To Infinity and Beyond: A May 2011 Pixar Weekend Trip Report

Less than one month after returning from my April trip, and just two months after our wedding/Disneymoon trip, Brett and I were back at the World. How’d it happen, you ask? Well, on a rainy Friday morning, two weeks prior to Pixar Weekend, Brett sent me an email detailing some of the rare characters expected at the event and ended it by stating that we should totally go. I think he was half joking, because my response, “Let’s do it,” isn’t really what he was expecting. We decided to meet up for lunch that day and after discussing expenses and planning out a budget, we realized a short three-day weekend trip was totally doable. Huzzah!

We booked an AP rate at CBR the very same day. However, after more discussion that evening, we decided to switch to a value resort and upgrade our APs to Premium passes with the extra money we would’ve spent on the moderate! We had planned to go to a water park at least once during this trip and decided that, the upcharge for premium passes would pay for themselves after two water park visits. And bonus… merch is 20% off with a premium pass!

What we didn’t do, was book a lot of ADRs. Shocking, I know! Instead, we decided to just go with the flow and save a little cash since it was a bonus trip. We made two ADRs (the Wave and Kona) and figured we’d just wing it from there.

Pixar Weekend here we come! Thursday, May 12 – Sunday, May 15. Scratch that… Monday, May 16. Yeah, once we got there we totally ended up adding another day.

The cast… Mr. and Mrs. Hollybelle!

Oh yeah… two new minor obsessions came of this trip: Vinylmation trading and Pook-a-Looz love! But more on that later… right now, I have a little Pixar preview for anyone out there who may or may not have a panic attack if they have to wait much longer (I’m looking at you, Karen!).

Booooooo!

 

[HollyBelle]

*Great Pics

*Love the camera strap!

*agree with Tot

*Congrats to Brett

and I'm extremely jealous of your bi-weekly trips

Thanks, Chris! On all accounts. And yeah, my bi-weekly trips are pretty fabulous. :lol:

Modern Family is on our DVR line-up as well, but I think Parks & Rec is our #1 comedy right now along with Psych and How I Met Your Mother. I actually had Breaking Bad from the library awhile back and never got around to watching it...I'll have to check it out!

...your TR is slowly being taken over by TV talk! Oops!

Totally agree, Parks and Rec has been amazing this season, whereas the Office and Modern Family are so-so. The Office is really losing steam and Modern Family is relying to much on schticks and "caricatures" they've already put in place for some of the characters (like Cam and Gloria). I think they're playing it too safe.

We've never watched How I Met Your Mother or Psych. Psych seems interesting, but How I Met Your Mother has never really piqued my interest. Plus, it has a laugh track, right?! Brett has an aversion to laugh tracks. :lookaroun

I don't mind the tv talk tangent at all... it's actually kind of interesting to talk with other Disney folks about something other than Disney, you know? In fact, Jess (plaz10) and I have been communicating about "good" tv through private messages for probably a year now!

Hmm...I think you'd better leave him at home for his own safety, otherwise he might be swimmin' with the fishes before the week's over! :lookaroun :lol:

Ooooh. Very good point. I guess it'll have to be the usual stowaways then. Everyone likes chipmunks, right?!

 

[HollyBelle]

Day 2 continued...

Where were we? Ahh, yes... headed to a melting ski slope!

My apologies for all the upcoming pictures… they were taken with my water camera, which, even by point and shoot standards, doesn’t churn out pictures all too great. I swear, I need to take a trip to the water parks just to walk around and photograph them.

I think we arrived at BB pretty late in the afternoon… around 2:30 or so. And we only stayed for a couple of hours. In that time, we managed to hit up most of the slopes, with the exception of Summit Plummet, unfortunately.

Attention Downhill Double Dippers! Love that spiel (it's another one we often quote at home). Plus, it’s gotta be the best slide in the park.

While in line for the Double Dipper, I pointed out how pleasant Runoff Rapids looked nearby. Hah. I thought “pleasant” would equal “fun.” When did I become so old?! :lol:

So we headed up that slope next. It’s great having this guy around:

The toboggan racers were next... they are just okay, in my opinion. In fact, they’ve got absolutely nothing on the Downhill Double Dipper.

Snow Stormers anyone?! God Bless America!

 

[HollyBelle]

And, of course, the number one draw of any water park… the lazy river. Cross Country Creek, I could float down you all afternoon and be perfectly content with my life!

