Turning 30 Like A Boss: My WDW Birthday Trip!

[BaltimoreLauren]

Hello again! I'll make this short and sweet since I believe pictures do most of the talking. Last year on my birthday, I decided I wanted to turn 30 at Disney World. I knew that I'd likely go by myself, but I prefer to travel solo anyway. So after my one day December trip, I went and booked my birthday outing! I went March 13-16, and needless to say I loved every minute of it.

Day 1. Let's relax and not do anything stressful:

Landed in Orlando bright and early, got on the Magical Express, and headed to Pop Century. This hotel intrigued me as it was still an economy hotel, but it had it's own dedicated bus line. Plus the pictures online made it look awesome. And it was awesome! Check in was a breeze, my room was perfect for me, and it wasn't far from the bus. I got a preferred room in the 70's, so it was maybe a 7 minute walk from my hotel room to the bus stop. Not bad at all.

After getting situated, I made my way over the Magic Kingdom area. I used my first day as a resort hopping day, something I had yet to do! I made myself a hair appointment at Ivy Trellis inside the Grand Floridian. I took the ferry boat over, and it was the perfect start for an easy day. This was my first time inside the GF, and oh goodness. So beautiful.

I was an hour early for my hair appointment, but they took me anyway. I was in and out within 45 minutes, paid $65 (that included tip) and was on my way. I would absolutely suggest this salon to anyone on property or off.

After that I headed on over to downtown Disney to meet up with some of my friends who live in the area. We went to the T Rex cafe, and it was a lot of fun! The food was pretty meh, and while our server was friendly it took *forever* to get anything. But still, not a bad experience. I did get myself a nice little Maleficent cake pop. I could have eaten like 28126191 of them.

My friends and I said our goodbye's, and I headed over to the Polynesian resort. I had every intention on drinking all of the drinks, but this little number set me back $15. And while I guess I knew it would be a little on the expensive side going in, I wasn't prepared to spend $30 on two drinks. And yea I'm aware I could have gotten the drinks without the festive cups, but I'm a go big or go home kind of gal. Plus it was for my 30th birthday, so logic can suck it.

Sadly I didn't take many pics at this resort, but I can safely say I would spend someone else's money to stay here. I love Tiki themed anything, and the whole vibe of the resort was laid back. I spent the rest of the evening listening to a ukulele singer, and eventually made my way back to my room to sleep.

 

[BaltimoreLauren]

Day 2. I turn 30 today, YAAAAAS:

I got up at what seemed like the crack of dawn (7am) to get ready for my biggest, and bestest birthday yet. I had an ADR for Be Our Guest at 8am, and even tho I got to the bug at 7:30...I still made it to my ADR with like 5 minutes to spare. I had made this reservation for basically one reason: To see the park empty. I would do this again, no questions asked. It was so beautiful and calm, and the weather was very mild (and sort of chilly)!

Be Our Guest was also relatively empty. I ordered the children's crepe meal, and it was more than enough for me. I took the extra pastries with me, and they came in handy through the day.

After inhaling my breakfast, I still had 30 minutes before the park opened. Not every land was open, but you could wander through some of Fantasyland and all of Mainstreet U.S.A.

And this pic had to happen.

LOOK AT ALL OF THE PEOPLE. SO MANY PEOPLE. SO CROWDED. HOW CAN YOU EVEN STAND IT.

Anyway. I heard the train pull up and Mickey start talking, so I very quickly got in line to Elsa and Anna. I was 5th in line!

They were both super darling and fun! Elsa and I had much to talk about, since we're both older sisters. She is the bomb. I would also like to point out that I never saw the wait time reach above 60 minutes. They're popularity may be winding down.

Fast Pass + crashed that day, and as a result I lost all of my FP's for the duration of my trip. While it might seem super annoying to many of you, I took this as a challenge and decided to just wing it. And let me tell you, it was the best Disney vacation problem I ever had. Lines were long for some stuff, but it wasn't bad at all. I enjoyed the feeling of not having to adhere to a FP time slot. Would I do it again? Probably not, but if forced into it then yes. I also didn't bother going to any CM's about the issue, since I like to live on the edge.

