Trip Report The Worst Week: A December 2013/January 2014 Trip Report! *COMPLETE*

You all know the week I'm talking about.

The week that all the guidebooks and fan sites warn about...the parks are packed, Soarin' hits a 4-hour wait, and there are phase closings left and right. It's the week between Christmas and New Year's - the worst week to go to Disney World.

What kind of idiots would book a trip during this crazy, insane time??

Hi, I'm Shannon. Nice to meet ya.

See that guy in the picture with me? That's my husband, Will. He's sort of my favorite. WDW is my favorite place. I like to be in my favorite place with my favorite person.

But there's a catch. You see, this favorite person of mine is a teacher who coaches tennis. So for all of you that smugly say stuff along the lines of, "why not go during off-peak times," (is there even such a thing anymore?!) well, some of us can't. Seriously, like we wouldn't rather go during some random week in February or whatever??? In our case, it's summer or Christmastime for a longer trip. Those are the only options.*

We did the summer thing in June of 2011. It was hot and crowded, and Will swore we'd never do it again. The heat and humidity were too much. I agreed and set my sites on Christmas 2013 pretty much as soon as we got home from that hot, sticky trip. Yep, this trip had been planned (or at least thought about) for about 2.5 years! I'm ridiculous.

But this is where my crazy OCD planning began to shine. Right at the 11-month mark I had our resort reservation secured - no discounts are ever out for that time of year, but I was able to rent DVC points, which saved a RIDICULOUS chunk of change. We still had our APs and Tables in Wonderland card from earlier in the year, we booked flights on rewards points, and thanks to saving up our points on our Disney Visa we had just about enough rewards dollars to cover our food for the week. So as far as Disney trips go, this one was relatively cheap. And I of course woke up early at our 180-day mark to make reservations (19 ADRs! But would we keep them?! ) and grabbed some FP+ reservations at the 60-day mark or whatever. I also pored over the few Christmas-week trip reports on this and other Disney boards from fellow *idiots* like me, which were pretty hard to find...because most threads started with someone asking about traveling during this week didn't have actual USEFUL information, just snide replies along the lines of "cancel and book another week."* Um, thanks?

ANYWAY...I planned for and thought about this trip more than any other trip we've taken, and that's really saying something. But I'd say it paid off overall.

*Yes, I'm a little bitter about it. It just got really old to read how stupid people are for going during this time over and over. I promise the rest of the report won't be like this! Let's be friends?

 

[Ariel484]

Great TR!! I am coming to WDW for my first trip next year with some friends and I am trying to work on them that we should have a look around the different hotels!!! I love your photos, cant wait to read more!

Thank you! Yes, you should totally check out some of the other resorts...we did a lot of that on this trip. Maybe look into making some ADRs at the hotels? I hope your first trip is fabulous!

I second you on the Animal Kingdom tree! It definitely is my favorite one!

Yep, love that one! It's just so different!

Good to hear about Artist Pointe...I've looked into it before but never booked, don't think I will be either. we have a so-so restaurant coming up in May...we're trying Cape May for dinner, I've heard awful things and really good things. Figured we will give it a shot and see how it goes.

I mean, I wouldn't tell someone to avoid a restaurant just because I don't like it...but it's just so hard with these Signatures. We've had such great experiences at Jiko and Citricos in the past that by now we expect a similar level of greatness at the other Signatures, and Artist Point just didn't deliver. I hope you like Cape May - like you, I've heard mixed reviews. We'll never try that one because we're not seafood eaters.

Anyways. I hear how you feel on the Dessert Party. My mom and I have done it twice now. It was really fun and had great desserts. But I don't think it will be something I do again a third time.

I know what you mean - glad we tried it. I have a pretty big sweet tooth so I think I liked it a little better than Will!

Aaand..you want to watch Wishes from the Poly beach you say? Something I"ve always wanted to do as well. Hoping to do that at least once since we're staying there...no excuses! You guys should all join!

Again, can't wait for more!

Why yes, yes I do! @HollyBelle and I were planning on doing that the night before the cruise until we remembered that we had an early morning ahead of us, so we hit the sack early instead. Maybe next month (!!!)

Happy I could help with the convincing

Yes, you're a trip reporting enabler!

Don't worry, someday I'll make him check it out I mean I booked Ohana for Feb without telling him until after haha. He won't mind.

Ooh, I hope he likes 'Ohana! He should know you have good taste by now!

Sometimes that's a good thing when the camera doesn't come out as much! Gotta enjoy having fun!

One day I had the camera and my backpack (with second lens inside) on and I was just like...I don't want to carry all of this crap around anymore! So I didn't! It was kind of nice. Still got all of those Instagram shots though!

Following....

Thanks! Hi!

Following along. And loving it! Making me really want to AKL.

