Will we stay or will we go? We went! And had the most magical time! Hijacked 5-29-21 with a quick TR from New York City!

[pkondz]

Not quite sure if you posted the photos and are then going to write around them.
Nevertheless, nice pics.

That's my fave.

Orrrrr... maybe this one.

 

[tundra1]

Not quite sure if you posted the photos and are then going to write around them.
Nevertheless, nice pics.

That's my fave.

Orrrrr... maybe this one.

Modern day woes... I tried to take a shortcut by sending the pictures from my phone to the trip report and then going in to add the story. You are very fast on the button my friend! But Thank you! I love both of those photos too! Who can resist Rapunzel?

 

[tundra1]

This was our first time inside the Beast's castle. What an amazing place! I was hoping to get the ballroom or the library. I just did not want to sit in the West Wing, because it is so dark in there, and I did not want the little ones to be scared. Anyway, luck held out, and we were seated at the center table in the Library. We could see into the Grand Ballroom, so we knew exactly when the Beast would be coming. It was pretty cool.




Our server was so sweet. Since we were celebrating our anniversary and Charlie's birthday, our server brought out the kids' lemonades in souvenir color changing goblets, which they still use at home.



She took care of all the kids and made some excellent suggestions for menu items, even bringing out french fries for Charlie and applesauce for all three of them (which are not on the menu). Really, there is no way to pick something bad off the menu. The food was amazing, and William, Hannah and Alyssa thought it was better than Chefs de France, which they had raved about also. My steak was perfection, and the scallops were melt in your mouth delicious! Our CM even brought Aubrie her own bowl of mashed potatoes, which she loved!

The best part of lunch was dessert. I know others have said the same thing, but the Grey stuff truly is delicious!

The kids each got a dessert trio that they could decorate themselves. They brought a Chip cup, a macaron, and a truffle, along with a paint brush and frosting "paint". Zack and Ben LOVED it!

Afterwards our server suggested we walk around the castle and check out the other rooms. We took a couple of pictures by the magical rose, and one in the ballroom, and then headed out with our goodie bag of leftovers and goblets.






It was naptime, so Hannah, Alyssa and Kevin were going to take Ben, Charlie and Aubrie back to the resort, while William, Zack and I stayed at Magic Kingdom for an afternoon of fun! But on our way out of the park, we came across our favorite Character encounter of the whole trip!

 

[pkondz]

This was our first time inside the Beast's castle. What an amazing place!

Isn't it nice in there? I've eaten in there several times.

we were seated at the center table in the Library.

That was a bit jarring to read. Covid rules I presume. Always when I've gone (pre-covid), I've just sat wherever I wanted to.

our server brought out the kids' lemonades in souvenir color changing goblets, which they still use at home.

Nice!

They brought a Chip cup

I love that!

They brought a Chip cup, a macaron, and a truffle, along with a paint brush and frosting "paint". Zack and Ben LOVED it!

That's so cool! I had no idea any of that existed.

We took a couple of pictures by the magical rose

So you did go in.
Did you feel you'd made the right choice by not wanting to eat there?

It was naptime, so Hannah, Alyssa and Kevin were going to take Ben, Charlie and Aubrie back to the resort, while William, Zack and I stayed at Magic Kingdom for an afternoon of fun!

Heh. I thought you were going to nap.

But on our way out of the park, we came across our favorite Character encounter of the whole trip!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Isn’t AK the best, I love walking around this park so much!
I love your selfie with Buzz.
Ahh your granddaughter looks so interested in IaSW, so cute!

 

[LiveLifeLoud]

AK is the best park at night. It how I really learned to appreciate and love that park. Next trip I’m planning two evenings there. I just love it at night.

 

[Steppesister]

I"ve eaten there a couple of times and both times were just not our cup of tea.... no pun intended. We've sat in the West Wing both times and it was very dark; cool effects but so darned loud! The food was very average, but perhaps it was an off day. I wish I could love it there, but combined with the ordering kiosks confusion and difficulty we experienced I think I'll stick with Skippers or Pecos for now.

 

[Hubie]

Following along!
That’s disappointing about Sci Fi! I have a reservation there for our February trip. It’s actually kind of hard to get right now!

Joining in from Portage, WI. We're hoping to get a res for SCI-FI this coming November. We had a great meal there in 1/20. Maybe it was the server.

