OCT 7 - MAGIC KINGDOM

Disney's Magic Kingdom Park is the flagship theme park at Walt Disney World, known for its iconic Cinderella Castle and a magical atmosphere that appeals to guests of all ages. The park features a variety of attractions, including highly rated rides like Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, and Pirates of the Caribbean, each offering unique experiences and thrills. Dining options are plentiful, with popular restaurants such as Be Our Guest, Cinderella's Royal Table, and Liberty Tree Tavern, providing diverse culinary experiences in enchanting settings. Magic Kingdom also hosts seasonal events like Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, enhancing the park's charm throughout the year. Overall, Magic Kingdom remains a beloved destination where guests can immerse themselves in Disney storytelling and adventure.

For us, it was another rainy day of park adventures! Given the distance and multiple vehicles you have to change (car, to mini bus transport, to mono rail), we decided to just take the bus direct from AKL to MK. That worked out great and much better than driving in. Due to the coming hurricane we were debating on what to do for the day. Early forecasts had it hitting on Wednesday, but that later changed to Thursday. All we knew at the time was, we’d better get out today and do what we could given the worsening weather. We were not alone in that train of thought, because MK was literally packed full all day. Ride times were well over an hour wait for all the popular rides.

BIRTHDAY LUNCH AT CRYSTAL PALACE

Dining at The Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom offers a delightful character experience featuring Winnie the Pooh and friends, including Tigger, Piglet, and Eeyore. This buffet-style restaurant provides a variety of delicious options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with highlights such as roasted meats, fresh salads, and an array of desserts. Guests can enjoy the charming Victorian atmosphere with large windows overlooking the park, making it a scenic spot to relax while interacting with beloved characters. Overall, The Crystal Palace is a popular choice for families seeking a memorable dining experience in a magical setting.

It has been a number of years since I’ve been to this one. We had a mid-day reservation at 11:45 AM. To my pleasant surprise, they were still serving breakfast on one side of the buffet, and the other had been converted to lunch. I ended up eating 3 plates - 2 breakfast and 1 lunch and it was all delicious! Amelia was finally starting to warm up a little bit to the idea of the characters coming around. This lunch was a little more expensive at $240 for the 3 of us to eat there.

This lunch was a special lunch for Amelia because I had ordered her a surprise birthday cake as part of our reservation ($35). She was surprised and the cake was super tasty! We ate almost all of it. Ha!

After eating, we walked over to the “kids” area on the East side of the park so Amelia could ride some rides. We did the Dumbo flying one which she loved (Also was Brayden’s favorite when he was little), did the carousel, and then took a train ride around the park. At this point it was 3 PM and we thought we’d better head back to the hotel and decide what to do about the hurricane.

Once we got back, Amelia really wanted to swim, so we took her down let her get in for a while. We basically had the whole place to ourselves which was nice. Afterwards we went back to the room and started packing up because we decided to leave that afternoon instead of in the morning to avoid traffic.

LEAVING DISNEY

By the time we got everything ready to go and loaded up, it was around 7 PM. I had gone by the front desk to check out and since it was basically an evacuation order in effect, they’d note it on my bill and I wouldn’t be charged for this night or the next. That was really helpful and saved us $1,500 on the hotel bill, being charged for only 1 night at the Animal Kingdom Lodge.

It took us about 7 hours to get to Tallahassee where we ended up sleeping from 2:30 AM until 6:30 AM in a random gas station parking lot before getting back on the road. We arrived home safe and sound on Oct 8 a little after lunch time.