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Trip Report Whose Trip Is It Anyway? *LIVE*

It's mine. But it wasn't supposed to be.

The vacation to celebrate my <number redacted> birthday with my beloved Woody was supposed to happen at the end of January and included time with @lindawdw, @ajrwdwgirl and a few other forum friends. But a predicted ice storm and a couple other extenuating circumstances caused us to cancel our plans two days prior to departure.

This trip was supposed to be a belated birthday celebration for my mother during winter break for my brother's family. I was going to accompany her and assist with her mobility challenges. The day after we canceled my birthday trip, Mom announced she no longer wanted to go to WDW and insisted Woody take her place since the resort was already paid in full. (She did have several local celebrations on and around her actual birthday.)

Our airline tickets were refunded and since Woody prefers driving from Atlanta we added a couple nights to our trip. No spoilers yet, just a math problem.

Winter break + Presidents' Day + Mardi Gras + Lunar New Year + Snowbirds = A crowd collision of massive proportions

When: February 14-19, 2026
Where: Disney's Art of Animation Resort
Who: Tuvalu and Woody, with family introductions to come

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93boomer

93boomer

Premium Member
Tuvalu said:
Thursday, con’t

Kel and I share a mutual fondness for Haunted Mansion. She said it was a must-do and did not care how long the wait was.

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How long was it? Couldn’t tell ya. We were catching up with life. I do remember the CM at the merge point trying to get the consolidation of standby and LL guests to move forward by yelling, “If you see dead space, it’s your space!”

Woody told me and Kel to ride together which was either brilliant or a mistake depending on point of view. Riding by himself, Woody got to appreciate the attraction distraction-free.

Kel and I were in the graveyard scene before it occurred to me that I had no memory of the ride photo flash. Wanting a picture of us together in our doom buggy, I attempted this at the end of the ride. Phineas had hitched himself to the top of our doom buggy, but in typical ghost fashion he disappeared the moment I clicked.

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Did we get the official HM ride photo?

Oh yes.

What happens when the entire tour is spent chick chatting and you fail to notice all the cool stuff around you, which is the reason you wanted to do Haunted Mansion in the first place?

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I rest my case.
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I ❤️this picture!!
 
93boomer

93boomer

Premium Member
Tuvalu said:
Thursday, con’t

Woody had a hard stop on the time to leave MK so we wouldn’t get trapped by the parade. Kel was very understanding and she was ready to head out - but not before a ride on the Peoplemover.

“I missed out when you guys were on it this morning!” she said. For a half second I was tempted to give Woody puppy dog eyes, hoping we could join her for one final spin.

But I quickly remembered that he was the one driving us to GA and he didn’t want to arrive at the hotel after dark.

We gave Kel goodbye hugs instead.

Woody and I popped into the Confectionery to pick up some sweet treats for loved ones and beat FoF’s arrival through Town Square.

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Ferry had served us well this morning so it was the obvious choice for returning to the parking lot.

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#ShirleyStatus

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My phone buzzed with a text from Kel. In that moment I was really glad I had not given into temptation to go on Peoplemover with her.

Kel was stuck on the Peoplemover inside Space Mountain!

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At first she thought the experience was really cool. She had never seen Space Mountain with the lights on. But the novelty soon wore off. I can’t remember how long she was delayed, but there was no evacuation.

Meanwhile this was our view -

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Traffic flowed freely during our journey north and we were checking in at dusk. (No getting bumped to another hotel! 🙌)

We grabbed a quick dinner at Chick-fil-A and watched more Olympic competitions before sleep overtook us.

Rather than partake of the hotel’s free breakfast in the lobby, Woody and I went to @Nunu favorite - Cracker Barrel - before getting on the interstate towards home.

And what a delicious deal we got!

Woody and I typically order the Old Timer’s breakfast (now before the snark starts, we’ve been eating the Old Timer’s since we were in our 30s!) Two eggs any style, bacon or sausage, hash brown casserole or grits and toast or biscuits and gravy.

Woody ordered his, I ordered mine and our server said, “Do you want me to make it the special? You get free cinnamon buns with the special.”

Schitts Creek Comedy GIF by CBC


Warm, soft, gooey, yummy. We got a to-go box for the leftovers.

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My plate. Woody’s is on the other side of the skillet.

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What would you pay for all that food?

We paid $20! (Not including tax, tip or coffee) After a week at Disney, our breakfast was a steal! (And before anyone asks, it was not a Senior deal. The Old Timers 2 for $20 -with free cinnamon buns - is available to all.)

I was so full that the movement of the car could have lulled me into a nap. But I stayed awake to keep Woody company during the 3.5 hour trip home.

Thanks for following y’all! 🫶
See ya real soon.
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Great trip!!! Thanks for sharing. Waiting for the next one soon. 😉
 
Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Premium Member
Original Poster
Minnesota disney fan said:
Tu: We loved Cracker Barrell too. However, up here in the North country there aren't any in sight, lol. We've enjoyed that breakfast many times....3 and 1/2 hours drive home sounds great! to me. Our drive would be 2 1/2 days, so that's why we fly. Enjoyed your trip report once again - Thank you!
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We’re actually around 7.5 hours from WDW and do the drive in one day. Splitting the difference this trip was a luxury!
 
Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Premium Member
Original Poster
Whose Trip Is It Anyway?

It’s Em’s. Because visiting WDW during Easter break would not be my choice.

In all fairness it wouldn’t be Em’s choice either. But educators are limited by the school calendar and staff must plan vacations around it. Her county’s spring break is always early April, which this year coincides with Easter. We’ve taken many spring break trips with crowded parks, but the ones with Easter overlap are always the worst in terms of crowds.

But hey, I survived February’s crowd collision of epic proportion. Maybe this week won’t be as bad?

Only time will tell. We did cave and purchased LLMP for four of our days. (We used rewards dollars so the pain wasn’t too bad.) And we’ve become pretty good at going with the flow.

I’m attempting to report live. We’ll see how it goes!

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Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Premium Member
Original Poster
WL has been under refurb in various forms for nearly two years. I recently read that the main entrance and guard shack will be enlarged.

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Work has begun.

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After driving up and down a couple of rows, we finally found a parking space. I’m betting a lot of the cars belonged to those enjoying an Easter meal at Whispering Canyon, as the restaurant and lobby were completely full.

We got our room text the moment we parked. Headed inside to check out the room.

Tu and Em are home!!

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Tuvalu

Tuvalu

Premium Member
Original Poster
Sunday, con’t

When Em told me our room number she knew immediately I would not be happy.

We’d been assigned the 6th floor, which meant an enclosed balcony. Basically our “water view” from inside the room was the top floor of the wing across the way.

My optimistic self had said, “Let’s go check out the room anyway. Maybe i can make it work.” Within three seconds I knew I couldn’t. Em was right!

While I went to the Front Desk to inquire about a room change, hungry Em went here.

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She got us new mugs.

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And our usual arrival day snack.

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We were entertained (and smitten!) by a mama duck and her 9 ducklings.

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93boomer

93boomer

Premium Member
Tuvalu said:
WL has been under refurb in various forms for nearly two years. I recently read that the main entrance and guard shack will be enlarged.

View attachment 915246

Work has begun.

View attachment 915247

After driving up and down a couple of rows, we finally found a parking space. I’m betting a lot of the cars belonged to those enjoying an Easter meal at Whispering Canyon, as the restaurant and lobby were completely full.

We got our room text the moment we parked. Headed inside to check out the room.

Tu and Em are home!!

View attachment 915248

View attachment 915249
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Lets Go Family Fun GIF by CBS
 

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