Our second (and LAST) day at Disney for this trip was supposed to be a slow roll, late morning, pool day until heading to the Magic Kingdom for the Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party (MNSSHP). However, former student and current Disney cast member Bradley decided he could shower us with some Disney magic and help us visit all four parks in two days!
Even though we had a late night at Epcot and didn't get back to our room until after 11pm, we planned on meeting Bradley at Disney's Animal Kingdom (DAK) around 9:30am. The kids had expressed an interest in riding Flight of Passage and Expedition Everest and eating at Flame Tree Barbecue. But by 8:51am, well before our arrival at DAK, the posted wait time for "Flight" was already over 120 minutes. We pulled in to DAK and parked by 9:35am and headed toward security to meet Bradley.
Pictured: Justyn, Bradley and the Johnsons in Pandora at DAK.
We did go visit Pandora, including the "Flight" gift shop, where Bradley had his first job as a cast member! The kids also had a chance to do some pin trading. Because the wait times were so high for "Flight," we decided to head over to "Dinosaur," with a posted wait time of 40 minutes.
Pictured: The Johnsons and Bradley and Justyn preparing to board the time machine to take us back to the point just before the asteroid that wipes out the dinosaurs makes impact!
The posted wait on dinosaur was fairly accurate, and by the time we disembarked Dinosaur, the wait time for "Everest" was nearly 80 minutes! Because of the heat and the long posted wait times, we decided to head to the Maharajah Jungle Trek and pray the wait times would decrease as the day got hotter. Unfortunately, the wait times never decreased, so we decided to place a mobile order at Flame Tree for a 1pm pickup, allowing us 45 minutes to explore before lunch and heading to park #2 for the day. Even "It's Tough to Be a Bug" had a 40 minute wait! We opted to take that opportunity to visit Discovery Island and walk the trails and see the animals there.
Pictured: The Tree of Life on the Discover Island trails.
We also stepped into a gift shop, as Harper was on a quest to purchase her first Disney Loungefly. She found a cute one at the Discovery Trading Company, just before we headed into Flame Tree Barbecue for lunch.
Pictured: Flame Tree Barbecue Pulled Pork and Mac n' Cheese...the Johnson's fav!
We were able to enjoy lunch and then head out of DAK toward Hollywood Studios (HS). At this point, I was getting nervous, because I really wanted to be at Magic Kingdom at 4pm in time for the MNSSHP, and I knew that with the plans that were cooking, a 4pm arrival at MK was going to be out of the question. We headed toward the parking lot to park hop into Hollywood, and this is where we made a ROOKIE mistake. For the first time EVER at Disney, we didn't take note of where our car was parked, and we wasted at least 10 minutes trying to find the car in the parking lot! The worst part? The panic button and horn didn't work on the rental car, so there was no way of knowing where our car was. That's the kind of mistake a newbie makes, not a 3-timer!! What an embarrassment!
We still managed to park the car and head to the restrooms just outside security at Hollywood by 2:05pm! FYI-the restrooms outside HS are absolutely incredible: great A/C, loud music, clean, with a water bottle refill station just outside! We utilized those before making a desperate move into HS to purchase sunglasses. This was another mistake. Both kids packed sunglasses, but neither brought them into the park with them. This was a nearly $50 unplanned ,but very necessary, purchase.
Pictured: Augie (with new sunglasses) and Heather on Hollywood Boulevard.
Our plan for this park was to head to Market for a Jack Jack Num Num cookie and ride Rise of the Resistance. The posted wait time for "Rise" was 90 minutes, but Bradley convinced both of my kids that it would be fun. This was going to put us just at 4pm to leave HS, but everyone else was going with it. It was time for me to let it go!
Pictured: a Jack Jack Num Num cookie from Market at HS.
We bought our cookies and walked through Toy Story Land to Galaxy's Edge. The line for "Rise" was the shortest I had ever seen it, and Bradley assured me that the wait would be well under the advertised 90 minutes. The line never stopped moving, and we were inside, in the A/C before long. The actual wait for "Rise" was closer to 60 minutes, and it was worth every minute of the wait. Never have I been so impressed with such an immersive and theatrical ride!
Pictured: Augie, between pre-shows at Rise of the Resistance.
We loved visiting two extra parks for one ride and one food experience in each park. It was cool to think of all we saw and did before even heading to Magic for the night. At 4:15pm, the Johnsons walked out of HS and headed over to MK for the MNSSHP. The plan was set, the research was done, and it was now time to execute.
Pictured: the Johnson family on Hollywood Boulevard before leaving HS.
We got to the Ticket and Transportation Center and opted to take the monorail since there was hardly a line. However, once we got to MK, we had to wait awhile to get through the tapstyles. I'm guessing it was because we had to have a special bracelet, indicating our attendance at the party. By 5:07pm, we were in the park!
Pictured: The Johnsons successfully tapped in and braceleted!
We were then ushered through a back entrance past Tony's Town Square Restaurant. It was neat to be walking behind some of Main Street, but we were walking so quickly, I didn't soak it in! It was also fun to look at everyone's costumes. Harper lamented the fact that we only wore our villain tees and didn't wear costumes, thus begging the question, maybe next time?
