Toarin' - August 2015. Day 12 - Senses Spa, Downtown Disney, Hollywood Studios

[Scruffette]

Day 12 – Senses Spa at Grand Floridian/Blizzard Beach, DTD, Hollywood Studios

Lunch at Grand Floridian Café, Dinner Wolfgang Puck Express

This morning was my appointment at the Senses Spa at the Grand Floridian, something which I had really been looking forward to. This was my birthday present from Ollie Fortunately I was feeling a lot better this morning.

This is the card he gave me on my birthday….



Ollie left the room around 8.25am, as he was heading off to Blizzard Beach. I am not a massive waterpark fan, so I was quite happy to let him go without me.

This way today’s plan



I facetimed my parents to show them the room, and left the room about 8.45am. I caught a bus to Magic Kingdom (which was quite speedy today), and decided to get the boat to the Grand Floridian. I thought this was the most relaxing way to go and was in keeping with the theme of the morning.





The boat arrived about 9.30am, and I snapped some pictures on the way. It felt like I was going in the wrong direction, everyone else was trying to travel to Magic Kingdom, and I was going away from it!

Such a pretty resort!


I arrived with some time to spare before I had to check in for my appointment, so headed to Gasparilla Island Grill for some breakfast in the form of a cinnamon bun ($3.79). I also asked for a cup to get some water.



It took me while to find the counter service restaurant! I didn’t realise that you had to enter from outside, and that you couldn’t get into it from the lobby.

I sat outside to eat with this view.



The only down side was the wasps that were flying around. They clearly wanted my cinnamon bun as much as I did! I had to move tables during my breakfast.

I headed to the Senses spa at 10.15, 30 minutes before my scheduled appointment as advised. Even the outside of the spa looked beautiful.





I checked in at the desk and gave my name, and was asked ‘Where’s Beatrice?’. ‘Excuse me?’ was my reply.

The guy checking me in was insistent that I should have Beatrice with me. I explained it was just me, repeated my name, and that I didn’t know a Beatrice. I could see on the slip in front of him that it included a ‘Lucy’, but they had a different last name. I pointed this out to him, and he seemed a bit confused. Eventually, he realised that there was more than one ‘Lucy’ booked in, and the other slip happened to have my last name on it. This seemed a bit complicated, it’s completely plausible that two of us could be booked in!

After I had checked in, a father came in to check in his two daughters – Lucy and Beatrice.

A lady appeared to show me to the lady’s changing area and show me the facilities. She gave me an amazing robe and went to find some sandals for me. She asked me what my shoe size was, which I had to stop and think about for a second as it was American sizing. I eventually worked it out and gave her my size, which she questioned as apparently it was pretty small!





I got changed and put my stuff in a locker, which you chose a combination for.

I sat in the waiting area with a comfy chair and helped myself to some water. I was called at 10.45am for my 50 minute Swedish massage. I had never had a massage before, but the lady was brilliant and explained the whole process. She asked if there were any particular areas of tension, so she focussed a lot on my shoulders.

My only concern during the massage was that I still had a cold, and lying face forward isn’t the best for a runny nose!

The whole experience was brilliant and really relaxing. Just what I needed after many days of busy park going. It went by really quickly!
Afterwards, I spent some time alternating between the Jacuzzi and the steam room. Water and cool towels were provided in the area. The bubbles were on a timer on the wall, but were really loud when I put them on, and I was conscious that another woman relaxing on one of the chairs in the room would be disturbed, but she didn’t seem to be.

I then took a shower using their great smelling products and got ready. I managed to snap some pictures of the changing area when no-one else was around. I had to do this in a bit of a rush. I wasn’t sure it was completely appropriate to be taking photos in there! There was literally anything you could need to get ready. The only thing I couldn’t find was a bag to put my wet swimwear in, as I didn’t want it to make the rest of my bag wet. I improvised in the end with a shower cap!









I left the spa just after 12.45 and went to meet Ollie in the lobby of the Grand Floridian.





I couldn’t see him, so had a wander round and found him. He had been there a bit before and already checked us in for our 1pm reservation at the Grand Floridian Café.

It was really quiet at this time of day and had a lovely relaxed atmosphere to it. Our server was a sweetie.



Ollie had been to the waterpark and hadn’t taken his wallet with him (as all he really needed was his magic band). I had planned to bring his wallet for him, but had decided not to bring it in the end as we were heading back to Saratoga Springs after lunch. However, when we were both considering alcoholic drinks for lunch, we realised Ollie didn’t have his ID. I was good and decided not to have one as well.
We just asked for iced water in the end, which came with lemon wedges on a separate plate.

We both ordered the Grand Sandwich ($14.49) Open-faced hot Ham, Smoked Turkey Breast, Bacon, and Tomato with a rich Boursin Cheese Sauce and Fried Onion Straws



We also ordered a side of fries ($3.19), which were actually more like chips.

