Girls Gone DISNEY! 5/4-5/11 **Upd. with 5/6 MK

[devonsmommy]

Hi everyone!
Usually I just do a dining report, but with all of the changes since our last trip, I felt a trip report would be a good idea. I wanted to share our perspective with FP+, MagicBands, A & E, and more!

Here's a pic of us:


CAST
Me--Mid 30s--Disney planning freak! If I'm not on a trip, I'm planning one. I've been fortunate enough to go several times over the past 5-10 years. I love it! And now my kids are at a really great age for enjoying it themselves. Magic Kingdom is my favorite park!

My Mom/Nanny--Almost 70! Doesn't she look great? She's along for the ride! I didn't involve her in any of the planning except asking if there were any restaurants she wanted to try.

DD8--This was her 4th or 5th trip to the World. Epcot is her favorite park!

DD6--This was her 4th trip to the World. Magic Kingdom is her favorite park!

This trip was kind of spur of the moment for us. Our last visit was August 2013. While there we took the DVC tour at BLT. We had talked before we went about possibly buying in. My cousin owns at AKL and we've stayed with them twice. We didn't buy there, but got home and researched some resales. We were able to score a BLT loaded contract for 160 points that finally closed and came through in December. Sooooo......we had some points to spend by July 31, 2014. There was NO WAY I was going in June or July. Way too hot, and way more crowded than I was used to. Everything I read said the first week of May was good crowd wise and weather wise.

We booked at OKW. Mostly because it was available by the time I booked, the room size of the studio, and I had been there before and liked the resort. I booked a studio near the hospitality house, and would definitely do the same again. It was nice to walk to the food places, and the buses and not have to sit on the bus at all of the different stops. The resort is very large and spread out. They have an internal bus.

Here was our schedule:
5/4--Travel and DTD
5/5--Epcot
5/6--MK--Part 1
5/6--MK--Part 2
5/7--MK
5/8--AK
5/9--Supposed to be DHS, but changed to MK once we were there. More about that later!
5/10--Epcot
5/11--Pool/Travel

I always use easywdw when picking park days. He has a great calendar telling you which park will be less crowded based on several different factors. After picking park days, I schedule our dining.

Back soon with Day 1!

 

[anniebabymu]

Following along from Facebook! Can't wait to hear all about your trip while I'm still anxiously awaiting mine!

 

[devonsmommy]

Following along from Facebook! Can't wait to hear all about your trip while I'm still anxiously awaiting mine!

Thanks for joining!!

 

[devonsmommy]

We left for the PHL airport around 7:45 a.m. for a 10:45 a.m. flight on Southwest. DH was dropping us off since he wasn't joining us on this trip. We had just been last August and he couldn't take the time off from work.



We got to the airport in plenty of time and were able to grab some breakfast and some sandwiches for on the plane.

On Southwest, you can purchase Early Bird Check In, or you can check in 24 hours in advance of your flight to get your boarding position. I checked in exactly at 10:45 a.m. on the day before our flight, and we got B 1-4. The bummer about getting in the B group is family boarding occurs between groups A and B. So families with children under 5 can board then.

For the 3 of us to sit together we had to go the third last row of the plane. Which was fine, I was just glad to sit together!







Anyway, we landed around 1:10 p.m. and hopped on the Magical Express. It was actually more crowded in the Magical Express area than I was expecting. This will become a common theme throughout the week! We waited probably 15 minutes for our bus to come.



We made it to OKW (which was the first of four different stops our bus was taking) by 2:15 p.m. We immediately checked in (no line) and were told our room wasn't ready. I had planned on that because I have heard that for most DVC reservations they hold off until right at 4 p.m. We were prepared with our swimming suits in our carry ons, but first, we ate some lunch at Olivia's. This is the resort's only sit down restaurant. I had read great reviews for all meals here so was excited to try it out.

I chose the Traditional Club Sandwich - Smoked Turkey, Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, and Mayonnaise on Multigrain Bread served with choice of French Fries, Marinated Coleslaw, or Homemade Potato Chips $12.99

This was yummy. The homemade chips were REALLY good. The crust of the bread was a little hard, but overall I enjoyed it. I could only eat half, so I saved the rest for a snack for later.

