Day Three: Walt Disney World Trip May 2011

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: Today was our final day of the birthday trip and we decided to go to Disney Hollywood Studios and Epcot. We had originally reserved a spot on the 9am bus to Hollywood Studios but since we were going home after visiting the parks, we felt it would be easier to drive to the park.

We arrived at Hollywood Studios shortly after park opening and we still grabbed a second row parking spot and the crowd was so light, we walked right up to the gate without a line.

Once inside the park, we headed straight towards the new Toy Story Mania ride. As we turned the corner behind the Great Movie Ride, we immediately hit a large line of people coming from Pixar Place, the home of Toy Story Mania. But this wasn’t the ride line yet, this was the line to get a Fast Pass for the ride. As we got closer to the ride, we then encountered the ride line which was already in excess of 40 minutes.

So we skipped Toy Story Mania and headed to the Backlot Tour. I am not sure if it was because we were at the ride early or if they had to change things due to liability, but the beginning sequence where the show you how they make an action scene did not use helpers from the crowd. The Disney Cast Members just talked you through how it works and showed you the special effects without the crowd actors. Then when the tram entered Catastrophe Canyon, the tram did not shake during the earthquake and the fire and explosions were not as dramatic as past times. So all and all, the tour was a big disappointment from years past.

After we left the Backlot Tour, we headed back through Pixar Place to see if the opening rush had quieted around Toy Story Mania, but it had not, it actually was worse and Fast Passes were already gone so we crossed riding it off our list of things to do.

Next up we rode the Great Movie Ride. The twenty minute ride takes you through the scenes of some of Hollywood’s greatest films and more importantly, it’s air-conditioned. Our tram was hijacked in the Gangster part of the ride and our hijacker remained with us until he met his doom during the Indiana Jones part of the ride.

Speaking of Indiana Jones, that was our next adventure. We headed over to see the Indiana Jones show, the first time for my family and my first time since the mid-90’s. As we went to the show entrance to see what time the show started, the cast member at the entranced pulled our son aside and offered him the role of the junior director for the first show. He accepted the role and we were escorted to VIP seating in the front of the seating area. Once the show began, they brought him on stage and he got the whole show started by saying “Lights, Cameras, Action”. The show was great and the stunts were amazing, a definite must see show and you do not have to see the movies to appreciate the show. I never saw the movies, but after watching the show, they were all added to the Netflix list.

When the show was over, we went in search of lunch. That in itself was a huge disappointment. Every where we went, the restaurant was closed, despite it being 11:45-12:00. We tried Backlot Express, Studio Catering Company and Min & Bill’s Dockside Diner, all of which were closed. Then we went to ABC Commissary, 50’s Prime Time Diner and Hollywood & Vine which all had lines out the door.

So with lack of food choices, the heat starting to climb and having to go to work and school in the morning, we decided to skip Epcot and head towards home, grabbing something to eat on the ride home.

The highlight of the trip was definitely the Nick Hotel. There was so much to do at the hotel between the pool and the entertainment; you can make a vacation out of just staying at the hotel. While it is geared towards kids, even the adults have fun with the pools and slides. The food in the restaurant was great and the pricing was comparable to resort pricing if not a little lower. The rooms are some of the nicest we have stayed at in Central Florida. Plus they offer transportation to all the Disney Parks, Universal Orlando and Sea World.

The only drawback to the hotel was the little charges here and there for everything. While we did not encounter any personally, some of them we came across were a charge for losing your “paper” wristband, a charge for missing your seating at one of the shows, per hour charge for late checkout.

But when you consider that was our only complaint with the resort and you compare that to all the positives, you really can’t go wrong with a family getaway to the Nick Hotel. I don’t think there is another resort in the Disney/Central Florida area that offers this much amenities at such a low rate.

As for the parks, I am very disappointed with Hollywood Studios. For some reason, we always subconsciously skipped over the park during our trips to Disney, and now I know why. There isn’t much to do at the park to begin with, so when you do add a new attraction, they easily draw all the attention in the park making it impossible to enjoy without an unbearable wait. The other attractions are desperately in need of updating and renovations. Plus there needs to be choices in dining, or just open the ones that are already there. It’s not like we visited in the middle of the slowest season.

Finally, I have decided that I will never visit the parks in May. We have traditionally kept theme park touring to times when the parks are less crowded but more importantly when the weather was nicer. But since this trip was for our son’s birthday, we decided to just go with it. Having lived in Florida for the past 13 years, I have adjusted to the brutal heat of the summer. But the weather we had during the trip seemed much worse. Mid to upper 90’s, full sun, no clouds and more importantly no breeze. Combine this with thousands of people and lots of concrete and asphalt and you have a ripe recipe for heat stroke and miserable park touring.

So from this point on, I am scheduling my trips to the park from October through March to take advantage of the nicest weather in Florida. For trips during the remainder of the year, you will find us by the pool at the Nick Hotel.

Check out the slideshow below for photos from the final day of the trip and check back later for more from the trip.