DLP Jan 2017: The Birthday Trip! Day 3 - What day of the week is it again?!

[Lisa_Lollipop]

Index can be found here

Saturday 28th January
Steps: 30,226
Miles: 12.84

We had breakfast booked for 7am again this morning so in preparation for that I had set my alarm for 6am the night before to allow myself plenty of time to get ready. Well it seems I had completely slipped into holiday mode and lost all track of days, I didn’t really think about the fact that my alarm was set to weekdays only so being a Saturday it of course didn’t go off! (Surely I cannot be the only person that has done this?!). As a result I didn’t naturally wake up until 7:35am… yes, completely missing breakfast!

Fair to say I threw a few curse words at myself and feeling pretty silly I sloped off to the shower to get myself ready for the day (who needs breakfast at that time of the morning anyway eh?!)

On a more positive note… today’s Disney socks were inspired by meeting Rex the day before!

By 8:45am we were ready to get going so off we set around the lake making our way to Disneyland Park. In good news… it definitely felt milder this morning, still absolutely freezing but less so than the past couple of days!

The weekend had certainly hit, the entrance was considerably busier and this morning we had to queue to get in (this very much set up the crowds that we were to experience for the rest of the day!). Despite there being still an hour of EMH left it was pretty packed down Main Street already, no undisturbed photos of the castle today!

Before heading around into Discoveryland we made a stop by the fountain… it really must have been warming up as the water was running this morning!

Our first stop was Buzz Lightyear as it was only posting a 15 minute wait… this was clearly a huge fib though as the queue was painfully slow moving and ended up taking half an hour to get through. This probably wouldn’t have been so bad if it hadn’t of been for the super annoying family we had behind us the whole way through (you know, the ones that seem to have absolutely no spatial awareness and think that standing so close so you can feel them breathing down your neck will get them through the queue quicker!)

Once on it did stop a few times as we were going round so this definitely help boost my score but not by enough as Paul still beat me!

As it was coming up to 10am by the time we came out of Buzz we decided we would make our way over to Frontierland to see if we could get ourselves some Big Thunder Mountain FPs for later in the day.

Walking back through the hub we were surprised how busy it had got bearing in mind at this point the park wasn’t even officially open! There was also crazy queues waiting at the entrance of Frontierland, it seems everyone had the same plan in regards to getting to Big Thunder Mountain!

At 10am on the dot they opened up the entrance and it went absolutely crazy, people running and everything! Having never made it to rope drop at any of the parks this was a completely new experience for us, madness! We were less in a rush than most so had a gentler stroll as we followed the masses making their way to Big Thunder Mountain.

On making it over there the queues for both the actual ride and the FPs kiosks were pretty crazy but we thought we would be better getting FPs than facing the actual standby queue to ride now. By the time we made it through the return time was for 11:10 which worked perfectly as we had planned on being in the park for the majority of the morning. (Just as an aside, it’s really difficult to take these photos of yourself holding up FPs in front of an attraction, especially when wearing gloves! It was a two man job with me holding up the tickets and the phone and Paul pressing the capture button… excellent team work!)

After a quick loo break we took a few photos outside Big Thunder Mountain, now noticing that the wait time was already up to 70 minutes… it had only been open for 20 minutes!

By now the lack of breakfast was starting to take its toll so we decided to hunt out some food, off we headed back through the hub and back down Main Street stopping in the Cable Car Bake Shop. In here I picked up a pain au chocolate and a hot chocolate (more sugar!) and Paul went for a simple croissant (he had been wanting a fountain coke but there is a serious lack of places that serve them in DLP, this place also being one that doesn’t!)

Satisfied with our quick mini-breakfast we made our way back down towards the castle where I noticed this information board for the first time… I think it’s fair to say we were definitely going to be facing much bigger wait times now the weekend had hit!

As we were right there we decided to pop back into Merlin l’Enchanteur and pick up the glass heart that Paul had helped create the day before, I say pick up… we actually asked them to send it back to our hotel to save us having to carry it around (did I mention how much I love that service?!). Before packaging it all away the CM gave us a quick look and it really was very cute, especially for the price and lovely to know the Paul had played a part in the making of it! (Now just to wait until December to get it back out for the Christmas tree!)

Our next stop was Hakuna Matata… they do fountain coke! Paul was most pleased to get his fix and we had a quick sit down whilst he finished it up.

With the coke consumed it was now time to head back to Big Thunder Mountain as our FP slot had just opened up. Walking past the standby entrance we noticed the wait was now up to 85 minutes… who waits that long?!

Feeling pretty smug we made our way through into the FP queue. There was a French family in front of us and the young boy left his empty drink can on the side as we were walking though… Paul was pretty outraged and as a result spent the next 10 minutes looking up French swear words and muttering them under his breath in a rather comical fashion (no excuse for littering people!)

