oft013

The rockers were there last week when we were there.  Very comfortable.  

14 hours ago, mouseketab.....Carol said:

We play transportation roulette on off days all the time, go to the fort bus stop, whichever bus comes first, hop on. Lots of times, the bus will be going to a different resort after stopping at a park. We stay on the bus and go to that resort, have lunch (cause we never leave the camper before lunch), then wander, have a drink, then hop on the next bus (or boat), or take a pathway from that resort somewhere else, etc., etc. We then usually end up at Earl of Sandwich for dinner (or now that more casual dining is open at Disney Springs, we'll be trying other things), then perhaps some shopping, then back to the Fort.

We need to try that.  It sounds like fun.

Years ago we drove to all the parks, except the boat to MK.  I swore I would never be tied down to Disney transportation...But now all we use is Disney transportation.  We park hop almost every day there by using the buses we aren't leaving the car anywhere and have to go back for it.  Sometimes we even play games trying to figure out different ways to get to a park, just for the fun of it.  We have taken the boat to the Contemporary, then the monorail to the TT, Monorail to Epcot and walk through EPCOT to take the boat to HS.  I know it is a waste of time but sometimes it's fun just to do something goofy and oddball.

Here is a link to sign up for the Annual Passholder Preiew for the World of Avatar.  Looks like you need to sign up for a 2 hour preview.

http://wdwnt.com/blog/2017/03/breaking-registration-now-open-annual-passholder-previews-pandora-world-avatar/

We tried Homecoming and it has become one of my wife's favorites.  The only thing we had there that we didn't care for was the hummingbird cake.  We both thought it was too dense.  It looks like it should be light and airy, but nope more like a brick.

We have also tried Planet Hollywood and the burger I had was probably the worst I have had in quite a while.  It was so overdone it was completely dried out.  All the fixings for the burger including Mac and Cheese and bacon were good and I enjoyed the fries.  We both had Mojitos and they were excellent.  

We have had some sushi appetizers at Morimotos that were good, but we thought the restaurant was overpriced.

On 1/11/2017 at 9:56 AM, Beckers said:

I wonder if it had anything to do with safety too. That's a lot of sitting ducks waiting for the train show, with people so close by that haven't been through security.

 

speaking of security when we were at EPCOT everyone had to do metal detectors.

I hate it when EVERYBODY has go through the metal detectors.  I prefer to be "Randomly Chosen" everytime.  It makes me feel special.  I usually make a big deal out of Randomly Chosen.  I just try to have some fun with it.  I can usually get the security guy laughing by the end.  

Well we just moved to the Plant City area, I guess we better check out Parksdale for Strawberry shortcake and Dole Whips.  

Lowery Park Zoo-  One of the nicest zoos around.  We used to take our kids there all the time and now our kids have their own kids and everytime they are in the area that's a must do.  About $30.00 a head

Down at Apollo beach is a manatee viewing area. Cost is FREE

On 6/16/2016 at 8:31 PM, Travisma said:

Watching the fireworks and electric water parade from Clemintines Beach, we've seen plenty of kids and adults running around at the edge of the water. Maybe the gators don't hang around there as much because of the boat traffic.  But they are just about everywhere else that there is water.

Just remember there is a lot of "real" wildlife that calls Disney home.

One time approaching the dock at the Contemporary, we saw what looked like a black plastic bag blowing around on the beach, but it was going in different directions.  As we got closer we realized it was a very large otter playing at the waters edge.

I've seen rabbits running around in the bushes at Great Britian at Epcot, then of course the deer, turkeys and gators at the Fort.

And maybe I'm crazy, but I swear I saw a wolf or coyote from the monorail running thru the woods along 7 Seas Lagoon between the Contemporary and the ticket center stop.

On June 17th we were heading out to dinner from the Fort, turned left on Vista Blvd and a full grown coyote ran in front of my Jeep. All 4 of us in the Jeep saw it.

15 hours ago, Cortezcapt (Derek) said:

Oops so what I was getting at before my tangent was that it's not entirely a generational thing as I have seen younger people with good manners as well as older with poor or no manners.

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When we moved to Texas 18 years ago, I saw good manners, the yes sir, no sir, door holding etc from young people that were involved in high school activities, such as football or band.  The kids were taught by the coaches/ teachers.  You could always tell which kids were involved.  It was quite a shock at first.  The flip side to that was you could tell the kids that weren't involved were not learning these things at home. 

We live in a society where people believe that rules are suggestions, and they can do as they please.  There is no such thing as common courtesy.  And pity the fool who tries to stop these jackwagons from being jackwagons. 

I said for years that common courtesy is no longer common.

Can anyone please explain to me the best way to maintain your generator during the months when you don't use your RV.  I have been running it once a month with a load on it by running the AC.  Last month it won't start, I brought it to the dealer and they ended up replacing the carburetor.  I was told because of the gas, I should run it every two weeks.  I plan on leaving the MH in Florida from June to December and since I won't be there to run the generator, what alternatives do I have?  Is there a gas additive I should use?   Any other advice would be appreciated.

Please, may I get one.  Please

19 hours ago, h2odivers...Ray said:

Great memories. 

What positive change have you seen at the fort?

