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Kim Howe -- February 2001 -- Walt Disney World (Offsite)Dates:
Players:
Transportation:
Accommodations:
Walt Disney World trip reports are enjoyable and informative to me and I appreciate those who have taken the time to write them. Therefore, I feel obligated to prepare a report of my trip in return. Over the years, I've been glad to have the record of my trips as they help bring back memories of many things forgotten over time. I have come to read them before each new trip. Throughout my trips I keep a journal of the weather, what we did, where we ate and how much we spent each day along with thoughts and news I want to be sure to pass on to you. The journal helps tremendously in recalling each day's events when it comes time to write the report especially when a couple of months pass before I can get to it. In this report, I've tried to summarize points that I've experienced and feel are important to successful and enjoyable touring with the notation: LESSON. I hope you will enjoy and learn from my report. Thanks, Brian, for making trip reports available to us. They have gotten me through some long spans between trips. Pre-Trip Planning and Results: Planning for this trip began two years ago when I confirmed a timeshare exchange for a week at Vistana Resort. I confirmed a second week at Vistana late last summer after over a year of searching for an exchange in the Florida Keys turned up nothing. Confirming who would be joining us and when they would be actually staying with us wasn't confirmed until a couple of nights before we left! This was hard for me since I like to have a plan in place long before the trip begins. This is something to keep in mind when traveling with others. Originally, the first week of this trip was going to be shared with friends and their children who visited WDW with us in 1995. After that trip, we decided to do it again in four to five years. Unfortunately, just after Christmas 2000 they decided this wasn't the right time for them to join us again. I was very disappointed especially since I had secured the very-difficult-to-get priority seating for Cinderella's Royal Table for breakfast just a few days before they told us they weren't going. This left the whole first week open for the others we invited to join us during the second week to use for their planning. As it turned out, Maureen flew down with us and then visited friends in St. Augustine and Inverness, FL for the first week and joined us on Saturday afternoon, March 3 and then stayed with us the remainder of our trip. Having the first week open up for Jim really helped him out with getting flights from CA. He was using frequent flyer miles and waited longer than I would have to make reservations. Therefore, he ran into difficulties finding frequent flyer seats available on flights plus he was required to stay over a Saturday night. Being locked into just our second week wasn't working for him. As it turned out, he flew in on Tuesday evening of the first week (February 27) and stayed for five days which was more days than he originally wanted to take off from work but he got over it quickly. When using a frequent flyer program, I have found in order to get the dates you really want you have to plan early. If you have lots of flexibility, you can make your reservations later. Terry winters in West Palm Beach so she drove north from there and we met her at the FL Turnpike exit for the Osceola Parkway at noon the day following Jim's arrival (Wednesday, February 28) and she stayed with us for the remainder of our trip. Terry is very uncomfortable driving outside of her neighborhood in WPB but she will travel the FL turnpike since the traffic is light and it's a direct route to the Orlando area. Once she arrives, however, she does not navigate to well so we met her right at the exit. She also does not drive until she goes home. She really enjoys sitting back and letting us do all the driving. This left Bill and I with the first three days on our own. Airfare: Our US Airways Metrojet tickets were purchased in late summer 2000. I had been monitoring the prices on the Metrojet web site for many months. I became quite frustrated with the price fluctuations along with the price differences I encountered between what their web site said and what their reservation staff quoted me. Plus, I was hoping to match the great deal I got last year--$150 round trip, non-stop from Albany, NY to Orlando. In my frustration, I called a travel agent who advised me to wait until the Southwest flights opened up to add some competition to the price game. The Southwest flights out of Albany are only open about three months out and had been running $169 round trip. So the day the Southwest flights opened up the cost was $209 and the MetroJet prices dropped to $209--not as low as I wanted. The travel agent called me to see what I wanted to do. Since the two airlines had the same price and we prefer to fly Metrojet for the frequently flyer program, I said hold seats on a MetroJet flight. I called MetroJet myself to book the flights anyway and was quoted an even lower price than what the website listed earlier in the day--$189-great. The next day, I called the travel agent to ask her to let go of the seats she had on hold since I booked them myself the night before. She asked what price I got and I told her $189. She told me the seats she had on hold were for $169! I told her I would cancel my reservation since it hadn't been 24 hours since I booked them and for her to book the $169 seats. It all worked out-I cancelled mine and she booked hers. I requested she get electronic tickets also which she was able to do. E-tickets are the way to go-you bypass the ticket counter by simply checking yourself and your bags in with the skycaps at the curb and then walking directly to the gate. The line at the ticket counter the morning we left was very very long. Our first Fast Pass experience of the trip! LESSON: Be persistent in getting a good airfare. Also, don't be hung up on having a ticket in your hand-go with E-tickets instead. They save lots of time by being able to bypass the ticket counter. Rental Car: With our airfare nailed down, I used the Internet, once again, to determine which rental agency would provide the best price using the discount codes from various clubs that we belong to (i.e. Resorts Condominiums International, Orlando Magic Card, Magic Kingdom Club, BJ's Wholesale, Entertainment Book, Universal Studios Fan Club). I only checked the rental agencies that had counters in the terminal