Trip Report for June 2003 (My 30th Birthday trip!) About This Page:

[RobinKay6573]

I just found this trip report from last year so I thought I would post it enjoy:

Robin Sackevich
Robinkay6573@yahoo.com
June 3-8 (June 4-6 at Disney parks)

Wednesday, June 4, 2003
(Magic Kingdom, MGM, Downtown Disney)

Before I left Michigan I made a list of all the things I wanted to do at the Disney Parks. I listed favorite rides as well as rides I had not been able to ride on previous trips. Since I had never seen Stars & Cars at MGM or Mickey’s Jamming Jungle Parade at Animal Kingdom I put those on my list.

We left the condo at about 9:00 and parked in Pluto 27. I thought that was cool because Pluto is my second favorite character after Simba. The Magic Kingdom was open until 9 on June 4 so we decided to make that our first park. We took the tram to TTS and then the monorail to MK. We actually got to sit in the front! It was very cool. I made sure I got my co-pilot’s license for my scrapbook. As soon as we got to MK I went to guest relations and got my birthday button. We then rented a locker and made our way to Tomorrowland. I wanted to do Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. Since it was so busy at Christmastime we did not get a chance to ride this ride. We got FP and then boarded the Tomorrowland Transit Authority. I had never been on this ride. It went right through Space Mountain and Space Ranger Spin! We checked the time for our FP when we got off. It still wasn’t our time yet so we looked around in the arcade and played a couple of video games. We joined the FP line and waited about 10 minutes. I forgot that ride was so much fun! Sandy got a huge score of over 100,000 and I got about 65,000.

After Tomorrowland we ventured over to Fantasyland. I wanted to ride the Pooh ride but it was closed for reconditioning. L We then made our way to Adventureland. We decided to ride Jungle Cruise because I had heard somewhere that it may close in the near future. The line was pretty long we waited about 30 minutes. Thank goodness they had air conditioners and fans to keep the crowd cool. When we boarded the boat the greeter wished me a happy birthday. As we left the dock the boat captain said, “I see someone on this boat is celebrating a birthday!” then he asked my name and proceeded lead the other passengers in a chorus of Happy Birthday. It was cool and really made me feel special!

We walked around Adventureland into Frontierland where we decided to get a bite to eat before the parade. Since we had such good luck with Paco Bill’s in the past we decided to eat there again. Sandy went and got the burgers while I found a table outside. We wanted to be somewhat close to the road so we could get a good seat for the parade. Our burgers were great. I love the fixing bar where you can top your burger with sautéed onions and mushrooms along with a whole host of veggies and condiments.

Nemo made his appearance at the beginning of the parade. He was “swimming” around with some walking seaweed! He was very cute! This parade was not much different from the parade for Walt’s Birthday celebration. I love the water globes.

After the parade we took the train to Toon Town. I wanted to look around and get some photos of Minnie’s house and Mickey’s house. They were very cool with a lot of hidden Mickeys. A cast member in the gift store gave use a demonstration of how Pal Mickey works. Next time I go to WDW we are going to rent one and get a taste of how he works.

It started to sprinkle as we boarded the train back to Main Street USA. We were heading to MGM next so we hoped the rain would hold off. Minutes after we got to the station and got off the train it started down pouring. We sat in the train station until it let up a bit. We went to the monorail station and caught a train back to TTS so we could board a bus to MGM. We decided to go on Tower of Terror first. We didn’t even need a fast pass we just got into line and were on the elevator 5 minutes later. They have changed this ride a great deal since I had been on it in May of 2001. There isn’t just a couple of predictable drops there are several random drops! It was scarier then I remember!

The Stars and Cars parade started at 5:30 so we made our way back to Hollywood Boulevard to see the parade. The parade had already started so we missed some of it. I could not take pictures because I was too far back. It was a cool parade though. I love the way they announce each car and who is riding in it! Next trip I will make it a point to get a good seat for the parade at MGM.