Thank you! You should totally check out AKL sometime. It's pretty great there!

 

[Ariel484]

Shannon! I'm here! Gonna try to get all caught up. First, so sorry y'all started vacation feeling crumby. I think of it as part of paying our dues to the travel Gods. I've done it 3x's now. Never fun. Never easy. Always hurts my heart because I work so hard to make everything perfect only to have Mother Nature step in & snatch it away.

Helloooooo! I really think we got so lucky with our sickness. I've read awful stories on this board about people coming down with stomach flus and food poisoning and whatnot, so it could have been much worse! But yeah...I can't lie. It was disappointing.

Definitely feelin' the AKL/V studio love! Our 2 little nights post Dream girls cruise in September were heavenly and we never left the resort. AKL/V is a destination unto itself. I'd go back just for the resort, no parks necessary here.

Yesssss. I thought the exact same thing while we were there, that I could go back and just stay at the resort without any park time. This was the first time that I could really understand how a person could think about doing that! It was soooo tranquil and relaxing there.

The DCL gingerbread ship! I've seen it! I got a sneaky-peek during its construction when it was still in the kitchen it came from. Wasn't it incredible?! I was blown away!

Still kicking myself for not getting a picture! Arrrgggg. It was so awesome! And of course it made me smile because it reminded me of our oh-so-awesome girls' cruise!

My hat is off to you with all the hitting of the right dates to make your ADRs & FP+ picks. I'm so clueless with the FP+ stuff. My brain just says "Um, no." LOL! I suppose if I should ever require this expertise I'll hit ya up for instructions. LOL!

You know...being a member of this board helped SO much with that. Just from reading all of the updates and what other people had gone through here gave me a lot of information and let me know what to expect. And I did my best to full embrace using their website to plan everything, which didn't always go smoothly because they still have many, many kinks to work out. I think it would be much, much harder for someone to understand the system if they don't have something like WDWMagic to help with it.

I'm prob'ly one who would question why someone would knowingly go to the parks during known crazy times. Guilty. BUT, if that's when you can go that's when you can go. Nothing wrong with that. In 2009 I helped some of our dearest friends plan a trip with their 2 adult children & a soon-to-be son-in-law for Easter week. They soaked up all the info I gave them. Even with a solid week of history-making park closures due to capacity they came home having had what they described as the BEST trip they'd ever had. Knowledge is power. You know what you're doing. You have the tools to make what I would perceive as a nightmare (because I mostly dislike herds of people) into an incredible experience. Besides, when the numbers stack against you and everyone looks at you with that doubtful look..... Challenge accepted! Right? That's what my boys would say!

I think you're right, tho. When is it off-season at WDW nowadays?

Continuing to read....

Yep...when I said it's either summer or Christmas break for us to take a longer trip, I meant it. Spring break is out because tennis season will have started by then and they have matches every day. Will gets 3 personal days per year and can't line them up to take a lot of time off, and he can't make 4-day weekends or anything like that. He's got lots of sick time but neither of us want him to try to trick the system and take a week off where he's "sick" to make a trip happen - we're big-time rule followers and doing something like that makes us nervous. Not worth it in case he gets caught. He loves his job so what can ya do?

That's good that your friends were receptive to getting some planning help from you! I hear plenty of stories where people go at the crazy times and refuse help from people that KNOW. That can definitely get you into trouble!

Challenge Accepted indeed!

 

[Ariel484]

You know I'm totally feelin' you on leavin' the monster pup for vacation. I always stress tremendously over leaving Riley and think of her often when I'm gone. The boys all make fun because when I walk out of the kennel I'm always tearing up. I can't bear telling my baby goodbye. It rips my heart out! I do love seeing pics of your handsome fur-baby both in TRs & Instagram. I'm sure the world is pretty sick of my incessant pics of Riley, tho. HaHaHa!

YES. It went a little better this time because since our flight was so early, we had to drop him off the day before. So we put off packing until he was dropped off and he didn't have to see the suitcases come out. He can totally sense when we're leaving. It also helps that he loves the place we take him to (Camp Bow Wow) and they love him there...we know he has a good time and is well taken care-of. He's always more than ready to come home though!

I totally get what you're saying about tearing up and hating to tell the pup good-bye. It's so sad! We just love our little guy to pieces. I know you can relate. And I love seeing pictures of Riley Belle! Such a pretty girl.

There's nothing at all wrong with ditching the master plan for a solid sleep in! Vacation is heavenly because that's an option!

Oh good, because we ended up doing that, like, every day!

Rain on vacation.... Grrrrrr! I'm so over being rained upon! I'm so over it when I read about others being rained on I feel that grrrrr/over-it feeling for them, too! LOL!

Onto page 3!

