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

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This is my first time at a trip report and it hopefully it’ll be interesting to read!

I’ve created the whole report in one thread rather than linking to different pages but there is a contents below. I tried linking to each post but they stopped working so I scrapped that idea.

Our pre-trip report is here.

Contents

This post - Intro, pre-trip and pre-travel day.
Post 2 - Travel Day (Economy VA)
Post 3 - Animal Kingdom - Day 1
Post 4 - EPCOT - Day 2
Post 5 - Typhoon Lagoon - Day 3
Post 6 - Magic Kingdom - Day 4
Post 7 - POFQ breakfast and Springs - Day 5
Post 8 - Hollywood Studios - Day 6
Post 9 - Animal Kingdom - Day 7
Post 10 - Resort hop and Magic Kingdom - Day 8
Post 11 - Hollywood Studios - Day 9
Post 12 - MNSSHP (Halloween) - Day 10
Post 13 - EPCOT - Day 11
Post 14 - Magic Kingdom - Day 12
Post 15 - Hotel Swap / Disney thoughts - Day 13
Post 16 - SeaWorld - Day 14
Post 17 - Volcano Bay - Day 15
Post 18 - Busch Gardens - Day 16
Post 19 - Shopping - Day 17
Post 20 - Universal - Islands - Day 18
Post 21 - Universal - Studios - Day 19
Post 22 - Universal - Both parks - Day 20
Post 23 - Travel day (VA Upper) and final thoughts

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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After the drama last night, I felt so much better and managed an OK sleep. No concerns with the room and very comfy. Only issue is the noise above us, must be the early flights and the moving out of the rooms but I slept through most of it.

I managed a bit of the breakfast at the hotel and I was really impressed with the selection and quality. I’ve stayed at many Premier Inn but can’t say I’ve had breakfasts there at all so no expectation.

We headed to Purple Parking for the shuttle to T3. They’re quite rude there and especially as they saw us from the hotel. However we had the parking slip and was able to use the bus. We had just missed one so it was 20 minutes wait until the next but very short transit time to the terminal after a T2 drop off.

Bag drop wasn’t busy but annoyingly we were sent to use the kiosk so lost our place on the queue. I didn’t realise the documents had to be verified there. The rep said it was fine but then told later on it wasn’t. The queue was only about 30 mins for dropping off so not a problem. My case was over 1KG but they didn’t bat an eyelid and put it through.

Security was about 30 mins too. So an hour from arrival to duty free. Couldn’t believe how fast that was considering the horror stories.

Everything was still snowing on time and before we knew it we headed to the gate.

I have never flown Virgin before and was excited for this - especially when I discovered the tail cam. Take off was only slightly delayed but captain announced we would be arriving early due to perfect conditions.

Service was great but I forgot to take any pictures of the food but we had:

Pretzels at the start
Chicken and Bacon with mashed potato, a bread roll and a chocolate pot.
Ice lolly (I wasn’t keen on it)
Afternoon tea with scone and cake.

It was all good enough for me and I was stuffed from everything.

We landed around 30 mins early. Immigration took an hour due to BA from Gatwick and Aer Lingus from Manchester arriving just before us. Our cases were ready though and I could see them as we waited.

We had a private transfer so was easily sorted as soon as we got to the arrivals pick up on level 2. I was a bit lost but we got there.

We had checked in at Pop already on MDE. I was super happy with the room we have. 50’s section, top floor and close to the lift. Seems fitting we are in the ‘tramp’ section.

We forced ourselves to stay awake so Instacarted waters in, unpacked, got a resort mug and took a trip on the Skyliner to CBR and back. I couldn’t wait to get on it for the first time. Went to sleep at 10pm and we were both conked out!

A successful day indeed.

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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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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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After two ‘easing in’ days it was time for a ‘rest’ with the water park. We knew we had to change buses at Disney Springs because there’s no direct service. However, as we were on the bus, the driver said as it’s before the opening time he will take us directly there. This worked out well as we were ready and and changed for when park opened. $15 for a large locker is something else though…

We did a couple of rides on Crush ‘n’ Gusher before heading to the lazy river. I absolutely adore this and I think we spent 2 hours on it. It was time for our first experience of Dole Whip. It did not disappoint. I had the original and Phil had Mango. I wasn’t so keen on that one though.

Unfortunately this is where the Florida weather took a turn and a storm arrived. We waited ages and the call was that the attractions could open again and the lifeguards were heading back. However, just as that happened another storm came! The weather improved after but I got fed up of waiting so we just went back to the hotel. The wait for the bus from Disney Springs was painful.

Back at the hotel, I tried the tie dye cheesecake and was disappointed. This day wasn’t going so well.

We had a reservation at Frontera Cocina. I never eat salad but my gosh this was absolutely delicious. We shared nachos, which were also good.