The sandwiches were really good, and much bigger than expected. The chips were useful to mop up the extra sauce. I believe Ollie’s exact words were ‘I want to kiss whoever came up with that sauce.’

During lunch Ollie gave me a rundown of his morning at Blizzard Beach. He managed to do all the slides and even managed Summit Plummet twice! He took advantage of lots of photopass photographers out and posed for some ridiculously cheesy photos. It’s amazing what he can get done while I’m off having a massage.

After lunch we caught the monorail back to Magic Kingdom. There was a bus waiting at the stop so we ran for it. Turns out we didn’t need to as it didn’t go anywhere for a while!

Once in our room we picked up the refillable mugs and walked over to Carriage House as there were a few things to sort out the front desk.

The first was to pick up our Aeropostale order which had arrived. The second was to book the Magical Express for the end of the trip. As our first flight was a domestic one, we didn’t need to be picked up quite so early. Our pick up time was midday for a 2.50pm flight. The third was to print off some health questionnaires that Disney Cruise Line had sent us. These were only just sent out, and had to be presented at the cruise terminal. There were questions about travel to countries where Ebola was present at the time. I also checked when we would find out our cruise transfer pick up time, and I was advised we’d find out the day before. The Cast Member helping us was really helpful.

We filled up our refillable mugs, and went outside to find it absolutely pouring with rain. I did not want to get soaked! We waited it out for 10 minutes, but the rain only got heavier.

Ollie went to see if we could get a ride on one of the carts. Our name was put on a list and about 10 minutes later one was heading to the grandstand. He literally dropped us right by the lifts, I thought he was going to drive into the building! We tipped him and thanked him profusely.

[Scruffette]

We dropped off our parcel and left the documents we had printed out to dry. We were heading to DTD, so poncho-ed up and headed to the bus stop. The rain had died down a bit by that point fortunately. By the time the bus got to DTD the rain had pretty much stopped, although the sky was very grey. Our first stop was Ghiradelli for sample chocolates and a browse. It always smells amazing in here!

Today was the day we planned to buy all the things we’d been eyeing up during the trip. We were quite efficient though as we knew pretty much what we wanted to get.

First stop was the Art of Disney. Ollie had a sketch of Eeyore drawn for his Sister, which we would pick up in a few days. I spotted a picture with 5 buckets, one for each of the parks and one for Disney cruise line. My parents have the same picture and I’ve always liked it. Ollie bought it for me to put up as a Christmas present.

Next stop was the 12 day of Christmas. Although I love Disney Christmas decorations and our tree is decorated in 75% Disney, I wasn’t as impressed with the offerings this time. The shop seemed to be stocking a lot of non-Disney branded decorations as well. I did settle on a Victorian Mickey and Minnie decoration, which matches my countdown to Christmas I bought two years ago.

All our purchases were sent back to the hotel, as we were planning on heading straight to Hollywood Studios after shopping.

It was pretty clear we weren’t going to make our first fastpass, as we’d been a bit delayed due to the rain and shopping was taking longer than expected! I decided to see if I could change it to a later time, and noticed some availability for the later 10.30pm showing of Famtasmic. I changed the FP, and hoped someone would get the benefit of the Toy Story FP I had just cancelled.



We went to Once Upon A Toy next, as I wanted to fill a box with Mr Potato Head accessories for my Dad, who has a Mr Potato Head.



The box is a set price ($19.95), and you can fill it as much as you want. I went round and picked up one of every accessory, and Ollie worked his magic and fitted it all in. There was even space for repeats of some of the accessories!

We popped into the Marketplace Co-op next, where I got one of the Jungle Cruise Elephants for my mum ($21.95).



She loves elephants and this is displayed proudly in her lounge.
We braced ourselves now for the big one – World of Disney. What had helped a bit is over the last few days when I had seen something I liked, I had added it to a list on my phone. This proved for some efficient shopping.



Purchases included a watch for my Mum for Christmas ($31.95).



She loved this, until my brother gave her a fitbit which she proceeded to wear instead of a watch!

Beauty and the Beast puzzle ($19.95).



I’d seen a framed picture version of this in Bonjour! Village gifts (next to Be Our Guest restaurant) for thousands of dollars. They also had the puzzle on display next to it. I’m not normally a puzzle person (I just don’t have the patience) but I really enjoyed this. It has lots of small hidden Disney characters in it. We plan on framing it, the only problem being it’s not a standard frame size (it’s out by a couple of centimetres).

I liked this puzzle so much that Ollie tracked down the puzzle of Cinderella Castle for me for Christmas.

Photo Frame ($36.95).





My parents have the same one bought two years ago, but theirs has mickeys between each frame rather than circles. Ollie used to admire their frame, so we got one of our own.

Photo album ($29.95).



To match our one from last trip. However, they don’t do the personalisation on it anymore.



We bought the It’s a Small World and Tikki Room magnets ($5.95 each). The Haunted Mansion one we bought a few days later.