Yeah, that’s right, Brett totally knows I’m going to steer him under the water, and he was helpless to do anything about it. Turnabout is fair play, my love. :lol:

As you may be able to tell in the above pictures… the park had cleared out quite a bit, making Cross Country Creek even more enjoyable. We relaxed a bit longer and then headed out of the park and back to Sports to get ready for dinner. Having a premium pass is great, because it allowed us to spend a short amount of time at the water park, without feeling like we weren't getting enough value out of a day pass.

 

[HollyBelle]

It was time for one of our two ADRs of the trip: The Wave – Brett’s choice.

We arrived at the Contemporary about 15 minutes prior to our 6:30 ADR and they seated us almost immediately. Every time we’re there, I’m always fearful that the place is going to get the axe. We’ve never had a bad meal at the Wave and yet we always see empty tables around us. I wonder why it isn’t more popular; I mean, it’s a “fine dining” restaurant on the monorail loop and you don’t have to use two credits to eat there. Like Sanaa, over at AKL, it’s a hidden gem, in my book.

Brett had the beer flight… a must at The Wave!

And the smoked sea salt seasoned pork tenderloin with apricot jam and boniato bread pudding. Deliciousness:

I wasn’t all too hungry, so I ordered the “appetizer for two” as my entrée. It was a combination of lump crab/rock shrimp cakes with cucumber and tomato salsa…

And on the other side of the plate: pan-seared scallops with onions, bacon, and chili cream corn sauce. Heavenly, I tell you! Especially the chili cream corn sauce.

My apologies for all the pictures… ISO 1600 doesn’t play nice in dimly lit restaurants, regardless of how wide you can go with the aperture.

Overall, our meal was fabulous. And there’s no doubt we’ll be heading back to The Wave again soon. It’s my recommendation to anyone who is looking for quality dishes without the usual signature price tag.

After dinner we walked outside to see that it had apparently rained quite a bit while we were in the Comteporary. Determined not to let it spoil our fun, we headed over to the Magic Kingdom. We didn’t move the car to the MK lot. Tsk Tsk! This is the one Disney rule that we often break… but hey, at least we take the time to eat at whatever resort we are parked at - we never go there just to park.

 

[HollyBelle]

When we first arrived at the Magic Kingdom, we headed over to Town Square to check out the new (at the time) meet and greet with Mickey. Personally, I’m not a fan of indoor meet and greets, because the lighting it a real pain in the a$$ to deal with. But I guess this is my own problem and I really need to get better with my flash. Regardless, pictures in natural light are just better. All of that being said, I like this set up better for Mickey than the Judge’s Tent.

I liked that the luggage pieces were all Colonel Hathi’s! Nice touch.

The shop you’re dumped out in is pretty cute. Mostly because it’s all decked out in Mickey plush!

 

[HollyBelle]

Next up… the new at the time (I keep saying that ) Haunted Mansion queue:

I liked the queue, and neither Brett nor I could resist playing with some of the interactive elements. That being said, on recent trips there’s been no question as to whether or not we would skip the queue in lieu of getting to a doom buggy more quickly. After experiencing it once, we’re happy to simply skip it. Let’s put our thoughts regarding interactive queues into simplified terms and in comparison with other fairly recent developments at the parks:

Character dance party < Interactive queue < Enhancements to the ride itself

 

[HollyBelle]

We left the mansion and headed over to the hub to find a spot for MMY. My heart skips a beat every time I experience this show now. While nothing could take the top spot from my beloved Illuminations, the Magic, Memories, and You is slowly sidling up next to my all time favorite nighttime show ever. Being back in front of the castle for this show, two shy months after our first viewing of it, gave me chills. I will forever be taken back to that very moment, experiencing this show for the first time, with the man of my dreams… the man I’m lucky enough to call my husband. Isn’t it amazing how we associate a sense (whether it be smell, sound, etc.), with a memory? And how the combination of the two becomes the most powerful intoxicant we’ll ever know?!

After Wishes, we exited the park with the masses and made our way back to All-Star Sports.

Next up... more Pixar characters! AND we check in on Star Tours 2.0. Do you think it'll be open?! :lol:

 

[diddy_mouse]

Holly!! So happy to see a trip report from you!

First off, congrats to Brett on his graduation! :sohappy:

Flower and Garden Festival time is probably my favorite way to see Epcot. It takes a beautiful park and kicks thing up a notch.

I need to get back to the Art of Animation building. Brandon and I don't explore The Studios as much as we should. I've made a note for our upcoming trip to linger a little longer at that park.

