Monday, October 29, 2018

Disney Quest: 21.7% Complete

If you read my blog lately, you're aware of  our quest to do every single Disney attraction listed on the app and the website on these passes. By our current count (since it is kind of ever changing), there are 225 shows to see, rides to ride, and entertainment to attend. We went to the Animal Kingdom two weeks ago,  to start knocking some things off our list, and this Sunday we headed over to the Magic Kingdom to start tackling that one. It has the most 'attractions' at 66 currently listed. We're blacked out on Saturdays on our Theme Park Select passes, so our only chance to go on a weekend is Sunday. Usually we'd be watching football on a Sunday. But, given the way the Bucs have played lately, we figured we wouldn't be missing much if we skipped a Sunday of football. (Turns out we were totally right about this). 


I have a lot of Fastpasses booked for when my mom is at Disney all week, and you can only have seven days worth of them out at a time. But, I cancelled one day so Asa and I could nab some for this visit. We decided to focus our first three fastpasses on characters. The boys would never want to go see all these characters (we might be able to convince them to see one or two- but certainly not the princesses!), and Calib even said we were wasting our Fastpasses on them. (Um, no we weren't- there were like 40 minutes waits to see them, and we totally got to skip the line). 

Our first fastpass was for 9:50 to 10:50 and we made it there at like 10:52 (fun fact: fastpasses actually still work plus or minus a few minutes). We even hit everything just right- the parking tram, the monorail, and breezing through the passholder entrance to make it there by the skin of our teeth. Good thing our first one was just barely inside the gates. 


#1 Meet Tinkerbell at Town Square Theater

And you guys, her little house is SUPER cute. She told us all about the book she plans to write. We told her we'll preorder it on Amazon. 


And look! The Magic Kingdom is all decorated for Halloween. I'm trying to convince Asa we should go to the Very Merry Christmas Party, that way we can add those items to our list- and then maybe next fall before our passes expire we can do the Not So Scary Halloween Party and do those on the list too. I'm not sure it'll happen though- those tickets are pricey. 


Our tummies were grumbly by the time we got to Disney, so we decided to snack our way through the Magic Kingdom with some mini corn dogs at Casey's corner. These are somehow even better than Cedar Points, but skip the fries here- those don't even come close to as good. 


Next Up were our second set of Fastpasses 




#2 Meet Rapunzel and Tiana at Princess Fairytale Hall 

Um, Tangled is like my favorite Disney movie! It was also this little girl in front of us favorite. She was about three, dressed like Rapunzel and had the long blond hair to match. It was the cutest thing ever watching how excited she was. When you go to see these characters half the time you get screaming, crying toddlers in front of you, and half the time you get to see pure childhood joy. So, you take the good with the bad.  


After that we had about ten minutes to kill before our next fastpasses. So, we stopped by 

#3 Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse 

People behind us kept talking about how this was the Jungle Book Treehouse. I wanted so badly to correct them. Instead, we pulled to the side and let them pass. Come on, people! Either way, it's a fun little trek up and down the stairs through the SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON Treehouse. 


Up next were our fastpasses for 

#4 Jungle Cruise

Look! It's the backside of water! 


The jokes don't ever really change, and don't be that person that yells out the terrible punchlines just because you've been on the ride 100 times. Just go along for the rides, and note this Trader Sam lacks any of the wonderful adult beverages you'll find at Trader Sam's at the Polynesian. 


So here's the deal people. As soon as you put your little Mickey on the fastpass circle for your third pre-planned fastpass of the day, you can make one more (like as you're in line for that current fastpass) as soon as you scan it, you  can make another, and so on and so on. Since this is our very first visit on this quest we needed all the rides. So we decided our strategy would be to book another fastpass while we were waiting in line. Whatever was the soonest and the closest. You usually could book one for like five minutes later as long as you weren't picky. You're not going to get Seven Dwarfs or Space Mountain (usually) doing this. But, if you're not picky- you will never wait in a long line. 

So, next up we used fastpasses for 

#5 Magic Carpets 


While in line there we booked our next set of fastpasses, just ten minutes away from that start time. Plenty of time to stop at the Friar's Nook for some Pub Tots. (Hey Friars Nook- more cheese on this one next time, please!) 


Those next set of Fastpasses were for 

#6 Dumbo 


We made another set of fastpasses after that (see the trend), but it was like 15 minutes out- so we stopped by a quick ride that doesn't use fastpass 

#7 Price Charming’s Carousel 


There is a horse on this one with a big ribbon on it's tail- that's supposedly Cinderella's horse. I like to go on that one when I go on the carousel, but we were like the last two they let on, so we just had to take what was left. 


