Tuck your elbows in - day 10 - Fort Wilderness, Epcot & Hollywood Studios

[lumosq102]

Day 10 - 30 September 2017

Day 9 is here
Index is here

After our evening of culinary indulgence last night we always knew that today would be a slow start, so no sunrise photos today! The sky was a little grey and foreboding – yesterday’s storm had yet to show itself the door. Boo.

We stumbled around the room, watched the usual dodgy morning TV before we headed out the door at 9:45. We hopped on the monorail around to the Contemporary, and then strolled down to the boat dock – we were heading off to somewhere we had never been before – Fort Wilderness.

Our first hotel love at WDW was Wilderness Lodge but we had never made it that half mile along the banks of Bay Lake to the Fort. It always felt a little intimidating – all those internal bus routes and its seemingly incomprehensible lay out. Thank the heavens for YouTube though we had a much better grip on what was where, and our brunch venue was just a short walk from the boat dock – along with the horse barns and ponies that pull Cinderella’s carriage at the Christmas party! That’s where we would be heading after food…

Wilderness Lodge views

Discovery Island – or where all those lovely birds live (hopefully we’ll be able to get some photos of them when we are staying at Bay Lake Tower in June – you can see the vultures fly off the island every morning)

Stormy weather

See you soon Bay Lake Tower

R taking in the view

I absolutely adore taking the boat across Bay Lake – it is such a lovely journey, the boat captains are always fantastic and the views are glorious. Its so close to Magic Kingdom but once you are on the water the hustle and bustle falls away and it feels like you’re in a different world… today’s captain was called Joe and seemed to take us the long way round, giving us a good look at Discovery Island as we went. Thanks Joe! I’d love to go exploring there… however I would also like to continue going to WDW so unless Disney open it back to the public this is as close as I’ll get.

Ten trips in and we still have new places to discover. Fort Wilderness was gorgeous, so peaceful… it was 10:20 when we arrived so we took a slow wander over to Trails End to check in then settled in on a couple of rocking chairs on the porch to wait to be called in for our reservation and take in the view a while. It was a little moment of bliss. Hungry bliss. Hangovers these days manifest themselves with a massive appetite and I was in dire need of potatoes, and possibly eggs. And sugar.

It was a good job those chairs were comfortable – it was 11am by the time our buzzer went off and we were escorted to our table.

Loved the salt and pepper pots. So cute.

No food pictures were taken – we were ravenous by this point and as such the messy buffet plates were devoured quickly. I know people rave about this place but for me it wasn’t a complete hit. The omlettes were made to order – your server takes the order – and although nice it was a smidge tough. It had nothing on Elizabeth from Boma’s omelette expertise! The tater tots were, of course, yummy.

R enjoyed it – said it was good comfort food, nothing fancy but solid. She found it a little odd eating fried chicken for breakfast (but that didn’t stop her! ), but was particularly taken with the dessert offerings – the cookies, little red velvet cakes – all delicious. Our server Ken was lovely too. The restaurant was really crowded and it looked like he was covering a heck of a lot of tables but he remained so enthusiastic, just full of bags of energy. He was a total sweetheart.

We’re going to head back to Fort Wilderness next time, but this time for dinner, and for the first seating so we don’t risk another appearance of hangry Kirsty’s… and dinner has a jacket potato bar and quite frankly, give me baked potatoes and all is well with the world!

After our tummies were stuffed to overflowing we thought we would take a walk around the Tri Circle D ranch and see if we could meet some horsies. We did indeed…

So beautiful – one of the ponies who pull Cinderella’s carriage. That sweet little face. Love.

R wanders off – this time to visit with the big horses. They were all gorgeous
- and huge!

There was a mini museum display in the stable, giving an overview of Walt Disney’s love of horses. It was very much worth a visit.

A little set up outside for the Halloween celebrations.

Before taking our Fort Wilderness leave we popped into the trading post for a little wander. Filled with cute Fort Wilderness branded merch and practical camping equipment – and smores making kits. More like a little corner shop than your regular hotel gift shop.

We were heading to Epcot for the afternoon so thought we would hop back on the boat over to Wilderness Lodge and take a little stroll through the hotel before grabbing the bus from there.

It had started to brighten up a little by this point. Look at that sky – glorious.

We shared the boat with a rather sweet pair of retirees who had set up camp at Wilderness Lodge in their RV. They were making the most of their retirement with lots of travel, lucky ducks.

It was the first time we had been back to Wilderness Lodge since they built all the DVC cabins & it was quite surprising to see how sparse the wooded areas had become – you can see the hotel from the boat dock! Its still one of my favourite places though, it’s a magical hotel. I really want to stay at one of the new DVC rooms, they look gorgeous!

Lobby loveliness

After taking refuge in the A/C for a few minutes disguised as looking around the lobby we made our way over to the bus stop to grab a bus to Epcot.

Another first – there was a snake crossing the road! You always know that Florida wildlife is there, just around the corner out of sight, but I’d never seen a snake out in the wilds so to speak. Still, he had less interest in us than we had in him.

[lumosq102]

We hop on the bus it Epcot and where does it stop first?

Fort Wilderness.

Morons.

Still – we avoided the internal bus confusion and enjoyed a lovely wander around one of our favourite resorts. Not too shabby and we were soon greeted by this welcome sight:

Gorgeous from all angles

Before we headed out to Florida a kind soul on Twitter sent me their unused rider switch fast passes which included a Frozen FP that was expiring that day and since we were unlucky with ride downtime earlier in the week you can guess where we were going.

Even with the fast pass we must have waited about 25 minutes before we were boarding. The queue was just lovely & I was rather keen to experience the full thing in standby – we would save that for EMH later in the week.

Drunk Olaf

We were not the first to travel this way, nor would we be the last. But you know what? The ride was charming. Maelstrom will always hold a special place in my memories, but it was long overdue an overhaul. There are many arguments about Epcot and Disney’s increased emphasis on IPs in the park… but this was charming and a lovely addition to the park. I just wish it had a bit more capacity…

Sven – offered with no comment

Let it go

Elsa does not approve of my nonsense

Back back! Over the falls

Even Marshmallow finds my Maelstrom jokes tedious

I kinda want Anna’s outfit for me…

Another ride photo with me hanging onto the camera for dear life. It was a little more splashtastic than I remembered. Heavens knows what the chap in the second row was doing, needed the loo perhaps?

Next up, our second kindly gifted fast pass of the day, this time at Soarin

As usual we waited for the front and centre row and had a lovely trip around the world.

Our short visit to Epcot was now coming to a close, we took a quick walk past Canada and UK pavilions and headed out at International Gateway to hop the boat over to Hollywood Studios

It was a much needed rest, the day was getting very warm and humid so 30 minutes of dozing on a boat was perfect.

This was to be our only visit to Hollywood Studios this trip so we had scheduled FPs for all our favourites, starting with Star Tours

After a little galactic adventure we made our way over to Baseline Taphous, it had opened just a day or two before. This pretty much takes over the space previously used by the Writers Stop plus a little more (lots of outdoor space!) and I think a good plus to that area, although I could live with less dull acoustic covers of contemporary songs as the soundtrack. We were a little hungry so decided on splitting the charcuterie board along with the spiced almonds and a couple of California Sunsets – one of the cocktails they have on tap (?!).

R enjoyed the meat on the board & we both enjoyed the cheeses. It was a lovely portion and worked well to split between 2 not starving but peckish people. The roast almonds were lovely but if you have ever grabbed a packet of roast nuts from one of the kiosks around the parks then you have pretty much tried these. Nice but nothing new.

Next up – Toy Story Midway Mania! We’re both rather fond of this ride even though we’re not great at it. R got her best score yet & as usual beat me at accuracy. I as usual was not as accurate but got the higher score.

We took a quick stroll into One Man’s Dream whilst we were in the area and admired an early plan for Disneyland (first trip - for me - in 5 weeks and 1 day, but who’s counting?)

Then on to our last fastpass for the day and one of my favourite rides full stop – Tower of Terror.

That sky isn’t looking too clever is it?

The standby line was 40 (! ) minutes, but we were on in a jiffy

That sky is clearing up again. Nothing to worry about…

And we were soon heading to the Twilight Zone. I always love seeing other people’s ride photos. The people just in front of us were particularly entertaining

Grr?

Buffy fan perhaps?

It was now time to check in to the Fantasmic Dessert party where I was determined that we would finally get those front and centre seats that I have always wanted so I could get some great pictures of the characters.

To check in to the dessert party you head along the Fast Pass line then head left at the top of the hill where you check in and are given your lanyard and directed to where you pick up your dessert platter and drink. You have a choice of alcoholic and non alcoholic drink in a light up tumbler. Each person in your party is then given a box of desserts in a branded bag to take to their seats

Obviously we went with the alcoholic version.

The drink was very sweet and I couldn’t really taste the alcohol. The desserts were fine, nothing to write home about really apart from Disney’s continued herculean efforts to included boba balls everywhere. The strawberries and cheese were delicious though, and the little tortilla chips were just salty and crunchy enough to balance everything else out. The little pots of dried fruit were still sat on the table in our room when we checked out…

So, we were seated, we had snacked, I had the perfect front and centre position I had always wanted and we were ready for an hour of peppy Disney songs sung by artists last seen in their shows a decade ago when it all started getting a little dark, and not in that ooh, sunset is approaching sort of way. More like you have angered the gods and now you will pay sort of way.

That was the last photo I took before the heavens opened and I struggled to get my camera covered before it was destroyed like my dreams of seeing Fantasmic from that perfect front and centre seat…

Unsurprisingly, with the rain came lightening, then the thunder and finally the announcement that we had to leave the theatre lest we are killed by a bolt of electricity from the sky.

Blast.

