MM+ Thoughts - Mickey Mail Welcome Packets - Part 2
Lets move on to page 7!
Not much to say here. It's a pretty straight forward rundown of the MagicBands and how they work.
That said, considering they put my NAME on the MDE website on the previous page, I think if they had pictures of your magicband selections and numbers, on page 7, along with the band names you chose below them, it would be another neat little addition. Maybe they'll do it someday? A guy can dream, right?
Pages 9 and 10, likewise are generic. They run you through the FP+ service and how to use the MDE app during your trip. Informative, but boilerplate.
But, from there we get really specific again, and I love it!
Book 1
Book 2
You'll note, each is customized to my resort! Pictures and all. This is really neat, and a start of a further trend I'll note in the upcoming pages.
I did, hoping for another cute video like the earlier one, but was disappointed. The URL actually takes you to the standard resort planning stage of Disney's site.
So, another suggestion for Disney. I would love it if they made a Goofy's planning video specific to each resort, and you could "explore" the hotel and amenities along with him! It wouldn't be terribly hard to do, and since they are already customizing the hotel section to your hotel, they could customize the link. So, it could be "www.disneyworld.com/resorts/AoA" for Art of Animation. Something like that.
I think they could use it to hype up the resort, as well as suggestively sell certain amenities the resort offers. Specifically for deluxe resorts where they can push additional services (like spa treatments), as well as pushing resort shopping and dining in a very visual and entertaining way that, budget wise, isn't terribly difficult to do (I mean, they sortof have goofy costumes on hand...<grin>)
It also would add a very unique "interactive" element to the brochure, as you could have these videos progress throughout each page to enhance the experience. Read the page, then watch the video, rinse and repeat!
Anyhow, I like the idea, so if you see Disney doing something like this in the future...well...I'm claiming my share of the credit! <wink>
But, I digress. Off to Page 13 and 14!
Book 1
Book 2
Two things to note. The first is obvious (on page 14, on the right). The restaurants listed are specific to the resort as well as the picture of the restaurants and the food offerings (the family in the middle picture on the left is generic).
The second is something that I suspect only happens for AoA, due to the name of the food court of AoA and how it works well with the copywriting. You'll note, on page 13 of Book 1, the first line reads:
"There are many fabulous flavors to be found throughout your Resort hotel. And, whether you hunger for something exotic or something simple, you'll find it all right here."
But, page 13 of Book 2 reads:
"Your Disney Resort hotel features the fun and flavorful Landscape of Flavors. With plenty to choose from for breakfast, lunch and dinner, this quick and convenient dining location has something for everyone!"
Neat!
Pages 15 and 16 are generic again, and talk about hotel benefits such as resort activities (movies under the stars, pool parties, etc.). It also talks about how merchandise can be shipped to your resort for you from the parks.
Now, I do have two nitpicks.
On page 15, they show a Disney Magical Express bus, but they don't specifically mention it at all (not once in the entire document that I saw, though I could have missed it, I haven't had my morning coffee yet).
Now, that could be because these packets didn't have my yellow luggage tags (not sure when that packet will come), and so they reserved any mention beyond the vague "complimentary transportation" line for that packet, but I'm not sure.
But, I think they could spend a bit more time bulleting the on-resort transportation options. The busses, monorails and boats. And, since they obviously can customize, and know where you are staying, they could even make that "intelligent" so it shows, for example, if you are at Wilderness Lodge, you can get to MK through boat or bus, or if you are Grand Floridian, you can get to MK through boat, bus or Monorail.
I dunno, a minor nitpick, but this next one is not. Because this next one is BAD SHOW!
Are you serious Disney? Ok, I can overlook that the hotels link merely goes to the hotel selection screen, but this doesn't go anywhere. This is unacceptable.
That said, they'll probably fix this in the future, and, again, I think a Goofy Planning video with him utilizing Disney Transit and talking about room merch delivery would be really neat. It can be generic, because the resort specific activities can be saved for the hotel specific videos I suggested earlier.
