Last year, our 10th anniversary at Disney was cancelled (like everything else). I firmly believe we made the absolute best of it, though. But, Disney, our go-to anniversary trip, wasn't even open. Our hotel reservations (and sadly, a dining plan!) had been paid for. So, we got some of the money back, but some was paid in gift cards, so even though it was a year away, we rolled it into next years reservations. Not having ANY idea what the world would look like we decided to reserve the cabins at Fort Wilderness. Even if we still needed to social distance, we could do that easy at the cabins. Even if we didn't feel like we could eat in a restaurant, we'd have our own kitchen. When we originally booked it, there were no discounts. But eventually, some time in December, a passholder discount for our dates was released and we immediately applied it.
Fast forward to this June: We were just days away from being a fully vaccinated household (Hayden hit his two weeks post second shot on our anniversary- so sadly we weren't here for it. )
And, Disney is roaring back. So much so demand is through the roof. Park passes were sold out. Hotel discounts were few and far between. Luckily, we had our cabin reservation.
Things are still very fluid at Disney, things are changing - from park reservation availability to mask requirements- and opening all the time.
And just a few days before our three night trip, I was alerted to some new passholder hotel discounts- they were spotty at best. A night here and there, at seemingly random hotels. But one night came up on Tuesday at Caribbean Beach Resort, the hotel we were planning on staying at for year #10. We debated, and decided after the year we've had, we deserved an extra night at Disney; and more than that, a little nod to the 10th anniversary that wasn't.
So, here we were celebrating year #10 at Disney, just 363 days late. Maybe not the best idea, because 2020 came roaring back, metaphorically speaking.
You see, we showed up at Disney past our check in time, and the room still wasn't ready. And it was POURING down rain.
But here's the thing: 2020 gave us some hardcore perspective.
2019 Corinne would have been PISSED.
2021 Corinne was like "LET'S DO THIS!"
So, we put on our rainjackets and sloshed through the rain for some time at Epcot.
So, a couple of weeks ago Disney announced that you did not have to wear masks outside. Indoors, they would still be required for everyone. But outdoors everyone was good to go. This was the first time we had been there since that policy went into effect.
But it felt so normal to be walking into Disney without a mask on! So normal in fact, I nearly tried to scan my fingerprint (those little guys are still closed, though). Still, it was weird how normal it felt!
But, the rules actually had gone even further. On our arrival day (Tuesday June 15th), Disney was implementing a new set of rules. Fully vaccinated guests can ditch the masks outdoors AND indoors. Now, of course they aren't checking if you're vaccinated. And there were not many people who sported masks indoors. But, the amount of little kids I saw without masks indoors was alarming. Like, I know you're 8 year old isn't fully vaccinated, yet here they are maskless. So, there's that.
Asa and I did decide to give an indoor que a shot though. So, we hopped in line for a 10 minute wait for Finding Nemo. Still some plexiglass up along the lines in spots.
And still some social distancing markers- that nobody is honoring anymore.
It was the first time I had been inside ANYWHERE without a mask in over a year. So, I knew it might be weird. Asa and I got these little neck attachments for our masks to have them handy, just in case we wanted/needed them. I put mine on occasionally if I felt a little crowded in. But mostly we lived in a very pre-Pandemic way throughout our trip.
Ok, but here's a weird side effect of all of this: Asa could not stop smelling people! Not like he walked up to anyone, but he said people's colognes and perfumes were just way too much. And he could smell sunscreen when we were far away from the pools. Every time someone walked by he had something to say about how people smelled. Because, you know, he's had a mask on in public for so long. Crazy.
Of course, for anosmic me, that's no problem. I was just excited we got to go on Nemo. It's been FOREVER. Some things you don't realize how much you love them until they're gone. This is basically every ride at Disney for me.
It's still Flower and Garden Festival Time, so the decorations are still up.
And the topiaries are still out.
I was super excited to see the jumping fountains going again! And while we were up at the Imagination Pavilion we decided to go to another one of our favs that we've not been to in forever: the Short Film Festival. Nothing beats the Mickey/Minnie film.
By now we were a bit hungry, so we swung by Refreshment Port for some classic Poutine.
And then we headed up to guest services for our Anniversary Buttons. We explained we were celebrating year #10 AND #11.
And the wonderful cast member gave us buttons for both.
