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Frank Andrews -- September 2002 -- Walt Disney World (PORR)

Cast:

• Me/"Dad" - 35; erstwhile Disney veteran (haven't been in 3 years, haven't stayed inside park in 20)
• Wife/"Mom" - mid-thirties; same Disney experience as me
• Daughter/"Wednesday" - 6, 3rd trip (1st since she was 3)
• Son/"Pugsley" - 18 months, 1st trip.

Trip:

September 27 - 29, 2002

Port Orleans Riverside (Magnolia Terrace)

After a very long summer (including a move from New England to Florida where I came down two months early and only saw the family three times during that span), we decided to treat everyone and drive up to Orlando for the weekend. Once the decision to head to Orlando was made, then came the part that I enjoy almost as much as taking a vacation - planning it. (Yes, I am disturbed.)

First stop: WDW website. I saw that they were running some fall specials for Florida residents, and called to book a room at one of the All-Star Resorts. No problem, plenty of rooms; $65.00 per night at Music. Done. However, a friend told me about Yeehaw Travel Services (if you've ever driven on the Florida Turnpike, you've seen their ubiquitous signs; sort of a poor man's South of the Border). They are located at Exits 193 and 93 on the Turnpike. Try them! I stopped by the location near my office, and I got a rate for PO Riverside of $175.00 for two nights, including tax! Well, that reservation got changed rather quickly. (I think Yeehaw Travel is on the web as well, but I don't know the address.)

Next: Admission media. After lucking onto this website and Deb's WDWIG by pure accident (a happy coincidence), I found out about another FL resident perk. The Play Four Day Pass. This is basically a 4-day hopper (not Plus) which expires on November 17, 2002. The good news - the cost of this ticket was only $115.00 (including tax) per person! The bad news - as we only used two days during this trip, we will have to go for another weekend before 11/17. Bummer. (Note, the other perk to this pass is that we can credit the full purchase price toward annual passes if we decide to purchase.)

Well, all that was left to do was sit and wait. Actually, what this meant was that I had 4 weeks to: check in daily at the MousePlanet website, review all menus at the parks, pester Brian with emails, and map out each day to the minute.

Finally, the weekend arrived.

Day 1 - Travel; Dinner; Exploring

I couldn't sneak out of work too early, so the family picked me up at the office at 4. Less than three short hours later, we were at the hotel. PO Riverside really is a beautiful resort - very well themed, and peaceful (although this may have something to do with the season as well). Check-in only took 10 minutes, and Mom and kids watched TV and colored while they waited. Staff was extremely nice, and I was able to buy admission tickets and make my PS for 50s Prime Time for Sunday with no hassle. We got the Magnolia Terrace first floor room which I had requested (called the Room Controller on Monday - thanks Brian). At first, I was a little disappointed that we did not get an offer to upgrade to water view, but in the morning I was thankful that we were so close to the bus stop.

Wednesday wanted to ride in the golf cart, so she and Mom hopped a ride with bell services (also extremely helpful) while Pugsley and I drove over to the hotel - parked right outside the room. The room was nice, similar to a Holiday Inn or Marriott, clean and big enough for us. Dropped the stuff in the room and headed to the food court for a late (by our standards) dinner. We loved the food court. The food was fresh and better priced than in the park itself (although by no means cheap). The fresh fruit, including grapes and melon, was a big hit with my family. Mom and I had tuna sandwiches, and the kids had spaghetti. Although I am a big Coke drinker, I couldn't justify the $10.99 (yes, the price has gone up) for the mug for a 2-day trip.

After dinner, we walked around the store and arcade. I bought Wednesday one of the Magic Moments pins that lights up in different areas of the parks (more on that later). We walked around the grounds, checked out Ol' Man Island pool area (very cute), and headed off to bed. Well, at least Mom and Wednesday went to bed, I got to deal with an 18-month old who goes to sleep at the drop of a hat when in his own crib, but elsewhere . . . Let's just say I got a very nice walking tour of the entire Port Orleans grounds (including French Quarter).

Couple of first day notes: The requested crib came while we were at dinner. It was a Pack-N-Play, and when I attempted to set it up, one of the sides would not lock. I called housekeeping, and they sent a replacement (full-size this time) within 15 minutes. We also liked the bedtime stories they show on the in-house channel; makes getting kids into pajamas much easier. Also, Wednesday really liked the continual loop of theme park tours on another in-house channel, so that she could see some of the rides she would go on the next day.

