Trip Reports

July 25th - 30th, 1998

Planning Stages

Hi, I’m Laurie (41 YO) a stay at home mom of 3 boys. An almost 5 YO and 2 ½ YO twins. My husband, Rick, (40 YO) is self employed and works out of the house.

It all started back in January. Rick told me he would take the kids to his parents for a couple of days so I could have some time to myself. Then he said, heck, I’ll take them for a week. I told him if he took them for a whole week then I was going to go somewhere. Where, do you ask? Disney World!!! After a minute, he said he wanted to go, also, and golf. I know, I know, we went last year without the kids and said we would never do it again. So sue us. We decided we would go for a shorter length of time and not spend as much money. Last year we stayed at WL and loved it. But I wanted to try a new place. Mom-in-law said we could go the end of July.

I decided we would go July 25th - July 30th and stay at PO. I had a coupon for a free companion ticket on Delta so I made our reservations. I reread all the trip reports on Brian Bennett's web site dealing with PO. E-mailed Danielle with questions and was happy with my choice. I kept calling CRO to make sure I wasn’t missing any special deals. I had a couple of funny questions from the cast members. The best was "Are you sure you can do everything in 5 days?" To which I replied "I don’t think I could do everything in 15 days but 5 is all I have!" Then one guy asked if he could talk me into a longer stay. Sure you can but can you talk my husband and in-laws into a longer stay? I don’t think so.

60 days in advance I made my husband’s tee times and Priority Seating reservations. Rick also decided to take a private golf lesson so I reserved that. Rick copied the course layouts off of Marc Schwartz’ web site and studied them for weeks.

Thursday before our Saturday departure I called PO to make a room request. I was told that I didn’t really want the buildings I was choosing because they had 4 Brazillian tour groups staying in those building. ARGHHHHHHHHH. I had visions of teenagers overrunning the food court, streets, and all those skinny teenage girls in their next to nothing swim suits. No thanks. I called CRO frantic for another reservation. WL was open for about $195.00 a night with tax. I remember reading about the wild summer rates on RADP so I asked about them. Beach Club, Water View for $206.00 including tax. Yes. Hubby agreed with me and we upgraded our reservations. (So much for not spending as much money.) Now my only problem was not having much time to research BC. Oh well.

Took the kids to Grandmas (a 2 ½ hour drive) on Thursday and returned home Friday to pack for our WDW vacation.

Day 1

Left DFW airport at 7:30 AM. No problems on the flight. Arrived in Orlando around 11:00 AM. 10 minute wait for Mears. We shared a van with a family staying at the Beack Club also. Grandparents, Mom, and two little children. The grandparents were going on the Disney Magic‘s first cruise so we chatted about that.

Checked in at the Beach Club. The CM at the desk was very nice. She said I’d give you a 5th floor room but Eisner and his entourage has the entire floor! She also said Travis Tritt was checking in on Monday. We finally settled on room 1523. We walked around the hotel and the Boardwalk until our room was ready. It was ready at 2:00 PM. We dropped our stuff and headed to the bus stop for AK. The bus showed up about 5 minutes later.

AK was pretty crowded but lots of people were leaving. We saw the Tree of Life and was amazed by it. We finally found the entrance to "it tough to be a bug" and were able to walk right in but we did take our time pointing out different animals on the tree. We loved the show ITTBAB but our kids would have been terrified. Walked to the Safari. We would have had to wait for a few minutes but they needed a party of two and we were it. We sat right behind the driver. We both enjoyed the ride. Even the hokey chase. We saw lots of animals. Two rhinos were right off the side of the road. We saw a little wire along the side of the road and the driver told us it makes noise and thats what keeps them away. We also saw 2 zebras right next to the road. One of them had a quarter sized spot of blood on his neck. The driver got on his radio and quietly informed someone of it and suggested they come check it out. We also saw a lion and a lioness sunning themselves on a hill.

