Aren't Graduations Grand! - May 2015 TR (New 10/30 - MK and California Grill)

[SimplyGoofy]

Back to Universal!
Bonus Mini Trip Report – Introduction

More updates on the grand graduation celebration will be coming soon! Since we just wrapped up the Universal portion of the trip report, this seems like the best place to include a brief synopsis and a few thoughts about our 2017 trip to Universal. I got to experience a few new things (some new attractions, a new resort, and the new Volcano Bay water park) and got to enjoy more time in the Wizarding World!

I’d also love to include about 100 additional pictures, because nothing makes a trip report better than more pictures!

Rather than a play-by-play of our trip, I’ll include an overview of the resort, the attractions, and our thoughts about the trip in general. As it includes a few things that weren’t in existence or that we didn’t experience in 2015, hopefully it will be helpful! (And fun!)

Here’s what you have to look forward to:

Part I – Portofino Bay Hotel and Volcano Bay
Part II – Islands of Adventure Theme Park
Part III – Universal Studios Theme Park
Part IV – Wizarding World – Hogsmeade and the Hogwarts Express
Part V – Wizarding World – Diagon Alley

Up Next: Portofino Bay Hotel and Volcano Bay

 

[SimplyGoofy]

All About the Bays
Bonus Mini Trip Report – Part I

My husband G and I were married in March 2017 and we went on a fantastic honeymoon in San Francisco and Yosemite National Park following our wedding. I highly recommend both places if you haven’t been there! We were hoping to start a family soon, but we wanted at least one last getaway with just the two of us, just in case things moved along quickly. (And that was indeed the case, so I’m glad we planned for it!)

We had limited vacation days left in 2017 so a long-weekend trip was our best bet. I really wanted to visit a theme park as it wouldn’t be the same experience once we had kids. I hated to have such a short time in Disney World, so therefore Universal was the next-best option. As a bonus, it was a great park to tour over a long weekend. As an extra bonus, Volcano Bay had just opened a few months before and we thought it would be fun to experience the waterpark kid-free!

We arrived in Orlando on Wednesday evening, September 27th and headed home on Sunday morning, October 1st. We used Uber to travel from the airport to our resort and back to the airport. We’d never used Uber before this trip, but it was SO easy and much less expensive than a taxi or a transfer. We’d highly recommend using Uber if traveling to Universal!

Our resort? We picked….

Lowes Portofino Bay Hotel!

Having stayed at Royal Pacific Resort in 2015, I thought I’d be fun to try a new resort! I wanted another resort that included Unlimited Express Pass (that was such a great perk in 2015!) and Portofino Bay was slightly less expensive than the Hard Rock Hotel – Portofino Bay it was! It was a very pretty resort:

Check-in was very easy – especially since we arrived just before midnight!

Our room was quite lovely:

And the bathroom was HUGE!

If you’re worried about where to store your bathroom items, never fear… there’s a tower shelf in the bathroom that worked really well to store our stuff!

Similar to the Royal Pacific, this hotel comes equipped with a Keurig coffeemaker and all the necessities:

The room also had a mini-fridge, located within the dresser.

It was a lovely room with very comfortable beds and plenty of space. We really enjoyed the room!

What was NOT so fun was FINDING the room. I’m sure it didn’t help that we arrived so late at night and were tired, but it was a trek and a half to get to our room and we got massively confused (even with the helpful map provided by the nice front-desk gal). We did like our room location as we were right by the resort boat launch (we could even see it from our room!), but it was a pain-in-the-rear to find it in the first place. It was also not so fun to need to walk outside any time we wanted to get food or go to the front desk. It made me long for the single-building Royal Pacific!

The boat dock for the water taxi was quite nice, right on the back side of the central water feature of the resort:

One very unfortunate part of our trip is G got quite sick on Friday night. We had a full day of park touring on Thursday and enjoyed Volcano Bay on Friday, but he was out of commission on Saturday. As a result, many of my plans to eat meals in the parks and in City Walk went by the wayside. Instead we ate a lot of meals at our hotel!

Here are the places we tried...

Starbucks
We grabbed breakfast and coffee here on Friday morning before we went to Volcano Bay. It was nothing fancy but it was easy. Grant was excited to get a bowl of cereal and I’m much happier with my morning coffee!

Sal’s Market Deli
This was our most-frequented restaurant of the trip. Sal’s is a quick service spot near the back of the resort and has a selection of sandwiches, salads, and made-to-order pizzas. There’s also a great selection of grab-and-go items, which was quite handy since I had a husband who couldn’t stomach many usual food choices. I got several single-serve applesauces, crackers, pretzels, and fruit. The lovely restaurant folks even made me some plain toast for him. They were REALLY nice and I was so grateful I could find items to feed G!

I ordered two different pizzas from Sal’s on Saturday – one pepperoni for lunch and one BBQ chicken for dinner. Both were excellent and I would HIGHLY recommend the pizza from there! I know City Walk and the parks may have more festive options, but if you’re at this resort it’s a very solid choice.

Bice
We made a same-day reservation on Open Table to try this restaurant. The main draw for us is it was super-close to our room, as my Nebraska football-loving husband wanted to watch the game on Friday night. I thought it would be nice to enjoy a really nice meal on our trip. Therefore, sold!

We chose to enjoy the meal rather than document everything, so I don’t have any pictures. I’m not even completely sure what we ordered! I’m pretty certain that G ordered the Lasagne di Carne (homemade lasagna with bolognese ragu, parmesan, bechamel, and mozzarella cheese), and I think I ordered the Gnocchi (the current version is green gnocchi with langoustine, mushrooms, artichokes, and spinach). I’m not sure if their gnocchi changes with the seasons or if they had a different kind on the menu two years ago, but this dish sounds exactly like something I would love so it may have been exactly this one!

I know we also got a dessert and I ordered a glass of wine, but I have no idea what kind.

Our thoughts? Our meals were DELICIOUS but VERY rich. G initially thought he felt sick due to his lasagna being quite heavy, but the high temperature he developed put that thought aside. It was a very quiet restaurant and we had no problem getting a reservation just before we ate. Our waiter was a bit pretentious, but that’s just the luck-of-the-draw. If you’re looking for an out-of-the-way spot with really delicious (if a bit heavy) Italian fare, this would be an excellent choice!

Overall Thoughts – Portofino Bay Hotel
We enjoyed our stay and thought our room was excellent, but there are several drawbacks for me. The size and complexity of the resort made it a bit difficult to navigate (although easier to find the high-traffic areas than your individual room). The other big negative for me is the only way to get to US and IOA was via water taxi. The taxis were frequent, but it took quite a while to get from the resort all the way to the boat dock at City Walk.

The pool area was nice, but we didn’t have much time to enjoy it. I sat by the pool briefly on Saturday night before it got dark to try and soak up the ambiance, but my plans to enjoy it on Saturday afternoon were dashed with G’s illness.

I’m glad we tried the Portofino, but I will happily return to the Royal Pacific Resort for any future trips. I love the single-building resort, the ability to choose to walk to the parks or take the boat, and the slightly less expensive price is a bonus. The newer resorts at Universal also look amazing, but I really love having that Unlimited Express Pass! I think if you are looking for an out-of-the-way resort that has a fancy atmosphere, the Portofino would be a great choice!

Onto the other bay of this update… one we were really looking forward to!


Volcano Bay

Neither G or I are major water park people, but we thought it might be fun to try anyway. We are so glad we did as we both LOVED Volcano Bay! This water park puts many others to shame (including, perhaps, the Disney waterparks?) because it is SO well themed and has so many excellent slides, rides, and things to do. The tropical-esque music being piped through the speakers throughout the park really added to the ambience!

The major attraction at Volcano Bay is their water coaster, Krakatau, which is located around the central volcano:

In front of the volcano is a beach area called Waturi Beach and is full of lounge chairs and umbrellas. Everything there is first-come, first-serve, and we had no problem getting chairs first thing in the morning.

We tried the water coaster first thing in the morning and enjoyed it, but we only did it once as we enjoyed several of the other slides much better.

There were two slides that only I tried, including Tai Nui body slide, which is a tube that comes through the volcano. I can’t believe I tried a body slide - it’s pretty insane when you realize the trap door you’re standing on will disappear and send you plunging downward! Yikes! As a plus, I had no wait at all for this slide (just the LOOOONNGGG walk up the stairs to get there!), so if this is your jam you’ll likely be able to do it multiple times!

