Dis Friends are the best friends! A perfect trip in so many ways even without a ride on Dinosaur!12/7-12/11 Christmas Trip

[franandaj]

Even though we had a late night, I was wide awake and ready to go this morning. First up was water and advil followed by a large coffee.

Ya can't waste time at Disney!

I sat downstairs in the lovely seating area again and sipped my coffee while I waited for 7 am to book FoP and our first Genie + ride. I got a 10:35 for FoP and Navi River at 9;45

Nice!

I absolutely love these cheese danishes but eating the whole thing was not a good idea. Caroline was smarter and just enjoyed 1/2 of hers for now.

I would probably be in a sugar coma from eating an entire one of those! I would need some non-sugar protein.

You can imagine we both preferred calm and quiet that morning!

I prefer calm and quiet most of the time!

I was a little annoyed with myself for not booking FoP for 10:00. We had almost 40 minutes to kill before our return time so headed off to the Gorilla Falls trail.

I will remember that if we decide to use Genie+. I'm not sure that we will, we might just do the pay for GotG, and Tron route.

We backtracked back to Pandora now as it was almost time for FoP.

Is it just me or does AK always seem to have some interesting merch you don't see anywhere else?

Yes, all the other parks have the same stuff, but I find different and unique things there!

On the way out of the park we saw the magical menagerie! This is the most delightful addition to the park for the holidays.

I don't even know what that is!

We still had about an hour before we could hop so put that to good use by heading to the Yacht Club, Beach Club and Boardwalk to see all their Christmas decor. That's next!

I really hate that rule. At least at DL you can hop after 11AM instead of 2PM.

 

[suse66]

time

Exactly! You can always sleep at home!

I would probably be in a sugar coma from eating an entire one of those! I would need some non-sugar protein.

They are really decadent but so delicious!

I will remember that if we decide to use Genie+. I'm not sure that we will, we might just do the pay for GotG, and Tron route.

Sometimes I think doing the ILL route is the best. Although if I am at a busier park I will pay for both.

I don't even know what that is!

They are the winter animal puppets at AK. They are so magical.

I really hate that rule. At least at DL you can hop after 11AM instead of 2PM.

And now there are no restrictions on hopping....hurray!! Can't wait for my next trip!

 

[suse66]

Time to go exploring!

It really had been a perfect morning at AK and we were excited to see the beautiful resort decor at the Crescent Lake resorts. Disney just does Christmas right. We had great bus luck and waited only about 10 minutes before a YC/BC/BW bus pulled up. We opted to start our tour at the Yacht Club. I adore this resort although I still haven't gotten over my disappointment with their lobby refurb.

Here's the beautiful lobby tree!



We really loved the addition of the amazing gingerbread lighthouse.



It's fun to see how the decor around the railroad changes each year.







Beach Club and Boardwalk next!​

 

[Wood Nymph]

We opted to start our tour at the Yacht Club. I adore this resort although I still haven't gotten over my disappointment with their lobby refurb.

What would you like to see in the YC lobby?

I was happy to see that they still had the train display in the YC lobby. The lighthouse is cute, but it needs a little more frosting.

 

[suse66]

The carousel at Beach Club is such a work of art. I love how the theme changes each year.









This year's theme was the World Showcase! How fun is that?

The carousel is really the focus here and the tree, although pretty, feels like an afterthought.



We decided to have a little rest here and just take in the lobby views. We strolled through the marketplace next as I was hoping to do a little pin trading. The Beach Club is lovely and it was nice to see it again. I'd love to stay at the villas there if I was ever lucky enough to snag a room at the 7 month mark.

The star tree of the Boardwalk is out on the Village Green. I forgot to take a picture of it but got a shot of the lobby tree.



The gingerbread boardwalk is always fun too. Hopefully Caroline got photos here as I think I got caught up talking to a fellow guest in the lobby about our mutual love of Enchanted Dress Shop dresses. It was about 1:45 now so we decided to try our luck at the International Gateway. Epcot was SO busy....way busier than we anticipated. And it was HOT! We passed long line after long line at the Festival booths and we were feeling a little on the hangry side. We finally got to the Joffery kiosk and went for the strawberry frozen lemonade which was very refreshing, if a bit on the sweet side. We both were craving the fabulous bread bowl from the Germany pavilion so we sucked up the 25 minute wait in line. We went for the pork schnitzel as well. Everything was delicious but unfortunately both our stomachs were not up to the task of enjoying it all. One festival booth and we were done!


