Welcome to our holiday.

In May 2011, we undertook a long awaited expedition to Orlando, Florida. It's no exaggeration to say that we've been planning this trip since our daughter was born in 2002. We last visited Orlando in 1989 and knew that when we had a child of our own, we'd have to go back.

On these pages, i've reproduced the journal of our trip. We hope you enjoy it.

Introduction

Well, as promised i'm going to provide a trip report for our recent visit to Orlando (05/05/11 - 19/05/11). A bit of background is probably in order.
I'm Steve, my wife is Caroline (she prefers Carly) and we have an eight year old daughter called Maddie. As per the title of this thread, our last visit to Orlando was in 1989 and as you can imagine, there has been a fair bit of change since then. Not least in the amount of day-glo coloured clothing in my wardrobe. We visited Disneyland in California in 2000 and took Maddie to Disneyland Paris in 2008. All of this was but a warm up for the big event, the return to Orlando which we had promised ourselves since becoming proud parents in 2002.

Also with some relevance to our tale are the following facts. We have a 2 year old labradoodle called Logan and two cats called Jeeves and Sweep. I drive but Carly doesn't. We live in Crawley, West Sussex and are literally five minutes drive from Gatwick airport. I'll add a family picture to this post later and hopefully through my write up as I move on.

As with most people, we'd talked about going to Orlando since the little one came along, but it was a matter of sorting the finances and waiting until Maddie was old enough to stand up to the trip and the walking and so on. So, we booked last year with Travel City Direct and have been saving up since then. Special mention to Carly who did all of the planning, including creating an amazing spreadsheet with our itinerary and predicted attendances for all the parks which meant we seemed to avoid the worst of the crowds.
More to come later on today but that's it for now.

Day 11

I will finish my trip report if it kills me  although May seems a loonngg way off.

Sunday 15th May 2011

Another somewhat lie in today due to a latish breakfast at Kouzinna by Cat Cora on the Disney boardwalk. Bit of a trek to get there. Caught the ever-reliable bus to Epcot and then walked briskly out the international gateway and round to the boardwalk. We'd managed to underestimate the time it would take and only just made our reservation time. The restaurant was quite busy and we had to wait a few minutes to be seated. The food was...ok but the service was probably the worst we experienced in our time at Disney. Not bad so much as a bit lazy. Left feeling a bit underwhelmed and carried on round the boardwalk.

We admired the lovely Swan and Dolphin hotels and found ourselves drawn towards Fantasia mini golf, as if by magic. We decided to play a round, because, well, it's Disney mini golf. Had a bit of rain during the game but Maddie in particular really enjoyed it.

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We caught a boat back to Epcot and the commentary by the boat crew was very entertaining. On reaching Epcot, we had intended to do some rides but we came across a temporary pavillion celebrating 25 years of Pixar. Maddie and I got some photos with The Incredibles and i learned that Michael Giacchino, the composer, was due to appear at a seminar that evening. My lovely wife convinced me to try and make the talk, so we rode Spaceship Earth again, and I tried out Test Track and Mission Space again before we had a late lunch at Coral Seas. We got a table quite easily, and had a very enjoyable meal. The girls headed off to Magic Kingdom and I went back to the Pixar Pavillion to get in line for the seminar. While queuing, I got talking to a hardcore Disney fan who reported for a Disney podcast. I learned at this point that Giacchino wasn't appearing but I decided to stay anyway. The talk was focussed on Cars 2 and was given by a senior animator and two of the production team at Pixar. It was very entertaing and informative but more enjoyable was the warm up by three of the green army men from Toy Story who hosted an impromptu Pixar quiz. This one was for the real fans, folks. I made my way back to Magic Kingdom where I met the girls before watching the Electric Parade and finding a good spot for the fireworks. It was alovely evening and over all too soon.

Day 10

Yay! I'm back  Real life has been giving me a pasting of late, but i'm ready to continue the story.

Saturday 14th May, 2011

So, today being a Saturday we'd allowed ourselves a bit of a lie in. Carly had booked a breakfast at Ohana at the Polynesian Resort for 1030. Skipped breakfast at Port Orleans and caught the bus to Magic Kingdom, and onward to the Polynesian by boat. The weather was lovely this morning and got some great views across Seven Seas lagoon as we neared the resort. 

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The theming in the Polynesian is lovely and we had the obligatory poke around the lobby and the shops before presenting ourselves at the restaurant. We were buried under garlands before too long.

We had a short wait but were soon seated by a lovely waiter called Jeff. The breakfast was amazing...plate after plate of fantastic food was brought out as we munched our way through enough eggs, bacon, potatoes, biscuit, pineapple bread, cinammon bread and waffles to feed a small country. Our server was attentive and kept us well supplied with food and drink. We also had a great bunch of character meets with Lilo, Stitch, Mickey and Pluto.

