Live trip report

Just got here yesterday afternoon, and even though I wore myself out yesterday, I'm still "too excited to sleep" so here I am... I apologize if this is boring or doesn't make sense, but I am still pretty tired :lol:

Southwest got us to Orlando about 20 minutes early. I used their early bird check-in and was the first person on the plane other than handicapped people and their families, so that was pretty rad.

Then I hopped on the DME to Wilderness Lodge. I was the first person in line for the bus so I did end up waiting a bit, but it was alright, I needed the chance to rest. I was in my room by 1pm, a little less than 2 hours after the plane touched down. We were the third stop on Magical Express, after the Poly and Grand Floridian.

I wasn't sure if I'd like the WL. I'd visited before to eat at Whispering Canyon and the decor, while beautiful, isn't really my thing. Well, now that I'm staying here, I am in love :lol: This place is breathtaking, and the room is great. I've got a ground floor, king bed handicapped room, right near the pool. I could walk out my patio right over to the path to the boat docks... if there wasn't a garden in the way... My only complaint is the bed. I'm not loving it. I can understand my legs hurting, considering I was on my feet so much yesterday, but now after waking up, my shoulders are really sore. Oh well.

Alright Florida summer, I'm ready for you.

Headed over to the MK to officially become a Walt Disney World annual passholder. My first two rides as an AP'er were the TTA and CoP... then I broke the CoP. We watched the introduction 3 times before we were evacuated :lol: Figures.
I didn't take a lot of pictures because I wanted to be able to soak everything in. When I went on Big Thunder, a little kid who was told to go on alone by friends or family or something, I never quite figured it out, decided we were best friends and requested to ride with me. It was nice to have a ride partner, even though he was a little nervous and tried to squish me with the lap bar in the hopes of making it tighter :lol:

By 1:39pm I was on the bus, and I was the only one on the bus.

I've also got a birthday button, even though my birthday was two weeks ago. Seriously every CM and some guests I have come in contact with has wished me a happy birthday. I highly recommend it, it's really sweet of them.

While sitting outside the Astro Orbiter, enjoying a cream cheese pretzel, I noticed some unsupervised kids playing with the wait time wheel! So now we can't even trust the wait times!

I stuck around for MSEP and the Nightastic fireworks... MSEP is the greatest thing ever. That was the most fun I have ever had during a parade. The fireworks were fun, but they seemed really short! The castle on fire effect was amazing though.

Alright, time to start my day! Off to Epcot!

 

[harveyt0206]

Loved the report. Glad you had a great time. We love Wilderness. The last time we stayed there we too got a ground floor room and that worked out perfect for us.

 

[blackthidot]

:lol: Other than Le Cellier and the garbage they gave me at Sci Fi, most of my meals consisted of cereal, cream cheese pretzels and popcorn! What can I say, I'm a health nut.

Sorry to hear about the bad meals!

 

[jato4x4]

Hello, I have a question, at Cinderellas castle can you walk thru from the front or is it still blocked off for that show? Thank you in advance.

 

[lilclerk]

Hello, I have a question, at Cinderellas castle can you walk thru from the front or is it still blocked off for that show? Thank you in advance.

You can't during the day, but after the Dream Along with Mickey shows were over for the day they'd open it up. I don't remember the exact time, but I walked through around dusk one night last week. I'm not sure if this is all the time or only on nights that the park is open super late though.

 

[jato4x4]

Thats cool, I hated not being able to walk thru the castle. Thanks

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Great wrap-up! I enjoyed the read and the pics. When I read reports like yours I think: "Dang it'd be nice to go all by myself with nobody to wait around on, nobody to worry about wearing out, nobody to ask what they want to do, etc." Being the mom & caretaker of all my guys even when I know they're self-sufficient and can speak up if they have something to say, wherever we are or whatever we're doing I'm still thinking about them trying to stay one-step-ahead of what they'll want, need, or like. If I hit the parks at my own speed on my own terms with nobody to worry or think about....it's hard to even imagine. But then part of me thinks a true carefree solo trip is a physical impossibility for me. I'd probably be still thinking about the guys at home, calling to check on them, missing them, etc. Ugh! But ya know, now that I'm doing this homeschooling thing the hubby has been told numerous times that he has to send me away from the family every now and then to maintain my sanity. Hhhmmm....solo trip???

Soooo, where & what is the Epcot tattoo??? Curious. :animwink:

Great report overall. You have me eyeballin' the WL even after swearing off all resorts designed by that same architect (the rooms at AKL felt sooooo tight compared to CR & Poly). That beautiful lobby and the thought of sitting there in the morning enjoying a cup of coffee really is calling to me......