We held FP for Rock & Roller Coaster but we didn’t need them. The wait was about 10 minutes so we decided to save them and ride again after if there was a line. R & R C is one cool ride! I forgot how fast it starts out….wow!! We ended up riding it again. By the time we got off it was down pouring. We went back to Magic Kingdom because we were not sure we would be back to see the parade. We wanted to go back to Sandy’s Condo in Kissimmee and change because we were soaking wet. We were not even sure if they would have the SpectroMagic Parade.

After changing we headed back to WDW. Because of the rain on the drive we knew there was no way we were going to make it back to MK in time for SpectroMagic. We decided to go to Downtown Disney instead and do some shopping. I quickly found the scrapbook store. I was not impressed with the selection of products. I bought a couple packages and a box of stickers and a scrapbook kit. . I spend a ton of money at The World of Disney. I purchased a stencil book that came with markers and paper, some post cards, a Disney screen saver, a Disney character CD ROM and a couple of magnets. We decided to go to Ghirardelli’s and have some ice cream before heading back to the condo. I had the Stake It Rich Sundae and Sandy had a strawberry & chocolate sundae. They were great but not as good as Ben & Jerry’s (but who is?). Once I got through the whipped cream there was about an inch of air before the ice cream started. For $6.50 you think they would fill up the sundae dish! After a very long day we headed home.

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Thursday, June 5, 2003
My 30th Birthday
(Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Chef Mickey’s)

Our first stop on Thursday was Epcot. We went over to Test Track to get a FP but were surprised to find there was only a 5 minute wait for single riders. While we were in line an announcement was made that there were thunderstorms and rain in the area and they may have to close the ride. We were on and off before it started to sprinkle.

Since rain was threatening we decided to tour the Flower & Garden Festival exhibits before we went on any more rides or buildings. The doggie maze was very cute! They didn’t seem to have as many topiaries as there were last year but the ones they had were well done. My favorite was Lady & the Tramp in the doggie maze.

