A great big beautiful – Summer 2022

[Goldia]

Originally Posted by Sparksy72

Abby, you have been busy! I love how thorough you have been regarding wait times and Genie +, not going to lie, I am a little stressed by it all. We have managed our expectations by thinking that we will be lucky to do a ride or two in the parks and I am secretly hoping that I can work Genie+ enough that we can do a little more. Alternatively the Yacht Club has the Ale and Compass lounge so we may just end up there after some pool time. 😂

You have some great and some interesting food choices. Not sure about the jam hotdog but I have just watch Molly from All Ears eat a beignet with pimento cheese, chilli jam and green goddess dressing and say it was good, so what do I know. 🤣

I love the notebook and the wall planner, I need to get my itinerary sorted. Adam and Cooper aren’t particularly bothered about making plans, so you and I might have to have a Skype wine and planning night. 😆🥂🍾🍷

I hope you are enjoying the Easter break, this year seems to be flying by! 💝

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I'm not exactly zen about genie+ but I am trying to be! It seems pointless to me stress about how it's not the same as FP+ as that won't bring fp+ back. I'm trying to accept that this trip won't see us on rides like flight of passage multiple times. We were so lucky as on site guests with long stays that we would often have 3 or 4 fp+ for those big head liner rides.

If love a planning session! That sounds like a great idea.

Originally Posted by MrsSilverStar

Glad it’s not just me regularly checking MDE! I was horrified when I checked HS today, but turns out it’s closing at 5pm so hopefully that’s why nothing was available.

We’re going to do a mix of rope drop and stacking - I’ll let you know how we get on. I think there’s going to be a lot of adjusting as we go.
I’ve done a rough daily plan in my pre trip report - we’ll see how much of it happens.

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The thing I like about the rope drop and stacking idea is that the morning isn't dependent on the genie+ selections being good times. We can just do the attractions we want that don't have too long waits. Then with any luck we will have bagged 3 attractions for the evening. We'll see, it likely won't work out exactly like that.

Originally Posted by caitlinsmummy

I can see how Genie+ can become an obsession I know we had the DAS pass so didn't really need to use it, but I never looked at it once, we just used the app to check the wait times every now and then and yes you're correct Hollywood Studios was definitely the worst wait times without a doubt. In the whole 3 weeks we were there we never seen ToT below 100 minutes!

I think stacking would be a great idea, makes things so much easier especially when it's the holidays and it will be much busier.

I am loving your planning so far, I wish I'd been able to enjoy our planning a little more. I love how Kate and Dave are just happy to go along with everything, it makes it so much easier for plan, it's quite exciting just how quickly it's creeping up, although I'm sure to you it doesn't feel like that at all x

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I'm trying to not let any worries take hold about not being able to go, easier said than done. I can't believe it's the Easter holidays now, the year has flown by. It's not going to be long before I really have to make a decision about ADRs. I'm sure the 60 days out date will roll around quickly now.

Originally Posted by unixgirl

The issue with ToT besides the packed park is that only 2 lifts are working. Not sure why they haven’t managed to fix the other two but afaik it has been like this for a while.

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I'd forgotten about that, but I'm pretty sure there were only 2 lifts working on our trip back in 2019 as we weren't allowed to use the special FP redemption tickets we got from Toy Story Mania breaking down on ToT. In the end the cast member relented, but surely they aren't still working on the same maintenance as back then? Maybe it's another round of maintenance. Fingers crossed.

I hope you're enjoying your trip and had fun at Riviera.

[Goldia]

Must Do vs No Way Attractions – Magic Kingdom

I wanted to find out what the absolute must do attractions are for Dave and Kate so that I can plan what our days will look like. Plus I just love talking about our upcoming trips

I asked Dave and Kate about their preferences – Dave doesn’t feel ready to talk about holiday planning yet he prefers to wait until like the day before, that’s not a COVID thing, more a “I’m not going to talk about what I might want to do or eat months in advance” kind of thing .

Kate is more prepared to play along with me on this front and was reasonably happy to answer some questions all in the name of research. However, there were far more attractions that garnered a “Meh I’m not that bothered about it” response than I had anticipated . For those of you hoping I will cut to the chase she’s just not that interested in meeting any characters, going on any boring rides or doing any of the shows . I'm hoping when we get there it will be a different matter.

