Trip Reports

Time of Year: Spring
Travel Method: Plane, Shuttle Service
Resort: DL
Accommodations: Standard Room
Ages Represented in Group: Elementary, Adult
WDW Experience Represented in Group: Infrequent, Rookies (children)
Comments: Sue and her family spent a wonderful time at Dixie Landings. Sue's report covers a lot of territory. It's written from the perspective of a very infrequent visitor, so a lot of "newbie" issues are addressed here.

Hello, Friends!

I am Sue from Ohio, and I am writing this mostly as a thank you for all the wonderful advice and support you all give to those of us wanting to make the most out of a visit to that wonderful vacation spot in the middle of the sunshine state! We arrived home yesterday evening, and I can see that it will take quite a while to come down from our Disney cloud. Thanks to my research, much of it from this newsgroup, we were able to take advantage of so much of what WDW has to offer.

PLANNING:

We are a family of five; myself, 39 and a mother at home, my husband, Bruce, 43 and an Air Force officer, and our three children, Peter, 11, Tim, 8 and a half, and Claire, 5 and a half. We knew we wanted to go to WDW sometime, and we wanted to make the most of it. Ideally, I would have preferred to have waited until Claire was even a year or two older, but since we wanted to pull the kids out of school to avoid the worst of the crowds, we decided to go this spring (after spring break crowds but before summer ones), since Peter will be in junior high next year, with more teachers to appease! I knew we wanted to stay in the park-this was a "splurge" trip by our standards, and to me staying at a Disney resort was a huge part of the total experience. I started looking into where to stay and discovered that Dixie Landings is the only moderate resort that will sleep five, so it was an easy decision to make, for us. I initially was thinking we would stay three nights (I'll pause here until you all stop laughing....), but that quite quickly changed to four and eventually five. What's a few more hundred dollars on a "splurge" trip? :o) We went with the Resort Magic plan, since we would arrive around noon the first day and depart about 4 the last; length of stay passes worked out perfectly for us. We also wanted to use a character breakfast as our flex feature. Overall, the basic planning was easy; the fun part was surfing around to find the best advice for the details!

DAY 1: Saturday, May 17th

Early departure on USAir from Dayton; have to make the most of that firstday! Left the house about 5 AM, kids so excited we didn't even need to wake themup. Flights on time, or close to it. My first (and one of my only) minor regrets after our 10:30 arrival was using Mears. Bruce and the kids went to wait for the bags while I tried to find someone in the hot, unruly mass of people and luggage that was the Mears bus stop to check in and use our vouchers forbus passes. After retrieving the bags and kids, we went out to join those same masses until we heard a yell for Dixie Landings and tried to work our way to that queue. About 15 minutes later the bus arrived, and we were one of the last families to get on that one. Our bus driver, Bob, prattled on the whole way, mostly golf jokes! We arrived at DxL about 12:15, so it wasn't too bad, just not the most pleasant experience. But everything certainly went uphill from there!

******TIP: If we were to do it again, we would go with a town car service instead of Mears. With 4 or 5 people, it's about the same price.

While Bruce sorted out the bags, I went to check in. (I did all the planning for the trip, so I got to do the fun jobs!) Just walking in the lobby (excuse me, boarding the steamboat!), I got such a warm, happy feeling about the place. It was bustling, but not chaotic, and the line wasn't too long. After about 15 minutes, I stepped up to Amy's window with a huge smile on my face; and she did not disappoint. Friendly, informative, and truly welcoming. Our first pleasant surprise was that my call 4 days prior to request a nonsmoking room in Bldg. 14 or 18 in Alligator Bayou (a given because of the trundle bed) paid off in that we were assigned room 1439. The second pleasant surprise was that it was ready! We happily walked the very short distance to our room. We found the room had plenty of space for us, the trundle was small but worked great for a kid, and the 2 sinks was a much appreciated touch. I had thought that the sacrifice we would have to make for being so close to the food court and other amenities would be a higher noise level, but the way everything is situated at DxL, that was not a problem. On the contrary, it was one of the quietest hotel rooms we have ever had.

We decided to use the Cotton Mill food court for lunch, purchasing our refillable mugs and finding something for everyone. We were pretty darn honest about paying our 79 cents for refills, and our mugs still paid for them-selves easily. Not to mention they make a great souvenir! We liked the Cotton Mill; nothing fancy or spectacular, but lots of choices for the varying tastes in our family, and quite reasonable as Disney food prices go.