We went to The Land and got FP for Living With The Land. While we waited we decided to watch The Circle of Life movie. I love the movies because the story is told by characters from The Lion King which is my favorite movie. We checked our FP when the movie let out. We still had 15 minutes until we could Living With The Land. Since we weren’t eating dinner until late we split a Double Chocolate Brownie Sundae at Bakery & Ice Cream Shop in The Land. It was the best brownie sundae I have ever had. The brownie was rich like fudge and the ice cream was so creamy! We washed it down with a large soda! We headed over to Living With The Land. It is so nice to be in a cool air-conditioned ride while it is so warm outside. Living with the Land is one of my favorite rides at Epcot, just because it is so quite and relaxing. Living Seas was next on our list. That had a ton of Finding Nemo merchandise. I ended up buying a Dora & Nemo beanbags for my bathroom and Sandy and I purchased a limited edition Finding Nemo pin. We had them sent to the gate so we wouldn’t have to carry them around all day.
My favorite Celtic Band Off Kilter was playing in Canada at 1:30 so we headed toward the World Showcase to see them. We watched Off Kilter for about fifteen minutes or so and then headed off to tour the countries. It was very hot and humid so staying in the shade and taking it slow was the order of the day. We were very happy to find a flavored shaved ice. The tangerine shaved ice cones really hit the spot!
We left Epcot at about 2:45 via boat so we didn’t have to walk all the way to the entrance of the park. We took a bus from the Swan Hotel to Animal Kingdom. I thought we were going to miss the parade at Animal Kingdom. For some reason I thought it was at 3:00. When we first caught site of Discovery Island we noticed that people were lining up on the pathway. We hadn’t missed the parade it was at 4:00 not 3:00. Even though we were late I still found a good spot and got some photos. Out of all the parades I think the one at AK is my favorite. I loved the petal powered floats and puppets.
Since on my last couple of trips we had not gone to Dinoland, USA we decided to concentrate on that section of the park. Sandy wasn’t feeling well so she decided to find a bench and sit while I rode the rides. There was no wait at Dinosaur so I walked right onto the ride. I love being scared out of my seat! I love that ride. Primal Whirl is a fairly new ride so I decided to try it. I don’t really like “spinning” rides so I wasn’t all that impressed with PW. I will probably not go on that one again.
Our priority seating at Chef Mickey’s was at 6:30 so we decided to head over to the Contemporary Hotel. We arrived at about 5:45 so we sat in the lobby and cooled off a bit. We made our way up the stairs at about 6:15. We were given a lighted coaster and ushered off to get our “family” photo taken. There were just two of us (my sister and I). We were seated about 6:30 where the protocol was explained to us. Neither my sister nor I had ever been to a character dinner. Since it was my birthday I got a button (like the one I got at MK) and a placemat with signatures from Minnie, Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Pluto and Chip & Dale. At the end of the meal I also got a cupcake with a candle on it.
The waitress got our drink order and we headed for the buffet. The food was wonderful. They had prime rib, chicken, pork in sweat & sour sauce and turkey. For the little ones they also had chicken fingers, hot dogs & mac & cheese. For sides there was California mix veggies in feta cheese, salad, mashed garlic potatoes, red potatoes & French fries for the kids. Peel and eat shrimp was also available. Dessert consisted of make-your-own-sundae & a verity of pies and cakes. I found dessert kind-of disappointing but dinner was wonderful!
I was not sure how much interaction I would get with the characters seeing there were only two of us and we were both adults. In the table next to us there was a family with two teen-age daughters and one daughter who was maybe 11. Goofy had fun with the oldest daughter. He pulled her out of her seat and proceeded to “propose” marriage and then he gave her a basket with “flowers” (which was the basket on the table for the salt/pepper and sugar packets) and made her a “Vale” out of a napkin on the table. He then grabbed my arm and gave me the little girl’s autograph book; I was to “marry” them. It was so funny this poor girls mom was laughing so hard she was crying. Goofy marched her out of the restaurant arm and arm and presented his new “bride” to everyone in the lobby. Mickey came over shaking his head over Goofy’s antics! All the characters were wonderful. I had them sign a map of the Magic Kingdom for me. Minnie even wrote “Happy Birthday Robin Love Minnie”! Mickey even gave me a birthday kiss. The characters at the dinner were, Mickey, Minnie, Chip & Dale, Goofy and Donald. I was alittle disappointed that Pluto wasn’t there (I was told he would be). I took a ton of photos. My camera shy sister even posed for some pictures. The picture taken before dinner by the Disney CM was so good we actually bought the package. We both kept the 8 x10, and are going to share rest with our parents and grandparents. At the end of dinner I was presented with a cupcake with a candle on it. The whole room twirled their napkins in the air and sang the special Chef Mickey’s Celebration song for me and another girl who was celebrating her birthday. The experience was well worth the money we spent.
After dinner we went back to Epcot for Illuminations, get the car and our things from the locker. We caught the last quarter of the show and then headed back to the Contemporary to see the Electric Water Pageant. I was disappointed to hear the music to the water pageant was no long the same music as the Main Street Electric Parade. Maybe it wasn’t the same all along but from what I remember from when I was child the music was the same. Anyway the parade was cool and I am glad we got to see it. It was the perfect ending to another wonderful Disney day.
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Friday, June 6, 2003
(Typhoon Lagoon, Character Premier, Arabian Knights)

Last year Sandy & I had gone to Blizzard Beach. Since I had never been to Typhoon Lagoon I decided this trip we would go. We picked a great day to go to Typhoon Lagoon. It was a typical hot and humid Florida day. We went to breakfast at Denny’s and then headed to the park. We got to the park fairly late (around 11:00) but we were still able to find two unoccupied chairs. We set our cooler full of munchies, soda and water down and went to find some water to play in.

We started out in Castaway Creek where we had a chance to get wet and cool down. It was so nice to be able to relax after two days of rushing around the parks. We spend much of the day in Castaway Creek.