Day 2 - Magic Kingdom/Pool

Wake-up call was on-time at 7:00. While Mom showered first and the kids watched Playhouse Disney, I walked to the food court to get breakfast. Two kids' pancakes (they were actually quite good) and a chocolate chip muffin (for me), milk and juice. We had brought a loaf of bread and some cereal (sometimes it's nice to drive to your vacation spot), so I picked up cream cheese for the bread. After showers and lathering up the kids with sunscreen, we walked to the bus stop (barely two minutes) to wait for MK bus. Only 2 other people there; we waited no more than 5 minutes (our typical wait time), and the bus ride was 15 minutes tops. At this point, Wednesday was both excited and nervous. You see, she has this slight apprehension (all right, pure abject fear) of "dressed-up people" (characters). Always a bit of a problem when you're at WDW, but she in fact did quite well this weekend, although she still avoided Mickey and gang like the plague.

We got to the park about 5 minutes after rope drop, but the crowds were definitely manageable. In fact, there were very few crowds all weekend. Our longest wait all weekend was 20 minutes at Indy Speedway.

Now, just one word about the weather: it was HOT and HUMID. It was 95 both days and very high humidity. While this is Florida, and we are used to this kind of weather, this was still unseasonably hot for Orlando. And that is not even mentioning the occasional extra 30-pound weight (Pugsley) I got to lug around.

First on the agenda: Buzz. Walked in (why use Fastpass when there's no one in line?), and made it almost all the way until we saw a loud talking robot. Well, that was it for Wednesday. NEXT! So we deiced to head to TTA for a nice easy ride. While she was a little nervous during the dark parts (Space Mountain, etc.) she did enjoy the ride, so her day was getting better. As for Pugsley, he did what he did on almost all the rides, sat there with mouth wide open in amazement taking it all in.

Without boring you all with details, we basically spent the morning in Tomorrowland and Fantasyland - TTA, Small World, Peter Pan, Pooh (love the FastPass on that one; why wait even ten minutes when you can wait none?), Teacups, Snow White and repeats. We had originally planned on eating in the park at counter service, but after seeing the PO-Riverside food court decided to head back there. Another good meal (more tuna sandwiches, Caesar salad, pizza, peanut butter crackers and fresh grapes), and then back to the room to change into bathing suits.

The original plan was to have Pugsley sleep while we went to the pool, but since he napped at the park and was full of energy, he came to the pool as well. Pool was great. Wednesday loved that she could stand in a good portion of the pool, which always gives her a lot more confidence in her swimming ability. Pugsley liked the 18" kiddie pool, but he especially loved going down the water slide on my stomach. Every time we reached the bottom, all I heard was "more" (or something close thereto).

After the pool and showers, it was back to MK. Another 5 minute wait for the bus. Park had a few more people there, but having been there on Thanksgiving Day 1995, I can say with confidence that this park was definitely not crowded. Headed to Tomorrowland where Pugsley promptly fell asleep in his stroller. So Wednesday and I hit Indy Speedway, then it was back to Fantasyland for Dumbo. I must say that at first I was a little upset that we weren't hitting Frontierland or Adventureland; I really believe the kids would love Pirates and Jungle Cruise. But then I realized that they were thoroughly enjoying themselves doing what they were doing, and that was why we were there. So I went with the flow and just enjoyed their enjoyment. And those rides will always be there next time.

While Mom and Wednesday were on Dumbo, I took the sleeping Pugsley down to Package Pick-up to collect a Belle toy set Wednesday had purchased earlier in the day (we had given her some Disney Dollars when we got to Orlando as a reward for doing so well in school - which she really has been - and told her she could pick out what she wanted. That way we didn't have to hear "I want" all weekend, because the choice was all hers, and she could walk away with one good-sized souvenir or a few little ones). The plan was to give her a chance to play with her new toy while we sat down for dinner, thus allowing us a few extra minutes off of our feet (and the plan worked beautifully).

We had dinner at Cosmic Rays (actually, we got p.b. sandwiches from Plaza Pavilion and ate them at Cosmic Rays because it's air conditioned). Mom and I didn't eat, due to late lunch and a general feeling of being overheated. Finished up with one more round of Pooh (it really is well done) during SpectroMagic, Small World, Teacups and TTA, then tried to beat the fireworks crowd out. The line for the bus was quite long, but they immediately brought up 3 buses, one right after the other, so we got on quickly, although we did have to stand.

