"This is a special place"-Feb 2019 WDW & Cruise-COMPLETED (finally) 6/29!

[missangelalexis]

So cool that RGIII was on your ship!

Sounds like another great day on board! Your dress was perfect for that night's dinner!

I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise!

Sounds like a nice time at DS and your room at the Poly looked awesome!

So sweet of your dad to send Valentine's surprises to your mom!

 

[missjackiemcg]

Kind of a bummer that your breakfast wasn't so great. We had the early dinner seating, so decided to skip breakfast in the dining room on our disembarkation day. It would have had us up obscenely early!!!

Your room at the Poly does look huge!!!! I love those bird prints and the mermaid one that was hanging there. They should definitely sell them!

Your Mom is a lucky lady, all those incredible Valentine's Day surprises from your Dad!!

The ship had me rocking for a few days after we got off, too, in addition to the nasty cold I came off with!! (which my Mom now swears was COVID....not so sure that's the case, but yikes at the very idea!)

 

[Lesley Wake]

So cool that RGIII was on your ship!

Sounds like another great day on board! Your dress was perfect for that night's dinner!

I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise!

Sounds like a nice time at DS and your room at the Poly looked awesome!

So sweet of your dad to send Valentine's surprises to your mom!

Yeah it was cool, especially since I am a football fan! I had fun "scheduling" my dresses to the appropriate restaurant!

Dad also sent me with a handful of Valentines Day cards to give to her.

Kind of a bummer that your breakfast wasn't so great. We had the early dinner seating, so decided to skip breakfast in the dining room on our disembarkation day. It would have had us up obscenely early!!!

Your room at the Poly does look huge!!!! I love those bird prints and the mermaid one that was hanging there. They should definitely sell them!

Your Mom is a lucky lady, all those incredible Valentine's Day surprises from your Dad!!

The ship had me rocking for a few days after we got off, too, in addition to the nasty cold I came off with!! (which my Mom now swears was COVID....not so sure that's the case, but yikes at the very idea!)

Luckily I discovered Cabanas is open on debarkation day. And the coffee shop has pastries I think starting around 7am. I needed to rush off the ship in March (gotta get to WDW for a vip tour) so I just grabbed some stuff from up top and went back to my room briefly.

Honestly that room was so huge I could totally see 4-5 adults being comfortable! Especially with the double bathrooms!

 

[Lesley Wake]

Day 10 – “Make sure to include the castle in the photo”
February 15, 2019

Today was our first day at Magic Kingdom (and my mom’s first time ever - if you don't remember my parents did go to WDW 30 yrs ago but only did a part day at Epcot).

Breakfast was our Amorettes pastries – yum! I got my favorite, the Mickey Mousse (Chocolate Chiffon Cake, Dark Chocolate Mousse and White Chocolate Mousse). Mom loves lemon curd, so she got 49th and Broadway/NY Cheesecake (Lemon Curd, Blueberries, and Chantilly). We also weren’t trying to do any sort of rope drop, not leaving the room until around 9:15am when the park opened at 8am.

Technically it would have been closer to walk to TTC and get monorail there, but I wanted to show mom the convenience of a resort monorail, so we went to the main house.

Magic Kingdom was pretty crowded today (it was the Friday of President’s Day weekend)! The Trolley show was happening so we stopped to watch the end. I am ashamed to say I've never actually stopped to watch the whole thing!

When I was planning I considered how big Magic Kingdom was and how much I knew my mom could handle, so I split it so the first day we did Fantasy and Tomorrowland and the second day we did Frontier & Adventureland. I also tried to plan fastpasses/meals geographically easy.

We headed up to get some classic castle photos and I wish I had remembered this quote as my TR title, mom goes “Make sure to get the castle in the photos”. Um, yeah mom! That’s sort of the point! Haha!

First stop – Peter Pan’s Flight. It’s mom’s favorite ride at Disneyland but it’s hard for us to go on it because of the lines and no fastpass. I know mom would have liked the interactive queue, but no way we were waiting in that line!