There was another body slide called the Ko’okiri, where the tube travels though a section of the wave pool. I’m pretty sure that’s the tube you can see in the picture:

G and I had a fun time watching the sliders RUSH past in the tube when we enjoyed time in the wave pool. One body slide was enough for me, though!

I also tried of the plunge slides, Ohyah, which drops you four feet from the slide into the pool below. They confirm that you’re able to swim if you choose to try that slide – but as long as you can paddle yourself a fairly short distance to the pool exit, you’ll be fine. I’m glad I tried this one, but once was plenty given the longer wait!

Many of our favorite slides were located on the perimeter of the park. We enjoyed the Honu and Ika Moana multi-person slides quite a bit. We even did the Honu slide twice, as it was pretty fun to spin up on the wall.

Our favorite slides (and G’s in particular) were the Tahwani Tubes, which were four different slides that you enjoyed while riding a single-person tube. We tried all four of them once and did several of them more than once! We had a pretty minimal wait each time so it was fun to ride again and again.

I think we also tried Maku, which is another multi-person raft ride, but we must not have enjoyed it as much as Honu as we only tried it once.

We also did several loops on the lazy river, called the Kopiko Wai Winding River. It was a lovely, relaxing time!

We finished our day bobbing and swimming around the Waturi Beach wave pool.

We didn’t bother renting a locker or a cabana – we just dropped our stuff (including our phones and some cash) by two beach lounge chairs when we arrived and it was there waiting for us that afternoon. One tip I would have is to REMEMBER where you put your things in the morning! Once the beach is full of people it’s pretty hard to find your empty seats from earlier in the day (especially when you shoved your bag under the chair!). Thankfully, we found our things, but we had some pretty frantic moments!

Towel rentals are available from Volcano Bay, but we just brought towels from Portofino Bay. We picked them up from the front desk on our way out the door where we caught the bus. We even asked the hotel if bringing the towels to Volcano Bay was okay and they confirmed it was! It was an easy way to save money!

We just grabbed quick service items for lunch – G got a chicken sandwich from Bambu and I got a Hawaiian Pizza from Whakawaiwai Eats. Both were tasty and filled us up after a morning of running up stairs and coming down slides.

A major perk to Volcano Bay is you’re given a TapuTapu, a watch-like device that you wear on your wrist, when you enter the park. If you’ve attached a credit card to your Universal account, you can use your Tapu Tapu to buy food and snacks throughout your day. No need to return to (or find!) your cash! We brought the cash with us just in case of an issue, but using the TapuTapu was very easy.

The other perk of the TapuTapu is the device gives you a spot in a virtual line on the slides. You don’t need to worry about getting a virtual spot if the slide you’d like has a short (or no) wait, but it’s nice when the day goes on and the lines build up. You can hold a spot in one virtual line at a time and the device will buzz and notify you when it’s time to get in line. It doesn’t eliminate the line but certainly allows you to do other things in the meantime!

We LOVED out day at Volcano Bay!

Volcano Bay was EXTRAORDINARY and we had an excellent day! If you have a chance to visit I would HIGHLY recommend it! It was our favorite day at Universal (and this is coming from two lukewarm water park people!). This was a great addition to Universal and a great reason to return!

Up Next: Part II – Islands of Adventure Theme Park

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Water Rides and More
Bonus Mini Trip Report – Part II

Congratulations! You made it through the word-heavy post of this mini trip report! The remainder of the report will just include the highlights we enjoyed from each park (as well as lots of pictures!).

First up is Islands of Adventure Theme Park.

Outside of the Wizarding World, there were several highlights at IOA.

I was most excited to try a new attraction since my last trip, Skull Island: Reign of Kong:

The queue was pretty neat (and dark!) and soon we were loaded onto cars and into the ride:

The ride is a pretty tame thrill ride, and involves multiple 3-D image screens (we are in Universal, after all!). The cars also rock around and there are some fun additional effects like splashing water.

You cross paths with King Kong several times on your expedition journey:

I thought the ride was fun, but G LOVED it. It was one of his favorite rides of the trip. We did it several times as he was such a fan (and it was no issue to do so with our Express Pass). I think if you’re okay with scary moment and are open to a few thrills, but you get a few motion sickness issues, this would be the perfect attraction for you!

We also made sure to pose in front of the T-Rex. It seems someone did not get the memo to be scared.

G was also very excited for the water rides at IOA. We did the same thing Anika and I did back in 2015, which was to bring along a change of clothes that we were fine to get wet. It’s so much better to get drenched in clothes that air-dry quickly!

We enjoyed Jurassic Park River Adventure:

Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls:

And G’s favorite water ride of the day – Popeye and Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges:

I also had to get a picture of good ol’ Popeye:

G LOVES raft water rides like this so he was a big fan. He asked to ride it again and because I’m loving wife, I agreed.



We also hit a few additional attractions in IOA. I rode the Hulk coaster while G did not, as he will NOT ride roller coasters that go upside down! I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed it more than I did in 2015. I believe they rebuilt the coaster and it did seem to make a difference!

We both enjoyed several attractions in Seuss Land (I just love how fun and whimsical this land is!):

We spun around in Cat in the Hat:

And enjoyed two rides on the sky-high trolley:

It’s such a low-key ride (almost like an open-air version of the Peoplemover!) and gives you great views of IOA:

We also enjoyed Spiderman:

I think I missed this sign on past trips (or it was new?). Isn't it the truth for both Universal and Disney?!

Our only in-park meal was at one of my favorites, Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade. I had my usual, the fish and chips:

It was delicious as always!

G chose the Cornish Pasties, which are ground beef, vegetables, and potatoes in a phyllo crust. They come with a garden salad:

I realize this is a theme park and all, but these pasties were RIDICIOUSLY small! I mean seriously, look at my meal and then look at his. Each pasties was MAYBE about three bites, tops. Unless you were really ordering this for the salad, they are not nearly large enough for a $10 meal. G was less than impressed and I felt bad that I’d proclaimed this as one of my favorite spots.

Lesson learned – order the fish and chips and avoid the pasties!

Overall, we had a wonderful morning and afternoon at IOA. Other than Volcano Bay, it was G’s favorite theme park due to the water rides and Kong.

Up Next: Part III - Universal Studios Theme Park

 

[SimplyGoofy]

It’s a Race!
Bonus Mini Trip Report – Part III

Next up is Universal Studios Theme Park.

The new attraction for me in this park was Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon:

G was a little sad that this attraction replaced the Twister attraction as Twister is one of his favorite movies. I tried to reassure him that it wasn’t a big miss, but he was still bummed.

To experience Race Through New York you need to reserve a spot in a virtual line through the Universal app or a kiosk and it will give you a return time (somewhat like reserving a Fastpass+). However, if you have an Express Pass, you can enter the attraction at any time. This was rather nice!

When you arrive at the attraction you get a color-coded card:

While you’re waiting for the lights around you to match your color-coded card (which is your signal that you can move onto the next section of the attraction), there are tons of fun things to look at:

They have tons of memorabilia of past Tonight Show hosts which really makes the time pass quickly! Sometimes we were hoping to have a little more time to look!

Once your color appears, you move on to enter the studio and then the theater. You sit in a theater sit in front of a huge screen. Soon, you don your 3-D glasses (no surprise there!) and then you race against Jimmy Fallon through New York.

It really DOES feel like you’re racing – both thrill-ride fanatic me and my less-than-thrill-ride enthusiast husband really enjoyed this! When G fell ill he was sad that he didn’t get to experience this attraction twice!

That didn't stop me from riding it again on Saturday, though!

We did several other attractions in Universal Studios together, including the Simpsons Ride:

The Mummy (I LOVE our bootlegged ride photo! I look overjoyed while G looks like he’s waiting for an appointment!):

And E.T.:

E.T. was a nice change of pace for both of us after all the crazy rides earlier in the day. We both really enjoyed the cool, dark air and the easygoing attraction.

I finally got a few good pictures in the ride, too!

We also enjoyed spotting the Back to Future car, which is an homage to the original ride that was taken over by the Simpsons.

I’m pretty sure we also did Men in Black together, but I have no pictures. I did it several times by myself on Saturday. I also enjoyed Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem on Saturday.

We also spent a little time around Grimmauld Place:

And I got a picture in front of the Black family residence:

I traveled back to the area on Saturday, just so I could FINALLY get a picture with Nigel:

Embarressingly, I thought it was Stan Shunpike that was greeting guests outside the Knight Bus! I felt really bad (and a bit stupid) when the guy informed me he was named Nigel! Whoops! (Seriously, though, wasn't it Stan at one point?! )

I also had to get just one more picture of the Knight Bus:

We didn’t have as much time together in Universal Studios as we’d hoped – just a few hours on Thursday afternoon due to G’s illness on Saturday. I’m glad we went to both parks on Thursday or G would’ve missed Universal Studios altogether!

