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06-09-2008, 03:12 PM
Our Whirlwind WDW Trip ? Day 1
Alex and I woke up very early to catch an 8:00am flight out of <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Denver. After a 3 ? hour flight we finally touched down in <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Orlando. We had arranged for a Lincoln Town Car to pick us up. Our driver was waiting when we got to the baggage claim area. I pointed out our suitcase and he grabbed it for us. Once we left the airport for the car we were immediately overwhelmed by the temperature.
Our driver informed us that the current temperature was 98 degrees with 94% humidity. That was the theme for the whole trip! Within seconds we were dripping with sweat.
After a quick stop at a grocery store to pick up diet coke, water, beer and chocolate milk we were back on the road to the hotel. The Hilton Downtown Disney has a large lobby, and the air conditioning felt great.
We only spent a few minutes in the room before grabbing what we needed to get into the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom. We ended up leaving with room without Alex?s hat, sunscreen, and our water mister. We had my backpack, our lanyards and our tickets. Both of us were very excited to get to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom.
Our bus came within minutes of getting downstairs and we were quickly on our way. I was thinking how easy the bus transportation was. It was a great start.
Then our bus dropped us off at the Ticket and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Transportation <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center. Only I did not know that was where we were at for quite some time. The size of the parking lot was amazing, and there were signs strategically placed, but I didn?t even notice those at the time.
Alex and I followed the crowd. Many people stopped to buy park tickets. We had ours, so I looked for a way to get into the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom. I was horribly confused and simply could not find the entrance gates. Finally I saw a Cast Member and stopped to ask him. That is when I found out I was just at the Transportation and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Ticket <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center. He told me I could take the Monorail or the Ferry to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom.
We took the Monorail and didn?t have to wait long at all for it to arrive. After exciting the Monorail we went through security. I was shocked at how poor a job they did checking bags here. All I did was open a very deep backpack. The only opening was in the top. They never even moved anything to see what was at the bottom. They did the same thing with the camera bag.
Next we got in line to enter the park. Again, confusion hit me. What was this? A Cast Member was very happy to help me and show me the ropes. I gave my finger and we entered the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom. It was now 4:00pm.
First things first, I called Stephen. He answered, but could not hear me at all so I ended up hanging up, planning to call him later.
Alex and I next headed for Tomorrowland since he wanted to ride the Tomorrowland Transit Authority first.
We got lost! We turned right just after <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Main Street (just like <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland). I passed the Plaza Restaurant and come to a ramp to Tomorrowland Terrace Noodle Restaurant. Okay, I am confused again (keep in mind I have been up since 4am). I stopped another guest and asked them how to get to Tomorrowland. They assured me I was in the right place and that I could actually go THROUGH the restaurant and get to Tomorrowland! Yeah, we were actually in a good spot.
Once we entered Tomorrowland, finding the TTA was no problem. We were very happy to see no line, so hopped on the moving walkway to go up a flight of stairs. Within seconds we were on our first ride at the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom. Alex and I were thrilled.
We loved seeing Tomorrowland from this vantage point. It really helped us to get the lay of the land. Both of thought the ride was great, and this was just the first time on the TTA this trip.
After our first ride we were heading toward Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin when we passed Stitch?s Great Escape with no line. No brainer here, we hopped into the queue. Once we entered we saw the preshow, which we both enjoyed. Much to my surprise when we left that room we entered another room with a preshow. We really enjoyed this one. Finally we entered the ride itself. I had been expecting a square room, so was a bit shocked to see that his was really a circular room with seating surrounding the center area.
Alex and I got comfy in our seats and prepared for this ride. I had been prepared for some scary parts so was really surprised at how boring the actual ride was. No jerking and absolutely nothing scary happening.
When the ride was over my first thought was that it was very boring. Alex enjoyed it though. I mentioned later to Andy how boring I thought it was and he was surprised.
Because we knew that Andy would be arriving soon we decided to get fastpasses for Buzz. Alex?s passport got stuck in the Fastpass machine (this turned out to be another theme). The Fastpass machines really enjoyed eating our tickets. It wasn?t an issue though as a cast member tore apart the machine to rescue the park hopper and gave us the fastpasses. When I explained to him that Andy was in a conference and this was our first trip to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom, he happily gave us a Fastpass card so that I could get Andy fastpasses too.
