I wanted to write this up while stuff is still fresh
11/13 DME, POP Century, Disney Springs, Homecomin' : We (me, h, DS almost 12, DD 8) left from MN and got into MCO at about 11:30. DME worked really smoothly for us. There was a bus we could board right away and we didn't wait long before we took off for the hotel. Made one stop at AoA before getting dropped off at POP. Our room wasn't ready yet, so we changed into our suits (packed in our carry ons) and headed for the pool. Grabbed a couple of beers from the poolside bar at the Hippy Dippy Pool. It was hot! I had ordered some groceries and beer from Publix earlier that day and scheduled it to be delivered between 2 and 3 pm. Got a text right before 3 that they were on their way and another text that our room was ready. So we found our way to our room in the 80s section, dropped off our carry on stuff and walked back to the lobby to pick up our order. It was a bit of a hike from the Hippy Dippy pool, to our room and back to the lobby. But overall our location wasn't too bad, once we figured out the best routes from our room to the buses, or from the lobby to our room. For the record - two tallboy IPA cans of beer at the pool bar cost about $22.
We caught a bus to Disney Springs and headed straight to Chef Art Smith's Homecomin' for our reservation. I was looking forward to the fried chicken - but it was disappointing. I got the regular fried chicken meal with the potatoes and cheddar drop biscuit. I love biscuits and I didn't even finish this one. The mashed potatoes were the best part, I thought. My food didn't seem fresh - like it had been pre-plated/prepared earlier and then just heated up. DD's kids Mac and cheese was good though! Wandered for a bit and then back to the hotel.
11/14 Magic Kingdom: Got there maybe 15 minutes before it opened? I can't remember - but we headed straight to Tomorrowland and rode Space Mountain twice in a row with barely a wait. We had FP for Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder Mountain and Pirates of the Caribbean. Kids were not impressed with either Haunted Mansion (they love the haunted house at the MN state fair so I thought they'd love it!) or Pirates. But they loved Big Thunder Mountain - I learned that they are more roller coaster fans, which I am, too. We also rode It's A Small World, Jungle Cruise (Jingle Cruise for the holidays) - they thought it was funny, but we're a big fan of dad jokes, and the Mad Tea Party. Lunch reservations were for The Jungle Navigation Co Ltd Skipper Canteen. DS was bummed that he couldn't order off the kids menu. He and H shared a pork dish, I had the Perkins noodles and I'm pretty sure DD ordered Mac and cheese (you'll notice a theme throughout the week), and we all shared an app. H and I each had a couple of beers.
We caught the parade at 3 pm, which the kids liked. I had bought a thin blanket for us to sit on, so we got that out for them. It was hot but it was nice to sit for a while. We enjoyed some Dole Whip, and then DD had Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique at 5:10. She LOVED it. Her fairy godmother was awesome - so friendly and chatty and I think DD smiled the whole time. I'd bought her a darling "Frozen-inspired" dress off Etsy but she forgot to pack it (and I forgot to double check what she had packed!) So we ended up getting the package with the t-shirt and tutu.
There were EMH from 10pm to midnight but we left soon after the fireworks at 9 pm - we were exhausted! Seriously, we'd head back to the room and I'd be the first one to say good night, usually around 8:30 or 9 :/
11/15 Universal and Universal Islands of Adventure: We got the 2 park in 1 day pass so we could do all the Harry Potter stuff. We started at Universal Orlando. Went straight to Diagon Alley and rode Escape from Gringott's twice. It was my first time at this park and I think I smiled the whole way through this ride. I loved it. Watched the Ollivander wand selection and then the kids each picked out interactive wands. We wandered around there for a while, testing out the spells they could do and looking in the shops. H and I shared a beer and the kids shared a butter beer. We walked around the rest of the park and did the Fast and the Furious ride (cheesy but the ride itself was kind of fun), Revenge of the Mummy twice (we all loved this one) and Minion Mayhem - cute and we liked it, but we're not prone to motion sickness. I wanted to try the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit but no one else wanted to. I wish we'd spent some time in the Simpsons area, but we took a wrong turn somewhere and bypassed it on our way back to Kings Cross. I'm glad that we got the two park pass so we could do this one. It's not a super exciting ride but it was fun to "be" there and ride the Hogwart's Express.
At Islands of Adventure, we did more wandering around Hogsmeade and trying out the wands. Our longest line was for Forbidden Journey, but I like that one a lot, too. Then we did Flight of the Hippogriff, there was hardly a line. We had lunch at Mel's - a '50s time burger place and the burgers were pretty decent. The Universal parade went by while we ate and it looked pretty sad compared to the Disney one, lol. The only other ride we went on was the Incredible Hulk coaster - just me and DS. DD and DH went on a nearby ride while they waited but I forget which one. DS thought it was awesome! I had fun, but it hurt my head a little bit.