I enjoyed being back at Universal Studios, but I was sad to miss out on several meals in the park (the Simpsons food court at the top of the list!). I also felt like the Studios got the short end of the stick on this trip, but I was happy to try (and enjoy!) Race Through New York and happy to relive the fun of the Mummy, the Simpsons Ride, and Men in Black.

I was also happy I was able to spend a bit more time at the Studios on Saturday, even if it was by myself!

Hopefully we have more time in the Studios next time – whenever that is!

Up Next: Part IV - Wizarding World – Hogsmeade and the Hogwarts Express

 

[SimplyGoofy]

My Favorite Castle
Bonus Mini Trip Report – Part IV

Despite our shortened time in the parks, we spent plenty of time in the Wizarding World! G has never read Harry Potter (and has no interest in doing so ), but I think that may change as our daughter grows older and I introduce her to the books. He may not have a choice!

We also recently attended Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in Concert, which is symphony performance of the entire score while watching the movie. I LOVED it and even G enjoyed it – he does love the symphony! They also created the same experience with the first film and are working on it for the third film. If you have the chance to see any of these shows I would highly recommend them – it was great fun!

We went to Hogsmeade at regular park opening on our first park day. It was SO QUIET in Hogsmeade – so much less crowded than it was in May!

Of course, we went straight onto Forbidden Journey:

`

I got some great pictures of the inside of the castle with my better-than-the-last-trip phone camera:

Including great pictures of the portrait walls! I’ve NEVER gotten these to turn out so well!

G is not as much of a thrill ride person as I am, but he was willing to try Forbidden Journey. I warned him that some people report motion sickness, but G said he felt okay after the ride. He wasn’t anxious to jump right back on for another ride (although we definitely could have – again, so quiet!), but I was happy he’d tried it. It somewhat confirmed my earlier thoughts that G psyches himself out of some attractions that he may otherwise enjoy or handle just fine. Oh, well – I’m glad he tried this one!

When I returned to Hogsmeade on Saturday morning by myself, I went to Forbidden Journey three times in a row. I used the regular queue the first time and then just did the express line the other two times. It worked great and was so much fun!

When we were there together, we also enjoyed a spin on Flight of the Hippogriff:

It’s a very tame coaster, but it provides such wonderful views of Hogsmeade:

We also wandered through the shops. G was a great sport in the Wizarding World, but as he was completely unfamiliar with the Potter world (he hadn’t even seen a movie at this point!) much of the excitement went right over his head. I enjoyed being in the shops, but it was a bit more entertaining with Anika would also ogle over things.

Since it was so quiet, it was a great time to get my picture in front of the train. I didn’t even have to shove anybody out of the way!

I also had to capture the home of Moaning Myrtle:

We also enjoyed the Hogwarts Express in both directions. I was thrilled that they created an Express line for the train – it made the wait SO much shorter! You can see the difference here between the regular line (on the left) and the Express line (I’m following G in that line on the right):

It was amazing! I REALLY noticed the difference in the Hogsmeade station in IOA as the route was a heck-of-a-lot shorter from the entrance to the train. It was nice to save a few steps (and to not get so hot like I did last time!).

It was lovely to be in both stations again, both in King’s Cross:

And Hogsmeade:

It's always so wonderful to see the train!

And, of course, to say "hi" to Hedwig:

My improved phone camera took MUCH better pictures of the train itself:

See? It was very well-done!

I also noticed the thestral carriage in Hogsmeade. It’s ready and waiting to take students (and perhaps their friends!) to the castle:

G enjoyed the train ride as he loves anything to do with trains. I was quite happy to be on the Hogwarts Express again!

It was wonderful to be back in Hogsmeade – my third visit in five years! It will likely be a long time until I return as Universal is not very little-kid friendly, but I hope when I do that my daughter is a Potter fan and enjoys it as much as I do!

Up Next: Part V - Wizarding World – Diagon Alley

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Not Your Everyday Alley
Bonus Mini Trip Report – Part V

Onto my favorite part of the theme parks – Diagon Alley!

I was SO excited to see it again just two years after my first visit! I was happy G got to see it before he was struck ill.

I showed him several of the fun shops:

And REALLY enjoyed finally capturing great pictures of Knockturn Alley:

I think you can get a good feel of how dark it is in there! (Honestly, I think they filtered in a bit more light than I remembered during my first visit, but as that felt nearly pitch-black I thought it made sense!)

I loved seeing Borgin and Burke’s again:

I even managed to capture several of the relics I’d missed the first time, including the vanishing cabinet:

And the cursed necklace (which apparently can be yours for the low, low price of $69.95!):

And the Harry Potter wanted posters:

Amazing!

I also had to point out the fire-breathing dragon:

G was a bit spent on rides when we arrived in Diagon Alley, so he elected to sit out on Escape from Gringotts. He was fine with me going on ahead.

This was another attraction where I really enjoyed having the Express Pass this time! Similar to the Hogwarts Express, the regular line was on the left side and the Express line was on the right:

So much faster!

I got a few photos that came out much better than my last trip, including issues of the Daily Prophet:

And Gornuk the goblin’s office door:

The attraction employees were great about filtering both lines through into the first section of the pre-show (where you meet Bill Weasley and the goblin), but you definitely went faster in the Express line as it was a physically shorter line (straight into the bank lobby and back) and had fewer people. Again, I love that Express pass!

I was sad that G missed out on my favorite ride at Universal, but I didn’t want to push him onto something he didn’t want to do. I was happy that I got to ride it several more times when I came back by myself on Saturday!

I was excited that I knocked another must-do off my list, as we caught part of Celestina Warbeck’s show:

It was quite snappy and fun and I’m glad we saw it!

I missed the Tale of the Three Brothers show AGAIN – another reason to return!

When I was there by myself on Saturday, I enjoyed ice cream from Florean Fortescue’s (more Clotted Cream – yum!) and also grabbed another Butterbeer. I had to get a selfie with my Butterbeer in front of Gringotts!

Overall, it was wonderful to enjoy another trip to Universal when I was still traveling with another adult. I know families with young kids go to Universal, but with so many rides with height restrictions it would be a tough place to get a lot done. I hope by the time we can bring our daughter I can still handle all those crazy rides!

As mentioned near the beginning of this mini report, we traveled to Universal at the end of September, which is smack dab in the middle of their Halloween Horror Nights celebration. Neither Grant or I are horror movie fans (it's one of the few movie genres I pretty much refuse to watch), so it didn't appeal to us at all. However, it affected us anyway as the parks closed very early (I think around 5:00?) for the non-party crowd. I knew this in advance, but it hit harder when I was onsite and realized I wouldn't have a chance to see Diagon Alley at night. Seeing the park at night was one of my favorite things from our last trip! I think I'll plan to visit Universal outside of the fall season in order to avoid those early closures.

It was also too bad that my husband got sick – no one likes to get sick on vacation and not feel well away from home. We made the best of it, but it certainly impacted our plans and his enjoyment. I’m glad he got to experience Volcano Bay, which we both loved, as well as the water rides at IOA, which he was really looking forward to. I hope our next trip to Universal is illness-free!

I hope you enjoyed this “bonus” Universal coverage! I enjoyed sharing it with you!

Up Next: Back to the 2015 Trip Report

 

[afwdwfan]

It's too bad that G got sick. Bad enough that it makes you have to change up plans on the fly, but even worse to not feel well and not be in the comfort of your own home. All in all though, looks like a nice opportunity for you to get away. And I really enjoyed the report on Volcano Bay. That's the first review of any sort that I've really seen about it. I think it would be fun to check it out sometime because of the theming, but to be honest, water parks just don't get me all that excited.

Overall, it was wonderful to enjoy another trip to Universal when I was still traveling with another adult. I know families with young kids go to Universal, but with so many rides with height restrictions it would be a tough place to get a lot done. I hope by the time we can bring our daughter I can still handle all those crazy rides!

This. 100%. We considered doing a day or 2 at Universal on our trip. DS is in a phase where Jurassic World is pretty much his favorite thing ever. We wanted to go and let him ride some things that he's now tall enough to do and spend some time with the dinosaurs, but the cost to buy tickets for the whole family, even for just 1 day was pretty much a no frickin way... especially when LG can't do hardly anything there. We even considered me just taking DS for a day, but we're going on a family vacation and it just didn't feel right splitting up like that.

