Super Bowl? What Super Bowl? First Week of February 2020 Trip Report *Updated 4/2*

Unca’ Donald

Mouseketeer
Joined
Nov 15, 2018
Hello, and welcome to my February 1-8, 2020 Walt Disney World trip report. As usual, this was a trip for my girlfriend (Michelle) and I (Jonathan) and we stayed at Disney's Port Orleans French Quarter.

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This was nearly a solo trip for me. We had gone to WDW in May and June of last year, but Michelle's time in the parks was fairly limited on those trips. During the May trip, she got sick early in the week. On most of the days of that trip, she slept in and met me at the parks close to noon. We went in June because her work sent her to a credit union conference at the Dolphin. So most of her time that week was spent in the conference and she only had a couple of park days. After we returned home from that trip, she told me she wanted to go back in October since she didn't have a lot of park time, and barely went on any rides, during those 2 trips.

I had been looking at February for our next trip. The International Festival of the Arts was the only Epcot festival we'd never been to, and it was supposed to be a good month over all for low crowds. Michelle didn't want to go in February, though. We live in Maine and she was concerned about the potential for a snow storm on one of our travel days.

Eventually, I agreed to go in October because of Extra Extra Magic Hours. The thought of being able to go to 3 of the parks very early in the morning, and hitting some of the big rides with very little wait, was too good to pass up. We ended up going the week of Halloween and you can read all about that trip with a click of the link below:

10/26-11/2 2019 Trip Report


But my heart was still set on February and the Festival of the Arts, and I was strongly considering going on my own. Then, one day, Michelle found out that Tim Rogerson was at last year's festival. Michelle got addicted to jigsaw puzzles last year and she's done some puzzles of his Disney artwork. She didn't know if he'd be at this year's festival, but the thought of him possibly being there, and getting the chance to meet him, changed her mind about not wanting to go in February.

I chose the first week of February because the Super Bowl was on the 2nd day of the month. I'd heard mixed opinions about what the crowds are actually like the night of the game, but I figured Magic Kingdom must be at least a little less crowded than a typical Sunday night there. I had listened to a podcast over the summer and one of the hosts talked about how he went to MK the night of the SB a couple of years ago, and he said that he walked right up to the hub shortly before Happily Ever After started and that there was a lot of empty space there. I was hoping for a similar experience on this trip.


February 1, 2020 - Arrival Day

Our procedure for our trips has been consistent the last 4 times we've gone. My dad picks us up at our condo in Westbrook, ME on a Saturday morning and drops us off at Concord Coach Lines in Portland. We take a bus to Boston Logan International Airport and fly to Orlando. The following Saturday, we get home by doing that in reverse.

We weren't the only ones anxious for our trip. Louis was more than ready to spend some time at POFQ.

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We went to bed around 11:00 the previous night. I fell asleep quickly, but I woke up a little after 2:00 and couldn't fall back to sleep. Michelle got up at 4:30 and a half hour later I went to Dunkin' to get some breakfast. I placed a mobile order for a cold brew and a breakfast sandwich. The store is only a 3 minute drive from home, so my order was already at the pick up counter when I arrived.

I ate quickly when I got back home and then finished getting ready. My dad showed up at 6:00 and we left for the bus station at 6:30, arriving there around 6:45. The bus left at 7:30. It was a chilly morning, around 35 degrees. Earlier in the week, the forecast was showing light snow in the morning, but it changed to no snow a day or 2 before our trip. It was an uneventful bus ride that lasted a little under 2 hours.

Our JetBlue flight was scheduled to depart at 11:35 and arrive in Orlando at 3:02. We boarded the plane at 11:10 and it was off the runway at 11:42. I spent most of the flight playing games on my phone. Disney Magic Kingdoms and Disney Emoji Blitz are always my go-tos on our trips. Since our previous trip, Topps launched a digital card trading app called Disney Collect! so that gave me something else to do to help pass the time.

The plane touched down at 2:54 and we went to get our luggage. We got our first look at the Galaxy's Edge wrapped APM.

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This sign at the luggage carousels got me excited for the Festival of the Arts.


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When we arrived at the Disney Magical Express check-in, the lines were much shorter than they were when we arrived in October, which gave me hope that it would be a low crowd week. We were checked in at 3:56 and on our bus 10 minutes later. We were sharing a bus with OKW, SSR and POR. On our previous 2 trips, POFQ was the 3rd stop after OKW and SSR, but this time we were dropped off first, arriving at 4:45.

We always check in at the front desk when we arrive so that we can opt out of Mousekeeping and request a 3rd floor room. We've never had to wait more than a couple of minutes, but this time the line was out to the lobby, near the fountain. After feeling good about the short DME lines at the airport, I was starting to wonder if it was going to end up being more crowded than what I was expecting for the week.

We got a room on the 3rd floor of Building 3, which is one of the buildings to the right after exiting the back of the lobby. This was our first time staying in that building. We usually end up in buildings 5 or 6 which are on the left side. We entered our room at 5:10 and Louis made himself right at home.