We walked around Gorilla Falls although it has a new name and I can’t remember it. The CM’s along the trail said the gorillas had gone into the caves and he didn’t think they would come out again. Everyone was just walking thru in a hurry. Rick and I stayed on one spot for a while and eventually saw 4 gorillas. One was huge. It definitely pays to take your time at AK. Next we did the boat ride with only a 5 minute wait. It was okay but if the line was really long I would say skip it. Next off to CTX. We waited in line for about 25 minutes. I knew what to expect but my husband thought this was a kiddy ride. We got in our car and it started to move. Rick didn’t have his seat belt done yet and I started to scream at him to do it up. Turns out we were just moving up a little to the CM who checks seat belts. We both had a great time. Rick thought he was going to get thrown out of the car a couple of times. And we both managed to get scared a couple of times. In between all of this we kept trying to see the Lion King but it was always full. Oh well, I figured I could come another day. We had dinner at Rainforest Cafe. We sat at the bar as there was an hour wait for a table. I love the food there. I had the Jungle chowder and the quesadillas. Both were wonderful. RIck had Mojo bones. They were also good. It turns out it rained while we were eating and stopped by the time we left. We had a bus waiting for us and were in our room by 10:00 PM. It was a great first day.

Day 2

Mickey called at 7:00. The BC has phones in the bathroom so both Rick and I listened to Mickey. We decided to eat breakfast at the Yacht Club Galley. Rick’s not a morning person so I thought having Goofy in your face first thing in the morning would not be a good thing. We didn’t want to eat a lot but for only $2.00 more than a regular egg and bacon meal you can get the buffet so buffet it is. It was soooo good. Suffice it to say we ended up eating here every morning. $23.22 for breakfast everyday with a $5.00 tip. It irked Rick to tip 20% at a buffet but he did it anyway. I fell in love with the walnut butter on biscuits, there. I asked for the recipe and they had me fill out a form and said they would mail it to me. It’s been 3 weeks and no recipe . After breakfast Rick was off to golf at the Palm Course. I was off to MK. So with my RADP pin on and pictures of my babies in my backpack I was ready to go. On the bus (no wait again) was the family that was on Mears. We had a nice chat and it gave me an opportunity to show off my kids pictures!! I arrived at MK right at 9:00 AM. I did Snow White, Peter Pan, Mr. Toad and the Lion King all by 10:00. I hate to say it but I will be glad for a Winnie the Pooh ride. Went to Toon town. Rode Barnstormers. Then I went to see some characters. I had on my Eeyore shirt. It has him standing on his head with a smile on his face and says "Suddenly, I’m so happy I have to stand on my head." I got in the Pooh line and when I got in the room, no Eeyore. They said he is never there anymore. Great. Tigger and Pooh will have to do! Got in Doanld Ducks line after I was told he was the only character in there. Got in the room after a 15 minute wait. No Donald Duck. Just 3 other characters to which I am ashamed to admit but I didn’t know who they were. Left a little discouraged.

Decided to see Country Bear Jamboree. Now I know some people like this but I thought I would lose my mind in there. I used to watch Hee Haw and like it so it wasn’t the humor or the country folksy thing. I just could not stand it. I had to get out. I am going crazy....oh, thank goodness it’s over. Went to the Tiki room. Now this is more like it. I loved the show. I laughed so much. I was dissapointed I was alone and couldn’t share all the jokes with someone. I caught the bus back to BC. I had the Milky way bar cake sundae thing for lunch. It was good but I have made the cake from my Mickey cookbook and it was much better than theirs. I think it might have been a little stale. I walked over to Canada and looked around. No Beaver Tails. Will the horror of this day never end. They are refurbishing the cart and it will be back thursday. Great. The day I’m leaving. I head to Great Britain. Inside one of the shops a CM comments on my Eeyore shirt and I tell her my sad tale of no Eeyore at MK. Well, she says, Eeyore is just outside. I run out and there he is. I get my picture taken and I can see that he likes my shirt with him smiling. Next, Mary Poppins and a penquin come out. How does she stay so perfect in this heat? She was so much a part of my childhood when my mother was alive that I got very choked up and almost cried. I couldn’t even approach her. She was chatting with a little girl and asks her if she can say Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious which she does then Mary asks her to say it backwards. Nothing comes out of the little girl so I say it to her. Mary tell me Bravo, I’m the first person today that has been able to do it. Yeah. The day has been salvaged!!! By now my feet are killing me so I head back to room and decide to go to the pool. Let me tell you. There is nothing better in this world than having sore, aching, hot feet and walking in the sand in the water at that pool. It felt so good. I am so glad we decided to stay here! Rick gets back from golfing and his lesson about 4:00. We have reservations at O’hanas at 5:00 so we freshen up and its off to MK. From there we take the monorail to the Poly and walk in at 5:00. The food was wonderful. Especially the chicken in the banana leaf wrap. We really liked the place and I bet it looks even better at night and when its a little busier.

