Trip Report Week Full of Relaxation and Directional Challenges - An April Trip Report

It’s been 4 months since my April trip so it’s about time that I get this report done! I usually try to get it done shortly after returning but it has been a crazy busy summer. I figure I need to start now since my next trip is now only 46 days away! I promise to do better after that trip.

So let’s get to it!

The Details

Who: Me (Ashley) and my husband, Wes

Picture from our November 2012 Trip

On this trip, we were joined by Wes’ parents, his older brother, younger sister, and younger brother.

When: April 24-30, 2014

Where: Disney’s Old Key West Resort

Thursday April 24th – We Arrive, Get Lost for the First Time this Trip and Visit Downtown Disney

This was kind of a last minute trip. Wes’ parents are DVC members and they had points that they were going to lose if they didn’t use them. So, they decided to rent a 2-bedroom villa at Old Key West and invited us to come with them. We would have to share a room with his little sister but I didn’t mind! A free room at WDW? Count me in!

Since this was a last minute trip, I was already there in March and we were going again in October (I’m out of control with Disney trips!), we needed to drive this trip. We have always had the luxury of flying on our trips so driving was a new adventure, hence the title of this trip report.

We woke up at 5am and left the house around 5:40am. I wanted to leave at 5:30am so we weren’t too off schedule. I’ll share a few pictures of our 9 hour car ride.

You know it’s too early when it’s still dark outside

Wes decided to sleep most of the morning ride.

Almost there!

So close!

We made it!

We arrived at Old Key West around 2:30pm. It took us 9 hours and that was with us stopping 3 times to use the facilities and get some food. Not too shabby! We checked in and were told that our room was ready. Sweet! We made our way to building 21 to check out our room. Wes was driving and I was the navigator as we left the main building to head to our room. I was looking at the map that the hotel gave us and I instructed Wes to turn right. Well, what do you know? We should have gone straight and we now just left the resort! Hahaha Oops! We literally drove in to the resort, checked in, and then drove out.

After that first of several directional challenges committed by me (and later by Siri), we finally found our building and room!

I was so glad that our room was ready because I really needed to use the restroom! We climbed the stairs up to our second floor room with luggage in tow only to find that Mousekeeping was still in our room! Ahhhhh! I normally wouldn’t be bothered but when you gotta go, you gotta go! Hahaha After a few minutes, the Mousekeeper was done and we were able to get into our room.

Love this lamp in the living room!

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

The instructors started with having all of us put our belongings away, including my camera. I was bummed I couldn’t keep wearing it but I guess it was a safety hazard. Whatcha gonna do? I still had my phone so that would do.

The instructors were really funny and made it fun to learn the whole process. I wrote a review of my experience if you are interested in reading more about it. Insert link to shameless plug here: I Want to Be Like Katniss! - Disney’s Fort Wilderness Archery Experience Review

Each person was paired up to a target. We would all shoot at the same time and then when you were done with shooting your arrows, you would go to the back. Wes and I took turns shooting our arrows so we could try to take some pictures of each other.

After each round, one person would gather the arrows from their target and bring them back to the quiver.

I look ridiculous in the above picture with my safety goggles but I posted a funny picture of Wes so I guess I deserve this.

Go get ‘em Wes!

At the end of our session, we were allowed a quick photo session with the target and our bows. We weren’t allowed to do any pose where we were pretending to shoot but our instructor gave us some other choices. I went with the “woo hoo” pose!

Wes went with a more classic archery pose.

Wes was a pro at archery. He hit the target every time and got a bulls eye several times. I hit the target all but twice, which I thought was pretty successful! I still can’t imagine trying to hit a moving target though. At least zombies are slow so I may have a chance at surviving. Maybe…

Overall, I really enjoyed the archery experience and was glad that we signed up for it. It was a new experience to us which I am always looking for at WDW. It keeps the trips exciting and new when you try new things! If you are interested in archery or want to be like Katniss, I would recommend.

We had a ton of fun at Fort Wilderness but we were ready to head back to Old Key West to rest. We decided against walking back and took a bus. We drove by some of the campsites and I couldn’t believe all of the people who stay in tents. It really did look like an episode of The Walking Dead! Yikes! I’m not knocking camping at all but it’s just not my style. Now a Deluxe RV with electricity…that I may be able to swing.

We got back to Old Key West and watched TV for a bit in the room. We decided to go to the Hospitality House to get me another refill (#7) and so I could get some dinner. None of the food we brought sounded good to me.