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We were heading to Disney Springs for the night. It was 61 degrees and cloudy out. I decided to stick with the cargo pants and t-shirt I was wearing instead of changing into shorts. We were out the door at 5:44 and walked to the boat dock. There were a dozen or so people waiting for the boat. Most of them were wearing pants and long sleeve shirts, some of them sweaters. It was a little windy out which made it feel colder than the actual temperature. Our boat cast off at 6:02.

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I thought the colors in the sky looked really nice during the boat ride to Disney Springs, but it was nothing compared to what we would see after we exited the boat at the Marketplace dock at 6:17.

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I probably could have spent the next 20 minutes taking pictures from different vantage points, and just admiring the colors, but I was pretty hungry. I had eaten some macadamia nuts and a couple of small dark chocolate squares at the airport in Boston, but that was all I had eaten since we left home. We made a quick stop at Pin Traders but neither of us saw anything we were interested in buying.

Whenever we go to Disney Springs, we split up to eat. Michelle can't eat foods that are seasoned or acidic and she has to get poultry or fish prepared plain. She always goes to Earl of Sandwich. I was going to Wolfgang Puck Express to get the Bacon-wrapped Meatloaf Sandwich. I had planned to go there back in October, but I ended up going to D-Luxe Burger instead to get the seasonal Octoberfest Burger.

There was a little bit of a line when I arrived at WPE at 6:35 and I waited 10 minutes to order. I sat down at a table and my sandwich arrived at 6:51. We had intended to get a table outside so we could eat together, since both places were so close, but my food was on a ceramic plate, so I figured I should probably eat there. It was probably a little too chilly to sit outside and eat anyway.

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The sandwich was really good. It was topped with provolone, crispy onion strings, horseradish cream and port wine sauce. The house-made chips were also very good. After I ate, I walked over to EoS and I saw Michelle at a table though the window. I sat down with her while she finished her sandwich and then we went to Marketplace Co-Op. Wonder-Ground Gallery had a Hades print I really liked. Unfortunately, they didn't have a postcard of it.

We went to World of Disney next. Back in October, I saw a fedora at DHS I considered getting. WoD had it and I decided to get it. I went to a check out line but it was really long. I went to another check out but that line was also very long. I didn't feel like waiting, so I decided to put the hat back. The store was very crowded and I couldn't find Michelle. I sent her a text and, after waiting a few minutes for a reply, I decided to go to the Lego store until I heard back from her.

I still hadn't heard from her after looking around the Lego store for a few minutes, so I decided to go to Sprinkles to see what they had for cupcakes. The line at Sprinkles was out the door, so I decided to pass on that. I heard back from Michelle and I went back to the Lego store to meet her there. She ended up buying the BrickHeadz Donald Duck and Goofy sets. She wanted to get the Lucky Cat one also, but they were sold out.

Michelle wanted to go to UNIQLO to look around and then she was going to head back to the hotel. She headed for the bus stop and I went to Raglan Road to order the Bush-Tail Nitro which was Bushmills Irish Whiskey, local Foxtail cold brew coffee and brown sugar syrup. There was no room at the bar, so I ordered it and took it outside. It was pretty good, but I felt they went a little overboard with the ice.

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After that, I went to Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill to see if they had the Cinnful Sundae I saw on DFB a few days before our trip. I took a seat at the bar and asked the server if they had it. He told me he wasn't sure and had to go check a dessert menu. He came back and said "The Cinn is in." I said "Let's do it."

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It had a sticky bun, candied pecans, cream cheese frosting, and cinnamon gelato. I love cinnamon buns and I thought this was awesome. I'm not sure which I liked more, this one or the Nutty Buddy Sundae I got there back in October. They were both great and I hope they might have another crazy new sundae whenever I get back to Disney Springs.

It was after 9:30 when I got to the bus stop. I noticed a bus pull up for SSR right after I got there, and I saw another bus for SSR before a POFQ bus finally showed up. It was a Pluto bus and it was the first time I had been on any of the character buses. I got back to the hotel and went right to bed at 10:30, Day 1 in the books.
 
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Sunday, February 2, 2020 Part 1 - Morning to Lunch at Magic Kingdom


We were up at 5:15 for our first park day. MK wasn't going to open until 9:00, but I still like to be there when they let guests in around 7:45-7:50.

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It was looking like it was going to be a chilly morning.


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Our FP to start the day were BTMR 10:35-11:35, 7DMT 12:05-1:05, and HM (?). I don't recall what time the HM FP was for. I just chose a random time early in the afternoon. It didn't really matter because I planned to move it up ahead of 7DMT after we tapped in at BTMR. We also had separate ADRs for 12:40. Mine was for Jungle Skipper Canteen and Michelle's was BOG.

The plan was to RD PPF after watching LTMB, ride JC and POTC via standby, tap in to BTMR between 10:30-10:35, move HM FP up/ride it, tap in to 7DMT shortly after 12:00 and grab a 4th FP, go to lunch.

We were at the POFQ bus stop at 7:17 and, after a short wait for a bus, we arrived at MK at 7:33. When we arrived, there were a lot of guests entering the park for EMM, but not many guests at the tapstiles for the regular open. We tapped in at 7:47.