First ride of the day? Not Haunted Mansion like I had hoped. The ghosts were being rude and not willing to work right or something. That's what you get for messing with the afterlife, I guess. So I went on Small World! SW doesn't actually bother me, but I've only ever been on it once before.

After SW I found these to lovely ladies. We talked about siblings, and when I inquired about who was older, Anastasia quickly replied "Cinderella". Good answer.

Then I paid the best looking guy in the whole park a visit.

I would also like to give a shout out to Dumbo. Despite being to WDW 5+ times in two years and DL once, I've never been on Dumbo. No I don't know why. But hey, I did it! And I loved it!

And no trip to Disney is complete without seeing the #1 main guy, Donald Duck. If you thought I was going to say Mickey, you're obviously wrong.

Goofy is always such a gentleman!

Anyway. YAY DONALD DUCK! He's my absolute favorite. We danced, we hugged, we talked about how he was indeed the best, and how much I loved him.

After our fabulous reunion, I made my way over to the Tomorrowland Speedway. This was another first, and also last, for me. I'm not a fan of the ride since it's too bumpy for me.

Dream Along With Mickey was getting ready to start, so I made my way to the castle. This was the last time I'd get to see the show since it went away a mere few weeks later. I'm sad to see it go, but I can't wait to see the new show when I go back!

And now for some scenery pics:

I had a reservation at the Grand Floridian Tea Room at 2:45, so I moseyed on over. Stay tuned for part 2!

 

[BaltimoreLauren]

Yay part 2!

I'm in love with the GF, and I actually enjoy afternoon teas. I had a lovely time, and I even got a lovely pink rose at the end! The mother and daughter eating next to me were even kind enough to include me in on their conversation, so I didn't feel so alone. If you haven't been here before, you must put this on your Disney bucket list. I will do it again.

After tea, I got to watch the Princess Promenade. It was a new thing they just started. Cinderella and Prince Charming come out, parade around, and dance with guests.

I went back to my room to relax after, and started talking to a wonderful group of 19/20 year olds on the bus. They were adorable and sang 'Happy Birthday' to me, and then were shocked to learn I was 30, because I still look like I'm in high school.

I also found this in my room!

My friends from the day before came and joined me in Magic Kingdom, and we spent the rest of the day hanging out. It was one helluva way to spend a 30th birthday!

For dinner I got the mac and cheese with Panko crumbs at Friars Nook. It was amazing. Go eat it.

Stay tuned for day 3!

 

[BaltimoreLauren]

Day 3. No hangover, time for Flower and Garden Festival!

This was my first time doing Flower and Garden, and it was seriously awesome. Epcot in general is awesome, so how can you go wrong?

I finally rode Spaceship Earth, and I can safely say I really like that ride. If you haven't been on it yet, you should ride it. It's a nice paced ride and a great way to get out of the sun.

Everything was stunning in Epcot. The flowers were in full bloom, and the park was pretty clear for most of the day. On ward to part two of this post!

 

[DisneyMomma1216]

Love this TR! Happy belated birthday!! It seems like you had the 30th birthday celebration I want! Question for you - with your appointment at Ivy Trellis, how far in advance did you book? I'm really looking to find a salon to get my hair done for my anniversary dinner in May, but we are only 2 weeks away from leaving (3 weeks until my actual dinner lol).

 

[fallonkendra]

This is great! Marathon weekend (which seems to be our time frame for trips) always falls close to my birthday, so I've already told my boyfriend that I don't care if we have to extend our trip, I am turning 30 at WDW!

You met so many characters! I still have not met a single face character, I can never be bothered to wait in line for them...

Isn't BOG breakfast perfect for getting into the park early?! We did that on our last trip, and I love our castle pictures in an empty park! They actually had a few rides running the day we were there, so we were able to ride the Mine Train and Peter Pan before the park even opened, it was awesome!

 

[BaltimoreLauren]

Love this TR! Happy belated birthday!! It seems like you had the 30th birthday celebration I want! Question for you - with your appointment at Ivy Trellis, how far in advance did you book? I'm really looking to find a salon to get my hair done for my anniversary dinner in May, but we are only 2 weeks away from leaving (3 weeks until my actual dinner lol).