 

[pkondz]

Kreacher just opens and closes the curtain. When the curtain is closed, you can't really see that he's back there.

Hopefully that's the explanation you're looking for!

Nope! I was talking about the disappearing bunny.

It really is! Everything in the entire Wizarding World is so well done.

Can't wait!

You don't have much to worry about - the Hogwarts Express now has an Express line! It's a heck of a lot shorter, both in line length and in wait time. Yay for Express pass!

Yuss!!!

 

[pkondz]

Along the way we spotted the phone booth where you can speak to someone about entering the Ministry of Magic:

No way! Really!

I was super-exited to try the Leaky Cauldron:

Us too.

I really wanted to try the Ploughman’s Platter, but I suspected it was a huge amount of food as it is meant to serve two people.

I saw that... and don't know if DD will want that or not.

The person taking our order overheard me and said they were able to scale it down for one person. Sold!

Oh! Good to know.

We were seated not too far from the actual “leaky cauldron” (it’s a bit tough to tell in the photo, but look for the crack in the pot!):

Yes I see it but... can't they fix that with a bit of magic? I mean... really.

Here’s my Ploughman’s Platter (for one!):

Lot of food!

We also each ordered a Butterbeer:

Of course!

Our thoughts? The first hill was rather fun, but overall it was not our favorite. For me especially, it was SO jerky and my head bounced back and forth though most of the ride. I ended up taking some Ibuprofen to ward off a headache. We were glad we tried it, but once was enough.

Oy. I'm worried about this one. And I'm sure DD will insist on riding it.

If you peek in the windows, you can view the beds that are available for travelers at night!

Cool!

Are you wondering why I'm pointing? I'm pointing at the reminder that the bus can travel anywhere (except underwater!):

I was wondering, actually.

We also spotted the shrunken head on the bus, which chats with folks when Nigel is meeting:

Get. Out. Are you kidding me?!?!?!!?

We didn’t leave Diagon Alley until we were pushed out by the lovely employees.

Rude.

You can see the Gryffindor scarf she’d purchased earlier in the evening. She wore it for the rest of the night!

awww...

I think the face at the beginning of the video says it all. She was a bit exasperated that she wouldn't find out until the next day where we were staying!

That look!

 

[pkondz]

Whoa! Massive picture dump!

I'm running out of time, but... I did read it all and devoured all the photos.
I'm heading out... well, kinda tomorrow night. (Tuesday... 2:30am... ugh)

Thanks for all the photos and commentary!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

It's too bad that G got sick. Bad enough that it makes you have to change up plans on the fly, but even worse to not feel well and not be in the comfort of your own home. All in all though, looks like a nice opportunity for you to get away. And I really enjoyed the report on Volcano Bay. That's the first review of any sort that I've really seen about it. I think it would be fun to check it out sometime because of the theming, but to be honest, water parks just don't get me all that excited.

I agree - it stinks to fall ill away from home. Both to miss out on the fun and to be without the comforts of home.

I felt a bit guilty going to parks by myself, but as he spent most of the day sleeping there wasn't much I could do. I ran back and forth all day to make sure he was okay and to grab food. It was not ideal but we made it work!

Volcano Bay was AWESOME! Water parks aren't really our top choice either, but it seemed a natural thing to do if we spent several days at Universal. I think you may enjoy it more than you'd think if you try it in a few years! Your kids would also likely love it!

This. 100%. We considered doing a day or 2 at Universal on our trip. DS is in a phase where Jurassic World is pretty much his favorite thing ever. We wanted to go and let him ride some things that he's now tall enough to do and spend some time with the dinosaurs, but the cost to buy tickets for the whole family, even for just 1 day was pretty much a no frickin way... especially when LG can't do hardly anything there. We even considered me just taking DS for a day, but we're going on a family vacation and it just didn't feel right splitting up like that.

Universal is completely awesome... if you fall above the height requirements. Otherwise, you miss out on SO MANY RIDES that it hardly seems worth the ticket price. It's a shame as that means older siblings sometimes miss out for a few years. One day at any Orlando park becomes very cost prohibitive. I think you made the right call and I'm sure you'll make it to Universal again one day. Having done it a few times now, I think several days at Universal (especially if you can swing a stay at an Unlimited Express resort) is the best way to go.

Nope! I was talking about the disappearing bunny.

Whoops!

The bunny disappears and reappears every time the hat goes up and down. It's quite frequent so I'm sure you'll catch it!

No way! Really!

Yes! I didn't stop in (I should have!) but I've heard about it from multiple places. Hopefully you have a chance to check it out!

Oh! Good to know.

I was really happy to be able to try it without twice the amount of food! What I got was plenty!

Yes I see it but... can't they fix that with a bit of magic? I mean... really.

Oy. I'm worried about this one. And I'm sure DD will insist on riding it.

It wasn't my favorite... but I'm sure you'll survive one ride. I hope your back isn't too banged up as a result, but I remember my head taking more of a beating than anything else.

Get. Out. Are you kidding me?!?!?!!?

Yes indeed! At least, that was the case several years ago, but I doubt they'd take it away.

Rude.

I know, right?

awww...

She was very fond of that scarf. She still wears it!

That look!

Teenagers are the best when it comes to that look, aren't they?! (Not that adults can't do it, too... )

I'll forgive the look though, as it will be worth it for the surprise to come!

Whoa! Massive picture dump!

I'm running out of time, but... I did read it all and devoured all the photos.
I'm heading out... well, kinda tomorrow night. (Tuesday... 2:30am... ugh)

Thanks for all the photos and commentary!

Yes, pretty much! I had so many great pictures from 2017 (as well as commentary for Volcano Bay, Portofino Bay Hotel, and the new attractions) that I just had to share them!

I hope you're having a WONDERFUL time on your trip! I'm glad you got to enjoy a bit more of Universal before seeing it in person!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Surprise!
Day 5 – Wednesday, May 27th

The day was finally here!

Ever since I started planning this grand graduation celebration, I had in the back of my mind that I’d love to include a brief stay at the Grand Floridian. Anika LOVES this resort, but due to the cost she assumed a stay there would never occur. As noted in my pre-trip report, I used Orbitz (which stacked together with some additional Disney room discounts that pulled through to Orbitz) in order to make an outrageously expensive room into a moderately expensive room. Two nights at Anika’s dream resort… here we come!



But, of course, Anika had no idea.



As you saw in the reveal video from the night before, she was absolutely convinced that we were staying at the Wilderness Lodge. It was a good hunch, but as she’ll find out (much to her delight!), completely wrong!

My plan was to leave the Royal Pacific around 8:00 in the morning, so I was pleased when we were exiting ahead of schedule at 7:45. We retrieved the car from the valet and made our way to Disney World. Goodbye, Universal! We had a great time!

Before driving through the glorious Disney welcome sign, we made a detour to a local Publix grocery store to get snacks and bottled water. I figured with so many Disney days ahead of us, having a few inexpensive snacks and many bottles of water on hand would be helpful. This was an excellent decision – the water was especially useful and we drank nearly every bottle! It was so nice to have cold water in our room to drink or take with us without having to troop to a vending machine or a filling station!

Groceries acquired, it was time to drive back onto Disney property.

Since we had a wonderful front-seat view from our rental car, Anika got several excellent pictures of the welcome sign:

Hello, Disney! We’re SO excited to be here!!!



Practically giddy, we made our way down World Drive toward the Magic Kingdom resort area.

Anika took another picture, this time of the Magic Kingdom entrance sign:

If you’re a frequent driver through this entrance you may have noticed a problem with our approach. This, my friends, was my most bonehead move of the day. I was SO excited about the surprise to come that I failed to pay attention to the road signs. If you wished to go to the Magic Kingdom resorts, you were supposed to go to the right side. If you were heading into Magic Kingdom park, you were supposed to go to the left side. My frazzled and distracted brain was thinking that since the Grand Floridian was along the west side of the Seven Seas Lagoon, surely I needed to be on the left side of the entrance!



Thank goodness for the VERY nice man that was manning the entrance booth I approached. I explained that we were heading to our resort, but I didn’t want to say which one as it was a surprise for my sister. I offered to show him our reservation on a piece of paper if he needed to see it, but he said that wasn’t necessary. He smiled and then explained my mistake of which lane I’d selected. He gestured toward the right lanes and said I needed to work my way over to the right in order to catch the road to the resorts. I felt like such an idiot, but he said not to worry about it as it happens all the time!