and cars in the parking garage-no shuttles to off-site properties. Last year, while searching for a car I found great price differences within the same rental companies using the different discount codes I had. This year I found the prices to be more similar but get this-I tried NOT using a discount code and got a CHEAPER price in some cases. I made my reservation with Avis for an intermediate car for $311 (with RCI discount) total for 13 days. This was $70 less than we paid last year. I then joined the Avis Preferred program which I learned about from someone's trip report last year but could not join in time to benefit during last year's trip. This program costs nothing and requires you to fill out a form to pre-register your address, driver's license number, credit card, etc.; accept/decline insurance; and select car type/color. This allows you to by pass the rental counter and go directly to the parking garage where you simply show ID and they hand you your keys. It worked like a charm too. The line at the Avis counter in the terminal was very long. We made our way to the parking garage, had our keys in no time and found a Chevy Impala waiting for us. This car was bigger than the intermediate size I reserved but who cares, I'll worry about it later. Our second Fast Pass of the day! LESSON: Be persistent in finding a good rental car rate. Also, sign up for the free special programs offered by rental car companies for added convenience and time saved. Vistana Resort: This is a timeshare resort affiliated with RCI. We stayed here six years ago and it was so nice I knew it was where I wanted to stay with our friends and their children. This is why I confirmed this timeshare exchange two years in advance. Similar to WDW resorts Vistana also offers an opportunity to request and select a villa location based on your preferences and needs. This service is called Diamond Lane check-in which I learned about from the Vistana web site. It is available to anyone who chooses to use it. You can even have them stock your villa with groceries before you arrive! Since the two units I had reserved were different, I had some questions regarding our being able to stay in the same unit for the entire stay and which unit type would accommodate our group the best. I was very grateful to speak to a knowledgeable and helpful Diamond Lane staff member. She gave me the advice I needed, logged all my requests for villa location and even volunteered to make it possible for us to check-in early. Our flight arrived at 10:30 a.m. and since check in wasn't until 4 p.m. I had planned on having some lunch and shopping at Belz until about 1:30 p.m. and then finding something to do at the resort while waiting until check-in. She arranged for us to check in at 1:30 p.m. I entered the lobby at about 2 p.m. to find a long line where people were checking-in but being asked to return at 4 p.m. to pick up their keys. I walked up a red carpet roped off with velvet ropes to the Diamond Lane check-in desk and was helped almost immediately. I was in and out in five minutes time with our room ready and keys in my hand. Our third Fast Pass experience of the day and we hadn't even hit a park yet! LESSON: Even if you are not staying on WDW property, see if your hotel/resort offers an express type check-in service. The resort is located on SR 535 between I-4 exit 27 and SR 536. It is a large resort broken into sections consisting of a few villas, a pool, recreation area, snack bar, ponds, ducks, etc. The resort also offers a grocery store/gift shop, restaurants, mini golf, bike rentals, etc. If you wanted, you could stay at the resort for a week and not need to leave the property. Our section was a newer area called Lakes and we had a two bedroom unit that could accommodate eight people (#1847, master bedroom with king bed, whirlpool tub and dressing area with sink all in the main room with a sink, toilet and shower in a separate room and a guest bedroom with two double beds and a bathroom), with full kitchen, breakfast bar and a dining area, living room with sleep sofa, washer and dryer, screened in patio with table and chairs. It overlooked a pond with a fountain and the Lakes pool, a quiet pool. The Fountains pool area was just behind the villa next to ours which had a waterfall, water volleyball, a kids pool, an arcade, gift shop, café and basketball and shuffle board courts. From our balcony we could see the fireworks at Pleasure Island and the tall buildings at the Hotel Plaza. I was a little disappointed with the condition of the furniture and carpeting in this particular unit. Resorts usually have the villas on a rotating schedule for maintenance and I think ours was coming up on that time soon. I reported it on the comment card we received after we returned home. It still was a very nice unit and in some ways better that what we live with at home. Bill thinks I was being too fussy. Commuting to WDW from Vistana was simple and convenient. To go to the parks, turn right as you exit Vistana and then right again in about 1/4 mile at the traffic light at the SR535/SR536 intersection. In approximately a mile you are crossing over I-4, on WDW property and passing under the WDW welcome arches. To go to Downtown Disney, turn left as you exit Vistana, in about 1/2 mile at the traffic signal at the entrance to the Crossroads Plaza turn left on to WDW property at the Hotel Plaza. Traffic was never a problem and the majority of the days we hit a green traffic light at SR535/SR536 and didn't have to stop for our entire commute. WDW is so big that Vistana is closer to some of the parks than some of the WDW resorts are. Discovery Cove Reservation: After Christmas my brother and I decided to buy our mother, Maureen, admission to swim with the dolphins at Sea World's new park, Discovery Cove for her birthday. I didn't have any problem securing a reservation for March 5 only two months away and was told this was due to it being their winter season. The swim packages were $199 and the non-swims were $89. I got a swim for me and Maureen and non-swims for Bill and Terry. Bill didn't really care to swim or not and Terry doesn't swim period. I didn't know at this point if Jim was even joining us so I didn't get anything for him. So what turned out to be a $100 gift for my mother, turned out to cost me $400 because you can't send her alone! My mother had shown great interest in participating in a swim with the dolphins program for years but none had been offered in the Orlando area and our travel plans just didn't happen to take us to the other locations. When Discovery