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There wasn't a cloud in the sky as we went to get a locker. I had worn a hooded flannel, since it was a little windy and cold to start the morning, but I decided to leave it in the locker until the evening. Several months ago I had bought a Donald Duck shirt and I was finally wearing it to a park on this day. I didn't want it covered up by the flannel in photos. I figured it would warm up as the morning went on and the sun was out. Michelle put a jacket she had brought for the evening in the locker and we went to take some pictures from the train station.

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We did the photo op at the Roy and Minnie statue near the flagpole before heading down Main Street.

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We stopped at a few shops along the way and then went to Main Street Bakery where I got a Cinnamon Roll and an Irish Cream Cold Brew.

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After the quick breakfast we walked around the hub until LTMB started.

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After the show, we waited for the pathway through the castle to open and then made our way through the castle to PPF. This was our first time rope dropping this attraction. We entered the queue at 9:05 with a 5 minute wait posted, but we waited 16.

After exiting PPF, we took the path that winds around CHH, though Liberty Square, and entered Adventureland from Frontierland from the pathway next to CBJ. It was 9:29 when we arrived at JC and it had a 25 minute wait posted. Just like at PPF, we waited 16 minutes after we entered the queue.

Between the moving boat, and the low lighting, I usually have trouble getting many good pics on this ride with my iPhone. I've considered getting a camera, but I like the ease of only having to carry around my phone and a couple of Moment Lens attachments.


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The morning was going smoothly as we arrived at POTC at 9:58 with only a 10 minute wait posted. We made our way through the queue, but we reached a point where it was backed up and didn't move for several minutes. I assume there were issues with the ride. We ended up waiting a total of 19 minutes over all.

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The wait for POTC had increased to 30 minutes after we exited. After a quick bathroom break, we tapped in at BTMR at 10:36 and I opened the app to move our 3rd FP (HM) up ahead of our 2nd FP (7DMT). I used this strategy back in June with minimal refreshing, so I expected the same here. But when I went to choose a different time for HM, it was showing there were no more FP available for it. I immediately thought "What? This can't be right." Whenever I've tried to get HM as a 4th FP on previous trips, there's always been plenty of availability for it. How could there be no availability at all only a few minutes after 10:30 on this morning? I backed up and tried to select a different time again. Same thing, no more FP available for HM.

I figured the app was just acting up as we walked though the queue, so I closed it and reopened it. I went to select a different time for HM and it was still showing no more FP available. At this point I decided to check FP availability for other attractions. I backed up and chose the option to change the attraction. To my surprise, it was looking pretty bleak. Any attractions that actually still had FP available, didn't have anything earlier than late afternoon. I couldn't believe it. It was looking like MK on Super Bowl Sunday was going to be much more crowded than I had anticipated.

I wasn't giving up though. As we continued through the queue, I continued refreshing for a HM FP for the time of 11:05 am or sooner, which was what I needed if I was going to be able to move it up ahead of our 12:05 7DMT. I finally did see a couple different times for HM before we sat down on our mine train, but they were for 4:30 and 5:30. I would have to keep trying once our ride was over.

BTMR had a 35 minute wait posted when we had entered the queue and we ended up waiting only 11 minutes. After exiting, the posted wait was up to 80 minutes. I continued my attempt of refreshing for a desired time for HM, stopping only for a quick photo op.

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I continued to refresh as we walked though Frontierland. When we reached some merchandise stands across from CBJ, I only had 10 minutes left to try to move HM up. Once the clock hit 11:05, I wouldn't be able to get a time that wouldn't conflict with our 7DMT. I told Michelle I had to stop, it was time for some serious refreshing. She looked around at the merch while I stood there refreshing. The minutes went by as I constantly refreshed and it wasn't looking good. Finally, at 11:03, with less than 2 minutes to spare, I saw an 11:05 and I grabbed it. What luck!

We were ready to head to HM and then I noticed Big Al and Liver Lips were out. Big Al is the one Country Bear I had never had my picture taken with. I walked over to him and had Michelle take a picture of us. Unfortunately, when I looked at the pics later that morning, I noticed they had been ruined by some major lens flare because of the angle of the sun. I did get a pic of Al by himself and one of Michelle with Liver Lips.

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The sky was still clear when we arrived at HM at 11:10. The posted wait was 45 minutes and we waited 12.

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On the way to 7DMT, we stopped at the Tangled bathrooms to look for the hidden Pascals, since we still had plenty of time to kill. We didn't even know about these until a few months ago. I was the first to spot one, but we weren't able to find any others. I took some pics around the area while we were there.

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When we arrived at 7DMT, we still had a couple of minutes to wait before we could tap in 5 minutes early at 12:00. When we tapped in, the ride had a 150 minute wait posted. I began looking for a 4th FP, but I didn't find anything I wanted before we got on the ride after waiting only 8 minutes.

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After exiting 7DMT, we stood off to the side near some strollers while I looked for our 4th FP. Michelle didn't really want to ride Space Mountain, but she ended up changing her mind, and I got us a FP for 3:05-4:05 so we could ride it after the FOF Parade. With our 4th FP secured, it was time to split up for lunch. Michelle went to Be Our Guest and I went to Skipper Canteen.
 
How is Michelle in regards to her kidney stone? I await your further entries, thanks for posting. More fun than TV following along. I live vicariously through your Disney trip reports.
 