Our first stop was to be Epcot, specifically World Showcase, and it turned out to be a great choice. It was Saturday afternoon, after all, so we knew we wanted to avoid the MK, and I thought WS would be a great, low key way to get things started. We caught a quick Epcot bus (we had great luck with the buses throughout our visit; I can't imagine ever needing to rent a car), and arrived there about 1:45. Oh, joy, we had finally truly ARRIVED! Just seeing the big golf ball, as the kids call it, and the beautiful gardens....I was just floating around. Just as we were walking around the fountain, the music started, and we were all spellbound. It became a joke throughout our visit whenever we passed the fountain:

"Please, don't let the music start....Mom will make us watch it again!" One of my favorite things, to say the least! I can't believe more people don't stop and watch it every time. The kids managed to pull me away to head toward WS, and it was wonderful. The Canada movie was okay, but when we came out we discovered someone had nabbed our rental stroller. We hoped that trend wouldn't continue, and it didn't; we didn't lose another one the whole visit. (Although there were several times the "stroller valet" CM's would move it so far we had trouble tracking it down!) And it was convenient that we weren't far from the IG to get another after the UK. We enjoyed the kids' corner at the UK, as well as the garden maze. The boys wanted to talk to the CM's there, since both of them were born there while my husband was serving a tour with the RAF. To me the aspect of WS that sets it apart from any of its imitators is the fact that the CM's are all from the country represented.

After picking up another stroller at the IG, we headed off to France, to the first serendipitous happening of our wonderful visit. We walked over right as Gordoon Le Clown was beginning his sidewalk show, so we plopped right down and laughed ourselves silly. We were still chortling over his antics when we stepped into Morroco. More than any of the other countries, I think this one captures the feel of an exotic marketplace. We were transported! And we knew we were meant to be there when the acrobats came out; it was as if everyone was saying, "Okay, that family from Ohio who have been waiting to come to WDW is here now. Let the fun begin!" I know the idea is to make every family feel that way, and it certainly worked for us! Anyway, the acrobats were amazing, and the contortionist was astounding. The man had no backbone! The show was great, and just when we thought they were finished, they would do something else even more incredible.

We walked through Japan and wandered over to America, where Claire got her first character autographs. Mickey, Minnie (her favorite), Goofy, Pluto, and Chip and Dale were all there. She was a bit shy with all but Minnie, but of course big brother Tim was happy to help. You know the type...too big for characters himself, but "selfless" enough to help out his little sister! We enjoyed the American Adventure...George Washington on his horse at Valley Forge was a big hit. We just wandered through Italy and Germany, and we were running out of steam. We decided to hit the last three another day and head to the Land food court for dinner, when as we walked past China we heard, "In 5 minutes, there will be an acrobatic demonstration...." and we knew after the other shows we had to stop. Of course, it was the right decision. Four little boys and 2 little girls put on a wonderful show. So talented and expressive; definitely a highlight of our walk around the world.

We found the Land and got some sandwiches for dinner. Good chicken salad, but very stale buns...I guess you can't have everything! We watched the Circle of Life movie and enjoyed it very much. We meandered over to Innoventions and only spent a little while there to get a taste of it before giving the kids the lowdown....stay and play video games and we lose swimming time at DxL! After our cool Ohio spring, they were ready for some major pool time, so that was all it took. We did hop on Spaceship Earth on the way out, as it was a walk on. Can't pass that up!

We arrived back at DxL around 8:30 and swam for a good hour. Lovely pool area, with a great water slide. The boys loved jumping through the waterfall. And we were happy to see the free life vests for Claire, our little non-swimmer.

We retired to our room tired but happy, looking forward to a great visit.

DAY 2: Sunday, May 18th

We woke up early today to try to make it for EE at MGM, and I also had my first experience with the can-do attitude of CM's. I had managed to forget my saline solution for my contacts, and those of you who wear contacts know that tap water just doesn't cut it. So about 6:15 I went down to the lobby to ask if there was anyplace to get saline, given that we had no car. The CM said Fulton's (the hotel store) might have it, but that it didn't open until 7. I told her we wanted to get going early today, so she said just to knock on the window over at Fulton's, and someone would help me. Sure enough, after a couple of knocks, the CM in Fulton's came over, unlocked the door, and after a quick explanation, brought me the saline and charged it to my room. Ah, Disney.

We had what was to become our standard breakfast at the Cotton Mill: bagels, cereal, fruit, and juice. One disappointment was that there was no juice or milk on the beverage bar, so we couldn't use our mugs for that. We're not coffee drinkers, so we usually just got hot chocolate or tea, or sometimes fruit punch for Claire. Have to get the most out of those mugs!