Cove opened I was very excited for her. What held me back from making the reservation as soon as it opened was the high risk in going during the 'winter season' would result in a cold day. Also their literature and web site has some pretty strict rules as far as cancellation. But when my brother called and said I want to do this for her, I agreed--more on this later. Touring Plans: As I mentioned earlier, I like to make plans far in advance and have a plan set for the trip. I naturally lean toward commando type touring but have been successful at non-commando touring also. Since I didn't know who was going to be with us and when, it was difficult for me to map out my usual plan for this trip. I just kept things in mind hoping to be able to plot them in the schedule at some point. In some cases this turned out to be the evening before. Very unlike me, but I survived. In general I decided to try non-commando touring this year but as it turned out, we did a little of both. The first three days when Bill and I were alone I had mapped out all the things I wanted to do but we did it at a slow pace. (Disclaimer: I say 'I wanted to do' because this was MY vacation. He has many throughout the year-hunting, fishing, etc. while I work or just stay home.) The next segment of the trip would be with Jim and Terry. Although Jim has been to Disneyland for what seems to be an infinite amount of times with his two girls, he hadn't been to WDW since he was a young boy (didn't seem to remember it) and we wanted to show him as much as possible so we commandoed a little more during this segment. The last segment with 'the moms' was slower paced once again. For planning each day, I would just see what the weather was and what we felt like doing and rely on my knowledge of which parks had early entry on what days and not go to that park that day. I also used Sehlinger's Unofficial Guide's advice on the best days to visit each park and Jeff Spencer's advice for the same. What we did in the park was determined by what attractions had short or no lines and what we felt like. Priority Seating: I hadn't made any Priority Seatings for dinner until we were actually in Orlando and had somewhat more of an idea of what we might like to do. Although in the past I would make the majority of the PSs long before our trip, we always seemed to add or change something once we arrived. Since, I hadn't encountered much problem with doing this in the past (probably due to visiting during very low attendance times and being a couple instead of a group), I wasn't too worried about not getting what we would want once we arrived this trip. It didn't work as well as I thought however. Although for the most part we were able to get in the day/evening we wished, we were not able to get the exact times we wanted. For example: We wanted to do a Fantasmic dinner package for 5-5:30 p.m. but could only get 3:30 p.m. that morning at Guest Relations. My original plan was to take a break that afternoon and return for dinner and then Fantasmic. Since our dinner seating was for the break time, we just stayed in the park all day-for what turned out to be our most commando day at 14 hours but Jim saw just about everything at the Studios. As a second example: I wanted to have dinner at Rose and Crown beginning at 7:30-8 p.m. and be finishing when IllumiNations began. The first time I tried, I was told nothing was available but to just try checking in at the podium that night. The second time I tried, I was able to get a 6 p.m. I thought I could arrive late and stretch it out to make it work but it didn't. The restaurant was very efficient that night and we were out of there in an hour's time even with appetizers and dessert. Murphy's Law--when you want to be in and out quickly it doesn't seem to work, though. No big deal really, since we were able to secure a viewing spot in that new seating area for the fish and chips stand (between Rose and Crown and the bridge to France) a few minutes before it began. LESSON: It really pays off to make PSs as far in advance as you can. More on the Trip: The morning finally comes that we wake before the sun rises and head to the airport. We arrive in Florida in no time. Weather: Temperatures the first week (2/24 - 3/3) were in the high 80s during the day and high 60s during the night. I was able to wear shorts and short sleeve or sleeveless tops all the time-day and night. Skies were sunny with some clouds during the days and one short shower one evening. Is that perfect for this time of year or what?!?! We've visited during the same two-week period in the past and experienced much cooler weather. This was certainly a treat. For the most part it was great for touring, with only one day being almost too hot. That day we just left the park and went back to the resort and swam. The second week (3/4 - 3/8) a cold front had moved in beginning with a whole day of thunder and lightening and hard rain-more on this later. For the rest of the week it was very windy and daytime temps averaged in the 60s with nighttime temps averaging in the 40s with the days getting warmer as the week went on with the best day on our departure. The second week we all wore jeans with turtlenecks and sweatshirts. One day was so cool and windy that we wore our coats too. LESSON: No matter how much planning you do, you just can't control the weather. Adjusting the time of year you go may help but you are still up against Mother Nature. Crowds: I felt crowds were what we are used to during our trips which have ranged from January to the beginning of March for the past few years. One thing I know for sure is there is a BIG difference in getting to the parks an hour or two after the gates open instead of before or at rope drop. For the most part we arrive at the parks early-before or just after rope drop and it is very manageable at this time of the day. When Bill and I purchased our Annual Passes we arrived very early and encountered only one family in front of us at the Ticket and Transportation Center. Although the cast member spent a lot of time talking to us and processing our passes it was still manageable getting to the park entrance just after rope drop. One morning, however, we arrived at the TTC at 9-9:30 a.m. instead of 8 a.m. when the park opened at 9 a.m. Bad move--especially since we needed to wait for Maureen to buy a pass even before we tried to make our way to the entrance of the park. . The line to purchase tickets was very long and we waited about 20-30 minutes. Then only the monorails were running and not the ferries since it was so windy