Nine Nights: Filling 2019 with Disney Adventures around the World *New TR Link 7/31

[amazingact21]

Haha the character guru is here! Are your kids into Vampirina? If so, she would be a good one to meet! I also heard they are replacing Sofia with Fancy Nancy if that's of any interest.Otherwise I think you've got it covered! You'll get to meet Minnie when you meet Mickey (2 seperate meets but it's one line so you get 2 for 1!). Oh and Mike & Sulley are back! I think their line gets a little long but it is indoors so something to consider!

They don't know Vampirina but they do like Fancy Nancy. I forgot all about her joining the Disney character list. Thanks for the reminder, I'm going to add her to my potential meet and greet list.

And I didn't know Minnie met in the same line! See, this is why I knew I needed to ask for your input.

And don’t forget about BB-8! He’s a cute meet!

I forgot about him; Landon has a BB-8 shirt that I was going to have him wear that day so now he has to meet him!

Sounds like great plans! Mike and Sulley were a fun meet in DHS!

I will have to see if Alex or I can sneak Landon away for a short while to meet Mike and Sully. I think Sully's size would scare Evie.

Meh. I say throw it all in boxes... They will get all mixed up the second you unpack those boxes... Well, at least that is what would happen in our house back in the day...

That is true. Right now my main goal is trying to purge the room of all the toddler toys they don't play with. We've finally reached that point where both kids can play with the regular Legos (no more Duplos) and neither need the Little People sets anymore. Time to start weeding out the unused toys!

Maybe actually do the opposite? Aliens first then TSM? TSM has a bigger capacity? Plus the line is inside if you have to wait longer?

That's a possibility. Do you think if we did Aliens first then TSMM we would still have plenty of time to make our 9:30-10:30 Fastpass before, I'd say, 10:15? I'd imagine so, because like you said, TSMM has a bigger load capacity so it shouldn't take too long if we're going on it early enough. Maybe I'll set a reminder on my phone to peek at the wait times for both around park opening and see what both attractions' times are.

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

I'm excited for you reading about all your plans and more than a little jealous of all your planned meet n greets!
My youngest (now 12) freaked if characters got too close so we haven't met any in a while but.....now I have a wee grandson and we all hope to take a family trip in 2020/21 finances depending soooooo maybe I'll get to do some in the future and the 12 year old has agreed it's his duty as Uncle to take him to at least meet Mickey so I may even get a long-awaited photo of my guy with the main mouse! Fingers crossed!

 

[Cloe Colton]

Sulley would probably scare Evie! I have a photopass picture where I even look like whoa hes big haha I'm not used to meeting characters taller than I am since most characters/princesses are usually shorter than me! (I haven't met Chewbacca but I imagine he would be the same lol)

 

[Steppesister]

Next on my agenda is sorting through the kids' playroom. Right now they share a bedroom but when we move, they are each getting their own space and so the toys in their playroom need to be separated and organized. I think I'm gonna earn a drink from the Edison after enduring THAT battle.

OH Dear Lord, help you. Been there and done that so many times.

I’ll be headed to the Shades gym at 5 in the morning to knock out my 6 miles. This is gonna be a rough day for me, for sure!

is right!!!

ARE THOSE EVEN THE SAME KIDS?!

Plus, this will give us time to check Evie’s height. Right now, she’s measuring 37 inches without shoes. Whether shoes gets her that final inch or she hits a growth spurt in the next two months will be up for debate. But at least we can stand her up against the marker and see if she makes the cut.

This will be an interesting thing to see.... Come on, Evie!! You can do it!

And if she does…well that gives us enough time to gauge her interest and see if she can even handle SDD. She could very well take one peek at it and refuse to ride. Giving ourselves some extra days to decide seemed like the smartest route.

Good parenting right there.

If lunch runs long (I’m looking at you, Evie)

We are NOT going to take an afternoon break.


Bum bum BUM!!!

Because one of my dear nephews shares his name, and Landon and Evie would love to tell Kylo Ren that they are cousins with a Kylo Dean.

That's going to be such a cool meet!