The next few pages are breakdowns of the parks and activities available on the resorts, and are generic to both books, so I probably won't have much commentary on them. So, lets move on?
It directs you to go to http://www.disneyworld.com/fastpassplus/super , which, unlike the previous failure...actually works? (though, I think a Goofy Vacation Video about using FP+ would be neat, instead of a brochure style webpage, but at least it works!)
Here's what you see when you go there.
However, the first few times I tried to watch it, the video just sat there and timed out...it wouldn't load.
After a few minutes (and a few refreshes) it finally worked, so...
It's pretty generic, and I think a Goofy video (or some other Fab 5, like Donald or Pluto?) would be more amusing.
This takes you to the interactive MDE map of magic kingdom. I won't mention these maps again, but the links are referenced on each of the 4 major theme parks for them.
But, I will note that when I tried to go there, it...didn't work.
Now, I know these maps work, because I've used them. But, when people talk about MDE and Disney's Site being slow, THIS is the sort of systems / performance inconsistency they are talking about. So...<ahem>...Disney...should do better.
And, just so you know it's not MY internet...here's a speedtest
Also, note, it still hasn't loaded while I'm running this AND streaming Once Upon a Time on hulu on the other screen...but the Magic Kingdom map STILL hasn't loaded...it's been...about 10 minutes now. I'm going to close that tab, but, you get the idea.
Next is my personal favorite park. EPCOT (it will always be all caps to me and end in Center, darn it!)
Then Hollywood Studios.
And Animal Kingdom.
Downtown Disney
Disney Water Parks (including a mention about the Magic Band being waterproof!)
MM+ Thoughts - Mickey Mail Welcome Packets - Part 3
Now, on page 31, the customization starts again. This discusses your tickets. On the first leg (Book 1, AKL)of my stay I didn't bother getting Park Hoppers, but for the second stay (Book 2, AoA) I did get Park Hoppers and Water Parks and More. Note the text has been changed to describe the PH and WP&M benefits!
Book 1
Book 2
The page instructs you to go to http://www.disneyworld.com/magicbands/super . Like the FP+ page, it takes you to a generic brochure style run down of Magicbands. (ahem...goofy video talking about tickets and bands here? Yeah, I like the idea of the Goofy vids, I love his Cruise Line planning vid!)
There's also a video here:
The next section is the same in both of my books, but outlines Dining plans in a truly fantastic way. On my first trip with a Dining Plan (2010) I had a lot of questions, and I know from hanging out on these forums that Dining Plans tend to cause a LOT of confusion for first time visitors.
So, I strongly suspect this section breaks it down for the type of Dining Plan you got. What I do NOT know is what it looks like if you didn't get a Dining Plan, so I'd be curious to know what filler they put in this space instead, or if the book is actually 2 pages shorter. Perhaps someone can chime in?
It also instructs you to go to http://www.disneyworld.com/diningplan/super . No screen shot, but the link does work...though, as I noted before, I think a Goofy Vacation (or a fab five for meal shots) could explain Dining Plans and ADRs a bit better here instead of just a brochure style informational page.
The other thing that is NOT noted anywhere in the book (that I recall) is ADRs and how to make them. So, that's some content that, I dunno, is pretty important? Especially for a new or infrequent guest?
But...I'm just being silly, right? RIGHT? <wink>
Also, and this is just a design note, I find it hilarious that they chose the slender Violet Parr as the picture on page 34 (on the right). Why? Well, if you've ever had the Dining Plan before...you'll understand. It's a LOT of food. I doubt I'll look that good in spandex after my trip! (not that I'd look that good in spandex on a normal day either...so, yeah, lets drop the subject shall we?)
The next section details Memory Maker. Now, I haven't purchased it yet, though I do plan to add it before the trip starts so I can get the discounted rate (yeah, it's cheaper in advance, so even if you THINK you may want it, get it before the trip). So, I don't know if this page changes if you have pre purchased it, but I suspect it doesn't.
