Just got back from our weekend getaway (our anniversary celebration!). We had an absolutely amazing time. Stayed at POR in the Alligator Bayou section, which we had requested. It was OK, but we much prefer the mansions.
We arrived Friday night around 10 pm, so after checking in and grabbing a quick bite to eat, we headed for the pools. We were a little surprised at how many young children were still swimming at that time, but we had fun anyway and met a few people our age. Much to our dismay, the hot tub was closed for repairs or remodeling or something, so we called it a night and went back to our room.
Saturday morning we had a nice leisurely breakfast at Boatwrights (yay for Banana Stuffed French Toast!). The food was great and we had excellent service. We headed for MK around 10 am, fully prepared to leave early if it was too crowded. Much to our delight, not only was it not crowded, but there were characters everywhere it seemed. We did Buzz Lightyear, TTA,CoP, and could have basically walked on to SM, but decided against it since DH is still having back pains. Headed over to FantasyLand where we rode Peter Pan and Small World, before heading to HM. The wait time there was posted as 20 minutes, but actually was about 10. From there we headed over to get a FastPass for Splash Mountain, then basically walked on to Big Thunder (10 minute wait time). We still had about 45 minutes til we could use our FP, so we went over to Pirates of the Caribbean (walked on), then had a Dole Whip. We went back to Splash Mt. with our FastPasses , then after riding this, we took the train back to Main St., and exited the MK at about 2:45.
From there we headed to the Studios for a quick visit to RnRC and ToT. Since there was no line at all we rode both of these twice, did a little shopping, then headed out before the parade. On to EPCOT!
Of course, we started our EPCOT adventure with a ride on SSE. I really miss Walter Cronkite's narration, but it's still a great ride. We checked the wait time for Soarin, and it was posted as 60 minutes, so we decided to skip it this time - we rode it twice in June - in favor of Margaritas at the Cantina outside of Mexico, and shopping in WS. We had dinner reservations for the Biergarten, so we just kind of strolled around the world for a while before our reservation time. Dinner was great as always there. I love how they seat you at long tables with strangers. We met a delightful couple from Illinois and two couples from Switzerland, which led to some very interesting conversations. The entertainment was fun (thanks in part to a male guest dressed in a skirt and knee-high lace-up sandals - don't ask!). We stayed there and feasted til 8:45, then headed out to find a place to watch Illuminations or Reflections of Earth or whatever it's called now. The fireworks were amazing, and we could also see the Wishes fireworks on the horizon.
After the fireworks we headed back to POR, badly in need of a hot tub. We quickly changed into our bathing suits, got back in the car and headed next door to the other PO to use their tub and pool, since this is allowed between the 2 hotels. The hot tub was much appreciated, but the pool was a little disappointing, so we headed back to POR and swam there for a while.
We had an 11 am flight out of MCO, so we checked out of our room around 7:30 so we'd have time for breakfast again at Boatwrights. At checkout I mentioned to the CM that when we went to make coffee that morning in our room we realized that not only had housekeeping not cleaned the coffeepot from the previous day, but had also not left us any coffee supplies for that morning's coffee. The CM went to the back room for a minute and came back and told us that they had taken $40 off our bill for us to use for breakfast on them at Boatwrights. That was a great surprise, and a perfect ending to a wonderful weekend.
So many magical moments happened to us this weekend, but a few really stick out in my mind. The CMs who kept giving us pins to wear in the parks when they found out it was our anniversary - the free churros they gave us at the cantina - the cake at the Biergarten - all this and more. One of my favorites though happened at checkout. In the lobby they have a TV constantly showing Disney cartoons to entertain the kids while their parents check in or out. Seated there were 3 small children sitting in the 3 tiny chairs lined up in front of the TV, totally transfixed by the same cartoons that entertained us 40 or 50 years ago. It was just one of those quiet Disney moments that really get to you. It truly is a magical place!
We arrived Friday night around 10 pm, so after checking in and grabbing a quick bite to eat, we headed for the pools. We were a little surprised at how many young children were still swimming at that time, but we had fun anyway and met a few people our age. Much to our dismay, the hot tub was closed for repairs or remodeling or something, so we called it a night and went back to our room.
Saturday morning we had a nice leisurely breakfast at Boatwrights (yay for Banana Stuffed French Toast!). The food was great and we had excellent service. We headed for MK around 10 am, fully prepared to leave early if it was too crowded. Much to our delight, not only was it not crowded, but there were characters everywhere it seemed. We did Buzz Lightyear, TTA,CoP, and could have basically walked on to SM, but decided against it since DH is still having back pains. Headed over to FantasyLand where we rode Peter Pan and Small World, before heading to HM. The wait time there was posted as 20 minutes, but actually was about 10. From there we headed over to get a FastPass for Splash Mountain, then basically walked on to Big Thunder (10 minute wait time). We still had about 45 minutes til we could use our FP, so we went over to Pirates of the Caribbean (walked on), then had a Dole Whip. We went back to Splash Mt. with our FastPasses , then after riding this, we took the train back to Main St., and exited the MK at about 2:45.
From there we headed to the Studios for a quick visit to RnRC and ToT. Since there was no line at all we rode both of these twice, did a little shopping, then headed out before the parade. On to EPCOT!
Of course, we started our EPCOT adventure with a ride on SSE. I really miss Walter Cronkite's narration, but it's still a great ride. We checked the wait time for Soarin, and it was posted as 60 minutes, so we decided to skip it this time - we rode it twice in June - in favor of Margaritas at the Cantina outside of Mexico, and shopping in WS. We had dinner reservations for the Biergarten, so we just kind of strolled around the world for a while before our reservation time. Dinner was great as always there. I love how they seat you at long tables with strangers. We met a delightful couple from Illinois and two couples from Switzerland, which led to some very interesting conversations. The entertainment was fun (thanks in part to a male guest dressed in a skirt and knee-high lace-up sandals - don't ask!). We stayed there and feasted til 8:45, then headed out to find a place to watch Illuminations or Reflections of Earth or whatever it's called now. The fireworks were amazing, and we could also see the Wishes fireworks on the horizon.
After the fireworks we headed back to POR, badly in need of a hot tub. We quickly changed into our bathing suits, got back in the car and headed next door to the other PO to use their tub and pool, since this is allowed between the 2 hotels. The hot tub was much appreciated, but the pool was a little disappointing, so we headed back to POR and swam there for a while.
We had an 11 am flight out of MCO, so we checked out of our room around 7:30 so we'd have time for breakfast again at Boatwrights. At checkout I mentioned to the CM that when we went to make coffee that morning in our room we realized that not only had housekeeping not cleaned the coffeepot from the previous day, but had also not left us any coffee supplies for that morning's coffee. The CM went to the back room for a minute and came back and told us that they had taken $40 off our bill for us to use for breakfast on them at Boatwrights. That was a great surprise, and a perfect ending to a wonderful weekend.
So many magical moments happened to us this weekend, but a few really stick out in my mind. The CMs who kept giving us pins to wear in the parks when they found out it was our anniversary - the free churros they gave us at the cantina - the cake at the Biergarten - all this and more. One of my favorites though happened at checkout. In the lobby they have a TV constantly showing Disney cartoons to entertain the kids while their parents check in or out. Seated there were 3 small children sitting in the 3 tiny chairs lined up in front of the TV, totally transfixed by the same cartoons that entertained us 40 or 50 years ago. It was just one of those quiet Disney moments that really get to you. It truly is a magical place!
