My May Trip Report; Day 3
Day three, our final full day, began at the Disney-MGM Studios. We missed rope-drop by 15 minutes, credited directly to the fact that we saw the MGM bus go by as we were walking towards the bus stop. I can’t complain too much because we never even had the Studios on the agenda, but since we had done so well with crowds up to this point we decided to go and hit the favorites.
Both the Tower or Terror and the Rock n’ Rollercoaster were so empty, we went on each twice within an hour. It is truly the best way to see Walt Disney World, when the crowds are this low. Getting to ride the Tower twice like that was a welcome surprise. After the biggies, we headed up to the Great Movie Ride. It was a terrible experience, as the school trips had arrived at the park by then and we were stuck with the rudest group of teenagers you’ll ever meet. I felt terrible for the Cast Member trying to deal with them. We walked around the park a bit more and than decided it was time to head to the Beach Club, where lunch at Beaches and Cream awaited.
The walk felt good, and the food was as great as always. We needed to eat well, because many adult beverages were in our future. Tuesday is what my wife and I call a “band day”. Those are the days when both Off Kilter and the British Invasion are playing. We spend hours just going from one to the other, with occasional stops at the Rose and Crown for a pint. It is truly my favorite thing to do while on vacation. But before we started, we wanted to see some more of the Flower and Garden Festival, and check out the new Gran Fiesta Tour starring the Three Caballeros. On the way we found some terrific prints for sale of Disney World landmarks. I’ll post more about these in the future.
By 3 o’clock our touring of the park was done, and we settled in for some great music. Both bands were truly on their game that day. The British Invasion picked some of my favorites, and Off Kilter played a few wonderful tunes I’d never heard them do. Before we knew it, it was 9pm and we hadn’t eaten dinner. So we walked over to the ESPN Club for a fantastic pulled pork sandwich and to catch up on baseball scores. We enjoyed the meal, but we should have gone to Downtown to eat instead. Trying to get back from the Boardwalk to the Saratoga Springs is never an easy proposition. By the time we got home, we were both ready for bed. The next day would see us leaving too early to get to a park, so this was goodbye to the parks for now…
Eric said,
May 23, 2007 @ 11:55 pm
Disney World prints?! Details, man, details!!!
As a SSR DVC owner, I’d love to see the rumored ESPN Zone come to DTD as the replacement to DisneyQuest. (That’s a lot of acronyms.) Unless you have a rental car or are staying at an Epcot area resort, getting to/from the Boardwalk ESPN is a pain. To have one within walking distance to our room at SSR would be great, especially on those Sundays during football season.
Mike said,
May 24, 2007 @ 4:03 am
I prefer British Invasion to Off Kilter. I heard there is a Moroccan folk band is that true? Never seen them
Matt said,
May 24, 2007 @ 12:40 pm
At least you went to the Studios. Your reports of uber-low crowds really has me excited that perhaps it wont be the swarm of bodies I’m expecting when I go down, but then again, June is a different animal.
David said,
May 24, 2007 @ 3:47 pm
Eric, the prints are from an artist who selles them there often. I’ve seen them at Food and Wine each of the last 2 years. They are gorgeous. I have one of the Rose and Crown…it makes me happy just to see it again!
I agree 100% with moving ESPN to the DQ building. The flagship location of ESPNzone should be at the Mouse.
And yes, don’t expect these crowds in June!
Mel said,
May 29, 2007 @ 11:16 pm
I read aloud your description of “band day” to my wife and we laughed. I so enjoy the bands, that we’ve been known to catch all four British Invasion shows, with Off Kilter in between. The Moroccan folk group that Mike mentioned is also quite fantastic, and about as loud as Off Kilter. Worth a trip around the lake (especially, combined with food!).
I don’t claim a favorite of the three bands; it is just glorious to hear such terrific live music. You brought back vivid happy memories with your description.
My wife just called me on the no favorites…The British Invasion. She’s right. We plan around their performances.