You had quite the trip, didn't you? June 2019 Completed 12/4! New TR Link 1/19!

[the2ndstar2theright]

Have a wonderful trip!!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Have a wonderful trip!! I hope the crowds are low for you.

 

[sahu]

Have a great trip!

 

[annie170]

Have an enjoyable and safe trip!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Have a great trip!

 

[DLo]

Safe travels. Hope you have a magical time

 

[Neverland_Girl]

Hi I'm super late but I'm joining in! Have a great trip I'll be following on Insta!!

 

[buzzrelly]

Have a great trip!

 

[Woth2982]

Have a great trip!

 

[amazingact21]

Hope you're having a great trip!

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Getting caught up from while we were gone!

We were even gifted with an adorable box of chocolates that had one with a picture of the Contemporary on it and three smaller chocolates.

So cute! I love the little monorail one.

Even though we were just sitting on our balcony, this dinner was one of my favorites

Sometimes it's the simple, sweet moments that stay with you more than the big exciting ones

they were dropping off ANOTHER welcome dish with chocolates and chocolate covered strawberries!

But wait! There's MORE!

The first being the purple spirit jersey so I could match Joy's!

Yay!!!

if you didn't know you can find some real hidden gems there for Disney merch! Especially since a lot of people only use stuff once or twice!)

Okay going to Poshmark like right now...

Dan had purchased the GoPro Hero 7 black right before our trip to get some cool hyperlapses of us walking through the park. (The stabilization on these cameras is AMAZING and the videos come out super cool!)

Jon is playing around with getting one! We have the Hero4 silver (I think?) and it's definitely showing its age.

Anyway, I brushed the whole thing off pretty quickly but was just a weird way to start our night!

Ugh so weird! Glad you were able to brush it off!

Tey didn’t use the method that DHS AHs had used but rather had three CMs working the booth - one handled drinks, one handled popcorn and one handled ice cream. It seemed to work pretty well!

Efficiency, I love it.

but the dragon is my favorite part of Festival of Fantasy so it was cool to see at night!

Oh wow I didn't even think of how cool it would be to see her at night!

Anyone else wish there was a ride photo for BTMRR?? I feel like they would be such great pictures!

DLP has one, which is one of 143 reasons why it is the Most Superior BTMRR Of All.

DH was completely taken off guard that someone in the real world again knew who I was but was happy that we were all able to meet

DH on the other hand was feeling the tiredness lol

Ope

Plus, when you are paying more for a room it’s nice to actually enjoy the resorts amenities!

Exactly!! DH makes a lot of comments on how nice rooms are and how he "wished we had time to you know actually enjoy them" so I'm glad you got plenty of time to enjoy your club level room!

I knew I wanted to recreate my parents old photo that they took on their honeymoon 30 years ago in 1989.

So cute! Did you use a tripod? Or is there a conveniently placed rock or something to set a camera on?

Well not so fast, we did have time to get evidence of my Mickey themed outfit! haha

So cute! Where did you find it?

My cute purse broke after these pictures! But at least I’d already gotten my photos haha

Boooo. Guess you could always look on Poshmark for a new one

We did stop for a photopass on our way out though, and ended up with the same CM from our AP pictures haha I think she remembered us!

Love it!

Does anyone know why turndown service includes them putting the pillows the wrong way?

No I think you're confused. You didn't get turn down service, you got turn AROUND service.


Okay I'll go now.

Have an amazing rest of your trip! It looks awesome so far.

 

[TNGirlwCamera]

Thanks for the Poshmark tip! When you started talking about her grabbing your bag, I immediately thought she was trying to steal it. That was definitely an odd situation and I'm glad you got out of it ok.

I so wanted to do a Villains event. I hope they do them again.

I have yet to try California Grill but I always read good things about it.

 

[Cloe Colton]

Getting caught up from while we were gone!

Welcome back! But I'm sure you wish you were still on vacay because I know I do!

Sometimes it's the simple, sweet moments that stay with you more than the big exciting ones

Exactly! It was perfect!

But wait! There's MORE!

Hahaha pretty much!

Okay going to Poshmark like right now...

Its such a hidden gem! Although some people ask for an arm and a leg lol but you can still find good options!

Jon is playing around with getting one! We have the Hero4 silver (I think?) and it's definitely showing its age.

I definitely recommend the hero 7 black! We love ours

Ugh so weird! Glad you were able to brush it off!

It was so strange!

