Completed 7/27 - Save the Art! - Jan 2024 Trip Report

[Araminta18]

One Last FARTS Concert - Wednesday, January 17, 2024 (part 5)​

The concert was amazing, as always. We had a seat in the center but way further back, so it was fun to see from a slightly different angle.


I love this picture of Heidi, leaning into her "Poor Unfortunate Souls".

Love it.

I discovered we should have been filming with Trevor's phone all along - my phone used to be the new one with the better camera, but now it's his!

I zoomed in a lot (hence the very large head in the bottom left) but it's still super sharp and you can see all of Gavin's crazy expressions.

I wasn't planning on filming the whole show but then I essentially did.

https://youtu.be/5LQquTbRfxI

Such a great concert - I love these performers individually but I just love the banter with them together. I was so happy we got to see them twice.

After the concert, we headed back to the Beach Club to catch the bus to Disney Springs. We found that the CMs by the skyliner had been practicing their art skills even more:



I love this little skyliner!

We had great timing - we got to the bus stop with like 2 minutes to spare. Woot! The bus was sharing with Boardwalk, which is never my favorite thing, but even with the extra stop, now that they've added the dedicated bus lanes for buses on the way to Disney Springs, it's a much faster trip than it used to be. I love those bus lanes - 10 out of 10.

We got to Disney Springs a bit before 7 and headed directly to GIdeons! Well, Trevor did. I ducked into Ever After Jewelry store and was looking around a bit - the Pandora Cinderella collection caught my eye but I didn't end up buying anything. Yet.

At Gideons, the line was down to the corner with Morimoto Asia - they said it should take about 40 minutes. So I jumped in and let Trevor head to the new honey store by the Ganachery - he likes that brand and wanted to look around. And of course bought some. Then he came back and I hopped out to head to the Ganachery - I got some toffee for our friends back home, and then a hot chocolate:

It was cold outside, so the hot chocolate was appreciated!

Back at the Gideon's line, we were doing pretty good - the estimate looked exactly right:

It was cold though - there was a breeze and that's really what made it cold. When the breeze died down it was ok, but otherwise brr. I've never shivered at DisneyWorld before! I thought I'd be too warm in my spirit jersey, but I had it on as well as my jacket and was still a bit cold. Yay for hot chocolate from the Ganachery. It was hot and creamy and chocolatey and delicious.

We got in and they still had the dark coffee cake cookies - yay! So we got some of those and some cookies and cream. We did have a bit of panic - right as we left Gideons it was time to check in for our flights, and we were flying Southwest so checking in right at 24 hours was crucial! And of course Trevor got all nervous and hit the wrong button but it all worked out - he was only like 3 spots behind me and we were both still in the A group, so all good. We always try to get A group flying into or out of Orlando, so we're ahead of family boarding.

After Gideons, I wanted to do some shopping/browsing at the Marketplace Co-Op and Trevor wanted to look at the Star Wars shop, so we split up again. I found some fun things:

DarkWing Duck plush, on sale!


I'm a sucker for a good pillow and how can you resist Captain America's shield or Winnie the Pooh's face? I had them ship these home for me though - too bulky for me to want to carry tonight.

Trevor didn't find anything that caught his fancy, though after the Star Wars store he came and found me and we went back to the Ever After jewelry store - Trevor was looking at the watches and I caved and bought the Pandora Cinderella earrings that are in the shape of her carriage. Super cute. Trevor didn't quite buy a watch, but we did end up going across the way to the watch store to see if they had other Star Wars watches (I think the brand is Citizen?). They did but they were crazy expensive even with the AP discount so he didn't get one there.

Then, it's not a complete trip to Disney Springs without dinner...where were we heading for our late dinner?

 

[Araminta18]

Our Favorite Disney Springs Restaurant - Wednesday, January 17, 2024 (part 6)
​

Where were we going for dinner? Wine Bar George! And we couldn't not go here for dinner.

We started with their mocktails (sorry this is probably repetitive from our earlier meals there on earlier trips...feel free to skip!):
I got the Orgeat Lemonade:

I didn't know I liked orgeat until I had this drink, but I do! We actually bought some orgeat syrup to make drinks with it at home (Trevor has a sodastream and he loves using it. )

Trevor got the Cherry Smash (cherry, lime, and soda):

This one is also delicious, but Trevor likes it slightly more than I do, so it works out.

