Animal Kingdom

Thursday, November 9, 2023

Today we were off to Animal Kingdom!  We did not arrive in time for rope drop, but we did get there pretty early.  Our very first stop was Kilimanjaro Safari. 

   

   

No matter how many times we ride the safari, it never gets old.  I feel like every time we see an animal closer or differently than we have seen it before.  For example, on this trip the cheetahs were up!

   

   

   

After the safari, we headed over to Expedition Everest and hopped in the single rider lane.  We have not used that strategy before, but it worked pretty well.  Minimal wait and we all still got to ride.  Daniel's picture came out the best, so he gets the feature here.

   

Then we hurried over to see Feathered Friends in Flight.  We love seeing the birds.  And this year Emily and I got picked to make the tunnel for the little hornbill bird to fly through!  So neat!

   

  

After we finished the bird show we took a quick walk over to Pandora for our Lightning Lane for Flight of Passage.  Love this ride!  It's like a four and a half minute escape from reality into a whole new world.  

   

Then it was time for our lightning lane for Expedition Everest - so we all got to ride together!

   

   

Then it was time for a quick lunch at Pizzafari with the yummiest cupcakes for dessert.  Then we headed over to The Lion King show.  Hard to leave Animal Kingdom without seeing this show.

   

   

After Lion King, we used our Lightning Lane to ride Navi River before getting ready to head out for the day.

   

   

On our way out, we stopped for a few pictures just for fun.  I love the photo pass opportunities, but I have learned that not all of my family loves them as much as I do so I use the stops sparingly.  A fun way (at least for me) to wrap up our AK day!

   

Food & Wine Festival

Wednesday, November 8, 2023

After "resting" we headed over to Epcot for a few rides and our last taste of the Food & Wine Festival.  Daniel and I had both fallen in love with the pork tostada in Mexico and Emily was quite excited for the steak in Canada and some bratwurst in Germany.

   

   

While we were there, we rode Soarin'.  They brought back Soarin' Over California for a limited time, so we got to see that one again.  I like it, but I think I like Soarin' Around the World a little better.  We also got to ride Guardians of the Galaxy, a first for Emily.  She loved it and we rocked the ride photo!

   

To close out the night, we stopped for a couple of pictures in front of Spaceship Earth.  We had a very full first day and it was all so much fun!

  

Christmas Disney Trip - Hollywood Studios

Wednesday, November 8, 2023

This year we were able to persuade Emily to come with us for our Christmas Disney trip.  She had Friday off of school already so she only had to miss two days of classes.  We found a direct flight down to Orlando on Tuesday night (and amazingly it was on time) so that worked out great.  We got a room at Bay Lake Tower for this trip so everything really fell into place.

On Wednesday morning, we headed into Hollywood Studios.  We managed to get a ride in on all of our favorite rides (except Slinky Dog).  We started the morning on Rockin' Roller Coaster (an Emily favorite).  Luckily, the random guy in our car played along for the photo.  

Then we dropped into Tower of Terror.  Another picture we totally rocked.  Because of course we did.

I always enjoy the Christmas decorations at Hollywood Studios.  I love the vintage vibe.  My favorites are the little deer.

   

   

   

Then we headed into Toy Story land for a few favorites including Toy Story Mania and Alien Swirling Saucers.  We had the chance for a photo op with Hamm too.

   

   

   

Also, look!  I got new snowman Mickey Christmas ears!  After all the rides, we took a quick break at Backlot (one of our favorites) for lunch.

Then after lunch we made a short trip across the galaxy to Star Wars land where we had a virtual cue spot for Rise of the Resistance.  

   

   

   

You know, we can only take so much fun in a day (ha ha) so, after Star Wars we decided to head back to Bay Lake for a little rest...and by rest I mean pool time. ☺ Then we were going to try to head to Epcot for the end of the Food & Wine Festival.