Doing Things A Little Differently (A Trip Report) About This Page:

[TerriB]

This was the first trip that I had booked myself. We had always used AAA before but since they lost all their perks, it just wasn't in our interest. Since this trip was not a major celebration, we would have stayed at a Moderate, but after we crunched some numbers we found that Wilderness Lodge Club Level (yes, we were spoiled last trip) with regular dining plan wasn't that much more than POR with Deluxe dining. So we booked at Wilderness Lodge then added on the Summer discount when it became available. There was the long wait until departure day ending with DS taking the ACT (for the second time) the day before we left. Now let me take a minute and introduce my motley crew.

DH


DS



DD

With an 8:40 departure and a 40-minute drive to the airport, we had to be out of the door at 6 a.m. That meant a 4 a.m. wake up for me. Hardly any traffic on the highway to the airport, but what do you expect for a Sunday. Had prepaid the checked bag fee and printed our boarding passes at home, so, once we were at the airport it was just a matter of getting the two bags tagged, then it was off to breakfast at McDonald's, which we ate at our gate. Plane was full but flight was uneventful.



Landed in Orlando shortly before 11 a.m. DH and DS headed off to get the rental car while DD & I headed to the hotel by way of Disney's Magical Express. Beat the guys to the hotel by 7 minutes. Once the guys arrived, we were escorted up to the club level for our check in. Our room wasn't ready yet, and we had a reservation at Whispering Canyon Cafe at 1:20 p.m., so we checked our bags and headed to check in for lunch. Our server was Joey, and we had a blast.


Our Server Joey


Turkey Sandwich with Sweet Potato Fries


Adult version of kids' Chicken Nuggets


Bison Burger with Potato Wedges


Pulled Pork Sandwich with Fries (this was DS's lunch, and he did his best to strip the slaw off of the sandwiches)


Chocolate Shake


Granny Smith Apple Caramel Pie


Mocha Cheesecake


Campfire Gooey Chocolate Cake

During lunch, I received the text that our room was ready, so that was our next stop after lunch.


Our Room


One View


Another View


Yet Another Vew

While the guys rested, Beth and I explored the resort and picked up our refillable mugs. So happy that they now offer 4 different colors instead of just 3. DME luggage arrived, and I got us settled in. Before we knew it, it was time to pile into the rental (a Hyundai Santa Fe) and head to the Grand Floridian for dinner.


Salted Butter


Sourdough Rolls


New York Strip Steak (three of these were ordered)


Grilled Pork Chop


Chocolate Timbale (two of these were ordered)


Wild Strawberry Cheesecake


Berry Pyramid

Back at home base, our mousekeeper had done our turndown and left us some pins because of the ongoing construction.



DH and DD went out for a swim while I finished unpacking. Then it was time for bed. Tomorrow's rope drop -- 8 a.m., so an early roll out.

[tcmary]

You were off to a great start on your first day. I like the pins you received. It's a nice gesture on Disney's part.

Dinner looked yummy. Where did you eat?

[patclairesmom]

Great start! Wilderness Lodge or whatever they call it these days is on my bucket list.

[gremlinkid73]

Great start!

[DMA]

Great start!

[rphstearns]

My mouth is watering looking at those pictures.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[PamelaK]

Great start to your Disney World stay! The pins are pretty cool. Both lunch and dinner looks like it was delicious (although I would have scraped the coleslaw off too).

[pamcarey]

Great start! Your meals both look delicious! Cute pins, and that was nice of Disney to do that.

[Haasy]

Great Start!!

[Colexis Mom]

Great start!!

[Cam22]

Great travel day! Both meals looked so delicious!

[TerriB]

Up and at them early because rope drop at Animal Kingdom is now 8 a.m. It is also morning Extra Magic Hours, but we decided long ago that it wasn't worth rolling out at 6:30 a.m. to make a 7 a.m. EMH opening. Had breakfast in the club lounge, stowed our swim gear in the back of the rental (planning an afternoon at Blizzaard Beach) and headed out for AK. (Research indicated that it was quicker to drive there than take the Disney bus.) When we pulled up to the parking gate, the Cast Member scanned Brent's Magic Band and said there was nothing on it. Great. That means an additional stop at Guest Services and hard to tell how long that line would be.

DD and I were carrying small purses with rain ponchos and other necessities so we had to go through the bag check line. My checker was Mark from Fairdale, WV. I mentioned I knew where that was, and he asked how. I said I was Liberty High School Class of '86. He was Class of '93. Met back up with the guys and dashed over to Guest Services. Terri (yes, that was her name) checked Brent's Magic Band and said everything was on there, so we were off to our first FastPass -- Kilimanjaro Safaris. It was the first time we felt comfortable enough to allow DD to ride in an outside seat.