Bahhh, I know! And I had totally made it a goal of mine for this trip to try to "soak it all in" (figuratively, not literally ) since I went into the trip knowing we wouldn't be riding as many rides. I was really looknig forward to slowly wandering around the parks (AKL especially) and taking in all of the details. Then the rain came and instead of slowly wandering we were just darting from gift shop to ride to gift shop, etc. Boooo

Ps. When we stayed at AKL in Jan 2010 I don't recall any crazy bus issues then either. To this day I don't see what the big deal is when people comment about the transportation. It's not like it's that much difference. Even when staying closer to the action the buses often take longer roundabout weird routes. Then there's sometimes multiple stops to boot. So I'm with you on the transportation deal.

Yes, thank you!! I think the bus sharing can get pretty ridiculous. I recall staying at the Boardwalk a couple of years ago and sharing a bus with Yacht, Beach, Swan AND Dolphin! That's just crazy for the nightly cost of those rooms. And then Poly and Contemporary share (or GF? Something like that). Whereas you're at AKL and the sharing is Jambo and Kidani...that's it. I think we had one instance all week where we waited 20 minutes for a bus or something, but other than that it was easily less than 10, and the drives weren't long at all. We were impressed...when we first went to Disney we thought we'd never want to stray from the Epcot resorts because we could walk to 2 parks, but the AKL buses were very good. And it's so much cheaper to stay there!

Your lobby/tree photos are beautiful!

Thank you!

Tracey & I really love Boma breakfast. We didn't book any ADRs back in Sept, just popped in. It's a meal I feel is still okay for the price. Love those goat cheese scrambled eggs. POG juice with them is total heaven!

We did try Boma breakfast on this trip! I'm with you on the goat cheese scrambled eggs...I could totally go for a big plate of those and a glass of POG juice right now.

I feel ya on the dessert party. I never booked it because it seemed a bit much for desserts. It's even worse with the F! Dessert package at DL. I think it's like $60pp. As much as I'd love the reserved seating, no way I'm spending $240 for it. I don't need the sweets. Curious, do you recall seeing milk to drink? When we eat a lot of sweets milk is always the first thing we want but I don't think I've ever read anyone say they drank milk at the dessert party. Interesting.

Yikes, twice as much at DL?! Ouch. I think it was kind of an impulse booking for me, mostly I wanted to guarantee one time where we could watch the fireworks without a ton of people pressing in on all sides. Glad we tried it once but won't do it again.

I don't recall the drink options too, too well (I was trying to stick to water) but I did find this article on AllEars from October that does shoe a picture of milk!
http://land.allears.net/blogs/kristin-ford/2013/10/_my_11yearold_son_has.html

 

[Ariel484]

Wow, love this report!! Great pictures! The elephants seems to have soooo much fun

Thank you! Yep, the baby elephants seemed to really like the rain. It was so much fun to watch them play!

 

[Ariel484]

Day 3: December 30, 2013

Another Disney day of sleeping in laaaate. Glorious.

Our first stop this morning was right downstairs, to check in for our Boma ADR. Originally our plans for today included heading back to Animal Kingdom for lunch at Yak and Yeti, but at this point our breakfast was so late that we decided to cancel our lunch ADR. So that was the first of 19 that we canceled...again, I'd made this one early enough that we didn't get dinged by WDWs new ADR cancellation policy. Maybe we'll try Y&Y some other time.

Anyway, Boma.

We last ate here for our honeymoon in 2009...in fact, it was the first dinner of the trip and one of the ones we were most excited for. And it now holds the title as one of our biggest Disney dining disappointments. After all of the hype we were expecting phenomenal food, and we came away thinking it was just okay and that we were glad we hadn't paid for it as we were on the dining plan at the time. So we hadn't been back since.

BUT...now we were staying at AKL and I really, really like breakfast food. So why not give their breakfast a try?

We were seated in a small alcove that was sort of set apart from the main dining room. That was nice.

Eats! Clearly my eyes were bigger than my stomach.

Bacon (always), strawberries, potatoes (which I remember really liking), scrambled eggs with spinach and goat cheese, and...I forget what the other egg thing in the front is. I think it had turkey in it?

Jungle Juice!!! AKA POG juice!!

Oatmeal, which tasted like crap. Although to be fair I really only like oatmeal when it has much, much more sugar in it than what is pictured below.

The most DELICIOUS plate ever...pancakes with M&Ms (Will laughed at me for this one...HELLO, PANCAKES. WITH M&MS. I FAIL TO SEE THE HUMOR HERE. I am such a child) and french toast bread pudding with vanilla praline pecan sauce. Yum!

We also had coffee. Of course.

This trip was a good learning experience for us in a lot of ways...we tried new things (restaurants, attractions, etc.) and came away with a pretty clear idea of what we do and do not like to do on our Disney trips. This was the point where it became pretty clear to us that 1. We like - but don't love - doing sit-down breakfasts, 2. We REALLY don't like all-you-can-eat meals, and 3. Boma, we tried, but...we're just not that into you.

