Trip Report Shortest Retirement in History?

Justin Bieber lasted 2 weeks.

Tom Brady lasted 40 days.

I, Tuvalu, outlasted them both. Not by much, mind you. Yet if not for the encouragement of some forum friends - along with some unusual circumstances - you wouldn’t be reading this.

Unusual circumstances, you say?

Around Thanksgiving my beloved Woody learned his presence was required at a work conference. In Orlando. At Universal.
Just down the road from Walt Disney World.

Woody said I could accompany him if he drove (rather than flew) to Florida. And that we could leave a couple days early and have some Disney time together.

Well you don’t have to ask me twice!

I’d be on my own during the conference. Since the majority of Universal’s attractions don’t appeal to me, it didn’t make sense for me to buy Uni tickets when I could visit WDW for free with my AP. Being solo, I thought it might be fun to do a live trip report so y’all could be my virtual companions!

Turns out I won’t be alone while Woody is occupied after all. Some friends that you have seen in my previous TRs (and one you haven’t) have offered to play with me. I can’t wait!

 

[lindawdw]

Me too!!! My mom was born in Strathaven, Scotland in 1948 and came to the states in 1955 so I do the same thing on a small world. Lol

My mom was born in a little town called Springburn outside of Glasgow and I believe she came over in 1955 also!!! We'll have lots to talk about when I see you next month!!!

 

[Tuvalu]

Tuesday, con’t

We walked along the boardwalk to the Wildest Ride in the Wilderness. Of course I had to take more pictures of Tom Sawyer Island and the ROA. We had planned to ride the Liberty Square Riverboat this week, but it was out for refurbishment. Woody hopes it will still be around on his next visit!

We’re gonna miss these views.

Both of us were happy to skip the hot standby wait, as the line for Big Thunder Mountain was long! As soon as I tapped in, I began to search for our next LL. I secured a time for Pirates 30 minutes out and was able to modify our pre-booked Haunted Mansion and Pooh LLs to earlier times - an hour earlier for HM and 90 minutes earlier for Pooh. Note the new start windows for both are just five minutes apart.

Had to sit near the front of the train this time.

Nabbed an overhead shot of the river before we picked up speed!

 

[Tuvalu]

Y’all know that Woody has no interest in riding Tiana’s Bayou Adventure (he hates water rides). However he did want to check out the new store.

The “license plate gumbo” in the center of the shop is a real eye-catcher.

Some of the spices for sale.

Close-up of plaque for @MinnieM123.

The “Let’s Get to the Party!” slogan can be found on hats, tees and Spirit Jerseys.

There are many stuffie friends from the attraction.

I showed Woody the toy logs with “the mistake” - a rabbit graces the front of the log. (Brer Rabbit was removed from the attraction logs during the retheme.)

His take? “Maybe leaving him there is an intentional nod to Splash Mountain.”

The world may never know.

After our browsing, Woody stopped to check out the finished exterior of Tiana’s. And I got a plunge pic!

Woody was impressed by what he saw.

 

[Tiggerish]

Decided to give Scotland and Ireland a little love.

Unsurprisingly, I always take a photo of Ireland.

Have to admit I was surprised to see.so.many "Tuvalu Followers" of Scottish ancestry! Made my first trip to Scotland this year, though I only toured Edinburgh. Will.have to go back and see.some.more.of the country.

Hmmmm….Greece is blue.
Windex is blue.
Coincidence?

Madly in love with your Big Fat Greek Wedding reference!

Some of the spices for sale.

Twelve dollars for a jar of spice????

 

[MinnieM123]

Close-up of plaque for @MinnieM123.

Thank you! (Some folks rack up hidden Mickeys throughout WDW; I rack up plaques!)

 

[lindawdw]

I am so sad about the plans to remove Tom Sawyers Island and The Rivers of America. Glad you were able to bypass the line at BTMRR with your MPLL! I'll definitely try to get on Tiana's Bayou to check it out in October but Splash Mountain will always be my fave.

 

[Songbird76]

Tuesday, con’t

Before heading to Big Thunder, we opted to take advantage of the five minute wait at It’s a Small World. A large number of LL holders arrived at the LL entrance the exact moment we entered the standby entrance. Due to each guest having to tap in at both touch points - and no one ahead of us in standby - Woody and I were in a boat and on our way by the time the LL guests reached the load area.

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There was nobody for us to wave at in Pinocchio’s Village Haus.

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I feel like the dolls at the beginning of the cruise don’t get photographed as much as others. Decided to give Scotland and Ireland a little love.

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Hmmmm….Greece is blue.
Windex is blue.
Coincidence?

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Of course Polynesia is also bathed in blue….

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I have a question about the new LLs. Back in the fastpass era, you could get multiple fastpasses for the same ride as long as you used your first three passes before that. Once you used your third, you could immediately book another, and it could be one you had already ridden with FP+. That's a major flaw with the genie plus that I was hoping they would fix....you could only ride once with LL per day. With the new system, can you do multiple rides of the same attraction? I don't do thrill rides, so I'm more of a "ride my favorites several times" type person....like Soarin'. I can ride Soarin' several times in a row, or Frozen, or Carrots, etc....and most of those have long wait times without a FP/LL. If I can't use it more than once, I can't do my favorites nearly as much and then there are not as many options.

 

[Zipadeelady]

The “license plate gumbo” in the center of the shop is a real eye-catcher.

