It Was Crazy (Awesomely Crazy) - Dec 2018 - TR

[Malyficent]

Hi all!

Back in October I emailed my husband about moving our planned 2019 Christmastime trip up to 2018 to take advantage of the Ultimate Disney Christmas Package. And I booked the trip, and my BFF booked an overlapping trip, and we surprised our boys for their birthdays. It was a bit crazy.

Pre-trip stuff here: Would this be crazy? (Last minute trip - December 2018 - PTR)

When: December 15-22, 2018
Where: Split Stay - All Star Movies (2 nights); Port Orleans Riverside - Pfd (5 nights)
Who: Me (45), H (41); DS1 (8); DS2 (6)
Package Details (Copied from The Dis news article):

• December 17 – Exclusive Nighttime Extra Magic Hour Access to Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
• December 18 – One ticket per person in your party to Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party at Magic Kingdom Park
• December 19 – Exclusive Nighttime Extra Magic Hour Access to Select Disney’s Animal Kingdom Attractions
• December 20 – Early Morning Access to shopping at World of Disney Store & Disney Springs Christmas Tree Trail Experience
• December 21 – Exclusive Holiday Themed Buffet Dinner Event at the World Showplace Events Pavilion in Epcot

Extras: We added Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland.

When deciding to book the trip I couldn't find much information online about what the package included. "Exclusive Nighttime Extra Magic Hour Access to Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios" well is that just an hour? Is it just the rides? Is Woody's Lunch Box open? Are there characters meet and greets? I found some info via a podcast R E S O R T L O O P . C O M for anyone interested. The sister of one of the guys did a similar package back in the fall. I think Disney took the feedback from that package and fixed some of the gaps or negatives for the Christmas package.

We took a gamble on it and I was blown away by how great the package was and what was included. Sure, you can put this all together yourself (it'd take a lot of planning to put all of this together in one trip though) and you may even do it for cheaper. However, that is a level of planning - and lucky timing - that is beyond my abilities - and planning/organizing are how I make my bread and butter. My family booked the bounce back offer for next December and I'm hoping to flip it to this package once it's announced.

Links:
Day 1, part 1- Surprise! Smoke!
Day 1, part 2- “Everything and everyone are exceeding my expectations”
Day 2, part 1 - Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland
Day 2, part 2 - Fantasmic
Day 3 - Resort Transfer / Magic Kingdom (day 2)
Day 3, part 2 - Resort Transfer and Toy Story Land
Day 4, part 1 - Resort Day / MVMCP (12/18)
Day 4, part 2 - MVMCP (12/18)
Day 5 - We Burn our Parenting Bridge (Animal Kingdom)
Day 6, part 1 - And on Day 6 There Shall be Tornados!
Day 6, part 2 - The Calvary Arrives!
Day 7, part 1 - EPCOT
Day 7, part 2 - Candlelight Processional, Final Ultimate Event, Illuminations
Day 8 - Goodbye Disney!
Final thoughts and Bounce Back Plan

ETA: I even made this super cute itinerary (overall design mimics one from WDW Prep To Go site.

 

[Malyficent]

Day 1, part 1- Surprise! Smoke!

Day 1: Saturday, Dec 15th
Plan: Travel / Resort Day / evening activities at Fort Wilderness
Resort: All Star Movies
Parks: N/A - No park tix
Snacks: Geyser Point / S’mores at Chip 'N' Dale Campfire Sing Along
Meals: Chuck Wagon (D)
Events: 6pm Wagon Ride; HEA and EWP

The day finally arrived to surprise the boys with the trip, hop on the plane(s) and jet off for Disney.

H and I were up early to shower and finish packing before surprising the boys with the news via a scavenger hunt. Started them with their old backpacks that we use for overnight trips and at each clue they received stuff for the plane/trip, ending with their new ears and magic bands.

Then there was a mad dash scramble to cram the last of the stuff in the bags, get everyone out of the house (why is that always the hardest part - I promise the faster everyone else leaves the house, the faster I can find the missed stuff and get us on the way to the airport), and off to the airport.

Once we got to the airport, we had to separate for our flights. DS1 and I were connecting as we traveled on points. DS2 and H were on a direct flight. All was well until I checked my texts as we were connecting to find out H’s flight had issues. The captain noticed smoke (!) from one of the engines so they had to get off and it was a bit of a mess. All other flights were booked and at one point H thought they’d be arriving the following day.

As a side note, never take a plane with my H. He has the worst plane luck ever. So far, nothing traumatic, just loads of delays and issues. In the end, a new plane was found (H checked it was a totally new plane number) and they arrived at MCO about an hour after DS1 and me. As an upside to the delay, H was able to get DS2 into the cockpit for a picture and to get the captain's autograph.

While we were waiting for H and DS2 to arrive, I checked email and had the "Your Disney Resort Room is Ready!" email. 7812 in the Love Bug section. I'd submitted for 7813 or similar and 7812 was one of the similar options so I was a happy camper.

Magic Express was pretty easy - one shared bus for all the All Star Resorts so we got a quick view of the other two resorts. H and I were separated by a woman who commented about H’s lingering cough that he “had tuberculosis”. Ha, nope, just a lingering cough, not even contagious. And then that lady went *poof* and we never saw her again during our stay.

We arrived at All Star Movies and went directly to our room. It's one of the renovated rooms and was awesome - loads of storage, cute but not overwhelming theming, loads of charging stations. The floor was gritty and dirty (and I normally dislike carpet but they really do have to figure out how to manage these laminated/hardwood floors better) and the fridge was ridiculously small. I've honestly never seen a fridge that I thought was intentionally designed to be annoying - but now I have. Those were the two big negatives - well, and the noise - it was hard for us to rest at this resort. Maybe next time we'll go for third floor and an end unit to cut the noise more but I think it just travels due to thin walls and the laminate flooring - there's just not much to insulate the rooms. I know this part sounds pretty negative but I really did like the resort and the room.

 

[Malyficent]

Day 1, part 2- “Everything and everyone are exceeding my expectations”

Given the flight delay, we had to cancel our evening plans at Fort Wilderness/Wilderness Lodge. H took the kids to the main pool, while I went to the Concierge to sort out our package and ask some ticket questions.* The woman there was super helpful and may have even saved me some money. Meanwhile, I had H call to cancel our wagon ride at Fort Wilderness.

We got some (free for me due to a Magic Band issue) coffee while handling this administrative stuff and then moved onto some adult beverages while the kids swam. We then went to the food court for dinner and dessert. The kids loved sitting in the back corner, watching movies and it was nice to have some chill out time. I also think we got some other things free at this point - either due to just Pixie Dust or the birthday buttons I got the kids - I felt like we kept getting free things.

I also tracked down a few deliveries during this time. I’d mailed our Tinkerbell gifts to the resort about a week before. I had to find that box and my Prime Now deliveries - one Amazon, one Whole Foods (alcohol). No issues with the package I mailed or the Amazon Prime Now (I was charged $5 for the package I sent) but the Whole Foods Prime Now had to be sent back to me as they needed to see my ID. As we were delayed, I wasn’t there to show ID at the scheduled time. It was not an issue for me and the Amazon customer service person was super nice and gave me a $15 credit plus upgraded the reorder to free one our delivery (I did tip). I think that arrived around 10pm and I had to go back to the main lobby to show ID and then carry the heavy bag and box to the room.