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

You can definitely do AS2 and TSMM before a 9:30 FP. They start walking folks back at 8:45 for a 9am open and nearly everyone goes to SDD.

Stay towards the back of the pack to avoid shoving, go straight to do AS2 first, then head to TSMM. On our HS RD day, we were off of AS2 before 9am and out of TSMM 9:20. You would then want to hit the Woody/Jessie or the Buzz line as they both get bad quickly and stay that way until the evening.

Because TSMM is a longer ride and AS2 is lower capacity, if you do TSMM first you'll find yourself with a longer wait at AS2, although it'll still be doable.

 

[amazingact21]

y youngest (now 12) freaked if characters got too close so we haven't met any in a while but.....now I have a wee grandson and we all hope to take a family trip in 2020/21 finances depending soooooo maybe I'll get to do some in the future and the 12 year old has agreed it's his duty as Uncle to take him to at least meet Mickey so I may even get a long-awaited photo of my guy with the main mouse! Fingers crossed!

Aww, that is too sweet! I really hope he agrees to meet Mickey with his nephew. No matter how old he is, you always want one photo of your kiddo with the main man!

Sulley would probably scare Evie! I have a photopass picture where I even look like whoa hes big haha I'm not used to meeting characters taller than I am since most characters/princesses are usually shorter than me! (I haven't met Chewbacca but I imagine he would be the same lol)

Sully has to be one of the tallest character meets. We met him and Mike when they were in their Monster University gear, and I gravitated to Mike for this very reason.

ARE THOSE EVEN THE SAME KIDS?!

They're growing up fast. Landon recently got new glasses and looks like a completely different kid now. I do miss the trip this photo came from, because both of them were still free! The good old days...

You can definitely do AS2 and TSMM before a 9:30 FP. They start walking folks back at 8:45 for a 9am open and nearly everyone goes to SDD.

Because TSMM is a longer ride and AS2 is lower capacity, if you do TSMM first you'll find yourself with a longer wait at AS2, although it'll still be doable.

I realized after I wrote this update that Hollywood Studios will be having their Early Morning Magic ticketed event this morning. I'm assuming this throws out my hope of riding both AS2 and TSMM standby. I imagine TSL will already be pretty busy by the time they let regular park guests in, and I should just focus on TSMM.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

I realized after I wrote this update that Hollywood Studios will be having their Early Morning Magic ticketed event this morning. I'm assuming this throws out my hope of riding both AS2 and TSMM standby. I imagine TSL will already be pretty busy by the time they let regular park guests in, and I should just focus on TSMM.

Actually, reports are that this really only effects the crowds for the character meets. Most people doing EMM want to get the heck out of dodge when the RD arrives. The exception is folks who ride as much as they can during EMM, then hop in the character line to finish their time in TSL. The AS2-to-TSMM route would still be fine, but the character lines will be long before you get to the land.

 

[evre13]

I just got back from a 9 day trip (that coincided with the Star Wars races), so I definitely feel you with the overwhelming nature of planning. You’ve got it under control it seems!

we might try to make it and ride Rock N Roller Coaster if it’s not too busy yet. Fingers crossed everyone is making the rush to Toy Story Land and leaving Sunset Blvd alone

Just speaking to personal experience, we were able to do Tower of Terror and Rock N Roller standby last week by 945, ride Slinky Dog with a Fast Pass, and then do Swirling Saucers, all by around 1050. It can be done!

 

[Steppesister]

They're growing up fast. Landon recently got new glasses and looks like a completely different kid now. I do miss the trip this photo came from, because both of them were still free! The good old days...

And in another 10 years... they can pay their own way.

 

[amazingact21]

Actually, reports are that this really only effects the crowds for the character meets. Most people doing EMM want to get the heck out of dodge when the RD arrives. The exception is folks who ride as much as they can during EMM, then hop in the character line to finish their time in TSL. The AS2-to-TSMM route would still be fine, but the character lines will be long before you get to the land.

Perfect! I wasn't planning on meeting the characters so this will help us out a lot.

