Trip Report Our Wonder-ful October 2014 cruise and Magic Kingdom day

Hi all! We are back. But we had an incredible time and I can't wait to share it with you all!

First up, introductions! This was a kid free trip with just myself, Amy, and my husband, Brian. We were on a 5 night Castaway Cay double dip cruise on the Wonder starting October 1, followed by one day in the Magic Kingdom before flying home.
Here we are in DHS during my 40th birthday trip last November.


Wednesday, October 1
Our day started way too early when the alarm went off at 3:15 am! The fact we were going to Disney made it a little bit easier to get out of bed, but not much!! We were pulling out of our driveway by 4:25 am to make the drive to Columbus to catch our 7 am flight. We boarded our flight and pulled away from the gate right at 7 am. It was still dark on the ground, but once we were in the air we could see the sun rising.

The flight was uneventful, and before we knew it, we were on the ground in Orlando. I took a quick break to change from jeans to shorts, then we took our first ride of the trip!

Ok, so it wasn't a very exciting ride, but the kids always consider it the first ride!!
We quickly made our way to this sign:

And followed the signs until we found this one:

There was no line, so they checked us in and sent us right out to the waiting bus. It was pretty full, but we found a seat about 1/3 of the way back. Unfortunately, it had one of the "stickers" covering most of the window which made it hard to get good pictures! Our bus and the one right next to it pulled out very shortly after we boarded, which was about 9:30 am. I was able to get this pic of the other bus as it was pulling out.

It seemed like no time at all before the driver was telling us to look out the windows to see the Wonder. There she is:


I may have been bouncing in my seat like a little kid at that point!
Here is a picture of the terminal as we were pulling in:

I just love the seat fabric on the bus.

 

[TheMouseFan]

We were still too early to check in for lunch, so we spent a little time in Ye Olde Christmas Shoppe.

I love this tree. I meant to return after dark to get a pic of the lanterns all lit, but I forgot!

Then we were finally able to check in.

This was the first time we had been here. We really enjoyed the atmosphere and the food.






We ordered the Pilgrims' Feast to share, and I forgot to take a picture until after Brian had divided it into two portions.

We both thought the food was delicious. We both had plenty to eat and still had room for dessert. We, of course, has the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake. It definitely lived up to all of the hype!!

 

[TheMouseFan]

Next up was our FP+ for Splash Mountain. This is one of Brian's favorite rides. I like the ride itself, but I hate walking around wet afterward, and I ALWAYS end up soaking wet!! I did plan ahead this time though, and brought a cheap rain poncho to put over my lap to protect my shorts and my purse. It worked well, but the whole left side of my head was dripping when we exited the ride! He better appreciate what I go through for him!!
We passed these guys on the way there, but the line was too long for us to stop.

 

[TheMouseFan]

We checked wait times to decide where to head next. We decided to head to New Fantasyland for the Little Mermaid. I know this ride has its' issues, but I love it for the music alone!














Can you tell I'm a little obsessed with the queue as well!?!

 

[TheMouseFan]

I loved the shadows these lights created!

 

[TheMouseFan]

Then it was time to use our coveted SDMT FP+. I was hoping to be in the back of the train to experience something different from June, but we ended up in the very front seat again. It was still a great time, and I was excited for Brian to finally get to experience it. The kids had been talking it up big time, so I was glad he enjoyed it.





Then we headed to the Fantasyland FP+ kiosks to try to make another FP. The line was horrendously long, so we decided not to wait. Instead, we headed to Tomorrowland.



We ended up at The Peoplemover.







Then we ended up in line at the Tomorrowland FP+ kiosk which had a much more manageable line.



We wanted them for Space Mountain. Unfortunately, the first available time was for 7:25 pm. Not ideal, but we took them.

 

[TheMouseFan]

I'm not sure how I managed to forget to add my ride pics, but here they are plus the PP pics we had done at the exit of HM.





I'll work on getting the video loaded up so you can see what it looks like if anyone is interested.

 

[TheMouseFan]

Brian decided he didn't want to stay for the FOF parade. So, we headed back to the Contemporary because we had received a text earlier saying our room was ready.

 

[TheMouseFan]

We enjoyed the quick walk back to the Contemporary. It was very convenient for us since we only had one day!


We were in room 4646 on the 10th floor.


