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Camelia M. Garrido -- Month 2002 -- Walt Disney World (CBR, AKL)
Friday, May 17 Our plane left San Juan, Puerto Rico a little before noon. We got a great price on the plane tickets sometime in February and purchased the tickets immediately. Each ticket was under $200 for a round trip from San Juan to Orlando, which is a real bargain. We arrived to Orlando and went straight to the National counter to get our rental car. This is the third time we go to the World and we are convinced that a car is a great plus if you are traveling with small children. We got a good price on the car (about $190 for the whole week) with our Entertainment card discount. We hit the road and sang Disney songs all the way to the World. (My husband had spent the two previous night downloading the kids favorite tunes and making a special Disney trip CD). By the time we were approaching the World, we realized that Gabriel (our two year old) was fast asleep so we decided that we should make an unscheduled stop at Goodlings for some groceries. My husband waited in the car with the sleeping baby, while I and the five year old bought some groceries: tons of small water bottles, crackers, cookies, and dried snacks. This grocery store is expensive, but keep in mind that things here are still much cheaper than at the Disney parks. Finally, we were on our way to the CBR. This was the first time we were staying at this resort, since on our two previous visits had stayed at the All Stars Movies and the Boardwalk Villas. We arrived at the CBR at about 4:20 in the afternoon. The check-in was a breeze (no lines and a friendly cast member). I also purchased all of our five-day hopper plus tickets (two for us and one for the five year old since Gabi is still under three). The cast member was friendly and polite and applied the appropriate refunds for the unused days from the hoppers of our last visit. We got a room in Jamaica, as I had requested over the phone when I made our reservation. We took our luggage to our room with the help of a very nice bellboy and made quick trips to the bathroom because we were running a bit late for our PS at Chef Mickey's (which was at 6:15). We drove to the Contemporary and had no trouble passing past the guard, since we had our CBR permit on the dashboard. We have been to Chef Mickey's before and though we think the food is a bit pricey, it is a really good way to start off your Disney vacation if you are traveling with little ones. Our boys were ecstatic as Minnie, Chip, Dale, and Mickey made the rounds and came to their table. We also got great pictures of the little ones with Donald Duck and Goofy, who remain standing in front of the buffet's ice cream section. At this point I was starting to feel a bit tired, but was really getting the feeling that we were at the World. The kids were having a blast and we were just sitting still. Chef Mickey's was not crowded that night so I assumed that the crowd levels would be low. . .I would be proven wrong during the week. After our meal we went to the lobby to see the monorail (the kids love this), and then we went back to the CBR. We tried to walk around the hotel grounds, and the kids did spend some time at the playground area in Jamaica's quiet pool, but our evening was cut short because it started to rain. This was good, it forced us to go to sleep early. Saturday, May 18 Andres and I had planed every detail of this trip months before and we had decided that we would start at Animal Kingdom. For one thing, our kids are crazy about animals, for another, this is my favorite park. Additionally, we wanted to end the day at MK, since this was the only night that Spectromagic was scheduled during our visit and we had never seen it. We had breakfast the CBR's food court (which I must admit is a bit disappointing). The food court at the All Stars is much better, you don't have to make individual lines before paying. We arrived at AK at opening and had our bags checked by security. Andres and the kids proceeded while I made the security line. As always, I was armed with plenty of bottled water, snacks and my camera. We always bring our stroller with us. We find it is much better since we travel by plane and a loose toddler at an airport can be annoying, tiring, and most of all plain scary. Our stroller is lightweight and reclines so that Gabi can nap comfortably in it, and it has a nice basket. Besides, we don't need to deal with the hassle of renting and returning the park's strollers. I highly recommend taking your own stroller if your child is under three. Upon arrival, we stopped and took some pictures with the many characters that roam the park at entrance time, but quickly made our way to Kilimanjaro Safaris. I soon realized that there were a lot of people here (we had been at the World last May during this same week last year). The wait for the Safari was around twenty minutes. Since we refuse to wait with small kids (that is why we always travel during the low season) we got