Just speaking to personal experience, we were able to do Tower of Terror and Rock N Roller standby last week by 945, ride Slinky Dog with a Fast Pass, and then do Swirling Saucers, all by around 1050. It can be done!

Oh man, I really hope this holds up when Alex and I are there! We'd love to take more than one turn on RNRC but are setting our hopes on just once.
That's a lot accomplished in one morning, especially during a race week!

And in another 10 years... they can pay their own way.

Now THIS is the day I look forward to!

 

[amazingact21]

June 9th, Day 4 Plans:


This is going to be our busiest day of the trip, with several reservations and attraction hopefuls packed into our itinerary.

My family will be up bright and early this morning, walking over to the Polynesian and grabbing transportation to the Magic Kingdom. I feel a tiny bit guilty that we’re not taking the kids to the MK until the third day of our trip, but hopefully experiencing Toy Story Land and eating cheesy pizza will distract Landon enough that he doesn’t complain to his sister, drawing her attention to the lack of castles in their life.


The park is having an Early Morning Magic event that morning, but that won’t be where we’re headed.

Nope, instead we will be headed to breakfast at:





Crystal Palace is a tradition for my family, beginning with my mother/daughter mini-trip in 2012 and continuing with Landon on his first trip in 2013:




And Evie on her first MK visit in 2016:



There’s something for everyone at Crystal Palace. Alex thinks they have one of the better omelet stations on property, my mom loves their egg frittata dish, and I like starting off my MK day with early morning Main Street photos prior to breakfast.

Also, Landon has become a garbage disposal with breakfast foods. I don’t know if it’s because our daily meals consist of scrambled eggs and Cheerios or if it’s a genuine love of the food, but my son loves sweet breakfast dishes.

His biggest request every time he visits my mom? That she make him pancakes….

Once a month we get a free breakfast buffet from the club on base, and Landon eats so much French Toast at those events it’s impressive.

Pile his plate full of cantaloupe, puffed French toast, and biscuits and gravy and he’s a happy camper.

In addition to the food, we read all the Winnie the Pooh books last year and now Landon has a sentimental attachment to the characters. Evie listened in, too, but I’m still waiting for the day she’s old enough to connect with characters like Landon has done.



After breakfast, we all have Fastpasses for Peter Pan’s Flight. This attraction is a must for us every trip since Peter Pan is both kids’ favorite Disney film. Whenever they are sick, that’s the movie they request I put on as the rest on the couch. Peter and Wendy have led attacks against Captain Hook in our house so many times that Alex’s recliner has become known as “Skull Rock.” And both kids are known to start belting out “We’re off to fight the Indians, the Indians. We’re off to fight the Indians!” at the most inappropriate moments.



(Explaining to a six and three year old the inappropriateness of a few scenes has been fun.)





I decided to approach the parks a little differently than I have in the past. Normally, I visit the MK during extra magic hours in the morning and attack Fantasyland first, then move over to Frontierland and Adventureland. But considering that we’ll have my mother and our three year old with us, I wanted to focus on one or two connecting lands every visit. We will have an umbrella stroller for Evie, and my mom is in somewhat good health but I know it will be hot and possibly crowded. The less we’re running from place to place, the better.


So, after Peter Pan I’m hoping we can hop on It’s a Small Word and the carousel.






Then, we have our second set of Fastpasses for a meet and greet with Tiana:


Landon and Evie love Tiana; she’s the one princess they both requested to meet. Although, I’m sure they’ll love seeing Rapunzel too. And if they don’t, then I will!


After our princess meet, my group is going to split up. My mom and Evie have Faastpasses for Dumbo while Alex and I are going to walk Landon over to Tomorrowland to take him on Space Mountain for the first time. Originally, I was going to have my mom and Evie ride Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin but there were no passes available at the same time as Space, and now she doesn’t have to leave Fantasyland if she doesn’t want.

I think Landon is going to love Space Mountain, and I’m ridiculously excited that he can now go on every ride inside the Magic Kingdom. Nothing is off limits since he shot up like a rocket over winter break and broke through the 45 inch barrier.