I booked Ivy Trellis about a month out, and found it to be super easy. They weren't booked at all the day I wanted (Sunday March 13) and they were extremely helpful over the phone!

This is great! Marathon weekend (which seems to be our time frame for trips) always falls close to my birthday, so I've already told my boyfriend that I don't care if we have to extend our trip, I am turning 30 at WDW!

You met so many characters! I still have not met a single face character, I can never be bothered to wait in line for them...

Isn't BOG breakfast perfect for getting into the park early?! We did that on our last trip, and I love our castle pictures in an empty park! They actually had a few rides running the day we were there, so we were able to ride the Mine Train and Peter Pan before the park even opened, it was awesome!

I love BOG in general! Eventually I'll do dinner so I can meet Beast. You absolutely need to go for your birthday! It makes it extra magical. For whatever reason the lines for face characters wasn't long AT ALL when I was there. Just good luck I guess!

 

[BaltimoreLauren]

Oh my goodness are you ready for more? I know I am!

So since it was F&G, I got to sample some of the food carts. I must say, Fruishy from Japan and Desert Rose from Morocco were both to die for. I can't recommend them enough.

So I speak Japanese, so the Japan pavilion is always fun for me. However, I've fallen in love with the Moroccan pavilion. I spent hours in there.

By then one of my long time bestest buddies whom I haven't seen in like, 10 years, met up with me. We then promptly started to drink around the world. Let me be the first to say that it was everything I thought it would be and then some. The beer flight in the UK's pub is the best deal for your money...but I couldn't resist wine in France, tequila in Mexico, and someone was kind enough to buy me a shot of Jeager in Germany at the Beirgarten Restaurant. I also met two kind gentlemen that also got me a drink in the UK. The kindness of strangers while doing this (mostly) solo trip was outstanding. I would also like the point out that my party of three was able to just walk right up to BR and get a table without a reservation. The polka band even played Happy Birthday for me, which was super awesome! Anyway, on to the pics.

Last day report coming ASAP! Boo hiss, last day!

 

[BaltimoreLauren]

Here it is, my last day in Disney. Sob.

I got up pretty early, finished packing, and since I had a super late flight, I made my way to Epcot! I was originally going to visit Animal Kingdom, but there's so much to see and do in Epcot that one day doesn't really cover it. I got to Epcot right as it opened (again), and made my way to the character spot. It was like a 10 minute wait for both sides (Beymax and the Fab 3) so...why not?

I don't think I'd do this M&G again. The photographers were very rushed, and seemed pretty annoyed to be there. The lone handler they had wasn't really paying attention either. It was probably an off day, but it really stuck out to me. World Showcase hadn't opened yet, but as always France was. Waiting to take your money. Because they have the best breakfast in that area. I tried the ham and cheese croissant, and it was great. Would I get it again? Maybe, but there's so many options there, why get the same thing twice? Since World Showcase was pretty much empty, I got some good shots.

So, my mom and I are big Duffy fans. When we found out he was no longer meeting in WDW we were genuinely let down. However, I do love Daisy!

I made my way back to Future World, and did some rides there. I had never been on Journey Into Imagination, but with a 5 minute wait how could I say no? It was fantastic. I get all the hype now. I also did the Living With The Land ride. It was pretty awesome, but I think once is enough. At that point I got lunch, walked around some more, and headed back to the hotel. I accidentally missed my Magical Express pick up, but another bus came 30 minutes later so not a big deal. I got home in one piece, and cried because I was no longer in Disney. Ok not really, but I likely won't get back until next year. I'm heading back to school in the summer and I'm planning on moving in the fall, so I guess real life has to come first. Hope you enjoyed reading this!

The rest of my pics that I didn't post can be found here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/baltimorelauren/albums/72157645921801278

 

[naomiatx86]

Lauren, your trip was awesome! I too wanted to spend my 30th birthday in DisneyWorld but I have too much debt so I'll celebrate my 31st in Disney in 2017, lol.

Happy Late Birthday & I'm glad your trip was awesome.