Efficiency, I love it.

Me too! Especially during those precious AH moments!

Oh wow I didn't even think of how cool it would be to see her at night!

It was super cool! I kinda wish we saw her on Main Street but still glad we saw her!

DLP has one, which is one of 143 reasons why it is the Most Superior BTMRR Of All.

Ugh I cannot tell you how mad I am that my family electively chose to skip BTMRR in DLP! I totally did zero research on DLP before our Europe trip because I figured that would be pure torture to be that close and not be able to go. But that totally bit me on the butt when I knew nothing about the park on our spontaneous trip over! lol

Exactly!! DH makes a lot of comments on how nice rooms are and how he "wished we had time to you know actually enjoy them" so I'm glad you got plenty of time to enjoy your club level room!

So cute! Did you use a tripod? Or is there a conveniently placed rock or something to set a camera on?

They actually have a camera stand over there to use! I had my actual camera which made it super easy to get the shot! A tripod would still be required for an iphone though!

So cute! Where did you find it?

Zara in Disney Springs!!

Boooo. Guess you could always look on Poshmark for a new one

I'm pretty sure I'll be able to fix it! Just haven't gotten around to it yet! lol

No I think you're confused. You didn't get turn down service, you got turn AROUND service.
View attachment 436361

Okay I'll go now.

hahaha thats what it felt like!

Have an amazing rest of your trip! It looks awesome so far.

Thank you! We had an amazing time that went by WAY too fast!

Thanks for the Poshmark tip! When you started talking about her grabbing your bag, I immediately thought she was trying to steal it. That was definitely an odd situation and I'm glad you got out of it ok.

It was definitely super weird!!

I so wanted to do a Villains event. I hope they do them again.

Me too!! It was super fun!

I have yet to try California Grill but I always read good things about it.

Definitely try it out!!

 

[afwdwfan]

Dan was very pumped to be vlogging! I have to say, I was proud of how much he did film considering he wanted to "vlog" our anniversary trip last year and gave up about five minutes into the first day at Animal Kingdom! lol

This would be me. Great idea. Sounds fun. Nah, forget it. Just want to enjoy the park.

While I LOVED staying Club Level, the whole checking in process/interaction felt a bit weird. Could have totally been me just being tired but I guess I was expecting someone super friendly and he just felt a bit cold (especially when he didn't remember us from a few minutes prior). After a brief tour of the club, we were left on our own and it was finally time to start our vacation!

I'd be a little bit put off by that as well. Not really the warm Disney welcome. You seem to get as good or better checking in at any old standard room at a value resort.

DH isn’t the biggest fan of meet and greets but with him wanting to vlog I told him character interactions would make for some good content! (I mean anything to convince him to do it with me!)

Seems like vlogging would be perfect... you meet, he videos!

(Anyone have any tips on ways to prevent that? I never wear sneakers so I don’t have that problem in Disney!)

I just don't wear sneakers either. I've bought some shoes that I pretty much just wear at Disney World for that very reason.

While we were enjoying our dinner, we heard a knock at our door and were completely shocked that they were dropping off ANOTHER welcome dish with chocolates and chocolate covered strawberries!

Well, I guess that might make up for some of the lackluster welcome when you arrived?

Like I said, I love watching Disney vlogs and you know when they get invited they all will be swayed somewhat but I just don’t get the whole VIP thing when that’s not actually how the night would be for a normal person. Okay, I’m off my soapbox! Lol

I've never really gotten into vlogs. I spend enough time just reading TRs here, and I can only imagine how much time I'd lose to that rabbit hole once I'd start watching a few. That said, I totally agree. If someone does it and does it well, I don't have a problem with them getting perks, but it definitely does make for a bad taste in the mouth when you see written reviews or vlogs of an event and their experience doesn't line up with what is typical.

Well, on our way up Main Street, I felt someone grabbing my backpack up and off of my back. I turned around and this woman was still holding my bag saying how she loves it. And I get it, it was villain themed and it was the night of Villains after hours but there are ways to tell someone you love something they have or are wearing. Grabbing them is not one of them. (I was complimented by a very lovely woman the next night about my outfit who from about ten feet away was able to convey the same message, without touching me!)

Oh hell no! You handled that better than I would have. If anyone was rude it was them! Sounds like somebody tried to get into your bag and got caught so they tried to deflect.

Overall, I would DEFINITELY recommend the Villains After Hours

Looks like a lot of fun! Thanks for the nice review!