*sigh* La Hacienda...I can practically smell those tacos....muy delicioso! :slurp: And while on the subject, have you ever had a Modelo Especial? It's a very refreshing beer and goes great with tasty Mexican food.

"Isn’t it amazing how we associate a sense (whether it be smell, sound, etc.), with a memory? And how the combination of the two becomes the most powerful intoxicant we’ll ever know?!"

^ Totally agree with this!

 

[HopLow]

Yayyy!!!! Holly, your TR is totally the highlight of my week! :sohappy: Keep 'em coming, girl!

Thank you for your champagne tip! My friend and I are headed down in January and we are both champagne drinkers at every opportunity (pre-gaming before going out, holidays, weekdays...) and this will definitely be put to good use on our trip.

It's funny you mentioned the sensory memory thing because I was just talking about this with my mother this weekend. I was cooking and blasting my Disney playlist (obviously... is there any other way to cook???) and Yo Ho came on. Immediately I could smell the musty/chlorine smell of POTC. Occasionally when it rains, the parking garage at work will remind me of the Ceremonial House at the Poly. Weird. :shrug:

Anyway, can't wait for the rest! :wave:

 

[Ariel484]

Totally agree, Parks and Rec has been amazing this season, whereas the Office and Modern Family are so-so. The Office is really losing steam and Modern Family is relying to much on schticks and "caricatures" they've already put in place for some of the characters (like Cam and Gloria). I think they're playing it too safe.

We gave up on The Office after Pam had her baby...I thought they would end it after Steve Carrell left. Totally agree with your thoughts on Modern Family. That show gets all the attention, but in my opinion, Parks & Rec is the best comedy on TV right now (I thought the same thing last season too).

We've never watched How I Met Your Mother or Psych. Psych seems interesting, but How I Met Your Mother has never really piqued my interest. Plus, it has a laugh track, right?! Brett has an aversion to laugh tracks. :lookaroun

I totally get Brett's aversion to the laugh track! That, and the title of the show (which - it sounds weird - just seemed oddly long and a little lame to me before I began watching) initially turned me off to HIMYM. It's a good one though!...even though Katie Holmes just guest-starred this week.

...Snow Stormers anyone?! God Bless America!...

Okay, it took me a little awhile to figure out why you were giving a shout-out to America, and then I about died. :lol:

You've got me convinced that Will and I need to try The Wave. I know you guys have eaten there a few times and always rave about it. I had a breakfast ADR there on our last trip but we torched it at the last minute...hopefully next time it'll work out. Which do you prefer there - breakfast, lunch or dinner?

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

Day 2 continued...

So we headed up that slope next. It’s great having this guy around:

Snow Stormers anyone?! God Bless America!

The walk up to Runoff Rapids is EXHAUSTING! My calves are burning by the time we get to the top..... Guess that shows just how NOT in shape I am! Hopefully after this hlf marathon training I'll be able to breeze right up to the top lol
Lucky you have Brett to carry your tube for you. What a gentleman!

And god bless America indeed... YIKES!!! :lookaroun

 

[plaz10]

If you don’t already watch them, two other shows I would recommend based on your enjoyment of Breaking Bad are Dexter and Six Feet Under.

And if you’re a fan of Arrested Development’s style, I would also suggest Always Sunny in Philadelphia. We caught a few episodes one night and recently went back and started from the beginning. Again, you may already watch all of these, but if not you should totally consider them!

Parks and Rec has been killing it this season, and in my opinion, the Office is suffering in comparison.

I had to jump in on the TV talk because I'm a total TV junkie.

Tom - I totally agree with Holly on needing to watch Dexter and Six Feet Under. Michael C. Hall is just a fantastic actor. Cannot say enough good things about Dexter!!

I also agree with having to watch It's Always Sunny. Love it. The first few seasons are better than the most recent one in my opinion - but still good.

And yes Parks & Rec is great and yes the office has been slipping. A few laughs here and there but nowhere near Michael Scott level in my opinion. Just last night we watched a re-run of "Andys Play" and I laughed so hard when Michael drops the wine bottle and it rolls down every row. I don't really have too many "laugh out loud" moments yet this season. But then again - I really don't like James Spader so maybe I'm bias.

Ok enough TV talk...on with the trip report!

 

[HollyBelle]

Holly!! So happy to see a trip report from you!

First off, congrats to Brett on his graduation!

