The Magic of Disney…a recap of our vacation!
Disney Magic is an understatement! There truly is something magical that happens when you participate in anything Disney has to offer…it’s not just a catch phrase!
The magic began upon our arrival at the Orlando airport at 9:55 AM and didn’t have to worry about the horrific process of baggage claim! The Disney Magical Express picked us up and whisked us off to the WDW Coronado Springs Resort and our bags were waiting for us in our room when we got there. The best part…we were told check-in was at 3:00 PM, but our room was ready and waiting almost immediately! The “cast members” were so helpful and pleasant explaining what had changed since our last visit and the truly did make us feel welcome! “Be our guest” is a core of the Disney philosophy and they honestly do make you feel as if you are a guest in their home and not just some tourists from Baltimore…
Coronado Springs is a beautiful resort and has just been recently updated. The rooms were gorgeous and had a very comfortable feel to them. I especially like the double sliding doors that enclosed the bathroom/dressing room area, much better than the typical single door on hinges you find anywhere else. For Disney, it’s all about the details…
In this resort, they had something for everyone! Convention center, gym, hair salon, spa, two restaurants, café, gift shop, nightclub (gorgeous place), three pools, marina, game room, 1.1 mile walking path and amazing scenery! The main pool was amazing! It was built to look like a dig site, complete with a Mayan pyramid and The Jaguar water slide…a 123 foot slide that shoots you out into the main pool! At the site of the main pool was the largest hot tub/spa I’ve ever seen…held 22 people! It was a great place to relax your legs at the end of the day and to socialize with everyone at the resort! It was our favorite spot and we met some amazing people!
Animal Kingdom:
We had never been here and it exceeded our expectations! We arrived for the Opening Ceremonies and almost immediately we turned into “big kids”. It’s no mistake that this happens, but it never ceases to amaze me! Minnie, Goofy and Pluto put on a show at the first view of The Tree of Life and Mickey makes his appearance under the tree to welcome everyone to the adventure! It’s one of those wondrous Disney moments that instantly bring out the kid in you!
The park itself is very clean, well maintained and has a ton of animals no matter where you looked. The best part was the “cast members” who were constantly around to give you facts and tidbits about the animals you might not have known. They love what they do and they constantly monitor the animals. Our favorite attractions in this park: Festival of the Lion King (great show and was more than we expected to see), Flights of Wonder (an amazing bird show that had excellent WOW factor!), It’s Tough Being a Bug (hysterically fun and a great break from the hot weather!), Dinosaur (huge fan of dark rides and this one didn’t disappoint!), Kali River Rapids (you WILL get wet, you MIGHT get soaked…we got the “dummy” seat both times and were drenched! It was awesome!), Expedition Everest (great ride and much more adventurous than the Disney rides of my youth!) and of course all of the “Safari” type adventures.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios:
We had not been to this park since 1990 and were amazed at how much it has grown/changed. We began our adventure in this park with the “One Man’s Dream” attraction…it makes you appreciate the vision of Walt and how his vision has continued to remain intact. Our favorite attractions in this park: Lights Motor Action Extreme Stunt Show (pretty amazing to watch and it gave us a new found respect for stunt men), Tower of Terror (we loved this ride and adored the cast member in the gift shop…he is in his 60’s, it is more than obvious he LOVES his job!), Toy Story Mania (a little wait, but so much fun we did it again…pretty awesome technology involved here!), The Rock N Roller Coaster (YES! A dark ride with Aerosmith as the soundtrack – yes, it is very fast and very fun! We LOVED this ride!) and Fantasmic (a phenomenal show filled with water, fire, lights, fireworks and well worth the wait…not performed every day, so check schedules!).
Epcot and World Showcase:
This part is so under-rated! We had been here before, but never truly appreciated it they way we did this time. It was awesome! We never miss any of the attractions here if we can help it…each of them is great in it’s own way. Our favorites from this trip: Turtle Talk with Crush (an interactive show with Crush from Finding Nemo…to say this is hysterical is an understatement. It is truly interactive and is not just for kids – we had tears in our eyes from laughing so hard!!), Soaring (this blew me away with how real it felt…absolutely wonderful!), Spaceship Earth (always a favorite), Mission: SPACE (a great simulator ride and highly enjoyable) and Test Track (pretty cool, fast and just a lot of fun!).
World Showcase is always a favorite of ours! We don’t have kids, so we get to enjoy this one the way it should be enjoyed…sampling food, sampling wine/alcohol from other countries and the amazing shopping! We had a great time in England watching the band “British Invasion” in the park across from Rose & Crown Pub. Our bartender at the pub was a blast and was having tons of fun recommending native beers and drinks! He was also fascinating to talk to about England…we want to vacation there anyway and he just made us want to even more! China was our favorite “beauty spot” as the garden area is amazing! France found us sampling champagne and we absolutely loved Pommery Pink Pop Rose!, Canada is a beautiful area and has some great entertainment going on!, Norway gives us Maelstrom and Laila perfume (which is the hubby’s favorite scent now) and then we did Mexico and the San Angel Inn for dinner. Our food was fantastic, the atmosphere was awesome and the service was great! Oh…the Mexican beer and margaritas…yes, they were authentic and awesome! We did see all of the pavilion areas, but these were our favorites on this trip…as well as Illuminations (Epcot’s fireworks/light show) is every night and it is well worth the wait. We always enjoy it and had great company/great spot to see the show!
Magic Kingdom:
What can I say…it’s still the most magical place on Earth! The original vision has never waivered, but they’ve pulled out so many extras over the years that no matter how many trips you make it you still find Disney magic at every turn!