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I think we only left to avoid eating more or we would probably still be there now. Really recommend the restaurant highly. We dived into the shop and bought a new autograph book and had another nice chat with the shop assistant about the Royal Wedding.

We made our way back to the hotel and determined we were going to venture out to a Walmart to do a bit of present shopping. Had a chat with the nice concierge at the Port Orleans who suggested the newly opened supacenter (sic) on Turkey Lake Road. A quick trip up the I4 to the Seaworld exit, turn left and left again and there you go. Found it really easily, even without the concierge's map. This store was huge, even by Walmart standards. The next couple of hours were spent happily browsing the aisles, slowly filling up our trolley. We bought some snacks and drinks for the hotel, and picked up various bags of sweets and the like for presents for Maddie's school friends and our respective workplaces. Also picked up some Twinkies for a friend, and bought a couple of t shirts and other bits and pieces. The American shopping experience is not to be missed, as i'm sure most of you know. Carly even spotted a shelf of marmite in the foreign foods section which was a thrill as she works for the marmite team at Unilever.

Made our way back to the hotel and chilled out for a bit. Carly wasn't feeling well and decided she would have an early night but encouraged Maddie and I to get back to Magic Kingdom. Not needing much more encouragement, we headed back where we did a few of the "other" rides such as Carousel Of Progress, which left Maddie very confused, and Monsters Inc Laugh Floor, which we both loved. Then back to the hotel and bed.

Day 9

We had originally planned to go to Universal Studios today, but after a short discussion, we agreed that we'd rather go to Seaworld. Definitely in the mood after our lovely day at Discovery Cove. Carly wanted to be a marine biologist when she was growing up, and so this park is absolutely her favourite. Fortunately, we all love it as well.

I'll skip the breakfast chat as we made a real early start. We arrived at the park a good while before opening and were in the first couple of rows in the car park.

We got in after a short wait and discovering that according to our lanyards set up at Discovery Cove, Carly was me and I was her

I made straight for Manta as this seemed the most unique ride I would get to do on the trip. For those of you not familiar, you are suspended lying down on your stomach and get inverted while in this position. Due to our early arrival, I was in the second group to ride. Now i'm not great with heights but as I was being carried up the first slope of the ride, with nothing beneath me but the restraints, even I became giddy with the experience. I whooped like a child as we took off at speed and have to say this experience was one I won't forget. I came straight off the ride and found Carly and insisted she go straight on. She resisted at first but gave in. Thankfully she also loved it, and by some miracle I managed to capture a picture of her on the ride.

Suitably exhilarated, we made for the Blue Horizon dolphin show. Well, Maddie was grinning all over while Carly and I were both in floods of tears, overcome with emotion that we were able to bring our daughter to see this. Funny how Seaworld seems to affect us this way. It's a great, impressive show with some neat surprises on the way. Recommended.

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We then found our way to the Dolphin feeding. Much more organised than our last visit. We queued up and paid $7 for food. We got to do some nice feeding and the dolphins were having a great old time.

Next was the Clyde and Seamore show. This was made great by the performanc of a clown, for want of a better word, who was bringing the audience into the theatre. He was hilarious, interacting with, making fun of and generally putting on a great show for those of us already seated.

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Particularly enjoyed him taking over pushing one lady in her wheelchair, who remained blissfully unaware. This show was less moving than the dolphins but still entertaining, and we enjoyed seeing the huge walrus at the climax of the show.

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We had lunch at Captain Pete's and enjoyed chilli cheese fries for the first time. Having rested a bit, as the temperature was pushing low 90's by now, we headed for the Shamu stadium.

We were seated quite early, and were a bit bemused by the texting game being played out on the screens while waiting for the show to start.

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The show itself was excellent. Opened with a nice dedication the US armed forces and allies, I was weeping again  As you probably know, the trainers no longer go in the tank with the whales but this doesn't really detract from the spectacle. And boy, can those whales splash. We got a bit wet, due to where we were seated but resolved to move more into the Soak Zone next time.

After the show, we visited Wild Arctic, stopping on the way to get Maddie's hair braided, only to realise we didn't have enough cash  Wild Arctic was ok, but let down a bit by disinterested staff. You can tell these guys weren't trained by Disney. There was a rock band to provide entertainment while we queued.

Having been through Wild Arctic, we headed back to the hotel as tonight was our long anticipated meal at the California Grill, on the 15th floor of the Contemporary Resort. We'd booked this mealon the 20th January.

