August 2018: A Summer Solo Disney Trip: Day 1

Day 1: Wednesday August 8, 2018

My day started before 6 when the darling dogs woke me up to go out. Guess (as usual lately!), I don’t need my alarm today! I did crawl back into bed for a bit, but I didn’t go back to sleep. I started checking out stuff on my phone, and very quickly discovered my flight was delayed by nearly an hour and a half. UGH.

A little after 7, I got up when Nick did, got ready and threw the last couple items in the luggage. When Nick left for work at 8, I went for a quick walk, because not arriving in FL until mid-late afternoon meant my step count for today was going to be much lower than a typical Disney trip.

Once my walk was done, I hopped in the car and drove to my mom’s. I got there about 9, and already, the delay had been shortened by about 15 minutes. We decided to just head for the airport. We very quickly transferred my luggage to her car, and we were on our way.

The ride to the airport was uneventful, and pretty soon I was listening to mom’s “have fun, be careful, and CALL me once in awhile” spiel, as we pulled up to the curb.

After explaining to mom, as I do every trip, why I was headed inside instead of checking my luggage at the curb, I said goodbye, and headed inside. I walked straight up to a bag check kiosk, tagged my bag, and within about a minute and a half, I was on an escalator up to security, where I found no line for pre-check. YAY!

I’ve smartened up, and pulled the food out of my carry on bag for security, so security was a breeze, and I was gateside within 7 minutes of pulling up to the curb. LOVE Manchester Airport!

By the time I reached my gate, I found another alert, that the delay had been shortened again. New estimated departure was 12:00, just 50 minutes late. That’s definite progress! I settled in for a bit to charge my phone, swap my watch for my Magic Band, and listen to the lady a few seats over talk about her park touring strategy, based on current wait times...you know...like 5 hours before any of us could possibly enter a park! Plus I spammed Facebook a bit!

Eventually, I went in food, disappointed more than usual in the available options. I can usually get a basic sandwich at MHT, but this day my go-to for that was closed. That left Dunkins, Burger King, and a sit-down place (that was still serving breakfast) as my options. I’ll spare you the reasoning, but I ended up with a bagel toasted with butter, and hashbrowns from Dunks for food. Boy I hope those non-peanut snacks they’re serving on the flight are good!

While I was eating, the gate agents were running in circles, trying to reschedule people whose connections had been canceled in Chicago (they were going out of the gate next to mine), and even one who was impacted by our delay. The summer of weather hell continues!

About 11:30, our plane pulled up to the gate. Boarding announcements were started, and they got us lined up so that they could turn the plane as quickly as possible. I was on board by 11:45, in about the 5th row, by the window, despite my horrendous B10 boarding position (and yes, I paid for Early Bird…). It was a completely full flight, but one of the quickest boarding I’ve ever seen. And while the flight attendants were unpacking snack boxes, the gate agents boarded the plane to close up overhead bins, to expedite our departure. There’s a reason MHT keeps winning Southwests’s ground/gate crew awards!

We pushed back by noon, and Captain Leadfoot shared that the winds were in our favor today. Despite leaving 50 minutes late, we should anticipate landing around 2:40, just 30 minutes late. YAY!

The flight was uneventful, and despite the wild summer weather, the view was clear, and the ride was smooth for the vast majority of the trip. Captain Leadfoot’s faithful sidekick even gave us a guided tour down the east coast, pointing out different landmarks, such as the Chesapeake Bay Bridge/Tunnel. And it was so clear that it was very easy (and interesting) to see it, despite flying at 38,000 feet. I will admit that this one was particularly remarkable for me, because we were just talking a few weeks ago at a family gathering about how my great uncle was involved in crane operations when they built this tunnel.

Captain Leadfoot was true to his word, and we touched down in Orlando about 2:39. As seems to be my usual upon arrival, we came in to the very last gate at the end of the terminal. But hey, I see palm trees! And is that REAL air conditioning?!

Yes, folks, one of the most exciting things about this trip was the prospect of consistent air conditioning. It’s been a hot, rainy, humid summer at home. My house has exactly 2 air conditioning units: a window unit that’s more temperamental than I would like, and a portable thing that looks like Wall-E. Central air is not a widespread thing in NH. But it is in FL!