 

[Hubie]

Finally! It was Friday, November 13th. After staring at Magic Kingdom from the Elevator windows for the past three days, we were going to the Magic Kingdom! This was why we stayed at Bay Lake Tower! And instead of being an unlucky day, we found out that they had extended the MK hours that day, and the park opened at 8am and would close at 9pm. 13 hours!

We were up bright and early, had breakfast in the room, and the kids were begging for a monorail ride. We walked over to the Contemporary Resort via the 5th floor skybridge, and headed to the monorail platform. There was only one family ahead of us, and a monorail was pulling in, so we went through security and hopped on board Monorail Peach. This was the first time my son, daughter and his wife rode the monorail, and they enjoyed it. Each car is separated into two compartments, and only one family boards per compartment, so it was a pretty easy ride around the loop to Magic Kindgom.

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The day was cloudy and starting to get humid, but it wasn't raining yet, which was nice. Once we got inside, we stopped to pick up the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom cards and get our wristbands activated for the game. I think I had more fun with the game than anyone else, but their lack of interest was my good time! It was around 8:30 when we headed down Main Street. Here is a look at the crowds:

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Coming across a very enthusiastic Photopass guy, we stopped for pictures. He took lots of pictures and some unusual shots, and he was fun. But he didn't get a good shot of our group, and it's too bad the photos were so dark. You can see my photo of Main Street above, taken with my IPhone 5 minutes earlier, and then his below. What's up with the brightness, and why are they at an angle?

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They have nice cameras, I don't understand why the brightness and color was not better. But at least he was fun and he joked with my son and his wife. They thought he was funny, even if the boys were ready to move on! We then checked the app on our phones and decided to head towards 7 Dwarfs Mine Train before it started to rain.

The line said 50 minutes, but it was really only about 25. We did rider swap since I had stayed back with Aubrie while everyone else rode, and that line moved fairly quickly also. I think both groups of us made it through the line and the ride by 9:35. Here is the group as they are exiting the ride. Although he doesn't look excited, even Charlie loved it and he was exactly tall enough to ride.
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We then stayed in Fantasyland to ride Dumbo, The Barnstormer, Winnie the Pooh, and Little Mermaid. The little ones were having a great time! Most of those rides had posted wait times of 5-15 minutes.

After taking a snack break, we headed towards Tomorrowland. The boys really wanted to drive the cars, and the wait at the Speedway was only 15 minutes, so that's where we ended up. I enjoyed seeing them have so much fun! We then headed over to the Buzz Lightyear ride. On the way, we saw Santa Stitch was on the Tomorrowland stage, so we stopped for some selfies with him. The CM's have that stage down to a science. There are dots on the ground where the CM's assign the guests to stand, and Stitch works his way from one end of the stage to the other, so each person/group can still get a decent, socially distanced photo.

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We had fun doing the Buzz Lightyear ride. I had the baby on my lap, and she was laughing the whole way! Of course, I didn't score that well, but it was still so much fun! My son had a good time too, and scored highest of our group. Sometimes the simple things are the best! View attachment 550585

We were going to go on Astro Orbiter next, but the wait was posted at 45 minutes, and I didn't want to be late for lunch, so we left to save that for later.

I had made reservations for lunch at Whispering Canyon Cafe' at the Wilderness Lodge. I knew that the antics of the waiters were not like they used to be, but honestly, I wanted to go there to see the Christmas decorations, and for the boat ride from Magic Kingdom to the resort! If my cruise was cancelled, this was the closest I was going to get! Once we got down to the boat dock, we actually waited quite a while for the launch to arrive. (We should have gone on Astro Orbiter... we would have had time!) But, the "cruise" to the Wilderness Lodge was fun, we had the whole back of the boat to ourselves, and as we arrived, it started to drizzle, so our timing was perfect!

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While we waited for our table to be ready, we picked up a scavenger hunt map at the check in desk, and the boys had fun exploring the resort. It is so pretty in there, and reminded me of our stay at Old Faithful Inn when we had travelled to Yellowstone National Park.

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Once we were seated, our waitress, Margarita, was the best! My son was thirsty and downed his Coke as soon as it arrived. Not 2 minutes later, she came out with the biggest mason jar the boys had ever seen, filled with Coke, and handed it to my son. Not to feel left out, she also brought Hannah the smallest mug of ice tea ever, which made everyone laugh! Cheers!

