Robson's Riverside Experience- Completed

Thank you !

Thursday 29th September - Animal Kingdom /Magic Kingdom/ Epcot

We had a bit of a lie in as we were really tired after yesterday and headed out later than usual but it was pretty quiet when we arrived at AK.

We missed our first fast pass for Kilimanjaro safaris and decided to ride its tough to be a bug. I remembered bits of this off when I was younger so I knew what to expect and DH really enjoyed it.

We then wandered around and looked at the animals for a bit and decided to have a slow walk over to EE. When we got there we were around 20 mins out of our FP time and the stand by line was about the same so we decided to ride it twice in a row which was fun. Our stomachs started to rumble and we decided to try flame tree BBQ as a certain friend of mine who knows I have an unhealthy obsession with onion rings had told me I must try them from there. I got the chicken and DH got the combo we subbed desserts for fries and onion rings. I did really enjoy our meal but I must admit I am not a fan of the birds being around they kept coming over trying to take stuff from the table whilst we were eating. Also I did take a photo but it seems to have vanished which is a shame .

We were stuffed after so we decided to walk around to walk it off a bit. We then decided to go to MK, we bought some gifts and got a starbucks and a general wander around. We caught the festival of fantasy parade again which I enjoyed.

We the rode haunted mansion for the first time after it being down when we had FP previously and the carousel which made me feel a bit motion sickness.

I think it was a MNSSHP night because we decided to leave and get the monorail over to Epcot. We both enjoyed it as we hadn't been on the monorail yet and we got to see the Poly from behind. We got to Epcot and snacked around again and bought some more gifts...for me... we had a deal that if I went on mission space I could get the figurines I wanted!

We then gave up and went home.

They were... and I really do have an unhealthy obsession... but they are soooo tasty!

Friday 30th September- Magic Kingdom

We were up early today ready for BOG breakfast which I was so excited to try! Plus getting in the park early so excited... or not! It was EMH so it was packed! (silly me didn't realise it was my own fault). We made it just in time for our ADR and we both got gaston feasts it was so good! I had the blueberry muffin off the pastries and DH had the rest as I'm not big fan of pastries.

We then had a walk around and watched Disney's philarmagic again, I love this and we got dead centre so I enjoyed it even more. We then went and met Goofy and Donald since we hadn't gotten any autographs and only met Rafiki since we arrived, we were both a bit nervous meeting them with being adults looking back I have no idea why, Donald made DH turn around and have his eyes closed whilst he proposed to me, it was so cute!

We decided to hit some rides and walked round to go on Splash Mountain when I seen Peter Pan with a short line so couldn't miss that. DH was not going to meet him, he said I was on my own for this one thinking he had escaped he stood in the corner... he didn't. Peter Pan told me I was too tall for Neverland as I was taller than him so I couldn't go and I mentioned about DH standing in the corner who is taller than me and since DH has a beard he decided he was a pirate and said he would definitely not be allowed in to Neverland, I really enjoyed how much time he spent with me.

We then went over to splash and got front row for the first time and got soaked, it was great.

We decided on getting one of our new favourite thing a dole whip and watched the move it shake it parade.

We had enough for today and decided to head back to the resort for to pick up some gifts I got delivered and then went to Disney springs for late lunch at wolf gang puck express. I got chicken strips and chips I think and I can't remember what DH got. We did loads of shopping then called it a day and went back to the room. Then DH came out with his favourite phrase of the holiday... 'you fancy Epcot?' so off we went for the third night running, we checked out the festival centre and had our usual wander, we decided to leave and as we got off the bus it was raining heavy and we got soaked running from the bus stop to our room!

Love the buttered chicken so much!

Saturday 1st October- Free day/MK - 45th anniversary

I got up pretty early and got dressed whilst DH stayed in bed for a bit, he discovered that he could watch the football, his beloved Newcastle! I tidied up the room sorting the washing out and started to get hungry, so I went and got breakfast platter and brought it back to the room, this was the first breakfast we had tried from the resort and which we both enjoyed. I went on Facebook and discovered it was the 45th anniversary for MK! how did I miss that! I did not know! Excitement set in and as soon as the match was over we left (dragged DH) for MK.

I was expecting nothing to be left as it was 12 and I had seen the queues on FB. Just as went through the turnstiles a cast member was there and we got given the 45th buttons! I couldn't believe our luck! I grabbed two maps as I knew Amy wanted one and they might be gone by time she went later on.

The line for the emporium was round the corner opposite Starbucks and we decided to join it and wait. It moved fairly quickly the longest we waited was in the queue to pay and we got to watch the move it shake it parade whilst we waited.