She also wrote the date on the back so we'd remember the crazy year that was (not that we can forget it, right?)
I did discover that over the last year, I had walked the loop so much, that I had completely worn the tread off my tennis shoes. You guys, the tread is like GONE. Which resulted in me slipping and sliding all over the place on the wet (sometimes puddled) ground.
So by the time we got to the parking lot, I was like 'eff this, we're going barefoot!'
Besides, by now, our room was finally ready. So we headed on over to Caribbean Beach Resort.
Complete with it's 'enhanced cleaning!'
Even the remote has been sanitized.
The room is pretty simple, but we did notice there were some new hooks- a perfect place for hanging our masks!
The view from our room was a lovely one. I adore this resort. Yes, it's big and spread out. But, it is right on the Skyliner (our room was so close to it!), has that beachy/relaxing feel, with lot of pools..
..and some great dining options. Sadly, Sebastians Bistro and Spyglass Grill have not reopened since the closure last year. But, the pool bar, Banana Cabana, is going strong- and I LOVE me some Banana Cabana.
My favorite cocktail in all of Disney is probably the Banana Cabana. So, to sit there, at the pool bar, and sip on my fruity drink was heavenly.
But we wanted some eats too. Instead of menus, they have these little QR codes to scan. It's also a little different because normally you'd just find yourself a seat at the pool bar- but now you are seated and the whole thing is roped off.
And the menu is limited. But, no worries they do still have the coconut pineapple bread pudding I was hoping to try last anniversary. If you're going to have that much sweet for dinner, you also need some savory so we went with chips and chili con queso. And excellent choice and combo. The chips and dip aren't anything too special, still yummy though. But the bread pudding is delicious. Even Asa liked it, and he hates coconut (the portion, by the way is HUGE).
In 2018 when we stayed at Caribbean Beach, they were still building the new neighboring resort: The Riviera. But now it's finished. So if you want to take the trek all the way around the lake, you can visit that resort too.
We decided to walk over for some after dinner coffee and Le Petite Cafe, who also has some delicious looking desserts. We passed, since we had just split that bread pudding. But, spoiler alert: we're staying here (among other places) for my birthday, so I might pick something up then.
Still, we got a coffee and a charcuterie to enjoy at the tables outside.
And then we hopped on the Skyliner to head over to Hollywood Studios. Now, masks are required for everyone on Disney transportation- regardless of vaccination status.
However, we were the only people in our Skyliner car, so we got to take ours off.
We wanted to hit Hollywood Studios in the evening to see if we could get some low wait times. We weren't able to get a park pass for HS, but the good news is as long as capacity permits, you can park hop after 2 pm, so as long as you tap into the park you had a reservation for, you can go to any park later that evening (provided you aren't blacked out- and have park hopping privileges).
So, this my friends, was the first time I had park hopped since February 13th, 2020. One year. Four months. 2 days. I hope that never happens again.
Fastpasses are still suspended at Disney. This is good and bad. Usually we just get our fastpasses, do those rides, and head on out. And we can't do that right now (hopefully they come back eventually!) But, it does mean if you are in the stand-by line things go quicker because there are no fastpass people cutting in.
So when we saw Toy Story Mania had a posted wait time of 20 minutes, we decided to hop inline. Again, there are still social distancing markers, but nobody paid any attention to them. Disney is working on removing them, but clearly it takes awhile to update all of this (there were still signs telling you to wear your mask indoors- even though this was the first day fully vaccinated guests didn't need to).
And, there's still some plexiglass in some parts of the lines.
We ended up waiting about 25 minutes for our turn. It's a little weird waiting in a line with a bunch of people for that long (when the line was stopped sometimes I felt a little uncomfortable with all those maskless people around me!), but honestly, you get used to it fairly quickly. It's weird how quickly it all starts to feel normal. Disney was great for this though, it's like a total shock to the system, but it shocks you back into normal times! So, not so bad.
But the question is, if it's been over a year since Asa went on Toy Story Mania, would he still be able to kill it?
The answer is yes. (I had a really sad showing there).
But, Asa, per usual, was the top scorer in the car.
Whatever, it's cool. I got to go on Toy Story!
The parks do close kind of early these days. There are no night time fireworks at the moment. However, it was our first day there when Disney announced Epcot and Magic Kingdom fireworks would be coming back on July 1st. That means they'll be around for my birthday, and I am AMPED about it, you guys.