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The food at Whispering Canyon was great! I had originally thought we would go to Geyser Point Grill (because I really wanted the bison burger!), but then discovered that Whispering Canyon had the bison burger on their menu too! It was soooooo good! Everyone had a great time, with great food, and it was nice to sit down and have a relaxing lunch away from the park.

It had rained pretty hard while we were at lunch, but by the time we left, the rain had stopped. The little ones needed to get back to the hotel for a nap, so we walked down to the ferry dock and took the boat back to Magic Kingdom. From there, my son and husband took the three little ones back to Bay Lake Tower, and Zack, Hannah, Alyssa and I went back into the park to ride some roller coasters!

Up next: An afternoon at Magic Kingdom!

Boy, you sure encountered a lot rain. Hope you had some nice weather days.

 

[Hubie]

Magic Kingdom, Part 3:
After we finished watching the Goofy Cavalcade that afternoon, it was time to head towards the Haunted Mansion. This has always been one of the favorite rides, so I was very excited! The line was not too bad, listed at 35 minutes. We quickly joined the queue, and it was moving pretty steadily. I enjoy reading all the gravestones in the cemetery, but the line was moving so fast, I could not see all of them this time. We actually got on the ride in about 15 minutes!

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I ended up riding with Zack, and the ride broke down while we were on it! It would have been nice to be by the singing ghost heads, but instead we were overlooking the dance scene in the ballroom, which I actually don't mind, but to a 7 year old boy, it was quite painful! I tried to get a nice picture of the "dancing ghosts"... but and it turned out like this:

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I wish I knew where the ride camera was located. Ours was not too bad, but I am not sure what is going through our minds at the time it was taken!

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When we got off, the line was up to 55 minutes and stretched all the way down to the river, and along the walkway where we had been standing in the first picture. We next headed to Splash Mountain. I love that ride! Again, the line was long, but it kept moving. View attachment 553064For those who have only done Fast Pass for this ride, you are missing an amazing queue! It was such fun to see all the props and read all the signs. I am excited for the makeover to make it Princess and the Frog themed. I think the characters in that film will make for a great ride background!

We then headed back out and headed towards Country Bear Jamboree. Big Al and Liver Lips were on the balcony waving to the crowds, and we "chatted" with them for a bit.

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We had just missed a show, and the next one was going to be a while, so we skipped it and chose some retail therapy instead, stopping at the Christmas Store! That was such a cute place, and best of all, all 2020 merchandize was marked 70% off! Score! I usually buy ornaments wherever I travel, so it was great to come across this sale! After that it was getting close to dinner time. We decided to head back to Bay Lake Tower, mobile ordering from The Wave Restaurant at the Contemporary Resort as we walked. When you mobile order from a sit down restaurant, they give you a 30 minute window to pick up your order, so it worked out perfectly for us. By the time we exited Magic Kingdom and walked to the resort, our food was ready to go. We brought it to the room and had a delicious meal. I am not a person to take pictures of food, so courtesy of the DFB I borrowed one for you. If you have never eaten there, just let me say one thing... Bacon and Egg Appetizer! It is amazing!
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I wonder if all of the ride breakdowns is due to a lack of Maintenance. Maybe they laid off one too many mechanics?

 

[Hubie]

After we walked the rest of the family to the entrance, Hannah, Alyssa and I headed back into the park. We found a Photopass photographer, and stopped for some photos with Simba, Pumbaa, and Timon. Then we headed towards Harambe Village for lunch.
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I loved this view of Everest from the Harambe Bridge. I had made a mental note to go back to one of the bridges after the sun set to see what it looked like at night.
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Fast forward to park close time...

The Disney Magic was happening this day! As I got to the bridge to Asia from Discovery Island in the evening, there was a group of people there, staring at Everest. One of the guys told me there was going to be a rocket launch from Cape Canaveral any minute now, and I should wait to take my picture, because we should be able to see it coming over Mount Everest. My angle was a little off...but can you believe this photo????? (I love the night setting on my I-phone. It captured the colors so well!)