At MK we just wondered around. It was very crowded. More crowded than last year at the same time of year. This surprised me. I thought it would be less so. The crowds proved to be greater the whole week. We did Haunted Mansion and over to the Timekeeper. This was a cute show but it is so hard to stand. Both of us were exhausted so we decided to skip the parade and firewrks for tonight. We were back in our room by 10:00.

Day 3

Another day, another brekfast at Yacht Club. Rick is off to Magnolia today. He is matched up with a guy from Canada and a father, son team from PA. After chatting to the father, Rick realizes he knows this guy. Last year Rick golfed with the same father, son team at Magnolia. All together now "It’s a small world." What are the odds? (Kenny, this question is for you since you love math.) If that wasn’t enough, on the hole that has a Mickey sandtrap the guy from Canada makes a hole in one. Everyone is going crazy. The course marshall just happens to see it. The rest of the day their foursome are minor celebrities. Everyone is stopping them to ask who made the hole in one. When they were done golfing the guy was presented a plaque with all the pertinent info on it. Rick was impressed. Thats Disney for you. Meanwhile I was off to Epcot. I forgot to mention that our room at the BC was way down at one end next to a quiet pool. If you went out the backdoor Epcot was about a 3 minute walk. I went straight to HISTA. Got in to the first show. Personally, I like the pre-show. Time to get misty eyed again. After I was seated I noticed next to me a man with a young girl. They didn’t speak english but I could tell they were telling her not to be scared. The adults all had backpacks on the floor. I told them in gestures that they should put their packs in their laps. After the show they gestured to me that they now understood why. Next it was Journey into Imagination. I didn’t do it last year and I know I won’t be doing it again.

Linving with the Land was next. There was no wait. I thought this was great. I don’t even like to garden but I was fascinated by all the techniques Disney uses. I wish I had taken the hour tour they have. Maybe next time. Food Rocks was hilarious. I noticed the people my age enjoyed it much more than the kids. I guess they don’t get it. Walked down to Spaceship Earth but it was a huge line. So I went to Horizons. I did enjoy this but agree it needs to be updated. Especially by the year 2000. The references to the next century will really be out of date then.

It was now 11:00 AM so I went to WS. Just glanced at Mexico and then went to Norway. No wait for the ride. It was fun but I don’t understand why people wait thru huge lines to ride it. The movie wasn’t starting for about 10 minutes so I skipped it. Browsed the shops then had a Rice Kreme. It was wonderful.

I went back to the hotel and caught a bus to the Marketplace. I thought the Lego store was great. I especially liked all the workman next to and on top of the building. Did some shopping at the World of DIsney. I actually found some stuff on sale. I also bought a T-shirt that has a peace sign, heart and Mickey Mouse head that says Peace, Love and Mickey Mouse. More on this shirt later. I went into the McDonalds there and discovered they had Mr. Pibb. My husband is a big Dr. Pepper fan and goes crazy when we are at WDW with only Coke. He’s a true Texan ;-) So I purchased a large with no ice and carried it all the way back to the hotel on the bus. What a good wife I am. Rick was thrilled. Then he pronounced Mr. Pibb much more syrupy than Dr. Pepper. But he still enjoyed it for my sake.

After freshening up we walked to Mexico to have dinner at San Angel Inn. I had the Plato Botana as an entree (it’s an appetizer). It had 3 different things on it and they were great but I couldn’t tell you what they were now. Rick had Sopa Aztec and liked it. We then caught the boat to MGM.

