Disney Adventures.
My Cousin came down from New York and wanted to do the Disney Parks. Upon my family hearing this, i got nominated to take him. We each had a one day Hopper Pass. This is how our day worked out:
We arrived at Magic Kingdom at about 9am, and it would have been earlier had i not missed the turn, and the first thing we did was run and grab Fast Passes for Space Mountain. Upon turning around and looking at the overhead attraction logo, we noticed that the wait time was only 20 minutes! This was unheard of for such a trademark ride of the Magic Kingdom. We quickly waited out the line, which ended up being a little bit shorter than twenty minutes and hopped right back on with our fast-passes.
After we got off the second time, we decided to head over to Buzz Lightyear's: Space Ranger Spin. We pretty much walked right onto the ride and had a blast trying to outscore each other(I won by way too much).
We made our way around the backside of Tomorrowland and B-lined it for Fantasy land where we did the Phillar Magic 3D show. This was definately the most original of all the rest of the 3D stage shows at any of the other Theme Parks in Orlando. This show takes you through all the original disney Animated movies soundtracks. Including Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, the Little Mermaid, Lion King, Fantasia, and more.
From here we made it right accross the way to Its a Small World. Since this was the stamp of all of disney world property, i forced my cousin to go on it. Its a classic ride that is ridiculously long and in some sequences boring, but its one of the originals and it certainly makes for some neat conversations later on.
Moving around the backside of Fantasyland, we stopped off to do Disney's Haunted Mansion. We especially enjoyed this ride because we are both into the sppoky horror genre of anything. This takes you through a sort of walk through tour of the house, and then a moving train tour of the what walking didnt cover. This ride includes some cool special effects as well as some humor and horror and then sometimes all three balled into one.
Adventureland came next. We hit up the Pirates of the Carribean, Tiki Hut, and Swiss Family Robinson house all within the hour. Thats how short the lines were. The Pirates of the carribbean has always been a favorite of mine, and it has only gotten better since they re-did it with Captain Jack Sparrow being the highlight now. Some of the effects have been re-done, which gives it a more intense feel. The Tiki Hut is a show about birds and features characters from Aladdin, The Lion King and the Little Mermaid. This show would be a blast for kids and fans of the characters featured in this show. For two teenage boys, it seemed to drag on, and with Rides like Rockin Roller Coaster, and Tower of Terror waiting for us, we wanted it to be over so we could get on with our day.
We stopped at the Peco Bills Cafe to grab a bite to eat, and we were both surprised at how cheap and good it was. The burgers and fries there were excellent, and neither of us spent more than $12. Plus it wasnt too crowded to have to walk around with the food. At lunch time, we were able to just find a seat and table and chill for half an hour. And after walking the park for 4 hours, the break was much needed.
After Lunch, we made out trek to Hollywood Studios because my cousin wanted to do a "Real Roller Coaster". So we got our fast-passes for Rockin Roller Coaster, and went to Tower of Terror. the 45 minute wait time felt more like an hour, but at the end it was well worth it. The Free-Fall thrill hit the spot at the time. The only complaint i had was the girl next to me screaming so loud and so piercing that i was ready to pull my hair out and throw it at her. But in all fairness, i screamed like a little girl just to make her see how annoying it is. Ended up working out in the end.
The complaint i had with Rockin Roller Coaster was that they were no longer accepting Fast-Pass tickets. even after getting them at the machine before Tower of Terror, they would not accept them, so we had to wait in like for the full 100 minutes. It was a long and frustrating wait as the middle school girls behind me were so loud and rambled on and on about how many cute guys they had seen in the parks that day. Just when we though it wasnt gonna be worth the rest of the wait, we hit the "pre-show" with Aerosmith coming out and informing the guests that they will be escorted via a private limo (Roller coaster cart) to their show in LA. We figured this was going to about rap up the line. We got on the Roller Coaster and i look up and see that the person in front of me, is none other than my favorite little screamer from Tower of Terror. How was she was in line without me noticing? I cant say for sure. All i knew was two words. Payback Time. From start to finish i screamed so loud and so hard that by the time i got off the ride, i had absolutely no voice. The ride itself was amazing. Very dark with neon street signs, and disregarded stop lights as the "limo" speeds through them topping out at over 60mph. After we got off the ride, we quickly found a place that sold some drinks and bought a couple cokes for almost $3 each. Seems like alot, but i didnt have a choice. I was afraid my voice wouldnt come back.
