4 Hotels,12 Theme Parks!?Call That A Holiday?I Call It Heaven! May'17.Day 19. Pandora Charm.

[gjdjud]

Day 19.

INDEX

This was a day that we didn't have any set plans apart from the evening. Initially this had been down as an afternoon exclusively for the World Showcase but after they had announced the opening for Pandora I was very keen to get to see it. We had pretty much done all we needed at Epcot before so we had the time. It was also Memorial Day so it was going to be busy.

We decided on a bit of rest this morning. We had a semi lie in although I don't think any of us were eager to waste any time so weren't up that late. For breakfast I again headed over to the food court.

It was nice to walk to the food court in the morning and get breakfast sorted before heading out.

Chocolate Croissants and cinnamon roll.

We were having no trouble using snack credits.

We decided we'd do things a bit differently today and have a swim first before heading out. It was doubtful that we'd have time later in the day because if our plans for this evening. The girls really enjoy these moments in the pool and Kelly blew up their rubber rings for them to use. We had a good couple of hours playing around in the pool just chilling out. We were out about 11am so we could be ready to head out around about 11.45am.

Our initial plan next was to get the boat to Disney Springs. One of my favourite things on previous trips had been to get the boat but we hadn't done it once so far for one reason or another, mainly the convenience of driving truth be told. I had set on us doing it today but it was quickly dawning on us that luggage space was going to be an issue on the way home. We would have 4 large cases but that wasn't going to cut it! We decided to head to Walmart later in the day to buy a cheapish suitcase and then pre pay the extra case with BA.(this turned out to be the absolute correct thing to do) So then boat to Disney Springs was off. Kelly and the girls were keen to head to Walmart again anyway. I made it clear I'd be getting the case and then waiting in the car!

First stop was Disney Springs for some lunch and a little bit of a look around. I didn't see us being there that long as none of us loved it like the Downtown Disney. It was rammed when we arrived. The multi story was really busy and we ended up having to go to the very top to get parked. The lifts were also jammed packed. I sensed this my might a frustrating visit to Disney Springs. I know it was Memorial Day but I was surprised at how busy it was. We had a little look around but we really wanted lunch. It was D-Luxe Burger or Blaze Pizza as the choice and Burger won

It was fairly busy and we did have a small queue but it only took about 10 minutes.

We grabbed a seat outside as there was plenty but this was undercover.

Lily had the kids Cheeseburger topped with Lettuce and Tomato. Hers came with fries unlike adult burgers. This was good.

Adult burgers are cooked differently depending on choice of burger. Kelly and Evie both had Barbecue Burger, Signature Blend Beef topped with a Fried Onion Ring, Smoked Gouda, Bacon, Barbecue Sauce, Grilled Onion and Lettuce. They both enjoyed but found it too big.

I had the El Diablo Burger, Chorizo and Signature Blend, Fried Banana Peppers, Pepper Jack, Lettuce, Tomato, Grilled Onion and Chipotle Mayonnaise. This was lovely. Not as spicy as I thought or hoped though. Cooked medium.

Fries don't come with the meal only drinks but we got two portions of fries as snack credits. This was more than enough to share. They were really good. We also got the selection of dipping sauces. They were garlic ranch, horseradish, chipotle mayo, 3 mustard and honey, Buffalo blue cheese and curry ketchup. Some were nicer than others.

I had to borrow the last photo I forgot take one of the sauces

Overall I really enjoyed this and would definitely return. The burgers are great for a q/s credit.

4 q/s credits used.

Once done we had a little look around but we only spent about an hour there. Not the same of us anymore.

So next a 15 minute drive to the Walmart Supercentre on Vineland. This wasn't to busy and I did exactly what I had promised to do. I found a case. It was about $50 but it was a pretty good one. I gave Kelly $20 to get me some M&M's to take home and I went and sat in the car. I was happy for them to take as long as they wanted just as long as I was allowed to sit it out. They weren't too long and were back in the car after around 45 minutes. The girls and a Kelly bought a few bits and bobs and I had a massive supply of various M&M's to take home.

We then had a couple of hours back at the hotel so we did some packing to leave our final full day tomorrow free. We were definitely correct getting the new case. Evie's giant tablet was causing a few concerns on how we'd get that home with us!

