Disney World

My travel roots run pretty deep. In early childhood in upstate NY there were family vacations to the Adirondacks, Alleghenies, & 1000 Islands. My father bought a travel trailer for a trip out West, but cancer took him so he never lived that dream. Later my mother, brother, & I, often with my Aunt Jessie, took some family trips: Florida, Boston, Montreal, Quebec. My first big travel after childhood, perhaps living my father’s dream, was a whirlwind Western trip with my friend Carl in college: 6500 miles, 16 states (plus Ontario), in 12 days! Inspired by the very detailed trip diaries of our mother, a long-time secretary, my brother and I both write up our trips. Though my journals began some years after Marjorie and I began our travels, accounts here will also include synopses of our early trips.

As I write this I'm brand-new to blogging, and still just feeling my way in setting things up. For my very first post I thought I'd start with something "magical": a trip to Disney World with our grandsons.

A “Magical” Disney Thanksgiving

November 2014

            We’ve done Disney before: Disneyland in CA twice and Disney World twice w/ son Matt (1985 & 1991, when he was 9 & 15). For the earlier trips I had not yet developed my trip journal routine, so I'll put in some summary info. We were joined in Jan. ’85 by Marjorie’s Mom & Uncle Bill. It turned rather chilly, Disney did a brisk business in hats and mittens.  

We did Magic Kingdom (Matt posed w/ Mickey & Donald and later with Figment) 

and Epcot 

Also rented a car to tour around central Florida: Kennedy Space Center,  Busch Gardens, 

Cypress Gardens w/ spectacular flowers and waterski show, 

 Bok Singing Tower,

and, of course, Florida oranges!  

         

In ’91 we thought maybe this would be our last chance to travel w/ Matt in the summer, given his music camp interests and generally growing up, and he was then old enough to do some wandering on his own w/in the security of the complex (we stayed on-site at Caribbean Beach Resort, making it easy to get around via bus and monorail service). 

Plenty of nearby shops and entertainment. 

We pretty much did it all (at that time, anyway)!: Magic Kingdom 

including the pretty night parade w/ lighted floats & fireworks,

MGM Studios (where Matt got called up to be part of a performance, like in Bermuda), 

                               Epcot, 

Typhoon Lagoon, River Country, 

 

and Pleasure Island (more “adult” entertainment, at least by Disney standards).

We also were joined for a dinner by Marjorie's cousin Ann & husband Mel. 

Thanksgiving 2014

 

 Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho, it’s off to Disney we go again! It’s always fun, new stuff to see, and Grandma has especially wanted to take grandsons William & Miles (plus their parents too!). The planets have aligned this year for a Thanksgiving trip  ̶  all schedules work out and the boys are at good ages (9 & 7). Flights and Disney packages arranged with Shawna at AAA, including “Hopper” passes (allowing more than 1 park per day) and Disney Plus Dining (“table-service” T, “quick-service” Q, and “snack” per day). There will be “Magic Bands” for each of us to wear to keep track of it all. And so many attractions in the different theme parks, pirate outings, parades, fireworks . . . Plus as if navigating Disney isn’t confusing enough, I need to study up on on-line options to arrange things via MyMagic, FastPass+, etc. We get tips from friends who are Disney regulars (special thanks to Terry & Peter, Charles & Rob, our dental hygienist Sandy) plus PassPorter guide and internet info. I’m able to do some reservations for dining and a pirate adventure for the boys. Stayed up past midnight the night I returned from our Sept. cross-Canada train trip (after an overnight and day stranded in O’Hare!), at the beginning of our 60-day window to do FastPass+ for 3 attractions each of the 5 days. Do I need Disney Anonymous?  ̶  Disney has become my obsession!

Monday, 11/24:

            We’ve had some early wintery weather: subfreezing temps & light snowfalls; tho nothing like the up to 7 feet of snow south of Buffalo last week. It’s up in the 60s today, good for some last winterizing of the garden. A late PM drive down to NYC, w/ a dinner stop at our favorite New Paltz diner. It’s much cheaper to fly out of JFK than Albany. Not wanting to add any further confusion to the Queens family getting to the airport tomorrow, we’ve arranged an overnight for the 2 of us at a Comfort Inn near JFK; also nearby parking (Airpark JFK).

Tuesday, 11/25: 

            We’re up very early to get our car to parking and shuttle to JFK. The rest of our tour group arrives shortly after. The boys seem as excited about their 1^st time flying as about DW. To prepare they recently watched the comedy movie “Airplane,” which surely has them well-informed (but don’t call them Shirley, to paraphrase a famous line). As we board they’re invited into the cockpit to meet the pilots and even sit in their seats! And an attendant later stops by w/ wings for them. 