We had a ride booked for "Soarin' over California" so headed there next. It was delightful to see this version of Soarin' again as I far prefer it to Soarin' around the world. At this point we were done. It was hot, crowded and we were both feeling overwhelmed with it all. So we headed out of the park in search of a rest and time to tweak our plans for the rest of the day.​

 

[suse66]

What would you like to see in the YC lobby?

Anything except the ugly new area rugs they have now. They look like they came from a clearance bin at HomeSense.

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

The Christmas decor and gingerbread creations are amazing! Glad you got to see so many of them. Sorry Epcot was a bit of a letdown but at Soarin was good

 

[disneyAndi14]

We did luck out and a bus for the Epcot resorts pulled up in a timely fashion!

Yacht Club was first and I loved all the details of the train. Look at Beaches and Cream and Santa


The train had so many intricate details.

Beach Club was next and I loved the Gingerbread carousel. It was themed to WS with the whole Donald Duck family. I think this was my favorite gingerbread display of the Epcot resorts!



My all time favorite is the GF one. It is amazing!

I enjoyed watching Susan pin trade this trip! I didn’t realize how fun it could be. Andi has so many pins from all our trips but she really quit pin trading when she was around 16. The pins she has have so much memories and highlights of her trips.

I talked with her about trading some this trip and she does have several trade type pins and she is thinking of doing it again!

I was starting to drag some and now was starting to feel hungry but we pushed on to see the Boardwalk’s Christmas display.

I loved this one as well. The Boardwalk Bakery with Mickey and Minnie making the delicious treats was wonderful!


It is a small area and quite crowded today. I went out on the large deck off of the lobby and it was beautiful. I know I mentioned it was hot out and it really did feel like April/May Florida weather! I think it was actually quite humid. This did not help hung over Caroline

Once we finished up at the Boardwalk, we walked over to Epcot and entered through the IG.

Wow, the park was packed! The lines for all the booths were very long and the walkways were so crowded. we had to use the Andi bob and weave tactic. Susan was better at it today because my back was slowing me down some. I also felt a little yuck and hungry.

We braved the wait to order at the Bavarian Kitchen

The pork schnitzel with mushroom sauce, spatzle, and braised cabbage was very good. The pork was a little tough to cut but otherwise tasted very good.

The cheese fondue in a bread bowl with steamed baby carrots and marble potatoes was delicious and filled the food void I had.

We also got the Linzer cookie. I brought baggies but of course they were in the room,

We had to cover our cookies with a napkin and put in our backpacks. They did okay and we enjoyed the cookies later.

Epcot was very busy and a mother and daughter offered part of their table to us! This was very nice because trash can table time did not look inviting overflowing with garbage!

We knew our 4 park day was most likely not going to happen at this point.

We decided to ride Soarin over California before heading out! I love this version so much and I hope it is still playing when we arrive in a couple days!

We headed out to take a little rest, hydrate, and cool off!

Stay tune for our evening where Dis veterans make a rookie mistake! Can you guess what it was! It was a wild ride!!

I will be traveling soon so I may not be able to add to this report for a while.

I’m heading back to Disney, yay! I wrote a very short PTR on our upcoming trip. It is in my last report. Let’s go get that Dino, if you want to check it out!

See ya all real soon!

 

[mickey916]

I’m heading back to Disney, yay! I wrote a very short PTR on our upcoming trip. It is in my last report. Let’s go get that Dino, if you want to check it out!

Have a fabulous trip! Can't wait to read all about it!

 

[Wood Nymph]

Yacht Club was first and I loved all the details of the train. Look at Beaches and Cream and Santa

You have really good pictures of the YC train display. Usually, it is too dark to get a good shot.

Beach Club was next and I loved the Gingerbread carousel.

The gingerbread carousel is the best, imo, because of the detail and creativity. But I think I liked last year's carousel better. I don't know anything about Duck Tales.

I was starting to drag some and now was starting to feel hungry but we pushed on to see the Boardwalk’s Christmas display.

I thought that this year was the best Boardwalk display ever.

We decided to ride Soarin over California before heading out! I love this version so much and I hope it is still playing when we arrive in a couple days!

I don't like the California version. It makes me seasick. I want the other one to come back.

 

[mickey916]

The gingerbread carousel is the best, imo, because of the detail and creativity. But I think I liked last year's carousel better. I don't know anything about Duck Tales.

I agree. I preferred last year's carousel too. Duck Tales is unfamiliar to me as well.

I thought that this year was the best Boardwalk display ever.

I thought so too!

