Trip Report Tu in ‘25

Ever just the same
Ever a surprise
Ever as before
Ever just as sure
As the sun will rise
Tu in ‘25

These lyrics came to mind when I thought about my trip reporting. (I also thought, Here we go AGAIN but the above sounds much more poignant.) It’s now that time of year when my Disney trips are frequent. And this Disney Senior loves sharing her visits with y’all because your engagement makes it fun!

Yes, there will be stuff that’s the same. Yes, there will be surprises (too soon for the reveals). And yes, there will be sun rises!

Spring break countdown is at 4 days.

Since this intro needs a picture, here are Tu.

 

[lindawdw]

SE definitely needs a refurb and I'm happy for you that the delay wasn't too long!

 

[Tuvalu]

Wow, that dessert selection looks fantastic!!! I would have had to try a few being that they all look so tempting.

Total agreement about the desserts.

Additionally, every night there was a 5 gallon container of vanilla ice cream and toppings (chocolate syrup, M&Ms, sprinkles) to make your own sundae!

I would have prolly slid 6 (or maybe 10) of those mint chocolate cupcakes into my pocket. Mint Chocolate anything is a hit for me! I'm envious of your lounge experiences. yum!

No need to mess up your pockets - the concierge would gladly give you a container to fill with as many as you like! #clublevellife

 

[Tuvalu]

Wednesday, con’t

After a quick restroom stop Woody was ready to save the galaxy.

“First there is cake, now there is toast? Where is this CakeToast?”

Right here, Drax.

Woody was on and off in 20 minutes. His ride photo was lost in space.

When I asked him what song played he replied, “I don’t know the name. It was about everybody rules the world or something.”

 

[Tuvalu]

We had to power-walk to Frozen as it was approaching the end of our LL window.

Funny coincidence - Woody and I had talked about this attraction last night at dinner. He mentioned that he could not remember the last time he rode it. I said it had to have been during the days of FP+ because none of us wanted to wait in the crazy standby line. The only time we rode was with a FP.

He then reminisced about Maelstrom and how much he enjoyed watching the movie about Norway, and why did people walk through the theater and not stay to watch it?

We were assigned the front seat in our Viking ship.

Our granddaughters used to be Frozen freaks so Woody is well acquainted with the story. He thinks the ride is cute.

Not a bad ride photo if I do say so myself!

Certainly better than this gem.

 

[TrolleyFollower91]

At this point I should publish a book of my unattractive ride photos.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Wednesday, con’t

After a quick restroom stop Woody was ready to save the galaxy.

View attachment 883278

“First there is cake, now there is toast? Where is this CakeToast?”

Right here, Drax.

View attachment 883279

Woody was on and off in 20 minutes. His ride photo was lost in space.

When I asked him what song played he replied, “I don’t know the name. It was about everybody rules the world or something.”

Great hat!

 

[Tuvalu]

Wednesday, con’t

Before returning to Future World World Discovery we took a moment to see some south of the border friends.

This ride has perfect vibes for me.

 

[MinnieM123]

He then reminisced about Maelstrom and how much he enjoyed watching the movie about Norway, and why did people walk through the theater and not stay to watch it?

IMO: If they showed the film at the beginning (prior to the boat ride -- an indoors "pre-show" so to speak, like some other attractions) -- that would have also helped move some of the crowd inside, out of the long outdoor queue. Hence, I think the interest for the film would have worked out better, in that reverse order.

(Yet, with somewhat limited space for Maelstrom, I can understand the challenges the designers faced.)

 

[Tuvalu]

IMO: If they showed the film at the beginning (prior to the boat ride -- an indoors "pre-show" so to speak, like some other attractions) -- that would have also helped move some of the crowd inside, out of the long outdoor queue. Hence, I think the interest for the film would have worked out better, in that reverse order.

(Yet, with somewhat limited space for Maelstrom, I can understand the challenges the designers faced.)

Great thought!

 

[Tuvalu]

Wednesday, con’t

Back in the early years of Epcot, World of Motion was my favorite attraction in the park. I rode it so often that it became a family joke. Each time I approached the entrance I would say, “I’ve never ridden this before,” to the annoyance of whomever was with me.