By the time we were done there our fastpass time had hit for 

#8 It’s a Small World 


I only ever go on this one when my brother, Cort, and his family are here. The last time I picked this one was when it was a night when nobody was in the park and we were the only ones in sight when we got on the ride right at park closing. We got stopped with like six empty boats in front of us, and were almost stuck in 'It's a Small World' overnight. Nothing makes you panic like believing you'll have to listen to that music for 11 hours until the park opens again. I have 'It's a Small World' PTSD. 


Asa was starving at this point, so I said, let's just grab a flatbread over at Pinocchio Village Haus. I told him we might as well mobile order it to skip the line. So he ordered it as we walked over, and while the regular checkout line was like 10 people deep at every register, we walked right up and our flatbread was waiting for us. It was crazy fast. Also note the flatbread of the month is chicken apple sausage- and it's pretty good if you're into that sort of thing. (The sauce was apple butter!) It's my thing, but not so much Asa's, and he was not impressed. 


After that we headed up through the castle to First Aid (sinus pressure was something-- just an FYI, Disney First Aid is amazing- they have all kinds of things they'll just hand out, totally free, for any ailment you might be having). 

Funny enough, the castle is listed as it's own 'attraction'. But we weren't sure, what counted as visiting the castle? Walking through? Just seeing it? Taking a picture? Seeing someone Propose? Whichever it is, we covered all of our bases and checked another item off our list. 

 #9 Cinderella Castle 


Side note: pretty sure that's the lights for Christmas already on the castle. 


Since Asa wasn't pleased with the flatbread, after stopping by First Aid we stopped by Casey's Corner to get him something I'd know he'd be happy with: The Bacon Mac & Cheese Hot Dog. He had taken his sinus meds, and had a fully tummy so he was ready to go! 


So we were off to our next fastpass stop 

#10  Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh 


While in line there a fastpass for another character meet and greet popped up, so we grabbed that. 

#11 Meet Cinderella and Elena at Princess Fairytale Hall 


Elena has jokes- puns even! I was entertained. 


So fun story, this cast member was chatting with us, and when I handed her my phone to take a picture it was still in selfie mode. We joked about how cast members should take selfies of themselves whenever they have to take a picture on someone's camera, and nobody would know it till they got home and scrolled through their pictures. Somewhere between Cinderella and Elena she snapped one of herself on my phone without me noticing! 


After that we had about 15 minutes to kill before our next fastpass, so we stopped by to see Goofy and Donald. They're listed as 

#12 Meet Disney Pals as Circus Stars at Pete’s Silly Sideshow 


These guys are not to be confused with "Meet Disney FRIENDS as Circus Stars at Pete’s Silly Sideshow" That's Minnie and Daisy, and apparently WAY more popular. Their line was about 5 times as long. (I mean to be fair- we only waited behind like three other couples/families)  We decided we'd catch Minnie and Daisy another time. 


Because it was time for our next Fastpasses 

#13  The Barnstormer


This roller coaster is a little tricky if you're long-legged since it's for littler kids. This is not so much a problem for me. But Asa wasn't a fan. We won't be flying again soon. 


Fastpasses were getting to be slim pickings but there were some available for 

#14 Under the Sea 


Now, I knew on this go around we had to get on the train. This is going to close for up to two years in 'December 2018' due to construction on the new Tron ride.  I *think* we'll be at Magic Kingdom before then, but I'm not positive. So I knew we had to get this one. Depending on where you consult, the train is either it's own 'attraction' or each of the stops is an 'attraction'. We decided we would ride the train around the whole loop, but we only counted it at one 'attraction' 

So here we are at the Fantasyland Station for 

# 15 Walt Disney World Railroad 


We stopped by the Main Street Station, and it was 3:55 pm. We had gone on a party night- where the park closes at 6 to regular day guests- but Not-So-Scary Halloween Party guests can enter the park at 4. Basically, early in the day you have lower crowds- but between 4 and six you have both sets of guests in the park. We decided we'd feel it out and see if we wanted to stay during that time. When we saw the huge amount of party guests about to pour into the park at our stop at the Main Street Station, we thought it might be time to consider heading out soon. 


But, we continued on our train ride around to the Frontierland Station. 


We did have one more set of Fastpasses

#16  Mad Tea Party


This motion sick girl may have tried to hold the teacup as still as humanly possible as we spun around in the big circles. But, I went on them! 


So, in case you were keeping track, we got ELEVEN Fastpasses, and we were only there from 11 to a little after 4. Not too shabby! We never waited more than 10 minutes for anything. It was pretty glorious. 

Though not on the official Disney list, there is the Instagram-famous 'Purple Wall'. Asa was not pleased to be stopping here. (But, for the record only one of us has Instagram, and it isn't me. So, don't pretend Asa.)  