Due to a bit of uncharacteristic (for us) dawdling, we didn't make it to MGM until about 7:45. We headed straight for the Tower of Terror, of course. The boys and Bruce got in line (it was about a 30 minute wait already) while Claire and I waited outside. There wasn't much else for us to do, so we just watched people and waited. She actually could have handled the ride motion just fine, but not the atmosphere- a bit too scary. When the boys came out, Tim (8) loved it, Peter (11) liked it but didn't want to do it again, and Bruce felt a bit like Peter, which surprised me. I knew I wanted to go, but if the line was going to be like that, I didn't want to wait again later, so I took Tim by the hand and headed in the exit. I nabbed a CM by the elevators and explained our slightly modified baby swap, that we had waited outside instead of in the line since my little one didn't like the atmosphere, and after just a tiny hesitation, he took us right up. So I missed the library, but it was still a great ride, one of my favorites. I love the effects even more than the drop...so eerie.

After ToT, we decided to hit the first (9:00) showing of Mermaid, and it was packed. But we got in, and it was a very good show. The boys liked the water curtain, and Claire loved the singing and the black light puppets. After the show, we found a bit of respite from the crowds at the HISK playground, believe it or not. Only a few kids had found it by then, but it was packed only about 20 minutes later. So we took a break for a little snack from the backpacks. I had packed powdered drink mixes (lemonade, gatorade, etc.) for our water bottles, and just a few small snacks (pretzels, cheese crackers, granola bars), and that probably saved us $20-30 a day in snacks, not to mention thirst relief in lines and at shows. We still snacked on special treats, so we didn't feel too deprived!

After HISK started getting crowded, we headed over to the Backlot Tour for a walk-on. We all enjoyed just about all of it. The boys liked the naval battle and Catastrophe Canyon, of course, and my favorite touch was the "parking lot" with Cinderella's pumpkin, etc. Cute! After the tour we got right in Muppet Vision. Fantastic! I loved it when Waldo points right at everyone. (Or did he really just point at me? :o)) It was fun to watch Claire, since this was her first 3D movie. She loved it!

We just had to go to Star Tours next, as Peter is a HUGE Star Wars fan. It was posted as a 20 minute wait, but it wasn't even that long. Of course, Peter had to point out every little inaccuracy, but even he loved it. The big surprise, though, was Claire-I expected her to be a bit shaken up by all the motion, but every time I looked over at her, she had a huge grin on and was really getting into it! Don't you love it when kids surprise you?

MGM was quite crowded by now, so we decided to head back to DxL for lunch and a swim. We found that although MGM had some of our favorite attractions, it was our least favorite park because it was so crowded. I assume that is because it attracts about the same number of people as the other two, but it is so much smaller.

We had our basic Cotton Mill lunch, then a wonderful swim at the pool. It wasn't too crowded, and so refreshing. Claire even went on the water slide, first with Bruce or me, and then on her own. Fun! Then we headed off for our first visit to MK! We arrived there about 2:40 and found a spot right in front of the guest of honor visitor center for the parade. It was hot, so the boys especially weren't too happy about sitting on a curb, but I really wanted them (and us!) to see it, so we stuck it out. I got Claire & Tim some cotton candy, followed by the obligatory "snapshot of the sticky kids"! We did enjoy the parade, although the boys weren't totally convinced it was worth the wait!

Then it was off to Tomorrowland! Peter knew he would hate Alien Encounter; he does not like scary surprises, always wants to know what he is up against. So Tim and Bruce got in the short line for it while Peter, Claire and I did TTA and the speedway. TTA may be a bit dated, but it is relaxing and fun. We got some ice cream at Aunty Gravity's, and while we were eating, a trash can rolled by! So funny..."My name is PUSH, what is yours?"...."I can see your belly button, I can see your belly button"...and all the kids looking inside for the person they are sure is in there. The running joke from that point on was to ask all the trash cans if they were related to PUSH!

After Tim and Bruce found us again, one look at Tim's face told me he wouldn't be going on AE again! Scared the beegeebers out of him, as Bruce said. But I still wanted to go, so I went alone while Bruce and kids did Carousel of Progress and Take Flight. I loved it, especially the preshow with S.I.R. the robot and Skippy. Tim got a great t-shirt, with Skippy pre-transport on the front, and post-transport on the back!

