Mother-Daughter 13th Birthday/Princess Half Celebration - Page 2 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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DD has wanted to try an "ultimate touring plan" since hearing about it on a podcast a couple of years ago. This is a contest of sorts where you try to experience every "core" attraction in the Magic Kingdom in one day. The list of core attractions includes 51 rides, shows, parades, and character meet and greets. It's trickier than you think once you factor in that some things only happen once a day (flag retreat, Wishes, 3:00 parade), character lines can be loooong, and if you just miss a show you have to wait for the next one.
We woke up bright and early and were at Guest Services at the Magic Kingdom by 7:40 for a 9:00 a.m. park opening. Turned in our vouchers for annual passes. (This took FOREVER. Cast member gave us the new plastic cards, then realized he wasn't supposed to do that, then had to involve 3 others to get it sorted out).
Here's the Times Guide - our constant reference for the day to make sure we got everything in.
For each attraction, you have to record the posted wait time, actual wait time, time entering, and time leaving. First up was the welcome show. While we waited, I got a text back from Touringplans confirming my suspicion that the online ultimate touring plan had not yet been updated to take new Fantasyland into account. Everything was listed, but the order made no sense. We would have to figure out the best way to get through it on our own! This just added to the fun and competition.
We quickly formulated a plan and decided to go for Enchanted Tales with Belle first and then the Merida meet and greet. This ended up being a great idea. We race-walked to the rope at Fantasyland, then walked even faster when it dropped to Maurice's cottage. We were ushered in to the first group of the day! Here we are in the room with the wardrobe.
This is a very cool new attraction. The theming is beautiful and the kids who participated clearly had a ball. A little juvenile for my new teenager, but our 5 year old is going to LOVE it.
When we left Enchanted Tales at 9:20 a.m., the posted wait time was 75 minutes!!! Get there first thing or wait until after Wishes if you don't want to wait forever.
Next up was the Brave Meet and Greet. This might have been our longest wait of the day at 35 minutes. I forgot to mention that it was super crowded as it was the last day of President's Week vacation. Rated a 9 out of 10. By the time we got to meet Merida, we were itching to get on to the next attraction and wasted no time chit-chatting. (I did tell her I was dressing up like her for the half-marathon).
Quickly on to Peter Pan and then Winnie-the-Pooh - each with about a 20 minute wait. Then a quick circle back to Space Mountain - we had picked up fast passes just before getting in line for Brave. On our way out of Space Mountain we got behind a family reunion group of about 30 people who were not moving at all on the "moving" walkway. So big that no one could get past them. It took us twice as long to exit the attraction as it did to get through the fastpass line and do the ride. We were in such a hurry that we missed something important. More on that later.
We were headed next to the Main Street Trolleys as we had heard they stop running at noon and we needed to ride. As we came out of Tomorrowland, the Move It, Shake It, Celebrate It parade pulled into the hub. Score! This meant no standing around waiting for it. I love this parade. We both got out and danced with the characters - so fun.
Parade over, we looked for a trolley to ride. I stopped a cast member, who happened to be a trolley driver (!) and asked where we stood to wait for a ride. He said, "Oh, the trolleys only give rides until 10:00 a.m." It was about 11:15. You're kidding! No, he said. Absolutely no chance of riding one today - they were done for the day.
I thought DD was going to cry! We had talked about how slim our chances were of getting everything done in a day - I didn't think we had any chance - but the reality that two hours in we had already missed a core attraction was disappointing. I did my best to cheer her up as we walked down Main Street and she rallied. We would try for 50 attractions.
Next up was meet and greet with Mickey Mouse at the Town Square Theater. The posted wait was only 15 minutes, so we jumped in line rather than trying for a fastpass. It ended up taking about 25 minutes and we exited in a hurry after our photo and autograph. Wait, could that be? No, he said the last run was at 10:00 a.m. That trolley must be getting ready for a show. We hustled over and found a full to the brim trolley about to take off on a ride up Main Street!!! "Can we please, please get on?" I begged the driver (nicely). "If you can find a seat, take one, or you can stand in back." Right on!! We jumped on the back, absolutely thrilled at the chance.
We unloaded at the castle hub at 11:59 a.m. - this was truly the last trolley ride of the day.
Three hours in and we had completed 9 attractions. Whoa! That meant there were 42 more to go!!! And only 11 hours until park close. Time to pick up the pace...
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Deer Isle Mom
Last edited by deerislemom; 03-22-2013 at 09:04 PM..
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Just got caught up and LOVE that you managed to get on the last trolley. You've still got quite a challenge ahead, though, and on a busy day, too. Can't wait for the next installment!
I'll speed up my reporting here so you just get a feel for how MUCH there is to do in the Magic Kingdom.
12:04 p.m. In line for Alladin. Ride broke down after 10 minutes, left the line so we didn't miss Cap'n Jack's Pirate Tutorial
12:25 p.m. Cap'n Jack's Pirate Tutorial
12:45 p.m. Pirates of the Caribbean
12:59 p.m. Alladin's Carpet Ride
1:15 p.m. Dream Along with Mickey Castle Show
1:37 p.m. Astro Orbiter
1:57 p.m. Monster's Inc Laugh Floor
2:21 p.m. Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin (used Fastpasses we picked up before Astro Orbiter)
At this point, we left Tomorrowland and headed back down Main Street to pick up cards for Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom. You pick up the cards right next to the Fire Station and they give you instructions on how to play the game. Our mission led us to Frontierland and Liberty Square.
