Eeyore's WDW & Disney Cruise Trip Report*Complete!

Ok..Here we go!

Day 1 - Wednesday, May 8th

We left for the airport around 5:30AM. Our flight departed at 7:50AM from Charlotte. We had a direct flight to MCO and it was only about 58 minutes from take off to landing. The airport was crowded for a Wed. morning, but we managed to get through security ok with all FOUR suitcases. I hate to see how much we pack when we have kids! haha

I took some pics of the flight and here they are:

Of course the "fake o rail"...haha I was trying to carry luggage and snap pics!

Once we landed, we went down to the Disney transport area. This was my first time flying to MCO so I was excited to be on the magical express!

The flight going down was smooth and quick! We were so excited to get there and check in!

Once on the magical express, the bus had to make four stops. The first stop was Art of Animation, Beach Club, Yacht Club, Boardwalk, then Caribbean Beach. We were getting off at the Boardwalk and this was our first time staying here. We rented a points to stay in the vacation club. Once we got off the magical express, (we were stop #3), we were immediately greeted at the bus by a cast member. She had an iPad and began checking us in as we walked into the lobby. I was in awe of the beauty of the Boardwalk. She asked us to sit down on one of the couches and she grabbed our welcome packet. We finished checking in and it was around 10:15AM. She handed us our key to the world card and said our room was ready!! I couldn't believe it!

I was thrilled our room was ready. I was actually in awe of the service we received as well. I've stayed at the value and moderate resorts and I've never been treated as well as I was while staying at the Boardwalk. It was an entire different level of Disney butt kissing. Anyway.....

We dropped off our carry on bags at the room and headed down to the new Boardwalk Bakery to grab our drink mugs and a snack before heading to the parks!

So, here is my opinion of the room. We stayed in a studio villa with pool view/garden view. I requested to have a room next to the elevators and close to the lobby. They honored my request, but I feel like we got screwed another way. Our room was literally the second room as you step off the elevator. We LOVED that! The downside to this is we had a huge tree blocking our view to the pool AND our balcony was enclosed. It was not a traditional open balcony like the rest of the rooms. Now, this isn't a huge deal and since we were only staying there for 3 nights, I didn't say anything. If this would've been a week long vacation, I probably would've asked to be moved. The room was great. It was large and spacious. I do feel that the room needs a little refurbishment. There was a huge chunk missing off the tub where someone dropped something heavy on it. The carpet looked a little dingy. I just feel it needs a facelift. I did LOVE it though. It's better than any value or moderate resort I've stayed at. Also, we loved being able to walk to Hollywood Studios and EPCOT. My husband said he will never stay out of the EPCOT resort area because of this. We both loved it.

Here are a few pics:

After this we ventured over to Animal Kingdom!!!

Thanks everyone! The Boardwalk is amazing and I could go on and on!

Day 1 Continued...

After resting and getting some cool beverages, we headed over to animal kingdom.....

Now, here comes a complaint about the Boardwalk.... The BUS SITUATION!!! So, I am assuming during really busy times, the Boardwalk has its own buses that only stop at the Boardwalk. Well, I guess it wasn't busy because we were sharing with B&Y Club and Swan and Dolphin. It also seemed we were always the last stop and last pick up. We waited around 30 minutes for a bus...that was such a disappointment considering buses are constantly rolling through the All Star Resorts. I understand that more people are probably staying there, but dang! If I am spending almost $300 per night, I kind of expected to have better service. Maybe that is just me being snotty. I kid you not, one evening we went to Downtown Disney and two buses rolled through that were completely full (and I mean people were standing) from just picking up the other resorts. We finally got on the third bus. My husband was and disappointed. He said that was his one and only complaint. HOWEVER, Disney did make up for it because we could walk to two other parks.

Anyway...continuing on...we got to AK and activated our military tickets. We had 4 day park hopper tickets and they were only $164 isn? Great prices! Thank you husband for serving for my Disney tickets! We arrived around 11AM and I headed for the Flame Tree BBQ and hubby headed to grab Everest FP's. We had a wonderful quick service lunch. (We were on dining plan!) After that we headed to Everest! Man, that ride is so awesome. We got lucky and got front row seats...which I am convinced is far more scarier! Here is a pic of us there!

Since so many people are interested, here is more pics of our room:

OUR VIEW:

We left AK around 4:30ish. We rode most of the bigger attractions while there. We headed back to the Boardwalk for a quick change and headed to Hollywood Studios for dinner! We had ADR's at 50's Prime Time Cafe at 6:00PM. We headed into the park and just browsed shops until it was our time. This was my second time eating there and my husband's first. Sadly, I don't have any pictures. Why? It WASN'T that great. Don't get me wrong, the food never disappoints, but everyone on this forum knows the server either makes it or breaks it for you. Our server wasn't terrible, but she wasn't great either. She tried to play along, but it wasn't anything like the first time I went. We were both disappointed and decided we won't make that restaurant a frequent visit. My husband said he still likes the Sci-Fi Drive in Theater better. He thought atmosphere and food was better there. Next time we want to try the brown derby.

After that we made our way to Fantasmic! Believe it or not, as many times as I've visited WDW I've never seen the show... I know...

Well, it is by far my most favorite show/fireworks/parade, etc. It literally has everything in it and it's amazing. It was totally worth seeing and I understand why it is usually standing room only. It was so great I forgot to video or take pictures!!!! If you've never seen it...it's amazing. I did get the chance to film part of it from our room the following evening, but I'll save that for the next post!

We happily walked back to the Boardwalk and snuggled in for the night!

Thanks for the warning about bus service at the Boardwalk. If we ever get lucky enough to stay there, I think I'll walk to DHS and catch a bus there.