We ate at Cosmic Ray's, nothing to write home about, just sus-tenance! Then Claire spotted the teacups, and we were off for a bit of Fantasyland. The kids got soaked at Ariel's Grotto, and then we hit the Legend of the Lion King. Not bad, but I thought they took the easy way out by using footage from the movie so much. It was getting dark, so we strolled over to the Haunted Mansion. We somehow managed to get Claire on it, but she wasn't too scared. She did say she wasn't going on it again! The rest of us loved it, of course.

We found a spot across from the Liberty Tree Inn for the Spectromagic, and planned to get a snack at the ice cream cart near by (it was about 8:50), but believe it or not, the cart was closing! Hard to believe, considering all the people in perfect "snacking position" waiting for the parade. Never did understand that one. So we waited for the parade, Tim and Claire struggling to keep their eyes open, and it was worth the wait. Loved the Little Mermaid floats. We joined the crowd flowing toward the exit, amazed at the vacuums and CMs obliterating all signs of the parade within minutes. We stopped at the guest of honor center to get our badges and lithos (they handed us three of them), and that turned out to be a good move. We got to the bus stop for DxL in a bit of a lull between parade and fireworks crowds, so we were able to watch the fireworks from the bus stop and then get on the next bus. We were asleep within minutes of arriving at the room, resting up for another fun day tomorrow!

DAY 3, Monday, May 19th

Today was Bruce's 43rd birthday, so we had called for priority seating at the 1900 Park Fare character breakfast at the Grand Floridian. Claire (5) loves Mary Poppins, and I wanted to see the GF! We had originally planned to use a few EE hours at the MK before our 11:00 seating, but after staying for the parade and fireworks the night before, we knew that would be pushing it. So we slept a bit later, played on the DxL playground for a while, and then hopped on a bus for Epcot, planning to do a little Monorail riding. Staying at DxL, we didn't have much occasion to ride the monorail, and the boys really wanted to do it. So we rode the almost empty train from Epcot to the TTC, then watched the masses from the parking lots head for the queue for the MK while we went to the monorail resort side. We asked for the front of the train, but someone else was already there. We rode the whole circuit just for fun, then got off at the Poly the second time around just to look around for a while. Looked nice, but not worth the higher price than DxL, to us. We hopped back on the monorail for the one stop to the GF.

We tried to hold our gaping to a minimum when we stepped into the GF; god forbid we look like some tourists from Ohio! Certainly a beautiful place. We were early, so we wandered the lobby before checking in for breakfast. Mary Poppins was wonderful with Claire, and we didn't have to wait more than a few minutes before we were called for our table. The buffet was quite good; the kids loved the strawberries and the Mary Poppins juice drinks the waitress was nice enough to tell us about (orange and strawberry juice, complete with umbrella and Mickey shaped straw). Minnie, Pluto, the white rabbit, and Alice were all there and visited our table several times. They didn't make a big deal for Bruce's birthday, in spite of my reminders and to his undying relief! It was fun, but frankly would not have been worth the price (about $70 for our family) if we weren't getting it as our flex feature on the resort magic package.

After our meal we decided to finish up MGM, so we went out to the GF bus stop and within a minute the Studios bus arrived. Great timing! We walked into the 12:15 Indiana Jones show and loved it. The "volunteers" from the audience are especially funny. The moving stage is terrific and really makes for a great show. After that we went straight to the 1:15 Hunchback show, arriving in time to see the last 10 minutes or so of Matt the juggler. Funny and talented. But the show was even better, for us. We love the movie, and the show captured its essence SO well. Quasimodo and Esmerelda were good, but I thought Clopin was the best. And I loved the way they didn't use fancy new technology to put on a great show, just creative staging and wonderful acting and singing. The kids loved when they released the tissue paper confetti bells several times; Claire was collecting them!

We had heard so much about the Toy Story parade that we headed toward Star Tours next to find a spot to watch it. We had to climb over a rail to stand in a garden area, but it worked! It always bothered me at parades why adults don't let kids stand in front of them so EVERYONE can see, but we survived. It was a wonderful parade, with the green army men the big favorite, as usual. They will probably do a great job with Hercules, too.