My mom chose Duval Street Burger - topped with Grilled Shrimp, Pepper Jack Cheese, Avocado, and Pico de Gallo served with choice of French Fries, Marinated Coleslaw, or Homemade Potato Chips $16.49

She really enjoyed this and ate every last bite of the burger! Looking at the picture...I'm not sure where the shrimp are??

DD6 ordered the kid's pizza

I was so disappointed when I saw this come out. She is fairly picky and does not like to get messy. When I saw all of the sauce, I knew she wouldn't eat it. There's hardly any cheese! I actually had a bite and it was NOT GOOD! The crust all around was hard and chewy. So needless to say, she didn't eat it, but instead ate my mom's fries.

DD8 ordered the pasta with sauce

She ate almost all of it! She asked several times throughout the trip if we could go back so she could order it again.

Then it was dessert time. DD6 got the make your own sundae

And she ate every last bite of it!

DD8 got a chocolate chip cookie to go because she was full.

And I got the Key Lime Tart with mango and raspberry sauce.

One word...HEAVEN! I ate the whole thing! It was SO GOOD. I love key lime desserts, and this ended up being my favorite dessert on this trip!

After lunch we browsed through the store, and at 4:00 p.m. exactly I got the text that our room was ready.
So we headed to our room which was in Building 14 (room 1412) on the first floor. It was a great location. Super close to everything. I forgot to take pics before everyone put their stuff down.

We had a studio, which also has a small fridge and microwave. You can't see it in the picture, but it's in the little area on the way to the bathroom.

From everything I read after researching which resort, these rooms were slightly bigger, and we could really tell. It was spacious compared to what we were used to.
(I also should mention, we rented a stroller from Magic Strollers. This was our third time renting with them and were extremely happy with their service. They deliver right to the resort. Lightweight stroller, and rain cover included.)

Our luggage still hadn't made it to the room, so we changed into our suits and headed to the pool.


We headed back to the room to get ready for dinner (hoping our luggage had arrived while we were gone!). It hadn't. So we put our travel clothes back on and headed to the boat for DTD. I love that you can take the boat. It's a nice change from the bus transportation. As we were walking to the dock we saw that the boat was already loaded, but we made it in time.


The ride was nice and relaxing. What I hadn't taken into was all of the construction at DTD. The boat dock over by Rainforest Cafe area was closed. So they dropped us near the Planet Hollywood dock and then we could either take a boat to the middle dock, or walk. We chose to walk so we could check out the entire area. Much of the walk was walled off.
Here are some photos I took from the boat:




We made our way towards the Lego Store and World of Disney. Then stopped for dinner at one of my top 3 counter service restaurants...Wolfgang Puck Express!
My mom and I shared

Caesar Salad--This was very good!


Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf---YUM! This was SO GOOD! I had never had it before but read some fabulous reviews. The sauce was so tasty.

And the girls split an order of the kid's chicken tenders with fries.

They loved the chicken and ate most of the fries.

And a beautiful sunset I caught on camera!


We browsed around Goofy's Candy and then headed for the bus. We didn't feel like walking all the way back to the boat dock!

Thankfully our luggage was in the room when we arrived back.
We unpacked and went to bed!

 

[DisneyMountainWoman]

Hello from facebook Love your first day so far, your room looks really nice and the key lime pie sounds great

 

[RLP817]

Love reading about your trip!

 

[lovin'fl]

I am in!!! I go in Aug with my 2 DDs (both 15) for a mother-daughter trip. I have considered taking my mom...I mentioned it and she isn't super thrilled with it being in Aug (the heat) so I don't think she'll go...plus I already have all my ADRs for 3 (including dinner at BOG)...but I would love some adult company. I am driving too, from Maryland . But we are meeting DH and DS-17 at HHI on the way home for a 5 night stay there. At any rate, I am looking forward to the rest of your TR to see what I might expect. I booked us at SSR in a 1BR for the first 3 nights and then BWV in a studio for the last 2 nights. I can't wait to arrive and do like you did...chill at pool and then head over to DD for dinner. Saw you are doing a dining report too...looking forward to all the food porn!!! Thanks for sharing your TR!!

