[jgriff2388]

:) Well we just returned from 5 wonderful days at WDW June 1st through June 5th. This trip was different from our past. We normally plan each PS for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. This time, we had only two PS. I found this trip to be truly relaxing, which is hard to believe when you travel to WDW.

We arrived in Orlando from Philly. Our flight was delayed an hour due to storms the night before. We were picked up by Spirit Taxi, which is actually a Lincoln Town Car. The driver met us in the baggage area. Our driver was very efficient and courteous, and the car was very clean. He loaded the car with our bags and away we went. During our drive, he gave each us a bottle of water. He also told us that there was a possibility that the space shuttle would take off that Wednesday, and he gave us a phone number to call for more information. He was quite the tour guide as well as a driver. This is the first time we did not rent a car. For a short trip such as ours, and when you are only staying on Disney property, the town car service worked out perfectly.

We shortly arrived at the Polynesian Resort. This is my third trip to this resort, and I love it. The resort is simply beautiful. This trip the travellers were myself, my husband, and our 10 year old daughter. We were also meeting my sister, her husband, and her 16 year old daughter and her friend. Check in was a breeze. I had requested a first floor garden view room at the quiet pool. Our room was in the Rarotonga long house. I highly recommend this building if you want one that is convenient to the monorail, the pools, and the Great Ceremonial House. We were offered a room the Tahiti building, but chose the Rarotonga building because of the convenience, and we were not disappointed. Our room had two queen beds, a day bed, a large bathroom, with a beautiful garden view.

After we unpacked, we immediately went to the MK via monorail, and my daughter just loved the monorail. We got there when the afternoon parade was ending, so the area near the train station was packed. It was quite hot, humid, and sunny, so the first purchase of the trip was a Disney baseball hat for my daughter. We immediately went to Frontierland and Adventureland. There were short lines for The Jungle Cruise, The Pirates of the Carribean, and the Country Bear Jubilee. Unfortunately, the Fast Pass for Splash Mountain was already sold out in the afternoon, and the standby line wait time was 75 minutes. The standby line for the Run Away Train (I keep calling it that) was 65 minutes, and the Fast Pass time was during our dinner PS, so we had to skip the Fast Pass for now.

We had a PS for dinner at Cinderella's Royal Table, and we were also celebrating our 15th anniversary. It was a terrific dinner. We arrived a few minutes before our PS and were seated then. Our waiter was very nice and efficient, and wished us a happy anniversary. The food was good and the atmospher terrific. You can't beat the view from the castle. After dinner, our waiter surprised us with a box for our anniversary. Inside the box were two champaign glasses with Cinderella's Royal Table etched in the glass. The glasses are just another example of Disney magic.
Tip: I got this tip from the Passporter. If you're celebrating an anniversary at CRT, make sure you tell this to the CM when you make your PS.

After dinner, the MK was still very crowded. We were not able to get a Fast Pass for Buzz Light Year or Splash Mountain. We did some other attractions, but we were tired from the long day. My sister and her family were delayed, so we would not see them until Sunday. We then decided to return to the resort because my daughter could not wait to go swimming. We got back to the resort, put on the suits, and took a dip. The volcano pool at the Polynesian is "very cool" to quote my daughter. It has a slide that tunnels through the volcano. There is no hot tub, but there are jets at the end of the pool. We enjoyed some librations from the Barefoot Bar, and watched the electric water parade, and then the fireworks over the MK. The pool is opened late, and I believe we retired sometime around 11:30.

Tomorrow it's off to Animal Kingdom.

[Cinderella]

Great Trip Report! I agree the Polynesian is Beautiful

Happy Anniversary

Cinderella

[jgriff2388]

Day 2
We had a PS for a character breakfast at 1900 Park Fare at the GF. We did this charater breakfast last time we were at WDW, and again it was wonderful. The characters came around to each table, and the food was very good. This is a buffet breakfast, but there is a chef who made omlets and eggs.

After breakfast, we took a bus to AK. This was our first trip to the AK and I have to say it is now one of my favorite parks. It is beautiful. The crowds were not bad, and we only had to use the FP once. Our first ride of the day was Kilimanjaro Safaris. This was a lot of fun. Afterwards we went on Kali River Rapids. Well unfortunately, two onboard the raft have to get soaked, and it was my daughter and myself. We are talking soaking wet. There is a small water resistant compartment in the center of the raft, so we did put our shoes and socks in it. We had to walk around the park wet the rest of the day. However, the ride was a lot of fun, my only complaint was it was too short.
I could not believe how big the Tree of Life was, and the carvings on it are unbelieveable. It is something you have to see, because photos do not give it justice. And the 3D show, It's Tough to Be a Bug is so much fun, filled with surprises.
I found this park different from the rest of the parks at WDW. With the nature walks, you do a lot more walking, but the park is beautiful. My daughter is an animal nut, and she could not believe the number of animals.
We did need a FP for Primeval Whirl. This ride is similar to a wild mouse and it was a lot of fun. We enjoyed Dinosaur and my daughter enjoyed The Boneyard. This is a good area for kids, as it lets them run around.
After a long day at the AK, we took the bus back to the Polynesian. We had made a PS earlier that day for 'Ohana's but we decided to cancel it so we could spend the evening at the pool. We got sandwiches at Captain Cook's and ate poolside, and enjoyed a wonderful night of swimming, and again watched the water parade and fireworks over the MK.
Tomorrow we are off to Blizzard Beach.
:)