So, one last note, it seems they did litter the booklet with unique videos, but I think they should have taken advantage of their custom landing sites (the URLs they give you redirect) and made it a bit more immersive and fun...and...included Goofy!
The current links just send you to the general landing pages for these services.
And now we're on the home stretch, and I REALLY like what they did here.
Book 1
Book 2
This is an EXCELLENT addition to the packet, as these dates are extremely important!
Though, I do have one RATHER LARGE complaint. They don't list the ADR dates there! Now, that could be because I'm within my 180 day window, so they felt I've already "passed the deadline", and if that's the case I retract this criticism.
But, considering ADRs are a rather important part of the process, especially for non-frequent trip goers who may have bucket list experiences they want to check off, I really wish they'd listed it and gone into some more detail on how the system works.
Not that I need it (I don't), but first time or infrequent Guests would probably find it invaluable.
And that, my friends, brings me to the end. Thanks for reading!
<edit / update - I was informed by someone that, yes, they do list the ADR date in the packet if you are outside of 180 days. Good show Disney!>
Hotel for the first DC portion of the trip is now booked and paid for.
Last time I stayed at the Ritz-Carlton at Pentagon City, and...it was speensive! And, for the rack rate, not really that nice. The only thing I gained was proximity to the Metro station for departure in the morning and easy access to the Mall. I decided this go around, those features are not worth the extra cost.
So, this trip, I decided to go a bit cheaper (half the price!), but I still wanted something close to a Metro station.
We'll use the Metro not only to get to and from the Airport (Reagan National), but also for Saturday, when we'll go tour the National Mall and the Smithsonian. Oh, as a side note, my Washington Monument tickets came in! Yay!
So, here's what I decided upon. The Embassy Suites - Crystal City National Airport.
Nothing special. Easy walk to either the Crystal City Metro station or the Pentagon City Metro Station. We got a 2 room suite with 2 Double beds (it was the only room available with 2 beds).
I got a good room rate (before tax, $169 a night, after tax, $190 a night). I put in a request for a high floor and club level (for $11 extra a night if granted), which is a neat feature they offer when booking. Basically, you can book your room, and if a better one is available at check-in, you can pre-request they move you to that room (for a fee if the request is granted). If the request isn't granted, then nothing changes and you are not charged.
Not quite like the "free upgrades" I used to get when I had tons of Marriott and HHonors points like when I traveled for a living, but still a neat feature.
I asked her what she'd like to do this summer. She knows she's coming to visit, but doesn't know what we are going to do. As with previous trips, I will let the trip unfold as it happens, without prepping her for what is to come.
She said "I'd like to go to the Orlando Resort."
I responded..."There's more than one Orlando Resort...Which one?"
"Where they have the new Harry Potter and Fast and the Furious!"
Her mom spoke up, and it seems she's seen their commercials a lot in the DC area...I guess they advertise a lot up there?
Oh, and not just Disney has the heart touching commercials...this one made me sniffle (or it could have been that I'm cutting onions...no, really, I am cooking as I type this...)
All I have to wait on now is next month, when I'll need to pay off the Universal and WDW legs of the trip.
So, here's how the final itinerary looks as of today.
Aug 7
Fly from ATL to DCA on Delta (it's cheapest for me to fly them because they are based and major hubbed out of the ATL airport)
Check into the Embassy Suites and meet up with the kiddo. It will be late, as my flight doesn't even land until 9:20, so I won't get to the hotel until nearly 10p, so we'll just sleep through the night for an early start the next morning (with a free cooked to order breakfast from the hotel, I may add!)
Aug 8
Still haven't quite pinned down exactly what we are going to do on this day, aside from the tickets I purchased for the Washington Monument for 7:30p, and the fact that Air and Space around lunchtime is a must! I've debated doing the Supreme Court, the National Library, or the Treasury. The FBI was on this list, but that was before I found out the kid did the FBI tour a few weeks ago as part of a school trip...