We got in to the emporium and Johnny stayed in the line for the special edition t-shirts and I went and wandered around and grabbed what I could. A vest for me and a mug, I then joined back with Johnny and got the red t-shirt for him and one for Amy. Then we came out and I was ready to leave as we were going to go back on the night anyway as I had fastpasses, but Johnny said we should go to pandora and that I could get a charm from the parks since I had only got them from Disney springs so far, and that they might have a special one for the 45th. Sure enough when we went over there was a small queue and a cast member outside had the special edition 45th and the 2016 charm I liked both and Johnny said I could get both! Bonus!

We left and went back to the hotel to chill and decided to get some food from the riverside mill... our usual pizza to share and this is when I first got a brownie instead of a magic cookie bar for dessert and oh wow so amazing!
On the night we went to MK, we went on pirates which was our first fast pass, then we made our way to jungle cruise the fast pass queue was quite long which we thought was strange. As we got close an announcement came over to say they had to shut down because of an incoming storm, they gave us the paper fast passes that could be used up till 31st and apologised.

At first we were disappointed because it was blue skies but we decided that we hadn't been to the tiki room yet so we decided to give it a go. When we came out it was chucking it down, we put our ponchos on determined to not be defeated by the rain and decided to wait it out for our seven dwarfs fast pass. We walked about then decided to take shelter next to some trees near the 7DMT entrance, the ride was shut down because of the rain so we waited and waited. About 45mins passed and we decided to leave as our shoes were soaked and there was no signs of it stopping. I was disappointed because it was the only night I had planned to see the electrical parade but I convinced myself it would have been cancelled because of the rain. We got back to the room and dried off and watched transformers and had an early night, later I found out the parade did go ahead.

Sunday 2nd October - Hollywood Studios/Epcot

We got up and went to Hollywood studios it was quite busy.

We made our way over to our first fast pass toy story mania and Johnny won again . We then grabbed a pretzel and a drink as we started to get quite hungry. We sat down under the seats and umbrellas down from TSMM, we watched the toy soldiers come out and march, it was quite nice just sitting people watching.

We finished up and went into walts one mans dream, which I loved I was totally besotted and teared up after watching the film.

We then walked over and on to muppets as we hadn't been in this side of the park yet. We did a bit exploring in some shops and decided to get some food.

We went into abc commissary but walked back out as it was crazy there wasn't even a line it was just a mass of people waiting, I felt sorry for the CM who was trying to keep things organised. We went to back lot express which was really nice, I got a burger I think and Johnny got the Darth Vader burger, I got a BB8 cup cake and he got the peanut butter Darth Vader cupcake. We then went on star tours as our last fast pass, we were in time for Beauty and the Beats so we watched that and then went back to the resort to chill.

We then went to epcot again! When we got to the bus stop we seen Amy and her family so got chatting and anyone who has read her report will know about the bus dilemma! I hadn't realised any of what was going on as I was too busy talking but DH had enough he isn't the most patient person in the world and we decided to get off and on another bust and by the sound of Amys journey I'm glad we did! We got to Epcot and used our 4th fast pass for Frozen which I couldn't believe my luck in getting. We snacked around and eventually watched illuminations after and I bought the biggest doughnut I could find which was so tasty!

My favourite dish from F+W the fillet!

Thanks! I agree, I couldn't have ate it but DH says it was nice... rather him than me ha.

Monday 3rd October - Universal -met Amy

We got up early and got picked up again at 7:20 to head out to Universal, this time we were ready we had our tickets and the smaller bag for the lockers. We had two other pick ups along the way but it didn't take long before we were there. We decided we would concentrate on the rides we missed on the first day there. We went on the rock it rip it ride it roller-coaster first to get it out of the way as DH was determined to ride it again, it still made me feel a bit queasy but I did it so it stopped DH nagging me.

We then went over to the Simpsons as we missed it the last time, I must admit I much preferred it when it was back to the future, I felt very sick when I came of that. Off we went to Men in black but I overheard someone asking the CM outside if it spins and he said it does so that was me out, I don't spin and especially with me already feeling sick, DH went on solo and came off and said it was just like Buzz ride at MK and I would have been fine but he said it wasn't very good so we didn't bother riding it again. We went over to diagon alley and rode Gringots which we both really enjoyed had a look about and were going to take the Hogwarts express over to IOA but the wait was crazy long so we decided to ride the mummy which was really good. Also when we passed Transformers we seen bumblebee! my favourite Transformer!

