Trip Report Princess Half Marathon 2014 - #4 Post Race, Wilderness Lodge, Magic Kingdom

After the race we got on the bus and in no time we were back at Pop Century.  We had asked for a late check out time because we were not sure what time we would be done with the race.  We had plenty of time to shower and change.  We then packed up and said good by to Pop and got a cab to Wilderness Lodge.  The options to get from one resort to another with luggage are not that great.  The buses all go to parks, so you would have to switch buses at a park if you wanted to avoid paying for a cab.  The cab was about $15 and quick.  Checking in to Wilderness lodged was more of a challenge then it should have been.   The lady at the desk was concerned that we were wearing the wrong Magic Bands.  I was wearing the one that I got from Port Orleans Riverside and Doug was wearing one from the last trip from Art of Animation.  With our Hotel hopping we had learned that the bands are only tied to your online account.  If you have 1 or 5 it doesn't matter they will all do the same thing.  Doug tried to explain it to the lady but she was not buying it.  So, we dug through our bags to find the Wilderness Lodge ones and surprisingly they gave the same problem.  Finally a manager came over and fixed something and they finally worked.  The manager told us that only the ones for Wilderness lodge would open our door and get us into the park.  Doug said "Ok" and put them back in the bag.   We liked wearing our bands that were already broken in from the longer trips.  We also like to switch based on colors to go with outfits.  Doug did come back to the desk the next time past to let them know our old bands did indeed open our door.  (he couldn't let it go)

The rooms at Wilderness Lodge are very nice.  They are the smallest of the Deluxe resorts.  They only sleep 4 in stead of the 5 at most others.    There are neat wood carvings on the head boards and bead posts.  

Lots of little "rustic" touches throughout the room.

Animal friends join you in the shower.

Our balcony.

Our view straight across.

the view to the right.   We could see old faithful from our balcony.  

The grounds are very elaborate The pool is feed from a stream that starts in the hotel lobby.  

Once in the room we headed over to Roaring Fork for lunch.  We were starving by this point.  

I got a flat bread pizza and Doug got a Burger.   This was a very nice quick service location.  Several options but not so many that your head spins.  Some of the Disney Food courts at resorts have, may I say, too many options and it is hard to find the simple burger and fries.  Because of that many people get the burger with shrimp on top simply because that is a #2 and the burger is listed under "additional items"  Sorry rant over.   We enjoyed our meal and knew we would be back for a snack at some point.   

Now we were off to the Magic Kingdom.   There are two ways to get there from the Lodge.  One is by bus the other is by boat.  When given the choice the boat is lots more fun.

All the moisture from the morning had burned off and it looked like a beautiful day.   It was hot for February.  Upper 80's We were melting just a little.  

It seemed odd leaving a hotel room wearing a metal, but trust me everyone that has one will wear it.  And lots of people was say congratulations and ask how you did.  It was fun to walk a round with a metal on like a 6 year old soccer player or Olympic medalist.  I'm sure it falls somewhere between those two.  

We headed into Tomorrowland we wanted to get off our feet and watch a few shows.  We really enjoy Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor.   I was "lucky" enough to be part of the show.  It was quite hilarious and Doug still randomly brings it up.  I had to think of a number and then the monster guessed it.  He usually gets it right but some how he miss heard me so he got it wrong and it made for a one of a kind moment.  

Next up in the get off your feet tour was Carousel of Progress.

It had been a while since we had done this one and it is good for a true Disney fan to do it every now and then.

Next was our FastPass+ for Buzz.  Doug maxed out his score.  No one needs to see my score.  

And yes he wore the button the rest of the trip.  This button is like being a member of a secret club.  If you are waiting in a line you are guarantied to be asked how you got it.  Also any one with this button will gladly talk your ear off to tell you.  When one Galactic Hero passes another they seem to have a secret wave, like motorcycles on the highway.  He is kinda a nerd.   

At this point the miles were adding up.  The adrenaline was starting to wain and the feet were getting heavy.  We headed over to the Liberty Bell.  

This picture truly shows how I felt at this point of the day.  I should have drank more water, but I didn't.  So after a short nap it was actually time to head over to the Poly for dinner at 'Ohana's 

We stopped to get our picture with the Number Cruncher, Roy.  