they could not dock safely thus backing up the mob of people and compounding the situation even more. Fortunately, Disney comes through and starts bussing people to the park entrance. We got on a bus after a minimal wait compared to the monorail wait. Is WDW prepared for everything? Once in the park we found it full but once we made our way past Main Street we found the crowd to be less. It wasn't an early entry day either, it was one of those best days to visit. LESSON: Timing is everything at WDW. You really need to get to the parks early or waste time waiting in a crowd. Meals: As previously stated, I did not make any PS before I left home. We ate more at food counters when we were hungry or planned lighter meals to hold us over until the big/sit down meal if there was one. In general we found the selection at these fast food restaurants a nice change from just burgers and the quality very nice. Bill and I ate at Pinocchio's (MK) for the first time and although we didn't get a coveted 'It's A Small World view table' we enjoyed the experience. We each got a burger and shared a grilled chicken salad. The salad's greens were very fresh and it was unique with walnuts, peaches and blue cheese with grilled chicken and a sweet vinaigrette dressing. Sound bad? It wasn't, it was great. We also tried and enjoyed the Backlot Express (Studios) for the first time. We especially like the toppings bars at these places that include sautéed mushrooms and onions, yum. I mentioned some PSs problems we encountered earlier. However, we were able to get in at Whispering Canyon Café (WL) around 12:30 p.m. with no PS and were seated right away. Also, we were able to make a lunch PS for Le Cellier for 1 p.m. at Guest Services as we entered Epcot at noon in order to give us time to get Fast Track Fast Passes before heading over to have lunch. We arrived early and they seated us anyway. The cheese soup is everything everyone has reported it to be. As I mentioned earlier, we did the Fantasmic Dining Package which consists of a dinner reservation and a special entrance to and reserved seating area at the Fantasmic stadium. We really didn't need the package as there was plenty of seating available in the stadium when we arrived. My family couldn't understand what the benefit was and I had to explain to them that IF it had been a busy time we would be saved seats and allowed in while others would be turned away. As it was, non-dining package guests were still entering the stadium and getting seats that were equivalent to ours. We sat in the Ursula section (on the far right as you face the lake) which had three sections completely open. On the far left of the stadium there were two whole sections open where they were seating non-dining package guests. We sat in one of the back rows just in front of the wheelchair rows and made a quick and fast exit at the end of the show. We boarded the first tram to the parking lot and I'm sure we were in our car long before the last guest left the stadium. LESSON: Sitting by the exit at any WDW attraction always allows for a fast get away and on to something else. Also, the Fantasmic Dining Package is not necessary during low attendance times. Fast Passes: Although more people are aware of and using this feature than during our previous trips, some people for whatever reason continue to wait in the stand by line making comments to or about you as you fly by them. Sometimes we encountered long waits in the FP return lines, but not as long as the standby lines. We found return times issued to vary greatly from less than an hour to over three hours depending on the attraction and it's demand. We used FPs at MK and didn't wait in any long lines at all. This involved crossing the park several times but we don't mind walking. I'd rather be moving than standing. At one point we held FPs for three different attractions at one time. As one FP time would open up we would get a FP for another attraction until we wound up with three. Then we went from one to another and rode each without waiting. You can get another FP as long as the return time on the one you are holding has begun. We also would gather our passes and one person would go ahead, moving very quickly on their own, and get FPs for the whole group while the rest did something else (i.e. restroom break, shop) then rejoin the group and carry on. We used this strategy to our advantage one afternoon as follows: Bill went ahead and got FPs for Dinosaur while we ordered lunch at Restaurantosaurus, by the time we finished lunch our return time had arrived and we walked right on. Since we knew when the photo would be taken, we really hammed it up looking really scared. I bought the photo just because our acting was SO overdone! Everyone else in the vehicle have clueless looks on their faces. One morning Bill and Jim and I moved quickly after rope drop to Space Mountain (we actually wound up running the last little bit-it was fun, I felt like a kid again for those few seconds!) while Terry strolled behind us and got FPs as we were waiting outside in the stand by line. Seeing Terry getting FPs with no one else using the FP distributors-everyone was in the VERY long stand by line behind us--was a real 'Kodak moment' but we didn't record it. Picture mid-70s lady with a visor on pumping the FP machine with passes. She looked like she was playing slots in Vegas! It is one of those memories locked in my head. By the time we got off SM, the FP time had opened up and we went on again. We did a similar thing at the Studios another day. We moved quickly to Rock 'n' Roller Coaster and got on the stand by line and road twice. Terry strolled behind us and got us FPs for Tower of Terror. Since the TT stand by line wasn't too long and we wanted to go through the lobby slow so Jim could experience it, we waited on that and by the time we got off we used our FP to ride again. Woohoo! LESSON: Fast Passes rule! Use them to your benefit because that's what they are there for. Highlights, Hints, Fun and Memorable Stuff: Our First Evening: The plan was for Bill and I to enjoy an evening together (before the family arrived in a couple of days) and watch the Fantasy in the Sky fireworks over Cinderella's Castle from the beach at the Polynesian and then walk past the Wedding Chapel to the Grand Floridian. We arrived at the Polynesian and walked out to the beach area. It was very dark and not being familiar with this area of the resort I was tickled that we found a big hammock that we could see the castle from while we waited for the fireworks to begin. A few other folks had the