Not sure what to do next we saw a short line for the Indy Speedway and decided to give that a shot. We were both expecting this to be a ride like Autopia at <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland, and were greatly disappointed. The Indy Speedway just follows a track ? a miniature version of the track used for the <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Indianapolis 500. We were done with the ride in minutes.
Andy called after getting of the Indy Speedway and Alex and I decided to check out Mickey?s Philharmagic while waiting for Andy to arrive. I really enjoyed walking through the queue and seeing all of the movie posters. Once we entered the theater we chose the front row. Alex and I both LOVED this show! I sure they bring it to <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland one day!
Since Andy still had not arrived we decided to do Small World next. This ride is incredibly different from the <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland version. Aside from the obvious ? the indoor glockenspiel, it was very ?clean?. No backstage areas were visible, and it simply looked pristine. It didn?t have the charm that <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland?s Small World had but was still enjoyable.
During that ride, Andy called. He asked if we had eaten and I said no. He said he would meet us at the Village Haus. After the ride was over I realized that Andy had misunderstood. He thought I said we had eaten, so he ate without us. By the time we got out of Small World, things were closing up so we could not eat now.
Alex wanted to ride Small World again, so he and Andy did that while I went to the bathroom. Once they were done we headed over to use our Buzz Fastpasses.
I had known that the WDW Buzz was different that <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland?s. I knew that the blaster could not be picked up so that was no surprise. Alex and I rode together and tried to hit the targets, neither one of us doing too well. What did surprise me in the ride were the targets. They were all the same. No different shapes, just one target after the other. All three of us like the <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland version better.
Our last ride of the evening was the TTA. Andy rode with us this time, and again, we loved the ride.
By the time that was over, it was 7:00 and the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom was closed for the Pirate and Princess Party.
The three of us headed out and took the Ferry to the Transportation and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Ticket <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center. Here we got on a bus for Disney?s Hollywood Studios.
Once we arrived at Disney?s Hollywood Studios we made eating our first priority. We ended up at the ABC Commissary where Andy and I each had a cheeseburger while Alex had a apples and a fruit cup. We also had beer and ice water.
After we had eaten, Andy and Alex did Star Tours while I headed over for <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Tower of <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Terror fastpasses. There were none left so I met up with my boys again. We all enjoyed the Indiana Jones Stunt Show. We missed the first few minutes, but got there just in time to see how they did the boulder scene in Raiders of the Lost Arc. That was Alex?s favorite part of the movie, and he was thrilled to see this in the show.
Once the show ended, the park had closed so we got our Extra Magic Hours bracelets so that we could ride a few rides. First up was the Great Movie Ride. I had wanted to ride this attraction since I first saw the video, so was thrilled to be doing this! We waited about 20 minutes before we boarded the ride vehicle. We all really enjoyed the ride. Alex loved the Indiana Jones portion, I loved the video montages.
It was then that we headed over to ride Toy Story Mania. Found the line to be almost 2 hours, but were able to get fastpasses. The return time was 12:30am.
We then headed back to Star Tours and I joined them for this ride. The queue is different than <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland?s with more robots, but the ride itself is the same.
Finally it was getting close to 12:30 so we went back over to <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Pixar Place. I was surprised to see a line outside the Fastpass return entrance. We were fourth in line for the 12:30 return time. Once the clock flipped we were on our way! The queue that we saw was real cute. Once we joined the standby line we had to wait about 15 more minutes. Finally we got into the ride vehicles and were on our way. We all really enjoyed this ride! It is too bad it will not have Fastpass at <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland. I can see how easily this ride will be addictive. (don?t worry, I have my Toy Story article written, waiting for Andy?s preview ? you will get more info on the ride there!).
It was almost 1:00am as we exited the ride, so we headed out to catch our bus. We did not have to wait long for the bus to the TTC, and once we arrived there we had to run to catch our hotel bus.
Our first day was over. I had been up for 20 hours and was totally exhausted. After this day, I was not sure if I hated WDW or not. I did know the transportation was a total pain, and not something I enjoyed.
Up next Epcot, an accident, and a mission.