Suitably glammed up, we bused to Magic Kingdom and then caught the monorail to the Contemporary. This hotel is stunning, with the monorail running through it, and it's wonderful, open, vaulted spaces. We had a quick look around the shops before checking in and catching the express elevator to the 15th floor. We were struck immediately by the great view, and Carly spoke to the reception staff and, after a short wait, managed to procure a great table in an excellent spot overlooking the Magic Kingdom.
The food here was phenomonal. We started with a couple of flatbreads to share, followed by seared tuna for me, and steak for Carly and Maddie. This was one of the few dining establishments were Maddie could have something other than mac and cheese or nuggets .

This was followed by great dessert, especially Maddie's which was fake sushi formed from krispie cakes. The lights dimmed as we approached firework time and although we had a good view inside, Maddie and I, then Carly headed outside onto the balcony to watch the show "live", along with many other diners. It was wonderful to see the display from this vantage point, if a little strange as your position makes the fireworks seem a little off, as of course they are intended to be seen from within the park itself.
A fantastic view to top off an excellent meal. We returned to our hotel, tired and happy.

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Day 8

Today is Discovery Cove day. More than any other day in the holiday, this was the one we'd looked forward to the most. Swimming with dolphins was the dream and, for us at least, DC delivered.

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We were out of the hotel in plenty of time for the drive to Discovery Cove, which was only about 20 minutes from the resort. We had breakfast before leaving which proved amusing later. On arrival, Discovery Cove looks a bit like a hotel. We walked into a lobby where we were directed to a staff member who booked us in. We got our photos and passes done. Had a wobbly moment where she asked for ID and I thought I was going to have to hotfoot it back to the car, but this was only if we wanted to drink. Neither of us did, so no proble. Headed into the park, where we were directed efficiently to the breakfast buffet, Well, we managed a bit as it all looked so good 

We got kitted out with wetsuit vests and deposited our gear in the locker. Found a nice couple of loungers by the snorkeling lagoon and went straight in for a swim. An hour passed quickly swimming amongst the rays and tropical fish. Wonderful experience, and absolutley captivated us.
Soon, though we headed over to the cabana for our pre-dolphin swim briefing. Only Maddie and I were swimming, Carly parked herself on a nearby rock and took photos.

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We were introduced first to Catalina, a young female and went through the process of using hand signals, to which she reacted. Absolutley engrossing. Maddie smiled like never before throughout this, and loved kissing the dolphin when it was her turn.

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Catalina was then replaced by Diego, an older and more experienced male. What a gem he was. Our time with him was wonderful, and capped by the experience of swimming with him. maddie did the shallow swim, while I did the deep water swim. This experience was quite moving acyually. Feeling the power of these wonderful creatures up close. Both of us couldn't stop grinning for ages and this experience alone was worth the entrance fee. I also found it reassuring that Seaworld are behind this venture, and didn't feel that the dolphins were being exploited at any point.

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All too soon, we left the lagoon and headed back to our spot near the lagoon. Carly had some great photos and we also bought some from the DC photographer. Back to snorkeling and exploring the rest of the site, The place is very restful, and due to the limited numbers, never felt crowded. We swam lots, explored the wonderful aviary, and went to and from the concessions for drinks.

We made our way back to the restaurant for the included lunch and found it very good, with a pretty good choice available. The rest of our time at Discovery Cove was passed with more swimming in the snorkel lagoon, Maddie feeding the rays in the smaller lagoon, and swimming around the lazy river which circles the park. An idyllic day, and over all too soon. We drove back to Port Orleans with a few more souvenirs in hand and decided to walk over to Riverside to eat in the table service restaurant there. The food was pretty good, if not spectacular and we got back to bed about 10pm.
This was a truly memorable day, and we've talked about it more than any other experience we had. I would, and have several times, recommended the experience to anyone visiting Orlando.

Day 7

Today was our first day at Magic Kingdom. Strangely it had worked out this way in our planning due to the predicted crowds but we were taking no chances and breakfasted early and were at the park for rope drop and the opening ceremony. I'm a 43 year old man and sadly I got all goosebumpy at this. That's the magic of Disney to me that the place can still generate that feeling in you.

Anyhoo, we hotfooted it to Maddie's favourite ride (at Paris, anyway), Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. We were on the second train out, I think, and all enjoyed it, and got a fastpass for later. Then over to Splash Mountain for an early morning dousing, although this ride's not too bad. Maddie wasn't so keen on this one but us olds liked it.

I then bleated until I got my way and was allowed to dash over to Pirates Of The Caribbean, which is probably my favourite ride. Maddie didn't want to ride this at first, so I did it on my own, but then when I came out, we all rode it together. There was a slight hitch and the ride stopped for a minute, but no real problem. Enjoyed seeing Jack Sparrow, which heightened my excitement for the forthcoming new Pirates movie.