It took 15 minutes for us to make it the loading area, much more doable than the 85 minute standby queue! And before long we were seated in our train and heading on out. Well I love BTM in WDW but I have to say I think DLP’s offering tops it! I am not sure what it is, maybe the fact that it goes on for longer or that it is smoother or perhaps just that is a different track but I absolutely loved it and came off with the biggest smile on my face!

We decided to make our way over to Indiana Jones but on arriving there we found that the wait time was 50 minutes and there were no FPs. I don’t think the kiosks were actually open at any point whilst we were there which was a shame, there was no way I was waiting that long for it!

Leaving that behind we decided it would be really fun to ride BTM in the dark so we rushed back in that direction to see if there were any FPs still available for later in the day. On getting there I was most excited to see that they were currently distributing ones for 6:45pm… perfect! As we were next in line for the kiosks they seemed to completely break down and as a result a poor CM had to handwrite them for everyone instead. But as long as we still had one I wasn’t going to feel too bad for him!

With the FPs safely deposited in my purse for later we made our way back over to Buzz Lightyear to see how the wait times there were looking… not good at 60 minutes! But luckily as our BTM FPs were handwritten (and therefore not actually logged in the system) we were able to pick up some for this as well with a return time of 1:25pm, what a great result!

With the park feeling so busy we were wondering where we could head to that wouldn’t have a crazy wait time and of course It’s a Small World came top of mind! Off we toddled but on arriving outside would you believe it, 20 minutes! Now as I have said before we both love IASW but there is no way we were going to entertain a 20 minute queue!

Instead we thought we would check out Alice’s Curious Labyrinth instead as that was pretty much a walk-in!

Luckily we made it out of the maze unscathed (easier said than done with so many school groups running riot in there!) and it was now time for our Buzz Lightyear FPs.

The standby time had gone down slightly to 45 minutes but that was still too long in my book, thank goodness for the saviour that is FPs! It was a pretty rubbish round for us both and yet again Paul beat me!

By the time we made it out of Discoveryland it was approaching 2pm so we thought it would be the perfect time for a lunch stop and on the agenda today was Earl of Sandwich in Disney Village. On the way out we seemed to find ourselves in one of the gift shops by the exit and Paul couldn’t resist a little try of this rather fetching Donald Duck hat!

Despite the how busy the parks were it wasn’t too long a wait to get served in EoS and we both ended up going for a Hawaiian BBQ sandwich with crisps and a drink (€11.50 meal deal). Once served we headed upstairs and grabbed ourselves a table by the window with lovely views of the lake, although we couldn’t stay too long as it was actually like a sauna in there! (Yes I know, one minute I am complaining it’s too old and now complaining it’s too hot… there really is no pleasing some people!)

Feeling very hot but nicely full from our delicious sandwiches (EoS never disappoints) our next stop of the day was Walt Disney Studios.

As we entered into the Production Courtyard we found we had arrived midway through a showing of A Galaxy Far Far Away. Not being Star Wars fans it was of course completely lost on us but I took a few snaps regardless as at the very least I recognised the characters (well most of them anyway!)

As we were stood right outside we headed over to see what the wait time for ToT was and on discovering a standby time of 45 minutes and no FPs available we swiftly walked away and promised to come back at another point (I always breathe a sigh of relief when I get out of riding ToT, it really does terrify me. I knew I couldn’t avoid it all weekend though and in reality I was just delaying the inevitable!)

We noticed Armageddon had a short wait time so thought that was worth a try. Well I have to admit I wish we hadn’t bothered, I had no idea what was going on! The French pre-show didn’t exactly help but then we seemed to be led into a room where we were presented with a lot of banging around and two big fire balls and then we directed back out again. Was I missing something here? Is this actually a worthy attraction at a Disney park?!

Feeling somewhat dazed and confused from that experience we then stumbled across a squad of Stormtroopers on a march… this afternoon was just getting stranger and stranger!

The 4pm showing of Moteurs Action was shortly beginning so we decided to head in there, as we had never seen the version at DHS I was quite excited to see what was in store! We made our way in and found some seats right at the very back of the middle section (like the cool kids that we are!)

I really enjoyed the show, as we watching it felt very familiar and then it dawned on me I had watched one of Tim Tracker’s vlogs a while back from the show at DHS so it seems it follows pretty much the same script! Good fun though and I did find myself chuckling and gasping at several points!

Once the show had finished we had planned on watching the 5pm showing of Cinemagique but on arriving out front we found Paul had read the times wrong and it was on at 5pm on weekdays and 6pm on weekends (we were really struggling with what day of the week it was it seems!)