I’ll throw in some old photos of us at attractions along the way in this post as otherwise it will be quite a dull read.

So, first up it has to be MK right? I'll go with the absolutely no way attractions first. Her thoughts are in red just so it's easier to distinguish her thoughts and my replies.

* Astro Orbiter – the wait to get up there just isn’t worth it as it’s basically Dumbo but higher up

* Buzz Lightyear – you’re joking right? Surely you want to go back on this? No. Don’t you remember our first day in 2019 when Grandad was nearly a Galactic Hero? So what? Are you sure? I’m not going to play this game if this is how you’re going to react to every ride I don’t want to do. Look at how cute they both looked on this ride.

* Carousel - no point it just goes round

* Enchanted Tiki Room – singing birds mum – no way.

* Jungle Cruise – I guess this is more understandable, as a 15 year old girl the jokes just aren’t that funny.

* Liberty Square Riverboat – this is just a boring boat ride, there’s nowhere to sit that is cool and it’s always boiling hot and no shade.

* Hall of Presidents – a flat out no.

* Mad Tea Party – once again I’m really surprised at this. I thought she loved it, but apparently it’s not going to be the same without Max there to really spin it. She's right it won't be the same

* Magic Carpets of Aladdin – there is no point in doing this if we’re doing Dumbo.

* Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse – it’s just a lot of climbing and no ride at the end.

* Tom Sawyer Island – this is another where she doesn’t feel like there is any point without Max, plus getting the little ferry boat over in the boiling hot sun isn’t fun. She’s not wrong about the little barge boat being way too exposed in the sun, but this is a shame as the trails and caves on the island are fun.

The following are all on the must do list, largely due to them being thrill rides:

* Barnstormer - they've always loved this ever since our early trips. This photo is from 2016, so Max is 11 and Kate is 9.

* Big Thunder Mountain Railroad - of course

* Carousel of Progress – inexplicably as it’s a show and very long, but she loves this, phew!

* Country Bear Jamboree – thank goodness as I find this hilarious and I love all the songs

* Dumbo - fine then we'll go on this but none of the copycat ones

* Haunted Mansion - I won't ever forget our first ride on this when she was 7 as she was really scared and I had to put my hands over her ears so she couldn't hear and she hid her eyes in my belly.

* It’s a Small World - we had such fun on this one night back in 2018 when we got a boat all to ourselves.

* Winnie The Pooh - yes I love winnie the pooh

* Mickey’s Philharmagic – phew I feared this would be a gonna

* Monsters Inc Laugh Floor – both Max and Kate love this as they just love the idea that Dave or I will be picked on. I was selected for the mind reading game before, which was utterly hilarious and of course they were able to read my mind. We all laughed a heck of a lot and this show is a firm favourite.

* Peter Pan’s Flight - only if it's not a long line

* Pirates of the Caribbean - not as good as Paris, but yes

* Seven Dwarfs Mine Train - obviously

* Space Mountain - of course

* Splash Mountain - we're really hoping to get one more ride on this before the Princess and the Frog refurb starts

* Tomorrowland Speedway - both Max and Kate have always loved driving these horrid little cars. So this was a yes.

* Tomorrowland Transit Authority Peoplemover - yes it's good to see around Tomorrowland

* Under the Sea - I love all the clamshell rides

What about characters?

I knew the answer to this already as she’d decided she wouldn’t get an autograph book for our cancelled 2020 trip, so I figured this was a hard no. And her opinion hasn’t changed because she’s not 7 anymore. Only in my mind.

It's been so lovely looking through these old photos. The next update will be more of the same! LOL

Feel free to skim through these posts

[MrsSilverStar]

Aw those photos…Kate and Max look so little and cute!

I’ve had similar conversations with Heath and Mark - Mark is just like Dave and won’t play along, and Heath is going the same way as Kate

They’ve told me they don’t care about doing Jungle Cruise and Peter Pan - think I’ve blocked the rest from my mind! It’s killing the completist in me as I want to do it all…but I guess it will make things a bit easier?! Clutching at straws here

I get the feeling you’re as desperate to talk about Disney holidays as I am - please keep these posts coming, loving the Disney chat!
(I might have to copy you and do the same on my trippie)

[unixgirl]

Originally Posted by Goldia

I'm not exactly zen about genie+ but I am trying to be! It seems pointless to me stress about how it's not the same as FP+ as that won't bring fp+ back. I'm trying to accept that this trip won't see us on rides like flight of passage multiple times. We were so lucky as on site guests with long stays that we would often have 3 or 4 fp+ for those big head liner rides.