We went around Castaway Creek once and then decided to get off and snorkel with the fish. The use of masks, snorkels and vests were free of charge. The lifeguard gave us instructions and we swam from one side to the other. It was so cool seeing the fish so close. They swam around just out of reach.

We jumped back on Castaway Creek and headed back to our chairs. We had a snack and went to find the water slides. We referred to a map and found our way to the Storm Slides. When Sandy saw the Humunga Kowabunga she said there was now way she was going on those slides. I am really not into the super fast slides so I agreed with her. We stuck to the benign slides and stayed away from the ones that will give you road rash on your tushy! J The lines for the slides weren’t that bad. I think we waited about 10 minutes to ride the slides. We both went on two out of three of the slides.

Again we used Castaway Creek to move around the park. We stayed on the Creek for about an hour. We then went back to our chairs and people watched for a little while. The wave pool was looking really inviting so we decided to give it a try. For such a huge wave pool the waves were pretty wimpy. Later in the day we would find out just how big those waves could get!

It was getting late and the sky was getting darker we decided to find some more water slides before they closed the park for a thunderstorm. We ended up at May Day Falls and Keelhaul Falls. Both these were slides used inner tubes. We both rode each slide once. I enjoyed these slides much more then I did the Storm Slides.

When we left the Falls we again rode Castaway Creek. About 10 minutes into our ride it started down pouring. We heard no thunder so we were pretty certain the shower would pass quickly. Many people were making their way to the exits. We figured we were already wet why should we let rain spoil our day? We rode around on Castaway Creek once and then made our way back to our chairs. An English woman who was on the beach when it started to rain was nice enough to put our towels under our chair so they wouldn’t get as wet. We thanked her and sat and talked to her about their families visit to Disney. She said her family was having a wonderful time and they were a bit overwhelmed with all the activities that Disney had to offer.

It was still raining a bit when we decided to try the wave pool again. They must have turned the wave maker WAY up because the waves were humongous! All you heard was this WOOOOSHHH….then you had to brace yourself because you were going to get knocked off your feet if you didn’t. It was obvious that the kids loved the big waves. I could not believe how many people were WAY out in the deep end. Sandy and I stayed in-between 4 feet and 5 feet. We had a great time riding the waves. I got knocked on my behind a couple of times but I was laughing though the whole experience.

It was about 3 when we decided to split a burger for lunch. We went to the Leaning Palms and got a burger and fries. The food was okay, nothing special. It probably would have been better if we had brought our own sandwiches.

We went back into the wave pool after lunch. The waves were still pretty high. We sat on the edge of the pool and watched all the kids swimming and screaming every time they heard the WOOOSHHH. It was getting late and we were both getting water logged so we decided to pack up and head out.

Since we were going to Arabian Knights that night we brought clothes with use to change into. We both went into the showers and washed all the chlorine off ourselves and rinsed out our swim suites. It was so nice to be in dry clothes and shoes! I had to rent a towel because mine was soaked from the rain. Towel rental costs a dollar. Next time I will remember to bring an extra towel and leave it in the locker. I returned the key and to my surprised we had a choice of either getting our $2 deposit or getting a “Finding Nemo” Mug. Of course I picked the mug because I love Nemo! It is a nice insulated mug with Nemo, Dory & Merlin on it.

Sandy went to the car while I carried the cooler to meet her at the gate so we didn’t have to carry it way back to the parking lot. I looked around in the gift store then made my way to the entrance.