Aug 9
9:25 flight with Jetblue from Reagan to Orlando. We'll arrive around 11:30. This should put us at Portofino Bay, with a taxi ride from MCO, around noon. This allows us plenty of time to poke around the hotel and Citywalk before...
Blue Man Group center front row seats at 7p
Now, I should note, the rest of my flights are with Delta, and there's a reason for that, and it is cost. A trick I learned when I was actually paid to fly all over the country is that sometimes you can get better deals booking one way tickets instead of round trip ones, and that's what I've done in this case.
So, while I got a better deal booking a round trip (with the times I wanted) through Delta for my flight from ATL to DCA and back, I saved about $75 AND got a later departure by booking Jetblue down to MCO from DCA, and Delta for our flight back (though, as you'll see if you skip ahead to the 25th, the Delta flight is a LONG one with a layover in...surprise surprise...ATL... But, I don't mind that, because the way I look at it, it's extra time with the kiddo before we say our face to face goodbyes).
Aug 10
Whatever we want at Universal, but we do have breakfast at the Three Broomsticks at 10a.
Aug 11
Whatever we want at Universal.
Aug 12
Universal during the day, but sometime late afternoon take a taxi to go check into AKL and get showered and changed for our...
6:45 Dinner at Jiko's
Spend the rest of the evening setting up the webcam that I'm going to run from our balcony while the kiddo plays with the day/night monocular I bought and takes pictures, video, etc. of the animals as we gorge ourselves on complimentary club level goodies.
Aug 13
Magic Kingdom!
Breakfast at Cindy's Royal Table at 8:05...making sure to take pictures / video of the empty park!
2:10 lunch at Be Our Guest
6:45 dinner at Tony's Town Square (ok, I know how to make Italian, I love to cook...and this is my first time to this venue...it BETTER be good...that said, the menu looks good!)
We are gonna do MSEP and Wishes the old fashioned way, staking out a spot at the base of the Castle about an hour before the show and camping out.
Aug 14
EPCOT! (that's right, it's all caps not because I'm excited, but because it will ALWAYS be all caps and followed by the word "Center" to me!)
8:45a Breakfast at Cape May. I'm actually considering shifting this one around, because using busses it will be difficult to make that. I guess I could take an early bus to DTD or a Theme Park and then take a return bus to Beach Club? But, that's a tall order. I don't mind paying for a Taxi to avoid the waits and stress...but...not sure if I'll keep this reservation. The goal was for both of us to try something new (we've never eaten there) as well as put us within striking distance of EPCOT. I may flip it for something else though...maybe move the Ohana breakfast to this day and then ride the epic monorail ride into EPCOT? Hrm...I actually like this idea. Still stewing, however, is the point.
12:20 Lunch at Teppan Edo. Ok, the kiddo and I have done Teppanyaki before, and it's not that hard to find in the US, but this will be our first time doing it in DISNEY (she was sick the last time I booked here in 2012, and we couldn't go, spent the whole day cooped up in the room).
6:10 Dinner at Le Cellier. This restaurant is the kiddo's favorite. I'd normally book this MUCH later (as I like to walk out of the park after dinner with it completely empty and already closed)...but, we have an early day tomorrow!
Nothing planned yet, but I'm considering the Create Your Own Perfume (the kiddo would adore that, and I'd probably find it interesting...) or the Historical Philipsburg by Bicycle (something I'd probably enjoy more than the kiddo).
Aug 19
St. Thomas / St. John
So, as I mentioned earlier, the kiddo has family here who hasn't seen her since she was 2. So, we'll probably end up meeting up with them for lunch or something. That said, we won't hang round long (it is extended family on her Mother's side, and I'm still waiting on them to respond, though...they don't check emails very often and my ex, bless her, isn't the best about following up on things). So, there's still plenty of time for an excursion.
Excursions I'm debating are the Tree Limin' Ziplines, the Sea Trek Helmet Dive and the Screamin' Eagle high speed boat ride
Aug 20
At Sea - I suspect this will be Pirate Night!