As far as food - I think our eves were a bit bigger than our stomachs!

We got the crispy mac and cheese bites:

That was more for Trevor - I'm not a huge mac and cheese fan. But these were good - nice and crispy on the outside and then warm and melty on the inside.

I got the burrata again:

Guys this is so good - nice and light and refreshing, just wonderful.

We also got the house made hummus - I've seen this on the menu for forever and finally decided to bite the bullet and try it:

The hummus was super fresh and good - I loved that they served it with cucumber slices. I think I liked the cucumber slices even better than the naan. Trevor liked the naan better, but he's wrong.

I know you're shocked, but two more dishes:
the saganaki on fire:

Delicious and melty and warm.

And finally - the cauliflower buds with Thai chilis, cipollini onion, soubise, and crispy shallot

This was good - interesting, with an unexpected flavor. Not too cauliflower-y.

So yea, we ordered way too much food but it was delicious. We rolled out of there at about 9:45, and headed back to the buses and back to the hotel. We needed to pack up! Tomorrow was our last day.

We waited about 10 minutes for a bus, wondering at the feeling of being cold at Disney. The bus itself was thankfully blasting the heat, so we were warm and cozy and may or may not have dozed off a bit on the bus. It was not ideal to have to get off the bus into the cold air back at the hotel! But we did...we headed to the gift shop and bought a large reusable bag and asked the CMs to help us wrap up Trevor's honey (in glass bottles) a bit more securely, which they were kind enough to do. The honey was big enough that we'd have to check it, so we wanted to make sure we didn't arrive home to a sticky honey mess in our suitcases! So that was nice of them.

Back at the room, we packed up as much as we could, and then crashed into bed. Look at poor sleepy Trevor.

Dunno why he was so tired, it's not like we did anything all day.

Tomorrow, Trevor was gonna head to Universal and I was doing a solo day!

Fun with Metrics:
Steps walked: 18754 steps (7.2 miles)
Ride count: 1 (Ratatouille)
Savings due to AP discount: $111.40 (merch)

 

[Araminta18]

I’m really excited- it’s been at the top of my list for years! We’re going beginning of February, and staying at our favorite hotel, Animal Kingdom Lodge! We’re booked at Kidani right now, but I have a waitlist at Jambo house. It’s also going to be our 20th anniversary celebration, so we’re going in style! I wish we could have waited until we knew who was going to be there and had the dates of the festival confirmed, but other commitments mean we have to go then if it’s going to happen. I hope it’s safe to assume that FARTS will be happening in early February, but with how Disney is changing things, who knows? We were bummed that our usual August trip won’t overlap with Food& Wine this year.
I saw that last year the artist who does Gideon’s art was there with an Indiana Jones inspired piece that I’d have loved, so I wondered if they put everything out at once or hold some back to put out throughout the festival. I guess I’ll find out!
Thank you for your answers and your extremely fun trip report- you inspired me!

That'll be so much fun! I've never been to AKL, but we've booked a stay there in November - i can't wait to try it. Happy anniversary!!!

Oh good point about the dates and how Disney keeps changing things, but I would assume if the festival happens, those will be the dates. Hopefully!

My experience has been that the artists don't hold things back - anything that's gonna be there is there at the beginning, unless there's a delay or other problem with shipping. Hopefully that artist is back and you're able to get the piece!!

Thank you for reading!

 

[Araminta18]

Goodbye Beach Club! - Thursday Jan 18 2024 (part 1)​

Our last day! And check out day...sadly. The plan today was to pack up and eat breakfast, then I was going to Epcot and Hollywood Studios while Trevor was heading to Universal. We slept in a little bit and then were up and packing. Disney very much was like "GO" - so many push notifications on the app, and even housekeeping stopped by at like 8:30 am to see if we were gone yet.

We finished packing at about 9 am, and then the plan was to enjoy a nice last breakfast on our balcony.

Breakfast was milk, leftover donut from last night, and the cherry cookies from Morocco!

Definitely not the healthiest breakfast but it's Disney.