We left Universal and walked over to IOA. DH made a beeline for hulk and rode it twice whilst I sat and waited. We then went on Dr Doom Fall which was fun but over quickly. Our stomachs started to grumble so went to Starbucks and got a drink each and a lemon cake to share which was yummy. We went to toon land and rode rip saw log flume, this was an amazing water ride we got completely drenched and it was a really good ride. Since we were all ready soaked we went on Jurrasic park again.

At this point we had done all the rides we had missed so we went over to Hogsmede, we rode the castle ride again and DH went on duelling dragons again, he rode twice again, whilst I waited and got a friend a wand. I bought a gilly water as I was starting to feel a bit sick with the heat... $4.50 later for a small bottle of water, oh well. We left and decided to go to city walk and get a starbucks and wait for pick up again.

We got back to POR for about 4pm the plan was to meet Amy and go to Walmart and the Disney Springs for food. DH decided he wanted to go to Disney Springs and look for some presents, so I left him in the room and Amy picked me up at 5 and off we went to Walmart. I got a couple of presents so was really happy with my trip, thanks again Amy.

We got back and went our separate ways to get ready and then met back outside ready to go meet DH. He text asking how long we would be so I started to worry he was bored and getting inpatient...and of course we had a right time trying to get there as Amy mentioned in her trip report, our luck with the bus and boat was terrible. I text him with constant updates so he knew what was happening. We got there but it took an hour in total. I text DH and we met him at Cookes of Dublin where he was having a beer.

So it turns out I was worried for nothing DH was texting to see how close we were because he decided to have a little adventure of his own and wanted to hit all 4 parks and get a picture and was going to wait how long it took me to notice on memory maker! But he couldn't keep it a secret and told us, he got magic shots at Animal Kingdom, Magic Kingdom and Epcot. We decided on D-luxe burger for tea which was yummy and then we headed back to the resort and went our separate ways back to the room to sleep.

This was Johnnys burger.

Tuesday 4th October - Epcot and Animal Kingdom -

We got up at 9:45am and got ready and got to Epcot. Once we got there we went straight to our first fastpass at character spot and met Mickey, Goofy and Minnie. I really wanted to meet Baymax I love big hero 6! We waited and got our pictures taken.

Then my deal with DH came back to bite me in the behind as I held up my end of the bargain and braved mission space...on the green but still! I must admit it wasn't as bad as I thought but it still wasn't my cup of tea. We decided it was time for food so we snacked around the world and went for our fastpass on frozen. But there was some sort of a delay and there was a cast member giving back fast passes? We went up to see if we should wait or go back and got advised since we were dot on time to try at the end of our fastpass, it started to pour so we poncho'ed up. We decided to brave it for a while and take shelter and wait for the fast pass, we had been put off by the rain a lot and normally in true fashion it did eventually stop so we were going to be stubborn. By the time we went back over 40mins later it was up and running. We got in and took off our ponchos and waited, it was quite cold in the queue but we put it down to having wet shoes.

We came off and decided to go back to the resort shower and change and head over to AK for our plan on waiting for a night time safari. I made a fourth fast pass for expedition Everest so we went straight on that we love this ride so much. Then off we went to wait on kilaminjaro safaris, there was a bit of a wait but as we got closer to the front they opened up the left side to board and we were some of the first to get on which was nice. We both really enjoyed it and the lions were really active, I preferred it over the day safari. We then went and watched the tree of life awakening which was so cute and I loved it.

We headed to Epcot for extra magic hours but we're disappointed we didn't know the food booths weren't open after 9pm so we headed back to the hotel and stayed in the bar for a bit before crashing.

Wednesday 5th October - Magic Kingdom our last day

We got up and headed to magic kingdom which was crazy busy! We went on our first fast pass which was splash mountain for the last time and headed over to jungle cruise to use the fast passes from the other day we got jerry who was okay but I preferred the first one with jungle Jim. Then had our 2nd FP for 7DMT, we had a wander round and bought some last minute gifts and Johnny went on the tea cups by himself as I can't spin, it was the cutest thing! We caught the hall of presidents which I really enjoyed and went for lunch at bog.

We then went for space mountain for last fastpass but I got the time wrong so we were an hour early. It was crazy busy and we were planning on going to Disney springs, Hollywood studios then back to magic kingdom on the night, to try and pack as much in as possible. So I just rescheduled it for half 10 on the night as it was extra magic hours. We left and got back to the room and chilled and decided to pack.