We liked this meal a lot better than dinner, but it was TOO EXPENSIVE. We just don't eat enough to justify the cost! I feel like I've already typed out this exact sentence 3-4 times in this report...but this is the meal that really drove it home for us. I mean...this was a $50 breakfast even with Tables in Wonderland! Madness.

So while we were sitting there we talked about our upcoming ADRs and I hopped back on the MDE app to cancel our Crystal Palace breakfast we had booked for January 2. Dum dum dum...another one bits the dust. I think at that point there were a few others we were questioning, but we kept everything else as-is for the time being. Now that this trip has come and gone I think we've really realized that we're mostly happy with having smaller counter service breakfasts and lunches, and saving the sit-down meals for dinner. It's just too much food and too expensive otherwise.

One other thing we talked about during this meal was the fact that, had things played out the way we'd originally hoped, we'd be checking out of Animal Kingdom Lodge tomorrow morning and heading to Wilderness Lodge. We both agreed that we were glad to be staying...we weren't ready to leave AKL just yet! It really made us question whether we want to set up split-stays in the future...we'll see.

SO ANYWAY...after that enlightening meal I forget exactly what we did. I'm pretty sure it involved heading back to the room to go back to sleep, honestly. Will was just getting over the cold and it seemed to really be hitting me hard still...this was by far the most I'd ever slept during a Disney trip.

 

[Ariel484]

The next photo I have is this one of us at the bus stop...still looking a pretty ragged. You'll notice how there aren't many pictures of us in this report? There's a reason for that.

To Epcot! We headed back to France and got in the looooong line for a counter service lunch from Boulangerie Patisserie. Somehow we managed to get a table without having to stalk someone that was finishing their meal, so that was a big win.

Quiche for me (warmed up - YUM!) and a ham and cheese sandwich for Will, who clearly couldn't wait to dig in. My quiche was sooooo good, very creamy with a delicious, flaky crust. The strawberry dessert was disappointing...I'd been expecting a custard filling but it was just plain whipped cream. I could have sworn it was custard in the past. The crust was good, though, and there were strawberries so it was pretty much health food. This place has, in my opinion, always been a pretty solid counter service option, and with our new found revelation that we want to stick to counter service breakfasts and lunches from now on I'm trying really hard to pay attention to places with interesting options that we've consistently liked so we know what to go for in the future. Boulangerie Patisserie will definitely remain in the line-up in the future.

After our late lunch we headed to Future World to wander around Innoventions for a bit. We hadn't really checked the place out much, save for our Segway Tour in 2011 (which remains one of our favorite things we've done anywhere, ever. RIP ).

Piggy time!

Sure, why not?

We got our piggy and pondered what we wanted to try to save up for. Over the past few months or so we've really gotten serious about starting to save for retirement, so we decided to try to set up a nice retirement for our Piggy, too.

We did pretty well at the first game, where we had to spread our money out to keep it safe. We SUCKED at the inflation race!

Come back to us, Piggy!

I forget what the third game was, but we did well with that one. Then the moment of truth came - it was finally time to get our Piggy weighed and see how we did. That bar chart looks pretty full, right? Well, the screen informed us that we in fact did NOT save enough for Piggy's retirement!! WHAT THE WHAT?! We were NOT pleased with that misleading graphic!

Sorry, Piggy. We tried.

We also visited the Visa character meet - this would be the only character picture attempt on the trip that didn't happen during Garden Grill. Very unusual for us. And I categorize it as an "attempt" because our picture didn't turn out very well, so while we did pick up the free print, it went right in the trash. So that was kind of a loser. We met Minnie and Pluto.

After that failure we decided to head out of the park. The crowds were definitely picking up at this point...40-minute wait for Spaceship Earth!

But hey, at this angle it's like no one's there! Hooray!

 

[plaz10]

we have a so-so restaurant coming up in May...we're trying Cape May for dinner, I've heard awful things and really good things.

Jess - we've eaten at Cape May twice and we actually enjoyed it both times! I personally am not a big fan of buffets but Bill and I both really love crab legs (and seafood in general) so that was a highlight! Also - the mac n cheese on the kids buffet is the best mac n cheese EVER. So definitely try that!

The first time we went they still had oreo bon bons on the buffet - the 2nd time they did not. That was a disappointment.

I'd eat there again - not running back to eat there but we did enjoy ourselves!

 

[LindsayLoves]

Shannon! I just spent my lunch break at work catching up with your report but I find myself stuck thinking about those M&M pancakes and can't find the words to tell you what a wonderful report this is (as always).