Can't wait to read the TR in another month & again in January! :wave:

 

[lilclerk]

Great wrap-up! I enjoyed the read and the pics. When I read reports like yours I think: "Dang it'd be nice to go all by myself with nobody to wait around on, nobody to worry about wearing out, nobody to ask what they want to do, etc." Being the mom & caretaker of all my guys even when I know they're self-sufficient and can speak up if they have something to say, wherever we are or whatever we're doing I'm still thinking about them trying to stay one-step-ahead of what they'll want, need, or like. If I hit the parks at my own speed on my own terms with nobody to worry or think about....it's hard to even imagine. But then part of me thinks a true carefree solo trip is a physical impossibility for me. I'd probably be still thinking about the guys at home, calling to check on them, missing them, etc. Ugh! But ya know, now that I'm doing this homeschooling thing the hubby has been told numerous times that he has to send me away from the family every now and then to maintain my sanity. Hhhmmm....solo trip???

Soooo, where & what is the Epcot tattoo??? Curious. :animwink:

Great report overall. You have me eyeballin' the WL even after swearing off all resorts designed by that same architect (the rooms at AKL felt sooooo tight compared to CR & Poly). That beautiful lobby and the thought of sitting there in the morning enjoying a cup of coffee really is calling to me......

Can't wait to read the TR in another month & again in January! :wave:

Ahh homeschooling, good luck! I was homeschooled for 3 years, and all three of my nephews have been homeschooled for most of their school years. They all love it, I hated it and begged to go back to public school! It'll be good for you to get away even for a few days. Not that being together is bad, but it is A LOT of together time! I was only gone for 4 nights and it was the perfect length of time for a solo trip =) I was actually a little bored by the end there!

Here's my tattoo

It's not like I'm hiding it :lol: If I'm wearing capris, it's out there, but no one in WDW really notices it!

WL definitely has smaller rooms than CR and Poly, but it might be perfect for your solo trip too I lucked out with that king bed, the room felt huge.

 

[French Quarter]

Thank you for the great trip report! I love Wilderness Lodge and I'm glad you did too. It would be really neat to have a ground floor room, I think. What did you think of Roaring Forks? While it served our purposes, I actually thought the variety was a little lacking. I was used to staying in Values and about the only thing I liked better at the Values was the food courts. Did you happen to catch a boat over to Magic Kingdom or Epcot (boat + monorail)? We thought that was a much cooler experience than the buses.

I'm jealous that you got to see Captian EO. When we go back next year, we won't be going to Epcot, unfortunately. I hope it's still there for awhile.

Your photos of the Electrial Parade are especially nice. I'd like to see that too. I remember it from years ago.

Sorry about your lousy meal at Sci Fi. We ate there once and, if we ever returned, would probably just get a milkshake and some onion rings or dessert. We thought the food and service were pretty poor.

The Keys of the Kingdom tour sounds really neat.

I look forward to your January report. Happy planning!

 

[lilclerk]

Thank you for the great trip report! I love Wilderness Lodge and I'm glad you did too. It would be really neat to have a ground floor room, I think. What did you think of Roaring Forks? While it served our purposes, I actually thought the variety was a little lacking. I was used to staying in Values and about the only thing I liked better at the Values was the food courts. Did you happen to catch a boat over to Magic Kingdom or Epcot (boat + monorail)? We thought that was a much cooler experience than the buses.

I'm jealous that you got to see Captian EO. When we go back next year, we won't be going to Epcot, unfortunately. I hope it's still there for awhile.

Your photos of the Electrial Parade are especially nice. I'd like to see that too. I remember it from years ago.

Sorry about your lousy meal at Sci Fi. We ate there once and, if we ever returned, would probably just get a milkshake and some onion rings or dessert. We thought the food and service were pretty poor.

The Keys of the Kingdom tour sounds really neat.

I look forward to your January report. Happy planning!

The ground floor was great, though I sorta didn't want a ground floor room since I was by myself. But I was right near the door that goes out to the pool so it was very convenient to Roaring Forks and the lobby.

Roaring Forks was good for what it was. This was my first stay at a deluxe and I totally missed the real food court too! I mostly only went there for breakfast and a quick snack in the afternoons.

Every time I got near the boat dock on this trip, the boat was just leaving :lol: so it was strictly buses for me this trip. I have taken that boat a few times when eating at the WL or Fort Wilderness and I agree, it is a very nice relaxing trip.

Sci Fi for lunch is pretty good, as long as you stick to the basics. I just love the atmosphere in there, so even though the food was bad I still had a good time!

Captain EO and the Electrical Parade were totally my favorite parts of this trip. Is that pathetic? :ROFLOL:

This January trip is already stressing me out! I don't think anyone in my family actually wants to go to WDW, I have no idea why we're doing this :lol: I know once we get there, everyone will find something they enjoy and will have a good time, but they're making the planning too difficult!

 

[mouselvrmom]

I loved your solo trip report! WL looks so relaxing! My kids are always asking when we're going to stay there! It's definitely on the top of their list!