Photo TR: First Time to Orlando! WDW, Universal, Busch, More

New Fantasyland turned out very well. The whole area looks much better than it ever did before, and the mine-train coaster is a great addition.

The detail in NFL is good, and I DO love the Tangled toilets (frying pans - who knew!). Actually, the fake foliage on top of Seven Dwarfs is my favorite part of the whole area - amazingly realistic! I am a big fan of Be Our Guest, but I could do without the other attractions. They just underwhelm me too much to get all excited about the land itself. I'd rather spend my time at Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise, Big Thunder, Splash, Space, or Alien Encoun.....oops. Scrap that last one.

Keep in mind, I don't dislike going to any of their parks - I always have a great time. I'm just being super critical of the things I love and things I don't love all that much. Ya know, cuz it's the internet! I wouldn't turn down a ride on Mine Train...well unless I had to queue for more than 20 minutes.

I think like most people who've been though, I'd take DisneySea over pretty much any other park. Amazing theme and awesome rides!

I think I missed something...what are Tangled toilets?

Toilets that are themed to Tangled! Rapunzels tower is basically a guiding beacon that lets you know that if you need to poop you head in the direction of her tower!

Tanlged Toilets = Best part of New Fantasyland other than Elsa!

That's really cool! Easy for people who need to always have a bathroom within sight. So the inside is themed to Tangled too?

^Strangely enough, yes. There are "wanted" posters of characters from the movie and frying pans hanging on the wall.

That's really cool! Easy for people who need to always have a bathroom within sight. So the inside is themed to Tangled too?

Yes and the musical score from the movie is played through the area and inside the toilets so you can poop while singing "Ive got a dream" if you wish!

"A dream is a bowel movement your heart makes . . ."

I'm curious as to why you only did three things at DAK. Were you pressed for time, or did you have no desire to do anything else at the park? It saddens me when people don't like DAK because it's my favorite park of Disney's in Florida. This is partly because it opened when I worked there, but also because I know the effort that went into transforming a flat treeless cow pasture into what the park is today. To me, that's truly an amazing feat.

...

Interesting to see how others interpret parks for the first time, especially a park like Animal Kingdom which breaks the mold when it comes to typical theme parks modeled around attractions you have to wait in line for. Lots of the park is all about discovery and exploring which, unfortunately, not many people do. But, I am curious as to why you only chose to do three attractions in a park that has a lot more.

When my hubby and I went to WDW for the first time, we planned on spending 1/2 a day at AK..but when we went there, we absolutely fell in love with it and decided to return the next day. I love the sense of exploration and discovery. To me, AK is not like any of the other 4 parks. You have to hike through the trees & exhibits for a long way until you actually see the centerpiece of the park-the Tree of Life. In the 3 times I've gone to AK, I felt like there was always something new to see or experience. It's also a very relaxing park..the music, lush landscaping and the bodies of water really make me feel like I'm in another world. It doesn't really seem too crazy crowded- also a plus.

We're not always show people when it comes to theme parks, but we love musicals and theater..so when we gave Nemo & Lion King a shot. I love "Avenue Q" - so I knew going into Nemo, that at least I would like the music. We were blown away! Everest is probably my fave in all of WDW. Yep...I know I'm totally in the minority here..but I LOVE DAK! Loved it so much that I drink coffee out of my DAK mug everyday, wishing I was there, LOL!

I have spent two whole days at Animal Kingdom: my first visit to the park and a day (well, the better part of it) with my brother who'd never been there before. I learned a valuable lesson the second time. I rode the Kali River Rapids with Erik Johnson, and we came through it relatively dry. Then my brother showed up, and he likes rapids rides, so we rode it again.

Do not tempt Kali twice. We were all soaked from head to toe during the second ride. That made for some rather chilly rides on ToT at the Studios park that night.

That's really cool! Easy for people who need to always have a bathroom within sight. So the inside is themed to Tangled too?

 

Yes and the musical score from the movie is played through the area and inside the toilets so you can poop while singing "Ive got a dream" if you wish!

Tangled toilets sounds awesome! I might have to save up before going to Magic Kingdom... (if you know what I mean )

Heck, I actually saw the tower during my last visit but I hadn't seen Tangled at that time so I didn't know what it was. Also we had limited time so we rushed past the area to get to Seven Dwarfes Mine Train. Really looking forward to spending more time just checking out the various areas of the parks this time.

So sadly my Orlando trip was coming to an end and I had my 2 final full days at Disney and a half day before my flight home. This update will cover them all as one of the days was just relaxing for the most part and I don't think many people would like the idea of a trip report featuring me napping! So here we go.......

First stop was for one last look at the Orlando Eye. Its amazing to think that when I arrived in Orlando they only had 3 pods installed.

"Lets go back to Epcot" The answer to that will always be "Yes!"

It was time to try Mission Space again this time without the jet lag

They trusted me with the time to blast off?!?!? I wouldn't consider that a wise move!