The only show we hadn't seen was Beauty and the Beast, but since the last show was 2:45, the kids did NOT want to go to yet another show that soon, and I had heard mixed reviews about it anyway, we decided to just skip it. Tim and I wanted to do ToT again, so we decided to go there while the other 3 did Star Tours, meeting at the entrance to the park after our rides to catch the bus back to DxL for a swim. On the way to ToT, we stopped at Catalina Eddie's to get an ice cream, and Tim saw they had Surge (a new Mountain Dew-type soda, for those unfamiliar). He decided he wanted a Surge float, which was most definitely NOT on the menu. So we told the CM what he wanted, and after a bit of a discussion, they not only made it for him, but they made a big deal out of his being the "creator" of this new item, asking him to sign their autograph book and write what it was he had created! He ate it up (both the float and the attention). Just a neat memory for him, one of many. Anyway, we entered the ToT line in spite of the posted 30 minute wait, since we weren't planning to come back to MGM. Well, it was hot, and the line was interminably slow; we FINALLY got into the hotel at about the 45 minute point, making the overall wait about an hour. Yes, it is a great ride, but I'm not sure we would have gone had we known that would happen. And the worst part was that of course Bruce, Peter, and Claire were finished at Star Tours long before we were, so they waited by the entrance for at least a half an hour. We should have planned to meet at DxL instead of there, but we all survived and learned from the experience!

We had a great swim at DxL, even when the rain started. (Heck, we were wet anyway!) After an hour or so we went back to the room to change, and it started to pour. So we just waited it out, and it was only sprinkling when we walked to the Cotton Mill for dinner. It was still sprinkling when we were finished, so we donned ponchos for the trip over to Disney Village Marketplace. We took the bus and just wandered around, doing most of our shopping at the World of Disney, of course. The kids agonized over choices that fit their allotment of souvenir money, and I found a few things for teachers' gifts. The store was pretty packed by the time we left. We decided to take the boat back to DxL, and it was a good choice. It came quickly, there were only a couple of families on it, and it was a lovely ride. The rain had stopped, and even at night it was neat to see the treehouses and of course the lights of PI. I had read that the trip took 30 minutes, but it only took 15; our driver was really moving! We were planning to take advantage of EE the next day for Epcot, so we called it an early night. Until tomorrow!

DAY 4, Tuesday, May 20th

Woke up this morning realizing we hadn't heard the news or read a newspaper since our arrival, and we were feeling better for it all the time! Yes, immersion is a wonderful thing.

In spite of our less than perfect experience with EE at MGM, we decided to take advantage of EE at Epcot this morning. After breakfast at the Cotton Mill, we caught a bus at 7 and were in the queue to get in to Epcot by 7:15. Watched a 2 year old try to keep up with our "big" kids while they were waiting...cute! Nice to see that when we were allowed in, there was no mad rush, just a nice walk over to HIStA. So we were one of the first ones in, and relaxed on the floor waiting a few minutes for it to fill enough for the first show. Took a cute picture of everyone wearing their "safety goggles"! I had warned Claire that when the snake came she might want to close her eyes and/or take her glasses off, and when the mice came she might want to lift her legs. She ended up doing both... and so did Peter! The little girl behind us was screaming most of the time, but we all thought it was a fantastic show. The effects are so well done, with a little imagination one can truly feel small! After the show we did the rest of Imagination. Peter liked Dream-finder and Figment so much he did it again later, and ended up buying a small stuffed Figment. All the kids had fun at Image Works, which was still empty enough to do everything several times if they wanted.

We had to hit Living Seas next, as both boys' teachers wanted them to report back about it. It was interesting, but we had seen better aquariums different places. After that we were off to see Ellen, a family favorite, at Energy. It was getting quite hot, and there was a short wait outside, but once we were in we all enjoyed it. Love the preshow, when Ellen mocks the CM talking about eating, drinking, smoking, etc. Great AA Ellen in the dinosaur part, too. Overall, a very funny, enjoyable way to learn.

Our next stop was a less than successful one in the Wonders of Life. There was quite a line for Body Wars, and Cranium Command was broken, so we decided to come back later. (A good decision, it would turn out.) We headed to the WS to pick up the 3 coun-tries we had missed the first day, Mexico, Norway, and China. We walked there just after the 11:00 rope drop, so we went to Norway first before the Maelstrom ride got too crowded. We only had to wait about 10 minutes, and we enjoyed the ride, although it wouldn't be worth the long waits I have read about sometimes. Claire even got an autograph from Nolka on the way out. We were pretty hungry by then, so we stopped at the Lotus Blossom Cafe. Bruce and I love Chinese food, and although the kids are pretty picky about it, we figured if they didn't eat much, we could get them something else later. Bruce got the szechuan chicken special and I got a chicken and vegetable stir fry platter, thinking the kids could nibble off mine. Well, it turned out they liked it so well we had to get another! And all of us got a kick out of Bruce; when I asked him if his was spicy, he said something like, "Oh, it has a little kick to it." Then we all noticed the beads of sweat on his forehead and upper lip! The kids never let him forget that one.

