Well we bookend our trip with park visits to EPCOT.
Arriving at a little after 9:00 AM we enter the park and head straight to Test Track to design our virtual concept vehicle and see how it performs on the TEST TRACK. Remember it will tested on the following criteria:
1. Handling
2. Maneuverability
3. Efficiency
4. Power
Well, we have our luggage picked up from our villa by the Disney staff to be delivered to our new resort at 8:30, another free perk for staying on property. So off we head for our final day at the Magic Kingdom Park.
Well not much happening today, we are tired and it is still on the cold side threatening to rain all day.
We have an 8:30 breakfast reservation at The Polynesian’s “Kona Café”, so we jump on the bus transportation to the Magic Kingdom and walk across the front of the park to gain access to the transportation for the resorts. It is too cold for the boat so we climb the ramp to the monorail for the trip around Seven Seas Lagoon. Although everyone raves about the Tonga Toast at the Kona Café it just looks too heavy and sweet for us so we both decide on the Big Kahuna breakfast platter. The platter consists of French Toast, Pancakes, Eggs, Home Fried Potatoes, Ham, Bacon, and Sausage. This is still a large filling breakfast and a lot of food but the large bread-roll smothered in a sweet topping would be a heavy gut buster for us. I asked to change my French Toast for additional pancakes and the ham for additional bacon, just perfect now. Filled up for the day we should only require a late lunch to keep our tummies happy for the rest of today.
We take the monorail back to catch our resort bus transportation and we hardly stop in the line to wait for the next bus when a private Disney van pulls up, the driver gets out opens the side door and say’s our ride is ready. What??? Our driver explains that due to the buses schedules of getting guests to the parks in the morning this van service is provided to return people to the Resorts if it is needed. Wow, a private van / limo ride back and a wonderful talk with our diver. Returning we start a load of laundry and do some packing as we are changing hotels tomorrow for our last two nights.
We start our walk to Disney Springs and proceed across the pedestrian bridge that provides access between Saratoga Springs Resort and the Disney Springs shopping area.
The bridge drops us off near the Transportation Stop and we visit The Art of Disney, Disney Days of Christmas, Spice and Tea Cooking shop, Once Upon a Toy Store, and The World of Disney Store.
A steady rain starts about 11:15 AM as we are in Once Upon a Time and by the time we leave the Disney Store it coming down little harder and does not look like the rain will let up much at all today.
Wanting to go over to “Cookes of Dublin” for our only other meal today we decide to stay close to this side of Disney Springs as the rain is just coming down too much for us today and we head to “Earl of Sandwich” before we get drench in the rain. We to get our sandwiches to go and eat back at the Villa; the rain lets up into a drizzle as we start our walk back at 1:30 PM.
Back to get out of our wet clothes we walked 3.5 miles and 8,779 steps today. Sitting at our table to eat our sandwiches. I got the All American and Jodi got the Chipotle Chicken Avocado, as always-great sandwiches especially when we warm them in the oven.
Now it is time to finish our laundry and packing as the rain continues to fall outside. We then rest and complete our routine. We will have our luggage transferred to our new room at All-Star Music Resort in the morning as we go for our third and final day at the Magic Kingdom.
We head back for our second day at the Magic Kingdom. We arrive at 8:45 in 38-degree weather, rather cold today as it had been in the high 70’s and low 80’s for the first part of our visit.
No problem with the security line today and we waltz right into the park. Heading down Main Street we finally come to a stop at the hub. Until the park officially opens at 9:00 we can not proceed any farther into the lands. We are heading to FrontierLand so we stay out in the main hub where there is nice warm sunshine instead of waiting with all the others in the cold shade.
This is the farthest park from Saratoga Springs so even though we left earlier today we did not arrive at the park until right at 9:00 AM. This means we were able walked right into the park, until I was randomly singled out to go through the metal detector. Well there was no line and all I had to take out of my pocket was the phone.
Well rested we actually get to the park about 8:30 this morning. The gates were open and you could enter the park to explore Hollywood and Sunset Boulevards.
We could not go on the exciting drive thru the streets of LA on Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster this trip but this is usually our must see first attraction in this park. Our grandson and granddaughter have just loved this roller coaster ever since they were tall enough to ride it, and this is an attraction that we come back to several times during the day when they are with us. This indoor coaster launches you at 57mph and 4.5g’s in 2.8 seconds as you twist, turn and invert with Aerosmith playing through the speakers. “ROCK ON!!”
We are up at 6am to eat breakfast and start our morning routine prior to leaving for the Magic Kingdom. Leaving our room at about 8:30 we walk to the transportation stop and arrived at 9:10 on our Disney Transportation bus to a massive line at security that handles the bus and ferry passengers. We notice the center security line, which services only the monorail passengers, is almost empty so we hightail it over to the center of the park entry and get right into the park.
Entry walkway
Passing through a crowded Main Street we head straight for the wildest ride in the wilderness “Thunder Mountain”. We have found that if we get to Thunder and Splash Mountains early they are basically a walk on rides and 2 of the high wait time rides are crossed off our list (there was one time we got to stay on Thunder Mountain for another trip as there was nobody else in line, always ask if possible).
Day 1 EPCOT at Walt Disney Word, Florida
The symbol of EPCOT
DIsney World Bus Transportation
We arrived right around 9am on the Disney Transportation bus from our 1-bedroom villa at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort to a crowded security checkpoint we had to negotiate before entering the park (bag check and random body metal detector checks).
After passing security we scanned our Magic Bands and head straight for Test Track, a ride that lets you design your vehicle at a computer station and then input into your ride vehicles computer to put it through it’s paces as you hit speeds of up to 65 miles per hour on hills, hairpin turns and straightaways of the ride circuit.
TVP Journeys 
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