If love a planning session! That sounds like a great idea.



The thing I like about the rope drop and stacking idea is that the morning isn't dependent on the genie+ selections being good times. We can just do the attractions we want that don't have too long waits. Then with any luck we will have bagged 3 attractions for the evening. We'll see, it likely won't work out exactly like that.



I'm trying to not let any worries take hold about not being able to go, easier said than done. I can't believe it's the Easter holidays now, the year has flown by. It's not going to be long before I really have to make a decision about ADRs. I'm sure the 60 days out date will roll around quickly now.



I'd forgotten about that, but I'm pretty sure there were only 2 lifts working on our trip back in 2019 as we weren't allowed to use the special FP redemption tickets we got from Toy Story Mania breaking down on ToT. In the end the cast member relented, but surely they aren't still working on the same maintenance as back then? Maybe it's another round of maintenance. Fingers crossed.

I hope you're enjoying your trip and had fun at Riviera.

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There were all 4 lifts working in November - I’m almost positive we went on the further lifts but so far this trip it’s only been 2 and insane waits .

[Goldia]

Originally Posted by MrsSilverStar

Aw those photos…Kate and Max look so little and cute!

I’ve had similar conversations with Heath and Mark - Mark is just like Dave and won’t play along, and Heath is going the same way as Kate

They’ve told me they don’t care about doing Jungle Cruise and Peter Pan - think I’ve blocked the rest from my mind! It’s killing the completist in me as I want to do it all…but I guess it will make things a bit easier?! Clutching at straws here

I get the feeling you’re as desperate to talk about Disney holidays as I am - please keep these posts coming, loving the Disney chat!
(I might have to copy you and do the same on my trippie)

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They do look so cute, don't they? I'm glad you enjoyed reading the must do no way at MK. There's more to come 😉

I agree as I'm a total completer finisher too. But I'm trying to hold on to the fact this is just our first trip as dvc owners so there will be plenty more trips where we can fit in Tiki room or whatever...

Definitely post your must do rides on your own trippie. I love reading other people's stories and ideas too.

Originally Posted by unixgirl

There were all 4 lifts working in November - I’m almost positive we went on the further lifts but so far this trip it’s only been 3 and insane waits .

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That makes more sense. I guess they just have to regularly do maintenance.

[caitlinsmummy]

Aww Abby I felt such a twinge looking at those photos and reading Kate's comments, I'll be devastated when the kid's don't want to come with us/ride some of the smaller more nostalgic rides, so lucky that you have all these memories to look back on though <3 x

[Goldia]

Originally Posted by caitlinsmummy

Aww Abby I felt such a twinge looking at those photos and reading Kate's comments, I'll be devastated when the kid's don't want to come with us/ride some of the smaller more nostalgic rides, so lucky that you have all these memories to look back on though <3 x

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Kate is full on 15 now. She wants more shopping days this trip. She says she won't mind getting up early, but somehow I doubt this will last longer than a few days as she normally doesn't surface before 10am at the weekends or in school holidays.

This trip is going to be the start of a new era for us, at least I hope so, it's going to be different than the last trip, not just because of the changes Disney made but because we're all different now too.

It's fun to look back on all the old photos and bring back memories. I'll post HS must do rides later this morning.

[Leelashpurple]

I'm travelling with my 15 year old as well. Whilst I know she is a thrill seeker she knows she needs to indulge my need to go on some of the other attractions. However, persuading my husband to do the same is likely to prove more difficult!

[Goldia]

Originally Posted by Leelashpurple

I'm travelling with my 15 year old as well. Whilst I know she is a thrill seeker she knows she needs to indulge my need to go on some of the other attractions. However, persuading my husband to do the same is likely to prove more difficult!

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I think you're right as Kate is actually very thoughtful, so she will go on all the less thrilling rides when we are there because she knows I like them. Thankfully Dave would pick a nice sedate ride over and above Rip Ride Rockit or the like any day of the week and twice on Sunday so I have no problem there!