When we came out, there was a live Pirates show going on with Captain Jack recruiting young pirates. Maddie got pulled up on stage and got involved which she like a lot.

We then nipped onto Jungle Cruise, which let's face it, is a true guilty pleasure for everyone. Love this attraction. The Cast Member's make it special, and our captain on this trip was brilliant. We laughed and laughed. You can see Maddie in this picture...not laughing 

After re-riding Thunder Mountain, we headed over to Tomorrowland and indulged in a ride on Buzz Lightyear and I also did Space Mountain while the girls took in the shops. Maddie also discovered the joys of the speedway and we all grinned like idiots on the people mover. By this time, we got ready for the parade and had a good spot on Main Street. Enjoyed this as always but by now the temperature was pushing the low to mid-90's. After a quick family chat, we decided to head back to the hotel for a dip in the pool with the aim of returning later.

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After our dip, the plan changed, however and we decided to catch a boat back to Downtown Disney for a meal. We ended up in T-Rex, which is basically a dinosaur version of Rainforest Cafe. Nicely themed inside, although we thought it accepted dining plan, which they didn't. We also had to wait for a while to get seated. Still, this place is a must if you have young kids because all kids love dinosaurs. The meal was good, but not great and we rounded the evening off with Maddie making a new cuddly dinosaur friend in the store, whom we named Peggysaurus. Late boat back to the hotel and straight to bed.

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Day 6

One of the highlights of our trip, today we visit Universal Islands Of Adventure and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter! Carly and I are big fans of the bespectacled wizard. My mum lives two minutes away from Leavesden Studios where the films were made and over the last few years, every time we drove past, we would catch glimpses of the production in progress over the fences...a night bus here, a green screen there. We were very excited to hear that Leavesden is having a large Harry Potter attraction built at which you'll be able to tour the sets and so on. WWHP at Universal, therefore, was something we were very excited about. Maddie not so much, although she gamely got caught up in our excitement.
We breakfasted at POFQ again having settled into a breakfast routine with Cinammon Rolls for the girls and an egg dish of some sort for me, usually a ham and cheese omelette. I was driving for the first time today since our trip and was quite excited, having checked that IoA was set uip in the sat nav. So we loaded in the car and headed off. Followed the circuitous route from Port Orleans back onto the I4 and we were soon cruising East. This time it was nice to feel a bit more relaxed and able to spot some familiar sights on our drive. Lots of signs for International Drive where we had stayed on our previous visit. Also passed the exit for Seaworld, which we would use later in the week. We got off the I4 with no incident and, barring one slight bit of confusion with the directions, the sat nav dropped us right at the car park entrance for Universal. We were parked on level 3 in Jaws which put us in a large multi-storey. As per good advice from the Dibb, I took a picture of the number plate and the row we were parked in for future reference.

We made the looooong walk from the car park, along the moving walkways and finally arrived at the gates. Citywalk was virtually deserted due to the fact that we'd left so early as were unsure how long the drive would take. traded our Travel City vouchers with no problem and were ready to go once the park was open.

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Like everyone else we turned right and made straight for the Wizarding World. Passed through (I think,) Dr Seuss Land and Atlantis before sighting Hogwarts in the distance. The designers of this area knocked this one out of the park. I know this is a false perspective castle sitting on those rocks, but damn it looks big and impressive. This attention to detail carries over into the street representing Hogsmeade as everywhere you look, the place looks spot on.



We headed straight for the castle and the Forbidden Journey ride. Strange system they have for this where you have to put your belongings in a high tech locker before actually queueing for the ride?
Fortunately we were early so the queue moved quickly and we were soon passing through the halls of Hogwarts. Again, details everywhere. Spotted many portraits, all of which interact with one another. Pleasant surprise to see Dawn French recreating her role from the first two movies as the portrait guarding the entrance to Gryffindor's dorm room.

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At about this point, Maddie decided she needed the toilet and as the queue had slowed, I offered to take her out. Carly emerged twenty minutes or so later and urged me to go straight back in. I did so and learned a neat tip. As you enter the queue for the ride, if you identify yourself to the staff member as a single rider, you get ushered up a side stairwell which cuts out 90% of the queue. I won't describe the ride at all except to say I really liked it but it is quite intense and not likely suitable for young kids, as you never know quite where the next surprise is coming from. Excellent, though.

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Carly and I did the ride again once each before exploring the rest of Hogsmeade as we weren't buying fastpasses and suspected the queue would get monstrous later. While waiting for the other, we each took Maddie on Flight Of The Hippogriff which is a much tamer ride, and she like it very much. You also get a good view of Hagrid's house while queuing for this.

More to come later...