Edit to add: I also stayed in building 14 on the first floor at OKW...for Xmas 2011. I loved the location too but was woken by the buses early in the morning as they began to pull into HH bus stop. Did you notice that?

 

[devonsmommy]

Edit to add: I also stayed in building 14 on the first floor at OKW...for Xmas 2011. I loved the location too but was woken by the buses early in the morning as they began to pull into HH bus stop. Did you notice that?

We did not notice it! We were not on the "road side" of the complex. We were to the right in the very back along the river.

Thanks everyone for joining!

 

[BOG Obsessed]

I'm in, great start so far

 

[ngchiro]

Great trip report. Can't wait to be there ourselves.

 

[Disneymom77]

Joining in!

 

[Nals]

Following from gb

 

[devonsmommy]

One thing we did on this trip for the first time is order from Garden Grocer. We ordered milk, orange juice, cereal, juice boxes, water, bagels, butter, apples, bananas, cheese. We strategically planned things for breakfast so we could eat in the room before leaving in the morning. I had heard mixed reviews about Goods To Go, long waits depending when you arrived to order, not a great variety, etc.

We were up by 7 a.m. showering, eating and heading to the bus stop by 8 a.m. We waited a short time for a bus and arrived at Epcot around 8:40 a.m.

Once coming through security, everyone was going to the left into 4 long lines that had already been formed. They stretched all the way back to the ticket booths. We headed to the right just as a CM was telling people that gates on the right would be opening. We were the 4th family in line, thank goodness!



Heading towards The Land pavilion in case you didn't know...you can't take your stroller up to the pavilion. Stroller parking is on the right before you go up the long ramp.

Here's our touring plan:

Soarin'--Once the gates opened we headed to Soarin' to ride standby. We got right in and right on. My kids LOVED this ride! I however, have to close my eyes part way through because I get nauseous.

The Land--Originally I wanted to hit up Sunshine Seasons for a snack since I never get to eat here but none of us were hungry. So we hit Living With the Land with 0 wait time. I really enjoy this ride! It never gets old.

The Seas w/Nemo--Got right on this also (standby). Fun ride!
Here's a picture of the FP+ line...


Turtle Talk w/Crush--We had a 10:05-11:05 a.m. FP+ for this interactive show. However it was only 9:45 a.m. and the next show was just getting ready to start. So I was able to change the FP+ for something different and we walked in the 9:45 a.m. show. I just love this show! At this point though, you were starting to see some crowding. The entire room was packed full of kids and adults. It was slightly distracting during the show because kids were running around and some parents were chasing the smaller kids. You could barely hear Crush or the host who was helping him. Not the best experience during this show, but very fun and interactive with the kids. It always scares me at the end of this though because they just dismiss everyone at once. So to claim or get reconnected with your kids, you have to try and catch them before they run out the door. It's a good reminder to let them know before the show starts to find you right when it ends.



The Seas Pavilion--We had some time before our next FP+ at the Character Spot, so the girls explored around the Seas. We were able to see some fish, sharks, the dolphin, and of course get a picture in the shark mouth. It's also a good time to hit the bathroom, and eat a snack. Each day we brought a few snacks along into the park...granola bars, mini muffins, applesauce tubes, etc. We headed out towards the character spot and found a bench in the shade. I also bought a new pair of Mickey Croc flip flops because my flip flops were rubbing me in the wrong spot. I haven't had a lot of time to wear them since we've been freezing our **** off in PA! We hadn't had many warm days yet...



Character Spot--We had a FP+ for 11:05-12:05 p.m. Thankfully we did because the wait time was up to 30 minutes. I never wait in a line at Disney! We've toured too many times without having to wait, so why start now?? We entered the FP lane and waited maybe 5 minutes for our turn. Well worth the use of a FP if your kids want to see the characters and get autographs! We didn't have any character meals planned so this was our chance to meet them. The Photopass photographers now just scan your Magic Band to "give" you the pictures vs. those cards they used to give.







