Post by dmkedm on Jun 22, 2024 17:52:24 GMT -5
Hi, folks--
Just back (3 hours ago) from a 7-day solo trip, staying at GFV--loved it so much I didn't even "have time" to do a day-by-day TR. The trip was originally planned as a mother-daughter trip, and then morphed into a me-and-a-friend trip, and ultimately devolved into a solo trip--one of "those" situations where good intentions met up w/real life and plans just didn't happen. But I decided to go on my own anyway...here are some of the highlights (and a lowlight or two):
First, general impressions: crowds were surprisingly low...never waited more than 5 minutes for a bus or a monorail or a skyliner (didn't take a boat ride)....didn't do many rides, but not because wait times were long, just because I didn't feel like it most of the time. Did notice the VERY nice CMs making a point of certain "rules" that have been in place forever--e.g., check-in isn't til 4...but that was no big deal....
1.GFV (resort studio at Big Pine Key, or BPK) was great, but looking just a little "tired"....can't really put my finger on what was "off" about the room and lobby (I had a ground floor, by request, studio)...just "tired." My first stay there, last September (during Hurricane Ian) I was absolutely blown away by how gorgeous BPK is--still is, just looking a little bit wilted.
2. It was a horrible travel day to get there (not a Disney problem, an American Airlines problem)....last minute (15 minutes before the cab came to take me to the airport) flight cancellation (including an email that said AA could not rebook me on another flight) followed by a grand scramble to find an alternative flight--AA still hasn't refunded the cost of the flight they canceled (said I had to wait til I completed the round-trip, which I did this morning)...their customer service is awful. But that's not a Disney problem. And I did get the last seat (or so the website said) on a flight on Delta--the Delta connecting flight left 1/2 hour earlier than my original flight, and I don't have a Delta account (and had zero extra time) so didn't get TSA pre-check....by the time I got through the loooooong line at regular security at DCA, I got to the gate of the connecting flight (replacing the nonstop that canceled, for $160 more than the round-trip ticket on AA), boarding was starting....definitely "sweated out" the getting there....but I did get there, "only" four hours later than planned. So I count myself lucky, if a whole lot poorer than when I started!
3. Room wasn't ready til 4:30 (I arrived at 3:30)....not so bad....got something to eat (Gasaparilla's is a highlight....had a delicious caprese sandwich there) and just caught my breath in the lobby when the text finally came telling me my room was ready--and, as I'd requested, on the ground floor (when I checked in they told me there was a second floor room ready and I could switch if I wanted, but I decided to wait for the ground floor room)....the CMs at GFV are SO nice!
4. Went over to Magic Kingdom where I rode exactly nothing, but enjoyed walking around and breathing in the atmosphere....later I Monorailed over to Poly where I had my favorite coconut meatballs at Captain Hook's...altogether a lovely way to start my week. On Wednesday, I had a "reservation" to do the DVC preview of Tiana's Bayou Adventure--it was raining (I had my poncho, so no big deal), but when I got there the ride was down (they didn't say why) and they told me I could come back anytime before 3 but they had no info as to when the ride would be running again. No big deal....I am not a Princess and the Frog fan and barely know the storyline of Tiana and had ridden Splash Mountain a bunch of times. Wasn't too terribly disappointed. But I did wind up returning around 2 and the ride was up and running and was a walk-on....not so much as a second of wait time. The ride itself was fine. Good, even. But really just Splash Mountain w/different characters. Still good, but not the over-the-top homerun of a winner that Guardians of the Galaxy was (and I must admit it IS a kick to get a preview reservation--this was my third; got one for GotG and one for Remy and I do get a kick out of it)
5. Mostly I just reveled in not having to be anywhere or do anything (altho I did have two "meet-with-friends" things planned....one friend drove down from Jacksonville to spend the day/evening w/me Tuesday--and in a stroke of true miracle, I got him a studio at OKW for Tuesday night--booked it Sunday night, when he confirmed that he could come down Tuesday....truly a stroke of major luck! Friend and I had a great time Tuesday--had lunch at Steakhouse 71, which was a huge "winner"--not only was the waiter wonderful and the food exceptional, but it was a whole lot less expensive than I'd anticipated. Prices were, surprisingly, not all that much higher than at quick-serve places, after the passholders days 20% discount was factored in. Another highlight. We didn't go to any parks Tuesday (altho I did tap in at HS "just in case" we'd decide to hit a park later---was quite certain that if we did it wouldn't be HS so I wanted to have tapped in so I'd be free to go wherever we did decide to go (I predicted Epcot, to "drink around the world"--but as it turned out, we decided there were better ways to spend $170 than on a park ticket for my friend for what would amount to no more than 5 hours and probably less than that in the park. So instead we hung out at the GFV pool (the one by the DVC building, not the courtyard pool) where he had a couple of beers and I had a diet coke (I'm not a fan of alcohol--in fact, the taste of it gags me, so I'm a "cheap date"). We talked and talked and enjoyed the breeze and not-steamy warm weather...had dinner at Gasaparillas, and b'fast at the Grand Floridan Cafe and it was a really wonderful 20 hours or so w/my friend....