From there, we made our way to the monorail to Epcot. Monorail traffic works alot like car traffic. Since Epcot has the best fireworks show, at between 5:00 and 6:00, everyone makes their way there. So trying to jump on a monorail at about 5:15 was a nightmare. We didnt end up getting to Epcot until about 6:20. Immediately upon arrival, we jumped into a "60" minute line for Soarin'. This line ended up being close to 140 minutes! Luckily, they have motion sensor games during the queue that pass the time faster. But pushing three hours before we were able to leave the Soarin Building was kinda ridiculous. The Ride itself was pretty cool. They suspend your cart 15 feet in the air over a cinedome, with various landscapes all accross California. They throw in Pine scents when your over pine trees, and salt scents when your above the ocean, and so on and so forth. While this presents a very unique simulator, neither of us were convinced the wait was worth it.
20 minutes before the fireworks were supposed to start. We jumped onto a ride that i didnt even know existed. In Epcots Norway showcase, they have a Norse Viking Culture ride called Maelstrom. While this ride is incredibly short and un-oringinal, it was incredibly fun. The riders get spells cast on them, and thrown over waterfalls, and shot through 5 or 6 different norse landscapes and encounter Forest Trolls and Mountain Gods. This ride is a must for any history buffs, or culture guru's.
All in all, we had a pretty productive day. The crowds were bad in some areas, but it wasnt near as brutal or unbearable as i thought it would be on the last day of spring break. The hopping worked out alright, and the firework show was spectacular and made the perfect end for the day.
We arrived at Magic Kingdom at about 9am, and it would have been earlier had i not missed the turn, and the first thing we did was run and grab Fast Passes for Space Mountain. Upon turning around and looking at the overhead attraction logo, we noticed that the wait time was only 20 minutes! This was unheard of for such a trademark ride of the Magic Kingdom. We quickly waited out the line, which ended up being a little bit shorter than twenty minutes and hopped right back on with our fast-passes.
After we got off the second time, we decided to head over to Buzz Lightyear's: Space Ranger Spin. We pretty much walked right onto the ride and had a blast trying to outscore each other(I won by way too much).
We made our way around the backside of Tomorrowland and B-lined it for Fantasy land where we did the Phillar Magic 3D show. This was definately the most original of all the rest of the 3D stage shows at any of the other Theme Parks in Orlando. This show takes you through all the original disney Animated movies soundtracks. Including Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, the Little Mermaid, Lion King, Fantasia, and more.
From here we made it right accross the way to Its a Small World. Since this was the stamp of all of disney world property, i forced my cousin to go on it. Its a classic ride that is ridiculously long and in some sequences boring, but its one of the originals and it certainly makes for some neat conversations later on.
Moving around the backside of Fantasyland, we stopped off to do Disney's Haunted Mansion. We especially enjoyed this ride because we are both into the sppoky horror genre of anything. This takes you through a sort of walk through tour of the house, and then a moving train tour of the what walking didnt cover. This ride includes some cool special effects as well as some humor and horror and then sometimes all three balled into one.
Adventureland came next. We hit up the Pirates of the Carribean, Tiki Hut, and Swiss Family Robinson house all within the hour. Thats how short the lines were. The Pirates of the carribbean has always been a favorite of mine, and it has only gotten better since they re-did it with Captain Jack Sparrow being the highlight now. Some of the effects have been re-done, which gives it a more intense feel. The Tiki Hut is a show about birds and features characters from Aladdin, The Lion King and the Little Mermaid. This show would be a blast for kids and fans of the characters featured in this show. For two teenage boys, it seemed to drag on, and with Rides like Rockin Roller Coaster, and Tower of Terror waiting for us, we wanted it to be over so we could get on with our day.