Leanne
Alex and I woke up very early to catch an 8:00am flight out of <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Denver. After a 3 ? hour flight we finally touched down in <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Orlando. We had arranged for a Lincoln Town Car to pick us up. Our driver was waiting when we got to the baggage claim area. I pointed out our suitcase and he grabbed it for us. Once we left the airport for the car we were immediately overwhelmed by the temperature.
Our driver informed us that the current temperature was 98 degrees with 94% humidity. That was the theme for the whole trip! Within seconds we were dripping with sweat.
After a quick stop at a grocery store to pick up diet coke, water, beer and chocolate milk we were back on the road to the hotel. The Hilton Downtown Disney has a large lobby, and the air conditioning felt great.
We only spent a few minutes in the room before grabbing what we needed to get into the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom. We ended up leaving with room without Alex?s hat, sunscreen, and our water mister. We had my backpack, our lanyards and our tickets. Both of us were very excited to get to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom.
Our bus came within minutes of getting downstairs and we were quickly on our way. I was thinking how easy the bus transportation was. It was a great start.
Then our bus dropped us off at the Ticket and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Transportation <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center. Only I did not know that was where we were at for quite some time. The size of the parking lot was amazing, and there were signs strategically placed, but I didn?t even notice those at the time.
Alex and I followed the crowd. Many people stopped to buy park tickets. We had ours, so I looked for a way to get into the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom. I was horribly confused and simply could not find the entrance gates. Finally I saw a Cast Member and stopped to ask him. That is when I found out I was just at the Transportation and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Ticket <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center. He told me I could take the Monorail or the Ferry to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom.
We took the Monorail and didn?t have to wait long at all for it to arrive. After exciting the Monorail we went through security. I was shocked at how poor a job they did checking bags here. All I did was open a very deep backpack. The only opening was in the top. They never even moved anything to see what was at the bottom. They did the same thing with the camera bag.
Next we got in line to enter the park. Again, confusion hit me. What was this? A Cast Member was very happy to help me and show me the ropes. I gave my finger and we entered the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom. It was now 4:00pm.
First things first, I called Stephen. He answered, but could not hear me at all so I ended up hanging up, planning to call him later.
Alex and I next headed for Tomorrowland since he wanted to ride the Tomorrowland Transit Authority first.
We got lost! We turned right just after <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Main Street (just like <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland). I passed the Plaza Restaurant and come to a ramp to Tomorrowland Terrace Noodle Restaurant. Okay, I am confused again (keep in mind I have been up since 4am). I stopped another guest and asked them how to get to Tomorrowland. They assured me I was in the right place and that I could actually go THROUGH the restaurant and get to Tomorrowland! Yeah, we were actually in a good spot.
Once we entered Tomorrowland, finding the TTA was no problem. We were very happy to see no line, so hopped on the moving walkway to go up a flight of stairs. Within seconds we were on our first ride at the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom. Alex and I were thrilled.
We loved seeing Tomorrowland from this vantage point. It really helped us to get the lay of the land. Both of thought the ride was great, and this was just the first time on the TTA this trip.
After our first ride we were heading toward Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin when we passed Stitch?s Great Escape with no line. No brainer here, we hopped into the queue. Once we entered we saw the preshow, which we both enjoyed. Much to my surprise when we left that room we entered another room with a preshow. We really enjoyed this one. Finally we entered the ride itself. I had been expecting a square room, so was a bit shocked to see that his was really a circular room with seating surrounding the center area.
Alex and I got comfy in our seats and prepared for this ride. I had been prepared for some scary parts so was really surprised at how boring the actual ride was. No jerking and absolutely nothing scary happening.
When the ride was over my first thought was that it was very boring. Alex enjoyed it though. I mentioned later to Andy how boring I thought it was and he was surprised.
Because we knew that Andy would be arriving soon we decided to get fastpasses for Buzz. Alex?s passport got stuck in the Fastpass machine (this turned out to be another theme). The Fastpass machines really enjoyed eating our tickets. It wasn?t an issue though as a cast member tore apart the machine to rescue the park hopper and gave us the fastpasses. When I explained to him that Andy was in a conference and this was our first trip to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom, he happily gave us a Fastpass card so that I could get Andy fastpasses too.