It was a cooler day so we didn't want to do any of the rides where you could get wet, so that was about it. I'd considered getting their express pass (like Fast Pass) for $70-100 more per person, since we only had the one day, and I'm so glad I didn't. The Hogwarts ride was the only one with a really long line, otherwise we were pretty lucky and it wasn't very crowded at all. I adore the HP parts and there were a couple of other fun rides, but I don't think we'll feel the need to go back, if we do Orlando again. We got doughnuts at Voodoo at City Walk for Friday's breakfast, and then apps/beers at the NBC bar/restaurant before heading back to the hotel.
We did Lyft for transportation between POP and Universal and it was about $21 each way, including tip (I think I had a 10% off offer).
11/16 Animal Kingdom: got there right as it opened (I don't know if technically made it for rope drop any of our days there). We went straight to Pandora for the Navi River Journey ride and I think our wait was less than an hour. It was pretty but I'm glad we didn't have to wait long for it. I saw the lines for it and Flight of Passage get up to 3 hours while we were there - it was 135 minutes as soon as we walked into the park :/ We had FP for the safari right away until 10:15 and went there next. The kids thought it was awesome and it was cooler than I thought it would be. I was envisioning a "jeep" on tracks and it sort of being like riding through a zoo. Way better than that, lol. We had FP for Everest midmorning and we all loved that one, too. It might actually be tied with Space Mountain for my favorite roller coaster! Dinner at Yak and Yeti. Again, it was ok. I got the coconut shrimp and it was your average coconut shrimp Oh - I wore my birthday pin that I got when I checked into POP (you can also get it at City Hall at MK and I'm sure other places, too) and got treated to a dessert at every sit down restaurant we ate at - Skipper Canteen and here, it was a cupcake.
Again, it was a cool day and we were very lucky with lines. No one wanted to do the river ride so we rode it twice in a row - and cheated and wore our rain ponchos (bought ahead of time on Amazon). This was the only time we needed to use them, too! Also rode Dinosaur, saw the UP bird show, and rode Everest 2 more times with minimal waits - maybe 15-20 minutes? Our Flight of Passage FP was at 6:30 and I'm so glad we had one! It was a very cool ride but I don't think I'd wait 3 hours for any ride. Enjoyed the lights of Pandora at night, looked at the Tree of Life and went back to POP.
11/17 Hollywood Studios: Got there close to park opening and went straight to sign up for Jedi training. There were only a couple of people ahead of us in line and all time slots were open, so we went with the first one at 9:40. DS thought he was too cool for it and DD cried saying she didn't even like Star Wars (she does) but I told her if she still didn't want to when we checked in, she didn't have to. Then we rode Star Tours twice in a row (and skipped our FP for it when it came up at 10:25). That got them a little more excited for the training And it was pretty cheesy and DS probably was too old to really enjoy it (12 is the max age) but they did smile a lot through it and we got some good pics through Photo Pass. We had a FP for Rock N Rollercoaster at 11:30 and, again, loved it.
Lunch was at 50s Prime Time Cafe. We got there a little early and grabbed a couple of beers in the lounge. It was super cute in there and reminded me of my grandparents' house. H was reminded at least twice to get his elbows off the table, ha. Food-wise, I really liked it. DS and I shared the pot roast and I thought it was really good! Solid comfort food. Kids shared a strawberry milkshake to go for dessert, and I also got another bday cupcake.
We were able to do Toy Story Mania with a relatively short wait (less than an hour) and had FP for Slinky Dog Dash. Both were fun! I thought DS would like TS Mania more b/c he's into carnival and video games and this is kind of a mixture but he liked SDD more. Frozen Sing Along was cute and it was nice to sit. We split up in the evening so DS and I could do tower of terror and DD and DH went back to the Rock N Rollercoaster. They rode that twice and DS and I got on it one more time also before we watched the light show. Snacks and beers at Baseline Tap House (trying to convince the kids to stay later but they were tired) so we went back to the hotel.
Ok, need to feed the kids so to be continued.... sorry it's a novel! Let me know if anyone has questions.
Never apologize for a long and detailed trip report! It sounds like you had a ton of fun, and planned perfectly for what your family was going to enjoy.
Great report. Enjoyed reading about 50s prime time. Sounds fun!
Questions: 1. How hard was it to get a FP for SDD? Did you get the time you wanted? My FP booking day is coming up and I'm reading on disboards about how hard some Fps are to get. 2. I'm surprised that the wait for Navi River Journey was an hour at opening. Did you think the ride was worth an hour wait? Gah! We will plan to be there 30 min before opening, so maybe it won't be that long. 3. Maybe I missed it, but you didn't ride 7 dwarfs mine train? Maybe you weren't able to get a FP?