Lunch--We had an ADR at Beaches and Cream for 1:00 p.m. So once we finished at the Character Spot, we started to make our way over to the International Gateway back between the UK and France. On our walk over, we took note of some of the beautiful flowers that were there for the Flower Festival going on.





We also found a really neat play structure for the girls to run around on for awhile while we sat in the shade.







The Beach Club is just a short walk from the entrance of the International Gateway. Maybe 5-10 minute walk depending on your/kids pace. I had never done this before but I would definitely do it again! We made it to the Beach Club by 12:20 p.m. I tried to check in but we were too early. So we just sat at a table outside and watched people swimming in the glorious pool! It was also at this moment that I decided, our next stay will be at the Beach Club. The pool was unbelievable! Some random notes...they were checking everyone to make sure they were guests of the Beach Club before allowing them in the pool area. Anyway, I checked back in at 12:45 p.m. and we were given a pager. We were seated maybe 5 minutes later.

DD6 ordered the hot dog and fries:

She ate all of it except the bun.

DD8 ordered the grilled cheese and tomato soup:

She also ate all of hers! I did take a spoonful of the soup and it was GOOD! If it isn't so hot next time we visit I will def. be getting some of that soup!

My mom and I both ordered the hot dog with chili, cheese, and onions:

This was SO GOOD! I would def. order this again.

Of course you can't leave this place without ordering dessert!
It was a toss up for me between the No Way Jose and the Banana Split. My mom preferred the Banana Split so that's what we had:

Here's the description from All Ears:
Classic Banana Split - A ripe Banana, Three Scoops of Ice Cream (Vanilla, Chocolate, and Strawberry), Pineapple, Strawberry, and Marshmallow Topping finished off with Hot Fudge, Caramel, Toasted Almonds, Whipped Cream, and a Cherry $8.49
This was so good! We ate almost the whole thing. I loved the almonds on the top!

The girls had this with their choice of ice cream:


After our meal, we headed back to Epcot to walk through the countries.
The girls really wanted to do a Phineas and Ferb mission, so we stopped at the location near the bridge by France to pick up our phone. We had one phone to share, and it actually ended up being fine. It was SO HOT THOUGH! We did the France mission, and then called it quits after that. It was fun, but not sure I'd take the time to do it again. It was also very crowded in that area so that made it more difficult too.

We headed to Japan because the girls got a coupon for Pick A Pearl as one of their night time gifts from "Mickey." I checked in and paid and we had 7 people in front of us. It was fine because we browsed around and the girls were able to watch what they were going to be doing. So first they are able to pick an oyster out of the tank. Then the girl helps them count down in Japanese and she cuts it open and finds the pearl.







The girls really had fun doing this! Our plan is to save the pearls from each visit and then either make a bracelet with them all or something like that.

Our next stop was Germany! To Karamel Kuche and get some snacks.

DD8 got the pretzel...what we learned is...she doesn't like caramel! She like it with just the chocolate and peeled the caramel off. WHAT?! Crazy girl...
I got the caramel with marshmallow swirled in it. SO GOOD.
DD6 got the marshmallows. She liked this!

We wend straight from Germany around without stopping in any other countries. We had a FP+ at Spaceship Earth for 3:50-4:50 p.m.

This is DD8 favorite ride!
Side note..there was actual about a 30 minute wait in the standby line!

From here we headed back to the resort. We were all tired, hot, and ready for a break. We had no plans to return for Illuminations since we just saw it in August. So once at the resort we swam and hung around the pool. Dinner was from Goods To Go.
DD8 and 6 shared an order of Chicken Nuggets with Fries--the adult portion.
I had the cheeseburger and fries.
My mom had the Chicken Caesar Salad.
Now I don't have a glowing review of this place...I waited in line about 15 minutes before I could even order my food. Then once I ordered, I waited about 15 more minutes to actually RECEIVE the food from the tiny window. If you are in a rush, don't plan on eating here!
The girls loved the chicken. The fries were gross. Cold and hard.
My burger was just okay. I've definitely had better around the world. Fries were also gross.
My mom's actually looked really good and fresh.

