This was my first solo trip and let me start by saying I had a blast. I covered more ground and did more in each park (in one day) than I had ever before - because there was no discussion on what to do next and I was moving at my pace, which tends to be quicker than my wife or son. We did Christmas with the whole family back in December, and they felt it was "too soon" to go again; I needed a fix so they let me have this trip alone as a sort of Father's Day present. That said:
Tuesday 22 June: arrived in Orlando (I drove down). Had a reservation for the night at the Holiday Inn Main Gate. Their check in time is 4PM so I went to Downtown Disney and did some shopping and had a late lunch at C'apn Jack's. Went to the hotel and chilled waiting for the World.
Wednesday 23 June: Got to the Pop Century at 9:30. I had a 3 night Summer Dream Maker package, with 4 day Park Hopper. I was expecting to get my pass and have to come back for the room, but in the first of several pleasant surprises, my room was ready! 70's Building "B", the same as we had in Dec. So I got my stuff to the room and headed for the Magic Kingdom. Hit all the big attractions through a combination of Fast Passes and waiting - but the longest wait I encountered was 30 minutes on Big Thunder. Park was crowded and it was very hot, but managable. Best lines of the day: very confused 20-something man to his companion (in Frontierland) "Wait...Is this the Magic Kingdom?" and a middle aged woman to her husband in the loading line on the Haunted Mansion (just after the stetching room) "Is this some kind of ride?" Had dinner at Tony's (a family tradition). A great day.
Thursday 24 June: Got to Epcot at 9:30. Headed staight to Test Track intending to Fast Pass it, but the single rider line said 10 minutes, so I went straight in. It was basically a walk-on. Went over to Mission Space, and the single rider there also said 10 minutes. Well it turned out to be 20, but still, not bad at all. Did the rest of Future World (including Living With the Land, which was a walk-on after lunch. Hadn't done this in awhile - a pleasant break) and headed to World Showcase at 2:30. Hit each country leisurely getting pictures (something I have trouble doing when I'm with people). Caught all of the Voices of Freedom for once (usually come in in the middle), and watched the American Vybe. Had a great dinner at Le Cellier. Opted to head back to the resort after dinner to recover from two very full days.
Friday 25 June: Got to the Studios around 11 after a slow morning. FP'd TOT and caught Beauty and the Beast (My wife and son aren't big on the shows so this was a treat for me). Hit all the biggies - including getting stuck in the load line on RnRC for over 30 minutes when the ride went down. Best line of the day: very young (5 or 6) voice from a toilet stall "But dad! There's no way to flush it! There's just a red light!" Dinner at the Brown Derby. Intended to hit Fantasmic, but the skies looked ominous so I headed back to the resort; which proved wise as a big storm hit right at 9PM.
Saturday 26 June: Loaded my stuff into the car and drove to the Animal Kingdom. To get the most out of my package and 4 day Park Hopper, I had booked this night at the Animal Kingdom lodge (and as a treat to myself). My plan was to do the AK until 2:30, then go check in. This worked out quite well. I had done everything I wanted to by then and the AKL proved better than I had hoped! About AK - do not miss Festival of the Lion King! What a show! Also, the very hot weather meant the animal viewing was not as spectacular as it was in December, but still good. Anyway, got another pleasant surprise when I checked in at the AKL - a comlimentary upgrade to a Savannah View Room! I had never stayed at a deluxe before, and was I impressed. I spent a good 90 minutes just walking around gawking at the place, and several hours in my room watching the show off my verandah. Topped off the day with a fabulous meal at Jiko, including very pleasant conversations with two couples who were seated with me at the Cooking Place.
Sunday 27 June: I was up early to wander around looking at the animals, had breakfast at the Mara, and very reluctantly left for home...
Summary - Even though I went solo this was one of the best trips ever. I was pleased to see a lot of the neglect on maintenance I'd noticed the last two trips was nowhere in evidence this trip. And the is refurbishment and constuction going on everywhere. The cast members where great, the bus service fine (longest wait was 10 minutes), the food excellent - just a wonderful time! Sorry to be long winded, but had to get it all down to fight off PDD (Post-Disney Depression).
