Poolside Fun, Hollywood Studios Thrills, and a Magical Night at Magic Kingdom
Day 5
Day 5 started with breakfast in the room. For some reason this trip we just could not drag ourselves out of bed to rope drop the parks. Its so nice to have a full kitchen. Once you stay in a one bedroom its almost impossible to go back to a studio. On today’s docket was pool, Hollywood Studios, Dinner at 50’s Primetime Café, and then try to make it to Magic Kingdom to end the night.
Once I had made everyone breakfast, I put on my swimsuit and made my way down to the pool to snag a table. If you haven’t figured it out yet, we love the pool at Wilderness Lodge. The first pool activity of the day was duck races. The cast members made their way around the pool asking people to pick a rubber duck and remember the number. I picked number 21 and Heidi picked number 14. The duck race started a few minutes later and I got up from the table to go get a few photos of it. At first, I didn’t think there was going to be a winner, but just then I noticed a green duck on the other side was about to cross the finish line. The cast member grabbed it and announced the number 14. Heidi won the duck race!
Early evening we made our way over to Hollywood Studios. We had dinner reservations at 50’s Primetime Café and the kids wanted to bounty hunt back in Star Wars Land. When we arrived at Hollywood Studios the shortest wait in the park was Star Tours. The posted wait was ten minutes, but it turned out to be a walk on.
I had heard a rumor that the bar stools had returned to the Tune-In Lounge, the bar attached to 50’s Primetime Café, so I wanted to go check it out. Sure enough, the bar stools are back. Just as I walked up to the bar a couple got up, so I took their seats and we sat at the bar while we waited for our reservation to be called. We waited long enough to have two drinks at the bar before our name was called for dinner.
The food at 50’s Primetime Café tastes exactly like your mom would have made. Is it great? No. Is it good? Yes. The cast members do an excellent job here to fit in with the 50’s theme. Don’t put your elbows on the table unless you want to be yelled at. We ordered the onion rings as an appetizer, the kids each got a Caesar salad, and Heidi and I split the fried chicken. The star of the show is the peanut butter and jelly milk shake. It sounds weird, but its delicious.
After dinner it was time to collect some bounties, but first we made a stop at Baseline Tap house for some beverages. Heidi and I each got the cider and now it was time to collect some credits. We ended up doing a few bounties and narrowly escaping some storm troopers. Heidi and I needed a refill on our ciders, so we stopped back in at Baseline Tap house on our way over to Tower of Terror.
Posted wait for Tower of Terror was forty minutes, but the this is one of my favorite queues in all of Walt Disney World, I don’t mind the waits here. Posted waits have been pretty accurate this entire trip. We seem to be getting on just before or right at most posted waits. Around forty minutes later, we were off Tower of Terror and making our way to the park exit. Magic Kingdom was open until 11pm, so the decision was made to head over there.
The one thing we have not done yet in the Magic Kingdom was Jungle Cruise, so once we entered the park, we made our way over to Adventureland. Posted wait for Jungle Cruise was forty minutes, but I could see the line and thought that there was no way it would be forty minutes. It was maybe about ten minutes before we were on a boat beginning our cruise. This was the only time this trip where the posted wait time had been so inaccurate. Meg was our skipper, and she did a fantastic job. The jokes never get old.
Space Mountain was next on the list as we have only done it once so far this trip. We crossed the park over to Tomorrowland and entered the queue for Space Mountain. With our spines now realigned thanks to Space Mountain, we wanted to get in one more attraction before park close. Briskly walking, we made our way over to Astro Orbiter only to find it was past 11pm and the queue was closed. The cast members made a little magical moment for us and let us get on the last ride of the night. The only thing left to do now was to make our way out of the park and back to Wilderness Lodge.
As we made our way back to Wilderness Lodge, we reflected on a day filled with fun, laughter, and the kind of memories that make Disney trips so special. Despite not rope-dropping, we managed to experience so much, proving that a relaxed pace can still lead to a day full of magic. Here’s to more adventures and unexpected joys in the days to come.