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Now rolling back in time to Lunch...
Back in November, Harambe Market was only open on the weekends, and the menu options were exactly what we wanted: Alyssa and I got a Harambe Salad with Chicken (YUM!) and Hannah got the Grilled Chicken Bowl, also excellent! We walked a bit down the path toward Asia and found a couple of picnic tables along the river. While we were there, several character boats came by, including Pocohantas and Meeko, Donald Duck and Friends, Pluto and Goofy, and the African Drummers. It was pretty cool to sit in the shade, enjoy the breeze off the water, and savor our socially isolated lunch! However, we saw some rain clouds heading our way, so decided shopping was our next order of business!
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After the rain ended, we walked towards Pandora. This was our first time in this land, and it is truly beautiful! The line for Navi River Journey was 75 minutes, so we decided to skip that until later in the day.

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Flight of Passage was posted at 60 minutes, and we got in line there. While we were waiting, Santa floated by in his Christmas Boat...

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It took the full hour, but we finally made it on Flight of Passage. I loved that ride! It was so immersive, and after the escape scene, sitting on that mountaintop catching our breath, I couldn't help but pat my Banshee on the neck and tell her "It's okay, slow down your breathing, you did a great job!". I know, I am a nurse, it just comes out sometimes. My daughter was laughing at me!

After that ride, Hannah needed to get back to the resort to feed Aubrie. Zack had also texted us to see if he could come back to the park. He had spent the afternoon swimming with his dad and was ready for more Animal Kingdom! So we headed back to Kidani Village.

Going out on the balcony to greet my neighbors, I just had to stop for a minute to say Hello!

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The four of us headed back to the park a little while later. We found a photopass photographer, and stopped for a Tree Of Life photo. We walked through the Discovery Island Trails, checking out all the carvings on the Tree of Life. We then were hoping to go on the Maharajah Jungle Trek, but by the time we arrived, it was 5:05 pm, and the trail had already closed.
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So, we decided another journey on Expedition Everest would be amazing! Which it was! Unfortunately, we never got a ride photo from this adventure. More photopass woes! After Everest, we headed to Dinosaur land so Kevin and I could ride the Dinosaur ride, but it was down. Instead we headed towards Pandora again, and decided Zack and Kevin would love Flight of Passage, so we got in line for another journey on the Banshee. Woo Hoo!

By the time we got off the ride an hour later, the sun had set. We were going to try for Navi River Journey, but the posted wait was still 75 minutes, so we decided to stop at Satu'li Canteen for dinner. We had a great meal and as we were finishing, the park was closing, so we walked around to get some nighttime photos.

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On the way out, we stopped and took pictures by the Christmas tree. By then, most of the guests had left, so you can see the entrance plaza was really empty! I felt bad that on most days the park closed at 5pm, and so many people could not enjoy this park after dark. It is truly beautiful. The Tree of Life has projections, the markets are lit up by lanterns and torches, and the mood of the park was so peaceful! After being at all four parks, I had truly found my happy place!
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Next up... Another day at Magic Kingdom!

Great pics, especially the one with the parrot in flight, the rocket blast off near Everest and the Christmas tree at night. We love Pandora after dark and the FOP ride. We ridden it 10 times and see something different every time.

 

[Hubie]

Nice TR! Your grand daughter is so cute. We're DVC and heading to SSR for 9 nights starting November 28. Hope we have better weather (i.e. less humid and more sunshine).

Have you done any cruise TR's? We love DCL and have done 7 cruises with them so far. Had to cancel 5/20 Trans-Atlantic due to pandemic. I have two TR's on Northern Europe cruises, but all of the cruises were great.

 

[tundra1]

Boy, you sure encountered a lot rain. Hope you had some nice weather days.

We finally did! Sunday through Tuesday was mostly sunny and beautiful!

 

[tundra1]

Hi Everyone,
I have felt like I have a book report due and I just haven't gotten to it... and now I am feeling very guilty! Since my last post, I have travelled to New York City for 6 wonderful days, and to West Virginia (which is absolutely beautiful!), so I sort of have a good excuse. But, I am going to finish this up this weekend!

When I last left off, we had just completed a wonderful meal at Be Our Guest Restaurant. Thinking back on it, I would definitely go there again. It was expensive, but we all loved it! I am sure the reduced capacity had a lot to do with it, because it was not loud or crowded, and we never felt rushed to finish our meal. It was getting to be naptime for the little ones, and Ben, the 4 year old, really wanted to go swimming. I, as usual, wanted to stay in the park. This time, my son and Zack decided to stay with me. Zack was raring to go, but William, my son, was feeling very guilty that he had not yet spent an entire day in a park, so this time he joined us!