We hopped on the monorail to head to the Poly.

We got off at the TTC.   There is a short walk way over to the Poly from the TTC.

It was a nice stroll through the grounds.  One really nice thing about the Polynesian is the fact that you have transportation options, but most people don't realize how short of a walk it is to the TTC to get the large fairy or monorail to Epcot.  

We were planning on meeting a large group of people from "lines" but it seemed like the people we knew the best didn't recover from the race in time to make it.  So, we left to find diner elsewhere.  Doug was a little disappointed but also didn't really want to eat with all total strangers.  

Back at the Magic Kingdom we went to Sleepy Hollow.  Doug got Nutella Waffle and I got the Strawberries Waffle.   This is a great place to fill up.  Doug also made a friend while in line.  A girl the same age as Samantha just started talking to him, and he is use to talking to kids at work so he talked right back.  They mom apologized for her bothering us but we really didn't care.   We got seated with our food then here came Doug's new friend to sit with us.   They were on a mother/daughter trip.  By the end of the meal they mom said it was nice to talk to an adult.  So, in a way we did sit with complete strangers but it was lots of fun.  Sleepy Hollow has never disappointed.  

Over at pirates this picture shows where Goofy meet as a pirate.  He stopped meeting there in 2012 but the props have not moved or changed.  

He now meets in the back of New Fantasyland.  We Meet Pirate goofy on his last day and the new goofy on his first day in October of 2012.

We decided it would be really nice to get on a Disney Cruise right after the race, so we went with It's a Small World.  It is not quite the Dream or Fantasy.

Then hung out with a few spirited friends.

After more wondering around and attractions we ended up at Gaston's Tavern.  We shared a Cinnamon roll.  It is not the same as what once was at the main st. bakery.  It was still good.  Doug wanted the frozen drink, but they but a fluffy stuff on top and that had mango in it so it was a no go for him.

We watched Wishes from New Fantasyland then slowly headed back to our resort.  We took the boat back because there was not much of a line by the time we got out of the park.  We lingered a bit after closing to enjoy the atmosphere and let the masses get out.  If we were in a hurry we would have taken the bus.  While the boat is cool the bus is more practical.

Back at the room and ready to sleep after just a few steps today!

Trip Report 2013 - #11 - Hollywood Studios, Boardwalk,Osborn Lights

We are back on land and ready to start a long but fun day!

Breakfast started bright and early.  With Disney Cruise Line you eat breakfast in the dining hall that you had dinner in the night before.  We were back at the Royal Palace bright and early.  6:45 am to be exact.  This is a great chance to say good bye to your service team.  Once we were done eating we headed out to the lobby and waited for the all clear and then headed into customs.  In customs you find your bags based on the character on the tags you were given the night before.  We found our and were through customs in just a few minuets. With a short walk across the street to the parking garage.  We said good bye to Greg, John, Debbie, Mike, and Lila.  They were renting a car and exploring the coast before heading to the airport to fly home.  Doug's Parents were coming with us to the parks for another day of adventure.  We were in our van and gone by 7:45 am.  

We had to stop at Art of Animation to pickup the stroller before we headed into the park.  We were Soooooooooooooo close to making rope drop.  We parked at about 9:10 in the Hollywood Studios lot. Doug went ahead with the old "key to the world cards" to try to get a paper fast pass for Toy Story.  By the time he got there he got one for the last hour of the day.  With the wait at Toy Story already over 50 minuets we headed to rockin' roller coaster first.  Doug, Sandy, and Clair went to Little Mermaid.

The Rockin' Roller Coaster picture is one of the best in the parks in my opinion.  

They survived.

Now it was time to use our FastPass+ on Toy Story Mid Way Mania.  Doug had spent months building up this ride to his parents.  I think he started to worry he had hyped it too  much when we were in line.  

Clair and Sandy, I'm sure they both had a great score.

Doug rode alone.  That is how he likes it.  Sam and Alden take too many of his targets.  Clair is the only one he likes to ride with.  He of course was not happy with this score.