By 9:30 am, we were out. Bell Services had come and picked up our bags, and Trevor was on his way to Universal. I'd booked a lightning lane for Hollywood studios later, but I also had a virtual queue for Guardians that had just been called, so over to Epcot I was heading! It was not as cold today as it was yesterday, but it was still grey. Hopefully it wouldn't rain!

I had a little hiccup at the International Gateway, cause I had a bandaid on my finger that I used to tap in, so had to get that straightened out. But the nice thing about the skyliner being closed was basically no lines at International Gateway, so it didn't take long at all.

I made my way towards Guardians, stopping to look at the chalk art on my way (of course. )

Cute kitty! and mouse!




Can you believe they only have 3 hours to do each one? Amazing!

Also you could see the Characters in Flight balloon from Disney Springs going up from World Showcase - I've never seen that before! Pretty neat.

That's it behind China there. Also this made me realize I have no idea of the relation of the parks to Disney Springs.

At Guardians, there was basically no line to get into the first room before the pre-shows. It's why I like early boarding groups - the line doesn't have time to build up.

I was here after 20 minutes.

I decided to wait for Row 9 - the best row ever! And the extra wait was like a minute - I was on the ride after 25 minutes.

Still have no idea where this camera is. Oh well! The song I got was Conga - not my favorite but not a bad song.

 

[Araminta18]

All the Photo Ops! - Thursday Jan 18 2024 (part 2)​

Leaving Guardians, I stopped and got some pictures with the photographer just right outside.


Hi Groot!

I started heading towards the front of the park and the bus to Hollywood Studios, since now we could parkhop without waiting for 1 pm! On the way I (of course) got more photos.

Tiny world shot!


FARTS sign from the front of the park, since we usually stayed around World Showcase. Look at how the bright purple flowers are coming out of the paint tube!

I got to the Hollywood Studios bus stop, and ended up waiting about 20 minutes for a bus. The bus stop for Hollywood Studios was sharing with Caribbean Beach and Riviera, and there was a Caribbean Beach bus just sitting at the stop for like 5/10 minutes. Blargh. We were getting just a tad impatient! But finally it came and we were on the way to Hollywood Studios.

Meanwhile, Trevor was over at Universal Studios! He saw some Marvel characters:

Hey there Captain America!


I think this was in the Spiderman queue? Dunno, I've never actually ridden it.

Next up, he ended up going over to Hagrid's, cause it was posting a 60 minute wait. Which is pretty awesome for Hagrid's.

Hagrid's has such cool theming.

We'll have to check back in to see how long he actually had to wait.

I made it over to Hollywood Studios and was heading towards Tower of Terror - I'd booked my second FastPass for Tower at 11:30 (and had the previously booked fastpass for 11:45 at Slinky Dog!), but first I ran into the photographer on Sunset Boulevard, and they had this out:

the suitcase prop! I had to hop in line and get a picture with it. Such a cool prop!


Ok lies, first one pic with just me and my Tower of Terror shirt.

 

[Araminta18]

Hollywood Studios - Thursday Jan 18 2024 (part 3)​

Ok, now pictures with the suitcase!


The lighting and glare was a bit weird, but I had to get pictures with both sides and the different stickers!

Then it was time for Tower of Terror!

I got front row - woot!

Heading off the ride I found some fun theming down by where you used to get your pictures printed -

I want to go to the Halloween Gala!

Trevor ended up getting on Hagrid's just a few minutes after I got off Tower. I only had a 5 minute wait for Tower (yay fastpasses!) but Trevor ended up waiting 30 minutes. Which is still a lot better than the posted 60 minutes! Trevor likes waiting in the regular line for Hagrid's when he can, because he prefers the bike (as do most folks) and riding single rider he doesn't get to pick - he just gets whatever the other person doesn't want. But this time he got paired with a single rider and despite the TM telling the single rider Trevor would be on the bike, the guy just got on the bike and pulled the bar down, even as Trevor was saying "hey excuse me, I need to get on first (to get on the bike)", so one of the senior TMs ended up coming over and pulling the single rider off so Trevor rode by himself. Trevor's usually super laissez faire and will let things go, even when it's things he wants, so good for him for sticking up for himself. Next, he was on to Velocicoaster before he got lunch.

Meanwhile, I'd just gotten a new fastpass for Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway at like 12:30, and was heading back to Toy Story land for my Slinky fastpass. On the way, I passed Chip and Dale!