Aug 21
Castaway Cay
Last trip we spent the day on the boat, but we also had more ports of call than this trip, so I'm looking forward to stretching my legs. I'm pretty much sold on the "Castaway Cay Getaway Package" which has snorkling, float rental and bicycling...though, I'm also looking at the FIshing by Troll Boat option, as the kiddo has an extreme interest in learning to fish, it seems.
Aug 22
Mears...ahem...sorry, DCL should have us to our resort, Art of Animation, around noon. So, with half a day to burn, we'll head over to a half day park! (for us at least, cause...well, we've seen all the shows)
Hollywood Studios
2:00p Lunch at Sci Fi Dine In
7:45 Dinner at 50's Prime Time
Fantasmic (I MAY...use a FP for this...not sure yet. Normally we do the dining package through Brown Derby, but I really don't want to eat at Brown Derby again...not that it's bad, it's just that we've done it every trip since 2011). There are 2 showings of Fantasmic on this night, and we'll go to the later one.
Aug 23
Animal Kingdom (I have no idea why AK ends up being a Sunday thing for us every year, but it does!
8:20 breakfast at Tusker House
1:30 lunch at Yak and Yeti
Evening after close at the resort or DTD or whatever we choose. Maybe bowling?
Aug 24
Ohana for Breakfast. As I noted, I may move this to replace Cape May earlier in the trip and replace it with something else.
This is our "free day". We'll probably do a mix of Water Parks, maybe some stuff out at Ft. Wilderness (as we attempted to do last trip, with archery, fishing and horseback riding), and DTD...At this point the kiddo already knows what is going on, so I will give her a few options the day before and see what she wants to do.
Tentative 1p lunch at T-Rex (though, I've never had trouble walking up to T-Rex, so I'll probably cancel this).
Tentative 7p Dinner at Raglan Rd.
Aug 25
Last day..so sad.
11:45 Lunch at Cindy's Royal Table
After the 3p parade, we'll head back to the resort.
7:35p flight on Delta back to Washington Reagan. Arrive very late (11:45p)
Check into Residence Inn Arlington to crash for the evening.
Meet up with the kiddo's Mom to return her back to everyday life...
Not to much to say about this one. The quality is nice, good thick stock with silver inlays on the folder. It's colorful, and has the most basic information you'll need.
It's certainly NOTHING like the impressive WDW Welcome Packet, but this is only my first of the DCL mailers, so I'll write it off as that.
Anyhow, as I noted, not much to say, so I'm just going to post the pictures here in case you are curious, but I'll reserve any commentary...because I don't really have any.
But, it is exciting to see, as it makes the trip all the more real!
So, I've been playing around with the DCL portions of the online planning.
First, I updated my profile (no pictures of that). Not much to do, as it still existed from my last cruise in 2013.
Then, I decided to start with the Planning Tools...
I opted for the online options.
I got immediate access to the "DVD"... (warning, it's long, 30 mins)
Note, I only clicked through the parts that interested me, and the end, due to the website formatting, you'll see me clicking around because it implied there was more to it...but...there wasn't.
At least that I could find.
So, on to the e-brochure!
The layout is rather neat.
It's hard to explain some of the features, so here's a video...feel free to skip around it...but, after I got a few "chapters" in, I decided to just print it to PDF. Scroll down to see how well THAT worked. (another example of a Disney IT fail)
Something that will go by quickly in the vid...You have the option to create an even more "custom" brochure by clicking on the gear icon.
And, if you decide to print it out (to pdf) you get a countdown timer...
This is to meter server load and for other reasons...<winks at coders and network sorts, you all get it>. But, in this case, it's VERY well implemented, imho. Very clean and friendly UI (User Interface).
When finished...you are prompted that your PDF is now available. You can keep viewing the online brochure as you wait, which is a neat touch.
But, here my compliments end. So, for backstory, I administrate / program a system that generates PDFs. I know it can be a bit tricky to do. I know there are a lot of variables involved. That said, this is unacceptable.