We stopped at the Peco Bills Cafe to grab a bite to eat, and we were both surprised at how cheap and good it was. The burgers and fries there were excellent, and neither of us spent more than $12. Plus it wasnt too crowded to have to walk around with the food. At lunch time, we were able to just find a seat and table and chill for half an hour. And after walking the park for 4 hours, the break was much needed.
After Lunch, we made out trek to Hollywood Studios because my cousin wanted to do a "Real Roller Coaster". So we got our fast-passes for Rockin Roller Coaster, and went to Tower of Terror. the 45 minute wait time felt more like an hour, but at the end it was well worth it. The Free-Fall thrill hit the spot at the time. The only complaint i had was the girl next to me screaming so loud and so piercing that i was ready to pull my hair out and throw it at her. But in all fairness, i screamed like a little girl just to make her see how annoying it is. Ended up working out in the end.
The complaint i had with Rockin Roller Coaster was that they were no longer accepting Fast-Pass tickets. even after getting them at the machine before Tower of Terror, they would not accept them, so we had to wait in like for the full 100 minutes. It was a long and frustrating wait as the middle school girls behind me were so loud and rambled on and on about how many cute guys they had seen in the parks that day. Just when we though it wasnt gonna be worth the rest of the wait, we hit the "pre-show" with Aerosmith coming out and informing the guests that they will be escorted via a private limo (Roller coaster cart) to their show in LA. We figured this was going to about rap up the line. We got on the Roller Coaster and i look up and see that the person in front of me, is none other than my favorite little screamer from Tower of Terror. How was she was in line without me noticing? I cant say for sure. All i knew was two words. Payback Time. From start to finish i screamed so loud and so hard that by the time i got off the ride, i had absolutely no voice. The ride itself was amazing. Very dark with neon street signs, and disregarded stop lights as the "limo" speeds through them topping out at over 60mph. After we got off the ride, we quickly found a place that sold some drinks and bought a couple cokes for almost $3 each. Seems like alot, but i didnt have a choice. I was afraid my voice wouldnt come back.
From there, we made our way to the monorail to Epcot. Monorail traffic works alot like car traffic. Since Epcot has the best fireworks show, at between 5:00 and 6:00, everyone makes their way there. So trying to jump on a monorail at about 5:15 was a nightmare. We didnt end up getting to Epcot until about 6:20. Immediately upon arrival, we jumped into a "60" minute line for Soarin'. This line ended up being close to 140 minutes! Luckily, they have motion sensor games during the queue that pass the time faster. But pushing three hours before we were able to leave the Soarin Building was kinda ridiculous. The Ride itself was pretty cool. They suspend your cart 15 feet in the air over a cinedome, with various landscapes all accross California. They throw in Pine scents when your over pine trees, and salt scents when your above the ocean, and so on and so forth. While this presents a very unique simulator, neither of us were convinced the wait was worth it.
20 minutes before the fireworks were supposed to start. We jumped onto a ride that i didnt even know existed. In Epcots Norway showcase, they have a Norse Viking Culture ride called Maelstrom. While this ride is incredibly short and un-oringinal, it was incredibly fun. The riders get spells cast on them, and thrown over waterfalls, and shot through 5 or 6 different norse landscapes and encounter Forest Trolls and Mountain Gods. This ride is a must for any history buffs, or culture guru's.
All in all, we had a pretty productive day. The crowds were bad in some areas, but it wasnt near as brutal or unbearable as i thought it would be on the last day of spring break. The hopping worked out alright, and the firework show was spectacular and made the perfect end for the day.
posted by Travis Cannata at
2:32 PM