Once we have all finished with our respectful rides, my family will head out of the park for a short break back at Shades. I’m sure our early morning is going to have caught up with us, and we’ll need a nap to refuel for the big evening ahead.


Hopefully, around four o’clock, we can walk back over to the Polynesian. (I’m gambling with the weather here and hoping there’s no thunderstorms rolling through in this half hour stretch of time.) The plan is to grab an early dinner at Captain Cook’s, so I can enjoy the pulled pork sandwich they serve and stare at the Poly lobby for a few minutes. Two stays at the Polynesian, both short and spontaneous, and already I’ve become fiercely attached to the place…



Moving along, the hope and dream for this day is that I will have been able to procure a 4th Fastpass for either Pirates of the Caribbean or the Jungle Cruise for around 5:30 this evening. These are the two attractions my mother has requested she gets to do on our MK day, so Fastpasses or not we will be heading over to wait for them on this evening.




You guys have been pure geniuses when it comes to advice and help on this trip so far, so which do you think I should try to go for? Which tends to have a shorter standby wait in the evening and/or availability for a 5th pass later?


My plan for this night is to ride as many dark rides and/or see shows as we can between when we enter the park and 7:45. Haunted Mansion, the Tiki Room, and the Magic Carpets of Aladdin being the front-runners after Pirates and JC.

Then, at 8 o’clock, Alex and I will lead everyone over to the Tomorrowland Terrace where we have a Happily Ever After dessert party booked.




I know there has been a lot of differing opinions on whether or not this event is worth the price, but when my family did it last year we had an amazing experience. I only ate one thing from the dessert buffet so the food wasn’t even a factor for me.

I want to see the fireworks every trip, and while I’m willing to wait in spot for a few hours my kids are not. The ability to take them on rides up until an hour prior, then fill them with treats they don’t normally get to eat, and following it all up with a reserved location for the show is worth every penny to me.

When the kids get older or when I go back with just my mom, I won’t feel the need to book the dessert party, but as a parent of young kids this is invaluable.

No grouchy, whiny kids before the show? More time to enjoy attractions? Free bottles of water to take back to the room?

Yes, yes, yes to it all!




My mom did give a little pushback when I told her the price, and I explained to her this was something we could do after she left, but eventually she caved and said she would join. So now, I am a little nervous that it won’t be as magical the second time around and my mom will feel it was a waste of money. A little more pressure is riding on the party this time, but hopefully she will have been able to go on both Pirates and Jungle Cruise and that will help sway her in favor of it.


When the fireworks are done, so will be my family. We’ll head back to Shades where we hopefully get to crash immediately, because we have a lofty goal in the morning.


Day 4 Goals:

- Crystal Palace Breakfast
- Ride Peter Pan's Flight
- Meet Tiana
- Landon's first ride on Space Mountain
- Ride Pirates
- Ride Jungle Cruise
- Happily Ever After Dessert Party




Up Next…Day 5 Plans

 

[rdkeim]

Enjoying reading about your plans! I don't think you're being too ambitious which, in my opinion, is a good thing. Good idea to take a mid day break since you're doing the dessert party. I'll be interested to hear how it went the second time around. When we take my sons family, I can tell you my daughter-in-law will NOT be waiting around an hour or 2 to get a good spot for the nighttime shows - even if the kids were willing. Not always but sometimes the cost is worth it.

 

[Cloe Colton]

I've definitely been able to get 4th FPs for Jungle Cruise or POTC. Personally between the two, I would say FP for JC and wait standby for POTC. Pirates line is usually contiually moving and doesn't seem as hot whereas I've been near fainting in the JC line lol just remember to grab ANY time you see for either ride you chose as soon as you tap into that third FP and then keep trying to modify! Picking any time definitely makes it easier to try and refresh!

I think the dessert party sounds like a great idea for your family! And it sounds like you do it the way it is intended, eat/drink fun snacks and walk over to a nice spot right before the fireworks. My biggest complaint was that I felt like I waited just as long for the fireworks as I would have without paying for the dessert party so as long as you can manage that I'm sure your Mom will see the value!

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

(Explaining to a six and three year old the inappropriateness of a few scenes has been fun.)