[Cinderella]

I'm really enjoying your Report. It makes me wish we would have spent more time then we did at Animal Kingdom. We didn't even have time to go on any rides there but we did catch the end of a parade.
Looking forward to Blizzard Beach

[jgriff2388]

Day 3
We slept in since Blizzard Beach did not open till 10 AM. I had voted that we go to Epcot, but my daughter just loves to swim, so the water park won. We grab a quick breakfast at Captain Cook's and ate outside and enjoyed the ambiance of the Polynesian. We then caught a bus and sped off to Blizzard Beach. One note, I found the buses to and from the Polynesian were extremely efficient and fast. Rarely did we have to wait longer then a few minutes, and we only had to stand one time.

This is our first visit to Blizzard Beach and was it a lot of fun. The place is very large. One word of advise, WEAR WATER SHOES! The cement that was in full sun was extremely hot and everyone was running to get to cement that was shaded or had water on it. Live and learn! Anyway, I being the wus of the family chose not to do Summit Plummet or Slush Gusher, but the rest of the clan did, and they loved it. They said Summit Plummet was the best water slide that they have ever did. I personally loved Teamboat Springs. This was a large raft that seats up to 6 persons. Like Summit Plummet, you can take the chair lift to the top, and then get on this slide. There were numerous other slides, Downhill Double Dipper, Toboggan Racers, that were all a lot of fun. For some R&R, the Cross County Creek was enjoyable, but watch out for the ice cold waterfalls!

We finally tried the smoke turkey legs for lunch at the park. They were delicious, and I will definitely have one again when we go back (hopefully sooner then later). But they are large. I ordered two, and we could have just shared one.

Tip: If you are staying at a Disney resort, bring towels from the resort pool, and then just bring them back to the resort. The towels at Blizzard Beach cost $1 to rent each towel. The park was busy, so we had to stand in line for about 10 minutes to rent them. Also, buy the refillable mug. It was very hot the day we were there, and we easily drank far more then usual. The cups were definitely a best buy.

We left the park around 4:30 and returned to the Polynesian. We had a 7:15 reservation for the Hoop De Doo Revue. I picked up our tickets at the front desk. Note: You get a 10% discount with your Disney Club Card, or if you pay with an American Express Card. We took the boat from the Poly to the MK, and then transferred to the Fort Wilderness boat at the MK. Travel time was around 20 to 25 minutes. This is the 4th time I've seen this show, and we were not disappointed. Since we booked late, I didn't think all 7 of us would be seated together, but much to my surprise, we were seated at the center round table. A great seat! The CM came off stage and were singing and dancing around our table. Of course, I forgot my camera that night, ugh! I recommend this show if you are travelling with pre-teen children. My 10 year daughter loved it. She was laughing the entire time. The food is good, chicken, ribs, and strawberry shortcake for desert, plus all the soda, bear and/or wine you want. Our server was very good and attentive.

After the show, I wanted to take a hay right that was right next to Pioneer Hall where the show was, but we opted to take a boat ride to the Contemporary Resort and watch the fireworks from the oberservation deck. I have never done that before, and let me tell you, watching them from the oberservation deck was unbelievable. I will definitely do this again on our next trip. We finished the night with shopping at the Contemporary, then all aboard the monorail to the Polynesian for a good nights sleep.

Tomorrow: MGM:)

[jgriff2388]

Day 4
Well we slept in again thinking the park opened at 10, we were wrong when we got there, here it opened at 9. Again the buses to and from the Polynesian ran smoothly. The weather all week cooperated. Yes it was hot, but you expect this when you go to WDW in June.
The crowds at the MGM were not that bad. We did not need a FP, and the lines were no greater then 15 minutes. In fact, the lines were so short, we did the TOT twice within 30 minutes. The ride has improved since I was last on it. It had 2 small drops, then 2 longs ones. What a rush! A great ride! Again being the wus of the family, I chose not to do the Rock and Roll Rollercoaster. However, I was told by the crew that it was the best coaster they were ever on. We ate lunch at the Commissary, which was ok, but nothing special. Star Tours was again a lot of fun, but it felt shorter this time, or I'm just imaging it. We all loved Who Wants to be a Millionaire Play it. All of us were losers, never making it into the top 10. Unfortunately, we did not see get to see the Beauty and the Beast show, because there are no Tuesday shows. With the shorter lines, we finished the park by late afternoon, and then we sped off to the MK.

