Please Can I Stay in Summer? I Don't Want to go back to Winter. An April 2022 Solo Adventure.

[Northern Disney Girl]

“Please Can I stay in Summer? …I don’t want to go back to Winter” - A Disney Solo Adventure​

Hello & Welcome!​

My name is Kimberly and I just recently returned from a wonderful, magical, amazing SOLO TRIP to Walt Disney World!

If you want to go and read my (brief!) PTR, you can do that HERE

Otherwise, lets get on with the show!

TRIP DETAILS

Dates: April 22-29, 2022

Resorts (yes I stayed at 2) Pop Century & Art of Animation

Tickets: 6 day PH w/Genie+

Transportation: I flew Air Canada from my home airport to Orlando with a connection in Toronto.

I also used Mears Connect to get from MCO to Pop.

I had 6 days (including my arrival day) in the parks and 1 “Rest Day”

I also purchased Memory Maker.

I ate at 6 Table Service Restaurants and several Counter Service restaurants.

I also did a grocery order through Walmart and even had to make an unscheduled (and unplanned for!) trip off property to a Walgreens Pharmacy!

All of these details will be explored in much detail in the upcoming chapters.

STAY TUNED!!

Up Next: Disney Day -1 aka The Night before Disney! ​

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

CHAPTER LINKS

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1: The Day Before Disney

CHAPTER 2: Hooray Hooray!! It's Disney Day

CHAPTER 3: A Frozen Failure

CHAPTER 4: An Accidental 3 Park Day

CHAPTER 5:

CHAPTER 6:

CHAPTER 7:

 

[happily single]

Can’t wait!

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

CHAPTER 1: The Day Before Disney

Thursday April 21, 2022

My day started out fairly normally for a Thursday.

Except this wasn’t any normal Thursday - It was the Day before DISNEY!

Well, I couldn’t sit around daydreaming - NO! - I actually had to go to work.

I was at work from 8:30-4:30 and let me tell you as soon as the clock struck 4:30 I was on my way out the door!

I had preordered my dinner earlier that morning from a new restaurant that had just opened a day or two before so I went and picked it up on my way home. ​

Now, I don’t think I have mentioned exactly what my food allergies are yet - I have 4. 2 that are quite severe (bordering on anaphylactic) and 2 that are currently just seriously annoying but getting worse all the time. I am allergic to: Gluten/Wheat, Dairy (anything made with and including Cow’s milk) Shellfish and Treenuts.

So my dinner this night was a Gluten Free, Dairy free, chicken burrito with pinto beans, rice, red salsa, lettuce, tomatoes, guacamole and burrito sauce.

It was so yummy and I was so hungry I forgot to take a picture - you will just have to use your imaginations to conjure up what it looked like.

On the way home, I got slightly slowed down by a wee train.

Sidenote:

You might be thinking to yourself - gee Kim, what is that white stuff on the ground on your picture? Well, I am so glad you asked!! That is SNOW! YES, SNOW. In April. Late April I might add. Sadly, I live in a part of Northwestern Ontario where it snows in April.

End Sidenote.

The train wasn't too long at all and then I was back on the road.

I got home shortly after 5.

The evening went like this -

I ate my dinner (read: I inhaled my delicious burrito) while watching an episode of New Girl.

I love Scmidt.

After I finished eating I tidied up my Kitchen and Living room, washed my morning breakfast dishes and put the garbage out.

I sprayed down the bathroom and kitchen and scrubbed it all to sparkling.

I did the last bit of packing that I needed to finish and then made my morning checklist of the absolutely last things that I needed to shove in my bag before walking out the door.

I ran myself a hot bath and read in the tub for a while.

After my bath I zipped up my suitcase and put my bags by the front door.

I messaged my Dad to make sure He was still good to pick me up in the morning and then I set my alarm and climbed into bed.

The Time of my getting into bed was 8:30pm.

Did I actually sleep?

You will have to

STAY TUNED

Up Next: Hooray Hooray It’s Disney Day!! ​

 

[MinnieFan4ever]

It’s like the old Disney commercial… I’m to excited to sleep!!!