6. The weather was unbelievable...never got hotter than the mid-80s (til yesterday), and there was a stiff breeze (which felt wonderful) and the humidity was low (by FL standards anyway)....meanwhile back home (Washington DC area) it was sweltering w/very high humidity and temps in the high 90s...that felt weird knowing it was hotter/more humid at home than it was in FL in June!
7. Had a fabulous dinner at California Grill last night....I've made friends w/the woman who sold me my last batches of points (the super deal at GFV and just recently, also a good deal altho not as good at the GFV deal) at Riviera (by request of my DS/DDIL, who own those points w/me), and she joined me for dinner. It was SO good. And MK was closed for a "buy-out" last night--the Dep't of Defense put on a shindig for vets--what a wonderful thing....it made the monorail ride back from the Contemporary to the Grand Floridian "interesting"--I've never seen the monorail so crowded; apparently there had been a 40-minute wait for it (never did find out why)--the people next to me in the monorail I got on (after only a 5-minute wait, caused by there not being enough room on the monorail that was in the station when I arrived....said they'd waited for 40 minutes at MK...again, I counted myself lucky to have arrived at just the right time to get on a monorail that was going to where I was going. They made a big deal out of announcing that the train would NOT stop at MK, and that there would be no buses to Disney resorts at MK either....the shoulder-to-shoulder crowds basically "disappeared" at the TTC--apparently most of the crowd were people leaving MK when it closed at 7 for the veterans' party--
8. Did some exercise swimming (3 days that I was there), early in the morning....did some exercise hiking (discovered it's super pleasant to get my 4 miles in by walking around the Grand, and then over to MK and on to the Contemporary, and then around the Contemporary, and then back....loved that hike....
9. Did some new things (to me) at Animal Kingdom....rode FoP one morning, tried to ride the Safari, too, but decided I wasn't up for waiting the 70 minutes showing on the standby line....so I took the train to Rafiki's Conservation Station (something I'd never done before)....enjoyed that a lot. Also stopped in to see the Feathered Friends Flight show and loved that, too...went to Yak & Yet right when it opened to see if they could take just one person--they could, w/a 20-minute wait, but suggested if I wanted I could sit at the bar (full menu available) and I decided to do that. Another super experience. Friendly bartender, friendly fellow "bar-mates" and really good lettuce cups followed by the fried won ton/w/cream cheese and ice cream for dessert. Another highlight.
10. Went to Epcot and decided to wait the 60 minutes the standby line showed to ride Soarin....figured it would likely take only about 40 minutes as Disney usually inflates its wait times. This time it was the opposite....took a full 75 minutes to get on the ride. But I wasn't in any hurry and got a kick out of the games that line the queue (also did some email clearing while slowly moving through the line)...and I LOVE Soarin so while I would normally not wait 60 minutes (not to mention 75) to ride it, I was happy I did this time. It's back to being Soarin around the World (my last 2-3 Soarin rides were Soarin around California) so that was nice...
All in all, I just reveled in the freedom to do/not do what I wanted, when I wanted. The weather was glorious (some rain, but not much and never when I was w/out my poncho). Seeing my friends was "just enough" socialization for me for this trip. I wouldn't want to go w/out family and friends "all the time," but I think I may plan an annual solo trip. It was positively rejuvenating! And I know I'll be back w/friends and/or family in August (actually, August is another solo trip, at Riviera), September, February and May I got lucky w/lower-than-expected crowds and shorter-than-expected lines and cheaper-than-expected food costs. It was a totally self-indulgent trip (made even better by being "financed" by the Disney Reward dollars I got from buying 350 GFV and RR points in the last two months!)....I'm now back home, and ready to be back home in my "real" world. But I sure did love this past week at Disney....