I was a bit nervous about moving over multiple lanes, but as the lovely gatekeeper mentioned it really wasn’t too tough. Even with it being around 9:00 in the morning it wasn’t too bad!

The major crisis averted, we made our way to 7 Seas Drive. Anika realized we weren’t heading to the Wilderness Lodge as we skipped the road that directed us toward that resort. When we turned onto 7 Seas Drive and approached the Polynesian, she exclaimed, “Wow! We’re staying at the Polynesian?!”



I just smiled and kept driving.

When I turned right onto Floridian Way it finally began to hit her where we might be staying. Initially, she said, “Wait… where are we going?” but as we continued on the road the Grand Floridian continued to come into view. My normally stoic sister became very quiet and looked like she was about to cry. She was SHOCKED and couldn’t quite believe this was happening.

I pulled over to the side of the road and handed her my phone, instructing her she may want a picture of the resort sign. She still seem shell-shocked, asking, “This is really where we’re staying?!” She managed to get a picture of the sign, but I think she was still a bit shaken as it was a bit off-center:

We turned into the resort and approached the gate. It was a bit surreal to say to the guard that we were checking in to the Grand Floridian… but we were! Even though the Grand Floridan doesn’t hold the same place in my heart as it does for Anika, I have to admit that I was pretty excited about our stay, too!

The guard directed us where to park. Thankfully, unlike the nightmare at the Royal Pacific, I had no problem finding a parking spot.

Resort guests... that was us!

We made our way toward the Grand Floridian entrance:

The surreal feeling continued for me when we walked into the lobby:

Holy cow, we really were staying here!



We stopped at the desk as I wanted to confirm how to get a parking pass for our Uncle Wade, who would be arriving the next day. We got our own parking pass and one for Wade as well as information about the resort. We also picked up a birthday button for Anika, who would be celebrating her birthday in just two days. What a birthday!

We didn’t anticipate getting into our room this early, but they had a room available! They asked if we’d like assistance getting to our room (likely after looking at our suitcases, bags, flat of water…) and we said, sure! Why not?!

Assistance to your room at the Grand Floridan was unlike any bell service assistance I’d received before. I don’t remember the gentleman’s name, but he loaded all our stuff onto a golf cart and then drove us to our room. He asked if we wanted a tour of the resort along the way… absolutely! Although we’d been to the resort several times for meals and to look around, we might as well enjoy the full treatment!

He pointed out the pools, the resort buildings, and explained the dining options around the resort. He was such a nice guy and it was great to not have to lug our bags (and that water!) from one end of the resort to the other.

Anika was still a bit shell-shocked that we were at the Grand Floridian. It was though she didn’t fully believe we were staying here until she saw the room!

Soon, we were directed to our building, Sago Cay:

I believe the only request I’d made at the Grand Floridian was for a high floor – I love to avoid hearing people walk above me and love to get a slightly better view. (You’ll notice this was a trend on our trip – we were lucky enough to get a top floor or nearly-top floor at every Disney resort!) As for a building at the Grand Floridian, anything was great for us!

We entered our building and headed to the elevator. Our wonderful guide had loaded all of our bags and food onto a cart and pushed it to our room. It felt so freeing to just worry about getting myself to the room instead of all of our stuff!

I allowed Anika the privilege of entering the room (although I took the picture on our second trip into the room – I felt silly taking a picture of this in front of our tour guide):

And, here we are! Our home for the next two days!

Our new friend unloaded our bags and even helped us put our perishable items in the refrigerator. I gave him a nice tip (again, he was SO nice and gave us so much of his time – I know that’s his job and all, but we really appreciated it!). Soon, it was just Anika and I in the room!

I had to get a few more pictures of the room (you know, for trip reporting purposes ).

Here is the bathroom area, with the tub/shower and toilet in their own room with the sinks across:

Way beyond some shampoo, conditioner, and body wash, they provided a ton of toiletries:

Seriously, beyond MULTIPLE scents and varieties of shampoos, body washes, lotions, and soaps, there was even foot lotion and after-sun gel. My goodness! You certainly live the high life at the Grand Floridian!

Back into the main part of the room, here was the dresser:

With the refrigerator hidden underneath:

The couch was pretty comfy and pulled out into another bed:

The beds at the Grand Floridian were so comfortable – it certainly seemed like nicer bedding than the other resorts. (Maybe it’s a placebo effect and it’s exactly the same as the other resorts? Regardless, we enjoyed it!)

There was also a nice desk, which was a great spot to put our bags and receipts:

And, something I was really looking forward to, our balcony! My Orbitz reservation was for a water-view room, and here was our view:

We weren’t able to spot Magic Kingdom (it was juussstttt out of view!), but it was pretty fun to watch the monorail go by! It was also SO QUIET back here – it hardly felt like we were at a huge resort and right next to the Magic Kingdom!

We enjoyed these chairs on the balcony several times:

The room was lovely. Was it worth the $700ish rack rate? Probably not… our room at the Royal Pacific felt similarly fancy (and with similarly super-comfy beds) at a much lower cost. The Grand Floridian did have a bigger room, extra sleeping space with the pull-out couch, the balcony, and all the extra fancy toiletries going for it… but I don’t think that was worth more than double (nearly triple!) the price of the other resort. Frankly, you’re paying for the proximity to the Magic Kingdom and the other perks (the multiple restaurants, pools, etc.), not so much the room itself. All of that said, I enjoyed my stay at the Grand Floridian much more than I was expecting and I would absolutely stay here again if I could get a good deal on a room. Anika, of course, loved every minute of our stay!

I was so excited that my major surprise of the trip turned out so well! Anika had NO idea… and she was so darn shocked and excited to be staying at her dream resort. It worked out even better than I’d imagined!

Our excitement was still running high – we were finally kicking off the Disney portion of our trip! We were anxious to get to a park, but we still hadn’t eaten that morning so it was time to get breakfast. We had plans for breakfast at the Grand Floridian Café the next morning, so we decided to grab a quick breakfast at the Gasparilla Grill rather than look for an ADR. It was nice to have such a short stroll to breakfast!

Up Next: The Gasparilla Grill and onto Epcot

 

[Tracy161]

My normally stoic sister became very quiet and looked like she was about to cry. She was SHOCKED and couldn’t quite believe this was happening.

Awww I can only imagine the emotions!

but it was pretty fun to watch the monorail go by!

Ooooh, that must have been so cool!

It worked out even better than I’d imagined!

So glad to hear it. What a wonderful - and successful - surprise!

 

[pkondz]

Kreacher just opens and closes the curtain. When the curtain is closed, you can't really see that he's back there.

Hopefully that's the explanation you're looking for!

It wasn't. I was wondering about the disappearing rabbit under the hat.

You'll love it! It's a great resort!

I did! It is!

It's excellent in both directions! If only the lines to go on it hadn't been so long, we'd have ridden it more than once in each direction!

I thought it was great! (In both directions)

You don't have much to worry about - the Hogwarts Express now has an Express line! It's a heck of a lot shorter, both in line length and in wait time. Yay for Express pass!

Along the way we spotted the phone booth where you can speak to someone about entering the Ministry of Magic:

I picked up the receiver, but only got a dial tone. Ah well.

I was super-exited to try the Leaky Cauldron:

I was too.

I really wanted to try the Ploughman’s Platter, but I suspected it was a huge amount of food as it is meant to serve two people. The person taking our order overheard me and said they were able to scale it down for one person. Sold!

I didn't know you could do this until I read it here. Which I did before I left.

We were seated not too far from the actual “leaky cauldron” (it’s a bit tough to tell in the photo, but look for the crack in the pot!):

I see it!

Here’s my Ploughman’s Platter (for one!):

Huge!

We also each ordered a Butterbeer:

Well of course. You have to.

Our thoughts? The first hill was rather fun, but overall it was not our favorite. For me especially, it was SO jerky and my head bounced back and forth though most of the ride. I ended up taking some Ibuprofen to ward off a headache. We were glad we tried it, but once was enough.

Yeah... it was a one and done for us.

If you peek in the windows, you can view the beds that are available for travelers at night!

Thanks for the tip. We did that.

Are you wondering why I'm pointing? I'm pointing at the reminder that the bus can travel anywhere (except underwater!):

I was wondering!

We also spotted the shrunken head on the bus, which chats with folks when Nigel is meeting:

Never heard him (didn't get close enough), but did see him talking.

We were super tired after our very full park days at Universal. My feet were not yet used to all the walking (so much walking!) and were quite sore. I ended up pushing the desk chair into the bathroom in order to soak them in the tub. It was not an easy feat due to the door that separated the tub portion of the bathroom, but I managed to do it! My feet felt much better, and thankfully they must’ve adjusted to the mileage after that as I didn’t have any further issues.

