21 Day, Aug 22 Split Stay Full Report - Two Big Kids and Endless Calories

[Slore]

So it was the last park for us that we hadn’t visited this trip - Studios - but first we took a trip to Waffle House. I can only think this is a Florida version of a ‘greasy spoon’. It did the job though. This was my hash brown bowl.

The buses are great from our hotel, you never have to wait too long at all so it was quick to arrive at the Studios.

We started on rip-ride and then headed to the back of the park for Gringotts. The last time we visited it had just opened, so it was very busy, but much easier with express passes. Outside is still busy with people waiting for the dragon.

As we were here we decided to grab an ice cream. I remember I loved the strawberry and peanut butter one so had to have it. I still loved it. Phil had butterbeer ice cream, which was also worth getting.

After watching some shows and getting the rides done we were doing well. I loved the animal actors one. After finishing the park, I was getting a bit sick of the 3D simulators and fast and furious was very disappointing. The only two rides we loved were Gringotts and Men in Black so we just re-rode those.

Dinner was at Margaritaville and I was optimistic I’d be able to have dessert by just getting a sandwich… nope I was stuffed.

We headed back in the park for more re-rides and for the cinematic experience. It started to rain so the ponchos came out. It wasn’t worth staying for but we were back in the hotel by the time the worst of the storm came.

Overall, this park wasn’t the greatest and I’m not sure I’d rush to go back. I remember getting sick of the same style of ride last time but I guess it’s a great park for a rainy day.

[Slore]

Our last full day in the park and with express passes so we would work across the two but first it was a stop off at Denny’s for breakfast.

I’d put a bid in for upper class upgrade at the minimum. The money was taken out the day before but my booking still said Economy. After checking again this morning it had changed to upper so that was a lovely treat to wake up to.

With the Maroon 5 event on we would start at Studios as it would shut early. It didn’t take too long as we only did our two favourite rides. We missed the bourne spectacular last time so caught that. It was really well put together and so clever. Definitely recommend even if you haven’t seen the films (I haven’t). We caught the pet show again as we loved it. Some different ones were used too so it was a great show.

Before we hopped on the Hogwarts Express to the other park I had to get a frozen butterbeer. Omg it’s so delicious, I would highly recommend the $8.50 it costs. I did end up spilling it trying to take a photo though 🙈.

We got to Islands and I picked up a return for Velocicoaster and we were were in the queue for River Adventure when the dreaded inclement weather announcement was made. My gosh this rain did not stop. We did Kong and Spider-Man as that’s what we could do and managed to make our way through the park, shop by shop, to get to our food reservation at Vivo.

I only had a pizza and didn’t eat all the crusts purposefully as I wanted to get my shake from Toothsome. Boy it did not disappoint and was delicious.

The rain was still going strong and with the rides still shut, we just gave up and went back to the hotel. We had ridden everything so wasn’t missing out on anything but felt a bit wasteful for our express passes. Typically it stopped when we got back to the the hotel and could see the rides starting again but we didn’t return. Instead we used to this time to get a head start on the packing - which did go easier than expected.

[Slore]

I can’t believe this day has finally arrived but it’s the day we fly home. It felt the right time though and was ready to get back to some normality and not the daily sun cream routine!

So we wanted a lie in before check out but we were rudely interrupted by the room next door arguing incredibly loud. The only downside of the hotel is the super thin walls. However after resting, we finished our packing just in time for check out time at 11. It was very simple and we stored our luggage with no issues.

We didn’t want anything huge for breakfast so just went to Voodoo Donuts as was a place I wanted to try. Ok this custard filled strawberry one was huge…

We popped back in to Islands for a few hours to get some last minute rides in. We no longer had our express passes though but still had our assistance.

For a Saturday it wasn’t as busy as I thought it would be. As we didn’t get to ride Velocicoaster last night for the weather, I asked for a new time but as we didn’t get to ride I was only timed out 10 minutes. Another great ride on this and after riding over 100 coasters across multiple countries it may be my new number one. It’s the perfect intensity and easily re-rideable.

Hagrids was too huge of a queue and we wouldn’t make our transfer so had one last go on Forbidden Journey. We rode all of the Seuss rides on the way out as they were walk ons. How is the last ride of our holiday the carousel?!

Phil wanted another shake from Toothsome so we shared the red velvet one. My confetti shake was definitely better.

After a quick freshen up and change of clothes at the hotel, it was time to leave. We left at the right time because as soon as we got in the car, in true Floridian style, a thunderstorm arrived.

Check in and security was a breeze with no queue and we had a look around the shops. There were some merch in the Disney shop that I hadn’t seen in the parks.

Trying to get into the Upper Class Delta lounge was a struggle because lightning had shut the airport so they were at capacity. However, it shortly opened and we were allowed in. Our flight was slightly delayed by 30 mins due to the storm but we were text with the details earlier on. After some nibbles, drinks and a nice relax it was time to board.