This is a really fun addition to the parks. We enjoyed racing around looking for the symbols and then playing the games. I look forward to spending more time with it on our next trip - and I think our 15 year old son is going to love it.
In between Sorcerer's screens, we visited the Frontierland Shootin' Arcade. By the time we finished all of this it was almost 3:00 p.m. - time for the Celebrate a Dream parade! We picked up a baked sweet potato at the Liberty Square Market to share while we watched. Earlier we had eaten french bread and cheese we brought from home - and some clementines. The hot sweet potato tasted great!
Once the parade was over we jumped on the Riverboat. I had not ridden this since I was a kid. It was a good chance to relax for a bit and enjoy the scenery.
Coming up next.... Can we visit Tom Sawyer island and get in another attraction or two before the mandatory Flag Retreat at 5:00 p.m.?
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This is fun to read! I was sharing your posts on the touring plan with my children and now they want to try it! I am impressed that you did this the day before running the half! And having the trolley right there upon exiting from Mickey - Disney Magic!!
One fun thing about the Ultimate Touring Plan is you end up doing all of those rides you've never seemed to make before. Next up for us was Tom Sawyer Island - a first. We got on a raft right away, saving precious minutes. Once on the Island, we had to take photos at the barrel bridge, a cave, and shooting a rifle in Fort Langley. It was fun running around trying to find all the stuff. The cave is awesome - SO much longer than the caves at Disneyland. After all our items were checked off, we headed back to the dock and waited a bit for a raft. Altogether, Tom Sawyer Island took us 28 minutes. It was now 4:18
We grabbed Fastpasses at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and then stopped to watch the Notorious Banjo Brothers and Bob. This counted as a "bonus" attraction.
The line for Tinkerbell was a little too long to safely make the Flag Retreat in Town Square, so we opted for Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse. Finished at 4:30. This left us with 30 minutes - not quite enough time to fit in another attraction. So, we had a snack and waited around. Caught a few minutes of the Dapper Dans - another bonus attraction.
Finally it was time for the Flag Retreat. Safe to say I would never have stopped for this if it wasn't on the Touring Plan. A nice tradition, but not something you'd need to rearrange your day around.
5:05 p.m. and we were headed up to the WDW Railroad for a full loop. This was an enjoyable chance to sit and relax. We were seated next to a woman carrying all her marathon stuff - she had just been to the Expo. It was fun to chat with her about the Expo and getting ready for the race. Nice view of new Fantasyland from the the train. Back into the Main Street station at 5:26p.m. and we were off...
5:31 p.m. Enchanted Tiki Room
5:48 p.m. Country Bear Jamboree
6:02 p.m. Big Thunder Mountain (15 min wait even with fastpasses)
6:37 p.m. Hall of Presidents (quick bathroom break while waiting for the next show)
7:04 p.m. Main Street Electrical Parade
We started watching the parade from the hub and quickly backtracked it down Main Street, waiting near the Barber Shop to see Pete's Dragon come out. (You need a photo with the first and the last float). Then we hightailed it to Tinkerbell's Nook, where the wait was the lowest we had seen it all day at 15 minutes.
722 p.m. Tinkerbell's Nook
7:45 p.m. Celebrate the Magic
(This is the new version of The Magic, the Memories, and You - Pretty cool!)
8:00 p.m. Wishes
We crossed the castle hub during Wishes and made a beeline for Dumbo as soon as the last firework went off. No wait! And the new installation is awesome! I loved the water.
8:15 p.m. Dumbo
8:20 p.m. Pete's Silly Sideshow
8:23 p.m. Barnstormer
This is fun too. I like the new theme. But what is with the long exit??? Took us longer to get out than it did to ride.
8:27 p.m. Casey Jr. Splash and Soak
Just a photo in the water play area. Can't wait to come back and play in April!
Next up.... Will we EVER get out of Under the Sea????
Oh wow - what a challenge. I look forward to seeing how you got on with the rest of the day. Thank goodness you got to ride the trolley after all!
Thanks! It was lots of fun, but very busy!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by lauriep
Just got caught up and LOVE that you managed to get on the last trolley. You've still got quite a challenge ahead, though, and on a busy day, too. Can't wait for the next installment!
I know! We were lucky on the trolley - but it is a lot to get through in one day.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colexis Mom
Great challenge! Sorry about missing the trolley!
Thanks! At least we caught it later.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tigger25
Looks like a good time!!! can't wait to take my DD on a mommy/daughter trip no boys allowed !!
Definitely try that sometime! We had a ball.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chezp
I already had a good idea of just how many attractions there were in the Magic Kingdom, but my goodness, this is really putting it into perspective!
I know! Not an ideal way to enjoy the attractions.... but it does give you a new perspective on how much there is to do. I would not normally see all those shows - and really, they are all wonderful.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Amy L
This is fun to read! I was sharing your posts on the touring plan with my children and now they want to try it! I am impressed that you did this the day before running the half! And having the trolley right there upon exiting from Mickey - Disney Magic!!
The trolley definitely felt like Pixie Dust! The Ultimate Plan is a very fun thing to try with older kids/teens. I hope you and your children can try it sometime.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22
I'm worn out reading of your adventures. Thank goodness for that last trolley! with the rest of the attractions!
It was exhausting! But so fun. We really had a great time with this adventure.
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I'm exhausted just reading about this day. Whew!! And you still have to do the Half marathon? Wow. Just... wow.
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I look forward to seeing how you got on with the rest of the day. Thank goodness you got to ride the trolley after all!
with the rest of the attractions! 
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