Okay so here I am my first full day at home after a wonderful 2 week vacation! We spent 9 full days at WDW followed by a nice relaxing stay at the beach.
This is sort of a preview of the trip to hit the highlights before the actual report. I took a ton of pictures (close to 3000) I am going through them now, should be posting by tomorrow!
So onto the highlights!
Got a rose at check in for our anniversary- so sweet! It dried perfectly.
I started and ended this vacation with a hideous eye infection which kinda stunk because I could not wear my much needed contacts and I do not wear glasses- so needless to say my first views of the MK were very blurry! But that was okay it did not keep me down. Day 3-8 all was okay and after drops it has all cleared up now!
Weather- Great! We really had only one rainy day even though the forecast looked so bleak. We got soaked at Epcot one day, it was a total downpour. (we did so much I don't even know what day that was but anyway) We had a ball anyway and I got some really cool pictures so it did not stop us. After that there was wind and the threat of rain and one quick shower at DHS. We hit Star Tours and by then it was all over and clear.
Crowds~ Great even the first Friday and through Labor Day were not bad at all. After Labor Day it was nothing, the best I have seen it in a long time! The only day that was really bad was Friday September 6th (our last day) and I have to say that that was the most crowded I have seen MK since I was there in 2000 near Thanksgiving. With Wishes nearing waits for Space Mountain were at 50 minutes!
New- (to me)
Toy Story Mania- Wonderful!!!! We were able to take this ride in 6 times in this trip and we enjoyed every ride. The first weekend fastpasses were gone by about 2:00 or so. We got FPs and then got straight in line our first day. It is so worth the hype to me. I took a kazillion pics too. To show the lack of crowds when we left at 3ish on the 5th there were still FPs available.
Haunted Mansion- First time riding since the refurb- Loved it, it was great- especially the Bride and the staircase scenes.
Yak & Yeti -counter service- I was so impressed with the food here. You get soooo much food and it really tasty, much better than I expected.
MNSSHP- Well I did not get to see Brer Rabbit! I don't know if he was there or not but WOW! There is so much to do and see we could not fit it all in. I will be sure to do it again next year. I loved Hallowishes- it was so good and the Villain Mix and Mingle was great too. We ended up with about 10 pounds of candy too. Haunted Mansion was really great,even if we did get the crap scared out of us in line- the CMs really get into it.Loved the Headless Horseman & the Boo to You Parade too- it was so great seeing all the things we had read about for so long.
Dining- Was packed even if the park was not. Service was good at most places we ate. Some things that I wanted to point out both good and bad follow-
Hollywood Brown Derby- The crab Cake has grown! ( it is so much bigger than last year) Which is good because I love it! The steak that took the place of the filet was really nasty though. It is soaked in coke and is just way to sweet for me, I hated it. We did the Fantasmic package and I thought the seats were great as long as you get there early and get close to the rope which we did. My only complaint is that they really should watch the people that sneak under the rope from the other side, that really ticked me off! Fantasmic was really wonderful I had not seen it in a few years and I am still so bummed that they are cutting it back. It is way better than any nighttime show in my opinion anyway. We were given free champagne at Brown Derby for our anniversary too. (very nice)
Le Cellier- AWESOME!! So glad we finally got to eat here. The filet was cooked perfectly (or for me and DS raw as DH says) We were given a Magical Moments certificate for our anniversary here too and free champagne. This is a must do from here on out!
Mama Melrose- Would not do this again- service was just okay, very rushed feeling and the food was not that good at all. The steak was overcooked and not tender as the name suggests at all.
Boma- Usually one of my favorites, not that great this time. There was not near as much offered on the buffet this trip and it just did not taste as good as I remembered at all. Maybe it was a bad night- I dunno- service was great though.
Liberty Tree Tavern- I am so sad to see this go as a character meal.
We always have the best experiences here. It is not so rushed like Chef Mickey's. It just so fits.Anyway lots of great pictures and details to follow tomorrow.
Chef Mickey's (dinner) It was fun and I love the celebration for our anniversary. For character interaction I like breakfast better though.
Coral Reef- Food and atmosphere was good- server was okay.
Crystal Palace breakfast- first time there in the morning- great even if our monorail was late, I did not get to get as many pics as I wanted on the way in but it was still a great experience. The characters here are great in the time that they spend at your table too.
Other notables...
I conquered my ToT fear!!!!!
Rode it 5 times! Screamed like a baby the first two times but I made myself ride it back to back and it was not that bad! I really like it now and I am very proud of myself!
EE- The backwards part is the coolest feeling and not near as bad as I remembered either. Both sides of the water were working while were there, last year it was only th eone.
Splash Mountain- Brer Frog was still MIA our whole trip, I really missed the little guy. Also, DH says I am really weird for noticing but anyway.. the porcipine playing the turtle drums left eye was messed up and stuck half open the whole first part of our trip- I noticed they fixed it and he was working the last day.