I thought I might be exhausted after being up until 2 the night (or morning) before and then up again at 8:30 but something about being in Disney made me feel just fine! (Maybe I’m just used to no sleep in Disney! LOL)

I can relate to that... well, not the working at Disney part, but the no sleep part.

After we finished lunch, we explored the shops and then decided to go walk around outside and take some pictures. I knew I wanted to recreate my parents old photo that they took on their honeymoon 30 years ago in 1989.

Great idea!!!!

Definitely a cool vantage point to Tower of Terror from the area but overall, as a solution to bring Cars to DHS it felt a bit lackluster. I cannot WAIT to see Carsland in DCA in November!

This is just a sad joke compared to Carsland. It's not bad, but it is just something that is clearly an afterthought.

I love me some Toy Story Mania, especially because Dan is truly terrible at it (and he’s the gamer!)

 

[Cloe Colton]

This would be me. Great idea. Sounds fun. Nah, forget it. Just want to enjoy the park.

He's gotten much better! haha to be fair we didn't really have the equipment to vlog well the first time but yeah he totally gave us that time! haha

I'd be a little bit put off by that as well. Not really the warm Disney welcome. You seem to get as good or better checking in at any old standard room at a value resort.

Yeah it was just strange. Like I said it could have been me feeling self conscious but it just seemed off. Like I wasn't important enough to get a tour or something.

Seems like vlogging would be perfect... you meet, he videos!

That's usually how it goes now! Although for meets like that one we usually give the camera to the character attendant to hold and record since we have photopass for photos!

I just don't wear sneakers either. I've bought some shoes that I pretty much just wear at Disney World for that very reason.

Same lol of course he brought two pairs of sneakers this past trip in September and we never got rained on once lol

Well, I guess that might make up for some of the lackluster welcome when you arrived?

Yep!!

I've never really gotten into vlogs. I spend enough time just reading TRs here, and I can only imagine how much time I'd lose to that rabbit hole once I'd start watching a few. That said, I totally agree. If someone does it and does it well, I don't have a problem with them getting perks, but it definitely does make for a bad taste in the mouth when you see written reviews or vlogs of an event and their experience doesn't line up with what is typical.

It's definitely a rabbit hole! haha we do really enjoy watching them but theres definitely a point for most of the bigger vloggers when every vlog just seems sponsored which gets a bit old!

Oh hell no! You handled that better than I would have. If anyone was rude it was them! Sounds like somebody tried to get into your bag and got caught so they tried to deflect.

Thats how I took the whole situation too. And if that wasn't her intent then lady you are crazy lol

Looks like a lot of fun! Thanks for the nice review!

We really enjoyed it!

I can relate to that... well, not the working at Disney part, but the no sleep part.

Haha I am shocked that none of the Disney tee shirt people have made one that says #TEAMNOSLEEP

This is just a sad joke compared to Carsland. It's not bad, but it is just something that is clearly an afterthought.

Yeahhh lol

 

[NJlauren]

All caught up!

But I’m pretty sure your back from your next trip already!!

Can’t beat that work day! It’s great when a job offers some flexibility on where you can work from!

Omg what did you do when your bag broke? Did you carry it like a clutch? This is stressing me out! You seemed to have decent FP luck and a good day at HS!

Cali grill looked amazing!! I’ve never done the dining plan but I think people feel like they need to get everything but probably don’t?!?

 

[DLfan4]

Great trip report. Wow, I can't believe that women grabbed your backpack! Oh, no, its too bad about your cute Mickey Purse breaking!

 

[Cloe Colton]

All caught up!

But I’m pretty sure your back from your next trip already!!

Unfortunately we are! haha

Can’t beat that work day! It’s great when a job offers some flexibility on where you can work from!

It was certainly awesome!

Omg what did you do when your bag broke? Did you carry it like a clutch? This is stressing me out! You seemed to have decent FP luck and a good day at HS!

Haha I 9/10 times have a backpack with me too so I threw it in there! I just never keep it on for photos lol usually my crossbody bags are just an easy access spot for my phone!

Cali grill looked amazing!! I’ve never done the dining plan but I think people feel like they need to get everything but probably don’t?!?

Thats definitely how we felt in June! But on our last trip we skipped most desserts. I just can't do that much food and don't feel the need to get it to get it or pay tip on it if I'm not even going to take a bite! lol

Great trip report. Wow, I can't believe that women grabbed your backpack! Oh, no, its too bad about your cute Mickey Purse breaking!