We took the Animation tour and was very impressed. Rick kept insisting that it would all be staged until we got in and he saw it really is where they work. We did the Backlot Tour again and enjoyed it much more this year. Sit as close to the driver as possible. Last year we were so far back that by the time we got to what he was talking about he was on to something else and so we didn’t "get" any of it. I took the Great Movie ride while Rick waited. His opinion was if we rode it last year we don’t need to ride it again. This is why I was glad he golfed every morning! Then we saw the fireworks. We both were totally overwhelmed with them. The music went perfectly with the show. We have decided we are now spoiled forever and will never enjoy another fireworks display as much.

We waited in a long line for the boat and was surprised that we made it on the first boat that showed. They hold more people than you would imagine. Rick ordered a hamburger from room service because Beaches and Cream was closed. It was now 11:30. A rose came on his tray so I was happy!

Day 4

Yacht Club for breakfast once again then Rick was off to Ospry Ridge to golf. He was paired up with the same guy from Canada that made the hole in one the day before.

I decided to laundry. While it was in the washer I went to guest services to buy tickets to E-ride that night. The lobby at the BC was packed with people in suits and dresses. I asked one of the CM’s at guest services what was up. He said it was not unusual there for people to be dressed up. Yeah right. Then the other CM came over and said he thought they were all waiting for the bus to take them to the Disney Magic’s Christening. OK, that I buy. So I got my tickets and sat in the lobby to look for Eisner! All of a sudden I hear a very familiar voice. Sidney Poitier is sitting just across from me. I love that voice. Pretty soon he was called to leave so I left too. After laundry I decided to finish up World Showcase. Went to France. I enjoyed the movie. A quick look at Morocco then on to Japan. I had a tangerine and honeydew melon kaki-gori. It was fabulous. They had some drummers out so I stopped to listen to them. On to The American Adventure. The show wasn’t for quite a while. Outside Goofy was greeting everyone. A little girl about 3 shook his hand and started to walk off then turned back to him and just ran into his arms and gave him a big kiss. You can imagine all the aahs from the crowd. Captain Hook was there. My kids love to hate him so I had my picture taken with him. Of course I can’t show it to them because they don’t know we’re at WDW!!

Quick stops at Italy and Germany. I watched the trains for awhile. At the outside theatre in front of America they were having their internatonal show. I really enjoyed it. Especially the end where all the characters pose for pictures Finally saw the show at America. It was enjoyable. I think I like the one at MK better.

Went back to the hotel. Rick was back so we had a quick burger at Beaches and Cream. Boy they are good. I liked being able to get fruit instead of french fries. We took a long nap and then got freshened up to go to Gullivers for dinner.

We walked over to the Swan and were seated right away. They give you a large thimble of wine to welcome you. We gave her our coupon from Rita’s book and she said no problem. Rick had the Prime Rib and I had Steak and Lobster. It was wonderful. We then got dessert. A lemon cheesecake. Very delicate and subtle in flavor. It was great. We decided that this and O’Hana’s were our favorites. Bill came to $13.00 after coupon and we left a $17. 00 tip. Can’t beat that. I don’t think the meal would have been worth it without the coupon. The prices were outrageous.

We caught the bus to MK outside the Swan. When we arrived we exchanged our tickets for wristbands and then went on the Jungle Cruise. I sat right next to the driver and he talked with his mouth right on the microphone so I barely understood a word he said. Next we walked over to TTA, then Carousel of Progress. The Skyway ride was closed and was everytime we were there. Its the one ride Rick really wants to go on and we have never had a chance to. Took the secret passageway over to Fantasyland then took the railroad all around. The parade was going so we caught glimpses of it from our railway car. We then planted ourselves in front of the castle to watch Tinkerbell. Right after her flight we ran thru the castle and saw the fireworks. Even tho MGM has me spoiled now I do still love these fireworks. We caught the Liberty Belle for her last trip of the night. I really enjoyed this at night. Up until now I had only seen about 8 wristbands and thought this is going to be great.