Tuesday 22 June: arrived in Orlando (I drove down). Had a reservation for the night at the Holiday Inn Main Gate. Their check in time is 4PM so I went to Downtown Disney and did some shopping and had a late lunch at C'apn Jack's. Went to the hotel and chilled waiting for the World.
Wednesday 23 June: Got to the Pop Century at 9:30. I had a 3 night Summer Dream Maker package, with 4 day Park Hopper. I was expecting to get my pass and have to come back for the room, but in the first of several pleasant surprises, my room was ready! 70's Building "B", the same as we had in Dec. So I got my stuff to the room and headed for the Magic Kingdom. Hit all the big attractions through a combination of Fast Passes and waiting - but the longest wait I encountered was 30 minutes on Big Thunder. Park was crowded and it was very hot, but managable. Best lines of the day: very confused 20-something man to his companion (in Frontierland) "Wait...Is this the Magic Kingdom?" and a middle aged woman to her husband in the loading line on the Haunted Mansion (just after the stetching room) "Is this some kind of ride?" Had dinner at Tony's (a family tradition). A great day.
Thursday 24 June: Got to Epcot at 9:30. Headed staight to Test Track intending to Fast Pass it, but the single rider line said 10 minutes, so I went straight in. It was basically a walk-on. Went over to Mission Space, and the single rider there also said 10 minutes. Well it turned out to be 20, but still, not bad at all. Did the rest of Future World (including Living With the Land, which was a walk-on after lunch. Hadn't done this in awhile - a pleasant break) and headed to World Showcase at 2:30. Hit each country leisurely getting pictures (something I have trouble doing when I'm with people). Caught all of the Voices of Freedom for once (usually come in in the middle), and watched the American Vybe. Had a great dinner at Le Cellier. Opted to head back to the resort after dinner to recover from two very full days.
Friday 25 June: Got to the Studios around 11 after a slow morning. FP'd TOT and caught Beauty and the Beast (My wife and son aren't big on the shows so this was a treat for me). Hit all the biggies - including getting stuck in the load line on RnRC for over 30 minutes when the ride went down. Best line of the day: very young (5 or 6) voice from a toilet stall "But dad! There's no way to flush it! There's just a red light!" Dinner at the Brown Derby. Intended to hit Fantasmic, but the skies looked ominous so I headed back to the resort; which proved wise as a big storm hit right at 9PM.
Saturday 26 June: Loaded my stuff into the car and drove to the Animal Kingdom. To get the most out of my package and 4 day Park Hopper, I had booked this night at the Animal Kingdom lodge (and as a treat to myself). My plan was to do the AK until 2:30, then go check in. This worked out quite well. I had done everything I wanted to by then and the AKL proved better than I had hoped! About AK - do not miss Festival of the Lion King! What a show! Also, the very hot weather meant the animal viewing was not as spectacular as it was in December, but still good. Anyway, got another pleasant surprise when I checked in at the AKL - a comlimentary upgrade to a Savannah View Room! I had never stayed at a deluxe before, and was I impressed. I spent a good 90 minutes just walking around gawking at the place, and several hours in my room watching the show off my verandah. Topped off the day with a fabulous meal at Jiko, including very pleasant conversations with two couples who were seated with me at the Cooking Place.
Sunday 27 June: I was up early to wander around looking at the animals, had breakfast at the Mara, and very reluctantly left for home...
Summary - Even though I went solo this was one of the best trips ever. I was pleased to see a lot of the neglect on maintenance I'd noticed the last two trips was nowhere in evidence this trip. And the is refurbishment and constuction going on everywhere. The cast members where great, the bus service fine (longest wait was 10 minutes), the food excellent - just a wonderful time! Sorry to be long winded, but had to get it all down to fight off PDD (Post-Disney Depression).