I booked it down to the DME counter, you know...a couple miles from my gate, texting people about my arrival while I walked. There was no line to scan my band, and pretty soon, I was in line to board a bus.

Probably less than 15 minutes after stepping into the bus line, I was on a Disney Cruise Line bus, excitedly thinking about the fact that I’ll be on one of those buses on my way to a Disney Cruise in 254 days (but who’s counting…). It was at this time, well after 3 PM, that I got my room ready text from Disney. I’d be in the Mighty Ducks section, in room 3803.

Pretty soon, the bus was full enough, and the driver boarded. She meant business! It was an uneventful bus ride, but staying at Movies meant that I was the 4th (of 4) bus stops. I did a lot of texting! And even a little picture taking...

I made it to my hotel about 4:20. Less than an hour and a half from touch down to arrival at the hotel. Not bad, especially since I was the 4th bus stop! Since I finally had my room number, I headed straight there. It was a pretty straightforward walk, and really not that long, to my building, building 3. My room was on the second floor.

When I got into my room, I quickly discovered that I’d been put in a handicap accessible room with a roll-in shower. While I’m glad these rooms exist for those who need them, I can’t say I was excited about the prospects of flooding the bathroom everytime I tried to shower.

Room explored, I put together a park bag, and headed back to the main building. It was WAY past time for dinner! That single bag of veggie wheat thin chips on the plane didn’t quite cut it after the bagel and hashbrowns at MHT!

After exploring the food court a bit, I settled on a chicken parm sandwich. And after a brief battle with the soda machine that was apparently out of Powerade (always pre-hydrate for the parks!), I settled down to eat shortly after 5. I just about inhaled the sandwich, even though it had WAY too much chunky sauce on it.

Once I’d eaten dinner, I refilled my new refillable mug with Powerade, and headed for the buses. I don’t think I had to wait very long before a Hollywood Studios bus came along.

I think it was a relatively quick ride to the turn for Hollywood Studios. From that point, to the parking lot, however, was another story. Because of the gondola construction, about a week before my trip, they moved the bus stops around, plus relocated part of the walkway to the Epcot area resorts. The result was a total mess, and a pretty accurate representation of what the park looks like right now in general. We were dropped off pretty close to the gate, though.

The walk to security was quick. Security? Not so much. I thought Disney’s bag checkers couldn’t get more thorough after this spring’s trips. I was wrong…

Once I made it into the park, I started wandering, trying to get the lay of the land a bit. Plus I did some store browsing, since I still had awhile before my fastpass. My wandering led me to One Man’s Dream.

Granted, One Man’s Dream hasn’t really changed (with the exception of adding character greets, and swapping out some of the models on display), but it’s amazing how much smaller it seemed this trip. Last summer, Nick and I went to the Disney Family Museum while we were in San Francisco during our honeymoon. One Man’s Dream pales in comparison.

Next, I decided to find the entrance to Toy Story Land to take some pictures. Now, logic should have told me to look at the park map, but I’m a New Englander. What’s a map?! So, while I was actually basically right next to the entrance, I ended up over near Muppets before I actually looked at the map. OOPS!

Since I was near Muppets and a bit warm, I walked into the next show. Literally...I waited about 1 minute in the holding tank before they opened the doors into the theater. The show was pretty full. It was good air conditioning. I enjoyed it, as usual.

Once the theater had been blasted, I returned to the park, and actually found Toy Story Land. I did a bunch of picture taking, because it wasn’t quite time for my fastpass for Slinky Dog yet. I absolutely loved the theming of this land. 

At 7:25, right when it was time for my fastpass, I headed for the fastpass line. I was on Slinky Dog in less than 10 minutes. I have to say, for a ride that’s advertised as a family roller coaster, this one is actually really impressive. I really enjoyed it, and it will be a must fastpass for all future trips. Everest is still my favorite Disney coaster, but this is a good one.

After Slinky Dog, it was time for Epcot. I started walking, and couldn’t help but notice some green army men, and also some really cool kiddie measurers.