So of course I stopped for a bit. They both had acorns, and so I was talking a bit with the attendant about if they'd be willing to share their acorns. Chip heard and started hiding his acorn, but Dale was gonna share - it was super cute! I really enjoy these little surprise things when you doing a Disney day.

Off I continued to Toy Story land...I realize you'll all be shocked but I stopped and got pictures there with the sign.


I like the idea of this magic shot but it's such a crowded frame that it's almost hard to see the toy soldier parachuting in.

One last pic - the CM actually had me turn like this because she said she loved my bow! It's a metallic blue with Cinderella castle on it. Made me all blush.

Over to Slinky! The Fastpass line was a bit backed up - took me about 10 minutes to get on the ride, which still isn't bad.


I love this ride.

 

[Sacahara]

I'm glad you got to get a picture of the kitty pre-foot print! When I went that one had been stepped on by someone and left a large shoe print and smudge. It was roped off quickly though but I don't know if they ever got it fixed.

 

[Araminta18]

I'm glad you got to get a picture of the kitty pre-foot print! When I went that one had been stepped on by someone and left a large shoe print and smudge. It was roped off quickly though but I don't know if they ever got it fixed.

Someone stepped on it?! that's so rude!! what a bummer

 

[Sacahara]

Someone stepped on it?! that's so rude!! what a bummer

Yup. I compared the pic I took to the one that you took and they definitely fixed it, changed a bit of the art too. My cat that I saw was a square chalk painting and no mouse. I really like what they did to fix everything! It looks more like a cat and mouse on blankets instead of just a painting of a cat on blankets (I think that's what it's supposed to be.) If I can, I'll try to find the pic I took and post it so you can see, if you don't mind?

 

[Araminta18]

Yup. I compared the pic I took to the one that you took and they definitely fixed it, changed a bit of the art too. My cat that I saw was a square chalk painting and no mouse. I really like what they did to fix everything! It looks more like a cat and mouse on blankets instead of just a painting of a cat on blankets (I think that's what it's supposed to be.) If I can, I'll try to find the pic I took and post it so you can see, if you don't mind?

Please do! I’d be curious to see!

 

[Sacahara]

Please do! I’d be curious to see!

Woo! Found it! You can see the shoe print on its lil face.

 

[Araminta18]

Woo! Found it! You can see the shoe print on its lil face.

Oh wow, interesting! It looks like a different artist too - the signature in the bottom is different. Such a bummer that someone stepped on it Thanks for posting!!

 

[Sacahara]

Oh wow, interesting! It looks like a different artist too - the signature in the bottom is different. Such a bummer that someone stepped on it Thanks for posting!!

I didn't even notice that! Good catch! I will be stealing your pic to add to my scrapbook to show the changes!

 

[Araminta18]

I didn't even notice that! Good catch! I will be stealing your pic to add to my scrapbook to show the changes!

now I'm curious how many artists they had do this one!

 

[Araminta18]

Toy Story Lunch! - Thursday Jan 18 2024 (part 4)​

After Slinky Dog, it was time for lunch!! My favorite quick service lunch in Hollywood Studios is Woody's Lunchbox. And the exciting thing is it was cold enough to get the grilled cheese and tomato soup! Woot.

It was a bit crowded so I ended up asking a couple if I could use the third seat at their table, and they were kind enough to share.

Grilled cheese! So yum.

Look at that cheese pull.

I also (despite the slight chill) got the root beer float.

A bit messy, but yummy!

While I was eating, Midway Mania had gone down, which I was planning to do next with a fastpass, so that was a bit of a bummer. But then right as I finished eating, it came back up! So I was able to sneak in without a huge line.

While I was doing my best to get a good score, Trevor was braving Velocicoaster over at Universal.

Every time Trevor rides Velocicoaster, but especially if I'm not with him, he updates me on his heart rate. And especially when there's a bit of a long line, his heart has time to start racing!! But this time his heart only (only) got up to 116 and he was able to keep his eyes open, and had fun. So definitely a win!

Meanwhile, I had an awesome ride on Midway Mania - my goal is always to get the best in vehicle. I got 163,900 -

Enough to get me best in vehicle?