We typically stay at values, so we really appreciated the spaciousness of the room. But, I really did not like the bathroom. It was very pretty, but I didn't like the layout. There was really no counter space by the sinks, and there were no towel hooks or bars near the shower/tub that you could reach without leaning way out of the tub to get to the bar below the sink!

The other thing I didn't like was the size of the beds. They say they are queen beds, but it was a whole lot smaller than the queen bed we slept in on the Wonder!! We independently decided that we would stick with the values or maybe CBR once they have the rooms ready that will hold 5. I'm glad I had the opportunity to experience the Contemporary because I have always wanted to, but we will not be rushing back! We did, however, love the view from our balcony!!

 

[Mickey2006]

I continue to enjoy all of your pictures. I love Magic Kingdom's decorations in the fall

 

[TheMouseFan]

We explored the resort and grounds for a little while until it was late enough that we could call home and talk to all three kids.






We sat on the 4th floor observation deck for awhile before returning to the room.


After talking to the kids, we headed down to catch the monorail to our dinner ADR.

 

[TheMouseFan]

I continue to enjoy all of your pictures. I love Magic Kingdom's decorations in the fall

Thank you! I do too! I think I like the Christmas decorations a little bit better, but it is definitely a close call!

 

[TheMouseFan]

The monorail was packed, so Brian decided we should walk from the TTC to the Poly. I warned him that it was all torn up, but he still wanted to walk.






We were a little early, so we checked out the Boutiki.

 

[TheMouseFan]

We checked in and waited about 10 minutes to be seated. Last time we waited 40 min past our ADR time, so I made sure to schedule the earliest time I could find this time to try to cut back on the waiting. Somehow, I lucked into a 5:20 ressie on very short notice.

This was my view from the table:


Guess I should have turned the bread around before I took the picture!! Brian was dying to cut into it though, so I was lucky I got the picture I did!

We didn't even try the lettuce wrap, as they didn't look appetizing to either one of us. Unfortunately, they brought it out before we could tell them not to bother!

These, on the other hand, were delicious!


No pictures of the meat, but two of dessert! This was the whole reason Brian wanted this ADR.



The service was not as good this time as it was last November, but it was acceptable. The food was just as good, and I am sure we will be back!

 

[TheMouseFan]

Okay, let's see if this works for the video. It should if you just click on it.

 

[Jae99]

What a great trip! Loved the fact that you dined at 2 restaurants that we are visiting on our trip in 59 days and that the food was good. I have been having some doubts after reading what some people have posted, it feels good to see some positive things.

I can't wait to hear about the rest of your day and be able to gaze upon the beautiful photos that you take.

 

[TheMouseFan]

What a great trip! Loved the fact that you dined at 2 restaurants that we are visiting on our trip in 59 days and that the food was good. I have been having some doubts after reading what some people have posted, it feels good to see some positive things.

I can't wait to hear about the rest of your day and be able to gaze upon the beautiful photos that you take.

Thanks! It was a great trip! We really did enjoy our food at both meals! Your trip is getting so close!!

 

[TheMouseFan]

Fun day in the MK! I'm assuming you headed back after dinner though

Yep, we sure did! Hopefully I can post the rest tonight!

 

[Tiggerish]

Wow, what a trip!! And what a trip report! Totally loved it.

All your Photopass pictures are adorable. Your Halloween costume was amazing. Photopass is great when it's just the two of you, we have always bought it, except with the last price increase, it's not really worth it for a short trip (we do a lot of long weekends).

Hope you do decide to get yourself a roommate and join the Dream Girls next year.

 

[TheMouseFan]

Wow, what a trip!! And what a trip report! Totally loved it.

All your Photopass pictures are adorable. Your Halloween costume was amazing. Photopass is great when it's just the two of you, we have always bought it, except with the last price increase, it's not really worth it for a short trip (we do a lot of long weekends).

Hope you do decide to get yourself a roommate and join the Dream Girls next year.

Thanks!
I agree about the price of the PhotoPass. I was thrilled when they were offering the one day Memory Maker. It was perfect, and I thought the $39.00 was very reasonable.
I'm still working on the cruise for next year!!

 

[TheMouseFan]

After dinner, we hopped on the monorail for the quick trip back to MK.



We stopped for a PP shoot.






We weren't sure what we wanted to do, so we veered off toward Tomorrowland.

On the way, we were stopped by a woman who asked if it was just the two of us and gave these to us when we said it was:

I knew right away that I wanted to use them for a night time ride on BTM!