How is Michelle in regards to her kidney stone? I await your further entries, thanks for posting. More fun than TV following along. I live vicariously through your Disney trip reports.

Everything’s good now and she had no concerns about going on any of the rides. Thanks!
 
Joining in!

I love the Festival of the Arts and wish I had made it there this year. I think Thomas Kincade passed away a few years ago though.

That sundae in DS looks delicious!

Love your HM picture.
 
Joining in!

I love the Festival of the Arts and wish I had made it there this year. I think Thomas Kincade passed away a few years ago though.

That sundae in DS looks delicious!

Love your HM picture.

Wow, you’re right! She has so many puzzles I can’t keep track of who’s who. :laughing:
I guess I’ll have to edit my original post. Thank you!
 
Sunday, February 2, 2020 Part 2 - Lunch to Park Close


We always do 2 days at MK on our WDW trips. Be Our Guest and Liberty Tree Tavern are pretty much the only restaurants in the park that have anything Michelle can eat, so we always get an ADR for one of them on our first MK day and the other one on our other MK day. Michelle figured I was probably getting sick of eating at the same places every time, and she told me she didn't mind if I wanted to eat somewhere else. I had been wanting to check out Jungle Navigation Co. LTD Skipper Canteen, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity for me to do so. The problem was going to be trying to get her a BOG ADR, and myself a different ADR, at the same time, less than 3 months before our trip. Or so I thought. I was able to get her a 12:40 for BOG right away in early November and I had no problem getting myself a Skipper Canteen for the same time.

So we split up for lunch after 7DMT and we planned to meet back up in front of the castle for the FOF Parade. I arrived at Skipper Canteen at 12:35 and checked in. They took my cell phone number and told me they would text me when my table was ready. I figured I had 5-10 minutes before a table would be ready, so I decided I'd walk over to Aloha Isle. Shortly before our trip, I had read that they still had the Kakamora Float that had been a MVMCP treat. I had no interest in the actual float, but I was very interested in the coconut soft-serve that was part of the float and I wanted to see if they still had it. So I started to walk over to Aloha Isle, but I didn't even get halfway there before receiving a text to inform me my table was ready. I ordered the "Tastes like Chicken" Because it is! and it arrived at my table at 1:04.


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I really liked the Chili Glaze they put on this, but I didn't care for the actual chicken. It was dry and seemed a little over cooked. I also felt the portion was a little small for the price. I'm always willing to give a place a second chance, but there isn't anything else on the menu here that really interests me. I definitely would not return for the chicken.

After Skipper Canteen, I walked over to Aloha Isle. The sun was out, but it wasn't exactly warm. Considering this, I was surprised the line at Aloha was as big as it was, but it wasn't crazy or anything. I got in line and began to look for any indication that they still had the Kakamora Float. I noticed there were stand-up signs for it on the counter next to all of the registers. I ordered the coconut soft-serve in a cup and I was happy to see it included a Mickey waffle wafer.

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I liked this flavor a lot and I would love to see it become a regular menu item. I think a pineapple/coconut swirl would be awesome. After finishing it, I made my way to the castle, stopping to take some pics from the Liberty Square Bridge.


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I arrived in time for the start of the 2:00 MRFF, a show I always enjoy watching.

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I received a text from Michelle shortly before the end of the show. She had been browsing some of the shops after lunch. Once the show was over, she met me in front of the castle and we waited for the parade. I don't like waiting more than a half hour of park time for rides, but I don't mind the wait for a good parade spot. I love seeing the characters.

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Once the parade ended, we made our way to Tomorrowland to use our Space Mountain FP. It had an 80 minute wait posted when we tapped in at 3:42. With the exception of attractions that have pre shows, SM always seems to have the longest FP line waits. We ended up waiting 11 minutes, which isn't bad at all. During the wait, I got our 5th FP of the day, VOTLM 3:45-4:45.

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When we were done with SM, the posted wait was up to 95 minutes. Michelle wanted to go to Emporium to see what they had for jigsaw puzzles, but it made sense to use our VOTLM FP first. We tapped in at 4:11. The posted wait was 25 minutes and we waited only 4. I looked for a 6th FP and I saw a 4:20-5:20 to meet Tinkerbell. We had already met her back in May, but since we were already going to Emporium, I decided to go ahead and grab it.

On the walk to Main Street, I told Michelle I got the Tink FP and that I wanted to use it before we went to Emporium, so I could get us another FP sooner. We tapped in at 4:38 with a 25 minute posted wait. I got us a 6:45-7:45 FP for TMAOWTP and we met Tink at 4:51. Like everyone else, I'm not a fan of the automatic cameras they installed for some of the M&Gs, but this one did a decent job over all.

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While Michelle browsed Emporium, I decided to place a mobile order for Corn Dog Nuggets and Bacon Mac & Cheese Fries from Casey's Corner. I placed the order at 5:05 and I was outside at a table with them, after adding some jalepenos to my fries, at 5:12.