We decided to walk everyone to the main entrance, and along the way, we passed the Princess Cavalcade. Aubrie was dressed up like Rapunzel, so we secured a great spot along the curb to wave at her! The expression on Rapunzel's face seeing this little 8 month old girl all dressed up like her was worth the entire trip! And the Fairy Godmother gave Aubrie a special wave of her wand and blew her a kiss!


I have to admit, the cavalcades were a great hit with our family. We did not have to wait for an hour along the curb for a parade to start, and because they were not scheduled, it was always easy to find a front row spot. The characters were very interactive, stopping, posing, waving, and making everyone feel so special. And once that group passed, we could move along on our merry way! I would not mind if that is the new norm for the park.

After we split up, William, Zack and I had two goals: complete another Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom quest, and conquer Adventureland! Anything else would just be icing on the cake! As we were walking down Main Street, we stopped for another Photopass opportunity. These pictures turned out pretty cute, and I was glad we stopped.

We also paid our respects to Roy and Minnie, who were happy to share their bench with Zack!


We then headed into Adventureland. Both Pirates of the Caribbean and Jungle Cruise had 60 minute posted wait times, but it seemed as though the lines were moving fairly steadily, so hopped in line. As we were in the Pirates of Caribbean line, Captain Hook came out to greet the guests. My son just happened to be wearing his Captain Hook t-shirt, so he and Zack had to go over and say hello and take a couple of selfies.

When they returned to join me in the line, I was almost at the main entrance of the ride, and it had only been about 15 minutes, so that line was moving well. The queue for Pirates weaves under a covered area, and we appreciated getting out of the sun for a bit. The ride was a lot of fun, and we got the front row! I was able to record the entire thing for my daughter and husband, and they enjoyed seeing it once we got back to the hotel.

After that we took a ride on the Magic Carpets with Aladdin and company! No camel spitting was encountered this time!


We then stopped for a snack at Aloha Isle, and while we were eating it in Liberty Square, the Mickey Mouse Christmas cavalcade passed, this one with the fab 5, Mary Poppins and Bert, Alice in Wonderland and her entourage, the crew from Pinocchio, Peter Pan and Wendy, and my favorite 100 acre wood gang, including Tigger!
They are so much fun to watch!




We then went for a last ride on Big Thunder Mountain, and decided it was time to head back to Kidani Village for a swim and some dinner. On the way out, we passed Casey's Corner, and stopped for a couple of pictures with the namesake, himself. My son and grandson are big baseball fans, so this was really fun!

 

[pkondz]

I have felt like I have a book report due and I just haven't gotten to it... and now I am feeling very guilty!

Bad Terri! Bad!

I have travelled to New York City for 6 wonderful days

Nice. I'd love to see NYC some day. Have never been... well, except for a stopover once.

Be Our Guest Restaurant. Thinking back on it, I would definitely go there again. It was expensive, but we all loved it!

Loooove their French onion soup.

The expression on Rapunzel's face seeing this little 8 month old girl all dressed up like her was worth the entire trip!

I have to admit, the cavalcades were a great hit with our family. We did not have to wait for an hour along the curb for a parade to start, and because they were not scheduled, it was always easy to find a front row spot. The characters were very interactive, stopping, posing, waving, and making everyone feel so special. And once that group passed, we could move along on our merry way! I would not mind if that is the new norm for the park.

You're not alone. I know a few people enjoy the "new norm" when it comes to characters.

complete another Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom quest,

Something I've never done. Maybe I will some day.

My son just happened to be wearing his Captain Hook t-shirt, so he and Zack had to go over and say hello and take a couple of selfies.

Well, yeah! You have to!

No camel spitting was encountered this time!

Sometimes, I like to stand and watch the reactions of those who get hit.

On the way out, we passed Casey's Corner, and stopped for a couple of pictures with the namesake, himself. My son and grandson are big baseball fans, so this was really fun!

Interesting! You're the first I've heard that are fans of Casey for baseball as opposed to food.

 

[tundra1]

Tuesday, November 17th was our last full day at WDW. This was our most absolute perfect day weather-wise. It was sunny, with a nice breeze and the temps were in the low 70's. We had decided the night before that we would split up today. Zack, having conquered the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom the day before, really wanted to complete his Wilderness Explorer's Badge Book at Animal Kingdom. Since Animal Kingdom is my favorite park, I was all for that plan! My husband also was looking forward to another day at that park. Everyone else wanted to try for a Rise of the Resistance Boarding Group, so we switched their park passes from Animal Kingdom to Hollywood Studios.