At some point this evening my friend and TA, Sarah, checked in on how it was going. My response “everything and everyone are exceeding my expectations”.

My boys were awed by the Murphy bed. We all really loved how much room it gave us when it was up and out of the way. I slept on that bed one night and found it decently comfortable. Changed my thinking on resorts to book for next time as well. Us cramming into a standard hotel room for a weekend is one thing, not so much fun beyond a couple of nights. One of the boys is an early bird (as is H); one is normally a night owl (but started pooping out early as our trip went on). They also handle midday breaks differently so I think we’ll need to do a family suite for future trips to keep everyone content.

*A note on the package and tickets. I received a few different stories about the four day PH tickets included with our package and if we could
(1) use them a day early - package started 12/17 I wanted to use them 12/16 and
(2) if we could pay a fee to add on a fifth day.

I initially booked with Disney directly and they told me I could use them 12/16 and upgrade to a 5 day PH once I got to WDW. My TA said I couldn’t do either. I checked with the disboards expert and was told the same as my TA.

Well, happily we were able to start the tickets early and I was able to pay - I think it was $171 total - to change one adult and two child 4d PH’s to 5d PH’s (H didn’t need a tix for his last day). The cast member at ASMo concierge desk was able to start our tickets a day early and then I had to go to Customer Relations in a park to do the change on the three tickets (which I did the next day so I could return to that same cast member at ASMo in case I had any issues). I think the confusion was due to the timing of the new ticket prices and the extremely limited information available about the package. While I got the outcome I desired, I was fully prepared for the worst case outcome - having to pay full price for one day Park Hoppers for our first park day. I was thrilled to have that not be the case.

 

[Malyficent]

Day 2, part 1 - Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland

Day 2: Sunday, Dec 16th
Plan: Either Magic Kingdom/Hollywood Studios or Resort Christmas Decoration Tour
Resort: All Star Movies
Parks: Magic Kingdom - focus on Fantasyland, Adventureland & Frontierland; Hollywood Studios
Option 1: RD Fantasyland
Option 2: Morning Early Magic - Fantasyland
Option 3: Resort Day / Christmas Decorations at Resorts
FP: Will book once park tix are sorted out
Meals: BOG (B-PPO); Beaches & Cream (L); Hollywood & Vine (D-Fantasmic)

Once I had our tickets activated a day early, I quickly booked Early Morning Magic - Fantasyland for the next day. I had PPO BOG reservations so I pushed those out to a later date and then cancelled them. We didn't have any FPs for this day as technically we didn't have tickets for this day until the night before.

Day 2 was a Sunday and we were up bright and early to get to Magic Kingdom. I wanted to splurge on a Minnie Van but DH choked at the price so we took a bus. The app showing the bus times worked very well from ASMo (not so well from POR as there are four bus stops and the time is for the entire resort, not per bus stop. So while I'd call it "directionally correct", it was not the pinpoint accuracy we'd been spoiled with at ASMo). It worked out fine and we were all queued up well before they opened the gates to Main Street. They didn’t open the gates until very close to 7:45 so we kept it moving as I knew we were coming back to MK two more times.

EMM is amazing. It really lives up to the hype. Now - and this will become a recurring theme - we (mostly) did not ride the headliners over and over again. That just wasn’t how my kids rolled this trip (they had just turned 6 and 8 the previous week). It was their first time (so we were aiming for breadth, not depth) and DS2 is a bit of a scaredy cat. We started with Pooh, then one of us took DS1 on 7DMT while the other parent did Pooh again with DS2. We then switched and the other parent took DS2 on 7DMT. We all regrouped for Peter Pan, Small World, and Under the Sea. Then H and I split again, I did 7DMT again with DS1 and he did PP and Small World again with DS2.

At rope drop we all did Buzz Lightyear together. I think we stopped here to eat the EMM breakfast (recently moved to Cosmic Rays) and then DS1 and I did Carousel of Progress while H took DS2 to do the Tomorrowland Speedway (I was honestly hoping this would be closed for Tron construction but sadly it was still open). I handed the boys off to H for the Buzz Meet and Greet while I used the facilities and then we all did Peoplemover.

At this point the boys were starting to get tired. It was closing in on 12pm and we weren’t doing lunch in the park. We probably should have left but it’s so hard to leave when you can just squeeze in one or two (or three) more things. Enchanted Tales had a low posted wait time so we did that (may have been a 20-30 minute wait) which was a miscalculation as we had FP for it the next day. I thought they’d love it so much they’d want to do it again but nope. We cancelled that FP. Luckily I had bagged some extra muffins at the breakfast (bring those ziplock bags!) and I plied the kids with those to buy us some more time.

We finished up with a quick FP to Cinderella and Elena - I think these were the only princesses we met (other than Belle). The boys would have been happy to meet Merida or some of the other princesses, they just didn’t prioritize waiting for them over the rides.

On the way out I stopped at Guest Relations to buy the fifth day of PHs - the line was long but moved quickly. I could have done this at the ASMo concierge but was told by that cast member it'd be cheaper to do it at the park. I can't remember why or what the price difference was. In the future, I'd just get it all done at once and not worry about the slight savings.

We then went back to the resort for a break.

ETA - Crowd Level: Touring Plans had MK as a 5 on this date. We were initially overwhelmed by the crowds after EMM ended. However that passed and we we didn't feel like we were shoulder to shoulder. We didn't eat lunch in the park and left around 2ish.

 

[Malyficent]

Day 2, part 2 - Fantasmic

After our resort break - in which H and I took turns napping/eating while the other parent each took a child each to the pools (in the hopes the other parent/child combo could get some rest) - we were off to Hollywood Studios for dinner and Fantasmic. During this rest break I realized we really needed a suite to get the most out of a Disney vacation. Oh well, next time, for now we soldier on.

Part of the challenge with this trip was how to get in both evening shows at Hollywood Studios. We had to see Fantasmic as both boys love the show (watched it on YouTube) and I thought they’d love Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam (spoiler alert - I was wrong). So to smooth this planning, I booked dinner at Hollywood and Vine for Minnie’s Holiday Dine with the Fantasmic Package. And, while that was an excellent call, I could have done it for the next evening, skipped JBJB, and we could have spent the evening of Day 2 at EPCOT.

Minnie’s Holiday Dine

As most of the food reviews and trip reports mention, the food is fine, nothing to write home about and the cost is $$$$. However, it was great to sit down, have a glass of wine (or two) and chill as the Fab Five each came to your table (okay, Fab Four as you had to get up to see Goofy).

We were seated next to a very nice family who forgot their autograph books so I ripped out some pages from our books to share.

My boys were thrilled to meet the characters - and then H and I were thrilled that they didn't ask to meet any of them again the rest of the trip. I wanted DS2 to meet Mickey in his Sorcerer costume at HS but for various reasons, that didn't happen. He's not aware that was an option so he's happily clueless.

Somewhere along the line a family asked H if we were just arriving - this was probably the night before at ASMo - and gave him their popcorn bucket. After dinner we filled our new-to-us-bucket for the first time and my boys quickly became Disney popcorn fiends.

