Trip Report Our first WDW trip, not so scary in Disney but so scary in Universal

Hi all,

a day later than promised, but here is our TR from out October 2014 trip to WDW and Universal. It will be a long TR I guess, we have tons of pictures! So please be patient, it probably will take quit some time to finish this TR! This week we still have holidays so not that many time to work on this TR, but from next week I will post as many posts as possible during work time :)

If you are interested in the PTR: here it is

The overall thought of this trip is marvelous, wonderfull, magical, scary, beautifull! I guess a lot of you want to know the comparison with DLP. My first opinion is that although the parks in USA are older than DLP I am sure that the parks in USA are better!! The cast members are more gentle, easier to talk to! The look of the park is cleaner than in DLP, all the buildings are in a much better shape than in DLP. Off course we are in DLP 4/5 times a ytear, so everything feels 'normal' and WDW was a first timer (yeah I was there 25 years ago, but the only thing I remember from that trip are the pictures (sorry not digital). So when you visit WDW for the first time everything looks better than DLP.

The best thing about WDW in comparison to DLP is the magic band system in WDW. It really worked out very good! We also had the Memory Maker, so beside our tons of pictures we also have 100+ memory pics taken by cast members.

So in short words the days:
Friday October 17th: flight, was ok, not that much turbulence
Saturday October 18th: Magic Kingdom, was great, special, magical
Sunday October 19th (daytime): Universal, Island of Adventure, was also great, Harry Potter was marvelous
Sunday October 19th (nighttime): Universal, Universal Studios, Halloween Horror Night, absolute a thrill!
Monday October 20th: Epcot, not really our thing, Test Track was great, The Wine and Food thing was not our thing
Monday October 20th: Downtown Disney, hard to find a parking lot, and a lot of structure going on, some great shops, but overall not really our thing
Tuesday October 21th: Universal Studios, great day!
Wednesday October 22nd: Hollywood Studios, a more that great day, Fantasmic was a more that special end of the day
Wednesday October 22nd: Premium Outlets, not that great, much shops that were not our thing
Thursday October 23rd (daytime): Animal Kingdom, good, not great! Some great rides, for the rest nothing more than a zoo
Thursday October 23rd (nighttime): Magic Kingdom, Not So Scary Halloween, a more than great night!!
Friday October 24th: flight home, was ok, a lot of turbulence

So this was the trip in a nutshell!

Much, much, much more to come!!

p.s. It was the first time, but absolutely not the last!!!!
 
Last edited:

DisneyFreakEst1994

Well-Known Member
acttr
acttr

acttr
acttr

acttr
acttr
I'm really enjoying your TR! Can't wait to read more, we were there the same time :D
 

DisSplash

Well-Known Member
I am enjoying your trip report! I was so happy to see that your trip had finally arrived as I knew your report would be following right behind it. I love your pictures - Can't wait to see more!
 

FlaggNL

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Great start to the report. The pictures are really beautiful and vibrant. Can't wait to read more from your trip at Disney World.

Thanks! As I said before, it will be a huge TR with lots of pictures and thoughts, but since it is very busy at work and in the weekends it probably will also a lot of time to finish the report! I'll do my best :)

Really enjoying your report so far! I love hearing your comparison to DLP. We likely will never go there so I'll live it through your comparisons.

Thanks, DLP is great but have to be honest so WDW is su much greater :)

As usual, I'm enjoying all of your pictures. Looking forward to more.

Thanks, we did our best to take a enough great pictures for sharing in the TR!

acttr
acttr

acttr
acttr

acttr
acttr
I'm really enjoying your TR! Can't wait to read more, we were there the same time :D

Thanks, we were in the same time and even didn't say hello :) We'll be back same period next year!!

I am enjoying your trip report! I was so happy to see that your trip had finally arrived as I knew your report would be following right behind it. I love your pictures - Can't wait to see more!

Thanks! Great to read that a lot of people really followed and knew that we were in WDW! Thanks for the compliment, will pass it to Ria, so almost took all the pictures.... More to come! :)
 

FlaggNL

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
We are still in Magic Kingdom and walking around. Absorbing every detail of all the shops, rides and attractions. Before we went to WDW a lot of people said that in comparison to DLP everything is bigger but looks older. Well we do not agree! On of the biggest differences between DLP and WDW is that in USA everything is older, but looks new! Good painting, now broken lights etc etc.

So we are still walking around :)

Storybook was great to walk around, it feels like a playground from my early days :)

150.JPG



151.JPG



And like everybody else we tried some hats and other tops :)

Since I am grey for years, I turned grey in my twenties I guess below pictures looks funny with black hair and a grey baird :) And Sacha feels like a pirate ;)

153a.jpg


Ria loves Malificent so that hat... well it speaks for itsself :)


154a.jpg



155.JPG



And then all the candys! So much better that DLP and so not better for the body shape ;) LOL!


156.JPG



157.JPG



158.JPG



159.JPG



161.JPG



More to come :)
 

FlaggNL

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
The new Fantasyland (at least for us :)) is so great and looks marvelous! the Seven Dwarfs Train looks magnificent on the outside. The cues on our first day were to long to try and we didn't manage to get FP+ for this ride. But hey, we made it good later in the week!