We had an early night then since our next day was MAGIC KINGDOM!!

Miscellaneous Thoughts
*Magic Bands--They worked flawlessly for us. I was worried about my kids losing them somehow, but they never just randomly fell off. They both were whizzes at scanning them and didn't need any help.

*Heat--It was way hotter than I was expecting for this time of year! I mean, I know Florida is hot, but it was 90 or higher every day with not one single drop of rain. This made for some long, exhausting days.

*Crowds--It was way more crowded than I was expecting too! Easywdw had it listed as a 5. To me it felt more like a 7. LOL.

*FP+--In Epcot, you can only choose one from tier 1...so for us this day I chose Spaceship Earth since I knew we were hitting rope drop to get on Soarin'. I consider myself to be pretty knowledgeable with how to tour, which rides to hit first, etc. But with FP+ it completely changes the dynamic. Besides the three you are allowed to book 60 days in advance (if you are staying on site), you are allowed to book more once they are used. I didn't feel like messing around with this day so I didn't. You'll see more on later days... So for this day, my plan worked fine for us. We had another day here later in the week so we weren't crazy trying to get everything done in one day. One other thing to note...there were longer lines at certain attractions where I'm not used to seeing them...for example Figment. I've NEVER stood in line for this ride and the wait time was set at 30 minutes. I think FP+ is spreading people out more around the park. Not everyone has to run to Soarin or Test Track now if they are able to reserve it with a FP+.

Overall we had a great first day in the parks!

 

[devonsmommy]

Magic Kingdom is my FAVORITE park! I couldn't wait to get there. Our plan was to be at the bus stop by 8 a.m. so we were there in time for rope drop...

Our bus pulled in at 8:35 a.m. and apparently everyone else had the same plan! It was PACKED.

Here's a view of us before even entering security (out under the monorail)!




This is in line for security:


For the welcome show we were not even able to get scanned in through the gates. We were standing in line for that. There were too many people to allow anyone else in. Once through the gates, this was the view behind me:


Here was our ORIGINAL touring plan (note, I'll share also what we really ended up doing):
*Enchanted Tales with Belle
*Peter Pan
*Little Mermaid
*Pooh
*Snack at Gaston's
*Carousel
*Small World
*Haunted Mansion
*Lunch
*1:30-2:30 p.m. FP+ Buzz
*Carousel of Progress
*Head back to resort

I fully intended to follow this...until we hit Fantasyland! And the crowd was out of control...

Our Touring Plan
*Enchanted Tales with Belle--We were in line maybe 5-10 minutes. There were a lot of kids in this showing with us. My girls did not jump up and down for any parts, so they were given the fork and spoon, and a plate. LOL




I really enjoy this show. I think it's a great experience for the kids!

*Here is where we walked over to Peter Pan expecting to get on standby with a very short wait...however the wait was already 45 minutes!

I just want to point out here, on our past several trips, we have always hit rope drop. Toured, ate lunch, and got out before the real crowds and heat showed up. My experience this time was SO DIFFERENT. To me it seems that because of Anna & Elsa moving to the MK, and FP+ being gone for them so quickly, MANY people are showing up at rope drop to head directly there. Which would account for the crazy crowd we experienced at the gates in the morning. In the past few years, I've been in Disney the week between Christmas and New Year's Eve, and a week in August during the summer. I have NEVER seen it that crazy at rope drop! I also think one person was standing in the line for A & E while the rest of the family toured around Fantasyland, which would account for the crazy wait times already at standby by 9:30. I'm not sure how much FP+ plays into it either...
I have never waited in a standby line longer than 10-15 minutes and I was not about to start that this trip!

*We decided to check out Pooh before heading back to Little Mermaid. Also a huge standby line already! So we skipped it.

*Little Mermaid--Walked on. I love this ride! This is one of my favorite Disney movies.

*Gaston's--It was time to regroup and rethink our game plan since Fantasyland was so packed. It was also time for a SNACK!