fastpasses and headed to the 9:50 am Lion King show. We saw the show, which is always a favorite with the little ones and then went back to the Safari (no line!!!) After that, we headed to Dinoland. Dinoland has truly changed since our last visit in early September 2001. My five year old loved the carnival section and wanted to play all the carnival games. We stayed for a while, since he was enjoying himself. After that, the five year old and I rode Dinosaur. We had never done this ride, and he did not like it much, a bit too scary. He did buy a Dinosaur sticker book on the way out. Then we headed to Asia, where my husband and Andres (5) rode Kali River Rapids twice (they love this ride). There were no lines here. I waited with Gabriel and had something to drink . We sat in the nice shaded area next to the Charkrandi Chicken Shop in Asia. Gabi had a blast playing with a big bell next to our table. We decided it was time to go, since we wanted the kids to have a nap before heading to MK. We left AK at about 2:00pm. We stopped at McDonalds, grabbed some food (to go) and ate it at our hotel room. The kids then napped for about two hours. We headed to MK at about 5:00pm. We decided to ride the monorail (we usually take the ferry so that we can leave the baby in the stroller during the ride), because it seemed uncrowded. We asked to ride the front car and were told that we could do so if we waited for the next monorail, since there was a family already waiting to ride the front car this time around. We waited and were happy that we did, since the boys loved the special treat. The MK was crowded. Apparently everyone wanted to see Spectromagic. Luckily we had a PS for the Plaza Restaurant at 7:00pm. So we decided to hit some of the kid's favorite rides at MK before dinner. We rode It's A Small World (twice), Haunted Mansion (daddy and the five year old) and Aladdin (the four of us in a carpet). The park was so crowded that moving around was really difficult so we decided to call it quits and go to the Plaza. Even with the PS we waited about fifteen minutes for a table. We had dinner, which was really good and reasonably priced. My husband had a burger and I had the strawberry salad, which was good but too big for one person. The kids split a grilled cheese and we all shared an ice cream sundae for dessert. By the time we finished our meal it was almost time for the parade to begin. . .the 9:00 o'clock Spectromagic was scheduled to begin at the park's entrance up Main Street, so we decided to walk towards the entrance/exit and play it by ear. Main Street was crowded, so we walked through the stores, they are connected through the inside all the way through (only the side of the Plaza Restaurant) to the entrance. Once we got to the entrance we stationed ourselves in close to the place were the parade begins (almost in front to the fire station) and decided to watch from there. I am so glad we did, we only waited fifteen minutes for it to start and the kids loved it!!!!!! As soon as the parade ended we ran out and catched the ferryboat. The crowds were not big because people were staying for the fireworks. The kids fell asleep on our way to the CBR (that car seat ride always works wonderfully) and we tucked them right into bed upon arrival. (We had given them a bath after the nap since we had anticipated they would be too tired after the parade. . .our kids usually are in bed by 7:00pm at home). We were exhausted but were very happy with our first day touring. Sunday, May 19 This morning we had planned on going to MGM. When I awoke at about 6:15am it was pouring rain outside. I decided to let everyone sleep a bit longer while I showered and packed all the day necessities (including the ponchos that I had brought with me from our last trip). I finally woke everyone up at about 8:00 am since it was obvious that it was NOT going to stop raining. Andres and I thought it would be best if we had breakfast at MGM, since walking to the food court at the CBR would not be pleasant considering the weather. We headed to MGM under the heavy rain. Once there I made it through security while Andres and the kids headed for the turnstiles. It is amazing how the rain puts people off at the parks. . .it was a breeze to walk down Hollywood Boulevard. We had breakfast at Starring Rolls and got a table!!!! After that, we decided we needed to purchase an umbrella, because our two year old refused to keep his poncho on. (OOUCH. . .an expensive Mickey Mouse umbrella.) We decided to split. Me and Andres Jr. (5) went to see Muppets 3D while Andres and Gabi waited in the area next to Playhouse Disney. We saw the 3D movie with no wait and joined Andres and Gabi at the Playhouse Disney queue. They were the first in line, so we got seated all the way in the front . They both love this show. . ..Danced and sang the whole way through. After that, we all saw the Little Mermaid show. . .again no line. . .a walk through. (The rain is not that bad after all). Then we went to see The Beauty and the Beast show, which was