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I placed this same order on our trip back in June and it was much better than I had expected. I didn't enjoy it so much this time though. I think I was a lot hungrier when I had it last summer, which probably made a difference. After I ate, I decided to see if Emporium had the fedora I wanted to get at Disney Spring the previous night, but I had ended up passing on because of the long check out lines. Emporium did have it, so I bought it, and you'll see me wearing it in the rest of my photos during this trip. Michelle ended up buying a couple of puzzles.

It was nearly 6:00 and, with the sun going down, it made sense to retrieve our jackets from the locker we rented since we were already near the park entrance. Michelle wanted to use the restroom first. I told her I was going to take some pictures and she could meet me at the Roy and Minnie statue by the flagpole after she went to the locker.

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I didn't even notice when I took the picture below, but Michelle can be seen on her way to the lockers in it, on the left in front of the stairs.


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After she returned from the lockers, we made our way back down Main Street. I took some pics of some of the characters on the Move It! Shake It! floats, but they all turned out too grainy or blurry because of the low lighting. We tapped in at TMAOWTP at 6:24. The posted wait was 40 minutes and we waited 9. I got us a 6:45-7:45 FP for Dumbo while we were in line.

After Pooh, I suggested we go on the People Mover before our Dumbo FP, and then go to get a spot for Happily Ever After. There was a little bit of a line waiting to get on the People Mover. I looked at the app and it was showing 35 minutes for it. I don't have any experience waiting in a line to get on the People Mover, but the posted wait didn't seem likely to me. We got in line at 6:44 and waited only 6 minutes.

We tapped in for our final FP of the night, at Dumbo, at 7:07. It had a 25 minute posted wait. There was a little girl, maybe 6 years old, with the family in front of us in line. She opened her mouth and put it right on the railing of the queue. As the line moved forward, she ran her tongue along the railing as she walked. It was one of those things you don't really want to watch, but you can't help it. I felt like I was getting sick just watching it. Our wait to get on Dumbo ended up being only 9 minutes, but it couldn't go by fast enough.

After Dumbo, we made our way to the hub. We got a spot on the right side of the castle, in front of the sidewalk kind of near the Super Zoom Magic Shot location. There was a woman behind us who was clearly seeing Happily Ever After for the first time. Every time a new scene was projected onto the castle, she excitedly blurted out what movie it was from. I kind of enjoy hearing the reactions of guests who are experiencing something for the first time, but this did start to get old about halfway through the show. It is always great to hear the "oohs" and "aahs" of guests when they see Tinkerbell fly though.

Once HEA was over, we waited for the rush of people leaving the park to pass before we moved up closer for Once Upon a Time. Once that show was over, we made our way to the exit, stopping at the lockers so Michelle could retrieve the puzzles she had bought. When we got to the bus stop for POFQ, there was a bus already there, but there was also a long line already waiting to get on. We ended up having to wait for the next bus, and ended up getting to bed at 10:42 that night.
 
Hahaha. When my son was young he did the exact same thing on a handrail at Disney! It grossed us out so much- we still tease him about it.
My daughter loves Disney puzzles, and her faves are the T. Kinkades. She buys a four pack at Barnes and Noble once or twice a year. The Jungle Book one is in pieces on my coffee table right now! 😊
 
I was trying to yell at you through the screen to avoid the Skipper Canteen. But now you know for yourself. I refuse to even give it a 2nd try try. After picking up the bill for 4 adults and 3 kids and no one remotely liked or ate all of their food there. It needs a massive menu change up. In MK for sit downs I stick to BOG for ambiance, Plaza for a fair price or CP for character breakfast brunch blowout.

That Aloha Isle was a nice desert save.

You really got a lot done in a month many have said the crowds have been heavy in.

On SM...Do you think that back row is the tightest on leg space or is it me. I try for the front. My knees don't fold up as well as yours do anymore. Lol. Regardless, really fun ride to keep us all feeling young. I hope Michelle enjoyed it, as much as it looks like you do everytime you ride it.

There's not a thing at Casey's that doesn't sound amazing but sometimes the taste isn't quite there. It's still hard to walk past and not get something sinful with cheese or deep fried.

Your pics of the characters, castle and parade are really nice. Thanks for sharing.
 
She has so many puzzles I can’t keep track of who’s who.

:rotfl: :rotfl: It happens to the best of us! i'm glad to hear it though cause I was sad for her thinking she went looking for an artist she wouldn't find!

There was a little bit of a line waiting to get on the People Mover. I looked at the app and it was showing 35 minutes for it. I don't have any experience waiting in a line to get on the People Mover, but the posted wait didn't seem likely to me. We got in line at 6:44 and waited only 6 minutes.

Yikes! I can't imagine waiting 35 minutes for People mover lol

She opened her mouth and put it right on the railing of the queue. As the line moved forward, she ran her tongue along the railing as she walked.

Oh no :scared::sick::sick:
 
Hahaha. When my son was young he did the exact same thing on a handrail at Disney! It grossed us out so much- we still tease him about it.
My daughter loves Disney puzzles, and her faves are the T. Kinkades. She buys a four pack at Barnes and Noble once or twice a year. The Jungle Book one is in pieces on my coffee table right now! 😊

I imagine it happens a lot, but that was the first time I had witnessed it. Kinkade's artwork is definitely stunning, especially the scenery in his pieces.