So this was to be at Animal Kingdom. Pandora had opened 2 days before and with it also being Memorial Day I was expecting it to be chaos. I had fastpasses for both the new Pandora rides. Yes, you read that correct. Both. I was one of the first to book fastpasses and got lucky that there was a glitch for the first few minutes. I booked for this evening as AK was open until midnight. I had also booked them both for our final morning in case we didn't get there tonight.

We arrived about 5.30pm and I was expecting the worst but to be honest it was fine. We got into a disabled bay very close to the front. I was expecting lines of people being held back from the front in a one out and one in situation but we pretty much walked straight in. I was really surprised after reading about all the crowds on the two days before. It was busy inside but not terribly so.

We had a few hours before our fastpasses were active so we decided to try It's A Bugs Life which were yet to do.

This is where we had one of the little "it's a small world moments." The queue wasn't to big but we again asked if we could get as close to the front as possible. The cm showed us to the disabled access area. A couple of minutes later a young girl who was with her mum and gran joined us in the area. The young girl had a cane. Evie was very reluctant to use hers so Kelly started talking to the mum. Turns out the girl was a year older than Evie and had the same doctor at Great Ormond Street! It can be small world sometimes! The girls sat next to each other in the show while Kelly chatted exchanging info. It was really nice for Evie. After it was over Kelly and the mum swapped numbers with the promise to keep in touch.

Next we decided on doing the Kali River Rapids. We used a DAS for this and Kelly sat this one out as she didn't want to get wet. This I think is one of the most anti climatic rides in Disney. Incredibly lame in comparison to the brilliant Bluto ride at Islands Of Adventure. We didn't get to wet at all.

Our first fastpass was for Expedition Everest and the girls were really excited about this. This I think was definitely there favourite ride of the holiday. I loved going on this with them to witness their screams and excitement. We grabbed another DAS for later which we ended up using straight away.

Next we decided on some dinner before heading into Pandora which was to be at the Flame Tree BBQ.

This was a place I had always wanted to try. I'd seen numerous reports and always thought for a quick service location it looked great. For one reason or another we'd never had the opportunity to try it.

This without exception was the worst meal I've had on this or any trip

It was very quiet but it took an age to get our food.

The girls and Kelly weren't in the mood for anything heavy so all three got the Watermelon Salad. Watermelon, Arugula, Feta, Pickled Red Onion with a White Balsamic Vinaigrette. Kelly liked it but the girls didn't.

I had only one thing in mind for me and went for Ribs, Chicken, and Pulled Pork Sampler
The ultimate Flame Tree Barbecue Platter features our three specialities: Smoked Ribs, Chicken and Pulled Pork with a helping of our House-made Baked Beans, refreshing Coleslaw and delicious Jalapeño Cornbread. The chicken was dry, tough and tasteless and felt like it had been under a hot lamp for 12 hours. The ribs were drier, tougher and more tasteless and felt like they had been under a hot lamp for 16 hours. The pulled pork with some BBQ sauce was ok. It was so disappointing.

I don't know if I caught the place on an off night but I definitely won't be going back here. I've been pretty lucky with the places we've eaten over the years so it was going to happen one day

Anyhoo I ended finishing off mine alone as Lily was freaking out about the birds wandering around. While I finished they managed to see Russell from Up.

So on to the moment I had been waiting for. Into Pandora. I was expecting mayhem. It wasn't actually too bad. The walk in had been roped off so people had to keep to a certain side. It was busy but manageable. It was starting to get dark which is the best time to see Pandora. It was quite hard to stop and look at anything because of the crowds though. First impressions were that it was good but nowhere in the league of Potter at Universal.

Honestly I felt a little underwhelmed. We had about 15 minutes before our first fastpass window opened for Na'vi River Ride. I wanted to have a look at the snacks in the Satu'li Canteen but that was rammed, likewise the gift shop. Kelly took an instant dislike to any adult walking round with a toy Banshee on their shoulders. I joined her sustain because of the smug looks said adults had.

The queue for the Na'vi River Ride was showing at 180 minutes. Thank god we had fastpasses. The ride itself was ok nothing spectacular. I'd have been mighty unhappy if I'd queued up for 3 hours for it.

I definitely was feeling underwhelmed now with Pandora. We had an hour before our fastpass for Flights Of Passage so we decided on leaving the area to get a snack as it was really busy. We ended up with snacks from a cart near the Tree Of Life.