Along the Safari, my camera ran out of charge. (I knew there was something I forgot last night.) I took a few pictures with my phone, but I stink with it.


Lions in their usual poses


This one is very secure in her surroundings

After Safari, we checked stand-by times, and Primeval Whirl (our second FastPass; scheduled for 10:50 a.m.) was only 20 minutes, so we made the hike from Africa to DinoLand. Along the way, we passed by Flame Tree Barbecue and deeply inhaled the aroma of roasting meats. By the time we got to Whirl, the standby time was 40 minutes, changing just as we got in line. We finished the ride 10 minutes before our FastPass window would open. No one was interested in riding again, so we let the FastPass expire, and split up to take out our next FastPasses -- Dinosaur for DH and DD, and Expedition Everest for DS and me.

While we were in line, I asked Robbie where he wanted to have lunch. He said Flame Tree (as if I didn't see that one coming). Everest was amazing. I can't wait to ride it again. We walked back to Dinoland to meet up with Brent and Beth.

Since we had dealt with all we had planned for the park, the question was if we were going to have lunch at AK or head to Blizzard Beach and have lunch there. Beth and Robbie were not interested in going to the water park, and everyone was kind of hungry, but Beth was unsure about the menu. We walked to Flame Tree and reviewed the menu. Beth was going to order the kid's chicken leg when I pointed out the half chicken on the adult menu (and by Disney meal standards, she is an adult). She accepted that substitution, and we settled in for lunch -- half chicken for Beth, chicken salad for me, and pulled pork sandwiches for the guys. (Sorry no food pictures of that meal). After lunch, we grabbed some photopass pictures and walked through Pandora. Standby lines for the two attractions in the area were 2-3 hours, so we passed on them on this trip. We decide to head back to the hotel. On the way out, I did get a phone picture of a black swan.


The down time at the hotel was nice. We did vacate the room for the lounge while our Mousekeeper did her thing. Found another goodie from Disney.





Also found a little surprise from our Mousekeeper


Around 4:30 p.m., we hopped the bus to Disney Springs. Arrived around 5 p.m. in the middle of a rain shower. We walked from the bus stop down to the Cirque de Soleil building then turned around and head to Wolfgang Puck Express (our dinner destination)down near Once Upon a Toy. Had no interest in stopping of any of the new stores. The whole time the rain kept coming down.
The older part of Disney Springs (from World of Disney to Rainforest Cafe) was a ghost town. May have been the rain, but when we arrived at WPE, there was only one other family in the place. A few more groups arrived while we were there, but nothing like we have seen in the past.


Cheese Pizza


Pepperoni Pizza


Daily Duo -- Chicken Caprese Sandwich with choice of soup (Butternut Squash -- the rain made me want soup)


Roast Chicken and Mashed Potatoes

After dinner, we stopped at Ghiradelli for dessert.


Chocolate Ice Cream with Chocolate Sauce


Chocolate Shake


Mint Quake Shake

DH and the kids headed to DisneyQuest for one last go through. My feet were feeling kind of blistery, so I cruised through World of Disney, looking for a couple of particular items (no luck) on my way back to the bus stop. I got back around 8:30 p.m. Our mousekeeper had done turndown service and left some surprises (Beth brought the sleep mask with her).


The Guys' Bed


The Girls' Bed


Close up of DD's sleep mask

The others got in around 9 p.m.

Tomorrow -- Hollywood Studios

[SuperDave]

Nice start to the TR with some great food photos from WCC and the GF restaurant (the eatery you left out! ). I'm guessing it's the GF Cafe, which I have ate there for breakfast for breakfast, but not otherwise. I have enjoyed the WCC, when I stayed there back in 2002 on my first WDW trip in 2002, with good food and entertainment. Not positive but your server looks familiar in Joey. Perhaps, he served me back then, but not sure.

[SuperDave]

Nice second day with a good time in the AK! Too bad you couldn't enjoy Pandora much with the lines. I'm surprised you didn't book one of the new Pandora attractions for a FP+ as a brand new experience and heard that FOP is especially amazing! Glad you had a good time in DS and the sparse crowds in certain areas is probably due to the weather.

[DMA]

Sounds like a fun day at AK. Wow! Don't think I've ever seen Disney Springs when it wasn't wall to wall people! Your dinner looked yummy! And you can't go wrong with ghiradelli for dessert!