Back to the hotel, where Mom and Wednesday went right to bed and Pugsley and I went for our nightly bedtime walking tour. After I finally transferred him to the crib at 10:30, I got changed and went back to the pool. This was rather disappointing, however, as the water slide and waterfall were shut off and there were no towels left at the pool, even though it was supposed to be open until 12. But still, the nice cool dip was a refreshing ending to a very hot and humid day.

Day 3 - MGM/Home

The original plan for Sunday was to copy Saturday (park-pool-park), but after a long Saturday, we decided to sleep in late, hang around the hotel and then head to MGM later in the morning. We would then stay as late as we lasted and then head home.

The revision worked great. The kids slept until 8 (very late for them), and then we spent some time in the room packing, showering, playing and eating breakfast. After I packed the car, Mom and Wednesday walked to the main building while Pugsley and I drove again. Hung out in the store and arcade again, then drove to MGM about 11. Even smaller crowds then MK.

Wednesday had been talking for the last two weeks about going to the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground, so we headed there first. Great play area. Both kids loved it. If it had not been 95 degrees again, we would have stayed longer, but I needed air conditioning. So we headed for Muppets. No line, walked right in to a pre-show that was about halfway through. Theatre was maybe 40% full. I've always liked this show, and kids enjoyed it as well (and, interestingly enough, I'm not sure if Wednesday ever noticed that Sweet-Ums was a "dressed-up person" and not a puppet - oh well, I'm not going to tell her). Then it was off to get Fast Passes for Millionaire, and a walk through some shops. We actually did not need the Fast Passes, but we just wanted to be safe.

Did the Great Move Ride while waiting for Millionaire. I do agree with some that this has become somewhat dated, but I still love the Alien and Wizard of Oz scenes. Wednesday liked seeing the movies at the beginning and end, and Pugsley, as always, went through with wide-eyed wonder. On to Millionaire. I had never been to this one before, and I must say it is very cleverly done. My family was rooting for me, although I never did get in the hot seat (I finished the show in second place on the standings board). Very cute. The hosts they had (I actually went twice) were excellent, and the twist on the lifelines (where instead of "phone-a-friend" you have "phone-a-stranger" - a phone elsewhere in the park rings, and a cast member hands the phone to the next person to walk along to help you answer the question) was very inventive.

Lunch was at ABC commissary where Mom had the taboulleh sandwich (she liked it), and I had fish and chips (fish was mushy and not good at all; fries were okay). Kids had mac and cheese and peanut butter crackers (which we had brought), with fruit cups (ours) for dessert. Best part was (again) the air conditioning. At 1:45 the restaurant was almost empty.

Wednesday and I then did the Walt Disney exhibit (but not the movie). Very informative. Even Wednesday was intrigued by some of the exhibits. Then back to playground while Pugsley slept, then Mom and Wednesday went back to Muppets while a sleeping Pugsley and I went to look for a limited edition pin for my sister-in-law the collector. Excellent selection under the 100-Year sorceror's hat.

After Pugsley's wake-up time, the rest of the family did some outside touring (and shopping) while I went back into Millionaire (this time on my own). Again, I didn't get up there; again, I was in second at one point (but fell off leader board after I got a question wrong, oh well).

Met up around 5:30, and decided we were done. Mom and I were not hungry yet, so we were deciding whether to head over to DD for dinner, but figured that would mean a very late departure because the kids would want to walk around. Then Wednesday said she was hungry for dinner, so we decided to head over to 50s Prime Time Café for dinner. We had a 7:00 PS, but they said we could get a walk-up table in less than 15 minutes (see, I told you it wasn't crowded - in fact, at this point, the park was almost EMPTY). After 5 minutes, they sat us.

This was a great meal. I have read often about how the experience depends on your server. Well, we had a great waiter ("Topher"). He was into it, and Wednesday absolutely loved it. She loved to see her father get the airplane treatment and her mother be scolded for putting her elbows on the table. My salmon was just okay, but Wednesday devoured her pasta and Mom liked the fried boursin cheese and salad she had. Pugsley (as is his custom) had no problem with his peanut butter sandwich. Without getting into details and spoiling the surprise of the experience, I heartily recommend this restaurant. While the desserts looked delicious, we decided to grab some sweets while walking through the park.

After dinner, Pugsley and I just walked up and down the street (hundreds of millions of dollars on imagineering, and the kid's fascinated with climbing onto and off of the sidewalks), Mom and Wednesday did some last minute browsing, and picked up some chocolate covered pretzels for dessert. We decided to skip Fantasmic, since Monday was a work and school day, and just head home. Took our last ride of the weekend (parking lot tram), and headed out at 8.