Since we had a few hours until Arabian Knights we decided to go to the Premier Outlet Mall and visit the Disney World Outlet Store. This is a must every time I visit Disney. They always have some super deals and this visit was no different. I was lucky enough to be at WDW for Christmas of 2002. I didn’t pick up any Christmas ornaments because they were way too expensive (I couldn’t see spending $15 on something you only have out for a month every year). I picked up a Pluto ornament that was regularly priced at $16 for $2.99 and Eeorye ornament regularly priced at $15 for $3.99! I ended up getting two of the Eeorye ornaments (one for me and one for my friend Mandy). I also bought a handful of pins, a WDW Christmas sweatshirt, an Eeoyre t-shirt, two picture frames, some magnets, a 100 Year Celebration DVD and 4 photo albums (priced $1.99 a piece!). I spent about $80 total but I probably got about $200 worth of merchandise (at least). It is probably a good thing I don’t live down there or I would be at that store EVERY day! You can see how people can make a lot of extra cash buying genuine WDW merchandise at this discount store and then reselling it to people on e-bay at the regular price.

We arrived at Arabian Knights a bit early. Since our tickets had been reserved a head of time we had no problem getting into the sold out show. We ended up paying $15 extra for the VIP treatment. That was a huge waste of money! They said we would get a barn tour and we would be able to go into the arena and pet the horses. We also got priority seating in the first or second row. They made it sound like there would only be about 10 to 20 people doing the VIP treatment…it was more like 75 people! We were hearded into this big room and given a free drink (beer, wine or soft drinks). We did get to go into the arena and pet the horse, take pictures and talk with the riders. Our barn tour maybe took 5 minutes at most. We were told what breed the horses were, what they did in the show & their names. We came nowhere near seeing ALL of the horses in the show. The whole experience lasted about 20 (maybe 30 minutes). We also got a poster and a button.

I am a huge horse fan and I have been riding since I was 10 years old. When I was in college I worked at the Arabian horse breeding farm on campus, we had over 100 head of horses including 35 brood mares and 5 stallions. This show was a birthday gift from my parents.

The story that went along with the show was a bit corny. Her father proclaimed that the princess was to marry the best horseman in the Kingdom. As with most romance stories a evil suitor was involved. The princess wanted to be sure that her true love was the best rider in the Kingdom. Anyway each skit was her way of seeing all the skilled riders in the Kingdom. The Black Stallion was a gift to the princess and there was even a skit where a unicorn made it’s appearance.

The food was pretty good for a dinner show. They served prime rib or vegetable lasagna, mixed vegetables, red potatoes and (wedding) cake for dessert. The waitress also gave you a pitcher of soft drink or beer to enjoy though-out the show.

As far as equestrian skills and horse training goes these performers were TOP notch! I have seen the lippazan stallions from the Spanish Riding School perform twice and these riders were as good as them if not better! I have never seen a horse do some of the things they had these horses do. They made very difficult skills look easy. There was everything from Circus acrobatics performed by “Gypsies” to airs above the ground which are the extremely difficult to teach a horse, they need to jump up kick their feet out while not moving laterally. It sounds easy but since that is not a natural movement for a horse it takes years to master.

After the show some of the riders and their horses stood at the boards so people could pet the horses. The riders were extremely friendly so we chatted with them for a bit. They let a whole herd of horses into the arena for playtime. It was great to see all the horses kicking up their heels and playing with one another. The horses on the board remained calm as if there were no horses other then them in the arena. I took a roll and a half of photos and they came out pretty good despite the low light in the arena. Next time I go to Disney I will make it a point to see Arabian Knights again.

All and all we had a great time at Walt Disney World. I really enjoy the Flower and Garden Festival. I hope to go back to Walt Disney World in February of 2004. My sister is always a gracious host and we always have a good time.

[Belle*]

Thanks for posting Robin! Your report is getting me excited for my 30th birthday trip in 2 weeks!

[Colexis Mom]

Great report RObin Thanks for sharing it

[MickeyMAC]

Thanks for sharing your trip with us. Sounds like you had a very good time.

[luvnwdwgal]

Great trip report Robin! Thanks for sharing!!

[buckysmom]

What a wonderful way to turn 30!
You certainly had a busy trip.
Happy Birthday and thanks for sharing your trip report

[statelady01]

Did the same thing and spent my 30th at Disney last year- it was the best birthday I have ever had!!

Thanks for your great report!