Anyway, with 10 minutes until park close, we high tailed it on over to Mickey and Minnie's Runway Railway. This one opened like right before the Pandemic, so we hadn't been on it yet, and we were so hoping to get to it on our anniversary trip.
Plus the wait was only 15 minutes!
We did notice some people tapping into Fastpass. We were told these were people doing rider swaps, and handicap passes. But, the cast member we talked to seemed to act as though Fastpasses might be coming back soon (fingers crossed!)
The social distancing markers were all gone from this cue, but you could still see the residue.
Sadly, we were about three cars from getting on the ride, when it broke down. There was no waiting for it, because it was the end of the night. So, for compensation we were given what esentially amounted to an ANYTIME FASTPASS! (Back in the fastpass days if you're ride was unavailable you'd get an anytime fastpass to use at another time- or for another attraction). But, this one was every better than an anytime one- because you could use it at any attraction at ANY park the next day. Of course, you had to have a park pass and a valid admission to be going to another park the next day, otherwise you were out of luck (I had nabbed HS for Wednesday, so we were all set- the people in front of us were going to AK and said they were going to use theirs on Pandora, an excellent use of a free fastpass for sure!)
Since we were leaving the park right at close though, the line for the Skyliner was SUPER long at Hollywood Studios. We decided instead to walk back along the Boardwalk and over to the Epcot Skyliner. We were worried when we were about halfway there and we saw a sign saying the Skyliner was down, and then when we saw lightning in the distance. But, lucky for us it was up and moving, with little to no wait over at Epcot.
So we hopped on, and even got a glimpse of the new Ratatouille ride all lit up at night (It's not opening until October though)
Back at the hotel, our feet were pruney and drenched. We knew our tennis shoes were too wet to dry on their own overnight, so we popped them in the dryers down by the pool.
And while we waited for them- we got to swim in the pool. Unfortunately, the shoes kept knocking the door open, so they didn't dry all the way, but they weren't too bad by the next morning.
And, it's worth noting, this is the first time I've spent a night away from home since October 2019, when I went to DC to visit Nate, Allison and Layla. Asa and I talked about it, and that might be the most nights I've ever spent in a row somewhere in my adult life. He hadn't spent a night away from home since September 2019, so he went even longer! It was weird to not sleep in my bed. And, I didn't sleep great.
But lucky for me, Disney breakfast is one of my favorites, and I'm always excited when we stay and I'm there in time for breakfast! Good sleep or no sleep! The hardest thing is deciding where to eat. But, since we were so close to the Riviera, we decided to walk on over there.
We placed a mobile order for the quick service Primo Piatto, and then sat outside while we waited. (We watched a fun bocce ball game while we waited-we looked up the rules, and decided we're totally playing when we're there in August!)
For breakfast I ordered blueberry-lemon pancakes (and a side of sausage), because I can never pass on the lemon/blueberry combo. Officially, the description of this is: Three, Fluffy House-made Pancakes filled with fresh Blueberries topped with Mascarpone Cream and Lemon Zest served with choice of side. These were delicious! Light and fluffy and FULL of blueberries baked in. But, as you can see, I'm missing the creme and lemon zest. Still, no complaints. I'd get this again, for sure.
Asa got the Primo Piatto Breakfast: Scrambled Eggs served over Mascarpone Polenta with a Sweet Brioche Roll. He also got some plant based sausage with it, which was really pretty yummy (and I usually hate the texture of plant based meat- but this was good!) Asa loved this. it was super creamy and just the right breakfast sized portion. Honestly, we'll probably both get this again in August.
After breakfast, we made our way back around the lake over to Caribbean Beach resort.
After having some coffee and changing for the pool, we decided to head down to the feature pool. People often complain this resort is too spread out, and requires too much walking. Honestly, I've never minded it. All the walks are lovely (and we were way at the opposite end of resort from Riviera and it still only took us 10 minutes to walk from one end of the lake to the other at a leisurely pace).
Included in the walk to the big pool is a trail through the Caribbean Cay island.
Here, you'll find some quiet cabanas, a playground..
...and even some banana trees!
Down by the pool most everything is back to normal. They aren't monitoring how many people are in the pool area, and all the lounge chairs are back in place. But, you will still find a few of these disinfectant wipe stands.