Yes! yay! Sometime I'd like to get best this hour but I'll take best in vehicle! Woo hoo!

Next up, my Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway fastpass!

I walked right in to the merge point, so that was nice.

So cute! I do love this ride.

Meanwhile, Trevor was heading to ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey:

Apparently the single rider line was about a 3 minute wait, instead of the 30 minute posted. Woohoo!

I headed over to ride the Millenium Falcon, stopping to look in to Dok Ondar's on the way and found some fun things that I was texting Trevor about. But then it was time for my fastpass!

 

[Araminta18]

Star Wars rides! - Thursday Jan 18 2024 (part 5)​

The fastpass line for the Falcon was a little bit backed up - it took about 10 minutes to get to the merge point.

But then I got to be the right pilot - aka, I got to pull the lever to go to lightspeed!

And I'm not gonna brag, but we got an amazing score, mostly because of me and my piloting skills, I'm sure.

Ha, almost certainly not. but it was fun! And the timing was really working out well - it was time for my Rise of the Resistance fastpass. Woot!

Trevor meanwhile was ready for lunch, and was at the Three Broomsticks getting fish and chips.

He says it was good. Looks gross to me.

I like the view though! That's Velocicoaster and the Hulk coaster there in the background.

Back at Rise, I walked right into the preshow, which was nice.

Such a great ride and pre-show. I got lucky and got the track where we face the AT-AT's face, instead of the side, but....

the turrets didn't come down to point at you! I love Rise but I wish they'd maintain it better (or something)...seems like lots of these cool effects don't work consistently. This time the Kylo Ren animatronic (where he gets "sucked out" into space) was working, but the Kylo Ren animatronic on the bridge didn't turn around when it was supposed to. *shrugs* Just a bit of a bummer, cause all those effects add up to such a fun ride.

I stopped by the gift shops and grabbed a few things, and then headed back to the bus stop to head back to Epcot.

It was about 3:20, and we had to be leaving the hotel at like 5...would I have time to do one last ride at Epcot?

Meanwhile, Trevor caught one of the Harry Potter shows:

And then rode Kong:

And meandered out of the park, taking some awesome pictures on the way:




He also did some shopping. Both of us were getting sprinkled on (off and on), but luckily not too bad.

After 10 minutes, the bus to Epcot came and I was on my way. At 3:50, I was tapping in at the front gate to Epcot. Enough time to do one last ride?!! Maaaaaybe....

 

[Araminta18]

Goodbye FARTS! - Thursday Jan 18 2024 (part 6)​

Well, I had a Lightning Lane for Soarin, so I decided since I (kind of) had to walk by Soarin to get to the Beach Club I might as well try it.

Just a small backup right before the merge point, so not too bad!

At 4:15, I was entering the theatre - C1! Not quite as good as B1, but I'll take it. It was a great last ride - I love Soarin. I was off the ride at 4:30 - perfect timing! Back to the hotel I went.

Goodbye Monorail!

Trevor was also taking his last couple of photos:

LOL faaaaaaancy mailbox.

And had hopped into an Uber - he was scheduled to be back at Beach Club by 4:50. Would I beat him? I was walking back as fast as I could but at this point in the trip "as fast as I can" is not that fast! I even hopped on the boat back to Beach Club (for the first time all trip) since I needed to be at the main lobby, not to our nice room (cause it wasn't our room anymore )

Trevor beat me by like 5 minutes - the boat was pulling into Boardwalk right as Trevor got there. But I caught up with him, we grabbed our stuff, and hopped in a Lyft. By 5:45, we were at the airport. With our flight taking off at 7:50, we got there at the perfect time! And actually since we had precheck (seriously best pro-tip ever) which had a short line so we likely had some extra time, I decided to grab Panda Express for dinner. It's outside security, but I figured I could try taking it through security. And it went through without a hitch. Woot!

So we made it to the gate, got settled in, and I ate dinner. I'm not the only one who loves Panda - when our plane arrived and the people were deplaning, one lady passed by and asked me if I got the Panda here, and was audibly disappointed when I told her it was outside of security. #morepandainsidesecurityplease

We were slightly delayed going back waiting for our crew to arrive, but it was ok - we had only about 60 people on the flight! That meant we each got our own row.