Flower and Garden Festival time is probably my favorite way to see Epcot. It takes a beautiful park and kicks thing up a notch.

Sadly, this was probably my least favorite F&GF theme. Probably because it was all a big advertisement. My favorites that I’ve seen are the “great outdoors” theme they did last year and the “fun in the sun/beach” theme they did in 2008.

I need to get back to the Art of Animation building. Brandon and I don't explore The Studios as much as we should. I've made a note for our upcoming trip to linger a little longer at that park.

I find that Brett and I are the same way, we don’t explore every little thing anymore because we always say “we’ll be back soon,” but after awhile I’ve started to realize we’ve skipped a lot with that mentality.

*sigh* La Hacienda...I can practically smell those tacos....muy delicioso! :slurp: And while on the subject, have you ever had a Modelo Especial? It's a very refreshing beer and goes great with tasty Mexican food.

"Isn’t it amazing how we associate a sense (whether it be smell, sound, etc.), with a memory? And how the combination of the two becomes the most powerful intoxicant we’ll ever know?!"

^ Totally agree with this!

Ahhh… La Hacienda is so freakin’ good. I attribute it to the fresh cilantro. Mmm! A Modelo Especial? I’ve heard of it, but I don’t think I’ve ever had it – it’s now on the list!

Yayyy!!!! Holly, your TR is totally the highlight of my week! Keep 'em coming, girl!

Thank you for your champagne tip! My friend and I are headed down in January and we are both champagne drinkers at every opportunity (pre-gaming before going out, holidays, weekdays...) and this will definitely be put to good use on our trip.

Aww, thanks, Ashley! Hmmm… we must be related, because I find the most mundane things to “celebrate” so that I can pop open the bubbly!!

It's funny you mentioned the sensory memory thing because I was just talking about this with my mother this weekend. I was cooking and blasting my Disney playlist (obviously... is there any other way to cook???) and Yo Ho came on. Immediately I could smell the musty/chlorine smell of POTC. Occasionally when it rains, the parking garage at work will remind me of the Ceremonial House at the Poly. Weird.

Anyway, can't wait for the rest!

That is awesome… I love it when random things, like the Ghost Host for example, come on my iPod when I’m in the middle of something – always makes me smile.

We gave up on The Office after Pam had her baby...I thought they would end it after Steve Carrell left. Totally agree with your thoughts on Modern Family. That show gets all the attention, but in my opinion, Parks & Rec is the best comedy on TV right now (I thought the same thing last season too).

I totally get Brett's aversion to the laugh track! That, and the title of the show (which - it sounds weird - just seemed oddly long and a little lame to me before I began watching) initially turned me off to HIMYM. It's a good one though!...even though Katie Holmes just guest-starred this week.

Yeah, the Office is no longer must-see tv. I’d say you bailed at the appropriate time. They’re trying way too hard to make Andy the new Michael Scott. Instead, they should just go a different direction with it and have him be his old self (remember the guy who went to anger management?!).

Okay, it took me a little awhile to figure out why you were giving a shout-out to America, and then I about died.

You've got me convinced that Will and I need to try The Wave. I know you guys have eaten there a few times and always rave about it. I had a breakfast ADR there on our last trip but we torched it at the last minute...hopefully next time it'll work out. Which do you prefer there - breakfast, lunch or dinner?

I’ve eaten breakfast and dinner there, but haven’t tried it for lunch yet. I would suggest going for dinner. It’s a good “date night” kind of meal – the menu really is “signature” inspired if you ask me, much more so than Artist Point. Breakfast is good, but it’s just breakfast. They have all the same offerings you might find somewhere else, only at the Wave they are the “healthy” version. Still very tasty though!

The walk up to Runoff Rapids is EXHAUSTING! My calves are burning by the time we get to the top..... Guess that shows just how NOT in shape I am! Hopefully after this hlf marathon training I'll be able to breeze right up to the top lol
Lucky you have Brett to carry your tube for you. What a gentleman!

And god bless America indeed... YIKES!!!

Yeah the water parks are the most tiring parks if you ask me… due to all those darn stairs! Speaking of the half marathon… how is training coming along?! I vaguely recall reading somewhere that you were doing the W&D next year? We did it this year, and it was a blast!

 

[HollyBelle]

I had to jump in on the TV talk because I'm a total TV junkie.

Tom - I totally agree with Holly on needing to watch Dexter and Six Feet Under. Michael C. Hall is just a fantastic actor. Cannot say enough good things about Dexter!!