 

[franandaj]

It really had been a perfect morning at AK and we were excited to see the beautiful resort decor at the Crescent Lake resorts. Disney just does Christmas right.

These pictures that you are posting are causing me to reconsider my trip next January and move it to a similar time as you two are taking this trip in December!

It's fun to see how the decor around the railroad changes each year.

I would love to see that again!

The carousel at Beach Club is such a work of art. I love how the theme changes each year.

So pretty!

The carousel is really the focus here and the tree, although pretty, feels like an afterthought.

It looks like it's shoved back into a corner.

The Beach Club is lovely and it was nice to see it again. I'd love to stay at the villas there if I was ever lucky enough to snag a room at the 7 month mark.

I'm so glad to own there! I have a plan to stay there in October of 2025 and can't wait to do it again!

We went for the pork schnitzel as well. Everything was delicious but unfortunately both our stomachs were not up to the task of enjoying it all. One festival booth and we were done!

That all looks delicious!

We had a ride booked for "Soarin' over California" so headed there next. It was delightful to see this version of Soarin' again as I far prefer it to Soarin' around the world.

I totally prefer that one too!

At this point we were done. It was hot, crowded and we were both feeling overwhelmed with it all. So we headed out of the park in search of a rest and time to tweak our plans for the rest of the day.

Sounds like a good plan. No point in running around when you feel hot and tired.

Yacht Club was first and I loved all the details of the train. Look at Beaches and Cream and Santa

That's super cute!

Beach Club was next and I loved the Gingerbread carousel. It was themed to WS with the whole Donald Duck family. I think this was my favorite gingerbread display of the Epcot resorts!

That is super cute!

I loved this one as well. The Boardwalk Bakery with Mickey and Minnie making the delicious treats was wonderful!

I think the Boardwalk decorations pale in comparison to the Y&BC....but that bakery is cute.

I know I mentioned it was hot out and it really did feel like April/May Florida weather! I think it was actually quite humid. This did not help hung over Caroline

I can imagine that it didn't help one bit.

Wow, the park was packed! The lines for all the booths were very long and the walkways were so crowded. we had to use the Andi bob and weave tactic. Susan was better at it today because my back was slowing me down some. I also felt a little yuck and hungry.

I hate when the parks are packed!

We knew our 4 park day was most likely not going to happen at this point.

Yeah, I get it. I don't need to be that ambitious.....

Stay tune for our evening where Dis veterans make a rookie mistake! Can you guess what it was! It was a wild ride!!

I’m heading back to Disney, yay! I wrote a very short PTR on our upcoming trip. It is in my last report. Let’s go get that Dino, if you want to check it out!

I saw that yesterday, I'm on my way over there to comment as well!

 

[vamassey1]

I'm so sorry I missed seeing these resort's decorations. We just didn't have enough time. It does give me another reason to go back.

The food in Germany looks so good. I have had it before, sadly this last trip I didn't get any festival food. You're doing much better than we did.

I was so glad to get to do the old Soarin' Over California. The day we went the line was moving really slow. I think one of the theaters was down.

Sorry for the heat and humidity. It was much cooler when we were there. We did get the heat in 2022.

Caroline I hope you have a safe trip and make lots of memories.

 

[KaSe]

I really did love that gingerbread carousel & the Epcot theme was perfect!

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

OMG!!! I just got all caught up! I love that you guys are doing this trip report together!!!

This made for a comfortable flight. I watched the Barbie movie (great minds think alike, Caroline!) and thought happy Disney thoughts

You guys watched the same movie on the way there! That is too funny!

The waitress was giving us sour looks as we happily dug in and oohed and ahhed over the yumminess before us.

I find this hilarious! And you were so smart!!! I would have thought of that the next day. When it would be too late.

The plan was to visit all 4 parks!

That is big plans after your night before!!!

 

[suse66]

The Christmas decor and gingerbread creations are amazing! Glad you got to see so many of them. Sorry Epcot was a bit of a letdown but at Soarin was good

Saturdays at Epcot are just too busy. especially in the afternoon.

I enjoyed watching Susan pin trade this trip! I didn’t realize how fun it could be. Andi has so many pins from all our trips but she really quit pin trading when she was around 16. The pins she has have so much memories and highlights of her trips.

I love pin trading! My pin boards bring back so many happy memories.

It is a small area and quite crowded today. I went out on the large deck off of the lobby and it was beautiful. I know I mentioned it was hot out and it really did feel like April/May Florida weather! I think it was actually quite humid. This did not help hung over Caroline

Or hung over Susan.......