Bruce wanted to see the movie at China, but the kids weren't much for the 360 movies, so he stayed there and the kids and I went to ride the Rio del Tiempo. It was a bit of a wait, but the marketplace has such a neat atmosphere that we didn't mind. And the boat ride was fun. I love the market, where the people follow your boat, begging you to buy! And the fiber optic fireworks at the end are a great touch. While waiting outside for Bruce, we had to try a watermelon juice and a churro, both of which quickly disappeared. Then it was time for our first water park, Blizzard Beach!

We went back to DxL and changed first; we found that easier than changing at the water parks themselves. BB was crowded, since it was so hot, and we found it a little hard to orient our-selves at first. We found a chair at the Ski Patrol Training School, a perfect spot for our age kids, and did a bit on the Cross Country Creek before splitting up. Bruce and the boys went to find some slides, and Claire and I had a wonderful time in the training area, sliding and swimming. We even climbed Mt. Gushmore (by the steps...the chairlift line was too long) and did Teamboat Springs with a young Oriental couple. They laughed at Claire's expressions the whole way down! By far the best family raft ride we have ever been on, and that is quite a few. We tracked the others down and did it again together later. I loved the view from the top of Mt. Gushmore, including the Tree of Life. Gets me excited about coming back in a few years! After a few hours, we were ready to head back to DxL for dinner and a trip back to Epcot.

As soon as we got back to Epcot around 7:30, we went to the Wonders of Life, and it was not at all crowded, so we knew we had made the right decision earlier in the day. Body Wars was only a few minutes wait. It was okay, but not very educational. Hardly any clues what we were traveling through most of the time! Cranium Command was another story; we liked that much better. Bobcat Goldthwaite makes a great Adrenalin! Actually, all the casting was quite inspired. A definite must-see. We played around with the Wondercycles and some of the other things before a stop in Innoventions since we had time before Illuminations. Around 8:45 we headed to WS and found a pretty good spot near one of the boat docks. Bruce went to fetch some ice cream, and we sat back to relax and enjoy the show. It was great, especially the ending, lots of white fireworks to "Ode to Joy". I can't judge its relative merits (from reading the newsgroups, I surmise that they have been tinkering with it of late), but we enjoyed it very much.

Now came the part of the evening I had dreaded, trying to leave Epcot with tens of thousands of others at the same time, and then catching a bus with at least hundreds of other people. Thanks to several factors, it turned out to be a surprisingly pleasant experience. The first was the lack of a lot of pushing, rushing, etc. I guess the message of international harmony sinks in just a little! Another was the line of CM's along the edge of the flowers going out, wishing everyone a good night. For some reason that gesture alone meant a lot to me and said more about the Disney attitude than anything else. It put everyone in such a warm spirit that even the crowd at the DxL/ Port Orleans bus stop couldn't dampen the good feelings. For the most part, we all just chatted and waited patiently. I told the kids we would be there a while, but soon one of the "cattle car" buses pulled up, speeding things up considerably, followed in quick succession by two other regular buses and then one for us. So we were back at DxL by 10:15, not bad at all! Another great day, with one more full day to go!

DAY 5, Wednesday, May 21st

First of all, I forgot to mention yesterday my regrets at not making it to the RADP meet at the Fountainview Cafe. My best intentions were thwarted by the heat and my family's subsequent persuasion to find a water park NOW! I would have loved to have put some faces to the names of the helpful people here. So now I guess I have to plan another trip when there is another RADP meet!

Wednesday we woke to the promise of another hot day, but that was all right since we had planned to visit Typhoon Lagoon first thing. I had asked a CM if the water parks opened a half hour early like the other parks, and she said she thought they let people into the parks but not into the water, which is basically what happened. We arrived by bus around 9:40, waited in a queue on the sidewalk for them to open the gates, and then waited in a group inside for a rope drop at one of the bridges. I felt bad for the CM trying to amuse the crowd when all anyone wanted to do was get in the WATER! We found some great chairs (not that we ever sat in them!) tucked by Blustery Bay. Then the boys and I took off to ride slides before the crowds built up, and that was a good move. We rode all three tube rides once each and all the storm slides several times. I just love those; where else but a water park can a homemaker pushing 40 hurtle down a slide, splash at the bottom, then get out for more?! These were all walk ons at this point; later they got much more crowded. We went back to the lagoon to find Bruce and Claire, and after that it was tough to get any of the kids OUT of the wave pool. I loved the screams of delight whenever the crowd would hear the FWOOMPH that meant another great wave was coming. I'm still not sure how major injuries are avoided every time dozens of teenagers body surf into hundreds of gradeschoolers and eventually roll into even more preschoolers and toddlers (not to mention all those adults mixed in there), but a great time was had by all. Claire loved it; she would have one of us pick her up for the intial huge wave, then ride the little following waves. Of course Bruce would have to hesitate..."Oh, you mean you want me to lift you over THAT wave? That one that is coming?" while Claire is watching it roll toward her. She was also very excited about her pail and shovel from her kid's meal at Leaning Palms. Ah, the simple joys in life....