I also agree with having to watch It's Always Sunny. Love it. The first few seasons are better than the most recent one in my opinion - but still good.

And yes Parks & Rec is great and yes the office has been slipping. A few laughs here and there but nowhere near Michael Scott level in my opinion. Just last night we watched a re-run of "Andys Play" and I laughed so hard when Michael drops the wine bottle and it rolls down every row. I don't really have too many "laugh out loud" moments yet this season. But then again - I really don't like James Spader so maybe I'm bias.

Ok enough TV talk...on with the trip report!

I'm just gonna have to agree with all of this! Thanks for the head's up on Always Sunny, we're still in the early seasons.

And umm.... Dexter?! I know you're watching. It's totally at that point in the season when things are about to get crazy. SQUEEEE! I heart Deb Morgan!

 

[SyracuseOrange]

Aw, I saw that you updated this thread and I thought there'd be more pics

 

[HollyBelle]

Aw, I saw that you updated this thread and I thought there'd be more pics

I'll have the next part up this evening! Promise!

 

[HollyBelle]

Day 3 – Saturday, May 14: DHS/Epcot

We started our morning at the Studios. Why? In hopes that there would be a soft opening of Star Tours 2.0 (!) and because it was morning EMH. The mad dash to TSMM was on and my speed demon of a husband was up for the challenge. Here he is waiting for the gun…

And he’s off…

He’s about to make his move, folks, a quick cut to the right…

And it looks like he only knocked down seven kids, stepped on nine toes and cut off three scooters on his quest to the fastpass queue. A record!! No longer able to see my horse in the race, I trusted that he was fighting the good fight, and so I slowed down to take in the sights on Hollywood Boulevard. It was a beautiful morning!

Good morning, Mademoiselle Mouse!

 

[HollyBelle]

As I was waiting in line to meet Stitch, Brett caught back up to me and shared his trials and tribulations with the race to TSMM. Turns out much of his hard work cutting off children and tripping over scooters was thwarted when he picked the wrong FP queue. He lost valuable time when the lady in front of him argued emphatically with the CM at the front of the line. She couldn’t possibly fathom why the 15 or so park tickets in her hand wouldn’t work in the machine.

It went a little something like this:

“Ma’am, did all those people arrive at the park with you this morning?”
“No.”
“Then you can’t use these tickets to obtain fastpasses.”
“$%*&^ $#% @$!$%^ %%>.”
“I’m sorry ma’am, that’s the policy.”
“*$&$*# @* $*#^@+!@.”
"Yes, ma’am, I am very sorry, but that IS the policy.”
“$*$&$* !@#*&!.”

Those poor CMs, you’ve really gotta feel for them sometimes.

What’s up Stitch? The sky, you foolish boy!

More stars…

A quick meet with the stars of Hollywood, Donald and Daisy, and we were off to check on Star Tours version 2.0 – still NOT open. :lol: And with that disappointing news, we headed over to the Writer’s Stop to get some breakfast. A new favorite way to spend our DHS mornings:

 

[HollyBelle]

I heart the MuppetVision courtyard!

Does anyone ever actually eat at the Studio Catering Co.? No? I didn’t think so.

Over at the Magic of Disney Animation, we humored ourselves with the camera as we waited for the next show to start.

At which point, some lady took pity on us and offered to take our picture. Rather than trying to explain that we were, indeed, both in the shot, I just handed over my camera and told her she’d probably want to stand pretty close to us – she did a double take after looking through the lens. :lol:

 

[HollyBelle]

We watched the Magic of Disney Animation with Mushu (no picture allowed) and then headed over to the Tower of Terror, which may actually be my favorite ride ever.

Then it was time to head back to Pixar Place and use those fastpasses Brett had worked so damn hard for earlier that morning. :lol:

When we approached the fastpass entrance, we came upon another lady who didn’t seem to understand the practice of TSMM fastpass usage. She was trying to use two fastpasses to get her family of four into the fastpass queue. Now, I realize, as regular park-goers, we take for granted our knowledge of how to tackle the parks and utilize the fastpass distribution system, but it can’t be that hard to learn, can it?

What do you think we did next? If you guessed “checked Star Tours 2.0” then I owe you a cookie! Two cookies for you if you also guessed it was still NOT open. :ROFLOL:

With that, we headed off to Epcot. We had some unfinished business to take care of and it was time for World Showcase to open. Slim, you better be waiting for us today!