two friends and i did florida for spring break. still not the typical beachy vacation, but a heck of a lot warmer and boozier than my portland spring break than last year lol. we ended up at walt disney world for a few days and had a blast eating and drinking. want a recap? well, you're getting one anyways. i've been slowing down on trip recaps (otherwise you'd get ones for big bear and vegas and phoenix and davis) on the blog, but you can still catch the pics on my instagram + instagram stories!
day 1: epcot
we took a red-eye, bc that college budget. frontier + red eye was the cheapest way to get there but would not recommend, even if your superpower is conking out whenever, wherever.
our first day in walt disney world was spent at epcot, eating and drinking all the things. it doesn't really have the disney magic since most of the park is dedicated to the world showcase (which is food, drink and merch oriented), and it's not as character/ride oriented as the other disney parks. it's not really a kids park for that reason, but we still had an amazing time, since we love food + architecture + foliage (there were a lot of cool topiaries like the above beauty and the beast set within the france pavilion bc we were there during their international flower and garden festival). all of the pavilions are all beautiful and fun to explore, but i could have stuck around morocco's nooks and crannies the whole day.
nothing we had at epcot (including a croque monsieur, poutine, sake slush, margarita, pineapple hot dog, roasted cauliflower and brioche filled with caramelized apple, cinnamon and streusel ice cream) was a big wow, though i did like the trio of margs. not a huge alcohol person, but i liked the balance of sweet + alc in this drink, especially because the one other margarita i had tried previously (from aqui) was so strong that i refuse to take more than a sip.
illuminations: yessss. night shows at disney are some of my favorite live entertainment pieces ever, and this one is no exception. again, don't expect much "disney" in this show, but it's still super cool w the projections and fire and fireworks. you can stand near the tables instead of right at the water front, but wouldn't suggest if you're short (my 5' 7" height is v handy in situations like this) / have kids.
rides-wise, i'd bee-line for test track. it's perfect if you're into medium roller coasters (think california screamin). would not recommend any of the slow, dark rides (looking at you, spaceshirt earth) if you're running off of four hours of sleep and have been in the sun all day and actually want to stay awake for the ride.
food mvp of the day was bahama breeze. technically not in the disney parks, this place is my new favorite chain restaurant. we got a late dinner of nachos and bahamaritas, and it was so good. the nachos were massive and piled with toppings (including my new faves, pickled jalapenos), and the bahamarita was another fruity but still slightly alcoholic drink that was delicious.
day 2: magic kingdom
in a nutshell: disneyland and mk (read: magic kingdom) are very very similar. mk feels a bit bigger and has some minor aesthetic changes, but bc i am a california girl through and through, disneyland >>>.
highlight of the day? happily ever after, their fireworks + castle projection show. if you want to see all your fave characters (including moana and mulan), this is for you.
day 3: disney boardwalk + hollywood studios + magic kingdom
i was nervous that ample hills was gonna be over hyped (don't tell anyone, but i don't love salt and straw, bi-rite or jeni's). but i was wrong. there were so many good flavors that we sampled that we ended up splitting the ice cream flight. coffee toffee coffee (think coffee + salted caramel) and peppermint pattie were my favorites, but nonna d's oatmeal lace, baked/unbaked, ooey gooey butter cake and chocolate milk and cookies were by no means slouches either. super creamy, super flavorful, not too sweet. GOGOGO. i can't even imagine how much more exciting one of their other locations (besides this one at walt disney world) would be, since i bet they have more flavors.
this pina colava (think a raspberry swirled pina colada) from hurricane hanna's was beautiful, but way too sweet.
park time. my goodness, hollywood studios was such a throwaway. there's not much to do in this park, and we were basically done with it in five (leisurely) hours. if you have the choice, go to animal kingdom/pandora (which we didn't get to go to on this trip) instead.
the rock n roll coaster was super fun (think the darkness of space mountain + the intensity of california screamin). the tower of terror is something i dread so i didn't like it. my friends were into it, though probably more for the pic of me clenching the handle bars and squeezing my eyes shut tight. can i say that the highlight of this park may or may not be the mango colada they serve on sunset blvd? it's pretty fruity, but if you're into mango juice and mango ice cream, this is it.
day 4: disney springs
chilled at disney springs for the last day. there's so much to see and eat, even if it's not necessary as exciting as the actual parks in walt disney world.
highkey got coffee because i wanted to get mickey and minnie printed on my coffee lol. you can get the art on hot or cold drinks, which i appreciated bc it was so hot out that i only wanted a cold drink. got the frozen cappuccino, which i would recommend if you need your coffee sweet, milky and creamy like me.
pro tips:
- ask any of the food places with a soda machine for a cup of water and they'll give it to you for free. cheaper than buying a bottle of water, less nasty tasting than the water fountain. if they refuse to give you water, you can ask them for a cup of ice and usually that works too.