Yikes! I can't imagine waiting 35 minutes for People mover lol

Yeah, I'm not sure how they came up with that number. I'm just glad our wait wasn't anywhere close to that.



Exactly! :laughing:
 
I was trying to yell at you through the screen to avoid the Skipper Canteen. But now you know for yourself. I refuse to even give it a 2nd try try. After picking up the bill for 4 adults and 3 kids and no one remotely liked or ate all of their food there. It needs a massive menu change up. In MK for sit downs I stick to BOG for ambiance, Plaza for a fair price or CP for character breakfast brunch blowout.

I also considered giving The Diamond Horseshoe a try. Maybe I would have been better off if I had gone there. I definitely won't bother with Skipper Canteen again, though.


That Aloha Isle was a nice desert save.

It really was! It's funny to think I hated coconut when I was a kid and now I love it.


You really got a lot done in a month many have said the crowds have been heavy in.

Other than MK the day of the SB, and our day at DHS, it didn't feel more crowded to me than any of our previous few trips. I had toyed with the idea of going the week of Mardi Gras. I thought it might be fun since we always stay at POFQ, but I decided against it after reading about how crowded that week gets. It turns out Louis and Dr. Facilier were at POFQ the night of Mardi Gras. If I had known that ahead of time, I might have been willing to risk the crowds that week.


On SM...Do you think that back row is the tightest on leg space or is it me. I try for the front. My knees don't fold up as well as yours do anymore. Lol. Regardless, really fun ride to keep us all feeling young. I hope Michelle enjoyed it, as much as it looks like you do everytime you ride it.

I've never really noticed if one section isn't as bad as the other, I just know that it's the one ride I have trouble getting in and out of because it's so cramped. Michelle did enjoy it, even though it looks like she's sleeping in the ride photo. :laughing:
I know where the cameras are on all of the rides, so I'll always have an exaggerated look on my face in all of the ride photos.

Your pics of the characters, castle and parade are really nice.

Thank you!
 
Monday, February 3, 2020 Epcot Day 1 Part I


We were up at 6:15 AM for the first of our two planned Epcot days.

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It was looking to be warmer than our previous day at MK.

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Our FP to start the day were Nemo 9:30 - 10:30, Soarin' 10:45 - 11:45 and Turtle Talk 11:50 - 12:50. We weren't really looking to do rides on this day, so the plan was to tap in at Nemo right around 9:30, try to move Turtle Talk up ahead of Soarin' and then get Epcot Forever as an additional FP after Soarin' was done. It seemed a little silly to be having a FP for Nemo so soon after the park opened, but I just wanted us to get both of our Tier 2 FP out of the way since Epcot Forever was going to be an additional Tier 1. We liked that FP viewing area when we watched IllumiNations there. We also liked that it's closer to the exit since we were planning to leave the park right after the show ended.

Since we weren't looking to rope drop any rides, we didn't need to arrive at the park until around the time it opened. I decided I wanted to grab a quick bite and told Michelle to meet me out at the bus stop when she was ready. I was out the door at 7:59 and walked down to Scat Cat's Club Cafe. I ordered a Cinnamon Sugar Beignet and a Joffrey's Chicory Coffee, and took a seat at one of the outdoor tables just outside of Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory.

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I love the regular Mickey-shaped Beignets, but I like that they also offer different specialty ones. This was my first time getting this one and I would definitely get it again. I had the coffee on a previous trip and I was reminded that I wasn't really into it. After I ate the beignet, I walked to the bus stop with my coffee. A couple of minutes later, a bus for Epcot arrived at 8:14. Michelle didn't make it down in time for that bus, but another one arrived at 8:25.

We arrived at Epcot at 8:38 and entered the park at 8:56. There were only a couple of groups waiting to meet Pluto, so we got in line and met him at 9:07.

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There was also a short wait for Goofy, so we met him as well.

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I wanted to get my AP magnet before it got crowded, so we walked over to Mouse Gear next.


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Each of the 4 Joffrey's stands had a different latte and donut paring for the festival. I wanted to try all 4 of them, so I had decided I'd get 2 of them on each of our Epcot days. The Future World East stand was right next to Mouse Gear, so I decided to go ahead and get that one while we were there. While I was in line, I got an alert on my phone notifying me that Nemo was down and we got an Anytime FP.

Nemo being down was going to completely mess up my plan of using our initial 3 FP by 10:45. Since that plan was no longer going to happen, I decided to try to change our Soarin' FP to Frozen. After a bit of refreshing I saw a 8:00 PM pop up for it. I went ahead an grabbed it with the hope of being able to move it up to a better time. I was also able to move our 11:50 Turtle talk FP up to 9:50 before it was time for me to order my latte and donut.

The Future World East Joffrey's stand offered the "Modern Pairing, an iced coconut latte garnished with a decadent chocolate donut and topped with whipped cream and avant-garde sprinkles." Chocolate and coconut always go well together and this was quite good.

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The Daisy M&G was also in that area, so we decided to do that before moving on. While we were in line for Daisy, I was able to move our 8:00 PM Frozen FP up to 7:55 PM. Now that's progress.

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We stopped to take some pictures at the Butterfly Wall before we went to Nemo, which was now up and running.