The MK was again very crowded. We only stayed an hour because we were all hungry and we left the park. My sister is staying at a time share off site, so we drove to her place (they brought their SUV), and then had dinner at the Olive Garden. After dinner, it was back to the Polynesian for late night swimming, and again watching the fireworks and electric water parade from the beach. Unfortunately we leave tomorrow, so we had to pack.

Tomorrow - Day 5, boo hoo!

[jgriff2388]

Day 5 - Our Last Day (sad day for all)

We finished packing, cleaned up, and since everything was already paid, check out was a breeze. We were not getting picked up to go to the airport until 2 PM, so we still had some time for the parks. We ate breakfast, and the Polynesian held our luggage until we ready to leave. We said our goodbyes to my sister and her family, as they were going to a different park today. As the MK is only a monorail ride away, off we went.

We got to the park around 10 AM, and it was already crowded. It amazes me how many more people go to this park over the other parks. Well were off to Buzz Light Year first. This was a mistake, we should have went staright to Splash Mountain. Buzz Light Year had a 45 stand by line already. So we got FP, and then sped off to Splash Mountain. Well this line had over a 75 minute stand by line and unfortunately, we already had a FP for Buzz Light Year. Needless to say, we never got on Buzz Light Year. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad line was not too long, so we jumped in. After that, another brisk walk back to Buzz Light Year. This was my first experience with Buzz Light Year and it is a lot of fun. I was the certified loser with a whopping 3700 points! Yes I have the big "L" on my forehead. My husband got something like 75,000. But my daughter was the big winner ("w" on her forehead). She got over 105,000 points! I think she'll be in the FBI with those shooting skills. Afterwards, we toured Main Street, did some shopping, and it was back on the monorail to the Polynesian.

Star Taxi had arrived right on time at 2 PM. The transportation to and from the airport was very nice. It was a very nice Lincoln Town Car that had plenty of room for our luggage and bags. Both drivers were very nice. Our plane back to Philly was on time and we had a smooth ride home, except for the landing. The pilot must have landed more the right wheel because the wing on the right tiped down, and the wing on the left went up, and some of the baggage compartments overhead opened! The pilot lost control of the plain for a few seconds as it swerved back and forth. It was only a few seconds but it scared the
#%@# out of us!

Now we are home in ever lovely New Jersey and back to reality. Regrets? The trip was too short, only 5 days. We are planning to go back 1 1/2 to 2 years and plan to stay 7 to 10 days. Also, we did not go to Epcot this time, and I really miss doing that. As I said this was a relaxing trip, we didn't plan it around food like we usually do. But on the down side, we missed some restaurants that I would have liked to try. Also, I wanted to do the DVC tour, but there was not enough time. But I did try the smoked turkey legs this time, and it was mighty tasty. Best buy? By all means the refillable mugs at the resort and Blizzard Beach. Highlights? The Polynesian Resort. If you get a chance, stay there, it's beautiful. And the pool is terrific too.

Well I hope you enjoyed this trip report, I'm off now to have 7 rolls of film developed.
:)

[brumcg]

jgriff2388,

Great report!

Ah, you should've kept the 'Ohana PS... We ate there during our trip and it now ranks as my favorite meal at WDW. Artist Point had better food, but 'Ohana was the better quality/price meal. Simply fantastic. Maybe next time, eh? :)

Bruce

[Cinderellafifi]

Welcome back! I'm glad you enjoyed your trip!

[Donna B]

Great report, glad you and your family had a good time.

[jgriff2388]

Thanks everyone. The one good thing about coming home is that you can plan another trip.

[Goofette]

great report, thank you! We tend to have our day planned around where we're going to eat, that can mess up plans, but their food is soooooo good. If I can stick to the weight plan I'm on (until next year) maybe food won't be such a priority...or...by that time that might be all I want to do

I'm glad you enjoyed your visit. It's just impossible to fit everything in isn't it? I'm going to really push for 10 days next visit. We'll see I guess.

[jgriff2388]

A 10 day trip would be nice. May be spend 3 days at a US resort and then another 7 days at WDW.

We tend to have our day planned around where we're going to eat, that can mess up plans, but their food is soooooo good.

Actually this is the first trip that we really didn't plan around food, and I really wanted to go over to the BW this time and eat at one their restaurants, or Artist Point at the WL because I read wonderful reviews about it. But I did like the freedom of not being tied to a PS as much. It was very nice just hanging out by the pool and having dinner, and my daughter just loved swimming till late in the evening. In fact, I know her favorite part of the trip was the pool, but she'll say AK to make me happy.

Oh, I also forgot to add that my daughter got her hair wrapped the last day of the trip. It looks cute, but it wasn't cheap, $27 for a few inches and some beads. The family ahead of us had 3 girls, so they spent a small fortunate.:)