I was awake pretty early this morning, even before my alarm went off. Needless to say, I was at the bus stop shortly after 7, along with many others. Hmm...never seen such a popular Magic Kingdom early Extra Magic Hour before...
While waiting for the bus, I couldn’t help but overhearing the group next to me formulating their plans: “first we’ll go to Space Mountain, and then we’ll go to Seven Dwarfs...the line shouldn’t be too long by then”. All of this while spraying their kids with sunscreen and bug spray IN THE BUS line.
Horrified, I suggested to them that they reverse the order of their rides. And tried to avoid choking from all the sunscreen fumes. Seriously people...spray at the hotel room. Or use the lotions. Don’t subject others to the horrors of aerosol sunscreen!
Off my soapbox...a bus appeared just about the same time I realized I hadn’t put my rings on this morning. *&#! Yup, those rings...the wedding and engagement rings. I knew exactly where they were, and while they were tucked away, sort of, they were still pretty much out in the open. So...back to the room I went. UGH!
Music isn’t a big resort...until you’re on a mission, have epic blisters already, and it’s already over 90 with the heat index. But hey, I had 4000 steps before I ever got on a bus that morning!
I was back at the bus stop about 7:30, a bit annoyed with myself, since the line had only grown longer while I was gone. A bus appeared pretty quickly, but there were 2 ECVs and a wheelchair to load, so it was awhile before we got going.
Thankfully, the bus ride itself passed quickly. I chatted with a high school dance/PE teacher from Illinois for most of the bus ride. And, despite all the delays, I was walking into the Magic Kingdom a few minutes before 8. Since I wasn’t trying for the Mine Train, I really couldn’t complain.
I headed into the park, a bit confused that they weren’t scanning Magic Bands at the entrance to ensure we were staying on property. I also was a bit confused by why brochures were being handed out about Haunted Mansion merchandise, but I didn’t stop to take one. And WHY are so many people here for the morning EMH? I thought attendance was down this summer?
As I reached the Hub, EMH guests were clearly being directed to the Tomorrowland side of the park. It half registered that there was already a line of people at the rope for Liberty Square (at no later than 8:10), when that part of the park wouldn’t open until 9, but I was on a mission, so I didn’t think much of it.
It was a beautiful day, so I stopped for a quick castle picture as I headed for Fantasyland.
Upon arrival in Fantasyland, I found that the line for Peter Pan already stretched practically to the carousel, so that was a hard no for me. I turned and headed for Tomorrowland, passing some hefty waits throughout Fantasyland along the way.
Buzz Lightyear was my first attraction of the day. It was basically a walk on, which was very nice, given the sizeable waits elsewhere in the park. I scored one of the lower scores I remember scoring in recent trips. Guess I just need to increase my Disney trip frequency again!
By the time I exited Buzz Lightyear, it was no longer a walk on. I checked the wait times, and it looked, on the app, like Haunted Mansion was up and running with the shortest wait in the park, so I cruised through Fantasyland, in that direction, where I was met by a wall of Cast Members outside of Small World. Turns out Haunted Mansion wasn’t open, despite what the app made it look like.
So? Time for that ear worm! Despite what the wait time said, Small World was actually essentially a walk on. Phew! I spent the ride trying to figure out if the woman in front of me actually experienced the ride, given how many times (I lost count at 50) she tried to take a selfie (falfie?) of her family on the ride. It got so excessive that I thought about photobombing, but I’m just not creative enough.
By the time I got off of Small World, quite the crowd was gathering at the rope right outside Small World for the official rope drop into the park. So I joined the crowd, wondering if it always looks like this. Typically, I rope drop the main opening of the park with the crowd into the Hub, heading for the Frontierland mountains.
While waiting for the rest of the park to open, I looked at Facebook. At this point, I discovered there was a release happening today, drawing crowds to the park. That release? Limited edition Haunted Mansion 50th anniversary merchandise. OHHH! That’s why there are so many people.
I was kind of frustrated that I had fallen into the higher crowds trap, but at the same time, I knew that the masses would be in merchandise lines for awhile, and I would not be. Haunted Mansion is an attraction I used to experience when it was regularly a walk on. Since they added fastpass to it, increasing the lines dramatically, it hasn’t been one I’ve made the effort to ride. It’s just not an attraction I’m connected to. So...no need for special merchandise. (On the other hand, I had my mom act as my personal shopper for Farewell Illuminations merch, since she was in Disney 2 weeks before me…)
When the rope dropped, I saw the lines immediately. I think, despite Disney’s attempts, some people had used going to the Tangled bathrooms as an excuse to get themselves in line at the Haunted Mansion store. They had quite the queue set up for that one, snaking all over the place, so it wasn’t too crazy. I kept going, and hopped in line at Haunted Mansion, which was a walk on, because, if there’s a milestone for this attraction, I guess I should ride it.
I really should have taken some pictures or something, but the line was a walk on. They had various characters out in Haunted Mansion related costumes, and different photopass props set up. But really, I was just there for the ride.
After escaping my hitchhiking ghost, I headed deeper into the park. Sadly, there was no way to capture it in a picture, but apparently there was a second location for this special merchandise. The line for the Frontier Trading Post, was absurd. Like it stretched from there to Liberty Tree Tavern, and at least doubled back. NUTS! And the bags coming out of that store. People were dropping some serious cash in there.
I made my way to Pirates, which also turned out to be basically a walk on. And even better, I didn’t get soaked on the ride!
After Pirates, I wandered Adventureland a bit. I considered Jungle Cruise, but the 40 minute posted wait actually looked accurate, so I passed on that one, and simply waited for Aloha Isle to open. It’s never too early for Dole Whip, right?!
For this Dole Whip experience, I went with the pineapple upside down cake, topped with Dole Whip swirl. It was amazing!! Why have I not had this before?!
After thoroughly enjoying that culinary delight, I very briefly considered the Tiki Room, but decided one ear worm was enough for the day.
So I headed back to Fantasyland, quite literally shaking my head at the merchandise lines that had only gotten longer. The CMs working the push carts with water, misting fans and cooling towels were smart though. They saw an opportunity and were working the lines, selling LOTS of water. Did I mention it was REALLY hot today?
Once in Fantasyland, I headed for the last must do for this park for me: Philharmagic. I really enjoy this show, and I’ve seen a few rumors, that, unlike the Tiki Room and Country Bears, Disney has yet to dispute.
I enjoyed Philharmagic as always. As I was exiting, I checked the wait times. Little Mermaid was only a 15 minute wait, so, what the heck. I needed to hear a little more Under the Sea after Philharmagic.
When I got to Little Mermaid, I questioned whether the wait time was accurate a bit, but I had been getting texts from Michele about the grossly over inflated wait times in Studios, so maybe they just hadn’t opened up enough of the indoor queue?
Nope. The wait time here was quite DEflated. 25 minutes later I was stepping into my clamshell. It is a REALLY good thing that there is a water bubbler in that queue…
From here, I walked to Tomorrowland (by way of Cosmic Ray’s for a water bottle fill), to check the Peoplemover situation. I was closing in on overheated at this point, and when I saw a moving but completely full queue for the Peoplemover, I decided I was done with this park and headed for the exit, stopping only long enough to listen to the Dapper Dans for a couple of minutes.
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