Since we didn’t have any plans for tonight and Wes’ family was still at the MK, we decided to rent some movies from Community Hall. DVC members can rent movies for free which is awesome.

We went back to the room and watched WALL-E while I ate my chicken tenders. Real adult date night happening here.

We went to bed around 10 so we could be rested for another day of relaxation tomorrow.

Sunday April 27th – Lots of Pool Time, Mini-Golf and Our Biggest Directional Challenge of the Trip

Today we were doing nothing. Well, not really nothing, but pretty close to it. I woke up around 9 to get myself ready to go down to the pool. I don’t mind sleeping in while at WDW but I feel guilty wasting the day away. So I went up to the main pool alone and tried to save 5 seats. I know. I’m one of those terrible people. Luckily, it wasn’t crowded at all so I really didn’t have to do anything.

Blue skies and sunshine today!

That’s my towel on the far right chair. And see! No one else is around so no harm saving seats.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

I took enough pictures to fill my heart’s content and returned to my chair for some lounging and reading a good book. I love lazy pool days! The guys showed up around 11 and decided to go to the gym. Wes’ mom got there a little bit later so I wasn’t all by my lonesome. After the guys were done with the gym, it was time for some cornhole and shuffle board!

Hey Wes!

Anyone a fan of Seinfeld? Wes and I love the show and we quote it all the time. So, naturally while we were playing shuffle board we kept saying “We’re going to be all over that shuffleboard court!” in that Frank Costanza voice. Don’t know what I’m talking about?


Thanks YouTube!

We went back to the room for lunch around 2 and then continued our lounging by the pool. We finally called it a day about 4:30 and headed back to our room. I think by the end of our pool day, I was up to refill number 12.

We ate a super early dinner tonight because Wes’ family was going to see Captain America at DTD at 8. So we ate dinner at 5. Early bird style. After dinner, we took a bus with Wes’ fam to DTD. We decided we wanted to do a little shopping.

LOVE this!

Instead of buying everything I want, I take pictures. It helps… a little.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

I wanted Woody and Buzz in the picture but Wes didn’t get the memo I guess.

We decided we would go play some mini-golf tonight so we went back to the resort to grab our car. We made our way to Fantasia Gardens.

I got a hole in one on the first hole! Woo hoo! Sadly, my game went downhill from there!

Unfortunately for us, there was a major back up happening on the course tonight. We weren’t sure who the culprits were but we quickly found out. There was a group of 3 kids (again, I call them kids but they were probably 18 to 20) who didn’t adhere to the 6 stroke limit rule. They were literally all taking 10 to 15 strokes per hole and they wouldn’t offer for anyone to go in front of them. Drives. Me. Crazy.

One positive was that we could hear Fantasmic while we played and it gave me a chance to take a bunch of pictures. I didn’t really want the pictures of us playing putt putt but it helped kill time.

What do you do when you’re bored? Post on Instagram of course!

We finally finished our round of mini golf after about an hour and a half. The end wasn’t so enjoyable but we had fun. We made our way back to the resort when Wes’ older brother called us. He had just flown in and arrived at the resort via DME. He was asking us what room we were in and where we were. According to Siri, we were only about 5 minutes away. We decided to follow Siri’s directions home which was a huge mistake. She drove us out of WDW. We tried to get back and she sent us THROUGH a closed Hollywood Studios! Seriously Siri?! She’s the worst.

We made it back to where we were when Wes’ brother called us and it had now been about 20 minutes. Ridiculousness. We finally made it back to OKW but poor Wes’ brother had to wait outside the room because I had his MagicBand. Oops. Sorry!

We finally let him in the room and had a good laugh about it. (His brother not so much)

Wes’ family returned from the Magic Kingdom and we hung out for a little bit. Then it was time for bed because we had a busy day tomorrow!


Up next: A Full Day at Epcot!

 

[Maggie Mae]

lovin' the report! how fun! ugh, youths! they ruin everything kidding

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

lovin' the report! how fun! ugh, youths! they ruin everything kidding

Thanks for reading @Maggie Mae! Oh those darn youths! I have never been a fan of teenagers and that includes when I was one. Hahaha

 

[Maggie Mae]

ditto, teens and I never friends haha!

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

Monday April 28th – Epcot Here We Come!

Today was our second and last day visiting the parks. I woke up a little before 7am so I could make some dining reservations. I decided to go out to the balcony so I wouldn’t wake everyone else up. It looked like it would be a really nice day. I had to Instagram my view.