- make use of the disney monorails, buses and ferries! it's a free way to park hop, and i feel like they don't advertise it much. we almost missed out on them and would have paid even more for lyfts.
- if you want cheap disney shirts, highly recommend uniqlo in disney springs! they have disney apparel for $15, which is easily at least half of what it is at world of disney or another purely disney store.
more disney adventures
Thao @ In Good Flavor says
I love Disney World (never been to Disney Land) but I don't love Space Mountain and Tower of Terror. Will never go on them again. And the Hall of President (if it's still there), the Haunted House, and It's a Small World are good for catnaps to recover from the blistering heat 😄. I'm glad you had a great time on your spring break! Reading about your trip makes me want to go back to Disney again!
Heather says
i love space mountain! tower of terror not so much (; the hall of presidents was interesting- i thought it was just a room with all the busts, and didn't realize it was more like a show! the weather was luckily very mild- we went at the end of march, and it was almost cool on some of the days (:
Michelle says
I loved Disney World! It was our last big trip sans kids. And I really loved the Rock n Roll Coaster where they blasted Aerosmith lol! Ahhh, reading your recap makes me want to go back to Disneyland (just because it's way closer to us on the West Coast), but we'd probably have to wait a few more years until the kids are older. Looks like you had an awesome time!
Heather says
huge props to all the parents who bring their kids to disney! i'm tired enough without accommodating kids LOL. tbh disneyland > wdw in my eyes, since the weather is way nicer and it's easier to go on more rides because they're not spread out amongst all the parks.
Marie says
Looks like you had a great time! Love the Mickey and Minnie art on the coffee! So cute. Plus all those different flavours of ice cream sound so good.
Heather says
thanks, marie! and ahhhhhh you'll have to go to ample hills someday. SO. GOOD.
Kelly Lynns Sweets and Treats says
Looks like fun! I have never been to Disney World before, therefore I loved your travel tips and hearing about everything you liked and didn't like. I love all your travel posts because I live vicariously through you, so I think you should do them for every time you go anywhere hehehe 🙂 XOXO
Heather says
haha the travel posts are a fun break from the recipe posts! sometimes i'm very meh about the travel pics i take though, and don't have enough to fill a full post.
Mary says
I’ve never gone to Walt Disney World! Epcot looks awesome. It seems like Disney at it’s best. Ohhh the Magic Kingdom looks special. I want a Minnie Mouse printed on my coffee. Thank you for the great pictures. 🙂
Heather says
epcot is fun! it's the least "disney" of the parks though, and doesn't have the same magical vibe (it's fun in a different way).
Tandy | Lavender and Lime says
I was in Epcot in the late '80's and I thought it was amazing. Thanks for the revisit down memory lane 🙂
Heather says
i find disney history fascinating, so i'm super curious about epcot then vs now! the last time i went to epcot before this time was 20+ years ago, back when i was into barney and could barley walk haha
Priya @priyascurrynation says
Disney world ! seems like a must visit place.Thanks a lot for sharing your detailed experience with us 🙂
have a great day ahead!
Kim | The Baking ChocolaTess says
Haven't been to Disney forever, but I would love to go back. I'm sure a lot has changed and I would loveee to eat the yummy food and drink those margaritas! 🙂 Glad you got to go and had fun! You and I would get along fine--that tower would be way too terrifying for me and I just wouldn't do it...maybe for lots of cash?? hehe That would be the only way! 🙂 Happy Wednesday Heather!
Heather says
yeah disney is always changing! and they always suck me in with their seasonal food offerings (; HAHAH good idea - next time i'll have to force someone to bribe me onto the tower of terror with food or money.
All That I'm Eating says
You've brought back all sorts of memories from when we went to Disney World when I was younger! What a great trip.
The-FoodTrotter says
Wow! These pictures are so luminous and dreamlike 🙂
Nancy says
It's so cool that you got to check out Walt Disney World! It looks so magical out there and oh man, the margarita looks lit. I've looked up Magic Kingdom when I was trying to plan out my next trip and it gave me legit Disneyland (Cali) vibes. Oh man, I know I'd want to give Hollywood Studios a visit. I miss the tower of terror!
Nancy ♥ exquisitely.me
Heather says
if you miss tot, then you'll like this one! it's different from how the ca one used to be, and they do more than lifts and drops (which made me even more anxious ack).
Christina says
How fun!! I'm stupid stoked my family is going for Thanksgiving 2019! Our trip is booked! I haven't been to Disney in such a long time, I can't WAIT to see it again. How awesome you got the chance to go, it looks like you had an amazing time 🙂