I am bummed you didn't like Artist's Point, that's where we went for our marathon completion dinner last year and it was a very positive experience. Our server was tremendous and the food was excellent, I believe I had a special that was venison or buffalo for my entree. The thing that I liked the least about it was how loud it was in there, with the super high ceilings it didn't seem as quite and intimate as it should have been for a signature meal. I also think I was pretty sold on the Territory Lounge where we had a pre-dinner drink, I need to stay at WL just to have a night cap there every night.

Full disclosure I am totally adding you on instagram when I get done with work.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Well now I sorta feel jerky for liking Boma breakfast so much. LOL! Did they have a holiday surcharge going on? It seems we paid like $18pp for breakfast. No TiW. I guess after tip it would've been close to $50. I agree, for the most part I'm not one to go to buffets because for the price the only 1 of the 4 of us even remotely likely to get the full value for the price paid is Chandler. The way you keep mentioning the cost vs. value of food at the restaurants...that's how I had gotten with a lot of WDW meals. Even with TiW I was feeling more & more like I couldn't believe we were spending THAT much. Think of what Chef Mickey's asks now! As nostalgic and lovely as it'd be to eat there again when we're in the area I just can't justify that price x4!

BTW, we sat in that same Boma alcove just behind that big pillar in your picture. Twice on back-to-back days. It was peaceful and relaxing.

 

[Ariel484]

Jess - we've eaten at Cape May twice and we actually enjoyed it both times! I personally am not a big fan of buffets but Bill and I both really love crab legs (and seafood in general) so that was a highlight! Also - the mac n cheese on the kids buffet is the best mac n cheese EVER. So definitely try that!

The first time we went they still had oreo bon bons on the buffet - the 2nd time they did not. That was a disappointment.

I'd eat there again - not running back to eat there but we did enjoy ourselves!

Kids mac & cheese, yessss. Don't they sell those Oreo Bon Bons in the Beach Club Marketplace? NOM.

Shannon! I just spent my lunch break at work catching up with your report but I find myself stuck thinking about those M&M pancakes and can't find the words to tell you what a wonderful report this is (as always).

Can't blame you at all for that, friend!

I am bummed you didn't like Artist's Point, that's where we went for our marathon completion dinner last year and it was a very positive experience. Our server was tremendous and the food was excellent, I believe I had a special that was venison or buffalo for my entree. The thing that I liked the least about it was how loud it was in there, with the super high ceilings it didn't seem as quite and intimate as it should have been for a signature meal. I also think I was pretty sold on the Territory Lounge where we had a pre-dinner drink, I need to stay at WL just to have a night cap there every night.

I'm sooorrrrry. I definitely think part of my issue is the dish that I ordered (same thing happened to me at California Grill the one time we went there). Will's was so much better! I thought about trying the buffalo option (I think it was a trio of meats...the venison may have been another one of the 3) but chickened out and went with the hen. Maybe if I'd gone in another direction I'd feel differently. I'm with you on Territory Lounge though, I'll definitely stop in for a drink there!

Full disclosure I am totally adding you on instagram when I get done with work.

YES DO IT. Be prepared for many pictures of WDW and my dog.

Well now I sorta feel jerky for liking Boma breakfast so much. LOL! Did they have a holiday surcharge going on?

And I feel like a jerk for saying I didn't like it! As I was reading your earlier comment about how much you and Tracey liked it I was just thinking, "Oh no, and here I am about to post my less-than-glowing Boma update!" If we could have ordered our meals a la carte we would have felt MUCH differently about it, because we really did like the food (can't say the same for their dinner). I'm sure they did have the surcharge going on.

It seems we paid like $18pp for breakfast. No TiW. I guess after tip it would've been close to $50. I agree, for the most part I'm not one to go to buffets because for the price the only 1 of the 4 of us even remotely likely to get the full value for the price paid is Chandler. The way you keep mentioning the cost vs. value of food at the restaurants...that's how I had gotten with a lot of WDW meals. Even with TiW I was feeling more & more like I couldn't believe we were spending THAT much. Think of what Chef Mickey's asks now! As nostalgic and lovely as it'd be to eat there again when we're in the area I just can't justify that price x4!

We've realized that we're very much "quality over quantity" when it comes to restaurants. Plus...I hate feeling like I NEED to "eat my money's worth" at an all-you-can-eat place and then I come out of dinner feeling uncomfortably full. I'm just over it. I can't imagine how it is for you having to pay for 4! Chef Mickey's has never remotely tempted either of us, I think because it doesn't hold any nostalgia for either of us. I'm glad too - don't want to pay for it! And I guess I keep mentioning the cost because it really hit us that week for whatever reason just how much we were paying...maybe because this is really the first time we'd had more than a few breakfast and lunch reservations.

BTW, we sat in that same Boma alcove just behind that big pillar in your picture. Twice on back-to-back days. It was peaceful and relaxing.