It was seriously so strange!! I'm hopeful I can fix it, just haven't gotten around to it! haha

 

[Cloe Colton]

Sorry it's taken me so long to update! Work was pretty hectic when I got back and then when I would have time to update I realized most of our good pictures were on my computer and not uploaded to flickr! lol But I'm getting back into the swing of things and updates should be more frequent! Anyway, on with the show!

Day 3 Part 1 Saturday June 15th

We woke up to another beautifully sunny day.




Our first stop was to breakfast, gotta make use of that club level!







We were switching resorts today so while Dan finished packing up I enjoyed some last views on our balcony.




I know technically the Bay Lake view is the less desired view, at least when it comes to cost, but I think it’s the better view. I would much rather look at water than pavement! (I know theres also MK beyond the pavement but with CL you can still look at that view so getting Standard view really is the best of both worlds!)

A little before 11 I called down to bell services to have them come up and grab our luggage to transfer over to the Grand Floridian. It was quick and painless and definitely a lot easier than transferring the luggage ourselves! I was a bit worried about this process having never done it before (and the fact that we will be using the service three times in September!) but it was way easier than I ever expected! I’m sure if we needed our luggage earlier in the day it may have been an issue but our luggage made it to the Grand before we did so all was well!

While walking to the Magic Kingdom from the Contemporary was fun the first day, it was June and pretty hot out at 11 so we decided to hop on the monorail and enjoy a nice ride around. Especially since we hadn’t ridden it yet! (I also always as a kid wanted to be someone getting on and off the monorail at the monorail resorts that was actually staying there - I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to be one of them!)




I was so excited to finally be fulfilling my dream of staying at the Grand Floridian! But we'd get there later in the day!



The monorail ride wasn’t too long, only took us around 20 minutes which was nice to not be hot and sweaty before even stepping into the Magic Kingdom!




It was such a gorgeous day!



We stopped for some pics on Main Street of course.




We also tried to get one with Walt and Mickey but it just didn’t come out great. I need to stop bothering with this photo op because there’s always way too much going on in the background to be a good photo.



Thankfully Dan got some much better ones of just me!




We continued on towards our first fastpass for Space Mountain but we realized it was down once we got over to Tomorrowland so we made our way back over to the hub to see if the superzoom photopass was working and it was! So we hopped in line, there was only one couple ahead of us taking their picture.




I love how this picture turned out! Such a fun way to see how busy the day you were there was and its like a game of Where’s Waldo? Haha except we’re all in the same spot! Lol




Since Space Mountain was still down and it was nearing our lunch reservation, we decided just to head there.


​

 

[Cloe Colton]

Day 3 Part 2 Saturday June 15th

We were eating somewhere completely new to the both of us this afternoon, Skipper Canteen!



We checked in and they took my number to text me when the table was ready. By the time we settled into the chairs we were getting a text!



At the time they had their regular menu but also their "Not so Secret Menu". Which apparently was a limited time offering because they didn't have it when Dan and I ate there a week ago! (I wish they did because we loved our apps from it!)



To start, Dan ordered the Iron Horse Sparkling Wine - not sure why he ordered that when he doesn’t like wine or champagne but he said it was good! (I think it had a higher cost than a beer lol) For my drink, I ordered off the Not So Secret menu and ordered the Pineapple sangria. Mine was SO GOOD! I forget what I almost ordered but this was definitely the better option. Pineapple and sangria, two of my favorite things!





Dan had been tempted to order one of the signature drinks that comes in the souvenir cup, but with the dining plan the cup would cost extra. Our waiter told us though that if we ordered the shrimp in a cup off of the "not so secret menu" we would get the cup for free! So that’s what we did! We ordered the shrimp in a cup and the cheese bread, Pao de Queljo. I had wanted to try the falafel but these two options sounded really good and they were! We were both very happy with the appetizers!





For our entrees, I ordered the Tastes Like Chicken and Dan ordered the Siu Pork. Overall, our entrees were just okay. The chicken was a bit hard to cut but overall was good. And I think Dan liked his entree. The standouts from the meal were definitely the appetizers though!




For dessert, we again should have ordered two chocolate desserts lol but instead we ordered one Kungaloosh and one coconut bar. The Kungaloosh was definitely our favorite! The coconut bar was just okay.




