could wait inside the Sci Fi lobby. It was crowded, too, but there was a spot to sit down in the corner. We watched all these people coming in who did not have reservations trying to put their names in but they weren't taking names yet because it was too early. But because it was dry, they stayed standing clogging up the area. It was stupid.

Finally, they opened and we told them we were there and within five minutes we were seated. They were having trouble with the screen, though, so all we had was audio. We were seated towards the front of the theatre, which was a new spot. I had the Beef and Blue Burger and I think Connie had the Turkey Sandwich. We were satisfied and have a hilarious server. They also finally got the screen to work.

After lunch, we took an UBER back to the hotel. It was still pouring and no fun and we had Christmas Party tickets that night so we were going to be up late. The UBER FINALLY got to where we were after going the wrong way several times (I could see him on the app turning around and such).

We rested (Connie may have gone to Disney Springs; she did at some point but I don't remember when) and met back up at 3:30pm or so by the pool. It had stopped raining.

We took the bus to the Magic Kingdom with lots of other party goers, all dressed up in their matching t-shirts or Christmas costumes. When we arrived, there was a huge backlog of people trying to get in with their party tickets. We breezed by them, scanned in with our regular tickets, and then immediately went to City Hall and found the wristband guy and waited for a couple minutes. We are so smart.

We had a fast pass for the Jingle Cruise so we headed there first. We had a great skipper.

Connie wanted to eat at Columbia Harbor House, so we walked there and there was no wait. She likes their tuna sandwich; I tolerate their chicken nuggets. I do like the atmosphere upstairs, though. Afterwards, we had a FastPass for Dumbo. We had to argue with the skinny little girl who insisted that we would both comfortably fit in the same elephant. Not happening. She eventually relented and let us ride in our own and this time I knew how to operate the thing.

Afterwards, we sat for a minute and then decided we would wait in the line to get our photos taken with the Seven Dwarfs. They had just opened the queue and we went in to wait. Ninety minutes later, they were finally out and ready for our meet and greet.

Afterwards, we grabbed a peppermint cookie, scouted the line for Santa Goofy (too long), and headed towards old Fantasyland. I had some apple juice and Dove chocolates and suggested we watch Philharmagic. We walked right in and sat towards the back. After this, we watched "The Edge Effect," a terrific acapella group. Then we rode Buzz Lightyear with no wait and then the PeopleMover.

We took some pictures of the castle.

Then we headed up to Tony's, by way of the shops, and checked in for "Tony's Most Merriest" Christmas Party. Some very rude woman cut in front of me at the buffet line. I suggested perhaps she was looking for the back of the line and she informed me she "had a table" and "wasn't waiting any longer." She's lucky I was tired and didn't have the energy to make the kind of scene I would have preferred to have made... Something like... "Ladies and Gentlemen, the queen is here! She must go first! Everyone please bow down!" But I just ignored it and figured she'd get hers later on in life.

We ate a lot; I enjoyed the pizza very much and the meat and cheese selections on the antipasto table were great. The desserts were especially wonderful. Connie tried the hard cider and said it was disgusting. She left me to go take some more photos of the castle and I waited, relaxing at the table. When she came back, she said that she thought we might be able to get our photos with Jack Skellington next door before the parade. We tried but the line was moving super slowly and we had reserved parade viewing so she didn't want to miss that either so we bailed and headed to the hub. We had a great view for the parade and they did a great job of policing the reserved area.

After the parade, we went back into Tony's and relaxed and let the bulk of the crowd dissipate. I sat on a rocking chair while Connie ran around and chatted with a cast member about the weather and his seasonal gig and his upcoming trip out west this summer. It was very nice.

She came back and I was cold so we decided it was time to go. We walked to the bus, where there was a very long line but a loud-talking transportation cast member barking out instructions. We went the wrong way and walked over someone's vomit and he was pretty rude to us about it but he wasn't clear about what he wanted us to do instead. We finally got on the bus, stood all the way back to the resort, where we went to bed in anticipation of our mid-morning flight back.

The next morning we got up, took the Magical Express bus (an earlier one that we were supposed to but he was nice enough to let us on), and checked in at the airport. After we got through security, which is always an arduous process, we went to the food court in search of breakfast. Nathan's Hot Dogs was serving "breakfast," and it was the grossest thing ever. I discovered that Outback was open so we threw away the rest of Nathan's and went over there instead. It was good.

We boarded our flight, flew home without incident, and made our way to our respective cars and said goodbye. What a great trip! Hope you enjoyed reading the report!

 

[MinnieM123]

You packed quite a few activities into your trip, and happy to hear that you had a great time. You had some very nice photos, too.

By the way, I like your Christmas bulbs necklace -- very fashionable and appropriate for the season!