Hey look Garbles anyone can be an engineer!

Oh what a shame that I didn't get to experience this. How will I possibly live with the shame?

More Test Track = More AWESOME!

Why can't we go 69mph?

"Now what does that say? Oh thats right BOOM!"

Fire barge is so freaking awesome!

So after IllumiNations we hung around the park so Jack could take photos then we took a walk around the Epcot resort area. I have to say the whole resort area really did look nice and to be within walking distance of Epcot is an awesome thing. By the time we were done with pictures and walking around it must have been 2 hours after the park closed and unbelievably they let us back in the park so we could get to the car park. It was so weird to walk around the park with no other guests there, you can actually appreciate the beauty of the park even more in the dark which is saying a LOT!

Have you ever been at Epcot when the park is this empty before?

Next day me, Robb and Elissa took a trip over to Downtown Disney because I couldn't come to Disney World without going to Earl of Sandwich!

Now we know where the studios hat has been moved too!

It surprised me that I only noticed this awesome piece of merchandise right near the end of my visit. If it wouldn't have cost me and arm and a leg to buy everything and ship it home I would have more than likely purchased the whole lot. I would love to see more parks do weird stuff like this!

So Downtown Disney was under pretty heavy construction during my visit so I can't really say too much on the area other than from what I have seen that was complete and the amount of work going on the whole area should looks really nice when finished. What I can comment on is Earl of Sandwich! Damn do they make great sandwiches, I really wish I had one of these near me instead of Subway.

After Downtown Disney we took a trip to my first ever Waffle House! Naturally after Earl of Sandwhich and Waffle House a rest was in order before we went back to Magic Kingdom for my final night there!

"Welcome back to Magic Kingdom Craig, please don't leave tomorrow!"

Knowing how hard Baymax plush was to get hold of I had pretty much given up getting one. That was until Elissa and KT shouted my name after they entered a shop and they had just got a new shipment! Naturally I got 2! The woman at the checkout said they had been put out about 15 mins before we arrived in the shop so we got very lucky. #Balalalala

We also took my first ride on Buzz Lightyear that night. I personally don't think I would have been too bothered if I missed out on riding it as it felt pretty much the same as Paris version to me.

Also I feel very jaded with shooting dark rides now having been on far too many. I prefer a classic dark ride to a shooting dark ride any day.

Who wants to drink from a Donald butt mug?

I had to make sure I got one last ride on Seven Dwarfs. I really did enjoy this ride and the animatronics were fantastic. This should be a must have on any Disney park now!

If you got to Magic Kingdom you MUST visit Tangled toilets!

Did we learn from out previous 3 in a row experience on Big Thunder? Of course we didn't!

Everything was fine up until this point!

Then this happened and our one giant collective arse was bouncing all over the place!

I almost made the whole trip without having to experience Small World but noooooooo everyone decided I needed to do it! As you can see I loved the ride so much!

The castle is just so beautiful at night! I think it looks much better at night compared to the day.

Awww damn you Zurg everyone wanted to see the picture of the Frozen/Newsies themed orgy we had that night. Oh well I guess you will never know what happened that night

So that was it for my last full day at Disney but all was not over yet as I had some spare time the next day before my flight home so naturally it was going to be a Disney highlights day!

There was no way I could leave without going back to Magic Kingdom one more time!

Considering later in the day I was going to spend 8 and a half hours on a plane why not take another trip to space.

I can't stress enough how much this ride impressed me. Why on earth Paris got one like they did I do not know as they would have been much better off with something similar to this.

Baymax fist bump in SPACE!

"OH MY GOD SOMEONE FELL OUT!"

I have never seen a ride anywhere hide the track so well with theming. This ride is without doubt on of the best themed rides I have ever been lucky enough to ride.

Hahahaha

Why not just ask someone to take a picture of the group for you, you would get a better quality photo!

Oh Tangled Toilets how I will miss taking a poop with Rapunzel!

Charging stations at the park with USB ports! I mean the fact they even considered doing this let alone actually did it says so much about the amazing way Disney runs the park!

This is what happened to me with the shame of seeing Belle behind Elsa's back! I had to fix that though I couldn't leave with the guilt burning a hole inside me!

Being the good friend that I am I let Robb spend time with Anna before I said goodbye to Elsa. I still haven't forgiven you Anna for saying I have a frozen heart!

Elsa: "What do you mean you saw Belle behind my back?"

Me: "This magic portal opened and I felt the need to enter it. She was waiting for me not the other way round I swear"

Elsa: "Is entering a magic portal some sort of euphemism?"

Yay all is forgiven but with a hint of sadness as I knew only hours left in Orlando!

I wouldn't have been a horrible Disney fan if I didn't get my picture taken with the famous statue!

Bye bye Magic Kingdom!

Even though we left Magic Kingdom we still had a small amount of time to kill before we needed to leave for the airport so a quick stop at Epcot was in order!

Literally the BEST car park EVER!