I would DEFINITELY eat here again. Possibly even just ordering a couple of appetizers to share. On those hot, hot days it is so nice to get to sit down, relax, enjoy the a/c and have some yummy food!

I really wish we could have eaten in the butterfly booth but I imagine with there only being one its hard to get that seat!



As we were leaving, I realized my sunglasses were missing. I did have another pair in my bag but they kind of fall off of my face and just annoy me so I was bummed that I lost my other ones. Thankfully, I realized that I probably left them near the chairs when we checked in and the host stand had them! I mean I could have used the opportunity to buy sunglasses from the place next door but I was happy to find my other ones! Haha

We made our way over to Big Thunder Mountain next only to find the longest FP line in existence. Or at least what felt like it!




Splash Mountain was down at the time so I think everyone was just using their anytime fastpasses on BTMRR. There was a very unhappy VIP group in front of us, I think they may have gotten special permission to load from the exit instead of waiting in the fastpass line which I honestly hope they did because the FP line was ridic. It was a HOT day and we were both thankful for our fans that we brought! I know there are a lot of handheld fans out there but these worked really well and were on theme!

[



The line took about twenty minutes which wasn’t terrible and would have been MUCH worse without the fans!



I had mentioned before getting on Big Thunder how happy I was that I had ordered both Dan and I our own fans (I originally only ordered one for myself). Wouldn’t you know that he lost it after using it once? Lol He had it before BTMR and by the time we got off it was gone. Husbands, am I right?

Splash Mountain was STILL down after BTMRR and our fastpass was converted to an anytime pass. We used the bathroom over there in hopes that it would come up but we didn’t want to waste anymore time waiting so we decided to use the fastpass for Haunted Mansion instead.

*Sidenote* - I have a friend who went to Disney in May and was super disappointed in how many things were breaking down during their trip. Now as someone who goes to Disney often and knows how to get fastpasses, the breakdowns are annoying but I can deal with it and just ride something else. I can only imagine how frustrating that can be for a family that splurges on a VIP tour or goes to Disney once a year or you know, once in their lifetime. It did seem like Disney had an exponential amount of shut downs this trip and I hope Disney is trying to fix that because its definitely not good! And just as another sidenote, Touring Plans estimated the day to be a 6 but because of the breakdowns bumped it up to an 8!




Weirdly, they were filling the stretching rooms way less than I’ve ever seen before, which was nice when you’re hot and sweaty and don’t want to be squished up against strangers!

We got stopped a couple of times which was cool since we were in rooms I feel like I normally miss details!



We stopped to get some fun photopass pics outside Haunted Mansion!




We decided to use a couple of snack credits and get some treats to cool us off! On the way over I had to get a picture with the Tangled Bathrooms!



So we went over to Storybook Treats and picked out The Lost Princess cone and the Peter Pan Float.





(PS How do you get a cute pic before the ice cream melts EVERYWHERE lol)

The Lost Princess cone was actually really tasty! And it sparkled! However, for a hot day it melted FAST! It basically got everywhere but it was still yummy! Dan really enjoyed the Peter Pan Float. He faired a lot better with that treat being in a cup and not on a cone!

Once we finished our treats, we realized we were cutting it REALLY close to our Jungle Cruise fastpass. In hindsight, we should have just let it lapse and not worried about it. However, Dan insisted we try to make it. With the path next to the castle closed, it was kinda hard to get over there quickly from where we were and was a very fast paced walk in some high heat. We made it to Jungle Cruise with about five minutes to spare, only to find the fastpass line backed up to the path by the Magic Carpets. Now we still had the grace period to use our fastpass however, if you have an anytime fastpasses and you use a grace period, the anytime fastpass will get used. So we would be giving up a Space Mountain fastpass for Jungle Cruise and I was not okay with that! I had Dan hold our place in line and asked a cast member if there was any way we could scan our fastpasses right then instead of when we reached the turnstiles. We’d go back to our place in line or even the end of the fastpass line, we just didn’t want to use our anytime fastpass. She was super awesome about it and had just learned that that was even a thing so she thankfully knew what I was talking about. She was able to bring an ipad to where we were in line to scan our fastpasses, which was a huge help! So it never hurts to ask!



We had a fastpass for Buzz Lightyear next so we made our way over there.





Dan had recorded our ride the first time so it was my turn to take the handicap and record haha



Still no galactic hero for Dan or myself! I had a terrible time figuring out which dot was mine. I really wish they would at least give each gun in the car different laser colors!​