Yup, I feel that pain. I watched it for the first time with the girls after many, many years and didn't remember how bad some of it was.

ut considering that we’ll have my mother and our three year old with us, I wanted to focus on one or two connecting lands every visit.

This was our attack plan in MK and it worked out great. We didn't have to do to much back and forth and, since we had several days in that park, we knew we could get through everything over the course of the visit.

Moving along, the hope and dream for this day is that I will have been able to procure a 4th Fastpass for either Pirates of the Caribbean or the Jungle Cruise for around 5:30 this evening

I got both pretty easily for a party of 5. Picked up JC for 3:30 around noon, PotC 6ish for a 6:15, if I'm remembering correctly.

You guys have been pure geniuses when it comes to advice and help on this trip so far, so which do you think I should try to go for? Which tends to have a shorter standby wait in the evening and/or availability for a 5th pass later?

FP JC first. The standby wait there is longer and tends to stay long later in the day. Plus, the standby queue is hot and boring.

You'll likely be able to get FPs for both but, if you can't, waiting standby for PotC will be shorter and more pleasant. You could also do the pirate adventure game (I'm forgetting the exact name) and completing 3 challenges gets you a pirates FP.

 

[missangelalexis]

Your plans sound great! Starting the day at Crystal Palace will be really nice. I understand the pressure of wanting your mom to enjoy the dessert party. I bet she will, don't stress! You really can't beat having a great spot for the fireworks so I'm sure she will think it's worth it when all is said and done.

 

[Lesley Wake]

My mom did give a little pushback when I told her the price, and I explained to her this was something we could do after she left, but eventually she caved and said she would join. So now, I am a little nervous that it won’t be as magical the second time around and my mom will feel it was a waste of money. A little more pressure is riding on the party this time, but hopefully she will have been able to go on both Pirates and Jungle Cruise and that will help sway her in favor of it.

I have done it 3 times now and already have it booked a 4th time! It just helps remove the stress of finding (and holding) a good fireworks spot! I took my mom in February and she loved it! Good desserts but then we just had freedom and space in the plaza. We weren't shoulder to shoulder with people and didn't have to deal with lots of shoulder kids (even if we did, we could easily move out of the way). I think after your mom does it, she will understand the value! They've been changing up the desserts a bit too, so it's been nice to get some slightly different offerings!

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

Aww, that is too sweet! I really hope he agrees to meet Mickey with his nephew. No matter how old he is, you always want one photo of your kiddo with the main man!

Exactly! Never too old for “that” photo!

I think your day 4 plans sound perfect and totally doable. You’re striking a great balance between wanting to do things and allowing for everyone’s age/fitness abilities. I’m betting your mum will love it at the party simply because Disney has a way of making life magical and what could be better than sharing that magic with grandkids!!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Pile his plate full of cantaloupe, puffed French toast, and biscuits and gravy and he’s a happy camper.

He is a growning little boy!

We’re off to fight the Indians, the Indians. We’re off to fight the Indians!” at the most inappropriate moments.



(Explaining to a six and three year old the inappropriateness of a few scenes has been fun.)

Oye! It's hard to explain those kinds of things sometimes!

Landon and Evie love Tiana; she’s the one princess they both requested to meet. Although, I’m sure they’ll love seeing Rapunzel too. And if they don’t, then I will!

I still love this picture!!!! And I am sure he will still woo Raps as well.

I think Landon is going to love Space Mountain, and I’m ridiculously excited that he can now go on every ride inside the Magic Kingdom. Nothing is off limits since he shot up like a rocket over winter break and broke through the 45 inch barr

I hope he likes it!

You guys have been pure geniuses when it comes to advice and help on this trip so far, so which do you think I should try to go for? Which tends to have a shorter standby wait in the evening and/or availability for a 5th pass later?

So, I may be the opposite of what most people have said so far. Only because the last 2 times we have had Jungle Cruise Fast Passes, the FP line was almost as long as the standby line. I guess don't be afraid to do the Stand By for JG!

I know there has been a lot of differing opinions on whether or not this event is worth the price, but when my family did it last year we had an amazing experience. I only ate one thing from the dessert buffet so the food wasn’t even a factor for me.