The Group at Hollywood Studios again was not lucky enough to score a boarding group at 7:00am. Once they got to the park, they went to a cast member in Guest Services, who told them that since Charlie and Aubrie are part of our room reservation, even though they don't have park passes, the app does not recognize that they should automatically be excluded, so by the time we try to select just the people with park passes, the groups have filled up, and we are out of luck. They suggested that at the 2pm virtual queue drop, one person from the group try to score a boarding group as a single rider. Then, go back to Guest Services and they will add the rest of the group to that reservation. Unfortunately, Rise was down almost the whole day, and at the 2pm drop time, they were only on boarding group 34. By the time everyone left the park at the end of that day, Rise was down for good, only running 42 groups the entire day. But outside of that, the kids had a great time at Hollywood Studios. They rode Millennium Falcon twice, Slinky Dog Dash 3 times, Rock and Roller Coaster twice, Tower of Terror once, and hit up all the smaller rides. The little kids loved Lightning McQueen and the Muppets. They got to eat at Ronto Roasters and scored some great souvenirs. It was a wonderful day for them!


Meanwhile, at Animal Kingdom, Kevin, Zack and I had an excellent day as well! The park was not crowded, and we got there at 8:30 am. prior to the 9am opening time. There were no Wilderness Guides around that early, so we rode Dinosaur and Triceratops Spin, before finally finding a CM and finishing up the Dinoland badges.

We then headed towards Expedition Everest, and since the wait time was only 10 minutes, we essentially walked on that ride. So much fun!


We then headed down the Maharajah Jungle Trek. What an amazing trail, with beautiful temples, gorgeous foliage, tigers, birds, and waterfalls. I could have spent a couple of hours in there!

But, the badges were calling, and our next destination would be Rafiki's Planet Watch. To get there, we needed to hop on board the Wildlife Express Train to Conservation Station. I love trains, and this was so much fun! We passed the backlots, where the baby rhinoceros was being cared for, and he was outside as we passed by! I wish I had my camera ready to take a picture! He was so little next to his mom. It was absolutely precious! Once we arrived at our destination, we had a great time chatting with the Wilderness Guides and the CM's. I loved seeing the veterinarians at work, and Zack was very interested in the food preparation area for the animals. The goats and sheep in the petting zoo were very active this day, and we had a great time!



After that, we wanted lunch. I was all set to go back to Harambe Market for another rice bowl, but it was not open. I guess that area only opened on the weekends back in November. So, I checked the dining app, and we saw that Yak And Yeti had immediate openings, so we headed there. I can honestly say, the food that we had at every restaurant in every park (except for Sci Fi Dine-In, which was probably just a one off that night for them) was truly remarkable! It was nice to sit down, and the restaurant is really fun. Kevin had the curry, and Zack and I shared a noodle bowl. We loved it!

While we were eating, we checked out which remaining badges we needed, and headed to Discovery Island next. The trails around Discovery Island were so interesting, and we were the only people there, so it was a great way to spend some time after lunch. We came to It's Tough to Be a Bug, and the wait was posted at 5 minutes, so we walked right in to the auditorium and the show began. This was the first time any of us had seen it, and it was pretty cute! Afterwards, we came across a Photopass photographer, and got a few pics of the three of us, and then continued on our journey.



After that, we headed to Pandora to get our last two badges. Flight of Passage had a 30 minute wait, so we hopped in line. It took us about 20 minutes to get on our Banshee, and this time we were on the opposite side of the screen, which was a lot different from our first and second rides. This is such a great attraction! I thought since FOP had such a short wait, we should try to get on Navi River Journey, but the line for that ride extended outside of Pandora, so we skipped it. Zack got his last badge, and we high fived the CM for a job well done!




By now, it was around 1pm. We had been making great time, and I wanted to go visit my friends the giraffes once more, so we headed to Kilimanjaro Safari. The wait here was a little longer, maybe 30 minutes, but the line moved, and we had another excellent safari guide! I guess because it was cooler that day, the animals were out and about, and very fun to watch.


We stopped for a snack afterwards, and then decided to head back to the hotel and go for a swim.

All in all, our park day was amazing! Animal Kingdom will always be my favorite park, and I was glad to have had the second day there. Going on a Tuesday led to there being much smaller crowds, but also that meant that many of the little kiosks and quick service locations were closed. We were able to do all the attractions we wanted, and had a great time, even though we left the park at 2:30pm.

