Princess 2017- Trip Report complete!

Thanks everyone!

Just got home yesterday. I'll start my report tonight (hopefully). It was a great trip with very little sleep I really wanted to stay in bed this morning but unfortunately I had to work.

There are a lot of walkers. If you can walk at a 16 minute mile ( or faster ) you can walk the whole race. It just really depends on each individual. To maintain a 16 minute mile some people need to jog while others can walk it

Report time

Tuesday- I worked until 4pm today. Finished up my last minute packing then made supper for Erik and I. We were flying to Toronto at 8:20pm tonight. My friend Jes who came with me for this trip met me at my house around 6:30pm then Erik drove us up to the airport. Once we got inside we were informed that our flight had JUST been cancelled due to fog. I quickly called Erik to come back and get us. No other flights were going out until 10:30am the next day but our flight to Orlando was leaving Toronto at 6:15am. We had no choice but to drive the 3:30 hours to Toronto Erik drove us back home where we picked up Jes' car and hit the road. By the time we got into the room it was midnight and we had to get up at 2:30am to catch the airport shuttle. Not a fun start.

Wednesday- We were up at 2:30am and caught the 3:00am shuttle. We got to the airport and checked in at a kiosk. We got in line to check our bags and were then informed we were in the wrong line! Flights to the US were down further. They need to have signs with destinations on them because no where did it say what flights it was for

We finally got our bags checked, went through a fairly empty security and customs line and headed for our gate. Flight was pretty uneventful. I tried sleeping but I just can't sleep on planes. We landed just after 9am and heading for the Magical Express We got on the bus right away and took off not too long after. It was a bit rainy but not too bad. We arrived at Animal Kingdom Lodge (Jambo) around 10:30am and to our amazement, our room was READY!!

After about an hours nap, we headed to Disney Springs. Lunch was at Wolfgang Puck Express where I had a BBQ chicken pizza (so good). We shopped for a bit then headed back to the room to drop off our purchases. We got on the bus to Magic Kingdom and thats when the rain hit hard. The flooding was crazy. Ankle deep water everywhere! Luckily the rain stopped shortly after we arrived but my feet were damp the rest of the night. We missed our Space Mountain FP so we headed to our second one which was meeting Cinderella and Elena. We wandered around a bit then headed to Poly for dinner at O'Hana. Dinner was good but would have been better if I wasn't so darn tired! I didn't have near the appetite required for a place like that

Thursday- Today was Epcot day. We had FP for Living with the Land, Character Spot with Mickey, and Frozen. The characters were great! I (of course) had Mister with me and Mickey wanted to keep him Goofy had fun with him too. I really regretted not having his Mickey ears on him. Lunch was at Akerhaus in Norway. This was my first time eating here. Food was really good and all the Princesses were fun too. Belle greeted us before we were seated then we met Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and Ariel.

After lunch we went to find Mulan but she wasn't there so we headed to France to meet Belle (Beauty and the Beast is Jes' favourite). After our meeting I headed out to the Expo to pick up my race packet. I had seen earlier on Facebook some crazy lines for the Expo but it was pretty decent when I got there. I picked up my race stuff and a few things a pre ordered then treated myself to a few things at the run disney merchandise booth

I headed back to the room to drop off my stuff then headed back to meet Jes at Epcot. We rode Frozen then grabbed a snack from the caramel store in Germany. We watched Illuminations before calling it a night. Tomorrow was another early morning for me.

Friday- Got up at 3:15am to get ready for the 5K. I dressed as Cinderella for this race. The weather was warm but not too bad. They have started a new thing now where they release each corral in waves. I ended up in the front of my wave which was nice. I had forgotten my running watch in the room this morning so I had to guess my intervals The race was fun and not as crowded as I expected, especially for the 5K. I finished in 37min. The 5K course takes you around world showcase which I love. After the race, I headed back for a shower and went to meet Jes at Hollywood Studios.

Once I met up with Jes, we checked out One Man's Dream before our first FP which was for the Frozen sing a long. Those Historians crack me up! Next was Tower of Terror which scared the crap out of Jes but she loved it! We had lunch at Backlot Express then went to see the Beauty and the Beast show. Our last FP was for Toy Story which is always a blast. Then we had an early dinner (3:45pm) at Sci Fi. Erik and I ate here once and weren't impressed but Jes wanted to go. It was a better experience this time for sure but I still wouldn't rush back. After dinner I headed back for a nap to rest up for the DVC Moonlight Magic party later and Jes continued her touring at Hollywood Studios.