I was sad when WoM closed and my boys were sad when it took 3.5 years (or however long the delay was!) to open Test Track.

Test Track was a must-do on family trips but Woody and I didn’t ride on our trips. When 2.0 premiered in 2013 it was a novelty at first but never a priority in future years. I did my best to avoid spoilers for 3.0.

Those are the “hazardous rocks” naysayers whine about. But I’m sure it’s only a matter of time that some kid (or worse, adult) will decide to climb on them, fall, and blame Disney.

Single riders and LL are merged into the same line. We waited less than 10 minutes.

The ride was fun. It had some “nods” to prior versions and WoM. However the constant braking upon re-entering the building after the outdoor loop was very jerky and hard on my back. It was so painful that I nixed a second go-round via Single Rider. (Radiator Springs Racers this ain’t!)

There are three different backgrounds in the ride photo. Notice how they capture my attention!

My overall verdict? Way better than 2.0, better than 1.0 - but still not as good as World of Motion!

 

[Tuvalu]

Our next LL wasn’t exactly at lightning speed….it was a 20 minute wait!

Whereas LL#3 had us in a boat in no time.

Hey, it’s the G.O.A.T.!

Without any special displays from Flower and Garden, Food and Wine or Christmas, our journey through the greenhouses seemed rather dull.

 

[cgersic]

I'm no naysayer, but why the rocks? Are they something they make fuel out of? Asking from a design standpoint as they seem rather "off" with this just having a refurb.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

World of Motion was so great. I know many who long for Horizons and while I liked Horizons a lot World of Motion was more fun for me.

 

[Tuvalu]

I'm no naysayer, but why the rocks? Are they something they make fuel out of? Asking from a design standpoint as they seem rather "off" with this just having a refurb.

I read a lot of complaints about them the day the rocks were installed.

 

[Cinderelly70]

Contrary to the sign we only waited 10 minutes. In the load area we were assigned Row 1 and a mom with her teen son were assigned Row 2. She said to me, “Arty Pooh?”

I grinned and said, “Yes!”

She explained she is a lurker on the trip report forum. We didn’t have but a few seconds to chat before our hunny pot arrived. To my pot companion if you’re reading this - I appreciate your kindness, and am glad you had the courage to speak up. I love meeting forum peeps!

I'm here! It was wonderful to meet you! Thank you for taking a few minutes to talk to us- it was an honor to ride Arty Pooh with you and Woody!

 

[Tuvalu]

Wednesday, con’t

We were hungry after LWTL and since there were food options right in front of us we checked out our options in Sunshine Seasons. We got our food immediately but the cashier lines were long. It didn’t help that we got stuck behind not one, but two families with the dining plan who had no idea how the plan works and got upset with the CM as she patiently explained what’s included in a quick service credit and the extra items on the trays needed to be paid for.

Ringing up our order was far quicker for those in line behind us!

Woody chose the Mongolian Beef.

Umm, Tuvalu, that’s Stir-Fried Chicken in Woody’s bowl.

Yeah, I know. I said Woody chose Mongolian Beef. He ate my Stir-Fried Chicken. There was too much zing in the chicken for Tu’s tastebuds.

The Mongolian Beef suited me better.

Woody loves cookies and I mentioned that I’d seen a chocolate hazelnut cookie in the bakery display case. I offered to get one, since he had already sacrificed his first lunch choice for me.

When I removed it from the display case, it looked less like a soft cookie (as it did from a distance) and more like a frosted brownie. I put it on a tray anyway and once again picked the wrong line in which to stand. After suffering through more dining plan confusion ahead of me, I got out of line the moment I noticed a register on the far end was empty.

This was definitely not a cookie. The bottom was an over-baked brownie. The frosting was whipped buttercream with a hint of Nutella.

Woody ate about half before deciding it wasn’t worth the extra calories. I gave my forkful a meh rating. Cookies, by nature, are supposed to be eaten by hand - am I right?