The highlight of the day was a visit to Salt and Straw for dessert. The specials this month are vegetables…

Although the rest sound disgusting, I had the carrot cake and I cannot begin to describe how amazing it was. Easily the best ice cream I’ve ever had.

After a day full of sugary treats, it was time time for bed. Although not the best start, the food at the end made up for it.

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So the big day arrives and preparing my feet for long day this is going to be. The usual alarm was set for 6:55 to book the first Genie+ but we were having breakfast in the park so made it quicker.

We arrived to the park still within the early entry hours and I was so confused as it was completely dead with nobody lining up anywhere.

After collecting some of the photo passes (again with no queue) we were greeted with the Dapper Dans singing Jolly Holiday. Ahhh the goosebumps were there. Here’s a still from a video I took:

And there we see it close up. The photos don’t do it justice as it looks so much better in real life. I love it.

Our day starts in Fantasyland and at Gaston’s Tavern. I’m so used to seeing queues but it was completely empty! The bun is delicious but incredibly messy. I asked for more icing and it was not needed one bit. It’s so big I ended up getting it on the peak of my cap when trying to take a bite 🙈.

Fantasyland was so so quiet. I can’t believe it. We pretty much completed the land within an hour with utilising Genie+ and only using DAS for Seven Dwarves.

We headed to Adventureland and Frontierland and picked up all the rides there. Pirates was a 10 minute queue - these wait times were unbelievable. After taking it easy, we stopped for a dole whip float before heading to the Tiki Room. I forgot how much I loved the craziness of this show.

It was time for the parade and I knew which spot I wanted. We only arrived 15 mins before and got where I wanted. The heat was the hottest I’d experienced and I’m glad I didn’t get there earlier. However, it’s worth it for some of the shots I was able to get with the castle in the background.

After a few more rides, it was time for our dinner - Be our Guest. I wasn’t expecting much food wise but I really enjoyed this meal. I went for the steak and was cooked beautifully. Annoyingly, the beast doesn’t walk around and only makes a brief appearance so the character interaction is not worth the additional cost. Managed to get a quick pic from walking to an area I probably shouldn’t. The lighting isn’t great in this restaurant though but it is beautiful.

You’ll see a theme that I have a sweet tooth so dessert was great. The grey stuff is delicious but the macaron was the best.

After more rides and slotting in a character meet, we headed to the castle for the beacon and fireworks. We got there 20 mins before and easily found a close spot with a good view. The castle is even more stunning at night.

I enjoyed the fireworks but from what I remember of Happily Ever After, I preferred that. The castle at night though is so photogenic. It’s gorgeous.

Park close was 11 that night so we had a night ride on BTM and browsing shops before heading back for the bus. An exhausting day but we pretty much did everything in a day. Wow.

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This day was meant to be a late start after last night. I was awake early so I thought I’d get a Guardian’s virtual queue hoping for later on in the day. After waiting a few more seconds than usual at 7, I ended up getting group 40. Earlier than before! They were flying through the groups and we were still getting ready when our group was called.

We headed to the Skyliner and got to the ride just a few mins after the allotted time. The walk is so far and I was knackered but worth it for this ride. After this we were heading on with the rest of the day we planned. I don’t think I’ve ever gone into a park to ride one ride then leave?

First up was a trip to POFQ for the staple food there. They were definitely worth the trip; the caramel sauce was the best.

It’s a lovely resort and I enjoyed filling our resort mug up with more choice than at POP. I was making the most of all the transport options so took the boat to Disney Springs. It’s a wonderful journey on this.

We collected our $200 gift card and mine was mostly spent on gifts for people. Saved me some money and I’m super prepared for a lot of special birthdays in the next 6 months now though.

Of course we had to visit Gideons with no queue too?! We shared a red velvet cake. It was incredible but my gosh it was a struggle. I couldn’t get a better picture as it was so moist and fragile. We had some cookies too but these were eaten a few days after. Wasn’t so keen on them but think they’d have been better fresher.

After more shopping around, we had our reservation at Homecomin’. Oh my gosh this is the best meal we’ve had on property hands down. It’s pricier but huge and tastier. I had the short rib and Phil had the pulled pork. Would definitely go back there again. I don’t drink but Phil had some sort of moonshine drink and it was so strong. He was a bit merry after that 😂.

It was good to get an early night though and it was most certainly needed.

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Our first visit to the last of the four parks at Disney. This day was going to be another long one. Arriving at the park via Skyliner is just so quick. Much quicker than EPCOT. Again, the crowds didn’t seem to be there.

The day started with a Ronto Breakfast Wrap. No matter how I positioned it for a photo, it looked rude so here it is. It was OK, nothing special but did it’s job and we used our dining credits for it.

We were only passing through to head to the Toy Story attractions after breakfast but I was so amazed at how immersive the area is. We aren’t Star Wars fans either but gosh it’s an incredible area.