the only thing so far that we had not seen on prior trips. I liked a lot and so did the kids. When the show was over, at about noon, the rain had stopped, the sun was out and so were the crowds. We decided to try Star Tours (which we had not done before). Andres and the five year old did Star Tours, while I had a quick bite with Gabi at the Backlot cafeteria. We decided to sit outside because it was Star Wars weekend and all the characters were circling the area. Daddy and the five year old loved Star Tours (no line) . We all stayed at the table for a while since we were having fun taking pictures with the characters and just hanging out. This part of the park was so uncrowded that the Star Wars characters were playing with the kids. We saw several seven years old boys having light sabers matches and the characters. By this time it was about two o'clock and we decided it was time to go back to CBR. We rested there for a while (no one actually slept), and then we headed to Epcot at about 4:00pm. We headed straight for Test Track, but as expected the fast passes were gone for the day and the wait was over an hour. We then decided to go into Universe of Energy, because the show was about to begin and we had not done this ride in our previous trips. We asked the cast member about the scare factor of this ride (because I remembered having read somewhere that this was too intense for little ones), and she assured us that it was appropriate for all ages. BIG MISTAKE. Gabriel (the two year old) hated this ride and cried almost throughout. It is not scary, but it sure is INTENSE, loud and dark. The baby does not like those 360 degrees-like movie theaters. Well, be advised never to take the advise of a cast member when it comes to ride scare factors. They appear to be trained to say that ALL rides are OK. If you travel with little ones, make sure to do your own research on this subject and have a list of which rides you want to do and which ones you'll pass until the kids are older. This was our third trip to Disney in a year and we had done beautifully in making sure that the kids were appropriate so that the kids could have a blast. The only other mishap had been the prior May at MGM when the cast member told us the Movie Ride was for everyone, and our then 4 year old was scared when our car was "taken at gun point" by the "bad guy". After the ride, I decided to grab a cappuccino and rest since I was tired of trying to calm down a baby all the way through a 30 min. ride filled with dinosaurs and volcanic explosions. We proceeded to Innoventions West (which we had not seen before. . .and the kids love the exhibits in the East side). We played there for a while and headed for Japan, since we had a 6:30 PS at the Teppanyaki Restaurant. As always, we love eating here. The food is good and plentiful (me and my husband shared a plate) and the atmosphere is great for the little ones. After that we walked around the World Showcase and just watched the night set in. It was a bit chilly (good thing I brought the kid's jackets). We went to the playground they set up for the Flower Festival celebration and also to the miniature train (always a hit with the boys). Unfortunately the parade was cancelled because of the wind (our five year old loves the Tapestry of Nations parade....we make a point of seeing it every time). We were tired so we decided to call it a night before Illuminations. Back at the CBR we gave the kids a bath and we called it a day. Monday, May 20 Today is the big day. We are supposed to change hotels (we will stay at the AKL for the rest of the vacation.) We are also going to one of the water parks for the first time ever. We decided to go to Blizzard Beach because our five year old thinks it is the neatest. It is a bit overcast, but the forecast says there will be NO rain. I woke up before everyone else and packed our stuff. Blizzard Beach does not open until 10:00, so we've got plenty of time. We all put on our bathing suits and go over to the food court for breakfast. My husband and I debate whether we should go somewhere else for breakfast, like IHOP, but we settle for the food court because I remembered that the Caravan of Characters was scheduled for today. This was good, because the kids loved the interaction with the characters. After breakfast and plenty of picture with Goofy, King Louise, Rafikki and Timon. . .we walked around the grounds at the CBR a bit and enjoyed watching the ducks and the rabbits. We then packed our bags and left to AKL. We could have sent the bags internally from hotel to hotel, but decided to take them ourselves since we had packed light and we had a car. As soon as we passed the AKL gate I knew I was going to love this place. The architecture and the atmosphere here are great. We checked in, got our new ID's and our new car pass and were given our room key (even though it was very early for check-in). We left our stuff in the room and had to really make an effort not to stay here and explore, so that we could be at Blizzard Beach at