 

[dmbcanada]

Can't wait to hear about your experience, especially the part about eating as my DW has Gluten/Dairy intolerances and doesn't think Disney is a good place to visit because of it. Need to convince her otherwise.

 

[suse66]

Of course you didn't sleep...it's the night before Disney!

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

It’s like the old Disney commercial… I’m to excited to sleep!!!

Don't you know it!!

Can't wait to hear about your experience, especially the part about eating as my DW has Gluten/Dairy intolerances and doesn't think Disney is a good place to visit because of it. Need to convince her otherwise.

In my very limited opinion, Disney is a GREAT place for people with food allergies! Depending on the severity of the allergy and the needs you have, you can actually do a pre trip phone/video consult with a dietary specialist BEFORE you make your dining reservations to ask any and all questions you have about restaurants, chefs, menus, food allergens, cross contamination etc. They will even give you suggestions on restaurants that might work for you. When you make your ADRs, you can elect from a fairly extensive list of the 8 most common food allergies and they will be noted on your reservation. When you check in for your meal, the host will confirm your allergies and then your server will as well. You will also be given the opportunity to speak directly with the chef and he can go over the menu with you and make suggestions based on your needs. They can also make changes to a particular dish if it is something you really want to try to make it safe for you to eat. I ate very well all week and with a couple of exceptions, never felt like I was missing out on anything.

Of course you didn't sleep...it's the night before Disney!

LOL!!!

 

[DLo]

Following along. Looking forward to reading more.

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

Following along. Looking forward to reading more.

Welcome!

Thank you for following along.

I hope to have the next chapter up sometime this weekend.

 

[momof2gr8kids]

Following along! As for snow in late April, my ds is skiing today and tomorrow! Crazy!!

 

[MikeWsGirl]

Until I see pictures of a blizzard in May, I’m not impressed : p

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

Following along! As for snow in late April, my ds is skiing today and tomorrow! Crazy!!

It's an unbelievable corner of the world we live in eh?

Until I see pictures of a blizzard in May, I’m not impressed : p

It's been known to happen!

Thankfully not this year.

 

[dmbcanada]

In my very limited opinion, Disney is a GREAT place for people with food allergies! Depending on the severity of the allergy and the needs you have, you can actually do a pre trip phone/video consult with a dietary specialist BEFORE you make your dining reservations to ask any and all questions you have about restaurants, chefs, menus, food allergens, cross contamination etc. They will even give you suggestions on restaurants that might work for you. When you make your ADRs, you can elect from a fairly extensive list of the 8 most common food allergies and they will be noted on your reservation. When you check in for your meal, the host will confirm your allergies and then your server will as well. You will also be given the opportunity to speak directly with the chef and he can go over the menu with you and make suggestions based on your needs. They can also make changes to a particular dish if it is something you really want to try to make it safe for you to eat. I ate very well all week and with a couple of exceptions, never felt like I was missing out on anything.

Wow that is fantastic, I will let my DW know that as she is sensitive to Gluten and Dairy, nothing life threatening just makes her feel sluggish.

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

Chapter 2: Hooray, Hooray!! It’s Disney Day!!


Well, as I predicted and as many of you have already guessed - I DID NOT sleep (much) the night before Disney!

Ohh, I was tired!!

I climbed out of bed after a fitful night of trying to sleep at about 3:25 am. I didn’t even make it to my alarm! I quickly got washed and dressed and made my bed and threw the last few items into my carry on bag.

I drank some water, ate a banana, swallowed my vitamins and then brushed my teeth.

I was all ready to go when my wonderful Dad rolled up at 3:42am to pick me up!

He grabbed my bags off the steps and loaded them into the car before opening my door for me!

He even had the seat warmer on!!

What a guy!

Seriously, the man is a saint.

I was exhausted and super excited all at once.

I was so ready to go!!

A quick 15 minute drive later and we were pulling up to the airport eight around 4am.

My dad pulled up to the curb and got my bags out of the car and then I hugged my super dad goodbye and headed into the Airport.