When I finally finished taking pictures in Toy Story Land, I really did head for the park exit. As I was walking, it became clear it was going to storm, however, the clouds seemed to be building primarily over Hollywood Studios, so I decided to still make the trek to Epcot and see what happened.

The beginning of the walkway is pretty meh right now, because of all of the construction. Thankfully, it does eventually join the regular walkway, and the construction materials do disappear.

Along the trek to Epcot, the wind picked up, and by the time I was cruising past Stormalong Bay, it became very evident that nature was going to put on its own fireworks show tonight, and I would not be seeing Illuminations.

From here on out, it was basically a race against time. Thankfully, International Gateway security seemed to understand that concept as well, and moved the line quickly there. I walked straight through Epcot, working my way toward the bus stop.

As I was moving as quickly as my short legs can carry me past Spaceship Earth, a heart stopping lightning bolt lit the sky. No exaggeration, there was a collective “woah” from about 90% of the people around me, and we all picked up the pace exiting the park, as all the little ones started melting down, terrified of the storm.

I made it to the bus stop just before the deluge. And that was really all that mattered. It was a surprisingly long wait to get on a bus, as I will, for this one, give Disney the benefit of the doubt that they were planning a mass exodus about 45 minutes later than it actually happened. But, by the time a bus showed up, the rain had slowed to a drizzle, and I’d been waiting under cover, so it was all good.

When I got back to Movies, I filled my mug with more Powerade and got myself a Pineapple Swirl cupcake, to be known from here out as the Dole Whip cupcake. 

Since it was just sprinkling, but threatening to rain much harder, I took my cupcake back to my room to eat. The cake itself was kinda boring, but the cupcake as a whole was REALLY good. I thoroughly enjoyed it. And yes, that’s a flavor injector. I poured the pineapple syrup all over the top of the cupcake.

Cupcake destroyed, I quickly showered (flooding the bathroom as expected, despite trying to take a quick shower), and crawled into bed. It was closing in on 11 before I went to sleep, which was going to make for a short night!

August 2018: A Summer Solo Disney Trip: Pretrip

So, we all know I’ve been to WDW quite a bit lately. However, most of those trips have been weekends or 1-day visits, and by last fall, I’d started really jonesing for a “true” Disney trip, where I hit all the parks in one trip. So, I crunched some numbers, did a little Disney justification, and, when I was in Disney for the Food and Wine festival last November with my mom, I upgraded my 2 day park pass to an annual pass, ensuring that, as long as I could get good airfare, I’d be doing a “true” Disney trip this summer.

So, sometime in March, on one of the 15 days we missed of school this year due to weather (or perhaps one of the half dozen plus sick days I ended up with?), I found airfare I didn’t mind, and booked myself a Disney trip. When all the details came together, the trip (a solo trip) was scheduled for August 8-13, with a stay at All Star Movies.

With a never ending school year, followed by a summer where we celebrated my grandparents’ 70th anniversary and Nick’s grandparents’ 60th anniversary, and I worked summer school, my plans for this trip were a bit thrown together. And by that, I mean that at 60 days out, I made a bunch of fastpasses for Flight of Passage and Slinky Dog Dash, and then didn’t really do any other planning until roughly a week before the trip. And even those plans were not very detailed. But at least I knew which parks I was going to which day.

Summer school ended about the same time I figured out my park plans, Nick and I celebrated our first anniversary by going to Boston to see the Broadway version of Aladdin, and then the countdown truly ticked down to the final (3) days. With my departing flight not scheduled until 11:10 am, packing was done pretty leisurely on the day before the trip, and I actually got to spend the night in my own house the night before flying out. It was a very different pre-trip!

April 2018: A MAGICal April Vacation: Day 9: The End

Day 9: Sunday April 29, 2018

I woke up a little after 5, as the ship changed speeds. I headed out onto the balcony, where I caught a look at lights of Miami, and...a FULL MOON! Whose ideas was it to schedule the end of vacation with a full moon?! The kids will be nutty at school tomorrow!

I watched as we did a 180, and floated into the dock. We were met with chaos...the forklifts started running almost immediately. And, as we docked, an ambulance cruised down through. It kept going, down to one of the other ships that was docked. I watched the chaos for a bit, and stepped on some popcorn. I guess someone else near us had been part of the popcorn throwing club after we had gone to bed, with the wind blowing in the wrong direction.

