It was my second time back in Orlando for a magical Disneyworld vacation, this time with Katherine. The parks just hit a little differently when you’re there with your soul mate.
The only caveat of a “Disney World” vacation is the fact that it is a lot of work. As opposed to a Disney cruise, there wasn’t a whole lot of “downtime” to relax. We ended up getting around 20,000 steps every day. Perhaps even close to 24,000 at Epcot. It also now takes lots of careful planning and utilization of your phone to maximize your daily experience (with virtual queues, checking ride times, and using Genie+). We rope dropped (or went to each park at opening), which sadly meant there wasn’t a lot of room for sleeping on while on vacation. Unlike 8 years ago, I ended up going on many (if not most) of the rides to make it as enjoyable for both of us. This allowed me to confront some of my fears of roller coasters.
We started with of course Magic Kingdom, the most popular of all 4 parks. It is indeed quite a magical experience. Because of its similarities to Disneyland though, the magic wasn’t quite as enriching as it would have been. I guess I was spoiled by the lack of bumpiness of Disneyland’s Space Mountain, and the detachable blasters in the Buzz Lightyear ride. Still, Magic Kingdom’s 2 greatest attractions happen to be the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (which didn’t get cancelled due to rain this time!), and of course Tron Lightcycle Run. I was deeply in fear going into the ride seeing it spin upside down outside, but it ended up being a fun and unforgettable experience. Smooth, and breath-taking.
One disappointment at Magic Kingdom was Skipper Canteen, which was a rather taste-less meal… would not recommend to anyone!
On the 2nd day, we went around the world for an exploration of the different countries at Epcot. I consider the cultural significance of Epcot to be particularly important, and I very much appreciate the fact that we were able to enjoy boba while at the parks (Joy of Tea, I’m looking at you). Of course, we were able to collect pictures from all the wonderful landmarks around World Discovery. It was also the Flower and Garden Festival which allowed us to get lots of unique images with grass-shaped Disney characters all over the park. Two of our favorite rides were of course Ratatouille, which was a fun kid ride with lots of huge screens (very similar to Rise of the Resistance), and of course the Guardians roller-coaster, which although scary at first, was super smooth (it was basically a sped up version of Space Mountain which was very enjoyable but did make me nauseous).
Because of our virtual queue for Guardians, we ended up having to cancel our lunch at Via Napoli, which I heard was fantastic Italian food. Major bummer. We would have enjoyed Epcot much more if we weren’t so fatigued from walking so many steps two days in a row. It rained pretty hard for about an hour as well which led us to being drenched.
Day 3 entailed going to Hollywood Studios, which is probably the smallest of the 4 parks. This gave us downtime to relax and take things much more slowly though. Our favorite parts of this experience was of course going on Slinky Dog Dash and Mickey and Minnie’s Runway Railway. We opted to avoid Tower of Terror due to our lack of enjoyment of drops, and already knowing how things feel at the Guardians version of the ride at Disney’s California Adventure. Speaking of the California park, we find Hollywood studios to be a worse version of Disney’s California Adventure. I would take the Cars Ride and the Incredicoaster over the rides over at Hollywood Studios. Star Wars Land is cool and all, but it is already embedded into Disneyland, which continues to showcase itself as the superior park.
Still, it was fun, but I wish there was more to do at Hollywood Studios.
Finally, we ended our wonderful vacation with Animal Kingdom. I think this park is best for those who don’t particularly like Disney as much, because it incorporates zoo-like elements. Who doesn’t love animals? The Safari was a fantastic trek, and gave us the opportunity to be super close to the animals. It was pretty funny when the giraffe blocked our safari’s path for 10 minutes and we just sat there waiting for it to move. We got to enjoy Avatar: Flight of Passage, which was a beautiful ride taking us into the world of Pandora. Speaking of which, there were numerous opportunities for photo opportunities all around the park. We also enjoyed cool shows like Finding Nemo and Festival of the Lion King while there. Our favorite meal out of all 4 days was here as well, where we enjoyed an authentic African buffet at Tusker House Restaurant.
It’s interesting, because my experiences were way different 8 years later with Katherine than they were my friends the last time I went. I would probaly rank Hollywood Studios last now, whereas I ranked it in first place 8 years ago. It goes to show the magic in Disney World remains ever present, and will find new and impressive ways to impress me if I ever go back. Perhaps in 8 years we’ll make another visit (with children). If not, we’ll always have the magical memories and pictures to look at forever.
It’s such a shame that time flew by so quickly, making my Spring Break effectively gone this time in a flash.