I will miss you Spaceship Moon!

Is it a shame I didn't get to ride Maelstrom? NOPE! Am I excited for the Frozen ride? OMG YES!

The last place I visited at Epcot before we left was of course England and I had fish & chips as my final meal in America because thats how amazing I am!

Sad times as Baymax and me say goodbye to America as our "First time in Orlando" trip comes to an end.

So there you have it that was my Orlando adventure for you all to enjoy. I can without question say I had a phenomenal time in Orlando, far better than I was expecting. Ive never been some where like Orlando before in my life, its like an theme park park bubble where everything seems to run around them its so weird and awesome at the same time. I was so relaxed during this trip it was wonderful and I loved every minute of it.

Coming from a country where most of our parks close at 5/6pm most of the year it was so nice to be able to think later in the evening "Oh fancy going for a walk round Epcot" and actually being able to. You don't even need to ride anything at any of the parks if you do that, they are just genuinely really nice places to be and enjoy spending time with friends. I would like to think people who are lucky enough to have that near by them really appreciate just how privileged they are to have that opportunity even if they choose not to do it.

I really hope to be able to get back out to Orlando sometime in the future but if thats not possible I will always have extremely fond memories of this trip.

I do want to say a huge thank you to Robb, Elissa and KT for putting me up, taking me all these new place, dealing with my disturbing lack of knowledge when it came to America and actually inviting me out in the first place! I really appreciate it and this trip would never have happened without you guys! Also want to say thanks to everyone we met up with and spent time at the parks with, that also includes Tom even though you made us do Hall of Presidents!

I hope you all enjoyed this trip report and who knows maybe this isn't the end

-Craig

Amazing report. Glad you had a great time. I look forward to going back to Orlando after not visiting in 2014, the first time in ten years I didn't make at least one trip down there.

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Great report, Craig. Really makes me want to head south again.

This might be my favorite trip report ever on this site, loved every update! Seeing all your pictures and reading your comments has brought back so many memories from last year, and made me even more stoked for my upcoming trip in May! Thank you so much for sharing your adventure with all of us.

I know what you mean. This TR makes me want to go back to WDW right now, and I was just there last month.

Honestly doing this trip report has been a lot of fun but it also has made me want to go back already! When you consider I didn't actually do everything there is to do in Orlando anyway there is more than enough reasons to go back.

Honestly doing this trip report has been a lot of fun but it also has made me want to go back already! When you consider I didn't actually do everything there is to do in Orlando anyway there is more than enough reasons to go back.

I can totally relate to that feeling. Normally after a good vacation I have the feeling that I want to go back. Once I got back from Orlando last year my immediate feeling was that I MUST go back! I suffered from a serious case of post-Disney depression for weeks after getting home.

Also considering I didn't meet Elsa last time I don't really have any choice about going back or not...

I volunteer for the next first time in orlando

Great TR Craig!!

It's really cool to see things again with a fresh set of eyes. I'm just surprised, that after your two-timing shenanigans, Elsa took you back!!

^Yes, you think Elsa would've given him a somewhat frostier reception.

Great report! Hurry back, there's an election next year so your favorite attraction will be getting an update!

And that frozen thing will probably be cool too... but presidents!

Coming from a country where most of our parks close at 5/6pm most of the year it was so nice to be able to think later in the evening "Oh fancy going for a walk round Epcot" and actually being able to. You don't even need to ride anything at any of the parks if you do that, they are just genuinely really nice places to be and enjoy spending time with friends. I would like to think people who are lucky enough to have that near by them really appreciate just how privileged they are to have that opportunity even if they choose not to do it.

Seriously though, twas fun times. I sometimes forget how fortunate I am to be able to drive down to Magic kingdom after work and go for a walk. Funny enough I don't think I have actually been to Magic kingdom during daytime since you were here.

The best thing about these parks after five-ish years living around them is that I'm still not bored, it still feels like there are so many places and things I haven't done at the resort. I doubt I'll be close to this place forever and that will be a pretty rough day.

This trip report was awesome! and now i'm dying to go back to Disney and visit the other Florida parks as well. Seven Dwarfs didn't impress me too much from the videos I watched back when it opened, but for some reason the pictures you took made it seem like a must ride now. I plan on going as soon as the Frozen attraction is built, ahhhhhh this TR has me so excited!!

^The Seven Dwarfs Mine Coaster is a very good ride and will probably surprise you. There was a "rush to judgment" about this attraction before it opened (oh, enthusiasts), but it's a great family ride (much better than the old dark ride it replaced).

I'm just surprised, that after your two-timing shenanigans, Elsa took you back!!

Well she did have a Frozen heart when she found out what I did but I performed an act of true love to thaw her frozen heart then all was forgiven because you know I basically saved her life!

Great report! Hurry back, there's an election next year so your favorite attraction will be getting an update!

And that frozen thing will probably be cool too... but presidents!

If they don't at least add the word war another 15 times I will be very disappointed!