Coming up: Our last adventure: Disney Springs!

 

[pkondz]

It was sunny, with a nice breeze and the temps were in the low 70's.

Perfect.

The Group at Hollywood Studios again was not lucky enough to score a boarding group at 7:00am.

Ugh. It's so hard to get a boarding group! I wish there was a better way to at least know if you're going to ride or not before you have to commit to rope drop just to try to get on.

They suggested that at the 2pm virtual queue drop, one person from the group try to score a boarding group as a single rider. Then, go back to Guest Services and they will add the rest of the group to that reservation.

Interesting. Have to keep that in mind.

By the time everyone left the park at the end of that day, Rise was down for good, only running 42 groups the entire day.

The hallmark of a complicated ride, I guess.

Love the pose.

We then headed towards Expedition Everest, and since the wait time was only 10 minutes, we essentially walked on that ride. So much fun!

10 minutes!!!

We passed the backlots, where the baby rhinoceros was being cared for, and he was outside as we passed by!

Awww.

I was all set to go back to Harambe Market for another rice bowl, but it was not open.

That good, huh? I'm so glad they changed the menu there. Now I have a reason to give it a try again.

Flight of Passage had a 30 minute wait, so we hopped in line.

30...
Not 300?

Nice score, there.

this time we were on the opposite side of the screen, which was a lot different from our first and second rides.

Really! I had no idea it would be different. Huh!

I thought since FOP had such a short wait, we should try to get on Navi River Journey, but the line for that ride extended outside of Pandora, so we skipped it.

And what's with Navi being so long? I mean... it's an okay ride, but... really??

 

[Steppesister]

I have travelled to New York City for 6 wonderful days, and to West Virginia (which is absolutely beautiful!)

Wow, lots of travel!

I have to admit, the cavalcades were a great hit with our family. We did not have to wait for an hour along the curb for a parade to start, and because they were not scheduled, it was always easy to find a front row spot. The characters were very interactive, stopping, posing, waving, and making everyone feel so special. And once that group passed, we could move along on our merry way! I would not mind if that is the new norm for the park.

This!! 100% this!!

No camel spitting was encountered this time!

I just read an article in the last couple of days that one Imagineer is lobbying for them to turn the spit back on.

Oh, don't see him very often!! Nice!

having conquered the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom the day before, really wanted to complete his Wilderness Explorer's Badge Book at Animal Kingdom.

A completist in the making!

Unfortunately, Rise was down almost the whole day, and at the 2pm drop time, they were only on boarding group 34. By the time everyone left the park at the end of that day, Rise was down for good, only running 42 groups the entire day.

Well, poop, but chances are pretty good that in that case, you'd likely not have ridden given the low BP #'s.

We then headed down the Maharajah Jungle Trek. What an amazing trail, with beautiful temples, gorgeous foliage, tigers, birds, and waterfalls. I could have spent a couple of hours in there!

I could spend oodles of time on that trail too, especially in the aviary.

I checked the dining app, and we saw that Yak And Yeti had immediate openings, so we headed there.

The apps are so great and prevent so much backtracking and time wasting.

I thought since FOP had such a short wait, we should try to get on Navi River Journey, but the line for that ride extended outside of Pandora, so we skipped it. Zack got his last badge, and we high fived the CM for a job well done!

I still don't understand why NRJ has such long lines over FOP consistently! IT was the same for both of my recent trips as well.

 

[tundra1]

Isn’t AK the best, I love walking around this park so much!
I love your selfie with Buzz.
Ahh your granddaughter looks so interested in IaSW, so cute!

Yes, I love Animal Kingdom!
Thanks, Buzz is always a lot of fun!
She loved It's a Small World! We can't wait to bring her back next February and see her reactions then!

 

[tundra1]

AK is the best park at night. It how I really learned to appreciate and love that park. Next trip I’m planning two evenings there. I just love it at night.

Yes, Animal Kingdom is magical at night. Unfortunately, back in November, it closed at 5pm on most days, so the park was empty before sunset. When we saw that Animal Kingdom was going to be open later that Sunday night, we canceled our dinner reservation in Disney Springs so we could stay later at the park. It was so worth it! On our second day there, the park closed at 5pm again.

I think it is open later now, but with the sun setting later, that might not make much of a difference.