We knew we wanted to get to the MK by about 2 so we could ride during the parade, which we had already seen, so we headed out a little while after lunch. Our first stop was Space Mountain, which had broken when we were in Tomorrowland earlier. It was only about a 5 minute wait, and everyone rode. Claire loved it! It's a true testament to the Disney approach, in that the coaster itself, standing alone outside, would be nothing special at your run-of-the-mill amusement park, but put it in a building with all the Disney special effects, and you have a great attraction. After that we headed over to Toontown, where we all rode the Barnstormer (cute but short...wouldn't be worth a long wait) and walked through Minnie's and Mickey's houses. We decided to forgo the tent, as we had already seen quite a few characters. The kids cooled off a bit at Donald's boat and it was off to Fantasyland. Claire was still insisting on Dumbo, so I knew we wanted to do that during the parade. Sure enough, the line was the shortest we had seen it, so she and I did that while Bruce and the boys got snow cones, perfect for such a hot day. We were then able to go on Snow White, the Carrousel, Small World, Mr. Toad's, and Peter Pan's in pretty quick succession. The worst line was for Peter Pan's, about 30 minutes. Fantasyland finished...hooray! :o)

We hadn't had a chance to see much of the back side of the park, so we headed that way. We walked right into the Hall of Presidents on time for the next show. The boys liked it, and Claire said it was a good place to rest! Now it was on to the mountains! When we walked by Splash, it was posted as a 40 minute wait, so we pressed on toward Big Thunder. That was only 15, so we all rode and loved it. By the time we walked back to Splash, it was down to a 20 minute wait, so we all hopped in that line, even though Peter, who hates big hills, planned to skip it. It was even better than I thought it would be, one of our favorites. We found a surprisingly good dinner at Pecos Bill, a southwestern chicken salad with warm salsa on top.

On to Adventureland! There was about a 20 minute wait for Jungle Cruise, but it was worth it. And everyone liked Pirates of the Carribean. The only disappointment was the the Swiss Family Robinson's Treehouse was closed for refurbishment. The boys had seen the movie and were looking forward to that.

Bruce wanted to do Alien Encounter again (he said the first time will always be the best), so we wandered Tomorrowland a bit before splitting up. The parade crowd was building, so Bruce and the kids went to the Toontown train station to ride around the crowd, and I went to look for something for a friend on Main Street. They enjoyed the train so much they stayed on and rode all the way around the park, so I was waiting at the bus stop when they were finished. We still beat most of the crowd, so we caught a quick bus back to DxL for a treat from the Cotton Mill's bakery before bed.

Our Mears bus was coming at 1:40 the next day, so we had to decide what to do our last half day. We decided on Epcot, and as a last splurge, I made priority seating arrangements at the Garden Grill for 11:40, as well as requesting express checkout. Our vacation was almost over! <HUGE sigh>

DAY 6, Thursday, May 22nd

Truly the "mourning" of our departure, as I saw it so aptly described in the newsgroup one time. We had arranged the night before for the bell service to pick up our bags at 8, so after our final Cotton Mill breakfast at 7, we packed up and were ready for him when he arrived right on time. We said goodbye to our room and took a last walk around the DxL grounds, taking a few final pictures. Then we caught a bus to Epcot, sitting in our usual back seat (the boys' choice!).

We wanted to do Horizons, since that was the one pavilion we had not visited, but we decided to do some more of Innoventions first, since we were some of the first ones in. Peter and I tried the VR game and both did quite miserably, while Tim was trying another one and winning, of course. We all found some favorites, and then Claire and I watched Rich (I think) at the convection oven, make cookies and jokes. He singled out Claire a couple of times, and then when he was passing out cookies, he gave her the Mickey-shaped one for being a good sport. She was beaming, showing it off to her brothers (before she ate it!). We toured the Honeywell home of the future, seeing how everyone will be able to be even more lazy; and the boys got to "just one more level!" before we went to Horizons. It was a walk-on, and we liked it. It even got the kids to talking about what life would be like when they were our ages and beyond, and what they wanted to do when they grew up.