Not sure what to do next we saw a short line for the Indy Speedway and decided to give that a shot. We were both expecting this to be a ride like Autopia at <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland, and were greatly disappointed. The Indy Speedway just follows a track ? a miniature version of the track used for the <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Indianapolis 500. We were done with the ride in minutes.
Andy called after getting of the Indy Speedway and Alex and I decided to check out Mickey?s Philharmagic while waiting for Andy to arrive. I really enjoyed walking through the queue and seeing all of the movie posters. Once we entered the theater we chose the front row. Alex and I both LOVED this show! I sure they bring it to <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland one day!
Since Andy still had not arrived we decided to do Small World next. This ride is incredibly different from the <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland version. Aside from the obvious ? the indoor glockenspiel, it was very ?clean?. No backstage areas were visible, and it simply looked pristine. It didn?t have the charm that <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland?s Small World had but was still enjoyable.
During that ride, Andy called. He asked if we had eaten and I said no. He said he would meet us at the Village Haus. After the ride was over I realized that Andy had misunderstood. He thought I said we had eaten, so he ate without us. By the time we got out of Small World, things were closing up so we could not eat now.
Alex wanted to ride Small World again, so he and Andy did that while I went to the bathroom. Once they were done we headed over to use our Buzz Fastpasses.
I had known that the WDW Buzz was different that <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland?s. I knew that the blaster could not be picked up so that was no surprise. Alex and I rode together and tried to hit the targets, neither one of us doing too well. What did surprise me in the ride were the targets. They were all the same. No different shapes, just one target after the other. All three of us like the <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland version better.
Our last ride of the evening was the TTA. Andy rode with us this time, and again, we loved the ride.
By the time that was over, it was 7:00 and the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Magic <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Kingdom was closed for the Pirate and Princess Party.
The three of us headed out and took the Ferry to the Transportation and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Ticket <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center. Here we got on a bus for Disney?s Hollywood Studios.
Once we arrived at Disney?s Hollywood Studios we made eating our first priority. We ended up at the ABC Commissary where Andy and I each had a cheeseburger while Alex had a apples and a fruit cup. We also had beer and ice water.
After we had eaten, Andy and Alex did Star Tours while I headed over for <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Tower of <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Terror fastpasses. There were none left so I met up with my boys again. We all enjoyed the Indiana Jones Stunt Show. We missed the first few minutes, but got there just in time to see how they did the boulder scene in Raiders of the Lost Arc. That was Alex?s favorite part of the movie, and he was thrilled to see this in the show.
Once the show ended, the park had closed so we got our Extra Magic Hours bracelets so that we could ride a few rides. First up was the Great Movie Ride. I had wanted to ride this attraction since I first saw the video, so was thrilled to be doing this! We waited about 20 minutes before we boarded the ride vehicle. We all really enjoyed the ride. Alex loved the Indiana Jones portion, I loved the video montages.
It was then that we headed over to ride Toy Story Mania. Found the line to be almost 2 hours, but were able to get fastpasses. The return time was 12:30am.
We then headed back to Star Tours and I joined them for this ride. The queue is different than <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland?s with more robots, but the ride itself is the same.
Finally it was getting close to 12:30 so we went back over to <st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Pixar Place. I was surprised to see a line outside the Fastpass return entrance. We were fourth in line for the 12:30 return time. Once the clock flipped we were on our way! The queue that we saw was real cute. Once we joined the standby line we had to wait about 15 more minutes. Finally we got into the ride vehicles and were on our way. We all really enjoyed this ride! It is too bad it will not have Fastpass at <st1:place w:st="on">Disneyland. I can see how easily this ride will be addictive. (don?t worry, I have my Toy Story article written, waiting for Andy?s preview ? you will get more info on the ride there!).
It was almost 1:00am as we exited the ride, so we headed out to catch our bus. We did not have to wait long for the bus to the TTC, and once we arrived there we had to run to catch our hotel bus.
Our first day was over. I had been up for 20 hours and was totally exhausted. After this day, I was not sure if I hated WDW or not. I did know the transportation was a total pain, and not something I enjoyed.
Up next Epcot, an accident, and a mission.
Leanne