We enjoyed some Lefou's Brew and a Cinnamon Roll. I LOVE the Lefou's Brew! This is a must have for me every trip. This was the first time having a Cinnamon Roll NOT from the Main Street Bakery. The MSB one was also warm with tons of frosting dripping off of it! This was didn't have as much, but it was still good, and gone within seconds since 4 of us were sharing it!

We talked about the fact that we probably weren't going to get everything done in the MK in two days, so do they want to skip either DHS or AK later in the week and come back to the MK. It was collectively decided to skip DHS. (This slightly bummed me out because I love Toy Story Mania! My favorite ride!) I immediately got on MDE and canceled our dining for DHS day at Mama Melrose, and also changed our park and scheduled FP+. I was able to snag Pirates 9:20-10:20 a.m., BTMRR 10:20-11:20 a.m., and Splash 11:20-12:20 p.m. For lunch I scored a Plaza ADR for 12:20 p.m. I LOVED being able to make these changes immediately with the APP!

While in my FP+ for the existing day, I remembered I had something strange on my FP+ page of the APP.

See that part with the green? It turns out that was an extra FP+. See below.

*I decided since we were on our way and passing by, to stop at the FP+ Kiosk by Philharmagic. I wanted to ask about that picture above. The man explained to me that it was an extra FP+. I asked how to redeem it because it wasn't allowing me to select anything specific. He said, just go to any of the attractions listed between the hours listed. I had the option of several different ones, and decided on....

*Peter Pan!--So we proceeded directly to PP and got right on through FP+. (When scanning our Magic Bands, they turned green!)

*Carousel--5-10 minute wait. A family favorite.


And of course we had to try this:


*Philharmagic--5-10 minute wait

*Walked past Small World. The standby line was out the entrance! Not waiting...

*We decided to get out of Fantasyland by this point, and we had some time to kill before our lunch ADR at Liberty Tree Tavern.

*Tiki Room--This was open, but some sections blocked off for renovation? It was nice to get inside and get a break from the heat!

*Country Bear Jamboree

*12:20 p.m. lunch at LTT
I absolutely LOVE it here for lunch!
DD8 ordered this:

Pasta with Marinara Sauce - with choice of 1 beverage, 1 entree and 1 dessert $8.59
She loved this and ate it all!

DD6 ordered this:

Not on the official menu but was offered to us by the server. SCORE! I knew she would eat this!

I ordered this:

Colony Salad Highlight Item - Washington apples, sweet pecans and applewood smoked cheddar, dried cranberry Craisins, and grilled chicken tossed with field greens in honey shallot vinaigrette $14.4
I knew I wanted the salad because I was DEFINITELY getting dessert here!
This was very good! Great taste! I wasn't sure about cranberries on it, but they didn't bother me. One complaint is there was too much dressing. The lettuce was literally swimming in it. Luckily I liked the taste of it!

My mom ordered this:

I'm not sure if this was on the regular menu or the catch of the day? It's fish and chips served with cole slaw. It was very good!

Kid dessert:


My dessert and DD apples for dessert:

This is my favorite or 2nd favorite dessert ever!! I love it...Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake! I will eat here just for this dessert...

Definitely a must do for us each trip!

Part 2 coming up soon!

 

[amberg93]

Following along from Facebook!

Epcot is a good way to start things out. And you made the dash to Soarin'! Way ot go for surviving the craziness

Wow, so many crowds. You know, I found the same thing when we were there, that the crowds were a bit more than expected.

But yay for extra FP+! Never say no to a FP+ when it turns up, plus it worked much better than anticipated with the whole wrench of extra people thrown in.

Can't wait to read more

 

[Windsor Princesses]

Oh my gosh I love your girls' love for Minnie!! Their outfits were adorable

 

[dramadrew]

I was at MK on the 6th too! We noticed it was quite busy, I think it felt like the busiest day there during our trip. But maybe we became to immune to crowds later on. I don't think we had too many issues with attraction waits, however, we had 3 FP and we only did standby for minor attractions. I did feel before we left (half day there) we did not get a lot accomplished and that worried me. However, the next day we were there from opening to closing and we did like 85% of attractions.

 

[MelMel11]

Count me in!!!