At 10:50 we went into the Haunted Mansion. It was about 15 after when we got out. There were masses of wrist bands everywhere. We had a 10 min. wait for Splash MT and about the same for BTMR. Walked over AE. There was no wait. We sat in the front row. I think thats a mistake. Its like sitting in the front row of a movie. Then over to Space Mt with about a 10 min wait. It seemed wilder to me this year but it is still too light inside. It was now 1:00 AM. MK was still crowded on the E-ride night but I am so glad we did it. It was way better than the waits during the day.

There was a bus waiting to go to YC/BC. It had been waiting awhile. The driver was from Dallas. So we sweet talked her into leaving right away since we are from Arlington, TX. When she agreed the whole bus cheered. We were back to the hotel at 1:30.

Day 5

I was up at 6;30 to go to AK. Rick had to suffer thru breakfast without me. I was determined to make the Lion King show. Arrived at AK about 7:30. I noticed the Safari wait was about 60 min already. I am so glad we went in the afternoon with no wait. I wanted to just wander around and go thru the shops. I first stopped for a breakfast pizza. It was ok but I think I could have made a better choice. After I went to the restroom. Now the only reason I mention this is because the restroom was a mess. And it was still early morning. It’s the first time I’ve seen a messy bathroom at WDW. Went thru Africa just enjoying the scenery. The shops had quite a few things on sale that apparently didn’t do well. But they were perfect for me for gifts! I headed off to see the Lion King about 45 min. early. I was determined not to miss getting in. The wait was very enjoyable because a family with identical twin boys were behind me. They were 2 yrs older than my twin boys. The mom and I shared our stories about everything from labor to wether to seperate them in school. It made the time pass quickly.

What can I say about this show that hasn’t been said already. It was so good. It gave me shivers watching it. Even the father of the twin boys said it was well worth the wait. (He hadn’t been feeling that way in line!) I was tempted to go see it again but decided against it. I returned to the hotel changed into my swim suit and went to the pool. I rented a tube for $3.00 for an hour. You can get them $10.00 for the day. I just floated around the area that flows around like a river for an hour. It was heaven. It started to rain then and they closed the pool. This was only the second time it rained for us in 5 days. I went back to the room and Rick was home so we took a nap. After freshening up we took the bus to PI. It was still raining just a little bit but we took the boat to see PO to see what we had missed by not staying there. The driver was a maniac. He drove so fast and never slowed down. Even when we would hit the wake of a passing boat. It was fun. PO looks lovely. I thought it was very quaint. A cleaned up version of New Orleans. I lived in New Orleans for 3 years and it was nice to experience the nice parts of the French Quarter without all the yucky smells and sights that go with it (right Jan?) We had some beignets at the food court. They were pretty good but they cannot compete with the ones form Cafe DuMonde. On the boat ride back to PI a lady got on that had three moles on her face. Yeah, I finally spotted a Hidden Mickey. They were placed perfectly. Even Rick agreed. We got in line for the Comedy Warehouse. They took our name and address saying they would send us a survey form to fill out. It has since arrived but was very outdated. They asked the year of the trip and the only choices were 96 snd 97. The show was great as usual. Then we went to the Adventures club. All the characters there are so great at what they do. We sat thru a couple of shows. At one point they ushered us into the mask room. Rick and I were against the back wall. I had on my Peace, Love and Mickey Mouse t-shirt. Well, the masks start talking and all of a sudden one of them starts saying they are interested in the girl against the wall with a heart on her shirt. Oh no they are talking about me. They asked me my name and all sorts of stuff. I was so embarrassed and Rick was beet red from laughing so hard. I can’t even remember what they said I was so embarrassed. After that we went to the Library for their radio broadcast to raise money to keep the club open. Thank goodness they reached their goal as this is my favorite place on all of PI ;-)

We walked all around looking at all the new places. Disney Quest, etc. It was interesting but crowded and we were very tired so we caught the bus back. We stopped at the Boardwalk and sat down at the ESPN club for dinner. It was 10:50. They stop serving food at 11:00 so we hurried and made our choices. We then walked back to the Beach Club and went to bed.

Day 6 and Final Thoughts

Our last day :-( Our last breakfast at the Yacht Club Galley :-( We headed back to the room after breakfast and packed. We then put our bags in storage and headed to MGM.