This finished off our Gift Card, and we only had to put about $60 with it. I remember the Cast Member really struggling with the transaction for some reason.

The only thing we couldn’t find in the shop were some Mickey Coasters we’d seen. A Cast member advised checking out Mickey’s Pantry.

We were in luck and found these coasters in there ($16.95). We were after some subtle coasters for out new coffee table, and these were perfect.



Ollie then had the idea that instead of having dinner at Hollywood Studios, where the counter service options are far from inspiring, that we should eat at Wolfgang Puck Express. I agreed this was a much better idea, and cancelled our second FP.

The queue, as always, was very long but quickly moving. We shared two pizzas

Barbecued Chicken Pizza ($14.50) Smoked Mozzarella, Cilantro and Carmalized Onions



Roasted mushroom pizza ($13.50) Goat Cheese, Arugula and Garlic Cream Sauce




For dessert we both chose the same options as last time, the cheesecake and the crème brulee. My Crème brulée wasn’t as nice as the last one unfortunately. This one was very thin and a bit too ‘bruléed’



After eating, we walked over to Congress Park and got on a bus to Hollywood Studios. We stopped for some photopass photos, which didn’t come out particularly well in the dark, and then headed for our Fastpass slot for Tower of Terror. The line was pretty long as only one side was working. (This happened again a few days later). We pulled funny scared faces for the ride photos.



Afterwards, we went to find a spot to watch the Frozen Fireworks. They were supposed to start at 9.30pm, but started about 10 minutes late. There was a dj attempting to warm up the crowd. The fireworks are probably the least impressive of the Disney fireworks, but still enjoyable.



After they had finished, we headed over to Fantasmic, along with everyone else in the park it seemed. The line for those with fastpass was long and extended all the way down Sunset Boulevard. They had lots of stations to scan magic bands on the way in, so the line moved fairly quickly at least. We got really good seats in the middle section.
Plenty of people without fastpasses got into the show, but had seats in the sections to the sides.





The show was going along nicely, up until the point with the dragon and Mickey being terrified. This is when the show stopped. An announcement was made saying the show would temporarily pause. There was then another announcement saying that the show would not continue.

Poor Mickey. I guess some bad dreams you just don’t wake up from

At least Ollie and I had seen the show before. I felt sorry for children who thought that evil had beaten Mickey Mouse!

The crowds were pretty big heading out of the park, and we had quite a wait for a bus. We were briefly entertained by a woman running after a car, shouting “He just hit my car”. She was banging on the windows and everything.

Eventually we made it on a bus. I probably had a nap on the way home!

Day 13 - KTTK Tour, Magic Kingdom, Epcot

[Redrach1903]

Ooh that spa looked and sounded amazing, what a lovely morning

Those pizzas look lovely. We are def getting one of those in May!

I wonder what happened during Fantasmic! Weird!
xx

[Scruffette]

Originally Posted by Redrach1903

Ooh that spa looked and sounded amazing, what a lovely morning

Those pizzas look lovely. We are def getting one of those in May!

I wonder what happened during Fantasmic! Weird!
xx

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The spa was so relaxing and such a contrast to the parks!

Good job we've seen Fantasmic before, but rubbish if you're seeing it for the first time

[collybird]

Love the card Ollie had made for you!

Wow the spa looks amazing, I've never seen it reviewed anywhere before, what a treat.

I love those magnets, I don't think I've noticed them before! They're going on my wishlist for next time.

[Scruffette]

Originally Posted by collybird

Love the card Ollie had made for you!

Wow the spa looks amazing, I've never seen it reviewed anywhere before, what a treat.

I love those magnets, I don't think I've noticed them before! They're going on my wishlist for next time.

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The massage was such a lovely and decadent treat! Ollie's very good at cards and presents.

Thanks for reading

[Enchanted]

Another very busy and full day, you certainly make the most of your Disney time! We spend a lot of time relaxing round the pool these days!
Love all your purchases. Your morning sounded absolutely perfect, my idea of heaven as I love a massage! You've definitely inspired me for our next trip, think I'll spend a morning in the spa while DH plays some golf, followed by lunch in the GF Cafe for THAT sandwich which looks amazing! X

[juliab]

What a lovely treat for you. Sounded like a really relaxing day

[Scruffette]

Originally Posted by Enchanted

Another very busy and full day, you certainly make the most of your Disney time! We spend a lot of time relaxing round the pool these days!
Love all your purchases. Your morning sounded absolutely perfect, my idea of heaven as I love a massage! You've definitely inspired me for our next trip, think I'll spend a morning in the spa while DH plays some golf, followed by lunch in the GF Cafe for THAT sandwich which looks amazing! X

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The sandwich is a must if eating at GFC! It was good to have a relaxing day.

Originally Posted by juliab

What a lovely treat for you. Sounded like a really relaxing day

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It was a nice break from the business of the parks. I was very lucky