Awww... your poor feet. Glad they didn't bother you later.

I think the face at the beginning of the video says it all. She was a bit exasperated that she wouldn't find out until the next day where we were staying!

 

[pkondz]

My husband G and I were married in March 2017 and we went on a fantastic honeymoon in San Francisco and Yosemite National Park following our wedding. I highly recommend both places if you haven’t been there! We were hoping to start a family soon, but we wanted at least one last getaway with just the two of us, just in case things moved along quickly. (And that was indeed the case, so I’m glad we planned for it!)

Then when you go with kids... it will open your eyes up to even more joy.

I really wanted to visit a theme park as it wouldn’t be the same experience once we had kids.

This is soooo true.

We used Uber to travel from the airport to our resort and back to the airport. We’d never used Uber before this trip, but it was SO easy and much less expensive than a taxi or a transfer. We’d highly recommend using Uber if traveling to Universal!

Thanks for the tip!

Lowes Portofino Bay Hotel!

Glad for this. Now I can compare!

I wanted another resort that included Unlimited Express Pass (that was such a great perk in 2015!)

Our room was quite lovely:

Looks it, too!

What was NOT so fun was FINDING the room. I’m sure it didn’t help that we arrived so late at night and were tired, but it was a trek and a half to get to our room and we got massively confused (even with the helpful map provided by the nice front-desk gal).

Oh dear...

It was also not so fun to need to walk outside any time we wanted to get food or go to the front desk.

Well... that's not so great.

The boat dock for the water taxi was quite nice, right on the back side of the central water feature of the resort:

The back side of water (feature)????

One very unfortunate part of our trip is G got quite sick on Friday night.

Sorry to hear that.

Bice
We made a same-day reservation on Open Table to try this restaurant. The main draw for us is it was super-close to our room, as my Nebraska football-loving husband wanted to watch the game on Friday night. I thought it would be nice to enjoy a really nice meal on our trip. Therefore, sold!

We chose to enjoy the meal rather than document everything, so I don’t have any pictures. I’m not even completely sure what we ordered! I’m pretty certain that G ordered the Lasagne di Carne (homemade lasagna with bolognese ragu, parmesan, bechamel, and mozzarella cheese), and I think I ordered the Gnocchi (the current version is green gnocchi with langoustine, mushrooms, artichokes, and spinach). I’m not sure if their gnocchi changes with the seasons or if they had a different kind on the menu two years ago, but this dish sounds exactly like something I would love so it may have been exactly this one!

Sounds good.

The other big negative for me is the only way to get to US and IOA was via water taxi.

Hmmm... I liked having the option of walking...

The taxis were frequent, but it took quite a while to get from the resort all the way to the boat dock at City Walk.

How long?

Volcano Bay

Didn't get there... so thanks for the review!

This water park puts many others to shame (including, perhaps, the Disney waterparks?)

Really!

We tried the water coaster first thing in the morning and enjoyed it, but we only did it once as we enjoyed several of the other slides much better.

Huh! I'm surprised.

I can’t believe I tried a body slide - it’s pretty insane when you realize the trap door you’re standing on will disappear and send you plunging downward! Yikes!

I also tried of the plunge slides, Ohyah, which drops you four feet from the slide into the pool below.

That sounds pretty fun.

We didn’t bother renting a locker or a cabana – we just dropped our stuff (including our phones and some cash) by two beach lounge chairs when we arrived and it was there waiting for us that afternoon.

I'd be a bit (no... a lot) worried to do that.

One tip I would have is to REMEMBER where you put your things in the morning! Once the beach is full of people it’s pretty hard to find your empty seats from earlier in the day (especially when you shoved your bag under the chair!). Thankfully, we found our things, but we had some pretty frantic moments!

I bet! Glad it worked out, though.

Towel rentals are available from Volcano Bay, but we just brought towels from Portofino Bay. We picked them up from the front desk on our way out the door where we caught the bus. We even asked the hotel if bringing the towels to Volcano Bay was okay and they confirmed it was! It was an easy way to save money!

Huh. I just assumed the towels would've been free.

A major perk to Volcano Bay is you’re given a TapuTapu, a watch-like device that you wear on your wrist, when you enter the park. If you’ve attached a credit card to your Universal account, you can use your Tapu Tapu to buy food and snacks throughout your day. No need to return to (or find!) your cash!

Nice! Good to know.

The other perk of the TapuTapu is the device gives you a spot in a virtual line on the slides. You don’t need to worry about getting a virtual spot if the slide you’d like has a short (or no) wait, but it’s nice when the day goes on and the lines build up. You can hold a spot in one virtual line at a time and the device will buzz and notify you when it’s time to get in line. It doesn’t eliminate the line but certainly allows you to do other things in the meantime!

When it buzzes, you go in a virtual line that's separate from the regular line? Like an express pass?

Congratulations! You made it through the word-heavy post of this mini trip report!

I was most excited to try a new attraction since my last trip, Skull Island: Reign of Kong:

Liked that one.

I thought the ride was fun, but G LOVED it. It was one of his favorite rides of the trip. We did it several times as he was such a fan

Good!

We also made sure to pose in front of the T-Rex. It seems someone did not get the memo to be scared.

G was also very excited for the water rides at IOA. We did the same thing Anika and I did back in 2015, which was to bring along a change of clothes that we were fine to get wet. It’s so much better to get drenched in clothes that air-dry quickly!

We didn't do that... so we skipped the overly wet ones.

G LOVES raft water rides like this so he was a big fan. He asked to ride it again and because I’m loving wife, I agreed.

You're a good wife.

So... what will your future demands be?

We both enjoyed several attractions in Seuss Land (I just love how fun and whimsical this land is!):

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed that area.

We also enjoyed Spiderman:

Good ride.

I think I missed this sign on past trips (or it was new?). Isn't it the truth for both Universal and Disney?!

Yes!

G chose the Cornish Pasties, which are ground beef, vegetables, and potatoes in a phyllo crust. They come with a garden salad:

Those things looked so small.
I almost ordered that, then saw them on someone else's tray. Nope!

I realize this is a theme park and all, but these pasties were RIDICIOUSLY small!

I know, right???

Lesson learned – order the fish and chips and avoid the pasties!

The new attraction for me in this park was Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon:

Oh! didn't know it was new.

To experience Race Through New York you need to reserve a spot in a virtual line through the Universal app or a kiosk and it will give you a return time (somewhat like reserving a Fastpass+). However, if you have an Express Pass, you can enter the attraction at any time. This was rather nice!

It really DOES feel like you’re racing

The Mummy (I LOVE our bootlegged ride photo! I look overjoyed while G looks like he’s waiting for an appointment!):

He does!

We also enjoyed spotting the Back to Future car, which is an homage to the original ride that was taken over by the Simpsons.

And... I rode that ride, once upon a time.

And I got a picture in front of the Black family residence:

I took one of my DD there.

Embarressingly, I thought it was Stan Shunpike that was greeting guests outside the Knight Bus! I felt really bad (and a bit stupid) when the guy informed me he was named Nigel! Whoops! (Seriously, though, wasn't it Stan at one point?! )

I googled... it was Stan. Maybe he (Nigel) was trying to not be Stan... i.e. not a face character??

G has never read Harry Potter (and has no interest in doing so ),

but I think that may change as our daughter grows older and I introduce her to the books. He may not have a choice!

There ya go!

We also recently attended Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in Concert, which is symphony performance of the entire score while watching the movie. I LOVED it and even G enjoyed it – he does love the symphony!

That sounds good!

G is not as much of a thrill ride person as I am, but he was willing to try Forbidden Journey. I warned him that some people report motion sickness, but G said he felt okay after the ride. He wasn’t anxious to jump right back on for another ride

I get that. I did it back to back with my younger DD a couple years ago in California... I didn't feel that great after the second go-round.

I also had to capture the home of Moaning Myrtle:

Onto my favorite part of the theme parks – Diagon Alley!

That place is ridiculously well themed!

And REALLY enjoyed finally capturing great pictures of Knockturn Alley:

Hard to do. So dark!

I even managed to capture several of the relics I’d missed the first time, including the vanishing cabinet:

Missed that! dang it!

And the cursed necklace (which apparently can be yours for the low, low price of $69.95!):

The curse is the price, actually.

I also had to point out the fire-breathing dragon:

You had to point it out???

Whoa! Nice shot!