I wouldn't do the dessert party every time but it was the highlight of the last trip for my girls.

 

[suse66]

And for me to buy my favorite purse of all time…

I love that bag!

Toy Story is my mom’s favorite Disney film, and usually we have to meet Buzz and Woody with her on every trip. She’s going to love looking around this new land and becoming immersed in the story she’s followed for so many years.

Toy Story Land is so well themed. I loved all the immersive details.

We’ll be cutting it close, but we have a 12:00 Fastpass for the Frozen Sing Along show at 12:30. If lunch runs long (I’m looking at you, Evie) then I’m confident we can grab a later show time.

I hope you get @equityBen in your show. He is the best!

They have me read “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” short story frequently and see him on my half marathon medal that’s hanging in the front hall. So now that they’re more familiar with him, they want to say hi and get a photo with whom they nicknamed “Magic Mickey.”

Love that!

There’s something for everyone at Crystal Palace. Alex thinks they have one of the better omelet stations on property, my mom loves their egg frittata dish, and I like starting off my MK day with early morning Main Street photos prior to breakfast.

Nothing like a breakfast with the friends of the Hundred Acre Woods.

After breakfast, we all have Fastpasses for Peter Pan’s Flight. This attraction is a must for us every trip since Peter Pan is both kids’ favorite Disney film. Whenever they are sick, that’s the movie they request I put on as the rest on the couch. Peter and Wendy have led attacks against Captain Hook in our house so many times that Alex’s recliner has become known as “Skull Rock.” And both kids are known to start belting out “We’re off to fight the Indians, the Indians. We’re off to fight the Indians!” at the most inappropriate moments.

Awesome story!

So, after Peter Pan I’m hoping we can hop on It’s a Small Word and the carousel.

Perfect plans!

My plan for this night is to ride as many dark rides and/or see shows as we can between when we enter the park and 7:45. Haunted Mansion, the Tiki Room, and the Magic Carpets of Aladdin being the front-runners after Pirates and JC.

I would definitely go for a Jungle Cruise FP and then standby for Pirates.

 

[amazingact21]

Enjoying reading about your plans! I don't think you're being too ambitious which, in my opinion, is a good thing. Good idea to take a mid day break since you're doing the dessert party. I'll be interested to hear how it went the second time around. When we take my sons family, I can tell you my daughter-in-law will NOT be waiting around an hour or 2 to get a good spot for the nighttime shows - even if the kids were willing. Not always but sometimes the cost is worth it.

I do worry with an early morning breakfast and a dessert party at night that we will all be exhausted, but hopefully that break in the afternoon will help with that.
I suppose if your daughter in-law is willing to pay for the convenience of not waiting, then the dessert party is completely worth it. When it comes to the kids at their current ages, it's just like you said...it's worth the cost!

I've definitely been able to get 4th FPs for Jungle Cruise or POTC. Personally between the two, I would say FP for JC and wait standby for POTC. Pirates line is usually contiually moving and doesn't seem as hot whereas I've been near fainting in the JC line lol just remember to grab ANY time you see for either ride you chose as soon as you tap into that third FP and then keep trying to modify! Picking any time definitely makes it easier to try and refresh!

I think the dessert party sounds like a great idea for your family! And it sounds like you do it the way it is intended, eat/drink fun snacks and walk over to a nice spot right before the fireworks. My biggest complaint was that I felt like I waited just as long for the fireworks as I would have without paying for the dessert party so as long as you can manage that I'm sure your Mom will see the value!

So you're saying to grab a JC Fastpass if I can find it, then go back and modify it until I get a time that works for us? Versus searching for a specific time? I have read a lot about the refresh trick on MDE but have never done it myself, so I'm trying to make sure I know the best way to use it before my trip.

The dessert party is definitely circumstantial. I've waited an hour for HEA and been fine, but I also know the kids have to have a better view than I do because they're shorter and can't see the castle projections as well. When I go to WDW with just my mom next year, we will probably feel the same way you did and just grab a spot ourselves.