Next, Haunted Mansion. A bit early for our FP, I showed mom the brown stream down the center of Liberty Square and she just laughed – Imagineers have a wicked sense of humor. First time I really noticed the streams actually start from the bathroom areas!

https://imgur.com/pB05nMU

After a meeting with the ghosts, I tried to get mom to go to the gorgeous Tangled bathrooms but she didn’t care. She hasn’t seen movie after all.

Next Philharmagic. It was a very full room! But fun show as always.

We stopped in Sir Mickey’s but mom got a bit startled by the fireworks from the Friendship Faire going off in front of the castle! Mom ended up getting some charms to turn into earrings.

I noticed Cinderella’s Carriage was out for photos, which only happens a couple times a year (this was due to Valentines Day); thankfully there wasn’t that long of a line.

​

 

[Lesley Wake]

Onto Seven Dwarves Mine Train. For some reason mom thought it would be like it’s a small world, so was a bit surprised when the train suddenly zoomed out! I love her ride photos though!

Winnie the Pooh was a 40-minute posted wait! Wow, but we were lucky with a fastpass. Mom liked the ride (I don’t remember how often she has done it at Disneyland). We got stuck in the rainy day scene, which is one of my favorites, so I was cool with that!

Over to Dumbo, mom loves this ride, though it was a bit cramped with 2 adults!

https://imgur.com/haYmWsC

https://imgur.com/h6Fhsnh

With my fastpass strategies, I was able to grab either Under the Sea or Teacups so I let mom choose (I may also have given her the option of it’s a small world or that one may have been closed for refurb; I just know we didn’t ride, but it’s not as good as Disneyland’s so not a big issue). She picked Under the Sea, which had a crazy standby wait time!

I also found a photopass guy after riding

I showed mom Gaston’s Fountain and we also did some window shopping.

​

 

[Lesley Wake]

Time for lunch – I got us Be Our Guest reservations as I knew mom would like the castle. Even though we preordered, it was crazy inside with no empty tables (well, actually no one clearing tables quickly enough). I had hoped to try out the Rose Room or Library for something quieter, but a seater put us in the center of the ballroom. At least it was pretty to look at!

Oh, and of course we were seated between two tables with families, both of whom had arguing parents! We tried to mind our own business, but it was a bit awkward!

I only have photos of my food, and I got the French Dip Sandwich, which was delicious. I honestly don’t remember what mom got! I assume if I didn’t take her food photo then she probably also got the French Dip, but she also could have gotten Coq au Vin or a Turkey Sandwich. We shared The Gray Stuff cupcake, which I always love!

After food, we headed over to Peoplemover. It’s never a good sign when they have the extended sign up, but we decided to wait anyways (around 20 minutes). We had a lovely ride and mom understood why I liked it!

This was when the Speedway was shut down! I’m not ashamed to say I liked less noise and smells then!

Also crazy to see how quickly Tron construction has progressed since these photos!

Carousel of Progress next. Mom knew why you could fall asleep inside but she did like it.

Coming up: Parade and fireworks! ​

 

[KathyM2]

I noticed Cinderella’s Carriage was out for photos, which only happens a couple times a year (this was due to Valentines Day); thankfully there wasn’t that long of a line.

I love that PP photo with the mice!! So cute!!! Also the carriage...I love those lucky moments when you get to see something special that isn't there all the time...unless of course I'm there and find out later that I missed them lol

We got stuck in the rainy day scene, which is one of my favorites, so I was cool with that!

I love this!! I always want to take pics inside the WTP ride but it's so bouncy that it's hard! You got some great pics while stuck!

 

[missjackiemcg]

I'm enjoying your MK day so far!!! Your Mom is so cute, "Make sure you get the castle," LOL.

Seeing you enjoying Be Our Guest makes me sad all over again about them changing lunch to table service. I loved the croque monsiuer (however you spell it...fancy grilled ham and cheese!!) and was SO looking forward to having it on our trip. Really bummed about the jump in price and change in menu. Sigh.

Looking forward to reading more!

 

[Lesley Wake]

I love that PP photo with the mice!! So cute!!! Also the carriage...I love those lucky moments when you get to see something special that isn't there all the time...unless of course I'm there and find out later that I missed them lol



I love this!! I always want to take pics inside the WTP ride but it's so bouncy that it's hard! You got some great pics while stuck!

I made sure to follow plenty of people on twitter so I could keep up with all the special things! Definitely some other cool things happening around property, but you can't do them all!

I always try to take advantage of ride stops! It's so hard to get photos any other time!

I'm enjoying your MK day so far!!! Your Mom is so cute, "Make sure you get the castle," LOL.

Seeing you enjoying Be Our Guest makes me sad all over again about them changing lunch to table service. I loved the croque monsiuer (however you spell it...fancy grilled ham and cheese!!) and was SO looking forward to having it on our trip. Really bummed about the jump in price and change in menu. Sigh.

Looking forward to reading more!

It is sad about Be Our Guest! I guess they just knew how many people would be wanting to eat there with QS so they wanted to cut it down.

 

[Lesley Wake]

Part 2 - Ok, Disneyworld, you win!

We were both pretty tired, so decided to just watch the parade and then head out for a mid-day break. I thought it would be a good idea to go to the end of the route to get a good spot, but ended up in the sun and by the time some floats got to us they were no longer working (i.e. swinging Tangled and Captain Hook elements).

I loved watching these good boys across the “street”

And it was so nice to see Malificient blowing fire, as this was my first time back since the crazy fire incident!

Hopped on monorail back to resort for a little break.

No line at dole whip stand, so I got swirl and mom got regular; we ate outside the dole whip stand and had lovely weather. I would have liked to get some pool time, but really wouldn’t have had time to get ready and down there before heading back to Magic Kingdom. So we just collapsed in the room (and A/C) for about 1.5 hrs).

​

 

[Lesley Wake]

We eventually got up and headed toward Magic Kingdom. We decided to take boat which was nice and relaxing. However there was a delay at security as we got stuck behind a family who had toy guns! (I think they were also just heading straight to the buses back to their resort so security eventually agreed to just walk them across the entranceway til they got outside the security perimeter!) Mom wore ears that night which was exciting!

Rather than do anything at MK, just went straight to the HEA Dessert Party. It was funny that this was right after some College Program kids were getting settled, so there was an army of them following around the more experienced people like baby ducks! I am always a big fan of these parties and of course love the pineapple cups, Gray Stuff pop, cupcakes, and chocolate covered strawberries. Mom liked the same, but did not like the cheeseburger egg rolls! And the Ooey Gooey Cake was a bit too Gooey for her!

Of course I got progressively more and more cheese every plate…

We went out relatively early for fireworks (earlier than I normally do, but I could tell mom was a bit antsy because she saw other people leaving). We got my favorite spot – back rail. Ended up standing next to couple from the same small English town as my mom’s family. They were also doing a SWDAS cruise the following week – jealous!

Watched fireworks – wow, still love it. Mom’s reaction: “sorry Disneyland, but Disneyworld wins”

​

 

[Lesley Wake]

Afterwards headed right to Tomorrowland. Wanted to take mom to see Monsters Laugh Floor and had hopes to also see Once Upon A time. Monsters laugh floor funny as usual and Mom loved it.

Came out and OUAT was half over, but we did get to see last couple stories – mom really liked that.

On the way out we stopped for some photos. Too bad the special one was a bit blurry.

There was a crazy line at the express monorail but no line at the resort monorail! We got to see the Electric Water Pageant from the monorail platform though.

Back to room and we finished packing. Sad we were leaving after 1.5 weeks of a great trip!​

 

[missangelalexis]

Sounds like a great day! You guys did a lot!!

 

[Lesley Wake]

Sounds like a great day! You guys did a lot!!

Yeah, we did! Thankfully that park breaks up easily so its convenient to do things geograpically!

 

[Lesley Wake]

So today is 499 days exactly since we left Disneyworld! Yeah, took me long enough to get this Trip Report started and finished! Glad for anyone who still stuck around!

Day 11 – A crowded Magic Kingdom
February 16, 2019

This was our last day, which was unfortunately the worst day for crowds (but it was the Saturday of President’s Day weekend).

In the morning we got up and got ready, calling for bell services to help with our bags. It took them almost 40 minutes to arrive! We did follow them down to RAC our checked bags and then leave our carry-ons for the day. Mom was super impressed by the convenience of it all (despite the delays).

I had booked us breakfast as Crystal Palace as I thought mom would like it, but we definitely missed that time. Maybe they would have taken us even if we arrived late, but then it would have impacted the rest of our schedule, so we just decided to skip.

So, because we were hungry, we ended up just going to Captain Cooks and getting some Mickey Waffles.

We ended up taking the boat over to Magic Kingdom because I saw it approaching the dock once we were done with breakfast. We almost missed it but the Captain saw us rushing down the pier and held it for us! Which meant we were the first ones off and through security!

Today was a Frontier and Adventureland type of day.

First stop – Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Mom liked this version more than Disneyland, but I think I prefer ours (of course Disneyland Paris blows both out of the water, though Tokyo is pretty much the same as the US versions).

We had fastpasses to Splash Mountain, but I could see people getting off with wet bottoms so I knew the water was turned up and I didn’t want to deal with being wet for the rest of the day and feeling icky on the plane, so we skipped it.

This was the type of crowds we had – 50 minute wait for Magic Carpets at 11:30am! And 60 minutes for Under the Sea at 12:15! Oof!

Since we had time before our next fastpass I gave mom the choice of Country Bears or Tiki Room. Well, according to most of my friends, she picked correctly!

Rode pirates, but nothing notable happened! I don’t remember if this was mom’s first time seeing Red instead of the auction scene (she doesn’t go to Disneyland as often as me). I think I tried making "hook hands" but since we were in the back, it didn't show up as well!

We did Magic Carpets which mom really liked. Super long standby but of course FPs readily available. Mom controlled up/down and (unknowingly) got the camel to spit on me

It was a pretty hot day, so mom and I took a break and got refreshments from Sunshine Tree Terrace (I really wish they had mobile ordering here)! I got the Orange Cream, my first time trying it and it is definitely one of my favorites! Mom got the Citrus Swirl float with orange soda, which she also really liked. We ended up finding @StarWarsMomofGirls! hidden bench area (but really this was a week or so before they found it, so they found our “hidden” spot) which was just a nice way to relax!

​

 

[Lesley Wake]

On Jungle Cruise, for me it was the same basic jokes I’ve heard over and over, still enjoyable but nothing crazy. But mom thought it was amazing with great jokes. It really shows you the difference between frequent visitors and the occasional person, so I’m glad she loved it so much!

Our final stop was to see Muppets Present Great Moments in History. I specifically didn’t tell mom what type of show it was, I just said, we are going to hang out here for a bit! Thankfully it was the version with JJ, which I hadn’t seen before. And mom really liked it.

On our way out, we stopped for some photopass pictures on main street. Of course super annoying people getting in the background and basically bumping into the people who were taking “official” photos! Very inconsiderate!

We headed back to the Poly, but not until after taking photos in front of the train and thankfully we got the Peter Pan magic shot I was hoping for!

At the Poly we grabbed lunch at Captain Cooks, both going with the pork fried rice, which was pretty good. We sat out on the patio and ate.

We still had time before our pickup so we chilled in the lobby a bit before getting our carry-ons.

Unfortunately it truly was a Tragical Express as it wasn’t even a Mears bus, just a plain white one. There were a lot of people leaving the Poly so it didn’t even make other stops. And there were no videos onboard but we were “entertained” with an annoying family sitting behind us, plus getting stuck in traffic, so it went on for extra long…

At MCO we grabbed some food to go and then went thru TSA. Unfortunately I couldn’t use pre-check as I wanted to stay with mom (and the TSA guys were being pretty weird and rude, some yelling to take all food out and others telling to keep them in…). Anyways, we made our way through.

We each got our own row on the plane, however they were emergency exit rows so had fixed armrests we couldn’t lift up to relax. So we were ok when the flight attendants asked if they could seat someone else in the aisle seats. (We did have a celebrity sighting with Ryan Lochte on our flight home).

The flight was uneventful, I finally watched Crazy Rich Asians and Instant Family. Dad picked us up and took us home, where luckily we had a day to recoup before going back to work on Monday!

It was a lovely trip and mom said she would happily return to Disneyworld and a cruise!


Some final thoughts:

It was cool bringing my mom to show her Disneyworld and help her understand why I love it so much. I did have to adjust plans significantly but it worked out well enough! I definitely want to bring her back (along with dad), but not for a while because I know they have other places they’d like to go. I was thinking I’d do it once the Mary Poppins area was completed…but now who knows when/if that will happen!

Even with trying out Beach Club Villas and Polynesian Villas, I still know Animal Kingdom Lodge/Villas is my favorite hotel on property! And mom definitely agreed.

Cruising was fun and I can’t wait to do it again!

(that’s all for now and thanks for sticking around so long! Now it's time for me to start getting back to my Asian trip report!)
​

 

[disneyAndi14]

Enjoyed your Report as usual!
I want to cruise so bad one of these years. The Disney cruise just looks so nice and relaxing!

 

[chunkymonkey]

OK all caught up now!
I am very iffy on our cruise, I am pretty sure it's not sailing, not with all the rising cases in FL - I'm just so torn. But enjoying seeing everyone else's enjoyment on their past cruises.

By the time we got back to the room the rest of dad’s surprise was there. He had ordered from in-room deliveries a bunch of treats and a nice tote bag, which mom still is able to use.

Cute! Love your mom's name!!

We headed up to get some classic castle photos and I wish I had remembered this quote as my TR title, mom goes “Make sure to get the castle in the photos”. Um, yeah mom! That’s sort of the point! Haha!

Haha, wish some Photopass photographers got that memo!

Next Philharmagic. It was a very full room! But fun show as always.

I 'm looking back to this March when I sat in a full room at Philharmagic too...ick!

Of course I got progressively more and more cheese every plate…

Did you lose any this time? RIP epic cheese.

Cute ears mom!

This is cool! Was this a photopass? It is cool that it's blurry, it looks like it's meant to be like that!

 

[missangelalexis]

Wow so crowded! But sounds like you did good finishing up the stuff you didn't do/see the day before!

I'm glad both you and your mom enjoyed yourselves!!

 

[Lesley Wake]

I am very iffy on our cruise, I am pretty sure it's not sailing, not with all the rising cases in FL - I'm just so torn. But enjoying seeing everyone else's enjoyment on their past cruises.

I know! And it's a relief to hear you are iffy too! I know we keep talking about the positives but it's like - will this happen? and if it does happen, should I do it?

Cute! Love your mom's name!!

Yeah, you would!

Did you lose any this time? RIP epic cheese.

Only lost into my stomach!

This is cool! Was this a photopass? It is cool that it's blurry, it looks like it's meant to be like that!

Yeah it was! It was in one of the alleys off main street and they basically had a net of string lights in front of the lens. I think that is what caused the blurriness.

Wow so crowded! But sounds like you did good finishing up the stuff you didn't do/see the day before!

I'm glad both you and your mom enjoyed yourselves!!

Yeah, definitely crowded! Though we did have fun and were strategic in our choices!