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I'm curious and betting those numbers on the license plate signify something. Do we know yet?

I agree with Woody. I think they did a beautiful job on the exterior. I can't wait to see it in person.

 

[meggo819]

With the new system, can you do multiple rides of the same attraction?

Unfortunately, I think the answer is “no”

 

[Tuvalu]

Twelve dollars for a jar of spice????

But it is Special Spice!

 

[Tuvalu]

Thank you! (Some folks rack up hidden Mickeys throughout WDW; I rack up plaques!)

Oh I know.

I'll definitely try to get on Tiana's Bayou to check it out in October but Splash Mountain will always be my fave.

I have a question about the new LLs. With the new system, can you do multiple rides of the same attraction?

Confirming @meggo819 's reply - Only one LL ride per attraction, with the exception of the ability to use a "multiple experience" LL from an attraction that went down during your ride window.

 

[Tuvalu]

I'm curious and betting those numbers on the license plate signify something. Do we know yet?

Oh I am certain there's a convoluted backstory. Just did a quick search and came up empty.

 

[Tuvalu]

Tuesday, con’t

We had a little more time until our LL window opened for Pirates. Thankfully I remembered a VIS (very important show) I wanted to see.

I loved the original Country Bear Jamboree. I knew every word of every song. I hated when some songs were cut/shortened several years ago.

My fondness developed from childhood visits with my family (nostalgia) and then visits with my own children (memories). The show wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea (even within my family) and societal evolution over the last few decades rendered many of the jokes inappropriate. I understood why Disney was making a change and I looked forward to seeing CBJ’s transformation. (Plus I have the original soundtrack and can listen to it whenever I want. )

The first thing that struck me when we walked through the doors? No more turnstiles to squeeze through! Just lots of open space.

Happy to see the claw marks remain intact.

New displays in the lobby recount the story of how the bears - and their music - came to be. (I put the pictures together so you can scroll by quickly to avoid spoilers.)

 

[Tuvalu]

A bear announcement indicated showtime was imminent.

“Ok folks, we’re just about ready. Tie your food to a tree.”

With that the theater doors opened and we all made our way inside.

I had done my best to avoid spoilers. I knew the playlist was Disney IP songs with a country twist. That’s all. So I’m not going to share the songs, but I am posting pictures of the bears in their new costumes for the curious.

Verdict?

Two paws way up!!!

 

[pkkurz]

A bear announcement indicated showtime was imminent.

“Ok folks, we’re just about ready. Tie your food to a tree.”

With that the theater doors opened and we all made our way inside.

I had done my best to avoid spoilers. I knew the playlist was Disney IP songs with a country twist. That’s all. So I’m not going to share the songs, but I am posting pictures of the bears in their new costumes for the curious.

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Verdict?

Two paws way up!!!

Thanks for the bear-y positive review. I too had all of the old songs memorized and a bit apprehensive of what the news songs will be like. We should be there in a couple of weeks to check it out.

 

[Tuvalu]

Thanks for the bear-y positive review. I too had all of the old songs memorized and a bit apprehensive of what the news songs will be like. We should be there in a couple of weeks to check it out.View attachment 814783

Let me add the show was a big hit with the audience.

And it may not have been our only visit.

 

[Tiggertoo56]

Let me add the show was a big hit with the audience.

And it may not have been our only visit.

Be there in a couple of weeks too and will be visiting this show as haven't seen it for a while and looking forward to seeing the new version.

 

[Tuvalu]

Tuesday, con’t

Time to use our Pirates LL. The clock tower is no longer under wraps!

Also time to book another LL. The window opened in less than ten minutes. I was pleased with our current state of stacking.

The only picture while onboard the boat. The pirate with the kitties is my favorite scene, although you’d never be able to tell from my stellar photography skills.

The exit area of Pirates was a hot mess. The gift store was all walled off. Somewhere behind the walls will eventually be a new Pirate-themed lounge. I imagine the gift shop will return at some point. The merchandise has been moved (temporarily?) to Tortuga Tavern.

 

[Tuvalu]

Rather than walk to Little Mermaid, we decided to travel via the MPB. We boarded at the Frontierland Station.

Along the way Woody noticed the Liberty Belle at its backstage location. It could only be seen if guests onboard the train turned around to look (and grab a quick pic!)

Instead of disembarking in Fantasyland, we stayed on for a grand circle tour. There was a breeze blowing which made the ride pleasant (and so much better than my miserably humid ride with Em last month.) As our train clacked along the tracks I booked a lunch ADR. I decided to cancel our Haunted Mansion LL since we had already done the attraction twice. Doing so enabled me to grab this for later.

Upon arriving at the Fantasyland Station for the second time, we got off and went to Little Mermaid. We hadn’t used the LL (former FP+) entrance since pre-pandemic. Got to see the backside of water!

Upon tapping in, I was able to add another LL for DHS.

Naturally our journey unda the sea concluded with the Woody wave.

He has a ghost hand!

 

[Minnie1986]

Yay! I was hoping someone would get the reference!


My mom’s paternal grandparents emigrated from Scotland. Small World!
And ditto re:LL.

I visited Scotland for the first time last year, and loved it so much that I'm going back in December. S and I encountered quite a few Scottish tourists during our trip, and we made sure to take pictures of the Scotland and Ireland sections of Small World as well. My sister and I have a "plan" to retire in Ireland and Scotland, respectively, and take the ferry over to visit each other every so often