As we didn’t fancy waiting around for an hour for the next showing we decided to make our way out and back over to Disneyland Park. As we were walking through towards the entrance of Disneyland Hotel we saw a couple having wedding photos out the front, very lovely (although she must have been so cold!)

As we entered the park we found the parade was just starting to make its way down Main Street but everywhere was absolutely heaving and we knew with this late arrival we had no chance of getting a good viewing spot. We tried to pull a sneaky one and headed up to the railways station to watch but were quickly moved along by a CM.

With a promise to ourselves that we would be better prepared tomorrow and see it then we decided to jump on the train that had just pulled into the station (we had no chance of getting down Main Street any time soon so it seemed like the most logical option!)

When we made it to Fantasyland station we decided to hop off and see if we could get a few more rides there ticked off.

As we have never ridden Dumbo at MK it was one of the rides that I was really keen to try on the trip so despite the 20 minute wait time we joined the queue. It actually ended up taking 25 minutes to get on but what’s another 5 minutes between friends right?

It was a lovely ride, especially as the sun was setting so the views of the park were just beautiful.

Whilst in Fantasyland we thought it would be rude not to check on IASW and as it was only posting a 10 minute wait we headed on in and were even happier to find it was actually a walk on!

As our FP for BTM was now approaching we made our way in that direction, Adventureland looked so beautiful all lit up at night. Along the way we made a quick stop back in Hakuna Matata as Paul fancied a coke… you really have to grab the opportunity of a fountain drink wherever you can find it in DLP!

On approaching BTM we found it now had a standby time of 90 minutes, thank goodness for our FP that meant we were on in 20. It was so much fun in the dark, I think I enjoyed it even more than in the daytime! It was pitch black in some parts, definitely adding to the thrill!

On exiting I had a quick look at the DLP app to check on wait times and as Orbitron was down as only being 5 minutes we made our way over to Discoveryland, after Paul’s disastrous ride yesterday he was keen to have another go in a spaceship that actually flew! Although on making it round there we found it was actually a 40 minute wait, it is fair to say the app isn’t very accurate!

Feeling a little disappointed we popped into Cafe Hyperion so I could grab a hot chocolate, now the night had fallen it really was very cold (there seriously was no getting used to it!)

As we were making our way back out of Discoveryland we noticed that Buzz Lightyear was now only showing a 10 minute wait so we decided on one last go of the day… and boy was I glad we did as I won! Paul was not happy about it, sore loser much?!

As it was now coming up to 8pm and Dreams was soon to be starting we took a wander down to the castle to find a good viewing spot. I decided to refrain from taking any photos this time around, I really feel like you miss some of the magic when you are watching through a lens waiting for the perfect shot. Fair to say I fell in love with it all over again, more tears!

After the show finished the park was closing so there was nowhere else to go but to head on out. As we were leaving we decided now would be a good opportunity to head into the Disneyland Hotel and have a little nosey around!

I was most impressed by the big sweeping staircase in the lobby; it really did have an air of grandeur about it that’s for sure! We made our way up the stairs and Paul couldn’t resist a little sit down!

We continued to explore and found ourselves through by Cafe Fantasia, which was pretty busy now it had hit park kicking-out time.

Feeling satisfied that we had got an idea of what was on offer we made our way back outside. There is no denying it is a beautiful hotel and the location at the park entrance really is just amazing but if I am honest I prefer the theming and decor of Newport Bay (please don’t lynch me for saying this!)

Back in Disney Village it had now hit 9:25pm and we had planned on going to Annette's Diner for dinner but on passing the queue was backed up outside the door and though to the walkway... maybe best to let the crowds die down a bit there! So as it was my last night as a 31 year old we thought we would get a drink to toast my birthday eve so off we went to the Sports Bar.

It was pretty busy but we managed to grab a couple of stools up at the bar. I went for a glass of rose and Paul ordered himself a beer.

At 10pm the hunger was starting to get the better of us so we had a wander back to Annette’s to see how busy it was looking. On arriving the queue didn’t look too bad, at least half of what it had been earlier but despite this it was still a 40 minute wait (goodness knows how long the wait would have been on our first try!) so we admitted defeat as we both agreed we were far too ravenous to wait that long!

At a bit of a loss of where to go for food now we opted to go back to the Sports Bar and order some food there. Granted it is not an extensive menu and very much what you would probably expect from a sports bar but desperate times call for desperate measures! I ordered the hot dog and Paul had the chicken burger, both which came with fries. We also both had another round of drinks…. It was my birthday eve after all!

We left the bar at 11:15pm and made the walk back to Newport Bay, stopping in Bay Boutique to collect our glass heart that we had sent back earlier. We made it back up to the room by 11:35pm and set about doing the most important task that must come at the end of each park day… charging up our various devices! (Extension lead idea from the Dibb of course!)

