Where Can We Get One of Those Whip Things? A Wine & Dine TR (Nov. 2019)

LeiaIsAPrincess2

Mouseketeer
Joined
May 10, 2018
Hello Trip Report Readers and welcome to my 3rd Trip Report and 1st runDisney weekend!

First, Introductions:

I'm Leah and this was my 4th WDW trip in the past 2 years. I work as a Veterinary Technician, a Realtor, and I own a pet sitting business in Minnesota. I have 3 dogs, a cat, and 2 parrots to keep me company and a wonderful mother who is willing to stay with them while I travel.
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My companion for this trip was my dad, Brian. He's a retired mechanical engineer with too much time on his hands so this was the perfect distraction. We both have birthdays in November so the timing worked out great too. He took us to WDW once in the early 90's and visited Disneyland once as a child but that was the extent of his Disney experience. Our 90s trip was a bit of a disaster since my parents knew nothing about planning a Disney vacation, we stayed offsite in a terrible hotel, had a terrible rental car, and my brother and I were scared to ride almost everything. My dad had told us he wanted to get us on Tower of Terror no matter what and I remember thinking every ride was him tricking us onto it (which never happened and no one rode it). I really wanted to make this trip special to make up for that vacation.
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When: We arrived on Thursday, Oct. 31st and left late on Thursday, Nov. 7th

Where: Port Orleans French Quarter. I've stayed here before and love the resort plus I wanted the least amount of walking possible after running in the mornings

Why: The short answer- because Disney. The long answer- I started running a little over a year ago to lose weight and doing the Star Wars Rival Run 10k in 2020 was my goal. Then I met a friend who is a runDisney veteran who said I should do Wine & Dine first and do all the races because it's not that much harder. Since it fell on my birthday weekend, it seemed meant to be so I registered..and then registered for the Star Wars Rival Run Weekend next year too!

Coming up: Will I complete all the races? Will my dad enjoy WDW? What do we find as our new favorite treat?



 
Here!
And... I think that's the first photo of you I've seen. So... Hi! :wave:
 


Can't wait to hear about your trip. I am planning the Wine and Dine Challenge for 2020, my first Race Disney event!
 
Following along. Can't wait to hear all about your trip with your Dad.
 


Here!
And... I think that's the first photo of you I've seen. So... Hi! :wave:
:welcome: I think I have a picture in all of my intros but not much more. However, my dad took a TON of pictures so this TR should be loaded!

I am here. Can't wait to hear all about your trip.
:welcome: Thanks for joining!

Joining in! Can't wait to hear how this trip with your dad went :)
:welcome: Spoiler alert- we had a great time!

Can't wait to hear about your trip. I am planning the Wine and Dine Challenge for 2020, my first Race Disney event!
:welcome: Wonderful, you'll have a great time!

Following along. Can't wait to hear all about your trip with your Dad.
:welcome: Welcome aboard!

:welcome: Glad you found me, I just saw your post in the W&D thread 😁

Following! Absolutely love the idea of a dad/daughter trip ❤
:welcome: We are great traveling partners and have done a few road trips and a Universal trip a few years ago so I was very excited to show him Disney!
 
Thursday, October 31st - Happy Halloween!

Dad and I had a 6:50 am flight out of MSP so my alarm was set for 4 am and I actually slept through the night. I’m really not sure how that happened but I had had a busy work week and hadn’t been sleeping well. I grabbed a breakfast shake and some coffee after feeding all my pets and waited for my ride. My parents live about 35 minutes away and they arrived around 4:50 to pick me up. My mom dropped us at the airport, which is less than 5 minutes from my house (I actually live on airport property) and then she was going back to stay at my house for the week. We made it through security in less than 10 minutes so we had plenty of time to wait. It seems like this happens every trip but I’m too scared of missing my flight to arrive later than the 2 hour recommended window. I’m considering getting TSA precheck and then I could sleep in a little more! Our flight was issue free, I had a middle seat but our window seat was filled with a non-reving Jet Blue pilot who was an easy row-mate to have. I had bought my dad a pair of headphones before we left since I knew he wouldn’t bring any and we both settled in to watch movies. He picked Captain Marvel and enjoyed it but unfortunately, I picked Aquaman and it turned into a very long flight. I should have just shut it off!

