Welcome to Ed Chapman's Walt Disney World 2003 and 2004 Vacation Page
Location: https://edchapman.tripod.com/wdw03.html
Jan 12, 2004
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Emily, Maria, and Ed Chapman went to WDW Dec 2003 - Jan 2004 (Marlene opted for a
peaceful vacation at home) in Orlando Florida. We had 8 full days and 2 days of travel.
Our travel agent Pam Schuck was wonderful at
MouseEarVacations and my favorite
planning site for Walt Disney World is
Deb's Disney
We had an early 6am flight out meaning we would get to go to a park later in the day.
We had pre purchased our 5 day Park Hopper plus and 2 day Universal Studios tickets.
The weather was great the entire trip with highs around 72 - 80 and lows around 55.
A big worry was people getting sick or a big snow storm and then toss in an
orange alert before we left - luckily everything went smooth getting to Orlando.
I will not have many complaints about the trip but the rental car with Alamo
was one. Normally logic says never get their insurance which is costly and you
should be covered by your own policy. The Alamo guy went on and on about how I
was liable for the full cost of car and our state did not cover it. He wanted
me to buy 3 insurance policies which I did not. He appeared agitated over this
and then went on with the gas deal (where you pre-pay the whole tank but can
bring it back not full). Again I turned it down. He then said we were only going
to get a Geo without a trunk and had no room for suitcases. I also turned down
the upgrade on this. When we got to the lot there were no Geo's left anyways and only
one compact car left.
We stayed at the Disney Coronodo Springs (a moderate resort). We had only stayed at
a value resort or offsite in the past. A big advantage for staying on Disney property
you can take advantage of the "extra magic hour" (also called surprise morning and
early entry) and get in the park 1+ hours before scheduled opening time (which we did).
We typically would hit a park for the extra magic hour at e.g. 7am and had pretty much
ridden most every ride and see most all the shows we wanted to by 1pm. We would then
head back to the motel for resting and swimming and usually head back to a park
in the evening. Our afternoon breaks are one of the times we
appreciated the extra amenities Coronodo offered such as beautiful scenery, a
lake with white sand, palm trees, and hammocks. Other things were the hot tub,
ceiling fan, and 4 bus stops instead of one to cut down on walking. Warning, on a
couple of occasions we waited over 30 minutes for the first bus of the day since
it would fill up at bus stops #2 and #3 before getting to us #4 and lastly to #1.
This can be solved by going to #2 a long walk from our room - the closest of all
to the main pool with it's great slide. I felt much more relaxed and less crowded as
compared to the value resorts. The food court was pretty good. It did fill up
with long waits a couple of times at dinner. If you stay at Disney and are a soda
or coffee drinker you may want a refillable mug. It pays for itself if going to refill
6 times at the motel only.
Click Here Photos From Coronodo Springs
The first day we went to MGM studios. Since it was the afternoon we had to manage
our FastPasses and move around in order to avoid the longer lines.
We missed the wonderful Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights but they may be back in
the future. Some of our favorite rides were:
Indiana Jones,
Muppets Vision 3D,
Rock N Roller Coaster (great),
Backlot Tour,
Star Tours, and
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. (great),
TBD any new rides or shows
Click Here Photos From MGM
The next day we planned the extra magic hour at MK. Luckily I noticed the last
minute change to Epcot which is where we went. The big new ride is Mission Space
which had some very cool parts. I could not walk straight after riding and the kids
did not ask to go back. The kids voted not to see the World Showcast at this time.
Some of our favorite rides:
Honey, I Shrunk the Audience,
Ellen's Energy Universe.
Spaceship Earth and
GM Test Track (our favorite!)
Click Here Photos From Epcot
We took the monorail from Epcot to the Magic Kingdom.
We had a character meal at the Crystal Palace with Pooh and Tigger.
If you want to do this during a crowded day you can call
60 days ahead can make it 407-WDW-DINE (939-3463).
Some of our favorite rides:
The new Mickey's PhilHarMagic 3d show was excellent,
Haunted Mansion,
Space Mountain,
Splash Mountain,
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad,
It's a small world,
Pirates of the Caribbean,
We miss Alien Encounter which is now closed
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and
Tiki Room but we liked the old one better.
Click Here Photos From Magic Kingdom
The next day we hit AK (Animal Kingdom) for the extra magic hour.
We caught a lunch at the RainForest Cafe too. Some of our favorite rides:
Countdown to Extinction,
Kali River Rapids,
Kilimanjaro Safaris
Tarzan Rocks
Lion King show and
It's Tough to Be a Bug.
Click Here Photos From Animal Kingdom
In the evening we went back to MK
Click Here Photos From Magic Kingdom
The next day we hit MGM for the extra magic hour.
Click Here Photos From MGM
In the evening we caught a boat from MK to the Polynesian Resort for the Spirit
Of Aloha dinner show. The food and show were terrific and included:
Vinagrette-dressed salad,
Sliced pineapple,
Polynesian-style bread,
Lanai Roasted Chicken,
Pork Ribs,
Polynesian Rice,
South Seas Vegetables,
Dessert
Click Here Photos to and at the Polynesian Luau
The next day we hit MK for the extra magic hour.
Click Here Photos From MK
The next day we went to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure early
Some of our favorite rides and shows were:
Dueling Dragons (there are 2 rides Fire and Ice),
The Incredible Hulk-Coaster,
Doctor Doom's Fearfall,
The water rides at Toon Lagoon,
SpiderMan and,
TBD Suess Landing rides
Click Here for Photos From Universal Studios Islands of Adventure
The next day we went to Blizzard Beach
Click Here for Photos From Blizzard Beach
In the evening we took a boat ride from MK to Pioneer Hall in Fort Wilderness to
see the Hoop_Dee_Doo-Review which is hilarious and has good food.
Click Here Photos From Hoop
The next day we hit US (Universal Studios) early
Some of our favorite rides and shows were:
Terminator 2 - 3D,
Twister,
Kongfrontation was closed
Earthquake,
Jaws,
Shrek 4d,
Jimmy Neutron,
Blues Brothers,
Animal Kingdom,
Back to the Future and,
ET Adventure
Click Here Photos From US
The next day we did the Fantasia mini golf near the Swan Hotel. There are
many interesting holes, went to Disney MarketPlace, and McD's
Click Here Photos
We also strolled around Coronodo Springs
Click Here Photos
Our last day we hit US (Universal Studios) early before heading to the airport
Click Here Photos From US
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