opening time. This was our very first time at Blizzard Beach. I have to admit I was skeptical. It seemed to me that this was a park geared towards teenagers and that our kids were way too young to enjoy it. Boy, was I wrong. The boys had a blast here!!! It really helped that the place was empty. We spent most of the time at the Tike's Peak are. This area was perfect for BOTH the kids (5 and 2). They really enjoyed the slides and the tube ride. We rented the lifejackets on the premises, but I noticed that most of the kids there had brought their own 'wings.' Next time, I will bring the baby's wings, since they are more comfy than the full-body life vest. It was difficult for my husband and I to get the kids out of this play area in order to see the other park attractions. The baby cried uncontrollably as we took him out of the water. We decided to ride the family raft ride (Teamboat Springs). We made the mistake of taking the chairlift (this was way too scary with a baby). Next time we'll do the stairs. To our surprise the kids absolutely LOVED this ride, even though I thought it was kid of rough for little ones. We then went to the Ski Patrol area because our five year old wanted to go there. We stayed there for a while, but he soon realized that the attractions at Tike's Peak were better suited for him, so he wanted to return there instead. I have to say that the highlight at the Ski Patrol area was that Goofy was swimming in the pool with the kids and wearing a silly full body bathing suit. The kids loved this and got to swim next to Goofy. What a treat!!!! As I mentioned, we went back to Tike's Peak, ate the snacks that I had brought with us, played a bit longer and then left the park at about 1:00 pm. We then returned to the AKL. Our room was Kudu Trail (third floor), number 3259 (NOT savanna view). As I had mentioned we got a really good deal on this room. We changed into nice dry clothes and went to the Mara for lunch. The Mara is like an upgraded food court. I thought it was nice enough and adequate. We ate there a lot during our stay, so it made sense for me to get the refillable mug. After lunch, we walked all over the hotel grounds. The Savanna Overlook is beautiful and you really get the feeling that you are in an animal reserve. Well, it was hot so there were not that many animals to see. Andres wanted to try the pool and I really needed to do laundry (remember we traveled with carry-on luggage). The laundry facilities here were nice, clean, and very spacious. I left my laundry there, and went later to change the loads into the dryers, but there was a T.V. and nice comfy chairs for those wishing to stay there. Gabi fell asleep in his stroller, and Andres and Andres Jr. were swimming at the pool (the five year old loved the slide), and I just sat there at the Uzima Springs Pool Bar and drank a fruit daikiri while the baby slept and the laundry was ready for pick-up. Andres (5) met a girl named Olivia (4) at the pool, and they had a blast going down the slide over and over. We finally left the pool at around 5:30. We needed to go shower and get dressed, since we had reservations at Boma at 7:15. Back at the room, we got ready, and the five year old and I left at about 6:25 so that we could catch the story telling at 6:30. The story time was a lot of fun, but better still were the animals. . .they were all out at this time and really close in range. Andres Sr. and the baby joined us at the Arusha Rock Overlook at about 7:00 and we all were fascinated by the closeness of the animals. We then went to eat at BOMA, which was wonderful. I have to add that the AKL seemed full, although it did not feel crowded. BOMA was filled to capacity that night. After dinner, we walked around some more, and went to bed. What a GREAT day!!!! Tuesday, May 21 As planned, today was MK day. We wanted to be there at opening. As a matter of fact, we had a PS for Crystal Palace prior to opening time, which we decided not to use. (We had done the Crytal Palace on our two previous visits and decided we wanted to sleep in a bit longer). We had breakfast at the Mara and headed towards the MK. The security line at the MK was long today. Compared to last year, the crowds at the World do not seem smaller, at least to me. We did Dumbo, Winnie the Pooh, It's a Small World (3 times), Peter Pan, and the Tea Cups, all before 11:00 am. We did use fastpass strategically to accomplish this. By the way, we watched the 10:00am sword in the stone Merlin show (which we had never done), and our son (5) loved it so much that he wanted to stay standing there until the 11:00 am show!!!!! He really wanted to be picked as the day's ruler of the realm. Oh boy, my husband and I (both lawyers) had to really use all our persuasive force to get him to continue with our touring plan. We promised him that we would return to watch the 11:00 show. At this point in time, I was a bit worried. . .if he was not picked as the volunteer. . .there was a chance we might have to come to this show all say long. . .every hour on the