same goal in mind as we could overhear their comments as they found us already in the coveted hammock. It was fun to see Tinkerbell's flight and the fireworks from this vantage point but I missed not hearing the announcement and the music. After the fireworks, we wandered through the Great Ceremonial House and out to the beach near Luau Cove to watch the Electrical Light Pageant-an oldie but a goodie. I thought it was Disney as usual how the Luau took a break just as the pageant was to start so that the luau music wouldn't interfere with the pageant music. We watched from lounge chairs on the beach and afterwards walked along the brick path toward the Wedding Chapel. We made this walk last year in daylight but many trip reports mention how romantic this is to do at night. It was and especially when we got close enough to see that there was a bride and groom having pictures taken on the walkway to the chapel. I was busy gawking at them to my right as we came around the wedding planning building on the left and I GASPED--it was Cinderella's Coach with six white ponies and coachmen and all!!!! Oh, my God! It was the highlight of the whole trip-we could go home now--NOT! We lingered in the background and watched with some others as they had still and video pictures of them getting in the coach and then driving away-AHHH!! The bride even waved as she went by and I just stood there with my mouth open. I didn't even wish them well. And, I didn't have my camera. LESSON: You never know when you'll run into some Disney magic. It never seems to be planned. Carry your camera everywhere, which I did after this experience. Pleasure Island: We used the tickets we purchased during our 1998 trip for admission. In 1998, I bought the Entertainment book for Orlando and used a coupon in it to get a free PI admission with each one purchased (up to six) and the cast member assured me they would be valid forever so we bought two tickets and got two free. We hadn't returned to PI until this trip and used the three-year-old tickets without any problem. It was Mardi Gras time at Pleasure Island and we just happened to arrive as the 8 p.m. parade was starting-floats, music and BEADS! What a way to start the evening. Since it was cast member night it was packed too. As far as visiting during cast member night, if you want a young, fun party atmosphere go on a CM night (I think Monday and Thursday) but if you want a quieter evening don't. I enjoyed sharing the evening with the CMs, they really like to party. Since it was Mardi Gras, there were lots of extra party things going on throughout-music and bead tossing everywhere. We went to the Comedy Club after the parade and were seated by one of the phones. I thought by taking it off the hook it wouldn't ring-NOT! Yes, my phone rang and we had a song made up and sung in our honor. It wasn't as embarrassing as I thought it would be and Bill thought I did a good job answering the questions. The audience and the comedians REALLY roared when I told them that Bill and I met in jail. It's true-he's a correction officer and I was working at the facility as a secretary when we met. We also spent some time in the Adventures Club, caught the second Mardi Gras parade, a second Comedy Club act and the New Year's Eve Party before calling it a night. Fort Wilderness: This is a great place to take a break from the crowds-there's never one here. It is very quiet and slow paced. We drove our car to FW and took a bus to the Settlement Depot where we had a quiet and relaxing buffet lunch at the Trail's End for under $25. We walked through the animal petting area and visited the stables where we saw "Lucky" the draft horse who pulled the trolley we rode down Main Street at the MK the day before. We hung out on the dock for a while watching a CM fishing right next to a "No Fishing" sign! He was getting ready to take a fishing tour out. We saw such a tour the day before fishing at the MK ferry dock at the TTC. I guess this location offers great publicity but it's not the peaceful location I would be looking for/expecting from a fishing outing. We also browsed through the FW Trading Post where I found a sweatshirt marked at $52 which I had purchased a couple of days before at the Character Premier at the Belz Mall for $20. WhooHoo! Finally, we walked the Wilderness Swamp Trail which goes along the shore of the lake for a while and then into the woods/swamp before returning you back to the campground. I thought we'd also rent bikes and ride around but we didn't feel like it so we returned to Vistana. The buses both to and from the FW parking lot to the Settlement Depot were timely, quite direct on the way to the depot but gave us a nice tour of the campground on the return trip. Our Last Afternoon: I had received a coupon in a Magic Delivery Package I received that was good to a free rental of two water mice. We spend almost two weeks and didn't seem to have a good opportunity or make the time to use it until our last afternoon when Bill said, "Let's just do it!" So we rented them from the marina by Capt. Jack's at the Marketplace. We were warned that they were governed and went really slow and that we had to stay in the lake and not go down the river towards Old Key west or Dixie Landings and Port Orleans. I guess there are faster ones at the other marinas but this was our last day and it was do it now or never. So, Bill and I each took one out while Maureen shopped on her own. We had fun and took pictures of each other out in the water. Trip Firsts: We've visited WDW many times and we still experience new things each trip. I always stress this to the folks who just don't understand why I chose to return to WDW again and again. Here is a description of this year's firsts:
Special Phone Numbers: While waiting for IllumiNations to begin, we noticed a small group of guests on the Rose and Crown Terrace. We've watched IllumiNations from the terrace ourselves by taking advantage of a Magic Delivery coupon. I asked a CM how the folks there this evening got to watch from this reserved area. I was given a card with the following phone number on it: 407-828-3200. I don't know any other details, so you'll have to call to find out. While shopping in the World of Disney, I was looking for a shirt that said, "Been There, Done That, GOING BACK!" I thought I'd read from trip reports of others purchasing such a shirt. I asked a CM and she wasn't aware of it but did give me a card with a phone number on it for the Merchandise Service Department at 407-363-6200. She said that they could answer any questions regarding WDW merchandise. The hours are Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Side Trips Beyond WDW: Discovery Cove: I've already mentioned how we got to Discovery Cove-Maureen's birthday gift, blah, blah, blah. In the end Bill, Maureen and I were the only ones to go. Terry chickened out and Jim didn't want to spend the money so they spent the day together going to church, eating breakfast, getting lost and napping. Terry told us she didn't want to go before we left for FL but after we were able to get a complete refund and so she would have to pay a penalty for canceling at this point. I called Discovery Cove and asked if Bill's non-swim reservation could be changed to a swim so we wouldn't loose any money on Terry canceling. We were able to make this change with no problem but had to pay a few dollars more to make up the difference between Bill and Terry's non-swim reservations that we'd originally paid for and the one swim we were changing to for Bill. The Discovery Cove staff that I talked with while making and adjusting our reservations was very nice, knowledgeable and accommodating. Their web site and brochures give some pretty strict policies regarding changing reservations which really worried me especially regarding the chance of bad weather. I was assured that I could change our reservation date which in the end I did do. Our reservation was for Monday. On Saturday morning, I decided to change our reservation to Sunday since the forecast was for nice weather on Sunday but colder temperatures beginning on Monday. I would have changed the reservation to one of the beautiful sunny 80 degree days during the previous week but Maureen was still visiting friends and not with us yet. She would arrive Saturday late afternoon. So my only option was to change it to Sunday as the remainder of the week would continue to be cold also. I thought we were golden. I mentioned earlier a cold front moving in on our week of 80 degree days leaving 60 degree days behind, well this was THE day. We woke to the same sunny skies and 80 degrees that we'd experienced all week, drove to Discovery Cove, declined an offer of complimentary coffee, checked in, got our ID badges, had a complimentary group photo taken (while we were still dry...and smiling) and set off with a guide for a tour and orientation of the park. We picked up our wet suits and snorkel masks and went into the locker room to change. When we came out it was as if it was a totally different day--the sun was gone, the clouds were black, it was cold and it was pouring! Then came thunder and lightning. Long story short, the rain never stopped but we still snorkeled a little between lightning bolts, swam with the dolphins, and had lunch. Believe it or not, I still felt it was worth the money we paid and I'd go again, Maureen agreed and Bill was indifferent. The Discovery Cove staff was very considerate of the fact that the weather was BAD. The lady at the gift shop said this was only the 4th day they experienced such bad weather since they opened last summer--just our luck. She suggested we ask at the registration counters when we left to see about being able to come back another day. We did so and the staff at the desk was once again very accommodating. Since it was a slow time, they had openings for the next few days and we were scheduled to return on Wednesday. We would be allowed to use all of the facilities except those we used that day which included the dolphin swim and lunch. I thought this was really nice of them even though in the end we didn't return because it was still just too cold. It was easy to see that the park is not set up for bad weather. There was virtually no place except the gift shop (expensive) and the locker room to get in out of the rain. Various areas provided shade from the sun but the covering was not solid and waterproof even the restaurant seating area. The lifeguard staff did not seem prepared for the bad weather and we got conflicting messages whether or not we were allowed to be in the water to snorkel/swim or not. We spent a long while just standing around after being told by a lifeguard that everyone had to be out of the water. When we ventured out from under cover, we found that others were indeed snorkeling so we joined them. The park is set up, however, for fun in the sun, sand and water. It resembles a tropical paradise with white sand beaches, lounge chairs and umbrellas, waterfalls and thick vegetation. Lagoons to swim and snorkel in, play with the rays or float in the freshwater current. There is also a bird aviary. The area where the swim with the dolphins takes place blended right in as a natural lagoon area instead of a pool. It was just gorgeous and would have been an absolutely wonderful day had it not been for the storm. Our swim time was 12:30 p.m. We met with the others in our party, about seven total, at the specified cabana (this did have a roof!) where we learned about the dolphins and our swim from the trainers (2) who would be with us and also watched a video. Among the safety rules were no cameras, even under water ones, because the dolphins think they are toys and bump them out of your hands. If Terry had come with us, I thought she could take photos from the beach but where we were in the lagoon it would have been too far for good pictures unless we used a strong zoom lens. Next we ventured out to the dolphin swim lagoon and stayed along the edge in water up to about our chests. The water is heated for them and was cool to us even though the outside temperature was pretty cool at this point. Rain was beating on our heads and the photographer had his camera in a plastic bag with just the lens sticking out. The dolphins in our group were former show dolphins who knew and were performing ALL the tricks you see at Sea World. Ours (I can't remember her name) was 36 years old and her teeth were flat just like an old dog's would be. She sure knew her stuff though. The pool also had a mother and baby dolphin but they were with another group of people. I felt we each had sufficient amount of time with the dolphin. There were a number of things we each got to do with it and have our picture taken. One was smooching it on the nose while holding it's jaw in your hands. Smaller groups within our seven-person group went out into the deep water to perform other stunts for photos. We (Maureen, Bill and I) posed for a group shot with the dolphin and then danced with her. Next we each got to ride her back in to the ledge and shallow water. Bill and Maureen held onto her fins while she was upright and she pulled them in