After making some reservations, I went back in and finished getting ready. I woke up Wes and the kids at 7:40 and let them know that we would be leaving in 20 minutes. Wes woke up after some more minutes of sleep but the kids wanted to keep sleeping. We called in to his parents room and they also weren’t ready to leave yet. It looked like it would just be Wes and me to start the day. We didn’t leave the room until 8:20.

Very empty quiet pool

A very empty bus as well

We caught a bus right away and ended up getting to Epcot at 8:40. Not bad.

We figured we would take a quick spin on Test Track before his family got there. I was excited for Wes to see the new design.

I was nice and let Wes design our car.

And this is what we got…

Hahaha I think it could go under water. It’s an amazingly ugly car.

Wes’ family arrived at the park by the time we exited so we made our way over to The Land to meet them and use our FP+ for Soarin.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

Next we made our way back to Test Track to ride with the family and then on to use our FP+ on Spaceship Earth.

I was paired up with Wes’ little sister and again, I let her design the car. It’s so tiny!

Wes’ family wanted to go on Mission Space but I refuse to go on that attraction. I have only gone twice and both times I feel incredibly sick. I get motion sickness just from riding in cars so I have to take Dramamine every morning of a WDW trip but even that doesn’t help me with this one. So I went to take some pictures.

I wanted a monorail to come by so bad!

Still no monorail…

I only went as far as Canada and then decided to head back towards Mission Space. As I was walking back, a monorail went by. I wasn’t quite ready for it though so I had to run to get to a decent spot.

I decided to head into Mouse Gear to cool off a little and I ended up running into Wes’ parents. They decided not to ride Mission Space and were actually buying me a birthday present! I kind of ruined the surprise by seeing them carrying some items that I pointed out to Wes earlier in the week. My birthday was in January but this was the first we had seen them since so they decided to give me my present in WDW.

Not my present but I really like these mugs

I started collecting Vinylmations and Wes was with his parents when they picked out the box for my gift. I have been collecting the Pixar series ones and I really wanted Boo. I had this theory on my March trip that Boo should weigh a little more than the other ones because she had the mini doll with her. In March I went with too much weight and got Mr. Pricklepants (who I loved though!) so now we knew that it had to be slightly less than him but slightly more than the other ones. Sad how much thought I have put into this. I decided to open the box right then and there and guess who I got….

It’s Boo!

I was super excited!! After browsing, we went back to Mission Space to see if they were done.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

It was time to head to our lunch at Le Cellier! It would only be the 5 of us, as the kids weren’t invited. Hahaha No, I’m just kidding. Wes’ parents just didn’t think they would enjoy it enough to make it worth paying for their meals. So they were on their own. Wes and I decided that we would treat his parents to lunch as a thank you for inviting us on this trip.

Look who we saw in Canada!

ADORABLE! These little ducklings were sooooo cute! We hung around for a little bit and just watched them before checking in for lunch.

Wes’ parents

I absolutely love the pretzel bread and cheddar cheese soup so I decided to just do that as my meal. Whenever I get that and an entrée, I am always too full so I figured best to stick with the bread and soup. Wes’ mom was so funny because when she was about to order she said “I feel like splurging today” and then ordered the Rib Eye. Hahaha She told us later when the bill came that she forgot we were paying. Sure, you did!

The Filet

My cheddar cheese soup

Rib Eye

Duck (I couldn't believe Wes' older brother ordered this after seeing the cute ducks outside!

Wes’ family was really good at remembering that I like to take pictures. Everyone loved their lunch and I was really happy that we could treat them. It was the least we could do after letting us stay in WDW for free.

After lunch, we went to go find the kids. They were eating lunch in China so we waited near the entrance to Future World for them to come join us. I spent this time staking out a spot to catch a monorail.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

There she is!!

Wes’ parental units

We were waiting for them for a while. So long, in fact, that another monorail came by!

More monorail

Up next: We tour World Showcase

 

[PirateTink]

So worth the wait!!! Gorgeous pics!!

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

So worth the wait!!! Gorgeous pics!!

Thanks! I am so impatient so waiting was a little difficult for me but I was really glad I stuck it out.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

The kids finally arrived and we decided to go on a tour of World Showcase. First though, there was something we needed to get.

CRONUT!! OMG cronuts are AMAZING. They are quite possibly my favorite snack EVER. We only ordered one since we were still pretty full from lunch. Next trip I’m eating one a day.