The boys have window seats; Miles exclaims “Wow!” during takeoff. 

Grandma has doo-dads to decorate Magic Bands during the flight, and shares some w/ a little girl next to us. [Marjorie has her band full of bling, and receives many favorable comments from both “cast members” and “guests” during out time in DW.] It appears we’re off to a good start on this adventure. But one glitch: a t-storm over Orlando airport makes us circle a while, landing about 45 minutes late just before noon. Disney folks will collect our checked bags to deliver to our rooms. We connect w/ Disney’s Magical Express for a ride to our hotel. 

We’re staying at Pop Century Resort, a “value” resort offering the same advantages as other costlier on-site locations: airport transfers, good transportation among the various parks, chances to enter early and stay late.

Easy check-in, then a short walk and up a staircase inside a gigantic Rubik’s Cube to our adjoining rooms in the ‘80s building. [Pop Century is “a celebration of American pop culture,” quotes and colorful graphics on buildings representing different decades from the ‘50s to the ‘90s.] A 1^st “Q” lunch at the food court, then a bus to the Magic Kingdom to get things started. 

Very heavy rain just as we reach the MK entrance, but we’re well-prepared: Grandma has backpacks for the boys and ponchos for all, plus clever Grandpa saw the rain forecast last week and rearranged some FastPasses to have indoor attractions today. Thankfully the heavy rain is short-lived, we’re mostly OK the rest of the afternoon.

First stop: Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor, recommended by friend Cindy; a fun time, lots of audience involvement. As we pass a long line using our "FastPasses" Matt gives Dad a big thumbs-up! Grandma gets Anthea, William, & Miles to join her on the spinning Mad Tea Party. 

 Haunted Mansion offers a change of pace; the start is a bit too intense for Miles, but he recovers quickly. The group splits: Matt, Anthea, & William do Dumbo the Flying Elephant and Barnstormer rollercoaster, featuring Goofy and the Great Goofini.

Miles joins us for the silliness of It’s a Small World (♫It’s a small world after all, it’s a small world after all♫  ̶  there, now you can’t get it out of your head either! And this is the scene of a childhood “trauma” when Anthea was stuck on the ride). 

A visit to the Enchanted Tiki Room. 



Our group reconstitutes for Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, colorful fun for all, and Pirates of the Caribbean. Some pirate swag is purchased (there’s no shortage of shopping ops here). 

Marjorie, Anthea, & Miles join Incredibles characters at a dance party, we all enjoy the lights after dark and a ride on the railroad. 

 A short monorail ride for our 1^st “T” meal at Grand Floridian Café, in probably the fanciest of the resorts. 

Everything here and thruout DW is decorated beautifully for Christmas. A good, friendly waitress, excellent food. It’s been a very long day, the boys are starting to fade; before dessert William falls fast asleep on the booth bench! It seems thruout our stay that we’re seldom out of earshot of other unhappy children experiencing “Disney crashes.” But our boys have done very well on a very long day. Torrential rain w/ thunder & lightning has shut down the monorail, so a longer ride home via 2 buses. Our luggage is waiting for us in the rooms, as promised. A very busy day  ̶  we did way more than expected!

Wednesday, 11/26:

            Marjorie & I are up early. OMG: even the shampoo has mouse ears! A “snack” breakfast accompanied by the Chipmunks’ “Christmas Song” and other (omnipresent) holiday music, then to Animal Kingdom open early at 7; the others will catch up w/ us. Cooler & breezy, light rain on and off in the AM, then clearing and a nice PM (and the rest of our weather is gorgeous!: sunny, highs moving from the 60s up to the low 70s, a bit chilly in the 40s at night). The park is quieter than expected. Things are so wet from the rain that Kilimanjaro Safari and some other attractions won’t open until later. Our first action: a very active “mob” of kangaroos. 

We enjoy views of the interesting carvings in the Tree of Life and wear our bug glasses for It’s Tough to be a Bug: great 3-D and other sensory “effects.” The entry area has “Broadway” posters: The Dung and I, Beauty and the Bees, A Cockroach Line. 

Wildlife Express Train to Rafiki’s Planet Watch and animal care area. The men’s room has a Whiz Quiz, Wash Your Hands to Get the Answer: elephants pee up to 20 gal. a day! 

Meeting exotic birds. Pangani Forest Trail w/ good views of a big gorilla. And a hippo!

        The rest of the family now joins us for the exciting Dinosaur ride (which gets the highest Miles rating!). Matt, Anthea, and the boys take the Primeval Whirl roller-coaster (William: “the best part was Mommy’s screams!”),

and Kali River Rapids (Grandma & Grandpa stay dry to take photos).  Miles does some percussion.