while the trainer had her roll over for me and I took hold of her fins and she pulled me in too while she was upside down. She took off so fast I got a mouth full of water before I could enjoy the ride. The photos came out great-huge smiles all around. Our groups were pretty much done with the photo trick stuff when there was another lightning strike and we all had to get out of the water. I think we would have had additional time if it were not for the lighting. Even though we had to get out early, I felt it was long enough. Next we spent time looking at our photos on a computer (covered in a plastic garbage bag!) in another cabana which had a roof but it leaked. There were a number of packages you could buy ranging from about $30 to $200. Maureen bought a $99 package for us and one for herself. We each got about four or five 5 x 7s and a choice of key chains or snow globes with photos in them too. It also came with a dolphin screen saver. Having the photo packages available was worth it for us since the weather was so bad we didn't take one picture with our own cameras. The complimentary photo taken at the beginning of the day was also available when we picked up our packages. We headed for the locker rooms to change next. The locker rooms were very nice and spacious. They included tons of fresh fluffy towels, body/hair shampoo, blow dryers and even plastic bags for your wet bathing suit. Oh, I should mention that the park also supplies special sun screen that won't harm the animals-not that we used any!!!-but so you know you don't need to take your own. We had lunch before we left and it was excellent. There were many good entrée choices and plenty of it per serving. We found a place in the eating area that was somewhat dry. We left after lunch even though there was still quite a few hours before the park closed but there wasn't anything else to do undercover. It stopped raining once we returned to the resort. Murphy's Law! Sea World: Sea World is a wonderful park. It has quality shows and attractions and is beautifully landscaped. If you have extra time to visit another park after WDW, definitely visit Sea World. They often offer specials such as visiting the next day for free as long as you validate your ticket before you leave the park. During this trip they were offering an admission ticket for the one-day price that would be good for one year!! Terry bought one and upgraded it to include free parking. Maureen, Bill and I didn't need tickets because our Discovery Cove passes included admission to Sea World for seven days. Shopping: We spent lots of time shopping at ALL the Disney discount stores: Belz Mall's Character Warehouse and Character Premier, Premium Outlet's Character Corner, and Lake Buena Vista Factory Outlet's Character Corner. I love to shop for a bargain and these stores sell official WDW Disney merchandise at half off. The majority of the items are from last season and sometimes there isn't much variety in sizes or colors. So in the fall you'll find summer stuff and in the late winter/early spring you'll find winter and holiday stuff. This trip we found lots of winter and Christmas fleeces and sweat shirts which we'll wear for our next trip (December 2001). However, on two occasions I found items marked to half price which were still selling at World of Disney at full price!!! WhooHoo!! Also, the merchandise in the discount stores changes over quickly so buy it when you see it and make many trips back. Buy twice as much it's half off!!! We also hit the Disney Marketplace pretty hard too using my Disney Club for discounts on purchases. I'd been searching for months to find a tea pot I liked to replace my old one and I was excited to find one the Gourmet Pantry. It is full of subtle Mickeys-hidden Mickeys and fits my country kitchen décor perfectly. I also got the 'Been There, Done That, GOING BACK!' magnetic bumper sticker which I put on my credenza at work. Many other great things too numerous to mention and you probably really don't care anyway. This was exciting, though...Jim was looking for a Barbie type doll of the Wicked Queen from Snow White which he said was discontinued. His youngest daughter loves the Wicked Queen from Snow White (but hates the witch-go figure!) and asked that he bring her one after searching for months in California with no success. Needless to say he was on a mission-a successful one too. He found it at the Marketplace. There were high fives all around!!! They were even reasonably priced compared to e-bay prices he'd seen (and wouldn't pay) so he bought two and planned to sell one on e-bay for twice as much to pay for both of them which he did do. Prior to this find, he found and bought a Wicked Queen costume at the Character Corner at the Premium Outlets for half price. He thought he'd done great with this purchase until the Barbie find. Ya gotta love a happy ending shopping story! One last shopping comment-there is now a Pro Bass Outdoor World Store (huge) on the way to the Belz Malls. It's a great place to drop the guys off while the ladies head to Belz. My brother spent three hours in this store during his last visit. Driving Tip: Sometimes I-4 is more of a parking lot than a highway. I found a way to by pass I-4 and still travel from the northern International Drive (Belz Mall) area to/from the Lake Buena Vista area (Crossroads and Downtown Disney entrance): from northern International Drive, take Kirkman Road west to Sand Lake Road south (a left turn from Kirkman onto Sand Lake). Sand Lake road will bring you to the WDW entrance by the Hotel Plaza/Disney Marketplace across from the Crossroads Shopping Plaza. I-4 is just beyond this. Rental Car: This is information that I shared in my last trip report but I feel it is so important that I've included it again. The rental car agencies with counters and cars right at the Orlando Airport terminal are Avis, National, Budget, Dollar and another I wasn't familiar with-LMS or something like that. You do not need to mess with a shuttle! Repeat--the counters are in the terminal near the baggage claim area and the cars in the airport's parking garage. We rented from Avis and the information guide/map they gave us suggested when returning the car/flying home to drop our bags with a skycap first and then return the car instead of returning the car first and then heading to the terminal. We did this and it was so simple!! We dropped the bags with the skycap and then got back in the car and drove back around following the well marked signs to the rental car return area in the parking garage. We saved ourselves