World Showcase trashcans

We went back to Canada for some O’ Canada and the ducks were still there! So cute.

Adorable

While waiting for O’ Canada to start, the kids decided they wanted to go to the Animal Kingdom. We said bye and reminded them to make sure to be back in time for our dinner reservations.

Next stop was the United Kingdom.

Trash can in the UK

We realized that the British Revolution would be performing in a little bit so we decided to hang out in the UK.

British Revolution (and some World Showcase trash cans that demanded they be in the picture)

France was the next stop on our World tour.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

We went in to see Impressions de France and I honestly don’t remember ever seeing this film. If I have seen it, it was so long ago that I didn’t remember a thing except the soundtrack and that’s because I have the song on my iPhone.

We didn’t stop in Morocco but I took some pictures as we passed through.

We didn’t even visit Japan. I can’t remember the last time I really stopped to look around in Japan. Next time for sure. I’m adding it to my list now.

I had to stop to take a picture in the American Adventure pavilion because Lotso wasn’t there when I was there in March.

Italy was next. Again, no real stopping just a brief moment to take some pictures.

We did make a stop in Germany. Wes, his dad and older brother had to get a beer in Germany to honor Wes’ Grandfather who passed away back in 2009. So while the guys waited in line to get their beer, I took pictures of some topiaries.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

We were done with our World Showcase tour and we still had some time to kill before our dinner reservations. We decided to head back to Future World to do another round on Test Track. While waiting in line they announced that a storm was coming through and the ride would need to be suspended until further notice. Dang. We saw a ton of people leaving but we decided to just hang out indoors out of the rain. The ride finally opened back up and we were good to go.

Wes and I rode together and I finally got to design the car. Wes’ parents and brother paired up to make their car.

Our car

Their car was a monster!

It was still sprinkling a little bit when we went on the track outside but it wasn’t bad. I was just happy we waited out the storm indoors and didn’t get soaked.

The kids were on their way back to Epcot so we went in Mouse Gear to kill some time.

The kids arrived and we made our way back to World Showcase. As we were passing Club Cool I asked them if they had ever been in there and Wes’ entire family had never gone! WHAT?! Crazy. We took a detour into Club Cool so they could try some Beverly.

They didn’t like Beverly but they liked trying the different flavors. I know Club Cool isn’t anything super exciting but I think its neat and worth a visit.

Back on track, we made our way to Mexico for dinner.

All us kids waiting for dinner

We ordered the queso fundido as an appetizer and I enjoyed the chips and salsa. They are my favorite.

Wes’ brothers split the Parrillada "La Hacienda" which had a lot of things.

I normally always get the taquiza appetizer for dinner but I decided to try something new tonight. I went with another appetizer for my dinner and got the Camarones a la Parrilla. It was really tasty but I still like the taquiza better.

Wes stuck with the taquiza and I can’t remember what the rest of his family ordered. That’s what I get for waiting 5 months to write this report.

Wes and I knew that we needed to get some dessert since the last time we ate there on the Deluxe Dining Plan and got the Empanada de Manzana. I love apple desserts and this one is great!

Everyone really enjoyed their meals and liked our choice for dinner! Woo hoo! We had contemplated staying inside the restaurant to watch IllumiNations but we decided to go grab a spot on the Future World side of World Showcase so we could make a quick exit once they were done.

I decided to go ahead and put my camera away for IllumiNations. My pictures just never turn out well and I didn’t want to keep watching the show through my camera lens. I really love IllumiNations, especially the part when We Go On starts playing. Great song!

After IllumiNations we made a quick exit and I tried to take a few pictures along the way before leaving. I hate leaving the park when you know you won’t be going back to a park again until your next trip.

We caught a bus right away and were all able to get seats. We made it back to the resort by 10 and went to bed after a long but fun day in Epcot. Tomorrow would be our last full day in WDW.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

Tuesday April 29th – Last Full Day of Vacation

Today I woke up at 9:47. Yikes!! I wouldn’t think much of this on any normal day at home but this was our last day to spend in WDW and I was sleeping the day away! I hurried and got ready to go lounge by the pool. I woke Wes up and made him get up and join me. We got to the pool around 10:30 and just relaxed. I wanted to enjoy our last day of vacation as much as possible. I decided to leave my DSLR in the room and truly relax.