We definitely liked that part a lot! If the meal had cost half the amount I think my review would be much more positive.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

LOL! Aren't we the cutest thinking of the other person's feelings about a restaurant. I'm with ya, tho. Quality vs. quantity. YES! Boma could be perfect with an a la carte menu in conjunction with the buffet. I fully agree. I think when I was there I was glad not to wander any further in search of food, happy to walk up & be seated, and thrilled it didn't cost more. LOL! Storytellers at the Grand Californian/DL offers a breakfast buffet for about the same cost as we paid at Boma PLUS an a la carte menu AND the breakfast is a character meal. This ideal model can and does work! I can tell you right now I'd order off menu for less than the buffet. Prob'ly all of us would.

 

[diddy_mouse]

First off, LOVED the festive pics of Wilderness Lodge. The first time my husband and I stayed there was in December so that was the first impression we had. Needless to say it was a pretty darn good one. Secondly, BEAUTIFUL pics of the AKL. The lobby is definitely a stunner, would love to spend some more time there one of these days.

Joining in on the Boma discussion, I liked it but my hubby didn't. Was I in love with it? Not really. But I liked what I chose and since we were on the dining plan at the time I didn't feel too guilty about. Sadly I ate a crazy amount of cornbread and zebra domes at that visit. But they were so delicious at the time!

Oh! You can find me @mulderist on Instagram

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Loving the TR! Sorry you guys weren't feeling well I'm happy to see your write up on Artist Point. It's one of those places where the menus posted online look so yummy, but the reviews never seem to be glowing. You're experience with Boma breakfast also makes me happy that we passed on it. We also had similar feelings with Dessert Party...glad we tried it, but not sure we ate enough to justify the cost. The decoration pics are great! I've done the same thing with my tripod...I don't use it very often and it takes me forever when I try and set it up.

Can't wait to read more!

 

[PartOfYourWorld]

Yep, love that one! It's just so different!

I mean, I wouldn't tell someone to avoid a restaurant just because I don't like it...but it's just so hard with these Signatures. We've had such great experiences at Jiko and Citricos in the past that by now we expect a similar level of greatness at the other Signatures, and Artist Point just didn't deliver. I hope you like Cape May - like you, I've heard mixed reviews. We'll never try that one because we're not seafood eaters.

I know what you mean - glad we tried it. I have a pretty big sweet tooth so I think I liked it a little better than Will!

Why yes, yes I do! @HollyBelle and I were planning on doing that the night before the cruise until we remembered that we had an early morning ahead of us, so we hit the sack early instead. Maybe next month (!!!)

Yes, you're a trip reporting enabler!

Ooh, I hope he likes 'Ohana! He should know you have good taste by now!

One day I had the camera and my backpack (with second lens inside) on and I was just like...I don't want to carry all of this crap around anymore! So I didn't! It was kind of nice. Still got all of those Instagram shots though!

Oh of course, Citricos is definitely on my list to try someday, and Jiko. I hope we like it too! I figured, if we didn't end up liking it, theres always the kids section! LOL.

Yes maybe next month! Looks like Wishes is at 8 on that Friday the 21st. Just early enough that I can go to sleep early for the race! (which will be tough because I am a night owl)

I'm sure he will! I hope he knows! Then, again I've been many many times LOL. He liked all the places I picked last May, so hopefully he will like the next few trips too!

Jess - we've eaten at Cape May twice and we actually enjoyed it both times! I personally am not a big fan of buffets but Bill and I both really love crab legs (and seafood in general) so that was a highlight! Also - the mac n cheese on the kids buffet is the best mac n cheese EVER. So definitely try that!

The first time we went they still had oreo bon bons on the buffet - the 2nd time they did not. That was a disappointment.

I'd eat there again - not running back to eat there but we did enjoy ourselves!

Thanks Jess! That's good to hear!! When we checked out the menu we thought the things looked pretty good and if worse comes to worse we eat off the kids table, and I am now definitely trying the Mac and Cheese for sure!

It's always been something I've been curious about, so I figured we're staying at the Beach Club so why not!

 

[Ariel484]

LOL! Aren't we the cutest thinking of the other person's feelings about a restaurant. I'm with ya, tho. Quality vs. quantity. YES! Boma could be perfect with an a la carte menu in conjunction with the buffet. I fully agree. I think when I was there I was glad not to wander any further in search of food, happy to walk up & be seated, and thrilled it didn't cost more. LOL! Storytellers at the Grand Californian/DL offers a breakfast buffet for about the same cost as we paid at Boma PLUS an a la carte menu AND the breakfast is a character meal. This ideal model can and does work! I can tell you right now I'd order off menu for less than the buffet. Prob'ly all of us would.