We split up after that; Bruce and the boys went to ride the boat in Mexico since Bruce had missed that earlier, and then they did Journey into Imagination again and the boat ride in the Land. Claire and I did a little last minute shopping, and I picked up lots of pamphlets for the kids' teachers (and myself) at the Discovery Center. We caught the Jammitors' act near Innoventions (very talented and funny), and I was able to watch my beloved fountain again. I couldn't pin down where the music was from, so I asked a couple of CM's at the Balzac stand. They insisted none of the music was from movies; I knew better, but I didn't press the issue. Later at the Discovery Center I found the list of music played with the fountain, and sure enough, the music I had heard was from "The Rescuers Down Under". Okay, so CM's are not TOTALLY infallible!

Claire and I headed to the Land for lunch early so we could see Food Rocks. The show was not great for either of us, but Rafiki and Timon did come into the preshow, so Claire was able to get a few more auto-graphs. Then it was time for our priority seating at the Garden Grill, so we met up with the boys and Bruce and checked in. We were seated almost immediately and enjoyed a wonderful meal. Mickey, Minnie, Chip, and Dale visited several times, and our waiter was great. The food just kept coming, and coming, and coming! I loved the mashed potatoes, and everyone ate some salad, since our waiter told us they grew the veggies right in the Land gardens. A very fitting end to a fantastic visit.

We caught the bus back to DxL to meet our Mears bus. The bell service folks were quick and helpful, and soon we were on our way, 4 or 5 families on board. We stopped at 3 or 4 other resorts, but the bus wasn't too full. Claire fell sound asleep within minutes of boarding, and Tim wasn't too far behind. Right after we were dropped off at the USAir terminal, there was a huge crack of lightning and a short but strong thunderstorm, but it didn't manage to delay anything. We connected in Charlotte and finally made it home to Dayton around 9:00, tired but happy, with memories that will last forever!

COMMENTS, NOTES, etc.

FOOD-We had debated before our trip whether to go with the Food and Fun option, and I am VERY glad we didn't. We actually spent less on food than I had budgeted, believe it or not. I know that for many people, experiencing the wonderful sit-down restaurants around WDW is a big part of a vacation; but we planned to stick mostly to counter service food. Our kids are rather picky (typical for their ages, but not conducive to great dining experiences), and mostly we didn't want to spend the extra money or even more the time, at least on this trip. It worked out very well for us, but I know that other families might feel they were missing out on something. Yes, most of the food was mediocre at best, but we found a few pleasant surprises, and I've read that spending 2 to 4 times as much doesn't guarantee great food, either!

BUSES-As I mentioned earlier, we were VERY pleased with the bus transportation, especially after reading some of the horror stories others have faced. In fact, this may sound odd, but we grew rather fond of the big white buses. They were always there to take us to wonderful places, and the rides "home" to DxL were almost poignant for me: a 5 year old dozing on my lap, an 8-year-old almost as sleepy leaning against a shoulder, an 11-year-old having a quiet conversation with his dad....I know, I'm a bit weird, but I try to find my moments wherever I can! The rides were especially good for Claire. She certainly didn't need a long nap every day, but those 15- or 20 minute catnaps on the bus rides meant all the difference in the world to her mood later in the day. In short, when we ever come back, I will not hesitate to forgo a rental car again.

CROWDS-When we initially planned our trip, we thought it would be a great time to go, before summer crowds and after spring break ones. But I began to get a bit worried when I started hearing about the 25th Anniversary crowds throughout the year. Well, the bottom line was that if we were smart about when we went where, the crowds, although larger than usual for that time of year I am sure, were not a major obstacle to having fun. I do think most of the British Isles decided to take a week off and travel to WDW, considering the number of British accents we heard, but that's okay; it's not a big country! :o) The only place crowds curtailed what we wanted to do at times was MGM, I think because it is such a small park compared to the others. And of course I am grateful for the anniversary celebration because of the extra shows and longer operating hours than normal this time of year. On balance, it was a great year (and time of year) to go.

Sorry to subject you all to this rough, first try trip report, but I do appreciate the advice and help from everyone here. Happy Disney dreams to everyone!

Sue

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