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We took a chance on the standby line at Nemo. It had a 20 minute wait posted and we waited 5. After exiting Nemo, we tapped in at Turtle Talk. While we waited for the doors to open for the next show, I was able to move our 7:55 PM Frozen FP up to 10:30 AM. Perfect! After the show, we looked around at the aquatic life until 11:00. We still had to use another Tier 2 FP, so I got us a FP for Figment to use before we made our way to Norway. We tapped into Figment at 11:07 with a 30 minute wait posted and we waited 4.

Donald wasn't out at his M&G spot in Mexico as we walked by, but I had to get a photo next to the painting that was set up there.

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We tapped in at Frozen at 11:35. The posted wait was 60 minutes and we waited 4. I tried to get the FP for Epcot Forever during the short wait, but the app was having issues.

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We had some time to kill before the 12:30 Animation Academy class at the America Gardens Theater, so we looked around in the nearby countries for some of the character art. We found Pabbie and Snowgies in Norway, Mushu/Cri-Kee and Little Brother in China, and Amos in America.


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We also did this photo op right before the Animation Academy:

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We arrived for the Animation Academy at 12:26 and there was plenty of seating available. We were drawing Mickey Mouse in this class and we were told the 1:30 class would be for a more advanced character. After the class finished, I was trying to take a selfie of us with our drawings, and a CM offered to take the picture for us.

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Michelle wanted to attend the 1:30 class, too, so we had some more time to kill. There was a Joffrey's stand in America, so I decided I might as well get whichever donut and latte pairing they had. I went to order it and I was told that the pairing had to be ordered at their other register, which wasn't working at the moment. So my 2nd donut and latte pairing would have to wait.

I knew Michelle would have no trouble killing a half hour inside Mitsukoshi Department Store in Japan, so we started to walk over there. There was a plane doing some sky writing in the background of the America Pavilion. I'm assuming it was part of the Festival and not just some random person doing it. We spotted more character art, Gelatoni and Duffy, above the side entrance to the shop in Japan.

We drew Oswald at the 1:30 Animation Academy, though I didn't think he really seemed like an advanced character to draw compared to Mickey.

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Sunshine Seasons is like the only place in Epcot Michelle can get a meal from now, so we made our way across the other half of the World Showcase on our way there. We looked briefly for some of the character art in the countries along the way. We spotted Abu in Morocco, Lumiere and the Aristocats kittens in France, and Peter Pan's shadow in the UK.

We also did this awesome photo op in the UK:

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At some point I had made another attempt to get our Epcot Forever FP after the app wasn't working for me in the Frozen queue. I don't really have any experience with Anytime FPs, and apparently the FP I made for Figment had been the Anytime FP we got because Nemo was down. The app wanted me to use another Tier 2 FP before I could get another Tier 1. On the way to The Land, I decided to get us a FP for the Disney & Pixar Short Films Festival, which we were going to be walking by anyway.

I'm sure people do it all the time, but I always feel a little weird tapping in at an attraction and then not going in. Since the Mickey M&G is now just inside the building of the short films, I figured we could just tap in for the films, meet Mickey, and leave without feeling awkward. There was only one group waiting to meet Mickey after we tapped in at 2:23 for the films.

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At Sunshine Seasons, Michelle had to talk to someone about how to prepare her sandwich, so I ordered the Festival mini-cake for myself and went to find a seat. The frosting of the cake had peanut butter flavor and it was really good.

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I didn't really have any interest in riding Soarin' but Michelle wanted to do it still. While we were eating, I attempted to get us a FP for it that we would be able to use before heading back to the World Showcase, but I was unsuccessful. I got us the FP for Epcot Forever and promised her we'd do Soarin' on our other Epcot day. After we ate, I wanted to go back to Mouse Gear to see if they had the Festival AP pin. I was told the pin was long sold out, but our walk over there wasn't a complete waste of time because the "Living Statues" were out.

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It was fun watching them interact with guests who walked up to them for a photo opportunity. A little boy handed the diver his Sven plush.

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The Epcot Experience was nearby, so we went to watch that and then did a couple of the photo ops that were in the building.

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We did a couple of other photo ops that were near the bridge to the World Showcase.

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We looked at the chalk art on the bridge, which included this amazing 3D art:

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I noticed another Joffrey's stand, so I ordered my 2nd latte and donut pairing. This one was the "Renaissance Pairing, classic iced mocha latte topped with chocolate shavings and iridescent sprinkles and served with a timeless glazed donut."

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Art Defying Gravity was taking place on the stage set up at the Epcot Forever FP area, so I enjoyed my latte and donut while we watched that. The show was somewhat similar to what the Harambe Village Acrobats do at AK, but with far fewer participants.

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We went in the Port of Entry and Disney Traders shops. Michelle saw that there was a scavenger hunt available, which included a small jigsaw puzzle as a prize for completing it, so of course she had to do that. There were 11 paintings of Figment that were spoofs of classic paintings, and there was one hidden in each country in the World Showcase. You get a map with stickers of each painting, and you have to place the correct sticker on the country it's located in. It was like $7 or $8. So that would give us something else to search for throughout the World Showcase up until Epcot Forever.
 