Much more to come and again tons o pics, soon as I get them organized and loaded !:wave:
This is sort of a preview of the trip to hit the highlights before the actual report. I took a ton of pictures (close to 3000) I am going through them now, should be posting by tomorrow!
So onto the highlights!
Got a rose at check in for our anniversary- so sweet! It dried perfectly.
I started and ended this vacation with a hideous eye infection which kinda stunk because I could not wear my much needed contacts and I do not wear glasses- so needless to say my first views of the MK were very blurry! But that was okay it did not keep me down. Day 3-8 all was okay and after drops it has all cleared up now!
Weather- Great! We really had only one rainy day even though the forecast looked so bleak. We got soaked at Epcot one day, it was a total downpour. (we did so much I don't even know what day that was but anyway) We had a ball anyway and I got some really cool pictures so it did not stop us. After that there was wind and the threat of rain and one quick shower at DHS. We hit Star Tours and by then it was all over and clear.
Crowds~ Great even the first Friday and through Labor Day were not bad at all. After Labor Day it was nothing, the best I have seen it in a long time! The only day that was really bad was Friday September 6th (our last day) and I have to say that that was the most crowded I have seen MK since I was there in 2000 near Thanksgiving. With Wishes nearing waits for Space Mountain were at 50 minutes!
New- (to me)
Toy Story Mania- Wonderful!!!! We were able to take this ride in 6 times in this trip and we enjoyed every ride. The first weekend fastpasses were gone by about 2:00 or so. We got FPs and then got straight in line our first day. It is so worth the hype to me. I took a kazillion pics too. To show the lack of crowds when we left at 3ish on the 5th there were still FPs available.
Haunted Mansion- First time riding since the refurb- Loved it, it was great- especially the Bride and the staircase scenes.
Yak & Yeti -counter service- I was so impressed with the food here. You get soooo much food and it really tasty, much better than I expected.
MNSSHP- Well I did not get to see Brer Rabbit! I don't know if he was there or not but WOW! There is so much to do and see we could not fit it all in. I will be sure to do it again next year. I loved Hallowishes- it was so good and the Villain Mix and Mingle was great too. We ended up with about 10 pounds of candy too. Haunted Mansion was really great,even if we did get the crap scared out of us in line- the CMs really get into it.Loved the Headless Horseman & the Boo to You Parade too- it was so great seeing all the things we had read about for so long.
Dining- Was packed even if the park was not. Service was good at most places we ate. Some things that I wanted to point out both good and bad follow-
Hollywood Brown Derby- The crab Cake has grown! ( it is so much bigger than last year) Which is good because I love it! The steak that took the place of the filet was really nasty though. It is soaked in coke and is just way to sweet for me, I hated it. We did the Fantasmic package and I thought the seats were great as long as you get there early and get close to the rope which we did. My only complaint is that they really should watch the people that sneak under the rope from the other side, that really ticked me off! Fantasmic was really wonderful I had not seen it in a few years and I am still so bummed that they are cutting it back. It is way better than any nighttime show in my opinion anyway. We were given free champagne at Brown Derby for our anniversary too. (very nice)
Le Cellier- AWESOME!! So glad we finally got to eat here. The filet was cooked perfectly (or for me and DS raw as DH says) We were given a Magical Moments certificate for our anniversary here too and free champagne. This is a must do from here on out!
Mama Melrose- Would not do this again- service was just okay, very rushed feeling and the food was not that good at all. The steak was overcooked and not tender as the name suggests at all.
Boma- Usually one of my favorites, not that great this time. There was not near as much offered on the buffet this trip and it just did not taste as good as I remembered at all. Maybe it was a bad night- I dunno- service was great though.
Liberty Tree Tavern- I am so sad to see this go as a character meal.
We always have the best experiences here. It is not so rushed like Chef Mickey's. It just so fits.Anyway lots of great pictures and details to follow tomorrow.Chef Mickey's (dinner) It was fun and I love the celebration for our anniversary. For character interaction I like breakfast better though.
Coral Reef- Food and atmosphere was good- server was okay.
Crystal Palace breakfast- first time there in the morning- great even if our monorail was late, I did not get to get as many pics as I wanted on the way in but it was still a great experience. The characters here are great in the time that they spend at your table too.
Other notables...
I conquered my ToT fear!!!!!
Rode it 5 times! Screamed like a baby the first two times but I made myself ride it back to back and it was not that bad! I really like it now and I am very proud of myself!
EE- The backwards part is the coolest feeling and not near as bad as I remembered either. Both sides of the water were working while were there, last year it was only th eone.
Splash Mountain- Brer Frog was still MIA our whole trip, I really missed the little guy. Also, DH says I am really weird for noticing but anyway.. the porcipine playing the turtle drums left eye was messed up and stuck half open the whole first part of our trip- I noticed they fixed it and he was working the last day.
Much more to come and again tons o pics, soon as I get them organized and loaded !:wave:
