HockeyIsLife
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Sep 26, 2014
So I have been going back and forth about doing a trip report about our trip. We came back two weeks ago, and I can say maybe some of the magic might have worn off a little for us. The kids are older, and we honestly made the rookie mistake of packing too much in. But I was extremely glad to be back, as last year we cancelled our trip because of my daughter having surgery and she couldn't fly.
So here it goes. I am hoping to add some pictures.
We stayed at Port Orleans Riverside. This was our first time staying on property in a non-deluxe resort. Some of my fellow DISboarders warned me that the stay would be different than the one that we have come to expect, and they were right. We still had a great trip, but the magic was dulled a little. I don't believe that is entirely Disney's fault. We should have heeded your advice and understood that there would be a difference in service in accommodations.
The resort is beautiful and smells amazing. Magnolias were blooming, and the landscaping was so pretty. The set up of the resort was a challenge that I will get to later, but we stayed in the Royal Rooms in Magnolia. The rooms were truly adorable. The kids were charmed by the firework feature of the beds, and loved finding the little details in the bedding, curtains and rugs. Tiana's letter was given to us at check in, which would have been cuter to come into, but the letter is a part of the table in the room, and them giving them to us ahead of time allowed me to keep the letters safe for souvenirs.
So we arrived on Tuesday at 3:00pm, and had checked in online prior and was told we were eligible to go straight to our rooms with our magic bands. Our room was not ready, so we decided to check out the food court. It was pretty cool. We loved sitting next to the mill, and everyone had so many choices for food, we were all happy after a long day of travel. By the time we were done with lunch, we were getting nervous because we wanted to leave our things in the room and head to Epcot to make the times for our fast passes. The room was JUST ready.
We did not make any requests. I was dumb, and thought that looking at the map there was no way our walk would be outrageous being in the royal rooms. I was wrong. We were in the farthest corner away from everything. Like I said, I am so used to the Grand Floridian, that it was hard to adjust to. So if I could take something as a lesson it would be to make the requests that people are telling you to make. Once we got into the room, it was so cute that the frustration of being so far away was put aside momentarily.
We then trekked back to the main building and hopped on a bus to Epcot. The bus service was something I worried about. I had heard that the wait was long and it was crowded. I can say throughout this trip we were pleasantly surprised at how efficient and available the buses were. We rarely waited, it was only crowded at times you would expect (after wishes, at close at any park, Early in the morning to MK, etc.)
The bus drivers were helpful and polite.
Once we arrived at Epcot, we headed over to Guest Relations. This was something I had major anxiety about. I won't get into too much, because this wont pertain to the majority of people, but we are eligible for a DAS. We brought the letter in, they met my daughter, was very friendly and issued the card and explained the system to us. We had never used the card, only the GAC in years past, and the woman was very knowledgeable and a good listener. She did inform us that the system was changing the week that we were there and that we would have to come back on May 1st to update the card. I filed that worry for later and we began our fun.
The park, as usual was amazing. The crowd was reasonably small, and there weren't a long wait for almost anything except Test Track and Soarin. In fact, we had a fast pass for Spaceship Earth, but didn't need it and could have walked right on. The same was with all the other rides. We didn't get a chance to do World Showcase, which was disappointing, and as it turned out we didn't get to go back the rest of the trip either.
We came out of our Fast Pass for Soarin' and ate at the 4 Seasons for a late dinner. That proved more challenging to find something for everyone. My youngest sustained her life on PB&J that week, I think. We caught the end of Illuminations and headed back to the resort because everyone was tired from travel.
Coming back to the room was great, the luggage had been delivered, and the adults had a beer while the kids showered and got ready for bed. Thank goodness for Garden Grocer.
The next post will be about Day two - Magic Kingdom!
So here it goes. I am hoping to add some pictures.
We stayed at Port Orleans Riverside. This was our first time staying on property in a non-deluxe resort. Some of my fellow DISboarders warned me that the stay would be different than the one that we have come to expect, and they were right. We still had a great trip, but the magic was dulled a little. I don't believe that is entirely Disney's fault. We should have heeded your advice and understood that there would be a difference in service in accommodations.
The resort is beautiful and smells amazing. Magnolias were blooming, and the landscaping was so pretty. The set up of the resort was a challenge that I will get to later, but we stayed in the Royal Rooms in Magnolia. The rooms were truly adorable. The kids were charmed by the firework feature of the beds, and loved finding the little details in the bedding, curtains and rugs. Tiana's letter was given to us at check in, which would have been cuter to come into, but the letter is a part of the table in the room, and them giving them to us ahead of time allowed me to keep the letters safe for souvenirs.
So we arrived on Tuesday at 3:00pm, and had checked in online prior and was told we were eligible to go straight to our rooms with our magic bands. Our room was not ready, so we decided to check out the food court. It was pretty cool. We loved sitting next to the mill, and everyone had so many choices for food, we were all happy after a long day of travel. By the time we were done with lunch, we were getting nervous because we wanted to leave our things in the room and head to Epcot to make the times for our fast passes. The room was JUST ready.
We did not make any requests. I was dumb, and thought that looking at the map there was no way our walk would be outrageous being in the royal rooms. I was wrong. We were in the farthest corner away from everything. Like I said, I am so used to the Grand Floridian, that it was hard to adjust to. So if I could take something as a lesson it would be to make the requests that people are telling you to make. Once we got into the room, it was so cute that the frustration of being so far away was put aside momentarily.
We then trekked back to the main building and hopped on a bus to Epcot. The bus service was something I worried about. I had heard that the wait was long and it was crowded. I can say throughout this trip we were pleasantly surprised at how efficient and available the buses were. We rarely waited, it was only crowded at times you would expect (after wishes, at close at any park, Early in the morning to MK, etc.)
The bus drivers were helpful and polite.
Once we arrived at Epcot, we headed over to Guest Relations. This was something I had major anxiety about. I won't get into too much, because this wont pertain to the majority of people, but we are eligible for a DAS. We brought the letter in, they met my daughter, was very friendly and issued the card and explained the system to us. We had never used the card, only the GAC in years past, and the woman was very knowledgeable and a good listener. She did inform us that the system was changing the week that we were there and that we would have to come back on May 1st to update the card. I filed that worry for later and we began our fun.
The park, as usual was amazing. The crowd was reasonably small, and there weren't a long wait for almost anything except Test Track and Soarin. In fact, we had a fast pass for Spaceship Earth, but didn't need it and could have walked right on. The same was with all the other rides. We didn't get a chance to do World Showcase, which was disappointing, and as it turned out we didn't get to go back the rest of the trip either.
We came out of our Fast Pass for Soarin' and ate at the 4 Seasons for a late dinner. That proved more challenging to find something for everyone. My youngest sustained her life on PB&J that week, I think. We caught the end of Illuminations and headed back to the resort because everyone was tired from travel.
Coming back to the room was great, the luggage had been delivered, and the adults had a beer while the kids showered and got ready for bed. Thank goodness for Garden Grocer.
The next post will be about Day two - Magic Kingdom!