We landed at MCO at 11:30 and headed for DME. My dad tends to worry a lot about things out of his control and he was sure we’d never find the bus, he definitely wasn’t expecting the planned out queues and bus parking when we arrived downstairs! I think he expected a poor lone bus on the side of the road somewhere. We had almost no wait to board and then we were off!
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(FYI, all terrible photos in this TR are mine and the good ones are likely my dad's!)

They had contracted extra bus drivers from another company to help out during the half marathon weekend and our driver was very loud and obnoxious. I don’t mind when they have some fun with the passengers but this guy never shut up and went on and on about how everyone is special and so loved and how we should love each other. It was ridiculous and of course there were 2 stops before POFQ! While we were driving in, my friend Kitty and her dad texted that they had just landed and were heading towards their bus. She is the friend that talked me in to the trip to start and we were hoping to meet up a few times.

I hadn’t gotten a room ready text yet and Dad needed to set up a pin so we waited in line after arriving to talk to the front desk. We waited almost 20 minutes to be helped. The CM was able to get his pin set up and make sure our park tickets and dining plan were active but there were no rooms available yet. She said we should have a text within an hour, so we check our carryons and went over to Sassgoula to grab some lunch and our refillable mugs. I had the bacon cheeseburger and Dad went with the Voodoo Chicken Sandwich. These were exactly what you’d expect from Disney quick service but we were too hungry to care. Kitty and her dad had checked in to Riverside by then and were heading to the Expo at ESPN, so we grabbed a bus there too.
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The first of many photos that I didn't realize were happening :rotfl2:

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I feel like the Expo was fairly well organized but not as clearly marked as I would have liked. I found bib pickup without a problem and my fears were confirmed- If you haven’t read my PTR, my registrations were accidentally cancelled by Disney and I had to re-register as a late registration. This automatically placed me in the last corral for each race and I didn’t get a personalized bib. It really sucked but there wasn’t anything I could do about it. I had also pre ordered a runners bundle and finding where to get that and how the line worked was the most confusing part of the entire Expo, plus when I finally made it to the front of the line, they thought they were out! Luckily they found a few more but how do you run out of a pre purchased item?!
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The yellow tape was supposed to be the queue but nobody could figure it out!

We walked up to the next building to get my shirts and meet Kitty and her dad.

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I didn’t do any extra shopping at the Expo because I knew I’d spend way too much! We all met up after I got my shirts and we grabbed a beer at the sports bar there.
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The 2 dads seemed to hit it off and her dad invited us to dinner with them at Charley’s Steakhouse that night. We didn’t really have any plans for our first evening because I wasn’t sure how long the Expo would take and we had a 2 table service credit meal later in the trip so no TS this night, so this worked out perfectly. We each bussed back to our own resorts so we could try and get in to our room, which still hadn’t been texted to me. It was 4:45 when we got back and we had to wait in line again to reach the front desk. We got a very helpful CM who made some calls to find us any clean room, since it was well past check in time. He sprinkled some pixie dust and got us an upgrade to a garden view room in building 6! We unloaded our carryons and my race materials and headed back to the lobby to meet our friends and catch an Uber.
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Charley’s was about 10 minutes away and is one of the Top 10 steakhouses in the USA (according to our server). They have a huge woodfire grill right inside the door where they make all the food and the place smells fantastic. It was a little more pretentious than what Dad and I usually do and the prices were not great, but the food was amazing! I had the filet, which came with salad and bread and Dad got the filet with crab topping, salad, bread, and mashed potatoes. He also shared the potatoes because there were enough to feed an army. Everyone but me also shared the ahi tuna appetizer but I don’t eat fish and honestly was getting too nervous about the races to want to eat that much. Overall, it was a fantastic meal and I certainly recommend them for a special occasion dinner off site.
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(I was terrible at remembering to take food pictures this day!)