I made it into bed by 12:30am, Paul was still pottering around but I was asleep within minutes… I blame the wine!

Tomorrow… it’s birthday time!

Day 4 can be found here

[kateh134]

Looks like you had a great day and it's really helping to build the excitement for our trip next month. Loving the socks!

[vics18]

Top socks today!

Oh dear that's quite the alarm faux pas! Haha. I always have the same problem.on holiday never knowing what day it is #holidayprobs

Ah paper fastpasses...I wish I'd kept some from WDW! That was a result with your handwritten pass meaning you could get another one!

Mmm gotta love an Earl sammie yum yum

I think the Disneyland hotel is beautiful too, but I preferred the theming of the Sequoia Lodge where we were staying! I suppose the world would be boring if everyone loved the same stuff! Having said that if money was no object I'd be in one of those theme park/castle view rooms like a shot.

Shame you couldn't get into Annette's. Looks you still had a nice birthday eve though

[Lisa_Lollipop]

Originally Posted by kateh134

Looks like you had a great day and it's really helping to build the excitement for our trip next month. Loving the socks!

See more...

Disney socks at DLP are a must!

You are absolutely going to love DLP, I hope all your planning is going well!

Originally Posted by vics18

Top socks today!

Oh dear that's quite the alarm faux pas! Haha. I always have the same problem.on holiday never knowing what day it is #holidayprobs

Ah paper fastpasses...I wish I'd kept some from WDW! That was a result with your handwritten pass meaning you could get another one!

Mmm gotta love an Earl sammie yum yum

I think the Disneyland hotel is beautiful too, but I preferred the theming of the Sequoia Lodge where we were staying! I suppose the world would be boring if everyone loved the same stuff! Having said that if money was no object I'd be in one of those theme park/castle view rooms like a shot.

Shame you couldn't get into Annette's. Looks you still had a nice birthday eve though

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I think it's a sign that you have completely relaxed and are in full-blown holiday mode ;-)

Sequoia lodge will be featuring in my next installment... it was so cosy there, the perfect hotel for a winter stay! Definitely want to stay there at some point in the future!

[Redrach1903]

Wow sounded very busy! Do you reckon a lot of locals go at the weekend? I totally hate space invaders too! SO irritating!

Can just see the pair of you teaming up to take that FP photo! Haha!

Aww I love your glass heart dec ❤

Paul swearing in French cracked me up! So funny!

Well Armageddon sounds odd?! Haha! Aww the car show looks EXACTLY the same as the one at DHS. It was cool. And you finally won at Buzz! High five!

What's with the lack of fizzy drinks there? How strange!

You know. Sometimes a burger and chips is just the ticket

Fab day lovely! I am loving your report! Xxx

[candycat75]

Great report! Loving the Disney socks.

[Lisa_Lollipop]

Originally Posted by Redrach1903

Wow sounded very busy! Do you reckon a lot of locals go at the weekend? I totally hate space invaders too! SO irritating!

Can just see the pair of you teaming up to take that FP photo! Haha!

Aww I love your glass heart dec ❤

Paul swearing in French cracked me up! So funny!

Well Armageddon sounds odd?! Haha! Aww the car show looks EXACTLY the same as the one at DHS. It was cool. And you finally won at Buzz! High five!

What's with the lack of fizzy drinks there? How strange!

You know. Sometimes a burger and chips is just the ticket

Fab day lovely! I am loving your report! Xxx

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I think it must be all the locals that invade at the weekend, compared to the two previous days it was absolute bedlam! I hate to imagine what it must be like on a weekend in the summer!

So glad your enjoying reading along my lovely, who knows you might even be tempted for a little DLP trip yourself by the end of this (I think a #dibberdolls trip would be amazing!) xxx

Originally Posted by candycat75

Great report! Loving the Disney socks.

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Thank you so much for reading along, lovely to know you are enjoying it!

[Beaker7929]

Ok so when you were watching the parade from Main Street Station (before being moved along) Anna and I were stood on the pavement, to your right as you look down...so close yet so far!

[Lisa_Lollipop]

Originally Posted by Beaker7929

Ok so when you were watching the parade from Main Street Station (before being moved along) Anna and I were stood on the pavement, to your right as you look down...so close yet so far!

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Haha it's like Sliding Doors... our paths were so close to crossing!

[HelenJNT]

Really love the Rex socks!

That was a smooth move with the paper fast passes. Glad you scored a win on Buzz too.

The Disneyland Hotel looks stunning. I love that photo of you two in the mirror 🤣

EoS looks so tasty. I will get there one day!

I can't really remember BTMR in DLP but riding at night is just the best. Lucky escape on Indiana Jones, I hate that ride!

Oh and Armageddon is the biggest waste of time. We didn't get it either.