We didn’t have much luck with attractions as ROTR was down alongside Toy Story Mania and Slinky Dog so it messed our plans up a bit. Eventually everything reopened so we got to ride them.

When we got on ROTR, I was absolutely gobsmacked. I’d seen a few vlogs of the ride but I feel it wasn’t a spoiler for this. It’s hands down the best Disney attraction (followed by Guardian’s) with everything they’ve done. What an incredible ride.

Smuggler’s Run is also very fun. We were Engineers at first so not the best role. However, we joined a British family of four in front of us and seeing the mum’s reaction made it for us. She was absolutely loving it. I later saw them with a VIP tour guide but I hope they’re Dibbers and see this!

If you’re a Star Wars fan, you’ll adore this area and attractions. The roaming characters are plentiful.

We couldn’t leave the area without trying the milks so we ordered one of each. The blue one is definitely the best one for me. The green was a bit too fragrant.

After riding the rest of the rides, meeting Olaf and visiting Mickey and Minnie for the third time it was time for a rest. We have a lot of snacks in this park we wanted to try so kicked off with the shimmering blondie from Fairfax Fare. It was delicious but I’m so glad we are sharing these as they’re huge!

After taking it easy and watching the shows - Beauty and the Beast and the Frozen Sing-a-long we had another ride on Mickey’s and Minnie’s Railway. I fell in love with this attraction, it’s just so well done. These trackless dark rides are incredible.

It was time for food at Mama Melrose. Phil and I were going to have the chicken parmigiana but there was a lasagne special for the day so I thought why not. For the first time it was a portion I could easily finish!

The last few hours of the day were not great. The weather turned and it was very wet. It’s the first time we had to put on our ponchos and umbrella though. They were still running the film on the theatre though so we stayed for it. I’m gutted Fantasmic wasn’t back but this was a nice touch.

As the weather was still bad, unfortunately the skyliner was down. It did mean a longer wait for the bus but overall it was a great day.

It was so much quieter than I expected but it was the first MNSSHP day so I can only assume people were at that instead. To compare this, ROTR was mainly around a 70-80 min queue and there were no queue extensions outside the ride. When I checked MDE for the day after (Saturday) it had reached a 280 min queue!

And that’s the end of the first visits to the parks. We managed pretty much everything in one day at all of them so it makes our second visits much easier.

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It’s time to restart the process and complete the second visits of the parks. We had the character breakfast booked at Tusker House. Probably the most stressful to get on my ADR day.

The food was, let’s say interesting? The fruit and pastries were great but when the mains came out, I didn’t dare sample the chicken curry. Jungle juice is incredible though and I drank so much of it.

I loved the way the characters came around to the table though and we managed pictures with all.

The rest of the day was just taken very slowly and ticking off the rest of our food list. The cheeseburger pods were very good and just next door is the pongu lumpia. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get a picture as they just made a mushy mess. They were also delicious but the rare times we had one each as they’re aren’t big enough to share.

Last time we had two rides on the rapids and was hardly wet. Quite optimistically we thought the same would happen. This did not and we were absolutely drenched! We didn’t fully dry off as the rest of the afternoon had many sharp showers. So grateful for the tip for changing into flip flops for the water rides though. Saves the soggy trainers.

We did a few rides on the safari throughout the day and definitely saw more towards the end of the day. I love how it’s always so different dependent on the time.

An impromptu snack happened when we saw this treat. It just tasted like orange sherbet. It created a lot of attention with someone shouting out ‘WHAT IS THAT?!’

Our night ended with Rainforest Cafe. We only chose this as didn’t fancy Tiffins. It’s a pretty bog standard restaurant but it’s a novelty.

We were definitely grateful for the early night.

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Our first official rest day. We had a good 13 hours sleep but this was definitely needed!

We had a little walk around POP as we hadn’t explored the rest. I’m glad we were not in the 80s or 90s as, although not a massive walk, was definitely longer than where we were. It didn’t last long as the huge dirty cloud was looming.

As our other MK day was closing early, we would use this day to see the fireworks again. However before that, I wanted to do a little bit of a resort tour.

We got on our bus to MK and got the boat over to the TTC. The Grand Floridian looks so lovely across the water.

We rode the EPCOT monorail on a loop to get that view. The Moana attraction is taking shape and is going to be a huge area. I couldn’t get a photo due to where we were on the monorail.

We then got the resort monorail and had a little look around the hotel. We skipped the Polynesian as we would be there another time. I knew it would be stunning but my gosh it’s a gorgeous resort. One day I’ll be able to afford a stay here…

Eventually arriving into MK. Did a few things, met some princesses and did more than what we intended (always the way). It’s just so hard not to when you’re there.

We decided to watch the fireworks from Main St for the projections. What a waste that was. The projections were not the best and not throughout. It’s a much better view closer to the castle.

A rest was well and truly needed and we felt much better for it.