We also got the Linzer cookie. I brought baggies but of course they were in the room,

So were mine!

Stay tune for our evening where Dis veterans make a rookie mistake! Can you guess what it was! It was a wild ride!!

We sure did! Chalk it up to mainly travelling at a different time of year.

I will be traveling soon so I may not be able to add to this report for a while.

I am jealous!! Safe travels today and have the absolute best time!!!!

I don't like the California version. It makes me seasick. I want the other one to come back.

Oh no! I wonder why the California version bothers you but World doesn't?

These pictures that you are posting are causing me to reconsider my trip next January and move it to a similar time as you two are taking this trip in December!

Definitely!! Especially as we are considering a repeat trip next December and it would be awesome to overlap.

I'm so glad to own there! I have a plan to stay there in October of 2025 and can't wait to do it again!

Owning at Beach Club is pretty much the only way to stay there.

That all looks delicious!

It was so good. I only wished my stomach had been up to enjoying more of it.

Sounds like a good plan. No point in running around when you feel hot and tired.

Agreed! Rest is important.

I'm so sorry I missed seeing these resort's decorations. We just didn't have enough time. It does give me another reason to go back.

There's always so much I don't have time to do either.

The food in Germany looks so good. I have had it before, sadly this last trip I didn't get any festival food. You're doing much better than we did.

It was great just very rich.

I really did love that gingerbread carousel & the Epcot theme was perfect!

OMG!!! I just got all caught up! I love that you guys are doing this trip report together!!!

Glad you are here, Ariella!

I find this hilarious! And you were so smart!!! I would have thought of that the next day. When it would be too late.

Nothing gets between me and bread pudding!

That is big plans after your night before!!!

They sure were and maybe a little too big.

 

[pkondz]

We had great bus luck and waited only about 10 minutes before a YC/BC/BW bus pulled up.

Not bad!

We really loved the addition of the amazing gingerbread lighthouse.

Wow! That’s something!

The carousel at Beach Club is such a work of art. I love how the theme changes each year.

I’ve never seen it but have heard so much about it.

The carousel is really the focus here and the tree, although pretty, feels like an afterthought.

It looks wedged in.

We finally got to the Joffery kiosk and went for the strawberry frozen lemonade which was very refreshing

I bet, in that heat.

Everything was delicious but unfortunately both our stomachs were not up to the task of enjoying it all. One festival booth and we were done!

We had a ride booked for "Soarin' over California"

Oh! It’s back! (Or was)

I far prefer it to Soarin' around the world

who doesn’t??

The train had so many intricate details.

Pretty amazing!

I think this was my favorite gingerbread display of the Epcot resorts!

I can see why.

Andi has so many pins from all our trips but she really quit pin trading when she was around 16. The pins she has have so much memories and highlights of her trips.

This did not help hung over Caroline

Epcot was very busy and a mother and daughter offered part of their table to us! This was very nice because trash can table time did not look inviting overflowing with garbage!

Ew. And… very surprising for Disney.

We knew our 4 park day was most likely not going to happen at this point.

Ya don’t say.

Stay tune for our evening where Dis veterans make a rookie mistake! Can you guess what it was! It was a wild ride!!

No idea what the mistake could be.

 

[Mollydolly334]

I love that you guys did a bar crawl!!!! How fun!! I'd LOVE to see a tipsy Caroline, LOL Food always helps me when I'm hungover- so I'm glad you guys got lots of fun grub at Epcot!! My go-to hangover food is a McDonald's Coke, McGriddle, and hash brown

 

[suse66]

Wow! That’s something!

Isn't it just amazing? We loved it!

I’ve never seen it but have heard so much about it.

No Christmas trip yet? You have to go in December one year.

Oh! It’s back! (Or was)

I think it's still there now but I don't know for how much longer.

No idea what the mistake could be.

Oh it was a doozie all right! Comng up soon!

I love that you guys did a bar crawl!!!! How fun!! I'd LOVE to see a tipsy Caroline, LOL Food always helps me when I'm hungover- so I'm glad you guys got lots of fun grub at Epcot!! My go-to hangover food is a McDonald's Coke, McGriddle, and hash brown

We had a alot of fun!! Next time I think we should stay away fom drinking 4 cocktails each though.

 

[buzzrelly]

Wow, I'm impressed that you ladies got up and did even TWO parks after the night you had!

The monorail crawl looked like fun! I don't think I could hang with you gals...I would have tapped out after The CR!