It was a cloudy day but it was really hot. Wes’ family joined us a little later. We lounged, swam, played shuffle board and I read a book. It was delightful. Around 2pm I realized that we should get some lunch. I didn’t want to walk all the way back to the room so we got some food from Good’s Food To Go and ate at a picnic table.

I got the hot dog and Wes got the pizza

We finally decided to call it a day at the pool around 4:40. We ate dinner in the room and a storm started around 6. I wanted to go back to Downtown Disney and explore some resorts but we didn’t want to get drenched so we decided to try to wait out the storm a little bit. I took this time to pack up some of our stuff. Boo.

The storm cleared around 7 and we made our way to the buses with ponchos in hand. Wes’ family was visiting the outlet malls tonight so we would see them later in the room.

So gloomy

We were waiting for a bus to DTD and the rain started up again so on the ponchos went.

So stylish

We decided to go into Goofy’s Candy Company so I could buy some rice crispy treats to take home to my Mom (and some for myself)

Wes wanted to get some ice cream from Ghiradelli so that was our next stop.

Yummy

I wasn’t sure what we should do tonight since it was so rainy. I really wanted to ride the monorail since we hadn’t done that yet and if we were doing that then we might as well explore all of the monorail resorts. So we hopped a bus to the Grand Floridian from DTD. Well, the bus drivers were switching shifts at the Pleasure Island stop and it took FOR-E-VER! Oh my gosh it was terrible. We seriously sat there for 15 minutes at the stop. Just waiting. The driver who took over couldn’t get her code to work in the system. I was going crazy because our last night was not going as I had planned.

We finally left DTD and made our way to the GF but we had to stop at the Wilderness Lodge first. On our way there we saw Wishes from the bus. So much for seeing it from one of the monorail resorts.

I love these transport times screens!

We finally made it to the Grand Floridian and I was over it at this point. Wes didn’t feel like touring the resorts in the first place so I felt bad for everything taking so long. We quickly walked through the GF and just went straight to the monorail. I took pictures along the way but they didn’t turn out anything like I’d hoped.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

I felt like such a Debbie Downer on our last night. I think it was a combination of the rain and just really bad luck with the buses. But despite our not so perfect last night, we had a wonderful trip and I wasn’t going to let it get me down. We hopped on the monorail and got off at the Magic Kingdom. Yay!

We may not have gone to the MK this trip but at least I got to see it.

We caught a bus back to Old Key West and I was hoping we could make it back in time for me to get one last refill. There would be no such luck. Oh well! I would get some more tomorrow.

We got back to the room and finished packing. Tomorrow we would be leaving to drive back home early in the morning.



Tuesday April 30th – Vacation Over

We woke up around 7:30 and packed up our car. I hate the last day of a vacation! Since were driving this trip we had to wake up and leave early.

Foggy camera lens

We said our goodbyes to Wes’ family and then made our way for one quick stop at the main building so I could get a final refill. By the end of our trip I think my refill count was up to 21. Yea buddy! I got my money’s worth out of that mug.

Goodbye Old Key West Resort! We had a wonderful time!

We drove back and it took just under 9 hours this time. Wes was driving most of the way this time and he doesn't obey the speed limit as well as I do. We had such a great week relaxing in WDW and trying some new things. Knowing that we had another trip in October made leaving just a little more bearable.


Up next: Some final thoughts

 

[gsrjedi]

I enjoyed your TR and you have some great photos.

 

[mrdrift]

I know it is sad to write the final day of this report that brings back the leaving Disney pain, but at least you get to go back in October YAY!! Thanks for sharing this wonderful family trip with us with all the great pictures even the camera fog ones, I hate when you come out of the room in the morning and use the camera the first time of the day and the lens does that, humidity I guess causes that. Will be watching for the October pre-trip.

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

Love your report Ashley! We've done the drive to WDW a couple times... only we're about 15 hours north of you!! lol so the 9 hours you drove doesn't seem so bad to me!!

The archery thing at FW looks really cool! I used to teach archery at a summer camp when I was a counselor there. I can’t say I was ever very good at it, but it’s fun!

I KNEW when you said you were making ADRs that La Hacienda was going to be one of them! I know from your past reports how much you like that place. I have yet to try it but hopefully someday!! Kona Café is another favorite of mine for breakfast. We have an ADR there in November. The pineapple macadamia pancakes are calling my name.

Old Key West looks nice! My great aunt is an original owner at DVC and actually when she bought, Old Key West was actually called Disney Vacation Club. It was the only DVC at that time!!