I would never have dreamed that we could fly upper class so it was all surreal for me and I feel so lucky we won our bid at the price is was (£495 pp). The suite was stunning and I loved the leg room.

Service was a bit slow because I heard them say they were three crew down so they’d had people in different cabins than normal. The food was incredibly good and the spacious room and set up to eat was unheard of on a plane. I had tomato and mozzarella for starter, bbq chicken breast for main and a cheesecake for dessert.

They were asking if we wanted to be woken up for breakfast but I didn’t want to as wanted to maximise the sleep. After eating, I utilised the bed and managed about three hours sleep. I was going to try get some more but they were serving breakfast so I thought why not. I opted for pancakes.

Our flight time was just over 7.5 hours so even though we were delayed, we arrived earlier than planned at around 08:15. There was no queue at the gates but it was around an hour for our luggage to arrive 😩. We were fortunate that ours came out first though.

We boarded the very busy bus back to Purple Parking and set off home. What a struggle that was! I can’t believe after over 3 years this was now the end of the holiday.

Final thoughts

The Universal hotel was considerably cheaper and I would definitely stay again. As a couple it was simple but I’d probably opt for the suite if a family. It was nice for housekeeping every day (looking at you, Disney) and everything was perfect. The only downside is the super thin walls so not great for light sleepers.

The location makes up for it as it’s within walking distance of Walgreens and restaurants we wanted to visit (IHOP, Denny’s, Applebee’s). The shuttles to Universal are so frequent and quick it makes a difference.

We didn’t opt for the resort mug as thought they were expensive. However, we just used our Disney ones and got free water from the machines instead.

I used to love Universal but felt a little disappointed with some attractions. I guess my tastes have changed but definitely preferred our Disney portion. The only plus side is that it needed much less planning and free to do things at your own time.

Overall, our three week split stay was the perfect time to do everything and can take things a little easier so it’s not so intense. The disability provisions were great at Disney and really helped me. Not so much as the other parks as you have to physically walk to the attraction to get a time. Even with express passes at Universal, some queues were not so quick and I felt some merge points were too soon.

I had planned £2,500 as a budget per person for spending but we actually spent so much less. The Disney offer helped though. Total cost per person were:

£500 worth of dollars, which was just over $600.
£450 per person on Halifax Clarity for food/Ubers/drinks
$234 provided as part of the the Disney dining credits offer
$100 provided as part of the Disney gift card offer
£495 per person for upper upgrade on return

Total spends each was just under £1,500 but would have been much less without the upgrade cost. The Disney offer went a long way for us too.

After a long 14 hour sleep I think the jet lag is definitely going to be helped. Hopefully back to a routine now. We worked it out that we walked well over 300k steps (around 140 miles) which is insane. Although we probably consumed a million calories, I actually lost 1lb in weight 😱. I had to look at the scales multiple times to see that. First time ever going on holiday and losing weight 😂.

Now it’s time to sort through all the photos and download from the Disney app. Thank you Orlando for the best holiday and was definitely worth the three year wait! See you in a few more years when Epic Universe opens…

[ClaireNJ]

Originally Posted by Slore

First time trip report and it hopefully it’ll be interesting to read!

I’ve created all the daily posts and will edit everything to keep together. It will be very slow editing but it’ll get done eventually!

Our pre-trip report is here.

Pre-Travel Day

This started off heading to Purple Parking and Premier Inn, Bath Road, at Heathrow.

No issues at all getting down and checking in. Funny thing was that the person seemed very confused that two men had booked a double room. We ended up with a family room (1 double, 2 singles) so a choice of all the beds.

Unfortunately the drama then happened. I’d not been feeling majorly well this day; very nauseous and no appetite at all (so unlike me). I put it down to nerves/excitement. However, this was not the case. We had pre-booked the meal deal. I really didn’t want anything but forced myself to go as Phil needed food anyway. Placed my order but when Phil’s starter came out, the smell was too much I had to leave.

It’s a short walk to the lift but during that time my energy massively dropped, I became super hot and my vision went blurred. This lead to me collapsing on the floor! A really nice family helped me (if it’s a Dibber thank you so much) and got the staff to bring me a bag as the inevitable happened…

After a bit of time to recover, I felt much better and we went back to the room. Phil had his dinner on a tray. Mine was there too but it’s a shame as I didn’t eat it. Phil enjoyed the meal though and can’t complain at that price.

I was so worried I wasn’t going to be able to get on the flight but I felt so much better on the evening. Whatever the hell it was just needed to come out.

Sorry for the gross details… but if you were in that hotel that night and saw this unfold, I apologise profusely!

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Awww so sorry you felt unwell the day before your fight 😳
Probably a build up of everything excitement & stress 😩😬
Have a fab time x

[Slore]

Originally Posted by ClaireNJ

Awww so sorry you felt unwell the day before your fight 😳
Probably a build up of everything excitement & stress 😩😬
Have a fab time x

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Thank you. I couldn’t believe it but at least it was before we stepped on the plane!

[cornishfrogboy]

Great stuff.. and really looking forward to the next instalments

[ClaireNJ]

Originally Posted by Slore

After a decent sleep we were excited to finally get to our first park. After a 7am alarm to book our Genie+ option, the times were perfect for what we wanted.

The day started with breakfast at POP and first use of our dining credit. Super easy to use as they just scan the barcode. I opted for the omelette, which with everything else you get, was very filling.

The bus was very easy and we headed across to the park. We made use of every photo pass opportunity but I was more excited by Kevin when we arrived 😂.

Our first ride of the day was safari, as part of our pre booked DAS. Love this ride.

As the day went on utilising Genie+ and DAS it was an absolute breeze. It meant we could take things at our leisure and it didn’t aggravate my conditions.

I’d seen lots of vlogs for Pandora but gosh it doesn’t compare to being there. The detail is incredible. Flight of Passage for the first time is just wow. All the different sensations and the smells. An excellent first few hours of the day of all the rides.

We have a food list of everything we want to try and the ice cream sandwich at Dino Bites was first up. We were optimistic and went for one each, a standard and the 50th one. These were huge and it was a STRUGGLE. Well most the chocolate one got thrown away as we couldn’t force it anymore.

The afternoon was more chilled and took in the cavalcades, kite tails and all of the shows. We used Genie+ for the shows just to get excellent seats as we had exhausted it on all the rides. Not needed but did mean a longer sit down in the air con. I didn’t take many photos as I was just soaking up the atmosphere.

The weather was perfect but had a small downpour but this was whilst we were in the queue for Mickey and Minnie. It was a bit sad that no photo pass option but the cast member took our photo for us.

Our day ended with a first time visit for Yak and Yeti. Excellent food but I was still so stuffed from those ice cream sandwiches! I had the Lo Mein and Phil had the coconut shrimp. Both lovely meals and an incredible end to the perfect first day.

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Your first day looked FAB especially those ice cream sandwiches 🙊 I’ll be definitely getting them next time 😋😋😋

[Slore]

Days 2 and 3 have now been updated.

[disneypars]

Apart from the pre travel day sounds like you're having a great time. Looking forward to following along.

[ClaireNJ]

Originally Posted by Slore

The day started off at 6:55 with an alarm for the Guardians virtual queue. We were boarding group 46 with an estimated return of around 1pm.

After a quick breakfast at the hotel it was on board the Skyliner for the first time to actually going to a theme park. I love this so much as there was no queue. It’s interesting arriving into the park at the back and not at the front though!

Walking around World Showcase to get to Frozen, our first Genie+ for the day. Can’t help but love this view:

After completing a few attractions, with Genie+ we tried to get on Test Track, it was down so got an anytime one. Rebooked it again and the same happened later on, so that’s two anytime redemptions.

Our Guardians group was called very early, just before 11, so we headed to the attraction. As we have DAS, we exchanged our VQ to a lightning lane. The attraction is incredible. I must admit I’ve never seen the film (don’t hate) but the pre shows and theming are just something else. The ride was super smooth and I didn’t feel nauseous at all. I love the usual spinning coasters and they’re a hell of a lot rougher.

Shortly after there was a downpour so we used this opportunity to head to Club Cool as it was the closest cover. I can confirm Beverly is a no go. The one from China is just the same. The best bit was speaking with the CM who said she had told a guest that Beverly was the best one. Absolutely hilarious she was! She did say the guest wasn’t best pleased haha.

We started the cheese crawl (fromage montage) and hit three out of the five needed for the surprise. I don’t know why I didn’t take any pictures but they were all very good. We had the Paneer from India, Raclette from the Alps and the Schinkennudeln from Germany. The other two we wanted will open later on in the month so we will head back later. However, the Pina Colada funnel cake was also an excellent choice for dessert, albeit small for sharing (for a change).

After exhausting all our Genie+ on the rides and riding Test Track twice we eventually got to the evening. Via Napoli was our restaurant for the evening. We shared a huge pizza and again I failed on the picture front.

After a couple more rides, we headed towards Port of Entry for Harmonious. We had a perfect viewing spot and only arrived 15 mins before. I absolutely adored this show! I can’t wait to see it again.

The skyliner queue was fairly long for the return but they do work quickly. It only took 40 mins from the end of Harmonious to get back to the room.

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That funnel cake did look good 😋😋
Test track is always down think it’s one of the most unreliable rides 😬🙄😫😫
Glad you got on ok on Guardians, not sure if I’ll ride it not good with spinning & dark rides 🤢 can do Space Mountain though 🤩
Those fireworks look out of this world
Another good day for you both