After watching a presentation about a Great Horned Owl, an excellent lunch at Rainforest Café, w/ periodic “storms” inside. 

Matt, Anthea, & Marjorie share a sinful “Volcano” dessert, served w/ much fanfare. The park is becoming busier as the weather clears. 

         After lunch we enjoy the colorful Festival of the Lion King production, one of the longer attractions at 30 minutes.

[Attractions are mostly short, most rides less than 10 minutes, only some rides and shows 15-30 minutes. You can pack in a lot if long lines are avoided.] 

A stroll thru Maharajah Jungle Trek, viewing a tiger among the ruins. 

Here and elsewhere in AK the boys get stamps for their Wilderness Explorer books. [They’re also keeping their own journals of what we do each day; we’ll have to compare with Grandpa’s ̶  it’s hard to keep track of everything!]

            We all head back to our hotel, 1^st stopping to look into the neighboring Art of Animation Resort. A pretty sunset, the boys play some arcade games in the hotel lobby, Miles shows some loot.

Then off to Hollywood Studios.

We’re dazzled by the Osborne Family Dancing Lights: over 5 million Christmas lights, originally a family display in Arkansas that became too much for the neighbors and was moved here.

Past Goofy Santa to dinner at Pizza Planet Arcade, and more games for the boys. The Queens family stays in HS, does the Great Movie Ride and Star Tours. 

   Marjorie & I head to Magic Kingdom, open to midnight (a bit of chill in the air, M discovers back seats of the bus are nice and warm for her sore back). Cinderella’s Castle is quite spectacular w/ the look of “Frozen” snow and changing colors. 

The Main Street Electrical Parade seems more involved than when we were here before. Then the spectacular “Celebrate the Magic,” Disney character images, patterns, and colors projected onto the castle, followed by the also spectacular “Wishes” fireworks. Marjorie: “the best thing (so far)!” Back to our hotel at 11:15, mist rising from the heated pool.

Thursday, 11/27: 

            Weather news: 1000s of flights delayed or cancelled in the NE yesterday due to Winter Storm Cato. Happy Thanksgiving. Grandma hands out chocolate turkeys. Miles, usually not a morning person, is rarin’ to go, getting everybody up. Back to Magic Kingdom. A lot of people heading out, but extra buses and very efficient inspection of bags and entry into the park (tho I keep having problems w/ my Magic Band/fingerprint combo). [Some stats: 250,000 guests are transported per day on 270 buses, 12 monorail trains, and a fleet of boats/water taxis.] Lots of Christmas decorations. 

First stop is Big Thunder Mountain RR, an exciting ride that’s a big hit.

I call brother Doug to wish a Happy Thanksgiving and learn this is sister-in-law Ann’s favorite ride. 

The Queens family heads to Tom Sawyer Island for some exploring, including caves the boys find a bit spooky.  M & I ride clam shells in Under the Sea Journey of the Little Mermaid. 

We all enjoy the entertaining 3-D Mickey’s PhilharMagic. 

M & I take the boys on Tomorrowland Speedway. M stays in MK, going to some classics: Carousel of Progress, Peoplemover, and Hall of Presidents. What else do these have in common?, she asks: no lines and you can sit down.

Matt & Anthea get some “down time” while Grandpa takes the boys to the Hippy Dippy Pool at the hotel to use their swimming skills from summer lessons; Anthea joins in later and the boys enjoy some “pool party” activities. Some Disney cartoons on TV for the boys, football for Grandpa.

 Back on the bus, Miles wearing his new yoda/mouse ears hat, to Downtown Disney.

             A not-so-traditional Thanksgiving dinner at Paradiso 37. Various excellent food from the “Americas” (North, Central, & South); nobody gets the turkey burgers. 

DD has many shops and restaurants, especially pretty after dark w/ lights and music. 

 Matt & I use AAA vouchers to take the boys into Disney Quest, a 5-story “Interactive Theme Park.” There are racing games (Grandpa keeps crashing!), a golf video game (I get a birdie!), battles against ExtraTERRORestrial aliens, creative efforts w/ “Living Easels,” and many many more! 

While we play games, Marjorie & Anthea check out shops, and enjoy watching little princesses get dolled up in the Bibbity Bobbity Boutique (M can’t say that w/o giggling). The boys also enjoy a big LEGO store, including sculptures of big dragons, Snow White, the Hulk, etc. 

Some unhappy news: tomorrow’s Pirate Adventure cruise for the boys has been cancelled due to “inclement weather” (it will be sunny, but maybe too breezy or water level too high from the heavy rains over the past week?). 