Popcorn bucket filled and adult beverages secured, we were off to our VIP seating for Fantasmic. At this point H understood why I paid an astronomical sum for dinner and this show as the place was packed. Meanwhile we had our choice of seating in the Holiday Dine section (we sat towards the top for ease of exit) and the boys munched away on popcorn and handed out stickers to the nearby guests. The show was so much better than I anticipated and I cried at the end - more for being able to make the kids' Disney dreams a reality - than because of the show itself.

After the show we exited the park and took the boat to Yacht Club. We should have gotten off at Swan/Dolphin and walked to Boardwalk but I forgot how short of a walk that is so I called that one wrong. The boys were awed by Yacht Club and asked if we were moving to that resort next. Ha! Nope! And don’t touch anything! After I ushered them out of the lobby without breaking anything (nearly broke into hives just looking all the things they could break in that lobby but I guess it’s okay as loads of kids do stay there); we ordered a Lyft back. A short five minute wait and an $8.50+tip ride and we were back at ASMo. Perfect end to our first park day.

Day 3 is where we hit the first - non-plane engine fire - bump in the road...Resort Transfer Day.

ETA - Crowd Level: Touring Plans had HS as an 8 on this date. We arrived around 5pm and didn't have much of an issue with crowds. Fantasmic was jam packed so it paid to have the Fantasmic dinner package.

 

[Malyficent]

Day 3 - Resort Transfer / Magic Kingdom (day 2)

Plan: Resort Switch/ MK / Toy Story Land
Resort: All Star Movies transferring today to Port Orleans Riverside
Parks: MK - Fantasyland (if not done on Day 2), Tomorrowland, and Liberty Square; Hollywood Studios
FP: Enchanted Tales; Barnstormer; Peter Pan
Meals: BOG (B-PPO) / Dockside Diner (D)
Events: Toy Story Land

Day 3 was another early day as we had Be Our Guest reservations at 8am for a 9am park opening. We were also checking out of All Star Movies and into Port Orleans Riverside. I was up super early to shower, caffeinate, pack and get us out the door. DH was befuddled by the resort transfer process. I ended up having him call twice to get the (9) bags picked up. As we were switching resorts and I wasn’t sure when our bags would arrive I also had a larger bag with all our swim stuff and a set of pajamas in it. I stored that bag in a locker at MK.

First bump - I put the change of clothes for the boys in a drawer while I packed up everything. And I left them in that drawer. I realized as soon as we got to MK and called but to no avail. I filed a lost report but no luck locating them so far. And I’d only packed five pairs of pants total for the boys (they wear the same size clothing - my oldest was a micro preemie and he’s on the small side). We’re now down to three pairs of pants with five late nights in the parks planned. Cool.

Second bump - H again scoffed at the cost of the Minnie Van (just let me do this, I’ve done my research and I’m paying anyway). I should have flashed my Disboards Masters in Disney Knowledge degree at him but the bus had gone so well the day before….we compromised on a Lyft - which was a huge mistake as I knew - because it goes to the TTC and then…whatever, we got there *just* before they opened the gates to Main Street but I still had a bag to store in a locker and then we had to get to BOG. It all worked out, we just didn’t get the leisurely stroll up Main Street I’d imagined.

Be Our Guest - H and I each pre-ordered a full meal. He had the Croque Madame. I thought I’d ordered the same thing but I’d actually ordered the Feast A La Gaston which ended up being the right call as I shared my meal with the boys. They don’t each much for breakfast so I’d ordered them each a Grey Stuff cupcake and was planning to split a chocolate milk between them. We sat in the wing opposite The West Wing. The cast member who arrived with our food gave me extra cups and told me I could get each of the boys a hot chocolate (more Pixie Dust). After the boys had their fill of pastries, I again put the remaining pastries in a ziplock for later.

H and the boys had a peak into the West Wing (we sat in The Castle Gallery which is my preference and I've seen The West Wing magic before) and then we were off to queue for 7DMT (DS1 and me) and PP (H and DS2). Both rides were a walk on but the line for 7DMT was crazy as we exited. DS1 and I made it over to queue for Space Mountain - which was backed up to Astro Orbiter but was basically all outside. Once that line started moving - a bit after 9am - it was about a 10 minute wait. I was texting with my BFF and she was impressed at how much we were able to get done. Meanwhile, after PP, DS2 selected Small World as his second ride (poor H). Luckily that was still a walk on at that point. When we went past around 12 for our PP FP, Small World was up to 60 minute wait.

Third bump - Touring Plan. I had a plan - and I ignored it. First I had the previously mentioned Enchanted Tales that I ditched. I was able to pick up Under the Sea (this ride was deemed a family favorite) but we also rode this Standby (about a 20 min wait). Luckily (for us as DS2 would not ride it anyway) Barnstormer went down so that converted to an anytime FP. DS1 and I did Haunted Mansion (and as we exited the FP line was back to the Liberty Belle boarding area) and DS2 and H did Peter Pan. Our third FP was for Peter Pan. We also grabbed FP for Aladdin and did that on our way out of the park. It was just a bit all over the place and at this point I was feeling kind of stressed because DS2 was just doing the same rides over and over whereas I was running all over the park with DS1 and yet still not getting to Adventureland or Frontierland. I should have chilled (darn it, they really should sell alcohol at QS in MK - don’t yell at me about tradition, Disney can suck way more money out of me if they prime that pump with some adult beverages first).

Overall it was fine, and I swear our touring become more cohesive after this point, but I felt a bit like H and I were vacationing separately. Which I thought may be the case as we were planning but the boys started competing over who was getting more time with me (I’m really not that great kids) and I just felt pulled in about ten directions. The bottom line is we did everything at MK that was open and that the boys wanted to do with the exception of BTMRR (which only DS1 wanted to do so not a major issue) by the time we finished our time in MK.

After Aladdin I left H and the boys watching a castle show and eating popcorn and Mickey bars while I used the restroom and retrieved the bag and then we took the bus to our new resort - Port Orleans Riverside!

Next up: Our Ultimate Disney Christmas Package begins! What the heck does it actually include?

ETA - Crowd Level: Touring Plans had MK as a 10 on this date. I thought that it felt less crowded that the day before but we left the park earlier - maybe around 1ish.

 

[Malyficent]

Day 3, part 2 - Resort Transfer and Toy Story Land

Departing MK we took the bus to our new resort - Port Orleans Riverside. We were stepping up to a moderate. WooHoo! And holy bus stops! I knew it had four bus stops and the Resort Lobby was the last stop (and our stop) but it felt like the resort loop took forever. H soon got over his Lyft aversion (it was odd, we use Lyft regularly at home although I guess not with the boys).

As we walked into the lobby we were greeted by a Cast Member on the college program. She was very sweet and gave each boy a cookie (more Pixie Dust due to the birthday pins). We chatted with her a bit about the college program. My BFF thinks her son may do it and H suggested it as a good fit for DS1 (who is currently in second grade so we’re still a bit off from college planning).

I hadn’t received the room email yet but they had the room ready when I checked. As the boys were happily camped out in front of the tv, munching away on cookies while I got us checked in, I went to bell services to check on the bags. They’d arrived and we could either take them with us or call once we got to our room to have them delivered. We had nine bags so I chose the second option and happily tipped for them to be delivered to the room. I also had to check on another package delivery that got a bit lost. My BFF had sent a package to the boys and it wasn’t delivered to ASMo in time and then there seemed to be a bit of a mixup about how and when it was going to find it’s way to POR. That actually took a second phone call the next day where I let my exasperation slip through a bit and finally the box arrived.

