Okay so here goes my first crack at a trip report. 4/19-4/25 Stayed at the Contemporary in the tower facing Bay Lake (this is important for the best part...which wasn't Disney related on Friday 4/23)
We flew to Orlando on Monday 4/19 on a late afternoon flight. We have done this both times we have gone A) to get out of NY as soon as we could and B) to maximize our time down there. When we arrived at MCO we stayed at the Hyatt Regency in the airport. If you are ever going through there and have a long layover or an overnight I 100% recommend staying there. It is a really nice hotel and the convenience factor is great. It also made it so that I had one less day on the rental car...but more on that in a minute.
Tuesday 4/20 (light it up lol) -
At about 9 am we went down and got the rental car from Hertz...super easy process...no waiting in line at a desk, I just asked the attendant since it was my first time and they said pick any car between numbers x and y. We picked a small Jeep even though I only paid for a car. I went with the rental to give us the flexibility to not have to wait on Disney transportation which helped out when we were park hopping or going back to a park after some pool time. We made out way to the Contemporary and checked in. The lovely CM at the front desk was amazing. Not only did she get us a high floor but she got us one that was ready right then even though it was only 10:30am. To make it better she kept it a secret that I had stuff waiting there for my daughter since her birthday was on 4/21 (we couldn;t do any thing for her sweet 16 so I figured I'd go all out for 17). Once we got settled into the room, I went down to get the the goodies...she is 17 but I got her the Princess package that had a cool certificate naming her an official Disney Princess for her birthday..she loved it. After that we went to Walmart (in a downpour) to get snacks and drinks to not have to pay Disney prices for everything. Fun fact, the Walmart just off property to the south has a Walmart liquor store attached.
For dinner I was able to get reservations at the California Grill. We got dressed up since it was her early birthday dinner and went up. It is really nice up there, especially in the evening as the sun is starting to set. I had the sushi and she had a pizza because she is a kid. The CM/Server was delightful and since they knew it was for her birthday she brought out a piece of cake for my daughter. After we ate we went and took pictures on the balcony looking over MK. Only thing better would be if they had fireworks but oh well. We were able to watch the water/light parade on Bay Lake from our room which was really cool each night.
Wednesday 4/21 - Daughters Bday
We made the short walk from the Contemporary to MK and basically walked right in. There was little to no wait at about 7:30ish at bag check or the gate. I will say this...the lowered capacity is awesome. We walked in and if felt like we had the place to ourselves. Took pictures and then headed to Tomorrowland. I even got a picture under the sign and there was literally noone behind us. In the next 45 minutes we hit up Space Mountain, Haunted Mansion, Pirates and Big Thunder. The only downer was I ate it walking out of the pin store in Frontierland by the river since I am a clutz. From there we just walked around and did some more rides and checked out shops before heading back to have lunch and some pool time. The mobile order on the app at the Contempo Cafe is something we used alot and it was super easy.
Had some pool time and then my daughter did her makeup and hair again while I did a little work because I found out about how you can book a photopass photographer for a half an hour for a private shoot. It was $50...10/10 would do it again. We went to five different locations around the castle and hub and came away with over 50 pictures which was awesome..(side note...I had the photopass bundle paid for so these pictures I didn't have to pay for separate other than the appointment fee) After that I think we rode Little Mermaid...daughters choice...and the because she is my only child and I never got to take her when she was a kid I took her to the castle for dinner. It was cool and a memory she will always have...for me I would rather go at breakfast but that may just be me. The cheesecake dessert was a big winner though and I enjoyed the sparkling wine flight.
Other than that we did some more rides and then called it a day.
Thursday 4/22 - Hollywood Studios
Nothing too excited on this day. Didn't get Rise boarding group but no big deal since we rode it last year. We did however get to ride Rock N Rollercoaster twice in a row because we again got there at about 7:45 and walked right in. Crowd levels seemed heavier there than at MK but that could be because it is a more confined park. We didn't stay all that long just because and having the car made it easy. Back to the pool...where my daughter put on my tanning bed lotion on purpose and proceeded to fall asleep while I was doing some laundry. Let's just say she was really burnt and hurting the rest of the trip. We went over to Epcot after 2 for a little bit. Did Spaceship Earth - really cool and Test Track then headed back. I can't remember if we went back to HS or not. I think this was the day we went to Disney Springs. It was packed and we didn't stay long. They had a queue to get into the World of Disney store. On a plus though they had the DCL sailaway mugs that you could keep if you got a pina colada...and that is exactly what I did lol.
Friday 4/23 - Once in a lifetime experience and then Animal Kingdom
I'm what you would call a nerd and love Space. If you remember 4/23 was when SpaceX sent a rocket up with four astronauts to the Space Station. It was an early morning launch so I got up and sat on the balcony to hopefully watch. I was monitoring on Youtube on my laptop and when it lifted off I put my laptop down so that I could look to see if it was visible. Mind you it's what 60-70 miles away so I didn't expect much...but I was wrong. The rocket lit up the night sky and I watched it all the way. I could even see the guidance rockets on the booster align it for landing. Definitely a once in a lifetime experience I wouldn't have had if we were in a different room.