Matt & Anthea head to MK to ride Space Mountain, a lingering wish from Anthea’s childhood visit. Grandma & Grandpa take the boys back home and to bed.

           

Friday, 11/28: 

    

          I’m up for an early breakfast and the daily staff “Twist” dance. By 8:30 the slugs  ̶  uh, I mean other family members  ̶  are still in bed, so off I go to explore. A monorail ride around Seven Seas Lagoon, hawks soaring overhead, w/ stops into Contemporary and Polynesian Resorts to check out Christmas decorations, also in the Magic Kingdom.

The Magic Kingdomis busy but not too crowded. No lines or short waits for “Jingle Cruise” (the Jungle Cruise oriented for Christmas, plenty of groaner jokes),

  Swiss Family Treehouse w/ some panoramic views, Country Bear Jamboree, Tomorrowland Peoplemover. Marjorie & I play phone tag most of the AM. I learn she’s been here w/ the boys (more down time for their parents) doing Stich’s Great Escape, Peoplemover, and Disney Railroad. We rendezvous back at the Pop.

            All 6 of us head off to Epcot. First to Test Track to design cars and have a thrillingly wild ride to test “your” car. Great fun! On to The Seas with Nemo and Friends  ̶  at the end CGI Nemo and friends are mingled w/ real fish!  

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We split: the Queens group to Mission Space (Miles braves the more intense “orange” level), Marjorie & I to the more sedate Universe of Energy ride narrated by Ellen Degeneres. 

We enjoy the views as the sun lowers and sets. 

Back together for dinner at Restaurant Marrakesh in the Morocco pavilion. There’s a belly dancer, Miles (who’s been taking dance classes in NYC) and other kids join in, some rousing renditions of ♫Happy Birthday♫ at various tables, and an excellent meal. Friendly waiter writes the boys’ names on the tablecloth in “our language” (Arabic), and at meal’s end sprinkles our hands w/ rosewater as a Moroccan tradition. It’s getting quite chilly as we walk around the World Showcase Lagoon.

Past a beautiful performance of “Hallelujah Chorus” by a very large choir decked out in Christmas apparel. Queens folk do Star Tours again and Honey I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set. 

 We do Living with the Land, Spaceship Earth, 

Journey into Imagination w/ Figment (remembering Figment’s special bond w/ little Matt back in ’85).

After we enjoy the “IllumiNations” fireworks, Marjorie stays longer to see O Canada! movie narrated by Martin Short.

Saturday, 11/29: 

            Time to think about heading home. Marjorie is threatening to slap the next person who says “Have a Magical day!” Matt is out early w/ the boys to sign them up for Jedi Training at Hollywood Studios (Matt: “You should have seen all the dads running to the sign-up!”); Marjorie follows shortly.Even trash cans are decorative!

            The boys meet some characters. Anthea & I stay back to do hotel check-out and airline check-in (boarding passes & baggage check), the latter a nice perk to save time at the airport. We reunite at HS for Toy Story Midway Mania!: Matt gets the high score and (full disclosure) Grandma outscores Grandpa. 

            When we get to Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular the boys are picked to be “junior directors.”  We all sit up front, the boys go onstage to announce “Lights, camera, action!” to start the exciting show. 

On to the entertaining Muppet Vision 3-D, followed by the Jedi Training Academy. 

The “younglings” are dressed in robes, receive light sabers (plastic) and training, then each has a battle w/ Darth Vader. 

Matt & Anthea brave the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror before we reunite at Pop Century for lunch. Miles gives us a Mickey Mouse pin as thanks for the trip. Plus big hugs from both boys later.

            Magical Express to the airport. Flight delayed an hour to 7:55pm, but everything smooth after that. Checked bags arrive OK, a quick connection w/ Airpark shuttle, on the road and back home at 2:30am to several inches of snow cover. 

          

We did and saw so much, more than expected, and crowds weren’t as daunting as expected during a holiday week. FastPass worked out well to avoid long lines for some of the most popular rides and we were able to find no or short lines for many other rides (tho one thing we missed was the hugely popular Seven Dwarfs Mine Train  ̶  unable to get FP and it always had way too long lines of 100+ minutes). And Marjorie noted that she never had to wait in the women’s bathrooms  ̶  Disney seems prepared for everything! William & Miles were excellent companions (Matt & Anthea, too!), surviving early mornings and long days, handling occasional disappointments, lines, and delays w/o fuss. All that we did only scratched the surface here, of course: DW covers 25,000 acres, including a number of park areas we didn’t see and only 1/3 has been developed. Maybe William & Miles will take us to see the rest someday.

A Magical Time was had by all!