Alden and I were happy to head into the midway for some fun.  Samantha rode with Jim.  The review from Sandy and Jim was thought it was great.  They both loved it and would do it again if there wasn't an hour long line.  Jim claimed that it is a ride "not to be missed"

Then Half of us headed to Star Tours and the non motion people headed to Great Movie Ride.

We met back up at 50's Prime Time Diner for lunch.  We were starving and tired.  The adventures at sea and the early breakfast was catching up with us.  We checked in 45min early hoping they could get us seated early.  We were really not hopeful because it was the Sunday before Veteran's day the the park was nice and busy.  We were happy hanging out in the 1950's style living room and air conditioning.  

The food and atmosphere was great.  Doug's parents just let us pick where to eat.  I choose 50's because it is comfort food.  After all the fine dining on the cruise ship I knew we would be ready for just good old fashion cooking.   Doug got a pot pie, Jim got meat loaf, Sandy had some fried chicken.  It was exactly what we needed.  For more about the restaurant you can check out our full post here.

After eating we stopped in the Animation building to meet a few friends.

We were exhausted and ready for a nap so we headed to the front of the park and got a picture on the way.  It is nice to have the Photopass get a few shots of the whole group now and then.

We hopped in the van and dropped Jim and Sandy off at the Beach Club before heading around Crescent Lake to our room for the next two nights at the Boardwalk.

The room was nice.  The Boardwalk is a deluxe resort.  It would be extremely difficult to go from the Cruise ship to a Moderate or a value resort.

The couch folds into a bed and that is where Alden will be found.  

The decor didn't do much for the kids.  We have stayed at the Beach Club before so we wanted to stay some where different but the kids weren't all that impressed.

The kids also pointed out how the tiny bathroom in the cruise ship had twice the storage and counter space.

Once settled down we took a long nap.  SO long we kinda forgot about telling Doug's parents dinner plan.   Doug's Dad finally called and asked where and what we were doing.  

We then told them we would met them in Hollywood Studios by Sweet Spells.

After a boat ride over to the park we found Doug's parents waiting at our favorite candy shop.  We had FastPass+ to Fantasmic!  We got a couple snacks and some Glow With The Show Hats.  Alden picked the big Mickey cookie dipped in chocolate.

I went with the Sorcerer Mickey Candy Apple.  I felt it went with the show.  We got our snacks and made our way to the stadium.  The stadium for Fantasmic! is huge.  You need to get there a little early just because of the waking it takes to get back to it.  We were about 30 min early and got good seats.  We were off to the left.  For most of the show they show it in 3 spots.

This is a little zoomed in of Mickey during the show.   It was the kids first time seeing it and they give it mixed reviews.  Sam said "it's not Wishes" and she is right.  It is an odd mix of things going on in the show.  

After the show we headed to Toy Story.  It is totally nuts leaving Fantasmic!  I suggest having a meeting place.  Ours was the viewing window for Sweet Spells.  It is just far enough away to lessen the craziness but close enough that Samantha and Alden would make it if totally separated.  It is a lot like leaving a sporting event after a buzzer beater.  

Time to take in the Osborn Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights.   As usual they are awesome!

The kids spent some time singing and dancing with the lights. It is hard to make out the mass of people behind them but as you head to the center of the lights it is packed!  The park was about to  close.  Jim and Sandy headed back the the boat to head back to the beach club and we had one trick left up our sleeve.

After a little light viewing we hopped in line for Toy Story about 5 min before the park closed.  The sign said 60min for the wait but we new better.  We waited about 20 minuets is all.  They let you into line right up until park closing for most attractions.  

It is hard to see but Doug broke into the 200,000's this ride.  

Clair and I continue to improve.  

As we exited the ride the park was closed but we headed back to the lights.  They normally run the lights 1 hour after the park is closed.

We got a few more pictures as the crowd thinned out.

Line for this Photopass location was easily 20 to 30 minuets the first time we were here.  Now we just waited for one family.  

You can clearly see 30 minuets after park closing and you can wonder freely around.  Earlier you were shoulder to shoulder as you made your way around looking at lights.   This was a great way to end the night, looking at Christmas lights dancing to music with fake snow falling!

We headed back to the Boardwalk Inn with just a short walk.

Tomorrow we close out our trip with a challenge.