I got back last week from a wonderful solo trip, which allowed me to take some great photos, watch Mulch, Sweat, and Shears as much as I wanted, and eat when and whatever I wanted. Its a great way to do Disney, for sure.
DAY ONE: I stayed at the Best Western by the Dayton Airport (good service, first room smelled heavily of smoke and Nicole at the front desk moved me without any attitude or questions. She was super nice about it.) I was too excited to sleep very well and I probably only got about an hour of good solid zzzs. The alarm came on at 4:30 and I grabbed a shower, got dressed, and was out the door to the airport.
I parked in the Economy lot, quickly boarded the shuttle that was driving by, and got to the terminal without incident. The AirTran people were friendly and printed out my luggage sticker after I'd checked in online. I was good to go. Security line was relatively empty and I had no problems there, either. So . . . my plan to be at least two hours early just in case was great but now I had lots of time to kill. Max & Erma's was open for breakfast and I had pancakes with a side of bacon and fruit. The fruit cup was mostly peaches, which I don't like. The apples and pineapple were good, though. The server, who was working the bar, seemed more interested in talking to the loud salesman type guy than waiting on the rest of us in the dining room, but it wasn't a big deal since I had so much time.
Time came to board the plane and I found my exit row seat. It seemed like the whole flight was nothing but people from the same company, cutting up and joking the whole time. It felt like I had crashed someone's party but at least there were no children crying or kicking the back of my seat.
We landed in Orlando and I made my way over to baggage claim. Does TSA really need to monitor the train from the gate area to security so much? I mean, they have to get it empty, make sure everyone's out of the area, and then let you board. What happened to the days when you could just ride it back and forth if you had time to kill and needed to entertain your children? Are trains inside the security check point a terrorist target?
Anyway, my bag was one of the first on the carousel and I headed over to the Dollar Rental Car area. I had signed up for Express so I wouldn't have to wait in the ridiculous line and this paid off huge. There was no wait, I got to pick the car I wanted (I chose the grey Dodge Nitro) and I was on my way. There was a ding on the drivers door that I pointed out to the ladies working the exit. They were having a heated discussion in Spanish and they finally looked at me and said, "Her son is getting bullied at school and he finally hit back. Now he's in trouble." I got to hear the whole story while they processed my car. It broke my heart, actually, to hear that the school couldn't figure out how to protect a 7 year old kid from bullies. What is wrong with us?
Three toll booths later I was at the security check-in gate at the Coronado Springs. The guard was friendly and welcomed me and told me where to park so I could check in.
The lobby is gorgeous:
I had done online check in so my room was ready to go. I was in Ranchos 7B. I got lost trying to find the room, but I eventually saw a manager walking around and asked her. She was very helpful.
The room was wonderful! I couldn't have been more pleased with the size, the decor, and the fact that they left the air on 66 degrees!
I got settled very quickly and headed back out to the car to begin my adventure. First stop: Disney's Hollywood Studios!
Stay tuned...
DAY ONE: I stayed at the Best Western by the Dayton Airport (good service, first room smelled heavily of smoke and Nicole at the front desk moved me without any attitude or questions. She was super nice about it.) I was too excited to sleep very well and I probably only got about an hour of good solid zzzs. The alarm came on at 4:30 and I grabbed a shower, got dressed, and was out the door to the airport.
I parked in the Economy lot, quickly boarded the shuttle that was driving by, and got to the terminal without incident. The AirTran people were friendly and printed out my luggage sticker after I'd checked in online. I was good to go. Security line was relatively empty and I had no problems there, either. So . . . my plan to be at least two hours early just in case was great but now I had lots of time to kill. Max & Erma's was open for breakfast and I had pancakes with a side of bacon and fruit. The fruit cup was mostly peaches, which I don't like. The apples and pineapple were good, though. The server, who was working the bar, seemed more interested in talking to the loud salesman type guy than waiting on the rest of us in the dining room, but it wasn't a big deal since I had so much time.
Time came to board the plane and I found my exit row seat. It seemed like the whole flight was nothing but people from the same company, cutting up and joking the whole time. It felt like I had crashed someone's party but at least there were no children crying or kicking the back of my seat.
We landed in Orlando and I made my way over to baggage claim. Does TSA really need to monitor the train from the gate area to security so much? I mean, they have to get it empty, make sure everyone's out of the area, and then let you board. What happened to the days when you could just ride it back and forth if you had time to kill and needed to entertain your children? Are trains inside the security check point a terrorist target?
Anyway, my bag was one of the first on the carousel and I headed over to the Dollar Rental Car area. I had signed up for Express so I wouldn't have to wait in the ridiculous line and this paid off huge. There was no wait, I got to pick the car I wanted (I chose the grey Dodge Nitro) and I was on my way. There was a ding on the drivers door that I pointed out to the ladies working the exit. They were having a heated discussion in Spanish and they finally looked at me and said, "Her son is getting bullied at school and he finally hit back. Now he's in trouble." I got to hear the whole story while they processed my car. It broke my heart, actually, to hear that the school couldn't figure out how to protect a 7 year old kid from bullies. What is wrong with us?
Three toll booths later I was at the security check-in gate at the Coronado Springs. The guard was friendly and welcomed me and told me where to park so I could check in.
The lobby is gorgeous:
I had done online check in so my room was ready to go. I was in Ranchos 7B. I got lost trying to find the room, but I eventually saw a manager walking around and asked her. She was very helpful.
The room was wonderful! I couldn't have been more pleased with the size, the decor, and the fact that they left the air on 66 degrees!
I got settled very quickly and headed back out to the car to begin my adventure. First stop: Disney's Hollywood Studios!
Stay tuned...