from lugging our bags from the garage to the terminal. We just had our carry-ons and because we had electronic ticketing we walked straight to the gate. Much better than trying to find the off site rental agencies, unloading the luggage from the car, returning the car, reloading the luggage on the shuttle, unloading the luggage from the shuttle at the airport, dragging the luggage to the ticket counter and then standing in a long line before you get rid of it. Don't you agree? We also did this sort of thing at the beginning of our trip too, I drove my car to the airport drop off area and checked ourselves and our bags in with the skycaps at the curb. Then, Bill and Maureen proceeded to the gate while I got back in my car and drove it off airport property to the park and fly lot I use. This way only I had to take the shuttle from the park and fly to the terminal with out any luggage at all. It worked very well. Conclusion: What can I say...everything went extremely well. We were so lucky to not experience some of the problems reported in other trip reports--no travel glitches, great weather (with one exception), no illnesses, no lodging problems, etc. We enjoyed being able to spend time and share our timeshare with our family. There probably won't be too many more opportunities for Terry to spend time with both her sons together as they live on opposite coasts. Future Plans: Our next trip is planned for December 8 - 15, 2001 and Bill and I will be traveling alone. We purchased our annual passes with the intention of using them for this trip too. It will be our first visit to take in all the holiday decorations and events. I have been waiting a long time to visit during this time of year. We will be staying at the Polynesian Isles Resort on Polynesian Isles Blvd. a quiet street which runs between SR 535 and SR192 allowing for a quick travel up SR535 to SR536 and on WDW property--another great location. I secured this timeshare exchange in February a few weeks before this trip so we took a few minutes to find and visit the resort. We were lucky enough to be given a key to one of the two bedroom units so we could check it out. The master bedroom had a king size bed with TV. The master bath was large with a Jacuzzi tub. The guest room had two twin beds with a guest bath. The common area consisted of a full kitchen with breakfast bar, dining area with table and chairs for six and living room are with couch, chairs, TV, etc. which opened up to a screened balcony and back (second) entrance. The resort itself is on the small side and appeared to be established some time ago since all the vegetation was very full and mature-very tropical. However, I would guess it recently underwent a total renovation since the grounds and common areas along with the unit we saw were in very nice condition. The unit we saw was in better condition than the one we were staying in at Vistana. At the moment I am monitoring air fare prices which are $205.50 (remember we paid $150 and $169 our last two trips) and I made a rental car reservation with AVIS for eight days, intermediate car for $195 including all fees and taxes. I bought our Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party tickets at 7:15 a.m. the day the went on sale. I also scheduled a Yuletide Fantasy Tour and made priority seating for the Animal Kingdom Lodge's Boma for both breakfast and dinner. I've decided not to get the Candlelight Processional dining package since it costs more than we would probably spend on dinner and the only real benefit is a reserved seating area which you still have to wait on line for. We'll wing it and try to get stand by seats. I'm thinking this will work because we're visiting during a low attendance time. We'll see. Next is waiting for October to make PSs for Crystal Palace in the Magic Kingdom. Surprise! Another trip opportunity recently came up and I took advantage of it. I DO have an AP you know! My aunt called me a couple of weeks ago and invited us to join her, my cousin and my mother from December 22 - 28 at the Hilton Grand RCI timeshare resort near Sea World. Look at the calendar-this is only one week after I return from our Christmas trip. I've known for quite a while that she had this week and there may be an opportunity for joining them if her husband and second son didn't want to go. Bill and I talked about it and decided that I may go if invited but he'd pass even though that would mean spending Christmas apart. So, when the call came, it took me about 12 hours to decide to go. She was in a panic about getting tickets right away but was leaving the next morning for a vacation in North Carolina and didn't have the time to deal with it. Once I decided to go, I started checking flight availability and prices. The Metrojet direct flights I like to take between ALB to MCO only had two seats open but Southwest had space for four on their direct flights and the prices were similar so I booked the Southwest flights at $292.50 each. My aunt was relieved and I hope she enjoyed her vacation knowing mom and I were going and the flights were secured. She also asked me to arrange for a car. I went with Avis again and reserved the Chevy Impala that we got upgraded to last trip for $186 for seven days. The cost was only $10 more than an intermediate size and I think it will accommodate luggage for four people. Next, I wrote her a long letter with the flight and car info and advised her on what planning and decisions she needed to do next since 120 day PSs opened up on August 24. I explained that since it will be Christmas week, we will NEED a plan including PSs especially for Christmas Eve and Day. We will need to GET UP EARLY too. I sent the letter with a SEE Orlando guide, WDW guide maps, and Sea World, Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure brochures. I suggested she look these over, buy and read Sehlinger's Unofficial Guide and Birnbaum's Official Guide and check out Deb Will's web site and then get back to me with what parks she wanted to do, what attractions she wanted to visit and where she wanted to eat. I haven't heard from her so either she is busy studying or she's thinking of a way to "un-invite" me! I also have a search logged with RCI to get a timeshare in Anaheim, CA for sometime from January - May 2003 to visit Disneyland again, the new California Adventure and Down Disney. I welcome any questions or comments and hope you enjoyed this report and gleaned some tip to use on your next trip. Kim Howe HoweKM@Cobleskill.edu Mail a Comment to Kim Howe |
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