Landed at the Orlando Airport and was automatically in Disney mode when we saw a Walt Disney World sign with Mickey (check out the previous blog on planning your trip)- we are so happy we flew here because driving from Ohio we aren't sure how many more times we could listen to - are we there yet? or when do I get to see mickey & the princesses?
After getting on our Magical Express bus ride to the hotel (travel agent setup this up). They send you yellow tags to put on your bags and they are shipped directly to your hotel room no need to wait at baggage claim. I only recommend this if you are going to the park right from checking in at the hotel or it isn't worth it. We checked in around 8pm & didn't get our luggage until the next day - we had to call a few times to ask when they would be bringing it as we were trying to get out the door to head to Hollywood studios.
At the ALL STAR MOVIES hotel we stayed in the Toy Story location - 1st floor (this was nice with bringing the stroller-yes we brought one with a 5 year old and needed it every day for her) & this was a short walk to the cafe + to get on the buses for the parks. We received our refillable cups & meal plan activated on our magic bands. We did take 2 cups each day to the park - filled 1 with water & 1 with coffee. At the park we would keep filling up 1 with water.
After checking in we grabbed some food in the cafe - then headed to the room to get ready for bed because we needed to rest up! Alessia ripped open her luggage(we did her luggage as a carry on because I wasn't willing to loose her stuff or wait for it from the airport delivery) to get out her new Frozen pjs - jumped from bed to bed because that's what you do when you stay in a hotel! - then snuggled up with her pizza - watched a show & went to bed!
GOOD MORNING 7am - I don't think Jonah was ready for the pack filled schedule (you can find that on this blog)
Headed to our bus for Hollywood Studios - at each hotel they have it all setup in order for you to get on individual buses to each park. Then on your way back from the parks you are assigned a number for your hotel and it's the same at each location so we always found #20.
Rainy day, but I was happy I snagged the rain ponchos at dollar tree because I overheard a dad saying the rain ponchos cost more than our hotel room (joking of course but seriously everything in the parks cost more)
We got here 20 mins before the park opened - but I wasn't thinking we still had to get our tickets connected to our bands - we didn't figure this out until we got up to go through to the park and it wasn't working - back to the ticket office at Hollywood Studios we went & got them connected. Back to check in with our wrist bands + finger print (a ticket agent gave us the advice for younger ones with wrist bands to have them scan but use your print instead because sometimes it won't work on their print as well if they have wiggled it a lot) & we were through - headed to FROZEN SING ALONG!
First FastPass+ FROZEN SING ALONG we really didn't need to use the FP+ for this because there was no line, but the show was a perfect way to start off our trip because Alessia is obsessed with Frozen. The show was funny with adult humor & you get to sing to all of the great songs from the movie. Anna + Elsa + Kristoph are all in the show!
We had reservation at 10:00am for Hollywood & Vine (just because you have this time doesn't mean you will get seated at that time) - this however was a perfect time to eat because we got to experience breakfast + lunch (the food was wonderful & had a wide variety, my favorite was the Mickey waffle). You can take your time to dine with the Disney Junior Characters, there is never any rush at the restaurants.
Alessia isn't a fan of characters dressed up - but they are awesome about that - we just told them she likes to wave high and send a heart to them & they would do fun stuff from a far at her. They also put on dance parties. Her first signatures in the book were - Sofia the First, Doc McStuffins, Handy Manny, & Jake. There are not photographers in this location so if you have Memory Maker you won't get photos for this - make sure to have your phone or camera with you to capture the meetings.
You can also see it was raining before we went in & all the strollers covered outside because you can't take them in any locations. We folded our stroller up & stuck it under an umbrella.
Came out from our meal and the SUN was OUT!!!! Found a photographer by Echo Lake to test out our first memory maker - after the snap of your photo they scan your wrist band - within minutes it shows up on your mydisney app! I'm of course not about always looking at the camera for photos but this is what Disney is all about so I moved on :)
We ventured over Animation Court for our next FP+ we had some time to spare. I went in to see Chewbacca. Then we went to The Voyage of The Little Mermaid. Fun show to sing all the songs to, bubbles fall from the sky, and the beginning act with the glow in the dark fish was so cool.
We had FP+ to Disney Jr Live on Stage however the time we had it didn't work with us making it to Beauty & the Beast Live on Stage so we cancelled that FP+ & instead went to see Minnie Mouse. She was a huge hit if you can tell by how excited Alessia was to see her. We were totally surprised she gave her a hug, but it was so magical.
Then went over to Mickey Avenue to see the man himself!
Mickey Avenue was fun to walk down and see toy story theme. It was hard to find Mickey Mouse & I was surprised he wasn't placed in a better spot for people to find him because he is the reason Disney World is here --- right? I guess the best part about him being in the back there was NO LINE & we got to spend a lot of time with him.
Sunset Blvd was next to go to Beauty & the Beast Live on Stage. My friend from high school dances in this production so he got us VIP passes & backstage to see Belle & the Prince. We walked down the street, looked through some shops, & got a few cocktails for the adults until the show started. We didn't venture to tower of terror - I don't think she was ready for that yet - in the end this trip was all about what she wanted to do :)
Beauty & the Beast Live on Stage was a great performance - the characters are all fun & colorful. The dancing is fun to watch. We got to meet Belle & the Prince after they were so sweet and Alessia was in aww of how pretty she is. She talked about her dress & heels.
We had a great day at Hollywood Studios - it was time to head back to the hotel for a nap before we went to Magic Kingdom for the night because they stayed open until Midnight (no we did not last that long)