See for yourself (with my own notes added, and just to be sure it wasn't a plugin issue with Chrome...I opened it in Acrobat...same result). I have a pretty good idea what is causing this, but Disney isn't paying me, so I'm not going to share it with them...all I have to say is...didn't someone TEST this? Or did you (Disney) just outsource it and assumed it worked? Here, see for yourself...
In all, the planning tools are neat, and I like the concepts behind them. The e-brochure, in particular, should just be the default format, in my opinion. Either that, or they shouldn't recycle videos from the DVD in it.
I mean, why watch / read both? When they both say the same bland things?
It does help me get excited for my trip, but really doesn't do much to inform me about what to expect.
So, I'm giving these "Planning Tools"...a C for effort and a D for Donald. Because, while they are sort of fun to watch (in a very commercial way), they make about as much sense as Donald when he is angry as far as informing me what to expect for the cruise.
The Universal portion of the trip is now paid off.
I had a blast speaking with the person on the phone. We talked about all the great things that have opened at Universal since my last trip in 2012. She also covered how the dining plans have changed (which, my Dining Plan was the one thing I regretted getting last trip), and I may add it later. I need to do some reading into it. Though, I still think I'm going to just pay out of pocket.
But, she was knowledgeable, bubbly, and fun to chat with. We went on discussing things for nearly an hour before she took my payment!
Ok, so, lets go back to my first trip back to Disney. 2010.
I took the kiddo.
The flight in was a flight (I'd flown all over the country, nothing special)
Disney's Magical Express wasn't much.
She was excited about seeing the castle...didn't surprise me much. It was pretty, but I was viewing it from different eyes.
We went on some rides, and I used my knowledge of the parks from the 90s to help us out, one of which was that we snagged seats, center, in front of the castle, for the fireworks.
Warm pavement at hand, they started up, and frankly, in 2010, I was still skeptical.
And then they started, and she grabbed my cheeked as they started and looked me in my eyes, and said "Daddy, I love this place..."
And that's when it ignited all of those years of coming to DIsney all over again for me, I will never forget.
So, two minor updates. One now, one in about an hour (when my FP+ windows open up at midnight).
Update #1
So, I've decided instead of trying to do a half or so day at Universal on Weds, instead, we are going to head on over to AKL early, and then check in (or check our bags with Bell Services if the room isn't ready), then hop a bus through Magic Kingdom, then a Boat or Bus to Wilderness Lodge / Fort Wilderness (depending on what the boats look like from there).
That day I have booked:
1:00p Horseback Riding
This is a 45 minute horseback excursion through the trails of Ft. Wilderness. This is to make up for a failed "Pony Ride" experience on our last trip that had my daughter near tears and shattered her mood for most of the day due to...insurance reasons . You can read about that experience here.
2:45p Archery Lessons
After Archery, we'll go fishing (catch and release, it's at the same place...the Bike Barn and Trading Shop).
So, around 5p, our day at Ft. Wilderness will be over, so from there, I am still trying to decide if I want to cancel our Jikos reservation, or change it to a later time, or what...maybe we'll go hit up mini golf at Fantasia Golf and grab dinner at Yachtsman instead? Or...we could do the Mickey's BBQ.
Just not sure.
Oh, and what to do with that third day Uni ticket? Well, we are coming in early enough, that I think we'll just use it on Sunday instead.
After making several modifications to FP+ and ADRs, my schedule has changed a bit.
So, here's how the final itinerary looks as of today.
Aug 7
Fly from ATL to DCA on Delta (it's cheapest for me to fly them because they are based and major hubbed out of the ATL airport)
Check into the Embassy Suites and meet up with the kiddo. It will be late, as my flight doesn't even land until 9:20, so I won't get to the hotel until nearly 10p, so we'll just sleep through the night for an early start the next morning (with a free cooked to order breakfast from the hotel, I may add!)
Aug 8
Breakfast at the hotel
Smithsonian and National Mall
Lunch?
Washington Monument at 7:30p
Dinner?
