Today we tried new things.
It has hit us that we have 28 years left going to Disney (we are now
Vacation Club members) – so we need to sprinkle a little new into each vacation
so that ever third trip we can do a “favorite hits” and not have the obligation
of trying new which Joel Husband and I can fear here.
Before I get into some good tips and lessons learned and
funny family anecdotes for the three of you reading, I will tell you that there
is a stereotype of people who are DVC members, and Joel Husband and I love
them, chat with them frequently and may become them. I almost spent $95 on a Dooney and Burke
wallet tonight. 90% of my wardrobe this
trip is a Disney character t-shirt (which I spice up with a scarf and fun jewelry, thanks Jennie!) – do you know they make Mickey scarfs now? We speak our own language. We know all the tricks to getting Fast Passes
and we blog a lot. It is creepy. I am a creepy Disney person. I love it.
Ok. To tips. First things first, we went to Animal Kingdom
this morning, it was our second and last time there this trip. Not to beat a dead horse – or see a live
giraffe – but I will tell you that you need to go on extra magical morning
hours and go straight to the Safari.
Once again we walked on and once again we saw every animal. At one point we were backed up because the
rhinos were crossing the road and we were stopped right next to a giraffe
eating his breakfast on the right, and a bunch of deer like funny things eating
in tall grasses on the left. It was
awesome.
Dinoland has the best playground and is good for getting energy out. Then we were off to Camp Minnie Mickey to see some characters and go to the Festival of the Lion King. Many, many DVC people and otherwise tourists have told us this is their favorite. We have never gone, but we are trying new things… So we went, hoards of people waited 45 minutes to get good seats for this 30-minute show. I was expecting the best thing I have ever seen. It was very, very good. I would go, I would Fast Pass it next time, and I would like it again. The boys loved it but as we didn’t really rush to get good seats there was some uncomfortable maneuvering to get the boys to be able to see the show, and Joel Husband had to kill the person in front of us’s magic by asking them to take their ears off during the show. That should probably be on the announcements: No smoking, no flash photography, remove your ears. It was pretty awesome though, live singers, amazing dancers, there was fire. I just don’t want to build it up for others the way it was built up for us, nothing can match that!
So, we then had “lost time.”
That time when the crowd starts to present itself, everything has a
wait, the kids are hungry but lunch is too close to get a snack but too far to
listen to them whine until then… We decided to torture everyone and do two
things: 1. We went to A Bug’s Life’s It’s Tough to be a
Bug. I have said before and I should SAY
AGAIN IN ALL CAPS – do not bring your small, sensitive child here. This is funny, usually no wait, cleaver,
potential to learn thing – but most of all, TERRIFYING. The way the show is done, adults would not
even bat an eyelash, but look at it from a child’s perspective and you might
have nightmares for months. As
previously done, Joel Andrew cried and cried.
James, whole different reaction.
Priceless, and I have never laughed so hard in my life. Stunned terror combined with speechless
reaction. Laying back in fear, with no
sound whatsoever. When I asked him if he
wanted to cuddle with me or leave, he would just wordlessly push me away and
stare in pure terror at the screen. He was absorbed, terrified and loving it? Not sure, but he made it through the whole
show and at the end high fived me. This
kid is terrifying.
We then went to #2. Lesson to be learned. Do not dress your kids up, then wait in line for a long time to take a picture with characters assuming they will be wearing something that matches your children’s clothing. Who would assume that in November in Animal Kingdom Minnie and Mickey would be wearing safari suits? Clearly I did. My boys were ready to be twins with them in the cutest picture of all time (James and I talked for hours about this one and he promised me he would hug Mickey this time). So, we wait in line. We get ready. Then, we see Minnie and Mickey in 1980’s holiday ski sweaters. What, what, what? Didn’t get that memo… But still got a cute shot.
Next, the next thing we have really never done – booked in
pool time. We are staying at the Beach
Club Resort, and it has the best pool of all time. We are normally so busy in the parks, eating,
that we do not get to the pool or enjoy any of those amenities. When we leave we always say that next time we
will enjoy them more. This time we finally have. Tomorrow morning, all morning is pool
morning. Can’t wait.
We also ate at Beaches and Cream, which has the best burger
hands down I have eaten in many, many years.
I am swearing off burgers until the next time we eat here. So good.
They also have “The Kitchen Sink” which many people ordered while we
were there which is like the Vermonster…
We will order that when I have teenage boys, and when Uncle Jeremy is
with us too.
Evening at Hollywood Studios. The Disney Junior show is a must, but sitting
on the floor for 40 minutes really reminds you that you are no longer 10 years
old. Toy Story Mania with a Fast Pass
(the wait was 65 minutes, which is the lowest I have ever seen it and to put this
into perspective the next longest wait was 10 minutes at Tower of Terror or
Rockin’ Rollercoaster). Joel Andrew is
getting good at this ride and had over 30,000 points. Which is a big deal!
We clearly met Woody and Buzz and James is warming up to the
characters which is nice. We are hopeful
for our last character meal. The Osborne
Family lights spectacle was awesome.
Lots of holiday light decorations – though I was bummed I forgot my
Mickey ears hat.
So, the thing that we learned this trip and I will carry
with us as an on the bright side since the kids will be going into school and
it looks like we may not make it back in non-popular times is: That if you go during a non-popular time,
sure, you can get on the rides with little-no wait, but the parks do compensate
for the low attendance. There are less
snack stands open, they take longer at the restaurants, and they close ALL of
the parks by 9. We have our set-up
nicely so that we are out of the park at the height of day, 11-4. We eat a fantastic lunch, take a nap, go to
the pool, etc. Then we go back. But, by the time we get back the parks are
about to close again on this schedule, since they close by 9 because there are
so little crowds. And, when I say they
close by 9, I mean really do.
Illuminations starts at 9 and there is no way you can buy a beer or a
drink during the program, the houses are all closed up by the time the lights
are dimmed. It has been slightly sad but
I guess has worked out excellently for our family considering how old they
are. In the future, if we can continue
to work the Fast Pass thing, and Magic Hour thing, I may not be too afraid of
high season as that will also mean more hours in the day to play with.
And that is all from Orlando today. Tomorrow is even more fun. 2 new restaurants, an entire morning at the
pool, and Peter Pan (AGAIN!)
Looks like a blast!
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