Well, that is a tough question.  I have been sitting here thinking on how to best answer your question.  Over the years as our needs have changed, what we focus on at the Fort has also changed.  When we started it was a popup and little kids, now it's a 31' MH and our kids and their kids, or just us old folks.  Many things at the fort I am oblivious to these days, so the short answer is I really don't see a lot of positive changes but I also don't dwell on the negative things. I am glad/ thankful for the things that haven't changed.  The boats still run to the MK, the bathrooms are still usually clean, the laundry rooms still have working washers and dryers.  We still enjoy looping around in our rented golf cart in the evenings and wandering through the Trading Posts.  I like the premium larger sites, do I always use them, no, I am a creature of habit and getting into the 100/200 loop area was important when the kids were small, but now not so much, but bad habits die hard.  Over the years even some of the less than positive things you see have kind of a comfort level.  To see that same repaired bathroom door year after year instead of a new door, you get used to it and it becomes part of the fort.  If it ever got replaced, I would try to figure out what changed, but then I would just move on.  If anything I see that bother me, I'd just usually just shake my head and move on, a couple of minutes later I would have forgotten all about it and I'm back to thinking about where I really am...Disneyworld...and how I'm going to beat the crowds on any given day. 

The question was then or now, I have a third choice, future.  My favorite fort trip is always the next one.  We have been camping at the fort since 1990, not as long as some, but longer than others.  The only thing I have really complained about are the prices.  But as stated earlier other tourist destination campground prices are priced similarly, so that complaint goes out the window.  One of the things I miss is the petting zoo, when it was up near Pioneer Hall. I have some great pictures of my kids with the animals and also on the pony rides.  The question is do I really miss that stuff or the memories of my kids being that young and the joy on their faces.  Our youngest is now 25 with one child.  So I guess the answer may be that I miss the good ole' days, not because the fort was better, but maybe because we viewed it a whole different way through the eyes of our children.  I am not going to write anymore at the moment because this got way too "dag gum" sappy.

13 hours ago, Theed31u said:

Being that this will be my first trip to the fort, I hope that it is what I expect and is more family friendly then some hotel.  

Everyone on here has got my family very excited to see the fort!

Especially since this is your first trip, you will find the Fort a wondrous place.  And it is and always has been far more family friendly than any of the hotels.  We have always said you could spend a week in the Fort and never go into the parks and still have a great time.

I read through all the posts here and I am going to go out on a limb.  It seems most of the posts are from folks who have been staying at the Fort for years.  Like anything else we see the Fort change and be a little or a lot less magical as our memories of earlier trips.  And we see the prices going up, which is aggravating especially when we are getting less than what we used to get.  

I will be the first one to complain about the overall cost of the Fort but the minute I get there all that goes away and I am in one of my favorite places to camp.  I notice the changes but I try not to let them get me down.  I look around and overall I'd rather be here than just about anywhere (except maybe a good beach bar).

Last year I was having the normal the cost of this is going to kill me thoughts.  I went on to Disney's site and found a deal to stay at the Caribbean Beach saving us $500.00 when you factor in the cost of gas.  So we changed and stayed at the Caribbean Beach and it was the worst $500.00 saving I ever had.  We missed the campground, looping with our way to expensive Disney golf cart, and most important staying where we have all our stuff at our disposal.  Can't do all that in a hotel room.  

So going forward we will only be staying at the Fort when we go to Disney, the heck with the cost (at least for now).  But what we will do is cut down on the number of trips per year.  We will go from 3 to 4 trips a year, to 1 or 2.  But I would rather do that then stay in a hotel.  And who knows maybe a few less trips could bring back some of the old magic and wonder to the Fort.

Since we are currently living in TX and do about 90% of our vacationing at the Fort, this will give us the opportunity to see Florida outside of Disney.  I'm not talking the other theme parks, but just the old school tourist stuff.  Because when we are at the Fort it is rare we leave Disney property, so this gives us a chance to explore.

Sorry this is by far my longest post.  Hopefully it makes as much sense as it did in my head. 

Best day to check in is any day that ends in Y.  We usually check in on Fridays early.  No issues.  This way we also get a full weekend in the parks.

Is there a list of all the gingerbread houses for this year?  We will be there in a couple of weeks and we always try to hit them all.

If you buy online, they give you a voucher and you still need to go to a ticket window to get your actual pass. Not sure about the Disney stores.

When we have bought our APs at the Disney store, they gave us a voucher and we had to go to a to go to Guest Relations go get the actual tickets.

It looks like the new carts have nice dark green seats, I bet they will get hot in the Florida sun.

This will definitely help.  But is it me or can't they keep up with their own updates....Downtown Disney??  Shouldn't it be Disney Springs?

Are all the interstates in Georgia toll roads?  I will be traveling from TX to Statesboro GA for Thanksgiving, Are I-20, I-75 or I-16 toll roads?

$1.86 this morning in Lewisville, TX (north of Dallas).  Saw on the news $1.73 somewhere near Fort Worth.

This was one of our favorites.  Our older kids would go on Body Wars and my wife and I would take the youngest to Cranium Command.  Once our older ones saw the CC show then we all started making it the main reason the for going to Wonders of Life.  Truly missed.

I would start with AK since it is the most remote of the parks, the HS, take the boat to EPCOT and then the monorail to MK.  We have never done all 4 in a day but we have done 3 several times without an issue.