I hung out on the balcony for quite some time, but eventually it was time to get ready for the day. I got dressed, putting on my brand new Disney Cruise Vacation Mode t-shirt, only to realize I hadn’t cut the tag off yet, and had packed my nail clippers in our checked luggage. And Nick was still pretty out of it, and I had to go pick up our photo USB from Shutters.

Needless to say, I was that classy person who had a plastic tag holder hanging from my armpit (I had the sense to tear the tag itself off) while I went to pick up the USB drive. Shutters was not busy at all, and that was an easy process. She took my stateroom number, confirmed my name, handed me an envelope, and I was on my way back to my room.

Thankfully by now Nick was awake and functional, so he was able to tear the plastic piece off my shirt. We rounded up the last of our chargers, and then hung out on the balcony, enjoying having regular cell phone service again, and already planning for next year’s cruise.

Shortly before 8, Nick’s parents knocked on our door. They hadn’t seen our room yet, so they wanted to see how it compared to ours. They had had a standard balcony room, and Kim said she kind of preferred the shade that ours provided. Not that she had any complaints about their room.

About 8, we headed down to deck 3, where we waited just a few minutes before they allowed us into Rapunzel’s for breakfast. We found our way back to our table, and were greeted by a very tired but energetic Nikola. I believe he said he had had 4 hours of sleep, and 4 cups of coffee.

I think John and Nick both got the Route 66, which involves lots of breakfast meats, eggs and hashbrowns. Kim and I both got An Egg for the road, with a fried egg, grilled ham, and hashbrown patties. I had expected this meal to be quiet, but Nikola and Miguel both chatted and joked with us a LOT. It was a fun meal, and we all parted smiling and waving, with Nikola encouraging us to book another cruise on the Magic, because he refuses to work on any of the other ships, despite having worked with the cruise line for more than 10 years! In case I haven’t mentioned it enough, he’s an excellent server. If you’re on the Magic anytime soon, look for him at Palo. 

Breakfast complete, John headed for guest services to apply that gift card to his account that I had encouraged him to deal with on the first day. We only had to wait a few minutes for him though. 

And then it was up to deck 4, where we joined the line that snaked from the doors on deck 4 all the way back through the art gallery, through shutters, and almost to Animator’s Palate. Nick and I were ahead of Kim and John so we hopped in line, and they joined us when we got to them a minute or two later. The line was long but it never stopped moving, and cast members along the way kept thanking us for our patience.

We scanned off the ship by 9:30, probably a few minutes before that, just as the “get your butt off the ship” announcements were starting in earnest. Once we scanned off the ship, we were able to walk pretty freely. The line had dissipated. Or, perhaps it had collected again at the elevator, with all of the giant strollers!

We took the escalator down to baggage claim, found our beast of a suitcase with ease, and then, with a little more effort, found Kim and John’s generic gray and black suitcases nearby. We then followed a lady who was berating a porter, because she “no one told her she needed her birth certificate and it was packed in that pile of luggage (there were about 6 suitcases for 2 women on a luggage cart), and no she wasn’t looking for it”, into the customs line. Oh please, don’t let us get stuck behind her.

The customs line was short and moved quickly. We cracked jokes about smuggling some roosters from Key West back into the country when we saw the forbidden items drop bin, and pretty soon we were being directed into a line for a customs agent...directly behind the lady with inadequate ID.

Turns out the customs agent was also inadequate. Said lady had cleared customs within seconds, and we were called forward. He took a VERY cursory glance at our passports, and sent us on our way.

We met Nick’s parents, who had a more normal customs agent, a few minutes later, and exited the building, pausing to see if anyone had had anything interesting confiscated. On our previous cruise, the table to pick up confiscated items was covered in interesting stuff-kitchen sets, immersion blenders, etc, and had allowed for a good laugh. This time, it was primarily surge protectors. Boring.

Nick led the way to the rental car, and pretty soon, the boys were playing tetris again. I programmed the GPS, and we were on our way to the airport. It was a short drive, and I think we arrived into the chaos of Miami International Airport about 10 am. Curbside was pure insanity, and we really had no idea which door we needed to use.