[Goldia]

Must Do vs No Way Attractions – Hollywood Studios

At HS we have Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Rise of the Resistance and Smugglers Run that are new to us and Kate is more than happy to give these three all a go. I'm so excited to see Galaxies Edge and Dave was a massive Star Wars fan as a child, he loved Han Solo and still does! So, it's going to be fab being able to wander around the land and get to see the Millenium Falcon. I cannot wait and if Dave gave himself the chance to be excited I know he'd be beside himself too!

Of the other attractions Kate is not bothered about doing any of the shows, given the feedback from yesterday we shouldn't be surprised :

* Beauty and the Beast – this is fine by me we’ve seen it multiple times and while it’s a good show it is long and is basically just a re-telling of the movie.

* Disney Junior Dance Party – no surprise as we’ve only ever done this once on our first trip and even then they were a little old for it at age 9 and 7.

* Frozen Sing-a-long – are you kidding? This is really funny. Maybe, if it’s raining or really hot and we need a break with air con. Grr...

* Indiana Jones Stunt Show – no way! We love this show. We’re definitely going to see this show. I will not take no for an answer here. Back in 2016 we were heading into the evening show and we’d left it until about 10 minutes before the show started as we’ve seen it before and we know the stadium is huge so we’ll definitely get a seat. Dave and I had bought a beer each from one of the stands out front. As we were going in a cast member asked if the kids would like to be the stars of the show! What? Are you kidding? Of course they would so we got brilliant seats right near the front. We met the cast member who is the compere of the show and she talked them through what would happen. They went up on stage and were the ones who introduced the show at the beginning and they got to say Lights, Camera, Action! To the whole stadium. It was brilliant – I’ll never forget it.

* Lightning McQueen Racing Academy – it’s cars so no. Neither of us are fans of the Cars movie. The only good thing about it is the song Life is a Highway – I love that song.

* Muppetvision 3D – but, but, but it’s the muppets. It's time to play the music, It's time to light the lights, It's time to meet the Muppets on the Muppet Show tonight, It's time to put on make up, It's time to dress up right, It's time to raise the curtain on the Muppet Show tonight. You singing the muppets theme song isn't helping to convince me mum.

By the way I have no recollection of what Max is trying to do or see in the fountain

* Star Wars Launch Bay – but we can meet Chewie. Not fussed.

One of my favourite photos of Max - he was pretending to be all cool and Chewie saw right through him!

Or Kylo Ren. Shrug.

At the moment the launch bay is a shell of it's former self, but I'm hoping this returns to it's former glory when the character meet and greets go back to the way they were before. But at the moment given there is actually nothing to do in here we would give it a miss.

* Voyage of the Little Mermaid – no it’s just singing and that’s about it ok then - I guess she's not wrong.

* Walt Disney Presents – maybe if it’s really hot outside and we want the aircon

That leaves us with just a handful of attractions at HS that she wants and is looking forward to doing, so it’s a half day park then

*Alien Swirling Saucers – it’s kind of fun if there’s a short line not overwhelming praise, but I'll accept it

* Rock n Roller Coaster – definitely it’s a great ride the kids both like re-creating the ridiculous faces that Dave and I end up with in the ride photos of this ride.

* Slinky Dog Dash – yes it’s a good little coaster

* Star Tours – I want to be the rebel spy. Ok then.

* Toy Story Mania – but you said you didn’t like the Buzz Lightyear shooting ride. This is different to Buzz. Ok then. Just accept the win here…

* Tower of Terror – her favourite ride at HS. It is another that I’ll not forget our first ride on. I hadn’t realised it was going to drop so suddenly and as I wasn’t prepared I grabbed hold of the hands of the two little girls sitting either side of me. The only problem was one of those hands belonged to a little girl with another family! They were quite understanding – I explained after that I just had an automatic reaction to hold them both down, there was no thought process it was pure instinct.

This is not that ride - this was on our early morning hour in 2018, I love the cool guy on the right. He's just chilling...

I'm hopeful that with Genie+ we can stack a few rides for the evening here. I've been doing lots of experiments with it and seeing what rides I can get at 2 hour intervals throughout the day. I'm doing another test today, I've already got a 'fake' Genie+ booking for RnR at 9.10am so HS looks like it will be fun today - in my dreams