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I hope everyone is doing well out there. It's crazy how much has happened since we were on this trip 2 months ago. Shanghai Disneyland closed about a week before we left. At the time I assumed the virus was just a local thing and never imagined it could become the global crisis that it has.
Michelle has been working from home for about 2 weeks now. I have one of those "essential jobs" that requires me to continue to go in to work. So far, so good. Stay safe out there!
 
February 3, 2020 Epcot Day 1 Part 2


After spending some time in Future World, we made our way back to the World Showcase on the Mexico side, which we had rushed past earlier in the morning on our way to our FP for Frozen. We didn't stay in Mexico long. We found the character art of Dante as a dog and a spirit guide. I took some pictures of Michelle at the Frida Kahlo photo op display, but they didn't turn out well because the shadows of some plants were cast in her face.

The Mushu and Cri-Kree character art in China was probably my favorite out of the ones that we found.

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When we arrived at America around 5:00, there was already a bit of a line waiting to get seating for the 5:30 Disney on Broadway Concert. We didn't want to wait in the line for a half hour, so we decided we'd just stand in the background and watch if we had to. We looked around America and found our first Figment painting. We had actually seen one in Italy earlier in the day, but this was the first we had seen since we started the scavenger hunt.

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We had a little time to kill before the start of the concert, so we moved on to Italy to look around for a bit. While we were there, we found the Jiminy Cricket character art and we did the Artful Photo Op that was set up there. We went through them separately, but we probably should have done it so we were each in one of the frames. Here's my photo of the Scream. :laughing:

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I wasn't expecting to find any seating available when we returned for the concert, but there were still some empty benches toward the back.

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We've been to a few of the Disney on Broadway shows over the last several years. We've seen The Lion King twice, and we've also seen Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. When I first found out about the concert series, I was pretty excited about it, thinking we'd be seeing some live singing of a bunch of classic Disney songs. When we saw the schedule of performers, prior to our trip, we saw that Adam Jacobs from Aladdin and Liana Hunt from Newsies would be performing on each of our Epcot days. After learning this, my expectations were lowered a bit. We love the shows based on the Disney movies, but we've never seen, nor do I think we would have any interest in ever seeing Newsies. Neither of us were looking forward to hearing live renditions of songs we had no interest in.

We both thought the concert was okay. They only sang like 2 classic Disney songs. There was also a song that was written for the Aladdin Broadway show, and like 3 songs from Newsies. The final song of the concert was a Newsies song and we didn't bother sticking around for it. The performances were good, but the content wasn't quite what we would have liked from the concert.

After the concert, we moved on to Germany, where we found Pascal on 3 different buildings.

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We also found our 2nd Figment painting.

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We hung around the area for an extra 10 minutes so I could lake some sunset pictures.

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In Morocco, we did a PhotoPass op and we found the country's Figment painting.


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In France, I had to get a picture of Lumiere with the nearby lamp lit.

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We had never gotten around to seeing Impressions de France on previous trips. We were planning to watch it back in October, but it was closed in preparation of the Beauty and the Beast sing-along. For this trip, I planned for us to catch the final sing-along of the day so that we could watch both shows back-to-back. We arrived at 7:02 with only 2 minutes to go until the next show. The sing-along was really lame, and I don't imagine many fans of the animated movie are going to accept the story elements that are included in it. We definitely won't be attending this show again. I really enjoyed Impressions de France. I would watch it again, but it might be difficult to fit it in if they continue to only show it within the last hour and a half before the park closes.

We found the Figment painting in France, and did a PhotoPass op, before moving on to browse the World Traveler shop.

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Upon arriving in the UK, we did the Tinkerbell lantern photo op.

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We spotted the Figment painting and another of my favorites out of the character art, Peter Pan's shadow.

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We browsed the UK shops before catching the end of British Revolution's set, which was Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody. Sadly, it was announced a few weeks ago that Disney let them go.

It was about 8:30 and we stopped in Canada so Michelle could get some maple popcorn before we went to the FP location for Epcot Forever. We arrived at the FP location at 8:45 and had our MagicBands scanned by a CM's iPad. As great as the viewing location had been for us during IllumiNations when we had watched it here, it wasn't so great for Epcot Forever due to the stage that was set up for the Festival of the Arts. The kites were pretty neat, but with the stage blocking much of our view, I will have to wait until I can see it again before I'll know how I feel about the show.

Once the show was over we turned around and made our way to the exit. The walk was hampered by the construction walls as a large amount of people were trying to make their way through a much narrower area. But you can't leave Epcot at night without getting a picture of Spaceship Earth illuminated in purple.

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That picture was taken at 9:19 and a Donald Duck bus, destined for POFQ, pulled up at 9:26. We were back at the resort at 9:40 and off to sleep an hour and 10 minutes later.
 
I have one of those "essential jobs" that requires me to continue to go in to work. So far, so good. Stay safe out there!

Hope both of you stay safe and healthy!

We looked around America and found our first Figment painting.

I love these- they crack me up!


Super cute picture :love:

I really enjoyed Impressions de France. I would watch it again, but it might be difficult to fit it in if they continue to only show it within the last hour and a half before the park closes.

I didn't realize that's what they were doing. Weird.
 

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