Nick and I collected our luggage, said goodbye to his parents, and headed inside, to figure things out. We printed luggage tags and boarding passes, and paid our baggage fee at a kiosk before heading over to the check in counter.

This is where the fun began. We were quickly informed that our suitcase was overweight, weighing in at 55 pounds. I mean, I know we had some extra stuff in there, but I think it’s safe to say our luggage scale at home is inaccurate, having told us upon departure that it weighed 38 pounds. The lady did tell us we could go over to the table designated for this issue and rearrange some luggage to get the weight down to 51 pounds, to avoid the $100 fee.

We did exactly that. It was a good time. NOT!

On our second attempt, the suitcase weighed in at 50.5 pounds, so we were good to go. I had to seriously wonder why they even charge the excess bag fee, since the lady didn’t actually even pick up the bag. She simply tipped it over, and conveyor belts carried it from there. She then directed me to the closest TSA pre-check area, and warned me we would have quite a walk to the gate from there. She never once mentioned there was a train available.

Security was disgustingly quick, and pretty soon we were hiking. I think we came through security around gate D22. Our scheduled gate was D52. We joked about the hike, and the crazy food places and stores available in this airport (there’s a place that sells exclusively empanadas!), and worked hard at not being run over by the kamikaze shuttle drivers.

Eventually, we made it to gate D52, where, surprisingly (because our flight wasn’t until 1:45), we found several people clearly waiting for the Boston flight. We settled in, and started contemplating what we would like for lunch, based off the couple hundred options we had seen on our walk to the gate.

While contemplating food options, most of us at the gate received some form of notification, whether from the airline (not me) or TripIt (me), that our gate had changed to D33. Ugh. We decided it was time to find some lunch over in that area, and headed that way, noticing the Sky Train along the way. We took the escalator up to that, and within minutes, we were on a train over toward D33.

Once we arrived one stop over (which probably saved us a 15 minute walk), we started looking for food. It was plenty early, so we decided on a sit-down burger place called the Counter. This was a create your own burger place, with lots of choices for sauces, toppings, bread, etc. I had a beef burger with barbecue sauce and pineapple and cheddar on it. Nick had a burger with some toppings I’m forgetting on Texas toast. He had sweet potato fries with his, and I had regular fries with mine. Both meals were delicious.

While we were eating, I got another notice from TripIt. Our gate was being changed again, this time to gate D49. That’s right...just a couple gates from where we started. What the bleep!

We finished lunch, and then decided to walk to the next gate. Once there, we found everyone that had been at our previous gate. We also found evidence (you know...posted signs) that this gate actually would be the gate for a flight to Boston. Progress!

Pretty soon our plane showed up, and I once again started wondering why they need to charge fees for overweight luggage. They never actually touch the luggage! It’s all handled by conveyor belt, with people alongside it simply scanning bags, and moving the carts as they fill. Absurd.

Eventually it became clear we would be boarding soon. They started offering compensation for taking a later flight. The later flight would get us into Boston around 10 pm, and would have a connection at JFK. NO WAY!! We clearly weren’t the only people who aren’t willing to be paid to deal with JFK; they had to raise the offer multiple times, to an obscene number, to get volunteers. If it had been Southwest, we would have jumped on it. Probably even Jet Blue. But not this one.

When boarding began, I was reminded of the thing I hate most about airlines with assigned seats: gate lice! We were boarding group 5, because for the scheduled 3 ½ hour flight on a legacy airline that is not known for big seats, I had paid for “main cabin extra” for extra leg room for Nick. We had to step over an insane amount of luggage and people to get to the entrance to board.

Once on board, we were in row 9, which was the 2nd row after first class. We found our seats, and attempted to get situated. This was complicated, because American has very narrow seat bases? How narrow? The backpack I carry that has no problem fitting under the seat in front of me on Southwest and JetBlue had to be compacted to fit under the seat on this plane, and Nick’s under the seat carry on that had also fit on Southwest (and this weekend’s JetBlue E190) had to go in the overhead. And then of course we needed items out of said carry on, so we were those people, interfering with boarding, whenever we could be as least obtrusive as possible. Thankfully, the guy on the aisle was one of the last to board.