Aug 9
9:25 flight with Jetblue from Reagan to Orlando. We'll arrive around 11:30. This should put us at Portofino Bay, with a taxi ride from MCO, around noon.
Go to the parks
Try to have lunch at Leaky Cauldron, at least that's what I want...we'll see what the kiddo's moods are. That said, I really wanted a Dagwood from Blondie's, but after reading several reviews about it being pre-made, I've opted against that.
Blue Man Group center front row seats at 7p
Aug 10
Breakfast at Three Broomsticks at 10a
Lunch at Mythos at 2p
Dinner at Lombard's at 7p, with a Dessert Party / Special Viewing Area for the Cinematic Spectacular. I found this offering just yesterday when I was reviewing restaurants at Universal (Lombard's was one I wanted to do last trip to Universal, but wasn't able to) and saw they do have a special event offering. It's not a bad deal, at $45 per adult ($13 for kids under 10). That includes a pretty decent Prix fixe menu, where you can choose from an appetizer and entree, as well as a non-alcoholic beverage. After your meal, you are issued a ticket (think...Fantasmic Package at Hollywood Studios) that gets you access to a special dessert party and viewing area at Lombard's. I booked dinner late, at 7p, because the party starts seating at 8p, and the Cinematic Spectacular starts at 9p.
Aug 11
I think we will try to make it over to Cabana Bay and have breakfast at Bayliner. Also, depending on the weather and my kid's mood, we may go swimming while there.
Something from the Crusty Burger area at Uni for Lunch
Not sure what to do for dinner. I think we'll just wing it.
Aug 12
Trattoria del Porto at Portofino Bay for breakfast at 8a
Taxi over to AKL after breakfast (I have not reserved this yet, debating if I'll pay a bit extra and get a towncar or limo...just for fun...but I need to check the prices on that)
Check in or drop off our luggage, then hop a bus over to Magic Kingdom, and from there a bus / boat to Ft. Wilderness. Take the Ft. Wilderness Resort shuttle to the Parking Lots for...
12:30p Horseback Riding at Ft. Wilderness
Take the Resort Shuttle to the Bike Barn and Trading Post for...
Fishing
2:45p Archery Lessons
Head back to AKL and hang out around the pool, get settled in the room, whatever
7:15p Dinner at Sanaa. That's right, I cancelled Jikos. There are a few reasons for this. First, I wasn't exactly thrilled my last trip there (though it was good, it wasn't as good as 2012), second, I have other things I want to spend the extra dining credits on during this portion of the stay, and third, I'm trying to book mostly restaurants we have NOT eaten at, or have not eaten at recently (as in the past few trips) during this trip, simply to branch out from our traditional favorites. So...Sanaa it is!
Spend the rest of the evening setting up the webcam that I'm going to run from our balcony while the kiddo plays with the day/night monocular I bought and takes pictures, video, etc. of the animals as we gorge ourselves on complimentary club level goodies.
Aug 13
Magic Kingdom!
Breakfast at Cindy's Royal Table at 8:05...making sure to take pictures / video of the empty park!
2:10 lunch at Be Our Guest
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at 3:05p - 4:05p
Peter Pan's Flight at 4:20p - 5:20p
Anna and Elsa Meet and Greet at 5:40p - 6:50p (sigh, it came up in another thread, and it reminded me, if I didn't book this one, my daughter would kill me)
6:45 dinner at Tony's Town Square
We are gonna do MSEP and Wishes the old fashioned way, staking out a spot at the base of the Castle about an hour before the show and camping out.
Aug 14
EPCOT!
8:45a Breakfast at Cape May. I'm still not sure about this one.
Spaceship Earth 10a - 11a
12:30 Lunch at Via Napoli (Yeah, I cancelled our Teppan Edo...I actually just wanted to move Teppan Edo to dinner, but there were no slots, so...)
Figment 2:05p - 3:05p (yeah, this ride needs an FP...right? Riiiiiight....)