As impressed as I was by the theming at All Star Movies, my boys were equally impressed by Port Orleans Riverside. I think I spent more time prepping for the POR portion so I was happy surprised by ASMo but expected POR to be, well, POR. We were in room 1843 - not the corner room I’d requested but a nice, quiet second floor room in a preferred building close to the food court and Old Man Island. I’m eager to see these rooms post-renovation. For this trip, it was nice to have carpets (and I swear that’s a sentence I never thought I’d type) after the icky hardwoods at ASMo. This resort was also crazy quiet. We were in similar rooms (woods facing) at both resorts but I think POR was quieter as it has better insulation, carpeting, no third floor. The only time we ever heard noise was when housekeeping came around.

I knew we’d be in a non-renovated room and yet I failed to pack a charging strip or an extension cord. Don’t make my mistake. We were loaded up on charging places at ASMo and were shocked at the lack of them at POR. It all worked out and we made due but it was a bit of a come down.

H and I also broke down and bought refillable mugs for ourselves at this point - should have done so at ASMo. The boys were fine on drinks as I just backed juice boxes or capri suns for them in my bag.

After a rest (the boys swam, I napped, H checked out the pool bar), we were off to Hollywood Studios for our first Ultimate Christmas Event. Off the bus at HS and I head the wrong direction. And people follow me! So embarrassing. Back the other direction and we cleared security and ticketing just in time. H secured adult beverages (went to HBD first but they were closed and directed him to 50’s Prime time and he got there just in time). I refilled the popcorn. DS2 happily played with his Mickey light up bubble wand (bought on eBay and left as a Tinkerbell gift) and played in the snow while DS1 ate all the popcorn. I wanted everyone to watch Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam and feel the Christmas Magic. Nope. Oh well.

After JB, JB we walked over to take pictures in front of Gertie and ended up taking pictures for other families who then did the same for us. We’d missed the Photo Pass photographer. And then it was off to Toy Story Land for our first Ultimate Event.

Ultimate Disney Christmas - Toy Story Land

I'd forgotten that DS2's favorites - the Green Army Guys - were marching around, playing drums. He loved it.

My first question was “Is Woody’s Lunchbox open?” cause I was starving and wanted that grilled cheese sandwich. Yes, it was and the sandwich was delicious (get the chid sized one if you’re not super hungry).

We did a meet and greet with Buzz in his Santa hat and then did Toy Story Midway Mania (another family favorite). DS2 refused to budge on riding Slinky Dog Dash so H took DS1 while I did a Jessie and Woody M&G with DS2.

Then we swapped and I got to ride SDD with DS1 and H took DS2 on Alien Swirling Saucers (one of his favorites). Repeat over and over with a stop at Woody’s for a very late dinner (I had the grilled cheese to share with DS2 who refused to eat grilled cheese and the Adult Lemonade). There’s a cart in TSL with super cute toys - I left DS2 buy one thing and I have to order him another thing from Shop Disney.

And that was pretty much it. We had our fill of TSL - got to ride everything multiple times without any waits. The only downside was the l o n g walk to and from Midway Mania. They should abbreviate that somehow for the after hour events. Speaking of which, the BFF did the after hours event at HS on 12/22 and we haven’t compared notes yet. Her kids are older (14 and 17) so the additional attractions appeal to them more than to my boys.

On our way out we had the main drag and a Photo Pass photographer to ourselves. It was misty and foggy and should have made an awesome picture, but I can’t find it on Photo Pass account.

Verdict: Having two hours to ourselves at Toy Story Land was pretty Ultimate. I think at one point H and I high fived.

Hollywood Studios Ultimate Event Summary: 2+ hours (a cast member told us people started arriving earlier than the 8:30 start but we did JB, JB first) of Toy Story Land to ourselves. Minimal line for M&Gs with Buzz, Woody & Jessie. The Green Army Guys marching around regularly. Woody's Lunchbox available for purchase. Walk on for all three rides (but no staying in the ride cars to immediately ride again) and there were souvenir stands/carts available open.

Next up: Resort Day / MVMCP

 

[Malyficent]

Day 4, part 1 - Resort Day / MVMCP (12/18)

Plan: Resort Day / MVMCP
Resort: POR
Parks: MK - MVMCP
FP: N/A
Meals: 1900 Park Fare (B), The Wave (L) Can’t decide which of these would be better for MVMCP night.
Events: MVMCP

I forgot to mention - the plans above - with the meals - that was the original plan. Many of these, particularly the meals, got scrapped.

The boys were instructed to sleep in as we needed to rest and we had the Christmas Party that night. DS1 did his best but was still up by 8ish. DS2 is much more of a sleeper so H took DS1 down to POFQ to get Mickey beignets and check out that resort. Meanwhile DS2 and I got a bit more sleep and then walked down to meet them. Now I know in theory it should be a ten minute walk but for everything I had to factor in the - “Oh, let’s stop and look at a stick or point at a squirrel” time delay. And then DS2 complained about how long the walk was - well, yes, it is much longer when you stop every ten yards.

I loved the size and the look of French Quarter from the outside….and that’s where that stops. The food court was an overwhelming madhouse. I expected to eat there more frequently but we stuck with POR after the first occasion. I expected DH - who loves New Orleans - to much prefer FQ but he didn’t. I guess as he knows NO much better than I do, he found it to be a Disney imitation (which duh, it is) so he preferred Riverside. I’d return to either if we got a good deal but neither will be at the top of my list. Too many other places to see and stay. I will highly recommend both though to just about anyone (I wouldn’t recommend either to someone with mobility issues like my MIL).

After breakfast we checked out the lobby (cute, very small) and the pool (adorable but my kids deemed it not worth the walk back and forth) and then we took the boat back to Riverside. Well, we tried but they kept passing us by. Luckily one of the captains, Ramon, realized something was wrong and radioed in that we needed a ferry. A few minutes later and we were on our way to Riverside and my kids swore off the ferries for the duration of the trip. So dramatic.

I think I was supposed to do laundry this day - and I should have - but I counted underwear and socks and figured I could do laundry on Thursday or maybe push it a bit and not do laundry at all. So H and I took turns resting and watching the boys at the pool. I placed another Prime Now order that arrived within the hour but I needed to show ID and collect it in person. Another heavy load of wine and beer to haul back to the room (I swear we don’t drink at home but we do like our beverages while on vacation).

A day or two before I cancelled our 1900 Park Fare and Wave reservations. H and I grabbed a few kids meals at the food court and split them with the kids. I found the child meal portions to be perfect for me and we saved the fruit and juice boxes to give the kids for snacks or breakfast.

After a bath, we were off to MK for the Christmas Party. I’d been following the MVMCP thread on the boards so I knew experiences varied but the overall trend seemed to be “Crowded”. We hadn’t really experienced crowds yet so I was bracing for impact.

Next up: The Ultimate MVMCP!

 

[Malyficent]

Day 4, part 2 - MVMCP (12/18)

We got a late start to MK as the kids were having fun and I’d cancelled our Wave reservation. I also couldn’t get Fastpasses booked through the app or website and the ride lines were highish so our motivation to get there and tackle some rides before the party was low. At this point I’d come to terms with not seeing much of Adventureland or Frontierland this trip. My goal for the party was to focus on the party events, not the rides. Ha ha ha….