It was getting really crowded, but it was still pretty early. I suggested we walk over to the Contemporary Resort. It's about a 10 minute walk from that purple wall, so not too bad. Plus instead of waiting in a huge line to get on the monorail, we walked along a nearly empty, quiet sidewalk. When we got over to the Contemporary Asa got an iced coffee and we split the famous Peanut Butter Pie. 


Which, FYI is worth the walk- even if your dogs are barking from walking all over the park. It's like a peanut butter ball-cheese cake hybrid with some custard thrown in for good measure. 


We decided that was a great way to decompress a bit after being in the crowds of the park, before we headed home. We ended up stopped in traffic as soon as we tried to get on I-4. On the upside it made for a good picture, on the downside it took forever to get home. We ended up getting off of I-4 and going through Dade City to get home. 


Overall, we checked 16 items off our Magic Kingdom list, which is just under 25% of the listed attractions. We've got a total of 49 attractions out of the 225 currently listed. That puts us at 21.7% complete AND we're not even a month into these passes yet. I think we've got ourselves a very attainable goal. 


Here's the Magic Kingdom List is case you're wondering. Bold means we completed it- highlighted means I blogged about it! 

Magic Kingdom – 16/66 items
Rides:
1.       Astro Orbiter
2.       The Barnstormer 10/28/2018
3.       Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
4.       Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin
5.       Country Bear Jamboree
6.       Dumbo 10/28/2018
7.       Enchanted Tales with Belle
8.       The Hall of Presidents
9.       Haunted Mansion
10.   It’s a Small World 10/28/2018
11.   Jungle Cruise 10/28/2018
12.   Mad Tea Party 10/28/2018
13.   Magic Carpets 10/28/2018
14.   Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh 10/28/2018
15.   Philharmagic
16.   Monsters Inc Laugh Floor
17.   Peter Pans Flight
18.   Pirates of the Carribbean
19.   Price Charming’s Carousel 10/28/2018
20.   Seven Dwarfs Mine Ride
21.   Space Mountain
22.   Splash Mountain
23.   Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse 10/28/2018
24.   Tomorrowland Speedway
25.   Tomorrowland People Mover
26.   Tom Sawyers Island
27.   Under the Sea 10/28/2018
28.   Carousel of Progress
29.   Enchanted Tiki Room
30.   Walt Disney World Railroad (Main Street, Frontierland & Fantasyland all listed) 10/28/2018
31.   Liberty Square Riverboat
32.   Casey Jr. Splash N Soak Station
.   Stiches Great Escape** - Listed as closed
Character Meet and Greet:
33.   Ariel at her Grotto
34.   Meet Cinderella and Elena at Princess Fairytale Hall 10/28/2018
35.   Meet Mickey Mouse at Town Square Theater
36.   Meet Rapunzel and Tiana at Princess Fairytale Hall 10/28/2018
37.   Meet Tinkerbell at Town Square Theater 10/28/2018
38.   Meet Winnie the Pooh and Tigger at the Totful Spot
39.   Meet Peter Pan in Fantasyland
40.   Meet Merida at Fairytale Garden
41.   Meet Disney Friends as Circus Stars at Pete’s Silly Sideshow
42.   Meet Disney Pals as Circus Stars at Pete’s Silly Sideshow 10/28/2018
43.   Meet Gaston at his Tavern
44.   Meet Disney Friends in Town Square
45.   Meet Aladdin in Adventureland
46.   Meet Out of this World Friend in Tomorrowland
47.   Meet Alice in Wonderland at the Mad Tea Party
Parades/Fireworks:
48.   Disney Festival of Fantasy Parade
49.   Move It Shake it Dance & Play It! Street Party
50.   Happily Ever After Fireworks
Shows:
51.   The Muppets Present Great Moments in American History
52.   Mickey's Royal Friendship Faire (Show in front of the castle)
Other:
53.   Let The Magic Begin (Rope Drop Celebration)
54.   Casey’s Corner Pianist
55.   The Dapper Dans
56.   Main Street Philharmonic
57.   Citizens of Main Street
58.   Main Street Trolley Show
59.   Royal Majesty Makers (at the Sorcerers Stone)
60.   Flag Retreat (most days at 5:15)
61.   A Pirate's Adventure ~ Treasures of the Seven Seas (Interactive Game)
62.   Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom (Interactive Game)
63.   Frontier Shootin Arcade (One credit (about 2 quarters) will procure you approximately 25 shots)
64. Cinderella Castle 10/28/2018
65. Horses (on Main Street)
66. Main Street Vehicles

Not really MK, but listed: Electrical Water Pageant,  Disney Parks Play (App)


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