We headed directly over to Frontierland to ride Big Thunder Mountain. At this point, the regular park guests were still in attendance, and Big Thunder had a posted wait time of 40 minutes. We decided to risk it, since every other indicator hinted at low waits. This was true of Big Thunder. We waited 21 minutes and enjoyed riding the "Wildest ride in the west"! We used the bathrooms by Splash, then got in line there, knocking out 2 of our farthest rides before the party started. We were off Splash after a 20 minute wait (with a posted wait time of 40 minutes as well). Our biggest regret at this point was that Westward Ho was closed, which meant no candied bacon this trip!
Pictured: The Johnson family riding Splash Mountain for their third, and most likely final, time!
While we weren't really all that hungry, we didn't want to stop the ride momentum before the 7pm party began. We hit up the popcorn cart in Liberty Square for popcorn and a lemonade ice to eat in line at the Haunted Mansion. The mansion had a posted wait time of 35 minutes, but we had to show our bracelets to get into Liberty Square, so we were only in line with party guests. We also had to finish our snacks before heading into the mansion. I figured we would have another 20 minutes, but we were in the stretching room within 7 minutes!
Pictured: Augie and the twins (and the popcorn)!
When we got off Haunted Mansion, the party was in full swing, so we did our first trick or treating in the Columbia Harbor House. We walked back to Sleepy Hollow Refreshments for our first party-exclusive snacks: the worms and dirt funnel cake and the chilling chamber pop. The funnel cake was amazing, but the chamber pop was a big miss. The kids snagged a table with an incredible view, and we sat down after 3 rides to have a snack.
Pictured: The Sleepy Hollow Refreshments worms and dirt funnel cake.
We ate our goodies and headed straight over to Tomorrowland to try to ride Space Mountain with the Halloween party overlay. It was 7:45pm, and we were hopeful that the 20 minute ride waits would stick with us! We stopped by the purple wall for a quick photo before heading to Space Mountain, and enjoyed yet another 20 minute wait to ride a completely dark Space Mountain!
Pictured: Harper and Heather in front of the purple wall.
After Space, Augie was feeling good, so he demanded we all go stand in line at 7 Dwarves and try our luck again. Once again, we lucked out, only waiting 21 minutes for a ride with notoriously long wait times!
Pictured: the Johnson family clearly bored and/or channeling the Sanderson sisters on Seven Dwarves Mine Train.
At this point we needed a little more sustenance and our feet very much hurt. The kids and I sat on a bench outside the Friar's Nook, where Toby ordered another party exclusive treat: un Poco Loco Tots. They were a yummy, savory treat that boosted our energy as we headed back into Tomorrowland to hit up the People Mover and rest our feet (but not before going through the trick or treat line!). However, unlike the rest of our evening, things hit a snag: People Mover wasn't moving! Harper needed to sit and have a break, but Augie was called to the music at the Monster's Inc. dance party, so he and Toby cut a rug while Harper and I sat and watched, which didn't last long! It was so much fun to dance and party with the monsters. We had so much fun dancing with this crew!
Pictured: Harper and Heather at the Monster's, Inc. Dance Party.
Around 9:40pm we boarded the People Mover, which was risky, since the ONLY fireworks for the evening started at 10:15pm. We loved seeing the Tron progress from People Mover though, and we knew that it was important to sit for a bit after having been walking since 9:30 that morning! We disembarked People Mover with enough time to use the restrooms by the Cheshire Cafe, AND score an incredible spot to watch the fireworks by 10:09pm. From this vantage point, our family enjoyed both the Disney's Not So Spooky Spectacular (fireworks and projection show) AND the 10:45pm Hocus Pocus Villain Spectacular show.
Pictured: the MK castle just before showtime! What a perfect view for the shows!
We were able to sit for a bit between shows, which was perfect since we were all tired. After the 10:45pm show, we turned directly around and sat near the curb for the 11:15pm "Boo To You" parade. The headless horseman made his ride at exactly 11:15pm, but it took awhile for the parade to get to us. We enjoyed all elements of the parade, and by 11:47pm, all of the entertainment was done, and the park was scheduled to close in 13 minutes. Augie was bound and determined to trick or treat at the Monster's Inc. Laugh Floor and get candy and hopefully called upon for the show. While there were only 6 people in the auditorium, he didn't get noticed. We did, however, get LOADS of candy, since it was so close to midnight! Harper and Toby sat on the benches just outside the Tomorrowland sidewalk and politely waited for us.
It was nearly midnight, and Harper hadn't picked out her ears for this trip. We ducked into the Emporium and she found a pair of Sally ears to commemorate this special Halloween-themed trip.
Pictured:
a very tired Heather, Toby and Harper heading out of the park for the night.
At 12:10am, we left the Magic Kingdom and headed to the ferry.
We walked over 30,000 steps, rode 8 rides, had over 5 unique Disney snacks, and visited three Disney theme parks in 15 hours! It was an incredibly memorable day: one that I won't soon forget. While this was certainly NOT a budget-friendly trip, it was important to me to experience this magic with my kids just one more time. I worry about the day they tell me they no longer want to vacation with me or they no longer feel the Disney magic, but until that day comes, I'll keep planning trips that make me feel happy and proud to be their mom.
Pictured: The Johnson family at the MNSSHP on Friday, October 14.
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