Kelly and Lily went for the frozen chocolate covered banana. They both liked them.

Evie went for a Mickey Bar Ice Cream.

I went for the Mickey Ice Cream Sandwich. This seems to have shrunk significantly or my hands are huge.

4 Snack credits used.

So we headed back into Pandora which was still busy. It was around 9pm but tonight it was open until midnight. We battled our way to the Flights Of Passage entrance. Standby line was 240 minutes! The cm's had made a big gap in the walkway to allow people to walk past. It was funny watching people think that this was the back of the queue only to be told to look behind them to see the actual line. We headed in the fastpass line. I held onto the kids like they were Charlie Bucket holding a Golden Ticket. The great joy with this fastpass line was you got to smugly walk past everyone in the queue. The line just went on and on. The theming was great in this ride and we were on in only a few short minutes. All the pre show bits were they hold the queues were really good.

Again I worried if Evie would enjoy it but I needn't have worried. Only issue was getting her into the seat properly, not because of her disability but because she can be a butthead sometimes. We were all strapped in and eager to start. The ride itself was AMAZING. It totally took me by surprise about how good it was. I deliberately avoided spoilers beforehand. Best ride at Disney by far. We all agreed afterwards that it was our favourite ride. It was over far too soon. We left the ride and it would be a ride we'd all queue for. We all instantly agreed we'd be coming here again on our final morning.

Everywhere was still packed and this is where I had an issue. It was really dark and difficult to navigate. I thought we were going out where we entered but got totally disoriented and ended up coming out by the Festival of The Lion King. That was a bit on annoying trek to find our way out.

We eventually made our way out to the exit. There were still people coming in to the park as we left around around about 10.15pm. A slow start to the day but we ended up having a really good day.

[dixonsontour]

Great day. Great luck on the fast passes. I know nothing about pandora but the new ride sounds great. What a coincidence to bump into the other girl and family. We are members of Reach, an arm disability charity and one great thing they do is have a kids activity holiday every summer so the kids can meet others like them, Anna has been twice and really enjoyed it and keeps in touch with the girls she met.

[gjdjud]

Originally Posted by dixonsontour

Great day. Great luck on the fast passes. I know nothing about pandora but the new ride sounds great. What a coincidence to bump into the other girl and family. We are members of Reach, an arm disability charity and one great thing they do is have a kids activity holiday every summer so the kids can meet others like them, Anna has been twice and really enjoyed it and keeps in touch with the girls she met.

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There are some great charities out there. We do lots of things with Action For Blind and Guide Dogs. We have a trip to Harry Potter Studio Tours next weekend.

Pandora is worth the effort just for Flights Of Passage

[Gill247]

Another great day! Drooling at the d-luxe burger photos (even at 8am!).
Love Evie's face on Everest- loving life!
Sad your report is coming to an end

[collybird]

Lovely that you bumped into a friend for Evie, definitely a small world.

I agree about Kali being anti-climatic, the rapid river ride at Universal is SO much better.

A real shame about Flame Tree, it was our first ever quick service meal back in 2013, and we had been so looking forward to it. I am not a big barbecue fan so not really surprising I didn't enjoy it.

[EJSakaAnna]

Great day, love the girls faces in the Everest Pic, what a ride! xx

[gjdjud]

Originally Posted by Gill247

Another great day! Drooling at the d-luxe burger photos (even at 8am!).
Love Evie's face on Everest- loving life!
Sad your report is coming to an end

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Thanks for reading Still a couple of days left

Originally Posted by collybird

Lovely that you bumped into a friend for Evie, definitely a small world.

I agree about Kali being anti-climatic, the rapid river ride at Universal is SO much better.

A real shame about Flame Tree, it was our first ever quick service meal back in 2013, and we had been so looking forward to it. I am not a big barbecue fan so not really surprising I didn't enjoy it.

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It just so strange to bump into someone so far away that had the same doctor!

Originally Posted by EJSakaAnna

Great day, love the girls faces in the Everest Pic, what a ride! xx

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A real difference from the first time they ride Thanks for reading

[Floridafour]

Great day

I'm so excited about FOP for our trip next year

[ronnieroobs]

A nice chilled out day

[gjdjud]

Originally Posted by ronnieroobs

A nice chilled out day

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Thanks for reading