Our favorite attractions: The Haunted Mansion (what can I say, 40 or so rides through this thing and I’m still amazed by it…so much fun!), Mad Tea Party (kids at heart, we had a blast making this thing spin until we couldn’t see straight and on more than one trip through we had the cast members cracking up…this ride can turn any adult into a child in moments flat!), Mickey’s Philharmagic (excellent 3D show that has some wonderful surprises…smell-o-vision anyone?), Monsters Inc Laugh Floor (how I got picked to be part of this show is beyond me, but it was hysterical fun!), Splash Mountain (always a great time), Thunder Mountain Railroad (tame, but a cool coaster that never seems to get old) and Pirates of the Caribbean (my favorite ride and the updates were an excellent choice...the show with Captain Jack Sparrow that takes place outside of this attraction was wonderful. This is one cast member that can’t walk the park and doesn’t do meet & greets…it became apparent why as the audience was mainly women ogling the guy…with good reason, he had the part down to a science and was quite authentic to Johnny Depp’s movie role).
Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween:
This was our first time at this event and it will not be our last! We LOVE Halloween and this definitely got us in the spirit! This was an additional ticket to participate, but was well worth the money spent! Disney has finally given the Villains a place in the spotlight!!
The entire park is transformed into a Halloween display…the statues were changed, pumpkins everywhere, Halloween window displays, cast members in costume/makeup and some rides (Haunted Mansion was awesome) have some extras you won’t get any other time of the year! Even the Disney characters are in costume which makes for some fun photos! We saw many “guests” in costume as well and we wished we had known to do this! We weren’t expecting to go trick-or-treating while in Disney, but that is exactly what this event is about! They give you a trick-or-treat bag and you can really rack up some candy...and if you don’t get enough while walking through the park, they also hand out a bunch more during the parade! It was candy overload…candy, candy, candy!!
The Villains Meet & Greet stage show was a blast…meeting them afterwards was an excellent bonus! The Happy HalloWishes fireworks/light display was phenomenal! Never have you seen Cinderella’s Castle look so spooky and ominous! It was fabulous! The Boo-To-You Parade was so well done that the song will be stuck in your head long after you’ve arrived home…trust me on this one! Be sure to position yourself near the parade route to see the Headless Horseman lead off the parade– such an awesome sight to see and well worth an extra few minutes to find a spot before the parade begins!
Trust me, this is a DO NOT MISS celebration if you love Halloween!!!
Our “magic” at the Magic Kingdom did not end there…
We were also lucky enough to experience breakfast at Cinderella’s Royal Table inside the castle! This is the hardest ticket to get at Disney, but is quite an experience in why Disney has such rave reviews! From the moment you enter the castle, you are treated like royalty and can see evidence immediately of why this is such a hot ticket to get! Suits of armor, stained glass, amazing architecture…and a private photo shoot with Cinderella! It’s pretty elaborate and looking around shows you a few surprises (the mice from Cinderella hovering in a corner overlooking your photo shoot and the ornate crowns at the tops of the lights). Upon arriving on the second floor, you are taken to your table which is pretty elaborately decorated (ours had castle confetti for our anniversary) and set in purple/white. They bring each table a bowl of fruit and a plate of pastries to start off your meal, but the food isn’t what you are there for…it is the Princesses! All of them are there – Snow White, Aurora, Belle, Jasmine…and they each come to your table for a photo op! If you have a daughter, this will be heaven for them! Each girl is given a wishing star and wand; each boy is given a sword. There is a wishing ceremony to make all your dreams come true and a photo opportunity with the Fairy Godmother outside of the castle! It was definitely an experience we are glad we had!
We ended our trip with a visit to the La Vida Health Club for a massage by Niki Bryan Spa (Amanda and Debbie were wonderful!). It was an excellent massage and just what my body ordered after 10 wonderful days in Disney! We also made a pit stop (for two hours) at Seista’s Bar at the marina of the resort. Our bartender, Katie, was wonderful and turns out she is originally from Maryland! This was such a perfect ending to our vacation and thanks to Amanda, Debbie and Katie for making it so special!
Food:
We were part of the Disney Dining Plan which was included in our trip. Let me say that this was more food than we could possibly eat and if you ration your snacks correctly, you can go even further than you think. Our favorite places we ate: Cinderella’s Royal Table/Magic Kingdom (see previous description), Boma/Animal Kingdom Lodge (excellent buffet style dining and DO NOT miss the ribs…everything was delicious), Tusker House Character Breakfast/Animal Kingdom (Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy and Goofy were all present and made this breakfast extra special…food was great and a wide variety), Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater/Hollywood Studios (not only was the atmosphere unique, but the food was great!), Maya Grill/Coronado Springs (great atmosphere, amazing waiter and the flan was to die for!) and San Angel Inn/Epcot Mexico Pavilion (what can I say, this was excellent!!!!).
EXTRA:
This blog would not be complete without thanking our wonderful travel agent, Jeanine Grande of World Travel Service on Joppa Road. She is a Disney fan and frequent traveler so her advice and experience helped us to further enjoy our vacation! She told us every special, got us tickets to Universal and Sea World and made all reservations for our meals (Disney Meal Plan…this was FREE and more food than we could eat while we were there). Her knowledge and experience served us well and we would recommend her to anyone who is traveling anywhere!
Jeanine Grande
4132 E. Joppa Road, Suite 105
Baltimore, MD 21236
Direct: 410-256-7660 x 105
FAX: 410-529-8979
jeanineg@worldtravelservice.com
Tell her Tammi & Bill Copsey sent you!!
For more photos, please visit my album on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?page=3&aid=33406&id=1052342550#/album.php?page=1&aid=33406&id=1052342550
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