The DVC party was at Magic Kingdom from 10pm-1am. It was a complimentary event for members and their guests with special character meets, free snacks and most rides were open. My main priority was meeting Rapunzel because not only is Tangled my favourite but she was meeting with FLYNN! I loved it! Ariel and Eric and Belle and Beast were meeting at Fairytale Hall but it was an 80min wait. No thanks. We instead rode Haunted Mansion then went and found a spot for the fireworks. The fireworks were pretty standard for Disney which means AWESOME We headed out afterwards so I could get to bed. It was 1am when I climbed into bed. 3am was going to come early

Saturday- Up at 3am for the 10K. This time I was dressing as Rapunzel. I was a bit warmer for the 10K but again nothing crazy ( I hate running in heat). Corrals were again released in waves but this time I wasn't so lucky and was more in the middle/back. Not sure if that was why, but I found the 10K more crowded. The 10K again goes around world showcase but also takes you out around the Boardwalk and Beachclub. My time was 1:17.

After the race I headed back to shower then was off to Magic Kingdom for breakfast at Be Our Guest. I had the croissant doughnut. It was ok. I wasn't a fan of the custard stuff that was in the middle. The table also receives a pastry plate to share. They were pretty standard. After breakfast we headed to Animal Kingdom.

Animal Kingdom was pretty busy (which I expected because it was last year too). We missed our dinosaur FP and were just in time for the Lion King show. I just love this show! We were in the elephant section. After the show we checked out some trails and then rode Everest. It's one of my favourites! Afterwards, we headed out as we had another early dinner, this time at 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian.

I'm not sure I could ever spend more than a night at the Grand Floridian. It seems way to fancy/classy for us Dinner was good though. It was my first time eating here as well and both food and characters were good. The desserts need some work though. They were pretty boring. The characters tonight were Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Tremaine, Anastasia and Drizella. Anastasia was my favourite. She was hilarious! After dinner Jes went back to Animal Kingdom while I went back to the room. Lack of sleep was starting to catch up with me.

Once back in the room, I called Erik to see how he was doing. Then I got my race stuff together and was in bed by 7pm.

Sunday- Up at 2:30am today. Since this years theme was Beauty and the Beast, I dressed as Belle. It was cooler today but I was fine with my mylar blanket. Once I got running the temperature was perfect. They didn't release the corrals in waves for the Half. It was pretty crowded until we hit Magic Kingdom. I just love running down Main Street USA During the marathon last month, two penguins from Mary Poppins were out for pictures near the Grand Floridian. I had thought about stopping (because I love penguins!) but didn't because I always worry about my time. I have never stopped for a photo at any race I regretted not stopping though. Back to Princess, the penguins were out again! So I actually stopped! And thats where it started Running down World Drive, a group of Disney Princes were meeting so I stopped for them. Then a little ways up were pirates Barbosa and Capt Jack so I stopped for them. Then I stopped for Daisy in Epcot and for a shot in front of Spaceship Earth. This was probably the most fun I've had at a Disney race! And I've had fun at all of them Even with photo stops, I managed to finish in 2:52.

After the race I went back to the room and sat out on the balcony for a bit to rest and have a snack. Then I was off to Magic Kingdom. First up was meeting Rapunzel and Tiana then Lunch at Be Our Guest. I had the pork which was really good (aside from the mushrooms ) and a strawberry cupcake. after lunch we rode small world, splash mountain, thunder mountain and pirates (twice). We also watched the parade. Dinner was also at Be Our Guest. Jes wanted to have every meal there so we did. She was excited to meet the Beast too. I had the steak for dinner and it was amazing. Dessert was the grey stuff. Not impressed. The actual grey stuff was good, but I didn't like the tart thing it came on.

We stayed for the castle show and Wishes. This was my last time seeing Wishes We got back to the room and packed up. Only one more early morning left

Monday- Up at 5am to catch the Magical Express at 6:10am. Got to the airport and were too early to check in for our flight Once we got checked in, security was pretty short and we were at our gate in no time. We ended up being delayed almost an hour but landed only 40min later than we were supposed to. Customs was a breeze. The only thing I was asked was how I was doing today We grabbed our luggage, got the shuttle to the hotel and hit the road!

Final Thoughts

Overall, this was a great trip. I'm so glad Jes loved her first taste of Disney I really missed Erik though. I've already started trying to talk him into coming next year

Going with a first timer on a race weekend isn't the best idea. The lack of sleep was hard! If I had travelled solo, I would've slept a lot more but I didn't want to ditch her more than I already was. However, I regret nothing!

Dining Plan-never again! WAY too much food for me. I knew it was, and I tried talking Jes out of getting it but she wanted the conveinence of not having to worry about paying for food. The portions are too big for me. Erik and I usually share quick service meals so I felt bad with all the food that was getting wasted. I ended up with 6 leftover snacks.

Loved being able to see animals from our standard view room at Jambo

Animal Kingdom is a great resort for a race weekend! I usually stay at Bay Lake but I loved Jambo

Are you going to Princess!?

It really was

I'm planning on all 3 races again. Can't wait to meet up