We wandered around a bit waiting for the first show of the Hunchback. We went to the TOT which I had been trying to decide wether to go on. I get very motion sick. Turbulance on planes makes me lose my lunch. I wanted to go see the preshow then take the chicken exit but RIck said no. He kept saying that I didn’t need to be afraid. It’s all phychological yadda, yadda, yadda. He does not believe me that I’m not afraid of the ride, I’m afraid of throwing up. If it was one drop I could probably handle it but not mutiple drops. Well, I decided to go. We got to the line and the sign said it was a 50 min. wait. Yes. My huband is way to impatient to wait.

Went over to Hunchback. A girl was smoking in line and it was really annoying. That’s when I really appreciated Ricks thoughtfullness. He smokes but he never did in a line or anywhere near people. The one thing I wish Disney would do is put ashtrays near entrances to places. Rick could rarely find an ashtray and felt really guilty putting it out on the ground.

HoND was fabulous. Here comes the tears again. It seems like everything here causes this. Matt the Juggler was there and we enjoyed him but he ended his show and we still had to wait about 15 min for the show to start. We thought they should make it closer to the start. Rick enjoyed the show and he thinks musicals, plays, etc are a complete waste of time. Then he tell me he really wanted to see the Lion King at AK. Now he tells me. I thought I had done him a big favor going without him.

We took the boat back to the BC and walked over to Canada. We had lunch there. I guess this is a tradition now because we had our last lunch in Canada last year. This year was much improved. It was the same menu but last year we had to wait an hour to get our food and then it was wrong. This year no probems. The cheese soup continues to be fabulous and the dessert with the cinnimon ice cream is great. We wondered around Great Britain where Rick heard a lady tell her child in a very british accent "if you don’t stop your whining I’m going to smack you on your bottom." Well, this just cracked him up. He is still saying that to me and the boys all the time!

Back to BC. Picked up our luggage and caught our right on time Mears Shuttle. We had an uneventful trip back home.

Final Thoughts

BC was great but we still like the atmosphere of WL best. Can’t beat the location tho and the rooms were huge. The pool will never be topped. If I ever have a pool put in here we are going to put sand in the bottom.

I collected 76 pressed pennies without a map! Much better than last years 29. And no duplicates.

The relillable mug program at BC was a joke. The mug I got said summer of ‘98. It was $8.95. Only refillable at Huricane Hannas, although the bartender did tell me to tell them at Beaches and Cream that I could get it filled there. I never tried. HH is only open from 11 AM to 7 PM. But the worst part was I saw the exact same mug for $3.95 at Epcot and lots of other places. The explantion they told me at HH’s was the difference is theirs is refillable and the other ones aren’t. Hellooo. How would you know where I got it at. Oh yeah. I guess we’ll have to charge 95 cents for refills. Well, I said you better not charge me! Oh well.

The Treehouses on the way to PO look great. Has anyone stayed there? That was a stupid question obviously someone has, but has anyone reading this stayed there? I can’t wait to find out about them for our next trip.

No one ever commented on my RADP pin and I never saw any others. I guess most RADPers are to smart to go in the middle of the summer! The mini bar in the room was not too outragously priced, until you read the fine print. They add sales tax and a 15% gratuity. But since there were no soda machines around we had to partake. The heat. What can I say. It was wonderful. Being from the Dallas/Ft Worth area it was at least 10 degrees cooler than at home. Almost everyone we talked to would comment on the heat but when they heard we were from TX they would moan and agree with us it was nicer than at home.

The bus system continues to be great for us. We have never had a very long wait. But we only had one driver that was any fun. His name was Crazy Larry, I think. He told us he started working for WDW because he can play golf at a discount. $20:00 for green fees and a cart. Hmmm. Rick may just be willing to retire here and get a job at WDW. 5 nights was a perfect length of time for us. Last year we went for a week and the last couple of days missed the kids so much we couldn’t enjoy ourselves. This year, except for the first night when I cried myself to sleep from guilt and missing them, it didn’t happen. And finally, I swear, we will not go again untill the kids are ready to go with us. Of course I said that last year.

Laurie Johnson

randlj@webtv.net

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