They told us 20 people had to be in the front, 20 in the middle, and 20 in the back for balance purposes. Best flight ever! I was even able to give the art prints I was bringing back their own overhead compartment, which was kind of a relief. I was planning to have them between me and the window, but putting them in their own overhead compartment was definitely the best option!

We landed just before 10, got our bags, and were home at 11:16.

To snow. Boooooooooooo.

Trevor went out and was scraping our car windshields and such so we wouldn't have to do it the next morning...such a good guy!

So yea, the trip was officially over! It was a really great trip - everything I wanted it to be with all the Festival of the Arts events, and just low key and fun. Gonna have to go back next year. (I'm literally buying gift cards right now to renew our annual passes... ) And cause I just realized I probably didn't explain the title - it came from trying to get all my art signed in the pouring rain! But yes...the art was indeed all safe and sound

Fun with Metrics:
Steps Walked: 19,930 steps (8 miles)
Ride Count: 7 for Tiffany (Guardians, Tower of Terror, Slinky, Midway Mania, Falcon, Rise, Soarin); 5 for Trevor (Spiderman, Hagrids, Velocicoaster, Forbidden Journey, Kong)
Savings due to AP discount: $42 (merch )

 

[Araminta18]

Wrap Up/Haul post (part 1)​

Ok, we bought a lot...I blame Trevor. LOL no way, we know it was all me. All that art.

The castle prints/canvases that we got signed on the first day - aren't these so cool?

Haunted Mansion ballroom canvas.

We got a lot of the toiletries...I'm still bummed that we don't get the shampoo/conditioner anymore!

Lotion still though - woo

Ok back to souvenirs:

Pins, magic bands, and fun water bottles


Oh bother this is the wrong way up, but all the hats! And the avengers mouse pad


Souvenir booth cups, and a small Darth Vader bust for Trevor, as well as the tea he bought in the UK


Trevor's honey from the store in Disney Springs, as well as a corkcicle straw for my Beauty and the Beast corkcicle water bottle.


I love this shirt! I have indeed worn it to work.


Prints! These are postcard sized but came with small mats. I got all these signed except for the gummi bears one.


More postcards! Mots of these are signed.

 

[Araminta18]

Wrap Up/Haul post (part 2)​

Ok, more haul!

More postcards! These I mostly didn't get signed, but I love them anyways.


The pillow I got signed from that collection, as well as some more artwork we picked up (bookmarks, Figment's signature, Gideon's trading cards...)


This Riviera print was in our room, trying to get us to go to buy DVC in Riviera, I think. Cool print though!


So cute!


Tarzan, Sleeping Beauty, and the Haunted Mansion!


Hard to see here...sorry - but this was the dress I got at the outlet with the Ashley Taylor Cinderella design on it. I love it!

And finally - my first Pandora charm:

Couldn't resist this bracelet and charm with Cinderella's carriage on it!

Especially to go with the earrings!

I also love these.

So yea...definitely bought a lot of art and just had a fantastic time. FARTS really is my favorite festival, and it's a great time to go to Disney weather wise too. Definitely going back next year!! (Don't Tell Trevor ) Thank you for reading and following along!!!

EPIC Fun with Metrics:
Steps Walked: 93,131 (36.4 miles)

Video Playlist:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLD2n0Bq57wluOANbcHO_-1mm1YuVZjWO

Songs heard while riding Guardians:
Disco Inferno
Conga

Money Saved with AP Discount:
$359.50 (art is expensive yo)

Ride count: 20 for Tiffany; 18 for Trevor (including the Universal Rides)
Journey into Imagination with Figment
Seven Dwarves
Big Thunder
Pirates
Jungle Cruise
Haunted Mansion
Buzz
Space Mountain
Tron
Peoplemover
Ratatouille x2
Guardians (+1 more for Tiffany)
Tower of Terror (Tiffany)
Slinky Dog (Tiffany)
Midway Mania (Tiffany)
Falcon (Tiffany)
Rise (Tiffany)
Soarin (Tiffany)


Universal Rides for Trevor: 5
Spiderman
Hagrid's
Velocicoaster
Forbidden Journey
Kong

 

[cassidy57]

Thank you for writing about your trip. As always they are fun to read and I love all the art work you purchased. I hope you will be posting the Paris trip. I think you said you were there.