Once Upon A Dream - Our Disneymoon May 2019 - DAY 1

[rosiela]

Quick reminder if you didn't read my brief intro in my index post.

WHO

Me - Rosie, 33, chief organiser & planner. I was fortunate enough to visit WDW four times as a child but I haven't been since the grand old age of 10 - and it's long been a dream to return.

DH - Doug, 35, laid back cool dude with no idea what's in store for him (first time visitor to the US & to Disney!)

We recently got married:

As soon as we got engaged, we decided to make this trip our honeymoon - so it should be a really special trip.


WHEN

06.05.2019 - 20.05.2019


HOW & WHERE

Travelling direct with TUI on Monday 6th from Newcastle to Orlando Sanford.

Then staying 14 nights at Port Orleans Riverside.

Onto the report...

* * * * * *

I imagined I'd be up at the crack of dawn, bouncing off the walls and annoying my husband to death because TODAY WE GO TO FLORIDA! However, somewhat surprisingly (and thankfully) I wake up at the respectable time of 8 a.m. As the airport is only 10 minutes down the road, we are at home so I envisage a nice, calm morning for myself.

Breakfast, bath, say bye to the cats, get the taxi and go.

It sort of turns out that way... I manage to get to the breakfast part at least. Then one of our cats decides that this is the perfect time to bring us a gift of a large, very live mouse, which promptly disappears behind the sofa.

Which is why the first photo of the day is of my husband trying in vain to find this mouse...

The rest of the morning goes to plan after this, and I feel surprisingly calm and collected. I haven't always been the best flier in the past but I find myself looking forward to the flight and to getting on our way.

We arrive at the airport just after 10.45 and are very quickly through check in & security. And... relax! We grab a traditional airport breakfast of Burger King, buy some water and plane snacks, and generally just watch the clock until it's time to board.

I haven't flown long haul in quite a few years and it's my first time on the Dreamliner. We pre-booked extra leg room seats and were in seats 10A & 10B so just behind the Premium Economy curtain. The seats are great, comfortable and the leg room is definitely worth it.

We leave on time at 1.15pm and the flight is smooth and, although long, doesn't actually feel too bad. I watch a couple of films (A Star Is Born & The Wife), look at the sky map, look out the window and maybe manage to snooze for 30 minutes. The food is also pretty decent - chicken with vegetables and potatoes, cheese & crackers, chocolate mousse. Then an afternoon tea before we land, consisting of a sandwich and a fruit scone.

We land at Sanford on time just after 5pm, and we are through immigration and baggage claim within about 20 minutes. We go to the coach that is taking us to our resort... then the wait begins. Although we were quick getting off the plane, we still have to wait for other guests so it takes quite a long time and I'm starting to feel tired at this point.

We finally arrive at Port Orleans Riverside at about 8pm - we check in & receive our badges (Happily Ever After ones for our honeymoon, and DH gets a First Visit one). We find our room, which is in Magnolia Bend and maybe 5-10 minutes walk from the main lobby and food areas. Only 2 minutes from the East Depot bus stop. We head to the food court to get our refillable mugs and feel a little overwhelmed and tired, trying to figure out how our mugs and snack credits work!

We decide to try and stay up until a reasonable bed time, to get into 'Florida time' so we have a quick swim before bed. The quiet pool is only 2 minutes from our room also. This turns out to be a great idea as it refreshes us from all the travelling, and helps us get into the holiday mood. I feel like pinching myself as I dip into the warm water and realise this is a Monday evening at 10pm and I'm swimming outside!

After a shower, we head to bed for 10.30. I'm really impressed with how comfortable the bed is and we are soon fast asleep, ready for our first Disney day tomorrow!

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[Palm trees]

What a lovely travel day (apart from the mouse issue which sounds quite stressful!). I'm looking forwards to reading more of your report.

[l33na]

Great travel day. The gift from your cat made me laugh. Congratulations on your wedding.

[Cinderella]

Great start 👍

[DISNEYNIC]

Great start - stress free travel day. Thanks for sharing look forward to more.

[Goldia]

Eeek, a mouse! Otherwise a perfectly calm travel day. Well done on making it past 9pm, it's a good idea to go for a swim. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the trip report.

[Taffy1959]

Apart from the mouse it was a good travel day.

[collybird]

A nice smooth travel day, I had no idea TUI flew direct from Manchester, how are their prices?

[Jakey Neverland]

Great start to your holiday.

[mick]

A great travel day

Joan