We Ubered back around 9pm and I laid out all my gear for the morning and set my alarm for 3am! Race days start early!
 
Dad and I had a 6:50 am flight out of MSP so my alarm was set for 4 am and I actually slept through the night.
Not too bad... and you slept!
I had had a busy work week and hadn’t been sleeping well.
I wish I could've said the same... but glad you had the opposite experience!
My mom dropped us at the airport, which is less than 5 minutes from my house (I actually live on airport property)
Close! You must see some interesting aircraft from time to time.
I’m too scared of missing my flight to arrive later than the 2 hour recommended window.
:thumbsup2 +1
I picked Aquaman and it turned into a very long flight. I should have just shut it off!
Oh? I've not seen it. Not a good movie?
My dad tends to worry a lot about things out of his control and he was sure we’d never find the bus, he definitely wasn’t expecting the planned out queues and bus parking when we arrived downstairs!
:laughing: Surprise! This is Disney!
I don’t mind when they have some fun with the passengers but this guy never shut up and went on and on about how everyone is special and so loved and how we should love each other.
:sad2:
We waited almost 20 minutes to be helped.
Hmmm... that's not too bad... bit longer than I'd like, but... not exceptionally so.
These were exactly what you’d expect from Disney quick service but we were too hungry to care.
Hunger... the best food spice.
The first of many photos that I didn't realize were happening
:laughing: But you look happy. :)
my registrations were accidentally cancelled by Disney and I had to re-register as a late registration. This automatically placed me in the last corral for each race and I didn’t get a personalized bib.
Well... poop.
how do you run out of a pre purchased item?!
Probably the same way you sell 200 tickets for a flight with 189 seats.
The 2 dads seemed to hit it off and her dad invited us to dinner with them at Charley’s Steakhouse that night.
Nice! :)
He sprinkled some pixie dust and got us an upgrade to a garden view room in building 6!
I would hope so, actually. Your room's supposed to be ready at 3pm...
 
Popping over from your last report. Looking forward to reading more
 
Joining in! I also ran and am a runDisney veteran of sorts. Always love seeing other runDisney experiences.
 
Joining in!

It seems like this happens every trip but I’m too scared of missing my flight to arrive later than the 2 hour recommended window.

This is me also! We always end up waiting forever but I'd rather that than rush and miss my flight.

I think he expected a poor lone bus on the side of the road somewhere.

:rotfl: :rotfl:

This automatically placed me in the last corral for each race and I didn’t get a personalized bib.

Ugh that's so frustrating!

plus when I finally made it to the front of the line, they thought they were out! Luckily they found a few more but how do you run out of a pre purchased item?!

How strange. I thought the whole point of pre-purchasing was to make sure you got what you wanted!
 
I wish I could've said the same... but glad you had the opposite experience!
I hope I never have a travel day as bad as yours!

Close! You must see some interesting aircraft from time to time.
The military planes park at the end of my road (behind a fence and down a hill). Air Force One also can be seen from my upstairs window when it lands here.

Oh? I've not seen it. Not a good movie?
Very corny and not in a good way, also very slow.

Surprise! This is Disney!
He had so much to learn!
 
Popping over from your last report. Looking forward to reading more
:welcome: Thanks for sticking with me!

Joining in! I also ran and am a runDisney veteran of sorts. Always love seeing other runDisney experiences.
:welcome: Glad to see you! I think I've read some of your past TR too, when I was trying to see if runDisney would be a possibility for me!

Joining in!
:welcome: Happy to see you again!

This is me also! We always end up waiting forever but I'd rather that than rush and miss my flight.
Yes! I'd spend all day waiting vs. risking missing my flight

Ugh that's so frustrating!
I was very concerned that I wouldn't be able to stay ahead of the sweepers starting so far back!

How strange. I thought the whole point of pre-purchasing was to make sure you got what you wanted!
Exactly! As soon as I gave them my ID she said uh oh, we're having a problem with these 🙄 It wouldn't have been the end of the world to get a refund instead but I really wanted my challenge magnet!
 
Port Orleans is probably the next resort we will try. The deluxes are getting to be out of our price range.
 

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