hour for the rest of the day. . .Well, this is when the little things I do work to our advantage. . .both the boys and his father were wearing yellow t-shirts that I bought at Old Navy. They were cheap and bright, and perfect to spot at crowded places. . .Merlin, obviously remembered the guy with the yellow shirt carrying a baby (with a yellow shirt) and the disappointed and eager five year old with a yellow shirt. So, alas, Merlin picked Andres to be the King of the day, put a crown on him, a cape, gave him a medal and a certificate. He was thrilled and it was the highlight of the whole trip. And, yes, daddy and I were thrilled since we could continue our touring. We then saw Cinderella's show at the castle's forecourt. We rode Buzzlightyear (my husband had gotten the fastpasses while we waited for the show to begin). We then went to the Haunted Mansion (just the five year old and my husband) We got fastpasses for Jungle Cruise and returned to have lunch at the Columbia Harbor House. The kids and Andres sat down at the parade route and had Mickey ice cream bars while I watched the show at the Hall of presidents alone. I love this show. I then joined them right outside, the 3:00 parade was about to begin. The kids liked the parade, but the "It's time to remember the magic parade" form last year was better than this one. We then used our Jungle Cruise fastpasses and left the park. While in the car we decided to go to MGM without resting. We got through the turnstiles right on time to catch the 5:30 parade. My husband went straight to the One Man's Dream exhibit, and I stayed with the kids to watch the parade. I love parades, and I thought this one was much better than the one at the MK. The kids LOVED the cars!!!! We then ran to catch the last show of Playhouse Disney, which the kids loved. We sat at the very end of sitting area this time, and ironically the view is better. After that we met Andres at the exit of One Man's Dream and headed for the Backlot Studio Tour. Andres and Andres Jr. did this ride while I left the baby walk around a bit and blow off some steam (he had been in his stroller for a while). After that I and the five year old rode Star Tours (no wait)...We had a PS at the Brown Derby for tonight, but we were so tired we skipped it. . . we also skipped Fantasia (we've done it before). Back at the AKL we ate at the MARA and went to bed at around 9:00pm (though it felt like midnight). Wednesday, May 22 We were at the AK at opening. First, the Kilimajaro Safaris, then the first Lion King show (Andres was picked to represent the elephant section; he's been having a great run). Then we did our 10:30 PS at the Breakfastosaurus. We had done this before. The food is good and plentiful, although expensive, and the character interaction is priceless. We did this because we had the AMEX certificates for a free breakfast at WDW and we wanted to use them. After the meal, we headed for Dinoland (the carnival section that my five year old loves). Then we did the Boneyard and Kali River Rapids (just Andres and Andres Jr.). We tired to walk the Maharjah Jungle Trek but it was way too crowded (we had seen it before), so we headed for the train towards the Conservation Station, which we had never seen. The Conservation station was a nice surprise. The kids really enjoyed the exhibits, the petting zoo, and the characters which were available for picture and signatures with very little crowd levels. We sat through a show, which was educational and fun. Andres even got to touch a snake. We then took the train back to Africa had some ice cream and waited for the parade to begin. Here, in the AK, the parade moves full circle, and we were seated at the start/finish line. The kids loved this parade so much that we stayed put and watched it twice as it returned. After the parade we headed back to Asia, where Andres and Andres Jr. did the Kali River rapids again, while Gabi slept in his stroller. We left the AK almost at closing, at about 5:30. By the way, sometime during the day we saw DeVine, which I had never seen, and this was a lot of fun. We returned to the AK and the kids and his daddy went to the pool. We were lucky enough to run into Olivia and her parents. We all exchanged our experiences at the parks while the kids had a blast at the pool's slide. We then went to the playground, saw the animals at Arusha Rock and dined at Mara. The kids were in bed at about 9:00, right after a nice warm bath, and Andres and I did some more laundry, while we discussed the possibilities for our last touring day, tomorrow. Thursday, May 23 I had a nice surprise this morning. Sometime around 6:30 am I woke up and decided to go to the balcony. To my surprise there were three giraffes eating at a very short distance from our room. It just happens that the giraffes are fed at that location every morning (our room did not face the savanna, but you could see the giraffes close up and personal every morning). We had a PS today at Cinderella's Royal Table for 8:10 am (prior to opening) and this was