After rallying the troops, we were off to MK, arriving around 5pm (What?!? We missed an hour of party time? Yup.) Walked in*, got our cookies and kept on trucking to…I can’t remember. I think we attempted to do the Tiki Room because that was closing soon but we missed it, they were converting it to the Moana M&G already. Realizing that we got in line for Aladdin - those lines were super short so we rode it a few times, swapping front and back row combinations.

We then were about to line up for the Aladdin M&G when they closed the line for an hour so we did the Swiss Family Treehouse. Alone. We were the only people in it. And my kids loved it.

Check out this view from the Treehouse at night:

Obviously a lot of people wouldn’t consider this a wise use of party time but I really wanted us to do stuff together as a family unit during the party.

And we did….for about three more hours. Once we left the treehouse I checked out the Jingle Cruise lines (40 minutes, too long, keep moving) so we did Pirates of the Caribbean. DS1 and I did it and then DS1 did it with H. H was certain DS2 would love it if we could convince him to get on the ride so after some coercion, he rode it - and deemed it his favorite ride in all of Walt Disney World. He wanted to do nothing but ride POC.

Tearing him away from POC, we got some treats in Frontierland and checked out the line at BTMRR. DS1 decided it was still too long so we walked down to the Frontierland Shooting Gallery. I thought they’d love it. I never let them play with guns and here I am saying “Play with Guns!” Ha, nope. I think the guns were too heavy for them and it was dark and kind of hard to get your bearings. Oh well.

It was getting close to parade time so we hopped onto the raised platform right in front of the Shooting Gallery (thanks to advice in the MVMCP thread). This worked out great and the boys were able to stand with an unobstructed view of the parade.

Once the parade was over we hightailed it over to Jingle Cruise which was basically a walk on. I think we then did POC one more time before DS2 begged to go home to sleep. What? It’s not even 9pm? Can’t I bribe you with sugar and toys? How about staying for the fireworks? Nope. Luckily, H was sleepy too so he took DS2 while DS1 and I marched forth into MVMCP battle. Space Mountain or die trying!

We did a bathroom break and grabbed some egg nog and cookies and then pushed on to Fantasyland. I tried to talk him into Haunted Mansion (we’d gotten stuck on it the day before briefly) but he declined. I was surprised he found HM scary but happily did Space Mountain as many times as possible. The line for the Photo Pass at the Tangled bathrooms was ridiculous. We ducked into Pinocchio Village Haus for peppermint cookies (I need this recipe) and hot chocolate.

At this point I asked DS2 if he wanted to ride Barnstormer (we hadn’t yet and he wanted to do all the coasters and I think BTMRR was down) or see the fireworks. Ride Barnstormer. Okay kiddo. We stopped to do the Tinker Bell lantern shot and then BOOM! The fireworks started. I checked with him again - do you want to stop and watch or walk over to Barnstormer now. Barnstormer. Okay - so I looked a bit like the crazy woman hauling her kid through the party instead of letting him watch the fireworks but it was his call.

On and off Barnstormer in a flash. As it came to the station DS1 turned to me astonished “That’s the end? Where’s the rest of the ride?” Barnstormer - never again shall we meet. Luckily he asked what was in the tent looking thing. The Seven Dwarfs! With - and I quote the cast member “The shortest line I’ve ever seen”. 27 minutes later we had our 7D photos and were on our way.

From here it was evaluation time. I was watching the TP site for BTMRR, Mine Train and Space. DS1 decided to do Space first. It was pretty much a walk on and he got to sit in the first seat. Amazing. We stopped for pictures with Judy Hops and Nick afterwards.

Followed by a stop for hot chocolate and *gasp* we declined cookies (I was out of space in my bag and pockets).

I just looked at our Photo Pass account. We did the Tinkerbell pictures at 10pm, next up is Seven Dwarves with a timestamp of 10:41 (we did Barnstormer in between), then our Space photos are timestamped 10:59, Nick and Judy timestamp is 11:25 and (spoiler alert) Mine Train timestamp is 12:19.

We had to decide if we wanted to end our party experience and walk out of MK while the snow was falling or go for broke on one last ride and miss the snow. DS1 called it - one last ride - and he decided 7DMT was worth a 40 minute wait. It ended up being just about 30 minutes and it was our first time doing the standby queue so well worth it.

On our way out we stopped for Photo Pass pictures. I was thrilled with our party experience. It far surpassed my expectations.

*ETA - I totally forgot the kids wanted to do Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom so we stopped to get those as we entered the park. Which is how we ended up near Aladdin. Once it got dark, trying to figure out SoTMK was kind of a nightmare and I got frustrated with it. Luckily H was able to distract the kids with popcorn and POC.

Oh - and one more thing that I forgot - our second #CastMember compliment tweet - about Emma who gave us two cups(!) and stopped the boys from arguing over access to popcorn. I missed a pun opportunity in my tweet and I have regrets.

Next Up: Remember that trust we earned convincing DS2 to try POC and he loved it? We trash that trust at Animal Kingdom. Oops.

 

[suse66]

Great report so far! Looking forward to hearing all about MVMCP!

 

[Malyficent]

Day 5 - We Burn our Parenting Bridge (Animal Kingdom)

Day 5 - Wednesday, Dec 19th (Reinforcements Arrive - My BFF and her sons arrive sometime this day.)
Plan: Resort Morning / Animal Kingdom
Resort: POR
Parks: Animal Kingdom
FP: Finding Nemo, Lion King, Safari
Meals: Tusker House (L), Flame Tree (D), Nomad Lounge
Events: Evening Magic - Pandora, Everest, Dinosaur, ROL

We knew the kids weren’t going to move this morning as we’d been out so late the night before. H and DS2 were up until 11:30 and DS1 and I were up until 1:30. DS1 is usually in bed by 8pm and tends to melt quickly every minute thereafter. So we let them sleep until they wouldn’t sleep any longer. I’d already cancelled our Tusker House reservation. I think we’ll do one character meal per trip but more than that isn’t necessary for my kids.

I also hadn’t mentioned how good the weather was…up to this point. This day was nice in the morning but then the rain came in that afternoon and evening. H got the kids up and out so I could sleep in. He walked them around the resort pathways for a couple hours doing acorn fights (I don’t understand but they love it). We gave them some iPad chill out time and then did a late lunch before catching the bus to AK.

Eventually we got to Animal Kingdom - in time for our last Fastpass for Safari (at 4:50 - we made it there around 5:30 after stopping for the full 30 minute Harambe Soccer Meerkats show which we all loved and I highly recommend).

I also popped into a store to buy an umbrella (the kids had on ponchos).

Oh, I forgot to mention that we took our time entering AK. A nice lady clued me into how to make the Magic Bands kid sized and then we chatted with an Animal Caretaker who was feeding the animals on the way to Discovery Island. We initially bypassed the Wilderness Explorers but I backtracked to get them each a booklet once I realized it was a less confusing, more educational experience than Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom.

After the Safari we made our way to Flame Tree for dinner. It was meh. H liked the barbecue chicken. I thought the pulled pork was gross. The kids had hot dogs. This was the only meal I really disliked - one stinker in eight days is fine by me. In contrast, I highly recommend the pulled pork sandwich at POR - I’m so hungry and really want that sandwich right now. I just wish they offered it as half sandwich.