Sourin 3:20p - 4:20p
Nine Dragons at 6p. Another new restaurant for us. Though, I'd prefer Teppan Edo, I think this will be an interesting thing to try. We both like Chinese food, but for some reason we always skip the dining options (even the QS stuff) at EPCOT. This replaced Le Cellier, but again, it's for the same reason why I cancelled Jikos. I want to try new stuff, or stuff we don't do often. Plus, my dinner experience at Le Cellier wasn't very good last trip. At least not 2 dining credit "signature" good.
Ok, this is a new one for us. 8p we have the "Illuminations Sparkling Dessert Party". Traditionally I've been against these sorts of "experiences"...but after doing the Club Level "dessert party" at Contemporary last trip, I sortof like the concept, so I thought we'd give this a shot. Plus, we don't have to jockey for a viewing spot.
Aug 15
Breakfast at Boma at 8:55a
DCL Transit will pick us up, I suspect sometime around 10a - 11a, and we'll head off to Port Canaveral and the Fantasy!
Aug 16
At Sea - No plans yet
Aug 17
At Sea - No plans yet
Aug 18
St. Maarten
Nothing planned yet, but I'm considering the Create Your Own Perfume
PIRATE NIGHT!
I will order our costumes next week. So, LAST CHANCE TO VOTE HERE!
Aug 19
St. Thomas / St. John
The kiddo has family here who have said they'll plan our day for us. So, not sure what we are going to do, but...
If we do an excursion I'm debating are the Tree Limin' Ziplines, the Sea Trek Helmet Dive and the Screamin' Eagle high speed boat ride
Aug 20
At Sea - No plans yet
Aug 21
Castaway Cay
Castaway Cay Getaway Package which includes bike rental for an hour (the kiddo loves to ride her bike), snorkel rental and tube rental for the day.
Aug 22
DCL should have us to Art of Animation around noon.
Hollywood Studios!
2:00p Lunch at Sci Fi Dine In
7:45 Dinner at 50's Prime Time
Fantasmic
Aug 23
Animal Kingdom (I have no idea why AK ends up being a Sunday thing for us every year, but it does!
8:20 breakfast at Tusker House
1:30 lunch at Yak and Yeti
Dinner / Snacks at Harambe
7:15p dinner at San Angel Inn
Watch Illuminations again
Aug 24
Ohana for Breakfast at 7:55a.
Typhoon Lagoon in the Morning
1p lunch at T-Rex (though, I've never had trouble walking up to T-Rex, so I'll probably cancel this).
Blizzard Beach in the Afternoon
Tentative 7p Dinner at Raglan Rd. I may swap this out for Jikos or Yachtsman.
Aug 25
Last day..so sad.
Breakfast at Landscape of Flavors
11:45 Lunch at Cindy's Royal Table
After the 3p parade, we'll head back to the resort.
7:35p flight on Delta back to Washington Reagan. Arrive very late (11:45p)
Check into Residence Inn Arlington to crash for the evening.
Meet up with the kiddo's Mom to return her back to everyday life...
In addition, I picked up some 3M command velcro with a weight rating of 16 lbs to hold my dropcam (which weighs about 1 lb).
These things are great! Though, I hope it's enough to hold the webcam! I think so though, because I use them to hold routers at work to the wall that weigh about 4 - 5 lbs each, and they work great for that.
My plan is to use this adhesive to mount my webcam to either the sliding door or somewhere on my balcony.
Webcam, you may ask?
It's a Dropcam Pro. Excellent brand. Owned (through Nest) by Google now. It will give a 130 degree angle, 8x zoom, great low light / night cam and even audio. Someone had done this before, and I thought it was a neat idea as we have a Savannah View room at AKL.
Also, it will record (I'll pay for the 7 day recording feature...that costs $10) so I will have a wonderful 24/7 set of videos of the vista at Arusha to play with later!
So, end result, you guys can poke around watching the animals while we are out at the parks. I'll post the link in this report when we get to that.
Also, as the mount is velcro, I can take the camera down if weather gets bad or for other reasons.
Anyhow, won't cost me anything, and it should be a fun little addition to the trip report!
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