The attraction employees were great about filtering both lines through into the first section of the pre-show (where you meet Bill Weasley and the goblin), but you definitely went faster in the Express line as it was a physically shorter line (straight into the bank lobby and back) and had fewer people. Again, I love that Express pass!

I missed the Tale of the Three Brothers show AGAIN – another reason to return!

Me too.

I hope you enjoyed this “bonus” Universal coverage! I enjoyed sharing it with you!

I did! Thanks!

 

[pkondz]

Ever since I started planning this grand graduation celebration, I had in the back of my mind that I’d love to include a brief stay at the Grand Floridian. Anika LOVES this resort, but due to the cost she assumed a stay there would never occur. As noted in my pre-trip report, I used Orbitz (which stacked together with some additional Disney room discounts that pulled through to Orbitz) in order to make an outrageously expensive room into a moderately expensive room. Two nights at Anika’s dream resort… here we come!

Nice that you could get some discounts!

As you saw in the reveal video from the night before, she was absolutely convinced that we were staying at the Wilderness Lodge

Since we had a wonderful front-seat view from our rental car, Anika got several excellent pictures of the welcome sign:

Car perk.

If you’re a frequent driver through this entrance you may have noticed a problem with our approach. This, my friends, was my most bonehead move of the day. I was SO excited about the surprise to come that I failed to pay attention to the road signs. If you wished to go to the Magic Kingdom resorts, you were supposed to go to the right side. If you were heading into Magic Kingdom park, you were supposed to go to the left side. My frazzled and distracted brain was thinking that since the Grand Floridian was along the west side of the Seven Seas Lagoon, surely I needed to be on the left side of the entrance!

Whoopsie!
No, I didn't know that and might have made the same mistake.

I felt like such an idiot, but he said not to worry about it as it happens all the time!

See??

she exclaimed, “Wow! We’re staying at the Polynesian?!”

Nope!

Initially, she said, “Wait… where are we going?” but as we continued on the road the Grand Floridian continued to come into view. My normally stoic sister became very quiet and looked like she was about to cry. She was SHOCKED and couldn’t quite believe this was happening.

I'm just loving this!

I pulled over to the side of the road and handed her my phone, instructing her she may want a picture of the resort sign. She still seem shell-shocked, asking, “This is really where we’re staying?!” She managed to get a picture of the sign, but I think she was still a bit shaken as it was a bit off-center:

This is awesome!

Holy cow, we really were staying here!

Yes you were!

We didn’t anticipate getting into our room this early, but they had a room available!

Really! Wow! Early!

Assistance to your room at the Grand Floridan was unlike any bell service assistance I’d received before. I don’t remember the gentleman’s name, but he loaded all our stuff onto a golf cart and then drove us to our room. He asked if we wanted a tour of the resort along the way… absolutely!

I believe the only request I’d made at the Grand Floridian was for a high floor – I love to avoid hearing people walk above me and love to get a slightly better view. (You’ll notice this was a trend on our trip – we were lucky enough to get a top floor or nearly-top floor at every Disney resort!)

I'm the opposite. I like ground floor, so I can just walk out and go.

And, something I was really looking forward to, our balcony! My Orbitz reservation was for a water-view room, and here was our view:

With monorail too!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Awww I can only imagine the emotions!

It was even better than I imagined! I must admit that I would've been sad if she just would've said, "Wow, that's cool!" and gone about our day. This was a big surprise and I wanted a big reaction. Accomplished!

Ooooh, that must have been so cool!

It was a GREAT view - much better than I was anticipating with an Orbitz reservation! Perhaps some folks would not have been pleased, but it was so nice, quiet, and peaceful and SO fun to have a view of the Monorail on our first stay at a Monorail resort!

So glad to hear it. What a wonderful - and successful - surprise!

It was the best. I was excited, she was excited... it could not have gone better.

I did! It is!

I'm so glad you liked it! It's an excellent resort!

I picked up the receiver, but only got a dial tone. Ah well.

Really?! What a bummer! Maybe they don't do it anymore... the feature isn't mentioned in the Unofficial Guide to WDW and I feel like it would at least be a "try-to-see" item.

Yeah... it was a one and done for us.

SUCH a bumpy ride. I'm glad you (and hopefully your back!) survived!

Thanks for the tip. We did that.

Great! I thought it was a great touch.

Awww... your poor feet. Glad they didn't bother you later.

I have no idea why they were so sore - it was a bummer! I have to guess it was all the additional walking as it's thousands more steps than I usually do. Thankfully it disappeared by the time we got to Disney!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Then when you go with kids... it will open your eyes up to even more joy.

That's certainly true! I'm already excited about bringing my daughter to Disney World - and we're not planning to go until next year!

This is soooo true.

I think this is especially true at the Universal parks. There are so few rides that are made for kids and are without a height requirement. Hopefully by the time our daughter is tall enough I can still take those crazy rides!

Thanks for the tip!

You're welcome! It was a very easy and economical way to get to Universal!

Oh dear...

Well... that's not so great.

It was a really confusing resort, but I'm sure the late hour didn't help.

I feel silly complaining about walking outside to get places since you need to do that at practically EVERY Disney resort... but I think the Royal Pacific had spoiled me by being so contained!

The back side of water (feature)????

Sorry to hear that.

It was a bummer - especially for him. I feel like he missed out on a lot since it was such a short trip! At least he got to experience Volcano Bay since we both enjoyed it so much.

Sounds good.

It was great! Quite rich, but very tasty.

Hmmm... I liked having the option of walking...

I REALLY enjoyed being able to either ride or walk to the parks. Even if you didn't get there any faster by walking, sometimes it FELT like you were and that was nice!

How long?

I don't entirely remember... maybe a 10 minute ride? You also have to factor in the time to wait for the boat and then to board and exit the boat... so at least 15 minutes if you manage to catch a boat almost immediately. I'm pretty sure we could walk to IOA from our RPR room in 10 minutes flat!

Didn't get there... so thanks for the review!

It's a great water park! If you have a chance to go sometime, I'd definitely try it!

Huh! I'm surprised.

We got stuck in the middle of the ride and then they had to manually push us forward to continue... so it may have soured our experience. The other slides were so fun (and had no issues) so they ranked higher for us.

I KNOW! To this day I can't believe I tried that crazy slide! I still remember what it looked like when that trapdoor opened and WHOOOOSH! I went down the slide!

That sounds pretty fun.

It was! I'm glad I tried it!

I'd be a bit (no... a lot) worried to do that.

I still question if that was a good plan, but it worked fine. I was concerned that renting a locker would result in us being too far back in the water coaster line... in reality, it probably would've been fine. I've always rented a locker at the Disney waterparks and likely would at Volcano Bay if we ever go back.

I bet! Glad it worked out, though.

It was a rough 10 minutes of so of trying to find our things… thankfully we found them!

Huh. I just assumed the towels would've been free.

It may have changed, but you had to rent a towel (I don't remember the cost - $5?) or bring your own. We did the next best thing and brought the resort's towels!

Nice! Good to know.

When it buzzes, you go in a virtual line that's separate from the regular line? Like an express pass?

Each attraction either says "Ride Now," in which case you enter and don't need a return time; or a comment about the virtual wait time, in which case you tap on the attraction to create your "spot" in line. You aren't able to enter a line with a virtual wait unless your Tapu-Tapu says it's your turn. You can only be in one virtual line at a time, but you can do other things (the lazy river, the wave pool, or slides with a "ride now" listed at the attraction entrance) while you wait for your Tapu-Tapu to alert you that's it's time to ride. You joined a short line if you held a place in the virtual line, but it tended to be around 10 minutes. This worked fine for us as we were there an off-peak time, so several slides were listed as "ride now" all day and even the virtual lines were on the shorter side (15-30 minute waits). If you were there during a peak spring break or summer period I would think it would limit the number of slides you could do!

Liked that one.

It was a fun attraction! I wasn't a big fan of the creepy line to get to the ride vehicles (I may be a BIT on the jumpy side... ), but I was glad to find something that G enjoyed so much!

I mean, seriously... we're standing in front of a ferocious T-Rex and you're SMILING?!

You're a good wife.

So... what will your future demands be?

I was happy to enjoy the water rides again as we were wearing appropriate clothing for it! Since we were already drenched, what does it matter if we get MORE drenched?!

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed that area.

I really love Seuss Land. The theming is excellent and it's so fun and colorful! It has several fun attractions, too!

Good ride.

It is quite enjoyable!

Those things looked so small.
I almost ordered that, then saw them on someone else's tray. Nope!

Good move! I felt so bad when that was Grant's meal... he was hungry and NOT impressed!