After dinner we did A Bugs Life after warning the kids about the special effects. No tears, no screaming, lots of laughs so it was good. And then we had a lull where there were no attractions open but our event hadn’t started yet. It wasn’t an issue except that DS2 asked to go to bed. My night owl was asking to go to bed at 7:30pm. Now a better parent than I would have taken him home or SOSd my BFF who was at WDW by this point. Nope. Suck it up buttercup!

We watched the Tree of Life and the kids and I pressed pennies. We tried to go back to Pandora for a drum show but it was canceled due to the rain. I stopped into Nomad Lounge to get drinks for H and me. We also checked in with a cast member on what would be open during the Ultimate Event.

From 8:30-10:30pm we had exclusive access to both Pandora attractions, Everest, Dinosaur and there was an exclusive showing of Rivers of Light at 9pm. There were eating areas serving in all three locations (yes! treats for the kids, adult beverages for us!).

Deciding everyone would head to Pandora for the 8:30 start, we went to Everest. And, in a first, DS1 chickened out and wouldn’t ride it. H rode it alone. I could have done it alone too but wasn’t interested. I got us drinks and the kids got a free treat (a hot chocolate each and again, it was due to those birthday pins) and then I think H rode it again before we headed over to Pandora (we decided to totally bail on Rivers of Light due to the rain).

Upon arriving at Pandora we did Navi River Journey (total walk on - in fact they held the boys hot chocolate for us and offered to let us ride again without exiting at all).

And then we encountered our Waterloo - Flight of Passage. H can’t ride due to motion sickness issues. DS2 was reluctant but I told him he’d love it. I should have sent him with H but to do what? I guess they could have done Navi River Journey nonstop. I really should have sent H to do Everest and Dinosaur. Oh, and we encountered other people! Gasp! Horror! An actual queue. According to people who've reviewed Animal Kingdom After Hours this is unusual but I think they have 200-400 people total at those events. Ultimate Christmas had between 450-850 people (based on an estimate I got from the dining event at EPCOT). And all of those people were trying to ride FOP at once.

About 30-40 minutes later we boarded our banshee (H exited stage left) and DS2 naively hopped onto his banshee. DS1 and everyone else is to my left. DS2 is the only one to my right. He’s freaking out. DS1 is in heaven. I’m trying not to get nauseous. I don’t think we disturbed anyone else but I really apologize if we did. It was an A+ parenting fail/parenting win. DS1 declared it his #1 ride and wanted to hop back in line. DS2 declared it “his worstest nightmare”. I had a crazy motion sickness headache but luckily the nausea passed quickly. I told H it was “the greatest ride I never want to do again.”

We broke the news to DS1 that that was indeed his one and only Flight of Passage for this trip but we’d come back to AK someday with someone old enough to take him that can handle the motion. After a brief meltdown we regrouped with another Navi River Journey and then headed over to Dinosaur - which DS1 and H rode solo as the last ride of the night. Meanwhile I dashed DS2 off to a bathroom and then we stopped at Restaurantosaurus where they again spied the Birthday button and the entire group of cast members sang Happy Birthday to DS2, gave him a free brownie and then ushered us out (nicely) as they locked up.

The bus line as we exited was a bit of a mess - there was a shared bus for POR, POFQ, and Disney Springs. Nope. Not happening. Lyft to the rescue. And 15 minutes later we were back at the resort.

Animal Kingdom Ultimate Event Summary: Two hours of walk on riding for Dinosaur, Everest, and Navi River Journey. The only line was about 30-40 minutes for Flight of Passage. If we'd done nothing but FOP, we could have ridden it about 4 times in that 120 minutes. There was also a showing of Rivers of Light and there were food options available in Pandora, near Everest, and near Dinosaur. There was shopping open in Pandora and also as you exited the park.

Next Up: Resort Day / Resort Hopping / Disney Springs - And the calvary arrives!

ETA - Crowd Level: Touring Plans had AK as an 8 on this date and even with our late arrival, it felt crowded. Not annoying, just it seemed like there were a lot of people. That was just for the pre Ultimate Event portion. Once the day crowds were gone the only time we encountered other guests was at FOP.

 

[Malyficent]

Day 6, part 1 - And on Day 6 There Shall be Tornados!

Day 6 Thursday, December 20th
Plan: Resort Morning / Disney Springs
Resort: POR
Parks: N/A
FP: N/A
Meals: 1900 Park Fare (B) (only if not done Day 4); Raglan Road (D)
Events: Early morning access to Disney Springs (will probably skip); Rhythms of Raglan show; Christmas Tree Trail, Silhouette portraits; Yee Haw Bob

After another late night, we slept in. DS1 and H got up around 8ish and wandered over to POFQ for round two of the Mickey Beignets. DS2 slept and I caught up on messages and news. While checking the weather I noticed the Tornado Watch (or warning, I can’t remember which), thought not too much of it and then DS2 woke up. We were having a little morning cuddle, he was saying how “This [our snuggle session] was his favorite thing all week and then Pirates of the Caribbean” when my phone alarmed. Tornado!

Okay, I grab DS2 and dump him in the tub with his blanket and iPad. Trying not to scare him. A few minutes later I step out to grab some more things (would be best to be dressed and have shoes on if we’re going to be struck by a tornado). DS1 and H get back to the room and he joins DS2 in the tub. H is more blasé about the alarm so he just continues getting ready.

Once enough time has passed we get the kids out and head out for the day. We take some snacks and get a Lyft over to the Contemporary. Refill our resort mugs at their QS and check out the holiday display. Very cute.

We hop the monorail to the Polynesian. All the resorts were jammed packed this day due to the foul weather. Meanwhile my BFF and her boys are out riding everything they can that’s open in the rain. Luckily she was staying in a 1 bedroom at Boardwalk so she could dry all their stuff later.

Poly was great. Not much in the way of holiday decor but we grabbed lunch at Captain Cooke’s (I really like their noodles) and the boys got lais.

We boarded the monorail to the Grand Floridian but it’d stopped running (while still in the station). We assumed it was due to bad weather. At this point I called a Minnie Van and we paid a ridiculous sum to go from the Poly to the Grand Floridian but the boys loved it.

Grand Floridian was beautiful. We made it just as a baker was doing a gingerbread demo so we listened to that and the boys got some gingerbread (it was kind of yucky).

We skipped the shop inside the gingerbread house as the line was crazy long. I slightly regretted cancelling our reservation at 1900 Park Fare but I think it was the right call. We took the elevator up to the second floor and poked our heads into the lounge up there, took some pictures, and then headed back to our resort via another Lyft.

A bit of a break and we were off to Disney Springs.

Disney Springs Ultimate Event Summary: We totally skipped it. It was 9-10 shopping at World of Disney and 9-11am access to the Christmas Tree Trail. There were also discounts to a number of dining and shopping places but none that would entice me out of bed at that hour.

ETA - Crowd Level: Touring Plans had WDW as an 1 on this date. Well that was great if you were taking advantage of the parks (other than being out in the nasty weather) but everyone and their mother were at the resorts. Holy people Batman! It was jammers. And while everyone seemed pretty chill until this point, tempers seemed short - probably a combination of weather, transportation issues, and just the arriving Christmas crowds.

Up Next: The calvary has arrived! And someone Irish dances onstage.