hard for me to give up. . .but we had done this before and I had been outvoted. Andres and Andres Jr. wanted to go to Typhoon Lagoon rather than the MK today!!!! So, we headed to Typhoon (we had never been there before). We went right to the kids playground area. First, Typhoon was crowded, compared to Blizzard Beach a few days before. You could tell that Memorial day weekend was just around the corner. The kids seemed to have a blast, but we agreed that the play area at Blizzard Beach is much better than this one. There is too much water squirting here, which makes it difficult to supervise the kids without getting wet unnecessarily. We did the family raft ride, and agreed that the one at Blizzard beach is superior (i.e., longer and much nicer). Besides, there is too much water squirting going on in this ride. Andres and Andres Jr. did the Storm Slides (all three of them), which the five-year old really enjoyed. We also did the Surf pool, except for the baby. The five-year old loved this. We really had a difficult time getting him out of here. The baby played in one of the adjacent beach-like areas surrounding the surf pool, while Andres and I took turns supervising Andres Jr. at the surf pool. I lost my glasses at the surf-pool (this wave is STRONG) and felt like an idiot for wearing them. . . Miraculously, a guy bumped into them and was holding them up in awe, when I realized I had to speak up and admit I was the idiot that wore glasses in this attraction despite all the warnings not to do so. Well, at least I had my glasses back. We had lunch here, and tried to get Andres to swim through shark reef, but he decided not to, after he was already wearing the full gear to do so. We left Typhoon at about three. We then headed towards Downtown Disney. We did our entire souvenir shopping here. The Lego shop is always a big hit for the kids here. Downtown Disney was uncrowded and we walked leisurely. We had dinner at the Wolf Puck Express café, rode the carousel, and just enjoyed walking around the shops. We returned to the hotel and saw the animals once more. The kids went to sleep, and I went to the hotel store to buy some last minute souvenirs. I packed while they slept, and Andres made sure I was not leaving anything behind. We decided to ask for room service in the morning, so we filed the order form and placed it on the doorknob. Andres and I both agreed, we had had a wonderful time. Friday, May 24 Woke up at the crack of dawn. My breakfast arrived at 6:15 am and I had my coffee in the balcony with the giraffes, while everyone slept. After everyone was ready, we headed out to see the animals once more before leaving to the airport. Our plane left at 11:20 am. While we rode away from the AKL I notice that our five year old was silently crying in the back seat. This always happens, and he knows that he needs to calm down silently. . .he insists he gets sad, because he wants to live in Disney World. I tell him that he'll be glad to be home and that he would get way too tired of Disney after a while. The truth is I felt like crying too, but for different reasons. I feel blessed for being able to have spent such a wonderful time with the people that I love the most in the whole wide world. The last time we were here was on September 9, 2001. The changes are painfully obvious, but I feel lucky that my family is healthy and together. What a great vacation!!!! HIGHLIGHTS: the AKL lodge, Blizzard Beach, the Merlin show at the MK (our kid was picked to be KING), BOMA, the animals at the AKL, the pool at the AKL, the parades at MGM and AK. Keep in mind: balloons are not allowed at the AKL (I saw plenty of kids cry when their very expensive Mickey balloons were nicely confiscated at the entrance of the hotel). Straws are not allowed either, bring a sippy cup if your child needs one. We purchased a plastic toy gun and the Star Tours attraction that our five year old really wanted. It was confiscated at the airport at the security check. Make sure you put this kind of stuff inside your luggage. Luckily, we called Disney when we arrive home in an effort to replace the toy, and when we explained what happened they told us they would mail it free of charge. Recommendations when traveling w/ small kids: rent a car, bring your stroller, always bring snacks and water with you, bring your own diapers and wipes (you can find them in the parks, but you will pay dearly for these goods), make the kids wear matching shirts and ID's, explain to the kids what to do in the event they get lost, travel light and do laundry, stay at a Disney property (even the All-Stars is a blast for the kids). Remember, do YOUR research, the web is great for this. I relied primarily on the following websites: wdwig.com., mouseplanet.com., intercot.com., wdwfun.com., and mousesavers.com. In addition, I read the PassPorter, Bob Sehlinger's Unofficial Guide and various other books. Camelia M. Garrido cameliagarrido@hotmail.com Mail a Comment to Camelia M. Garrido |
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