As a Canadian, I was required to have and show proof of a negative Covid test to be able to enter the USA by airplane.

I had done my test the day before and had passed (obviously!) but for some reason when I tried to do online check in with Air Canada they wouldn’t accept the test results.

So, I had to do an in person Check in once I got to the Airport.

There was zero line at the Air Canada check in desk so I finished with that in exactly 5 minutes.

I took my boarding pass and bags and rode the escalator up to the 2nd floor.

Our local airport is VERY TINY.

You can walk from one end to the other in exactly 60 seconds.

When I got upstairs, I used the washroom and then parked myself in a little waiting area to get myself all sorted before heading through security.

Again, there was ZERO line and I was through security (with only a very brief bag search from an incredibly kind and lovely agent) and in the waiting area in under 10 minutes.

At this point it was about 4:30 and my flight wasn’t going to start boarding until about 5 so I had some to kill.

Knowing I was going to be sitting for the bulk of the next few hours I was not inclined to do much sitting at that point. I also figured that I was sleepy enough (hadn’t had any caffeine yet) that if I did sit, I would likely fall asleep!

So, I wandered. Again, our airport is VERY TINY, there really isn’t a whole lot of space to wander. There is a small coffee shop at the far end so I went and looked at what they had to offer. I wasn’t planning on buying anything, just wanted to nose around a bit.

I did a few laps of the waiting area, filled my water bottle and used the bathroom again. At about 4:50 my tummy decided that it was wide awake and started grumbling for some food.

I decided to sit down at that point and eat one of my snacks that I had brought along.

I also did some people watching. I love people watching in airports. You always see the most fascinating people.

People watched. Snack eaten. It was right about 5am when the announcement was made that boarding was starting.

By 5:15am I was on the plane, in my seat, belt buckled, bags stowed and ready to go!

The plane was packed by 5:20, the safety demo happened at 5:25, we were pulling away from the gate at 5:29 and at 5:40 we were in the air!!!

The flight went quickly - in the bigger AC planes it is really only about a 100 minute flight from gate to gate.

I rested, I snacked, and I made notes in my travel journal on my phone.

I also took some absolutely stunning photos of the most beautiful sunrise!!

It really is my most favourite place to watch the sun rise!

Right about 6:50am we had a successful touchdown on the tarmac and as soon as I was allowed to, I had my phone off of Airplane Mode and was on My Disney Experience ready to make my very first Lightning Lane!

SUCCESS!!!!!

I managed to get Remy for 3:40-4:40 and also Frozen Ever After for 4:00-5:00.

By 7:03 we were at the gate and by 7:05 the doors were open and we all piled out.

I quickly found a washroom and got myself freshened up and then followed the masses to the Customs and security area.

It was a bit of a hike but I made it to the end of the line at 7:20. By 7:45 I was through security and waiting in line to go through Customs preclearance.

I was all done with Customs by 8am.

Once I was cleared to be in the USA, my first stop was…..STARBUCKS.

Your girl was desperate for some coffee!

Caffeine in hand, I slowly made my way towards my gate for my next flight.

My next fight didn’t depart until 10:15 so I had some time to kill.

I got to the gate and found a place to sit sit and enjoy my coffee and another snack.

By 9am I had finished my coffee and snack and was ready for another stroll.

I found a nearby Relay store and purchased a couple more snacks and a puzzle book.

I wandered around looking at the nearby shops and restaurants and did some more people watching.

At about 9:30 I went back to my gate and sat down for a few minutes.

I didn’t have too long to wait because at 9:35 the first boarding announcement was made.

The first wave of passengers were the business class followed by any families with kids under 6. There was an amazing palpable sense of joy and excitement in the air as all the families with young ones got up to board the plane.

My turn came next and I was on the plane and in my seat by 9:55.

The plane finished loading, the safety demo given and we were pulling away from the gate right at 10:15.

It was a very long drive from the gate out to the runway and we didn’t actually take off until 10:34.

Bye Bye Toronto!!
(If you look closely and squint you can see the CN Tower in the background!)