Then the rain started so we sacked off Disney springs as the only thing we wanted was stuff we could get in the gift shop at the hotel. Throughout all this time we were getting constant news flashes about hurricane Matthew, we were planning on watching Star Wars fireworks and then watching the electrical parade and wishes since they were cancelled when we were there before. But the rain was crazy and didn't let up at all so we decided to stay in as we didn't want to bring back wet clothes. It was a shame because it meant we didn't get to see Star Wars fireworks or the Electrical parade but it was just one of those things. We decided to brace the hotel restaurant when the rain eventually stopped and got last minute gifts and used meal credits on sweets to bring back. We then went back to the room and tried to get an early night as we knew it would be a long day tomorrow.

I dream about this pizza!

Thursday 6th October - Home time

We got up and had showers and got ready. We were hanging about the room as we weren't getting picked up till 12:20pm by DME. (We thought the time was dragging but this turned out to be the longest day in history for us) It was going so slow and we were sitting watching updates for Hurricane Matthew (bad idea) which was starting to freak us out, when we heard that they will be closing MCO at 8pm and if anything changed that the airport would not be used as a shelter and everyone would be moved to a red cross shelter, our flight was 16:35pm so I kept telling my husband we were fine.

We decided at around 10ish to just go and check out and sit in the lobby as watching the news was doing nothing for our nerves. We went over and as I went to check out, the queue was snaked around the lobby, it took me an hour to get seen which I don't mind as I understand it was a hectic time. There was a gentleman two places behind me on the phone trying to extend his stay as he didn't want to risk leaving and a lot of people checking out early. The only complaint I had was nothing to do with Disney but a woman behind me who didn't have the concept of personal space and was so close to me it was so uncomfortable, she kept knocking my handbag again and again which when your standing in a queue for an hour and everyone is stressing about the hurricane it was extremely irritating.

They brought Alice out for about half an hour for the children which I thought was an amazing thing to do. Anyway I checked out and got 2 birthday buttons from the desk one for DH Nana and one for my brother in law. I made my way back over to DH as I abandoned him with the cases and hold-all it was at this point my family whats app messages started blowing up, as my family were waking up and worried about the news that had been shown at home about the hurricane. I mean I'm not going to lie I was quite nervous and all these messages didn't help so in the end I told them not to text me unless I text them and I should probably note my DH does have anxiety issues so he was up a height. We went for one last wander around the gift shop and then waited outside for the MDE.

POR was the only pick up so we made our way to MCO. My nervousness went up again when on the way there we seen lines of traffic of people evacuating etc. We got checked in quickly as we were travelling premium economy back (for the double baggage which I believe has now changed instead of two bags each of 23kg its one bag each with max weight of 46kg which I think is a stupid idea) we had a wander round the shops and went through security.

We were hungry at this point so got a burger king... it was disappointing I got an original chicken sandwich meal and as soon as I bit into it all you could taste was the oil it was fried in to the point when I slightly squeezed it oil was dripping out of it, the fries were nice. We were facing the window and the heaven's opened. I could see DH getting really anxious so I made the decision to go look in a newsagent type shop and we used some of our last dollars, then went to the gate.

We boarded the plane and we were delayed for around 30mins sitting on tarmac waiting for the weather to lighten a bit and for other planes to fly. Whilst sitting on the runway the power suddenly cut out which sent DH and a few others around into a bit of a panic but then about 5 mins after the pilot came over the tannoy to tell us it was to save fuel or something and was normal.

It ended up only taking around 7 1/2 hours to get back as we had a 165mph tail wind which we thought was great. Then our bubble burst as we got off the plane and realized we (DH) had to drive home and neither of us had slept on the plane... I slept most of the way home so I can't complain.

Anyway that's our trip which feels like a dream!

We are in talks of booking up to go in 2020 before baby Robson is 3 with DH's Mam and Dad which I can't wait for.

Thanks! I want to say it was over Ireland i'm pretty sure it is, but DH took it I can't take any credit. Yeah it was a very scary time.

I know it must have been! it was the last thing we expected him to come out with!

Yes I can't wait to plan it!

Thanks! I have loved sharing it and reliving it That's what I thought ha! And we are looking at going to the flower and garden festival which I can't wait to try... just have to do the whole waiting thing in between though.

We did use Mears yes and it was so easy to use I definitely recommend it. If we ever go back we will be using them again.

We just went to concierge the day before we were going and told them when we wanted picking up (I recommend to get there for opening if your planning on doing Harry Potter and do that first) and we also arranged our pick up time, which we found easier than having to ring a few hours before we wanted picking up, as we were scared we would of had enough and be stuck until pick up time. We got picked up the first day we went about 4pm and second about 2/3 which was long enough for us.

Hope this helps