Why yes, we ARE the cutest! An a la carte menu would be pretty awesome. I think The Wave at the Contemporary has both a buffet and a la carte...but I could see why Boma wouldn't change their format since they're pretty popular with the buffet and can make more money that way. Oh well. It was DEFINITELY nice to just walk downstairs and have all of that to choose from.

First off, LOVED the festive pics of Wilderness Lodge. The first time my husband and I stayed there was in December so that was the first impression we had. Needless to say it was a pretty darn good one. Secondly, BEAUTIFUL pics of the AKL. The lobby is definitely a stunner, would love to spend some more time there one of these days.

Thanks Erin! I know what you mean about the first impressions - my first trip as an adult to WDW was during Flower & Garden Festival, second was during the holidays, so it was quite a shock to come back the next time to no decorations! I think Wilderness Lodge and AKL were my favorite resort decorations that we saw that week.

Joining in on the Boma discussion, I liked it but my hubby didn't. Was I in love with it? Not really. But I liked what I chose and since we were on the dining plan at the time I didn't feel too guilty about. Sadly I ate a crazy amount of cornbread and zebra domes at that visit. But they were so delicious at the time!

Oh! You can find me @mulderist on Instagram

Yeah, I know we're in the great minority not liking Boma! Just not for us. We DO like zebra domes though...we're not THAT weird! Hooray for new Instagram friends!

Loving the TR! Sorry you guys weren't feeling well I'm happy to see your write up on Artist Point. It's one of those places where the menus posted online look so yummy, but the reviews never seem to be glowing. You're experience with Boma breakfast also makes me happy that we passed on it. We also had similar feelings with Dessert Party...glad we tried it, but not sure we ate enough to justify the cost. The decoration pics are great! I've done the same thing with my tripod...I don't use it very often and it takes me forever when I try and set it up.

Can't wait to read more!

Thanks Sandy! We were definitely expecting Artist Point to live up to our other Signature experiences and it just didn't...so sad! And we both thought that the FOOD at Boma was good, but seeing the bill was like getting kicked in the stomach! It would be much better if we were bigger eaters and we're just not! Ditto to the dessert party. LOL...tripod problems. Even when I thought I got it set up correctly quite a few of my pictures were crooked, so I had to fix them later when I was editing. Clearly I didn't have things set up 100% correctly...

Oh of course, Citricos is definitely on my list to try someday, and Jiko. I hope we like it too! I figured, if we didn't end up liking it, theres always the kids section! LOL.

The kids section is always a safe option! I'm not sure that we'll ever get around to all of the Signatures, mostly because we don't like seafood - so I feel that Flying Fish and Narcoossee's would almost be wasted on us (which is sad because I hear consistently great reviews about both places). We've never been super interested in Brown Derby or Yachtsman...and I know Le Cellier is Signature now but in my mind it doesn't REALLY count, ya know?! We need to try California Grill again someday...

Yes maybe next month! Looks like Wishes is at 8 on that Friday the 21st. Just early enough that I can go to sleep early for the race! (which will be tough because I am a night owl)

Sounds perfect! I seem to remember sleepy oddly well the nights before the races...despite the excitement and all that. I hope the same happens for you...even if you don't get perfect nights of sleep adrenaline should carry you through.

I'm sure he will! I hope he knows! Then, again I've been many many times LOL. He liked all the places I picked last May, so hopefully he will like the next few trips too!

I'm sure he will too...hopefully he knows to pace himself in the earlier courses!

 

[Ariel484]

My lack of note-taking on this trip is coming back to bite me, because I can't remember how, but after leaving Epcot we somehow got to the monorail resorts. I feel like we must have taken the monorail to the TTC and then transferred to the resort loop, but somehow ended up at the Contemporary first. The order doesn't quite make sense though! Ah well, let's just say we did go to the TTC and stayed on the monorail for a couple of stops, then exited into the Grand Concourse. Cool? Cool.

Time for some resort monorail decorations (and drinking!).

The first stop on our tour was the Contemporary (I think?). Will was not a happy camper...we've never stayed at this resort but we have less-than-fond memories of our dinner here and our brief walk through the Bay Lake Tower lobby during our June 2011 trip, so he was none-too-pleased to return. I just wanted to take in the decor quickly and possibly find the bar (which didn't end up happening ).

Tree!

Wreath!

And with that we peaced out quickly...just not our cup of tea!

Next up was a very festive Polynesian Resort.

I'll be so, so sad if the rumors are true and this water feature goes away. The lobby just won't be the same.

Crappy shot of decorations over the check-in area:

The Poly's Christmas tree:

I don't know about you, but I'm parched...up to the bar!

Sangria for me and some kind of beer for Will. Bliss.

 

[Ariel484]

After re-charging at the Tambu Lounge we headed outside, where I re-discovered my love for my UWA lens. I feel like the pictures I take with this lens are infinitely better than the ones I take with my other lenses...maybe it's Disney magic!