Now at this point, I was hoping to be able to make my next LL. As 10:30 was exactly 2 hours after Epcot had its official opening, I was eligible to make my next selection.

Knowing that I would be in the air at this point, I had budgeted to pay for on board wifi for the duration of the flight.

Sadly and unfortunately the wifi did not work or perhaps it was the My Disney Experience app that wasn’t able to work. Whatever the issue was I was not able to get any further Lightening Lanes until I was on the ground.

So, I decided to make the best of it and settled in to eat some snacks and watch a movie - SING 2.

By 12:25 we were starting to descend and by 12:45 we were on the ground.

As soon as I was allowed to turn off my Airplane Mode I had my phone out and was making another Lightening Lane.

This time I was able to get Soarin’ for 4:50-5:50.

The plane pulled up to the gate and we were off the plane by exactly 1pm!

I pert near sprinted down the jet way and out into the beautiful sights of MCO!

I WAS IN FLORIDA!!!!!

I did my washroom visit and then found my way to the APM.

By 1:10 I was in the main terminal and on my way to the area formerly known as Magical Express, Mears Connect.

I was checked in and in line for the next available shuttle by 1:18.

At 1:23, the belt was lifted and I was directed to go to bay B44.

The lovely driver took my carry on and asked me what resort I was headed to. I told him Pop Century and then climbed aboard the shuttle.

I got a great seat - 3rd row, window and settled in for the ride.

By 1:40pm we were on our way out of MCO on our way to Disney!

Now I have to say that Mears Connect was a great choice and a wonderful experience for me.

It was basically the same exact experience as Magical Express except that I had to pay $32USD for it. Honestly, if I am ever travelling solo again, I would not hesitate to use them.

Same location, Same buses (minus the Disney wraps) and the same wonderful and courteous drivers.

We drove under the Disney sign at 2:08 and as our driver announced that we were on Disney property and this was the official start of our Disney vacations, the whole bus cheered!!!

As we got closer to the resort areas I caught my first sight of the Skyliner!

There were 3 stops ahead of mine so my journey took a wee bit longer but I was finally dropped off at Pop Century at 2:40pm.

A bit later than I had originally planned for but I was finally here!!!

What would I do next??

STAY TUNED

Up Next - Chapter 3: A Frozen Failure

​

 

[JenLovesMM]

Fellow Canadian here (I'm from the Maritimes). Your travel day seemed very efficient. Isn't it great when flights leaves when they are supposed to? And yeah, sleeping the night before Disney is hard but I never mind as much cause it's for such a great reason

 

[KenyaSierra]

Hope your trip was great (despite ominous “Next up” title). I love your dad!!!

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

Fellow Canadian here (I'm from the Maritimes). Your travel day seemed very efficient. Isn't it great when flights leaves when they are supposed to? And yeah, sleeping the night before Disney is hard but I never mind as much cause it's for such a great reason

I was actually so surprised that the flights were perfectly on time! There's usually something that creates a holdup somewhere!

Hope your trip was great (despite ominous “Next up” title). I love your dad!!!

I love my Dad too! He's the best!

 

[heathermd01]

Enjoying your trip report! Can't wait to hear more.

 

[Disturbia]

Can't wait to hear about your experience, especially the part about eating as my DW has Gluten/Dairy intolerances and doesn't think Disney is a good place to visit because of it. Need to convince her otherwise.

They have ripple milk at CRT (and customized grilled chicken with spaghetti and marinara sauce for him-filled the special diets form ahead of time; Erin McKenna donuts are special order ) and vegan (just egg brand) eggs at Topolinos (our son had a great time at both locations). We order groceries from garden grocer (they carry ripple milk)

We got him a special order cake from Erin McKenna as well (was dense as expected) would choose vanilla frosting next time.

At Storybook dining he got an allergy friendly version of each appetizer.

At the dessert party he got an allergy plate but he didn’t eat most of it (too sweet).

BOG has the best vegan dessert sometimes I skip the trio in favor of it.

Steakhouse71 has vegan ice cream (Tofutti vanilla)