On to Animal Kingdom. Again we got there around 7:30-7:45 and walked right in. Headed over to Pandora and did Flight of Passage first thing. Including walking through the queue it took maybe 10 minutes...its a long queue. Amazing ride and glad we did it. It up the Navi River which was cool then headed over to Everest and did that 3 times in a row walking right on. Wandered around through dinosaur area and then headed back because I had a cabana for a planned pool day. Since my daughter was super burned we couldn't really enjoy it that long because she couldn't get comfortable. It was nice though, I will say that. I ended up going back to Walmart for UV shirts and solarcaine for her burn. IN the evening we went back to AK and were able to go on Flight of Passage again. This time we waited about 40 minutes which isn't bad. The limited capacity definitely is felt in that. When we went in Feb 2020 we were going to ride it but it was an almost 4 hour wait. When we got back my daughter was exhausted and not comfortable because of her burn so I went up to the California Grill for more sushi and a Jameson (I'm not going to lie about drinking lol) I actually got to see the sunset up there and take some amazing panoramic pictures too.
Saturday 4/24 - Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios
Walked over to MK in the morning again and had a good time with the low crowds again. Later in the day we had reservations at the Sci-Fi Drive In at HS so we headed back over there around 2. Having the park hoppers was a big help. Longest wait we had was for Tower of Terror which took a little over an hour and it was super hot out. After we rode that and had dinner at Sci-Fi we went to Galaxy's Edge because I wanted to look at the legacy lightsabers at Doc Ondars. When we went on Thursday they had a virtual waitlist and we didn't want to wait. In the evening there was no wait and we got right in. I ended up being extra nerdy and bought two of the Darth Maul sabers so that I could combine them into the double blade. After that we hurried out because I didn't want to carry those around lol and went back to MK to close out the trip. The parks at night all lit up are probably my favorite. Not only is it cooler out but I think everything looks nicer. We stayed there until the park closed at 9 and then rode the monorail back to the hotel. Using the mobile order I was able to get us a late night snack right before the Contempo Cafe closed.
Sunday 4/25 - Checkout
We checked out and headed to the airport around 8:30. Unfortunately a thunderstorm rolled in right as we were supposed to board so we had to change our flights. Instead of waiting in the terminal we headed back to the atrium to be comfortable and so I could smoke (not going to lie about that either. Didn't end up getting home until Monday morning after staying in Newark overnight.
Biggest Takeaways-
UPs-
-Hyatt MCO is a great place to stay if you fly in on an evening or late afternoon flight. Cheaper than a resort night for sure.
-I prefer the rental car over Disney transportation because of the freedom, flexibility and spontaneous decisions we could make.
-Side note...I paid the extra 15-20 bucks for preferred parking each day...this transfers to the other parks as well if you park hop. Definitely a plus since they don't have parking lot shuttles. Furthest back we parked was fourth row closest to the gates.
-Go early so that you can get a bunch of rides in when the crowds are lower....go back later in the evening when the people who have been there all day with kids are leaving.
-The lower crowd capacity is a huge plus. It was nice being able to move around and not feel like we were in a herd the whole time. Selfishly I don't care if the increase prices if they keep crowds lower, it was worlds better than Feb 2020 when it was full...that got to be no fun.
DOWNs-
-Having to wait until 2 to park hop wasn't great. Epcot Monorail was closed then also. When we went in Feb 2020 we rode monorail to Epcot, buzzed through to the skyliner on the other side and then took that to HS and back. Not being able to do that made having the car come in handy.
-When we were there we had to wear the masks outside too which wasn't great but I understood. The worst part was the anxiety over the mask and risking trouble for not having one on. Especially when I'd go out to the parking lot or was sitting outside under a tree at the resort and noone was around me. I didn't want to risk it so I went with it. Of course they changed it right after we left and I hope it stays that way. Call me crazy but if they made it so that if you voluntarily showed vaccination status or negative test you could have a wristband and not have to wear one at all I would totally do it...but don't think they should require it (just my opinion..don't sue me)
-Limited capacity in the restaurants made it hard to get reservations anywhere really, but we mostly stuck with quick service at the hotel most of the time aside from the ones I talked about above.
-The limited housekeeping was irritating, especially with how hot it is in Florida and needing to take multiple showers a day. It was just my daughter and I and we went through all the towels in no time. They did change them out I think every other day, but they didn't do anything with the beds at all. Five nights I would have expected at least one change of sheets, especially at a deluxe resort. First world problem I know but just bring honest so you know what to expect.
VLOGGER SIGHTINGS
-Only one I saw was Molly from AllEars...she was taking instagram pictures of an ice cream treat or something like that. I like her but I didn't bother her.
-No Trackers, Kays or anyone else that I noticed which was nice I must say.
We are looking forward to going back in February of 2021 for winter break and bringing my daughter's boyfriend since they are both seniors. Also heading out to DL in two months and got lucky enough to get tickets to their first Christmas Party on 11/11. Extra bonus since it is Veteran's Day and I am one.
Before I get a bunch of hate on how can I take this many trips, I am retired from the Army,not looking for thanks or clout...just saying it because I get the Military Salute discounts on the rooms and tickets....that can't be understated. Also, I recently gained custody of my daughter and didn't have to pay child support anymore (her mother passed a couple of months ago sadly). Between not having to pay that, my VA check, Army retirement, the big discounts and my job where I am getting paid pretty well I have plenty. I choose to use it on adventures with my daughter now while I can because when she was younger and I was in the Army I was struggling to put food on the table and we couldn't go anywhere at all. I know I don't have a whole lot of time left with her since she is already talking about moving in with the boyfriend after graduation (he's a great kid who loves my daughter) so I am trying to cram as much in as I can before it's just me and my dogs everyday at home after work.
Anyway, thanks for reading if you go this far. First time I've put it all down somewhere and I hope it helps. If you have other questions feel free to ask.
PS-Love this board and the tea...Viva La Unwell 3
. On my next trip in spring of 22 I plan to forgo any sort of planning and see what happens.