Eventually we settled in. Nick found a movie in the seatback TV, and he watched that for the flight. And I found the flight tracker in the seatback TV, so I was content.

We both chuckled over the ridiculousness of the TV based emergency briefing upon departure, and then I made Nick put his window shade up so I could see for departure. It’s a really cool view leaving MIA. That is about the only thing I’ll give that airport credit for.

Once airborne, I very quickly realized that the seats on this plane were miserable. That flight couldn’t end fast enough for me.

I also realized that the flight attendant crew wasn’t even remotely friendly. I wasn’t expecting joking or anything special, especially so soon after the Southwest engine incident. But I also wasn’t expecting looks of pure annoyance when they had to interact with their passengers. Snack service was presented as a chore to get through, and shortly before landing, when the seatbelt sign had been on for quite some time, the queen of the RBF could be seen getting two ginormous bottles of water out of her personal bag. A passenger in the bulkhead row ahead of us asked her for assistance placing her (small) purse in the overhead bin, “since the seatbelt sign is on”. The response was “my hands are full” and an eye roll. Gee, how kind.

The one thing American had going for it was the flight tracker. It gave a lot of information beyond what Southwest’s does. Although, I must say, that the air temperature at 38,000 feet is downright disturbing!

The pilot also managed to get us into Boston over half an hour early. And with the seats, I’ve never been so happy to see Logan Airport!

Because our flight was scheduled to get in at 5, and would be tight for making the 5:25 bus, making it so we wouldn’t arrive back in NH until 8 if we missed the 5:25 bus, AND our flight had a horrific on-time arrival score, I had booked a car service to take us home. I’m positive it is because I had done this that we arrived so early.

When I took my phone out of airplane mode, I had an email from Axis, the car company, that my driver had arrived, and a picture of the driver, along with his phone number if we needed it, and specific directions as to which door to use to access the parking garage to meet him. I was grateful for this, especially since I’d scheduled a 5:30 pick up (but given my flight information). It was only about 4:30.

Once the jetbridge driver finally decided to show up, deplaning was quick enough. As we were walking into the gate area, I received a text directly from the driver. This is the 2nd time we’ve used Axis for travel between NH and Logan airport, and the communication has been this good both times. My dad has used them for travel as well (it was because he surprised me with wedding transportation through them that I learned about them) and says it’s always like this.

We made our way down to baggage claim, and our suitcase emerged fairly quickly. From there, it was a short walk to the right door, and across to the parking garage. Our driver, Dave, was waiting for us with our last name on a tablet. His car was very close by, we loaded the luggage, he told Nick which seat had more leg room, and we were on our way back to NH.

Traffic was relatively light leaving Boston, so we arrived at my dad’s within an hour of leaving the airport, right about 6. Dave carried the suitcase right from the back of his car to the back of mine, not wanting us to set it down on Dad’s muddy driveway. We will continue to use Axis when we need non-bus transportation to/from Logan.

Nick and I then hung around chatting with dad for about 20 minutes before heading home.

Final thoughts:

What an amazing trip!!

I’m seriously spoiled by Disney. The level of service and entertainment really is amazing. I also really like the rotational dining. I have looked at other cruise lines, at the newer ships that everyone raves about, and I am genuinely curious about them. At some point, we will sail on one of those ships. But they just seem like a lot more work. To really get the experience, I would HAVE to plan dining and shows, in addition to what I’m doing in ports. With Disney, I only have to plan what I’m doing in port, and if I’m going to Palo or a “beverage seminar”. I’m obviously not opposed to vacation planning, and do a lot of vacations that require significant planning, but sometimes it’s nice to not have to do much. Trust me, I never thought I’d say that either.

Traveling with my mother-in-law was awesome. It really brought a whole new level of excitement to this trip. We were excited for all the fun experiences, but we were also excited to see her reaction to EVERYTHING. And traveling with my father-in-law was easier than expected.

The drive from Disney to Miami was easier, and more mind-numbingly boring, than anticipated. FL may have more cows than NH has humans.