11/18 - my birthday (and Mickey's) at Magic Kingdom!: We started the day off by taking a Lyft to the Polynesian resort for breakfast at Kona Cafe. I got the mimosa flight - pink grapefruit, pineapple, and lilikoi juices - and macadamia nut pancakes with "spiced ham," which the waitress was anxious to let me know was just spam - I was born in Hawaii (where it's very popular) and raised in MN (where it's made), I knew what it meant The mimosas and pancakes were delicious and the portion was huge. I didn't finish. Spam was just ok, wasn't fried/greasy enough for me! They gave me a birthday dessert plate - a couple of macaron, cookies, and chocolates. Yum! We caught the monorail to MK from there. Line looked long but moved quickly.
We had FP for 7 Dwarfs Mine Train, Peter Pan and Space Mountain this day. 7 Dwarfs was cute and fun! Photo pass gives you a little video of your ride afterwards. I love PP, kids were, unsurprisingly, unimpressed. They were shocked at how long the line always was for it. I was glad for the Space Mtn. FP b/c lines were long all day for that one. We did Hall of Presidents, which I knew the kids would think was dumb (I did as a kid) but it's a classic! Waited in a long ass line for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (ride kept going down so it was longer than anticipated). It was super hot that day so we waited the hour for Splash Mountain. H and I got seated in front and got soaked. There was an announcement throughout the park in the afternoon to sing Happy Birthday to Mickey Mouse, which was cute. We had dinner reservations at Be Our Guest at 4:05 - this has the prixe fixe menu. Since DS is a "Disney adult" he had to order a regular meal, although our server said he could order off the kids' menu and the portion would be larger but it would cost the same as an adult - which is $60 pp. He wanted the Mac and cheese but we were not about to order a $60 mac and cheese. DD order it though (shock!). And her portion was huge - she couldn't finish it, I can't imagine what the adult portion would have been. DS and DH got the steak, which was really good (stole some of DS's, mashed potatoes were good too). DS was happy he got to try some of DD's meal. I had the pork tenderloin which was all right. I liked the Brussels sprouts and asparagus on the side, and the pork belly. Should've gone for the steak though! The whole experience was great - we sat in the ballroom, but looked in the other two rooms as well. DS sat next to me and got to enjoy me singing along (quietly) to the instrumental Beauty and the Beast songs playing We got pictures with the Beast afterward, and I got extra gray stuff for a birthday treat. Kids got to "paint" their own white chocolate chip cup and put their dessert together. I was glad they gave the kids' version to both of them. It was a fun dinner, but expensive - wouldn't need to do it again.
We had some ice cream treats (yay Mickey ears!) and stayed to watch Frozen Holiday Wishes, where Elsa lights up the castle. Super crowded and people are jerks trying to get up closer, like at the fireworks, but I admit to getting a little teary-eyed when it lit up. It was a great birthday.
11/19 Epcot: Our last full day in Orlando! We had FP for Soarin', Spaceship Earth and Mission: Space. I can't remember which rides fell into which tiers, but I wish I'd gotten a Test Track FP instead of either Soarin' or Mission:Space. DS and DH really wanted to ride it and it seemed to have the longest standby time, all day. Anyway - those two headed straight there and DD and I went straight to Norway to try and beat the crowd to the Frozen Ever After ride. It was a 35 min wait when got there. Test Track was 2 hours - the boys ended up having to bail so we wouldn't miss our Soarin' FP. The Frozen ride was really cute! And I liked the theming you walk through waiting in line, especially the shopkeeper guy. I remembered really liking Soarin' last time I rode it, but thought it was kind of boring this time. Kids hated Spaceship Earth (wished I'd gotten Living with the Land or whatever it was instead), but again, it's a classic. I thought they'd love Mission Space (we chose to do the more intense Mars version) but they just thought it was okay. Overall, I don't think they were super impressed with Epcot! I got DD the passport, mostly so I knew we would walk through most of each world showcase, but she thought it was fun. We got some treats in Japan (candy, mochi ice cream treats), DD got a squishy in China, and DS got a soccer ball in the UK (my parents had given them gift cards to pick a souvenir). We ended up riding Test Track later in the day and the line was loooong. DS thought it was really cool to design his own car though (and I think H did, too). The International Festival of the Holidays was going on so they had special food booths and a special food passport throughout the world showcase. We didn't indulge as much as I thought we would. Some egg rolls, some wine, a mango something or other drink for me. My feet were in serious pain by this point - I don't think I'd broken in my Birkenstocks as much as I thought I had. I got a blister and my feet felt like they would shatter with every step by the end of the day, which put a damper on things. I should've looked for flip flops or something to change into. We'd brought moleskin to cover blisters and didn't need it til that day - but it was a lifesaver for me. We went to Club Cool and tried the different sodas from around the world, which the kids really enjoyed. We left after it got dark, but fairly early, and H took the kids swimming while I relaxed in our room and ordered pizza for us. It was a nice, chill way to end the trip.