Oh! didn't know it was new.

It was new since my last trip in 2015 - it took over the spot where Twister! used to live. It was quite fun!

He does!

I laughed SO HARD when I saw that picture! How on earth does he look so calm (nearly bored?!).

And... I rode that ride, once upon a time.

So did I! I visited for a single day back in 2006 - that was before I read guidebooks and online message boards and knew how to better navigate a theme park! We stood in some VERY long lines!

I took one of my DD there.

It's an excellent photo spot!

I googled... it was Stan. Maybe he (Nigel) was trying to not be Stan... i.e. not a face character??

Well, that makes me feel better! I felt like such an idiot when I said, full of enthusiasm, "Hello, Stan!" and his reply was "I'm Nigel!" Um, what?! Do you two switch out who greets Knight Bus visitors?!

There ya go!

I figure the problem will take care of itself.

That sounds good!

It was excellent! They just released the tickets for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban in concert for next year - and I absolutely bought them!

I get that. I did it back to back with my younger DD a couple years ago in California... I didn't feel that great after the second go-round.

I was thrilled he tried it. I didn't want to push my luck!

That place is ridiculously well themed!

It's AMAZING!!!

Hard to do. So dark!

It is! I couldn't believe it on my first visit when I saw how amazingly dark it was! (How do some visitors not get injured back there by not allowing themselves to adjust to the low light?!)

Missed that! dang it!

Shoot! I saw it on my first trip but certainly missed photographing it. There's so much to see that's it's easy to miss things!

The curse is the price, actually.

That's certainly the truth!

You had to point it out???

Okay, not exactly... G may have noticed the gigantic dragon at the end of the street.

Whoa! Nice shot!

Thank you!

Wasn't it GREAT?! It's amazing how much time those Express Passes save!

Me too.

And I really wanted to see it, too! It just never worked out, so... next time!

I did! Thanks!

You're very welcome!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Nice that you could get some discounts!

Thank goodness! If only All Star Movies was her favorite resort!

I think they've made it more difficult to link third-party bookings to MDE than it used to be, but I'd be tempted to make more third-party bookings in the future due to the great discounts you can find. I love having the perks of certain resorts but don't feel the need to pay more than I have to!

The whole drive she continued to talk about the Wilderness Lodge. I think she may have been momentarily disappointed after building that up so much in her mind... but probably not for long!

Car perk.

Absolutely! You have to take advantage of that front seat view!

Whoopsie!
No, I didn't know that and might have made the same mistake.

I couldn't believe I didn't notice! I was glad the gate attendant was so nice about it!

See??

Nope!

But certainly closer (in both proximity and price!) than the Wilderness Lodge!

I'm just loving this!

This is awesome!

It was the BEST reaction! I couldn't have had it unfold any better... she was SHOCKED and SO excited!

Yes you were!

It was rather surreal. I felt like we were living someone else's life for the day!

Really! Wow! Early!

I know! I couldn't believe it either! I hadn't even requested early arrival on our reservations or room requests... I fully expected to stash our bags. I'm sure it didn't hurt that we were staying Wednesday-Friday, but it was a nice surprise to get right into our room!

It was SO NICE to not have to lug our bags and snacks and water along with us! We didn't really need the resort tour as we'd been there several times before (for dining reservations and such), but why not?! It was fun!

I'm the opposite. I like ground floor, so I can just walk out and go.

There are certainly many people that prefer the ground floor! Perhaps I will, too, on the next few trips as we'll have a stroller along!

I just love the views and the lack of clatter above me on those higher floors. We did have one floor above us at the Grand Floridian but we never heard a peep!

With monorail too!

It was a great view! It was so relaxing to sit in the breeze and watch the monorail go by!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

The Traditional First Park is Up!
Day 5 – Part II

High on our arrival in Disney and at the Grand Floridian (and being able to get into our room, no less!), we practically skipped over to the Gasparilla Island Grill for some breakfast:

It’s not a very large quick service spot, but they had plenty of selection and there were plenty of spots to sit. It didn’t take us long to select and pay for our food and find a place to enjoy our breakfast. One nice additional perk of the Grand Floridian (and, I believe, all deluxe resorts) is they had a litany of condiments like peanut butter, cream cheese, etc. that you didn’t need to pay extra for. You could grab anything you wanted to go with your food!

Anika jumped right into the Disney spirit with a breakfast of Mickey waffles and bacon:

While I (no surprise here) got my favorite Everything Bagel with cream cheese and some apples with caramel (and two containers of cream cheese - because I could!):

We also picked up our refillable mugs, with green for me and purple for Anika:

We took our time eating as we didn’t have any plans until our first Fastpass around 11:30. It was nice to relax and enjoy the atmosphere at our fancy home for the next two days!

I returned my mug to the room as it was a short walk back to Sago Cay and then we made our way to the monorail station:

We only had to wait about two minutes for a monorail to show up – what great luck!

We made our way to the TTC and JUST missed the Epcot monorail. We waited a bit for the next one and soon we were seeing this beautiful sight:

Hello to our favorite golf ball!

Ever since our first sister trip in 2012, Epcot has turned into our traditional first park. During our first trip we happened to visit there first as we had an ADR Via Napoli. We did it again in 2013 so it only seemed right to continue the tradition! Along with Epcot being our first park, Magic Kingdom has always been the last park we’re in before leaving. We enjoy it this way so we keep doing it!

While on the monorail trip to Epcot we tried to figure out what to do for lunch. We discussed trying a quick service spot as many are good, but we also had another spot in mind. One restaurant we both wanted to try but I didn’t schedule was Biergarten – despite our long trip, we have quite a few Epcot favorites and it didn’t fit. Unfortunately there were no openings for Biergarten that day, but we easily snagged a spot at Tokyo Dining. We just switched our upcoming Tokyo Dining ADR for a Biergarten ADR and we were all set!

It took a while to wind around the park, exit the monorail, and make our way through security. Our first stop was to get our first Photopass pictures of the trip:

With the long trip ahead of us, I’d hoped to get many great pictures! Anika is not as much of a picture fan, but she was so excited about the trip that she indulged me. What a great sister!

Our laid-back morning meant we arrived just in time for our first Fastpass – Spaceship Earth!

It’s so wonderful to go on your first Disney attraction of the vacation. I know we’d just spent the last three days experiencing awesome attractions at Universal – but coming back to Disney World is like coming home.

Both Anika and I love Spaceship Earth – it’s so “Disney” to both of us. One of my favorite scenes is the living room scene showing the moon landing...

...as it’s the original set from another favorite of ours, Carousel of Progress!

Heck if I know what we selected for our future, but at least we both got our pictures to show up! I’m even smiling!

We started to walk back toward World Showcase, but not before stopping for another Photopass picture:

Anika must’ve been REALLY happy about the Grand Floridian as she agreed to stop to visit Donald at the Mexico pavilion with hardly any hesitation. For any new folks (or if you don't remember from the pre-trip report YEARS ago! ), my sister HATES meeting characters, especially those in full fur costumes. She always says that you never know what creeper is in the costume!

I, however, LOVE meeting characters so I was thrilled to say hello to Donald!

Anika was being kind enough to smile in the group picture, though, which I appreciated:

After meeting Donald, we worked our way around World Showcase toward Japan. Along the way, we ran into an excellent surprise… character training!



I knew they sometimes did character training near the American Pavilion around noon, but it’s not guaranteed and I wasn’t sure if we’d get lucky enough to run across it – our great first-day luck continued!

Of course, I jumped right into taking pictures with characters! First up was a character you don’t see too often around the parks, Max:

Another person offered to take a picture of both Anika and I with the next character (another that I’ve never met!), King Louie:

I think Anika’s favorite part of character training is they didn’t have Photopass photographers so someone had to stay behind to take the picture. Anika was happy to take that job! She was a good sport about King Louie, but was able to politely decline other’s good intentions to include her in the character photo.

I managed to get a few more pictures, including one with Pooh:

Another with Pluto:

And the final picture with one of my favorite duos, Chip and Dale:

Does anyone NOT love Chip and Dale?! They’re always so great!

The character handlers were closing down the lines (and we were nearing our ADR time anyway) so that was the end of our character encounter. We got pictures with five characters (six, if you include Chip and Dale as separate characters) in around seven minutes. I was impressed! (And Anika was happy she didn’t have to be in most of the pictures! )

I was very happy with our first hour in the park – just one attraction, but six different character meets with minimal waits! We were definitely back on Disney Property!

Up Next: Lunch at Tokyo Dining