The feature pool is always more crowded than the 'quiet' (re: boring) pools. But the feature pool comes with water cannons and not one, but TWO waterslides. I didn't realize how much I missed waterslides until I was here. We went down both of them, and then left the big pool in favor of the smaller, less busy quiet pools.
We were lucky enough to get a late check out, and we used every minute of it. So long, Room 4224. You were so easy to remember!
Of course, our room at Fort Wilderness wasn't ready yet, so we knew we'd have some time to kill inbetween resorts, but the sky was looking threatening again. The downside of the Skyliner is it goes down in inclement weather. And summer in Florida is basically all inclement weather. If you take it somewhere, and then the skies open up, you could be stuck taking a bus- with a REALLY long line.
We didn't want to be stuck- so we decided against hopping on the Skyliner to head to Hollywood Studios, and instead drove over.
And the signs had been updated!
A couple of weeks ago, Asa and I were in Hollywood Studios and tried to go to Baseline Taphouse for lunch. But the line was CRAZY long. I'm not going to lie, meals can be an issue in Disney these days. A lot of places still aren't open- and with less options those places that are open get flooded with people. Mobile order is great, but you have to pay attention- because at peak times, it can be more than 2 hours before you can get your food! Lucky for us it wasn't too busy, and we were able to snag a seat at the outside patio.
So, what's so great about Baseline? Well, the food is yummy, the prices are great, and it's quick service with a sit down feel.
Case and point: The $10 Charcuterie. I still contend on of the best deals on Disney property.
This thing is big, it's delicious, it's varied, and the presentation is on point. And it's 10 BUCKS, a steal for Disney.
We also decided to give their new coffee rubbed steak in a puff pastry a try.
It came with an olive salad, and also did not disappoint. It was a generous portion, and tasted a bit like an upscale Philly Cheese Steak.
We thought about using our anytime Fastpass for Slinky Dog Dash, but we were worried about the weather. We knew we wanted to do Runaway Railway since we missed it the night before- but the standby line was 45 minutes long. If we went on Slinky Dog and it started raining, that line would be even longer. And, it does kind of break down a lot.
So we decided to go ahead and use the fastpass on Runway Railway to ride it for the first time. But, it was also the first time using a Fastpass post-pandemic, and that was pretty exciting!
The ride, by the way, was amazing. I'd argue a great replacement for 'The Great Movie Ride'. Asa would disagree. But, he's also the guy that loves Country Bear Jamboree. So, while he has great taste in a lot of things, Disney rides are not one of them.
We did make a good decision on the Fastpass, because when we came out, it was pouring down rain again. So much for dry tennis shoes!
But, nothing was getting us down!
Our cabin still wasn't ready at Fort Wilderness, but we had other plans anyway. For weeks we decided we were going to go to Disney Springs before we went over to the cabins, to go grocery shopping for our trip.
Our first stop: Donuts at Everglazed.
It was our first time at Disney's answer to Universal's VooDoo Donuts. You guys, these donuts might be 5 bucks a pop, but they are HUGE. We got two and they put them in a big box for us.
Then while Asa got dipping sauces at Chicken Guy, I headed on over to Cooke's of Dublin to get bacon beer cheese sauce. Remember that non-existant tread on my shoes? I walked into Cooke's of Dublin VERY carefully because that floor is always slippery. A nice woman at the counter reached her hand out for me as I explained, but I politely declined. Sure, I'm around people without masks, but I'm not sure I'm ready to grab a stangers hand.
We got our stuff and met back up at The Basket at Wine Bar George.
If you order $60 worth of food (and/or drink), they throw in a picnic basket for you! I joked I should have just asked for 5 of the Macaroni and Cheese bites (they are SO good) and a picnic basket to be on my way. But, we got those along with a bunch of cheeses and meats, some jerky and some bread, and some fresh made hummus.
And shout out to a lady who offered to take our picture. Pretty sure this was the first time I handed my phone to a stranger for a picture in a long, long time.
Really, not a bad deal!
Before leaving Disney Springs we had to swing by Amorette's for our Anniversary Cake. They have these tiny little cakes that are AMAZING (and a little pricey at $16), and we've been getting them for our anniversary for years. So, it was a must stop.
And then we were headed over to the cabins, so that's a wrap on our 10 year anniversary being celebrated a year late.
Next Up: Three nights at the Fort Wilderness Cabins!
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