11/20 departure day: Our departing flight number had changed from when we first book, so the night before I had to call with our flight info and schedule our MDE bus time, which was no problem. We slept in til 8 or so (later than we had slept all week!) and packed up. Had to stop at the lobby to print out a new "boarding pass" for the bus, then we got our boarding pass and checked our bags right there at the hotel - only certain airlines offer this, but it was so convenient! We had enough time to grab breakfast in the food court and then check in and wait for the bus. We had no stops on our way to the airport and were able to head straight to the security line.
Random thoughts/opinions overall: We bought park hoppers and didn't use them at all. I know some people like to move around or check our resort restaurants/bars or Disney springs, but I was so freaking tired every day, I just wanted to go back to our room. We were originally booked at AoA and I switched to POP because of their holiday room offer so compared to our first package, it was only an extra $10 to add on the hoppers. That is what I"m telling myself anyway
I really liked POP Century and would stay there again. It was nice to have two queen beds, one of which is a Murphy bed that we could tuck away during the day/when we were getting ready for more room. The grounds were well kept and the pools were nice. Housekeeping was hit or miss - they'd restock coffee packets, but not the coffee cups. We started off with not enough towels and then got way too many (not a bad problem). Only one side of our coffee pot worked so we could only make one cup at a time, not a big deal. The walls were thin - our last morning I was treated to a continuous performance of Let It Go by our young neighbor, and I'm sure they were treated to the beautiful sounds of me coughing and blowing my nose (caught a cold while we were there).
I'd either add in a day or two as planned rest days if we go again - or if we go for just another week, use what was our Universal and 2nd MK day as rest days. We could have all used it.
Getting to the parks as close to opening time seems to be key to getting in rides that you don't have FP for without too long of a wait.
A dining plan would have been a waste for us. I calculated what we spent on everything, and all in for the week, we spent about $1700 on food. It would have been $1800 to add the standard dining plan. We shared a lot of meals and snacks. That total includes our grocery delivery (which I probably wouldn't do again - would just bring granola bars as that's what we seemed to snack on most at the parks, from our own stash), our day at Universal, and alcoholic beverages.
We spent $267 dollars on souvenirs/BBB - that excludes $140 in gift cards that we had.
Overall, it was an expensive vacation, for us at least - food, souvenirs, tickets (Universal and Disney), and airfare, all in came to about $6868 for the week (I think the only thing I'm missing in that total are our 3 Lyft rides). But we thought it would end up more when all was said and done. I'm not sure if we'll do it again - although I told H I'm already planning for mine and Mickey's 50th/100th bdays in 10 years I love Disney and I'm so grateful I got to bring our kids there. I think they were at great ages to go. They picked at each other and fought and whined at times, like any other kids, but I know they'll remember the experience and appreciate it also.
Great report. Enjoyed reading about 50s prime time. Sounds fun!
Questions: 1. How hard was it to get a FP for SDD? Did you get the time you wanted? My FP booking day is coming up and I'm reading on disboards about how hard some Fps are to get. 2. I'm surprised that the wait for Navi River Journey was an hour at opening. Did you think the ride was worth an hour wait? Gah! We will plan to be there 30 min before opening, so maybe it won't be that long. 3. Maybe I missed it, but you didn't ride 7 dwarfs mine train? Maybe you weren't able to get a FP?
My sister is a travel agent who specializes in Disney - she booked all our FP for us but didn't seem to have a problem. I made a list of what I wanted, in order of most to least wanted, and gave that to her to help prioritize. Ours was at 10:05 which was a fine time. We had some FP that were later in the day/evening - we weren't really able to get more the day of because of that. So the earlier the better!
Navi River Journey - I just checked the texts my sister and I sent that day, it was 30 minutes when we got in line, sorry! I'd wait an hour, but probably not more.
We did rid 7 Dwarfs - just created a second post with the rest of our trip We were able to get a FP for that one. If you can, get it, b/c that was one of the rides at MK that always had a long standby line wait time (along with Big Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Peter Pan, and surprisingly to me, meeting Mickey!).
Let me know if there's anything else you're wondering about!
A couple of other things I just thought of. If you have the heads up game on your phone, they have a Disney pack you can use, I think just while you’re there? Or it unlocks while you’re there? Anyway, it was a fun way to pass the time while waiting in line.
Also - I brought an external battery and cord with me the first couple of days so I could recharge my phone while we were at the parks. It was very handy! Unfortunately, the cord I brought with to charge the battery didn’t work so it died. My phone battery was quite good though and still lasted the day - even through checking the Disney app, taking pictures, playing heads up, etc. I cut it close a few times with battery level in the teens by the time we left but h barely used his so we had the Disney app on his phone as a back up.