Awesome trip. Perfect introduction to life in Florida.

Notes and Lessons (in no particular order):

• Magic Moments pin was definitely worth the price. The pin, sold in connection with Walt's 100th, has a set of lights and a radio receiver of some kind. The pin is set to go off in different color combinations at different locations throughout the parks (Small World, Main Street, Space Mountain, etc.). Big hit with Wednesday, and Pugsley too, who kept trying to grab it whenever the lights went on.
• I did not notice any general disrepair or unhappy CMs; in fact, everyone we interacted with all weekend was helpful and courteous.
• Two hotel disappointments: (1) We had purposely left the kids' stuffed animals on the bed on Saturday, expecting magic when we returned. Instead they were just lined up against the pillow (and yes, I had left a tip). This may have something to do, however, with the fact that we returned as they were finishing up, so maybe they did not have any time. (2) There was no one on the wake up call. For some reason I was under the impression that these were recorded character voices.
• ESSENTIAL ITEM: two-way radios (FRS systems). Especially if you have a toddler who either (i) likes to wander around and explore at his own pace, or (ii) will be napping in the park. These worked out great in both of these instances. When one of us was with Pugsley, the other could be with Wednesday, and if two of us got off of a ride they did not have to wait to meet up with the other pair. We could just call and let each other know where we were heading next. I know that some people say that cell phones work just as well if you have unlimited minutes (which we have on both of our cell phones), but it's a lot easier to press one button then to pull out the phone, dial (or even press a speed dial button) and wait for the call to go through. One piece of advice on these, though: splurge for radios that have 14 channels and 38 subchannels. There are enough people using these in the park that many of the channels get interference from other users.
• Being aware of Wednesday's discomfort with total darkness, we had previously bought a very small penlight at Home Depot ($1.39 disposable). This way, if she became afraid, she could turn on the light for her benefit, but it did not have enough power to disturb any other riders. This worked out well.
• Food: As you may have noticed, you did not hear about any meat meals during our stay. This is because we keep kosher, and so will only eat vegetarian outside of the house (except for a kosher restaurant). I only mention this because I just want to point out a great resource (sorry, Brian). This is the menu listing on Deb's wdwig.com website. I printed out a number of suitable menus from the hotel and the parks before we headed to Orlando, so we knew where we could eat and what the best choices were. Extremely helpful for those with special diets or picky children (we have both).
• Bring snacks. I know they check bags, and I know it is against the rules to bring food in, but I'm not talking about smuggling in a Thanksgiving dinner. We brought some small bags of snacks (pretzels, goldfish, Kix cereal) in our backpack/diaper bag, and had no problem at security. These were great while waiting for rides or even walking around. And the truth of the matter is that small children get very hungry when they do a lot of walking.
• Bring adult sunscreen - it gets hot, and I got a little too much sun.
• Some advice for those with children who have an "issue" with the roaming characters. There is no need to let your child's fear ruin his or her fun. While there are some limitations - we stayed out of Toon Town and away from the parades - alert eyes and careful planning will always win out. When either Mom or I would see a character, we would steer the group away from him/her/it. If we couldn't get around the character, we would warn Wednesday, and she would just give a wide berth. We may not get that picture of her and Mickey until sometime after she graduates high school, but I'm perfectly happy with all of the other smiling pictures we have of her in the parks. Despite your potential misgivings, the characters are NOT everywhere (it just sometimes seems that way), and the parks can be enjoyed without them.
• A request to parade watchers: If you are going to park yourself on the sidewalk an hour before the parade, please either move when someone is trying to get by you with a stroller (I won't steal your spot) or refrain from giving me dirty looks when I have to bump into you after you repeatedly ignore my numerous "excuse me"s.
• During the hot months, go to Wal-Mart and get a spray bottle fan - they're a great idea, but I can't see spending $16 at the park for one. Also, drink plenty of COLD water. I know that $2.50 for a bottle of water is rather steep, but it is better than dehydration, and the luke warm drinking fountain water just does not do the trick.
• When traveling with young children (especially nervous ones), don't try to do it all, even if time isn't the issue (it wasn't for us). This is a happy place, and kids should bring home happy memories, not recollections of riding through a dark ride with their eyes welded shut.

Well, thank you all for staying with me all this way. I apologize for the length of this report, but the truth is, we had such a great time, I can't shut up about the trip. Hopefully this will get it out of my system and at the same time provide some insight to others on their way to WDW.

Frank Andrews

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