You would never know the Magic is turning 20 this year. I had read that the theater looked run down, and the atrium carpet was disgusting. I didn’t see any of it. And I looked hard, knowing I was traveling with an engineer.

Rapunzel’s is amazing. Hands down, amazing. I’m now trying to find an excuse to sail on the Wonder so I can experience Tiana’s.

Having just booked a cruise on my 3rd Disney ship, I’m now also looking for an excuse to sail on the Dream and complete the Grand Slam before the new ships arrive on the scene. These Disney cruises are addicting!

I still don’t like legacy airlines.

I’m incredibly lucky to have married into the family that I did. I really have great in-laws.

And...Nick and I can’t wait for our next cruise!

April 2018: A MAGICal April Vacation: Day 8, Part 2

Saturday April 28, 2018: Part 2

We hopped on the tram back to the ship, and pretty soon we were back in air conditioning. We booked it back to our room, where we showered and probably took a nap. We were saddened but not surprised to find the debarkation instructions and luggage tags in our room. 

I spent some time watching the continuous loop of debarkation instructions, somewhat confused by the absence of a customs form, as I vividly remembered overthinking the completion of that 2 years ago. Turns out on this cruise, they were only requiring we fill that out if we were over our limits. We weren’t.

Sometime during this timeframe, I took a few more pictures of the island. It really had been an absolutely beautiful day. We SO lucked out!!

Tonight was optional dress up night, so I ended up back in the dress from Palo. We didn’t look for any photographers though. With Nick’s sunburn, he was not in the mood for that, if they were even present. I know on our last cruise, there was no photography on the final night. The show tonight was Dreams, which we had seen and loved on the Wonder. We all enjoyed it tonight too! Great show, and a great wrap up to the trip! Cruise Director Darren absolutely gushed about our weather luck and how gorgeous the day had been when he spoke to us at the show. We agreed fully.

After Dreams, we all headed back to our rooms to finish packing, so that we could get the suitcases out before dinner. We didn’t want to have to rush back, since we were dining at Rapunzel’s tonight. While packing, I also took some time to take some sunset pictures. It was an amazing sunset to wrap up an amazing trip. 

Somehow the packing got done, and I hauled the suitcase into the hallway. In true Disney fashion, a stateroom host (not ours) happened to be walking by, saw the suitcase working its way out the door, and immediately grabbed it with a smile and said “I’ll bring that where it needs to go”. And with that, our suitcase was whisked away.

Of course as soon as the suitcase was hauled away, I discovered I had forgotten to pack my shower gel. One more thing to stuff into the slightly crammed liquids baggie on my carry-on. Hopefully Miami’s TSA aren’t as strict as Manchester’s!

Chores done, it was time for dinner. We worked our way down to deck 3, where we found an exceptionally long line waiting to get into Rapunzel’s. The blonde music couple (The Vitos) was performing in the Promenade Lounge, so we grabbed seats and listened to them perform, and watched the line move forward. Once the end of the line appeared, we headed for the dining room. I think we met Nick’s parents in line.

Rapunzel’s is amazing. The decor is fantastic. The “shows” that happen through dinner are fun, particularly the floating lanterns. And the food is really good too. I had a charcuterie platter appetizer, potato soup, sea bass, and creme brulee cheesecake. I have no idea what Nick had, other than the black forest “tower” dessert that I have a picture of. The whole experience was top notch, and 100% Disney. And...the thug that had referred to Nick as the magnificent beard man recognized him as we entered, which made Nick’s night. And we all agreed that this was the perfect restaurant to finish our trip in. I know a lot of people want to be in Rapunzel’s the same night as the Tangled show, and I can understand that, but to have such a great dining experience to cap off the trip was perfect for us.

It was tonight at dinner that we were really wowed by John. We thought it had said a lot when he had said that, yes, he would do a Disney cruise again. Well tonight, he stated that “the last night is brutal, knowing this is ending”. I have a feeling we will have company on future Disney cruises! And we wholeheartedly agree with him. The last night is brutal!

We definitely took our time with dinner, because how can you not in this dining room? I think when dinner ended, we headed straight back to our rooms, to finish packing carry-ons and try to get a little bit of sleep.