We made it over to The Darkroom without getting completely drenched thanks to our ponchos; R’s half drunk cocktail was now mostly rainwater but the mug was still valiantly flashing away… we wandered around the store for a while hoping that the rain would magically go away and the stage would miraculously dry off in good time for a fabulous performance of Fantasmic! (where I would retake that fabulous seat front and centre, of course) before we realised that we needed to give it all up as a bad job.

A kind cast member pointed us in the direction of Guest Relations where he said we would be given fastpasses. Instead we were given a refund of $20 for our unused priority seating (the dessert party portion is apparently worth $29 per person, $10 for the priority seating. The more you know…) and we were soon waiting at the bus stop, rain still pouring, for our journey home to the Grand, tonight via the Polynesian.

It was still raining when we got back to the hotel. For the second night in a row we thanked any god that might be listening for the covered walkway between the main building & the DVC units.

We were feeling a little more chipper once we were warm and cosy in our room, dried off and in the hotel issued dressing gowns (modelled by R in the background there), eating the truffles we left V&A with the previous evening.

Unsurprisingly, they were all delicious.

A damp end to the day, but we were tucked up and ready for what the next day would bring – the whole reason we booked for this time of year. Epcot 35, our first proper D23 event and the hope that we would see some of our heroes in the flesh.

Day 11 is here

[Goldia]

Oh no what a shame you didn't get to see fantasmic in the end. The little tour you did of fort wilderness sounds fun and although it felt like a more relaxed day you still managed to fit in a resort tour plus 2 theme parks! I'm looking forward to trying out baseline tap, the charcuterie looks amazing.

[lumosq102]

Originally Posted by Goldia

Oh no what a shame you didn't get to see fantasmic in the end. The little tour you did of fort wilderness sounds fun and although it felt like a more relaxed day you still managed to fit in a resort tour plus 2 theme parks! I'm looking forward to trying out baseline tap, the charcuterie looks amazing.

See more...

I love Fantasmic so was a little heartbroken, but am determined to see it twice this next trip - once in Hollywood Studios, and once in Disneyland (I am obnoxiously excited at the moment - so close to that trip!)

It was a lovely day though, as you've probably noticed we don't really have down days so this is as quiet as we get. Tomorrow... we're leaving the hotel at 7am and don't get back to the hotel until almost 11pm. back to the regularly scheduled programme!

I'm sure you'll enjoy Baseline Taphouse, the seating is a little weird inside - all bar style seating, we ended up staring at a wall. but on a cooler day it would be lovely to sit outside and just enjoy the atmosphere. R highly recommends the charcuterie!

[Mortimer Mouse]

A lovely day.
We loved our stay at FW although never used the internal buses as we'd hired a golf cart to get around the resort. Such fun.

[lumosq102]

Originally Posted by Mortimer Mouse

A lovely day.
We loved our stay at FW although never used the internal buses as we'd hired a golf cart to get around the resort. Such fun.

See more...

It really was - chilled and relaxed - and damp!

The golf carts look like such a fun way to get around. The Tim Tracker on YouTube recently did a resort tour on a golf cart, worth looking up if you haven't seen it.

It looks like such a lovely place to stay, so chilled and remote. you really do feel so very far form the hustle and bustle of the parks.

[collybird]

I’m making a mental note of the absence of the baked potato bar at brunch, we’ve done breakfast and dinner and enjoyed both, I want to do brunch this year but couldn’t make it work, but I’ll definitely reconsider now, love me a baked potato.

I love those songs they play at Fantasmic! I’ve actually downloaded them all. I fancy the F! dessert party, we’ve got the dinner package booked for this year but if it’s still running we’ll definitely do it next year. I’m gutted for you that the show didn’t go ahead though.

[disney332]

What a great report.

Thanks for sharing... Love the WL

Disney332

[lumosq102]

Originally Posted by collybird

I’m making a mental note of the absence of the baked potato bar at brunch, we’ve done breakfast and dinner and enjoyed both, I want to do brunch this year but couldn’t make it work, but I’ll definitely reconsider now, love me a baked potato.

I love those songs they play at Fantasmic! I’ve actually downloaded them all. I fancy the F! dessert party, we’ve got the dinner package booked for this year but if it’s still running we’ll definitely do it next year. I’m gutted for you that the show didn’t go ahead though.

See more...

Its all about the baked potato to be honest, I could live on them. i keep hearing that the baked potato has gone away at Sleepy Hollow which is making me very

The music at Fantasmic! kills me. And all I need to hear is "thats some imagination and I'm in floods of tears.

We're doing the dinner package this year too, fingers crossed the weather will cooperate!

Originally Posted by disney332

What a great report.

Thanks for sharing... Love the WL

Disney332

See more...

Thank you for reading! And yes, me too. i still remember seeing it for the first time, travelling through on the bus one night and it just looked magical, like fairyland...

[Excitedx4]

Ah shame you didn’t get your perfect fantasmic view! This chocolates look divine 😍