 

[ButterflyEffect]

Sounds like a great trip!

 

[Malyficent]

Day 6, part 2 - The Calvary Arrives!

Back when we booked the trip, I texted the bestie to see if she’d be down the week before Christmas. Her response “We weren’t planning to be but we can be”. And a lot of DVC waiting lists later and she arrived with her sons - 17 and 14 on Wednesday the 19th.

Our plan was to meet up at Raglan Road on the Thursday for dinner. My boys were in the dark about these plans so it was huge surprise for them.

She ordered a cake - a Buche de Noel (Yule Log) for my boys’ birthdays. It was beautiful and delicious.

DS1 participated in the Irish dancing and got a cute certificate. DS2 was not interested (he rarely is in such things but we had a melt down his last day about a similar event). DS1 actually took Irish dance lessons and knew this dance a bit from lessons.

After dinner we let the boys shop a bit. We’d asked them to hold off on any shopping as we would have time to do so at Disney Springs. Each grandparent had given them gift cards so they each had a decent amount to spend. For DS2, this was an easy task. Not so much for DS1.

I loved being able to ship everything to our house and not have to haul it back on the plane.

My other favorite part? The teenagers were so good with my boys and really gave H and I a break. This is basically how they spent the next two days:

And then it was time for treats.

And my favorite, Jack Skellington…

We also did the Christmas Tree Trail and then each family grabbed a Lyft to their respective resort.

Next up: EPCOT and the Candlelight Processional

 

[Malyficent]

Day 7, part 1 - EPCOT

Day 7 Friday, December 21st
Plan: Epcot - RD Test Track
Resort: POR
Parks: Epcot
FP: Mission: SPACE; Spaceship Earth; Frozen
Meals: Biergarten (L); Buffet (D) - may skip buffet to have more time in the countries
Events: Candlelight Processional / Illuminations; Buffet dinner event

The plan for Friday was to meet with with my friend and her boys at either her hotel (Boardwalk Villas) or at EPCOT depending on timing. We were running behind (shocker, I know) so we went straight to EPCOT. Security screening here was the most intense of the trip and there was a bit of a mess with checking the bag (we were going to be all day in the park and the temp was going to drop significantly) so I was rather grouchy when my friend and her boys met us.

A cup of coffee later and all was good. We made all three fast passes although I think Spaceship Earth converted into an anytime pass as it was down for awhile.

My family had reservations at Biergarten for lunch (and we had the Candlelight Processional package).

A hearty meal and a couple glasses each of wine and coffee and I was ready for more park time.

My friend and her boys had lunch reservations at Garden Grill. We met them back there and fastpassed Soarin’. This is another one H can’t ride due to motion sickness.

After that we did Nemo and Turtle talk. We were lucky enough that they were feeding the fish so we got to see that in the aquarium.

We also did Living with the Land (I think before lunch) - it had some cute stuff for the holidays.

The weather was very windy that day, I was worried it may be too windy for Illuminations but the wind died down that afternoon.

ETA - Crowd Level: Touring Plans had Epcot as an 7 on this date and that seemed accurate. I noticed that it was very hard to find cast members when I had a question - which was a first for the week. Epcot is usually my favorite park but I wasn't feeling it this trip (it may simply be more fun without my children).

 

[Malyficent]

Day 7, part 2 - Candlelight Processional, Final Ultimate Event, Illuminations

Around 5pm we decided to take a break back at my friend’s villa. She had a one bedroom DVC at Boardwalk. I sent my family ahead with her and grabbed our bag from the lockers. I stopped at Joffrey’s on the way out for a quick drink and then stopped to check in on the Ultimate dining event that night. Then I exited via the International Gateway and met them at the hotel.

The room was lovely (a one bedroom) and overlooked the scary clown pool. DS2 keeps asking when we’re staying at the “boat hotel”. I’m trying to clarify if he means Yacht Club (ha, never kiddo) or Boardwalk (a distinct possibility for our next trip). This is his reaction after walking through Yacht Club on Day 2:

Around 6 we headed back over to EPCOT. As we passed through the lobby we saw Mickey greeting guests in his Christmas finery (same outfit from Hollywood and Vine). We kept on moving as we were well behind when we should have lined up for Candlelight Processional.

We got a bit turned around in World Showcase but found it eventually and just in time - the entire ADR line had been seated. No problem, I wanted a seat together - not the perfect view. We settled the kids down with popcorn and juice boxes. Got everyone snug with the hats and blankets and cuddled up for the show.

We enjoyed the show but felt it was about ten minutes too long for our children - and they attend Catholic mass regularly. Oddly enough, I think if there was less music and more story they would have lasted longer.

After the show we poked around Morocco for a bit (H and I have this ranked high on our "when we come back without kids" list) and then went to France for a snack/dinner. As we lined up for food at Les Halles Boulangerie Patisserie, I remembered the dinner included with our package. H and I really wanted to spend the little time we had left in the World Showcase but we figured why wait in line and pay for food when it was already included.

We walked over to the event (near Canada) and were pretty impressed. The food was good - H really liked the chicken, I preferred the Tex Mex dish. The mashed potatoes were delicious. Wine and beer were included - Woo Hoo! There were also a number of scenes available with Photo Pass photographers and a live band.

There were some small activities for the kids too - coloring pages and snow towards the event entrance. My boys loved the snow and we had to drag them out of there. And we each received Goofy cotton candy containers when we left.

We finally persuaded them to leave and then hauled it around to Mexico to do one last ride before Illuminations.

Our spot for Illuminations wasn’t the best but we could see most of it and I cried.

Afterwards we walked out via the International Gateway and stopped at Ample Hills Creamery. The boys each got a cone and I got the sampler (and shared). We then got a Lyft back to POR.

EPCOT Ultimate Event Summary: Two dining seatings - one early (I think it was 4pm) and one late (8pm). We were originally in the early seating but switched to the later one. I ran into a couple who was able to switch their seating the same day. The food was good and adult beverages were included as well as entertainment. Nothing too special but hey, you gotta eat, right? It was a very practical option for my young, picky eaters. If it was just H and I, I would have skipped it for dinner in a pavilion.

Next up: H flies away and we check out. Also, our last park day.

 

[Malyficent]

Day 8 - Goodbye Disney!

Day 8 Saturday, December 22nd
Plan: Hollywood Studios /Travel Day
Resort: POR
Parks: Hollywood Studios (may also hop over to MK to do Tom Sawyer Island and the Riverboat if they reopen that day)
FP: RNR Coaster; Toy Story Mania; Star Tours
Meals: 50’s Prime Time (L)
Events: N/A
Magic Express: TBD

H had a 7am flight home so he was up and out for Magic Express by 3:30am. Yikes. The kids and I weren’t flying out until 7:45pm and planned to spend the day with my friend and her boys at Hollywood Studios.

Even though I mostly packed the night before it somehow still took me 3.5 hours to get us checked out, do the airline checkin, and get over to Boardwalk. There I left a bag for my friend - some of which I think she posted on a Disney Freecycle Facebook group (I left FB or I would have done this myself).

We then walked - as DS2 refused to take the boat - to Hollywood Studios. Slowly. So slowly my friend sent her boys out to get us. We’d missed our first two Fastpasses - Rock n Roller Coaster and Toy Story Mania. DS2 wouldn’t have done the coaster anyway and we’d already done TSM so no big deal. We did Star Tours - well, they did it while I checked out waiting time on TPs.

