I wanted to take the time and properly document our fun family trip to Disney World from the end of this past May. Hang with me if this turns into more an itemized list versus a story of our trip. I started writing and found that I will need to break this up into days instead of trying to outline our whole trip. This should be fun.
The trip started for everyone Thursday May 24th. The Vinsons and Brocks had a long haul from Mississippi. I believe they started their trip around morning rush hour with Mrs. Vinson behind the wheel. The reason I mention this is that she was back asleep before crossing into Florida. The girls have a funny picture but luckily for her I don't have it to post today. Our trip started much later. Courtney normally gets off around 4:00 and luckily this day was no exception. We arrived just before 1:00 am, about a nine hour drive.
Day one (5/25/12) began with rope drop at Animal Kingdom on a Maroon Friday. It was a bit of a challenge with having to check into Port Orleans French Quarter earlier that morning. Luckily Alyson was up to the task.
We ran straight back to Kilimanjaro Safaris. It has been our experience that the animals are more active in the early morning hours. Today was no exception.
Next up we headed straight for Expedition Everest. Our plans usually involve taking care of the E tickets before majority of the crowd arrives later in the day. This may have backfired on us a bit. We got everyone but Gee on Everest. All of the first-timers were a bit rattled after the reverse segment of the ride. It produced a fun movement by Abbey shouting "I SHOULD HAVE STAYED WITH GEE!"
In sticking with our E ticket rides we made our way over to Dinosaur which everyone rode. This ride always produces a great in-the-moment pictures. No photographic evidence though. Next time.
Afterwards we turned around to head back to Expedition Everest for a second go-round. The kids sat out this time. They went with Gee to check out Flights of Wonder. It is impossible to get Courtney to this show so it worked out.
Lunch was at Flame Tree BBQ. It is always enjoyable! Our tip here is that if you go as deep as possible into the seating area the crowds clear out. There is a lovely seating area that look out over the lake with Expedition Everest hanging in the background.
After lunch I ran back to grab fast passes to Kali River but it wasn't possible for us to make it so I ran back to catch everyone waiting in line for Festival of The Lion King. After the show I made the run again back to Kali River and grabbed some fast passes at that point.
The family strolled over to Bugs Life in the base of the Tree of Life. Always love the setting for this show. Feels like you are away from the crowds circling outside. Another great moment here is the reaction from everyone as the bugs leave the theatre just before you do. Abbey provided the huge scream from our group.
Afterwards the group headed to the Finding Nemo show. Another huge break from the heat of Animal Kingdom. We really found the approach effective. Ride early in the morning and catch shows in the afternoon.
We now had a fair amount of time until our fast passes to Kali River Rapids were ready. We caught a bit of Jammin Jungle and took a break with some frozen lemonade. Kali River Rapids had a great moment after making it through the drop. A stream of water much like a fire hose nailed Gee. As Courtney was pointing a laughing she realized it was headed straight for her head. This ride was the highlight of the day for everyone.
Dinner that night was at 'Ohana. This has always been our favorite spot in our favorite resort. The food is the most consistent on property. It didn't disappoint this night either. A perfect end to a perfect first day.