And then we were at our final destination on our monorail resort tour...the Grand Floridian!

Oh, Grand. You're just so pretty. Balloons were up in preparation for New Year's Eve:

I sat on the floor for this one...that's dedication! Or shamlessness. Or both.

I think I took approximately 12342435789374985 pictures in here.

OM NOM NOM NOM YUMMY HOUSE (hmm, probably could have white-balanced this guy a little better...)

 

[Ariel484]

At some point (6:45ish) we'd tried to check in for our 7:30PM ADR at Citricos but got turned away. At about 7 we headed upstairs to wait for a bit and I grabbed a drink from the bar, the Magical Star Cocktail. I forget what was in it but it was tasty and I got another one of those glow cubes, just like on the WDWMagic Girls cruise. So woohoo for that...and I had a drink at 2 of the 3 monorail resorts. Not exactly the monorail bar crawl I'd envisioned but not bad either.

Ooh...magical!

We were also anxiously eyeing those double doors across the way...a glimpse into our future!

Cool ceiling detail:

Eventually we were seated at 7:15PM...yay!

I have to admit, I wasn't super excited for this ADR, but I knew Will really wanted to go here. In fact, when planning the trip he left almost everything up to me, but this was one of the things that he specifically requested. The last time we ate at Citricos I ordered the filet, which I remembered being good, but not super amazing (I think mostly because I'd had an amazing filet with what was, in my opinion, a better side at Jiko earlier that week).

Crappy shot of our window view...we ended up sitting with our backs to the window so we could look out into the restaurant.

Super-cool light fixtures:

Eagle-eyed Will spotted our awesome server, John, from the last time we ate here (does anyone who read my June 2011 report remember the Great Shrimp Incident of 2011?? ...that was him!). Sadly, he wasn't our server this time. But it was cool to see that he was still here.

 

[Ariel484]

Time to EAT!

Bread (multigrain or with olives) with sea salt butter. Yum!

I have no idea what kind of wine I got. Probably whatever was the recommended pairing with me entree...Will got a Peroni.

After hoping to try the pork belly at Artist Point, we decided to order Citricos' version, which was plated with hominy-cheddar-potato puree.

It was good, but not as spectacular as we expected. Sort of like really thick, mildly flavored, fancy bacon. File it under "glad we tried it but will skip next time." The potato stuff was mighty tasty.

The entrees, however...that's a whole other story. Since I had so-so memories of the filet from 2011, I opted to try something different this time. Both of us ordered the same thing: beef short ribs plated with golden potato gnocchi with wild mushroom ragout and piccante gorgonzola.

OH. EM. GEE.

This dish was INCREDIBLE! The beef was so incredibly tender that we could just gently pull it apart using our forks...no knives required. It was super moist and flavorful. The gnocchi had a delicious, subtle gorgonzola flavor. I wanted to lick my plate clean! My mouth is watering thinking about that meal...

Dessert was equally awesome. We decided to share the warm chocolate-banana torte (served with vanilla ice cream and a chocolate "crown").

Instagram shot:

Closer...

Now, I like bananas, but normally I don't like banana mixed in with other food...if that makes any sense. But this was delicious! The rich chocolatey flavor was really what we mainly tasted here - it wasn't overpowered by the banana at all. I think anyone that's not a chocolate fan should probably skip this one, but we loved it. It was sooooo good!

This meal was such a contrast from our Artist Point dinner the night before. The food we had here was so unique and prepared perfectly (although the appetizer was good but nowhere near as good as our entrees and dessert). THIS truly felt like a Signature meal...in fact, save for one big exception later on in the week, this was by far the best meal we had during this trip. Can't wait to go back!

 

[Kristia]

Love your pictures of the AKL lobby with the tree! We saw it a couple years ago and my pictures just don't do it justice.

I haven't tried Boma for breakfast but enjoyed it for dinner. It is one of our favorites for dinner. That being said, we are also not the type of people who eat enough to justify the cost of any buffet or family style restaurant. Usually the only time we partake in them is when we get free dining or pay for the dining plan. That way the cost is kind of "hidden" from us and I don't feel as bad not eating a ton of food. It is totally a psychological thing!

We haven't tried the dessert party. The desserts look yummy but again I know we couldn't eat $60 worth of dessert and I am not so into Wishes that I need a preferred viewing area and certainly don't want to pay for that. Now if they were able to set it up at the Main Street Station viewing area then I would be all in!

Skipping around here a bit, but your picture from Dinosaur cracked me up because that is always how I look during that ride. I don't really find there to be scary parts aside from the loud noise and when they take the picture, I am always thinking "Is that really a picture worthy spot?".

The elephants are so cute playing in the water! They just needed a waterfall and it would have been a really life Jungle Cruise!

Hoping you guys feel better for the end of your trip!