After ST, we walked over to 50’s Prime Time to try to combine our reservation and were told to try again later. We then checked out Jedi Training Academy and they had one spot open for the next class. I’d shown my kids a YouTube video before our trip and DS2 said he wasn’t interested so I signed up DS1.

Of course DS2 changed his mind as soon as I announced the plan - DS1 doing JTA, DS2 doing Toy Story Mania with my friend’s older son (she had another set of FP’s for her family). So back I went to see if they could squeeze him in. Nope. Okay, off he goes to TSM.

And then - just as they are totally out of reach - they had an opening. But he couldn’t get back in time.

After DS1’s Jedi Training DS2 begged again to do it so I tried again to get him registered for a class. No luck. And then he totally melted down. Ugly. If they hadn’t been so good all week, I’d have been annoyed. Amazingly we had one last bit of Pixie Dust sprinkled and the cast member came running after me to say they could get him into that class.

One happy little camper.

So I basically spent a couple hours arranging/doing Jedi Academy. Not how I’d like to spend my time but DS2 ranks it as his second favorite attraction (behind Pirates) so it was worth it.

Oh, and we had one last bit of Pixie Dust. My friend forgot to move her 50’s PT reservation - so I had lunch reservations and she had dinner reservations. They managed to get us seated together and 10 minutes before my reservation began. My family still missed our Magic Express to the airport but it was worth the last Lyft ride there to have one final meal as a group.

ETA - Crowd Level: Touring Plans had Hollywood Studios as an 8 on this date and it felt crowded.

Up Next: Final Thoughts and our Bounce Back Plans

 

[1princessesmom]

i really enjoyed reading about your experience with the Ultimate Christmastime Package. We (me, my husband DD17 and DS15) were also there celebrating my 50th birthday. We debated planning the trip ourselves and using our DVC, or going with the Ultimate Christmastime Package. We ended up going with the package and we are so glad we did. The only downside we saw (other than a few days of bad weather) was the wait for buses (we also used Lyft and Uber), and we prefer the location of our DVC (BCV) to Port Orleans Riverside. The exclusive access was awesome....although we thought the line for FOP was still a bit long. We went to the early morning Disney Springs event.....you didn't miss much!!
We are hoping to take advantage of this package again in the next year or two.

 

[Malyficent]

i really enjoyed reading about your experience with the Ultimate Christmastime Package. We (me, my husband DD17 and DS15) were also there celebrating my 50th birthday. We debated planning the trip ourselves and using our DVC, or going with the Ultimate Christmastime Package. We ended up going with the package and we are so glad we did. The only downside we saw (other than a few days of bad weather) was the wait for buses (we also used Lyft and Uber), and we prefer the location of our DVC (BCV) to Port Orleans Riverside. The exclusive access was awesome....although we thought the line for FOP was still a bit long. We went to the early morning Disney Springs event.....you didn't miss much!!
We are hoping to take advantage of this package again in the next year or two.

Oh gosh - sorry I'm so late to this response. Yes! I loved this package and can't say enough good stuff about it. If they do it again next year (and in the subsequent years) we'll absolutely continue to book it. I'd love to upgrade to a Deluxe next year and BC and BW are tops of my list. But I choke on paying rack rate instead of renting points (we're not DVC yet although I'm considering it). Now all of this is super tentative as my husband is furloughed so Disney vacations are off in the interim.

 

[Malyficent]

Final thoughts and Bounce Back Plan

For now, we're booked to return next year - this time at Art of Animation in a suite. If we can convert that to another Ultimate Disney Christmas trip, we will - even if it means we have to compromise on the resort. Also, there is a super high probability that we cancel for next year outright as my husband is currently furloughed due to the shutdown. It's a bummer but we're lucky enough that we can hold out a very long time with reduced frivolous spending and no vacations being our only impact. [Goodbye highlights, hello box hair dye!]

My chief takeaways from this trip are:

1. More resort time - even with our first evening, MVMCP day, and our Disney Springs/resort hopping day I just felt we didn't have enough time to really enjoy the resorts. May be worth it to consider a mix of onsite for resort time, Disney Springs resorts for park days. If only Disney would haul our luggage over to the DS resorts and back (pssst Disney - I'd pay for that service).

2. Spend for the exclusive events was worth it for us (it made our trip more enjoyable). I'm trying to talk my husband into a post shutdown - let's blow off this stress - weekend trip and we'd do just Epcot and Animal Kingdom. While thinking it through, I wish Epcot had a DAH event. I imagine the staffing costs for keeping the World Showcase open are prohibitive.

3. More Lyft, less Disney transportation (and be smart about when to Minnie Van - use it when it suits strategically such as drop off to MK - or if you absolutely need two carseats - otherwise use the cheaper Lyft options). Again, time having a higher dollar value at Disney, this is a wise expense. It could have bought us more resort time (see point 1).

4. We need more space - so either two rooms or a suite next time. Some families may be fine squeezing into one room together. It does not suit my family. We have two hard core morning birds and two hard core night owls and never the twain shall share a room again.

5. We need a washer/dryer in our unit (which ties to point #4). I'm permitted to be lazy and not want to drag laundry to another building - or even down the hall - while on vacation. Having it in the room would have allowed us to pack lighter.

6. Six and eight is a great age for a first time trip. I'm relieved we did it now - and I'm happy we didn't go earlier (my younger one would have forgotten it).

7. POR is an amazing resort. Very deluxe-like. I just asked my youngest where he wants to stay next time (this is the kid who was pushing for Yacht Club) and he said Old Man Island.

8. Ordering from PrimeNow for alcohol and snack foods, fruit, and drinks saved a ton. And allowed the husband and I to chill out with adult beverages for way less money than the resort costs per drink - and just the shear convenience of having it in our room vs having to go to get drinks. It also allowed us to get out the door faster in the morning and back out the door faster after breaks.

9. Delivery Service - next time I need to look into a service that would come collect a box and ship it home for us. I was able to squeeze these items into our luggage but it would've been a heck of a lot easier to just mail it home (reusing the box I'd mailed to the resort). I just didn't want to burn any more time taking a package somewhere to have it mailed.

10. Disney needs more suites at the value and moderate level. I'd be happy to go to the parks and spend money but I need a suite. It doesn't have to be super fancy - just well insulated for noise and with a decent fridge and washer/dryer.

I can't recommend the Ultimate Christmastime Package enough. It was nearly perfect and really made for an excellent trip. I do want to try staying offsite at somewhere like Wyndham BC. Pairing that with DAH events and a party would probably allow us to most things. Need to evaluate how critical that Disney bubble is to our experience. A month later I'm still pretty high on the Disney Bubble juice so I'm guessing offsite won't be our cup of tea but you never know until you try, right?

I have three other major Disney trips in mind for the next five years plus I'm hoping to get in several long weekend trips.

• 2022 - The Blowout 50th (or really 49th for me) Bash - Disney River Christmas Markets Cruise (ABD)
• 2021 - Disneyland Paris Christmas trip (hoping to do this one with my sisters and their families/loved ones)
• 2019 - WDW Bounce Back (which may get cancelled or pushed back - or may convert it to a cruise if SWGE does swamp WDW)

Thanks for reading!