163.JPG



164.JPG



165.JPG


Then it was time to grab lunch! Me and Ria went for a pizza (pepperoni and BBQ) and Sacha had some chicken with fries! It tasted great!

170.JPG



172.JPG


ANd then one of the attractions I do not like at all! When we are in DLP I only ride when it's raining or cold outside. Since the weather in USA was great, you will notice on every picture the clear blue skies! But I managed NOT to ride Small World, so we never know if it is the same as in DLP :)

173.JPG



174.JPG



176.JPG



177.JPG



179.JPG
 

FlaggNL

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Rapunzel looks great! When you see all the details the engineers of Disney managed to get on the building!

180.JPG



181.JPG


I guess I am looking at the Rapunzel building with open mouth :)

182.JPG


Big Thunder Mountain from far away! It looks similar as DLP!

184.JPG



185.JPG


Finally Splash Mountain! One of the rides we got FP+ for later that day! People in Europe absolutely wants the ride to come to DLP! But guess the weather in Europe is not that steady for such a ride!

187.JPG



188.JPG


The boat looks exactly the same as in DLP! We did not board this trip!

194.JPG


And then Haunted Mansion! It is sooooo different from DLP! And not only the inside! We thought that there was a Halloweenm/Christmas theme during the ride, but guess we have to go to California to ride it in that theme :)

195.JPG


Critters! They are everywhere and special in Adventureland. Such birds we only find in zoo's in Europe!

196.JPG
 

FlaggNL

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
By then it was time for the parade! And what a parade! Since it was the first time we saw it, it felt like so much better than in DLP, but guess that's what you think when looking at such a parade for the first time!

197.JPG


In front of the parade the Grand Marshall came by. We didn't manage to find out what that means, but hey some great pictures :)

200.JPG



201.JPG



202.JPG



204.JPG



206.JPG



207.JPG



213.JPG



218.JPG




220.JPG
 

FlaggNL

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
And we still are with day one! This will be the finale post of the day! Hope you like it so far and still enjoy this TR! Much much more to come in the near future!

So here we go with just pictures from the Festival of Fantasy Parade!

221.JPG



223.JPG



225.JPG



228.JPG



231.JPG



233.JPG



234.JPG



237.JPG



238.JPG



240.JPG


That's it for today! Feel free to comment :)
 

mrdrift

Well-Known Member
I am truly loving your report. All of the pictures are doing the Magic Kingdom some real justice, they are just really beautiful. My daughter really loves them also. Following along for the whole report.
 

TinkandCrew

Active Member
Hey!!! Loving your TR! I fell off the boards for a while since our trip back in May. It was too painful, not having a trip planned and all, but when October rolled around, I knew I had to come back on to see how your vacation turned on. You had waited so long!!!! Your pictures are so clear and bright, it's as if I'm there with you. I'm glad to hear you are planning to go back and I'm excited to see and hear what you have to say about Universal too. Following along.................
 

FlaggNL

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Enjoying the pictures

Thanks! When checking the pictures for the TR I enjoy every pic! Feels like we are there again!

Your pictures are great - especially enjoyed the ones of the parade. Looking forward to more...

Thanks, will pass the compliment to Ria, she took practically all the pictures! And there is much more to come. Still am at day 1 of 7 :)

Those hats looked like fun, and it looks as if you had some gorgeous weather!

Thanks! We had fun, and still have fun when looking at the pictures and our videos! The weather was marvelous! No rain at all and just blue clear skies for 7 days!

Fun photos. Looks like you are having a great time.

Thanks! We had a more than great time! For me it was 25 years ago and for Ria en Sacha it was their first time! And as you can see the second time will take place within a year :)

I am truly loving your report. All of the pictures are doing the Magic Kingdom some real justice, they are just really beautiful. My daughter really loves them also. Following along for the whole report.

Thanks for the great compliment! We feel the same. All the pictures do so much justice to WDW! As I wrote before, there is such a nig difference between WDW and DLP! DLP is great and nice but WDW is marvelous and fantastic!

Hey!!! Loving your TR! I fell off the boards for a while since our trip back in May. It was too painful, not having a trip planned and all, but when October rolled around, I knew I had to come back on to see how your vacation turned on. You had waited so long!!!! Your pictures are so clear and bright, it's as if I'm there with you. I'm glad to hear you are planning to go back and I'm excited to see and hear what you have to say about Universal too. Following along.................

Hej, thanks for the compliment! And thanks that you came back for our TR! It feels more than good that other people think about your trip and are almost as curious as ourselves about the trip! That's why we started so soon with the TR! Feels like we wanna scream to everybody how great it was and how we enjoyed WDW and Universal! The wait was long, but absolutely worth the wait! The countdown for the next trip is already there! A long time to wait, but now we know what we are gonna get! There will be plenty of picures and thoughts about Universal, so keep on following!

Great pictures! I saw the Festival of Fantasy parade this past July and really enjoyed it. You really got some good photos. Nice work!

Thanks! We saw a lot of parades through the years in DLP, but this Festival of Fantasy is for sure the greatest so far! The photo compliment is for Ria, she did all the work :)
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom