Travisma

Ok I was really confused. So I just now looked online at the Fort website. Was not available for the dates I needed. I changed my check out date to a day earlier and it was available.
I called Disney back got to keep my same dates don't have to change anything and saved 56.74. So not really sure why I was told I couldn't do this before but I'm happy! 

Tried to book a FP at the 60 day mark and they were all gone.  So was smugglers run, toy story mania, slinky, and alien saucers.
 
I really wish they would get rid of all FPs!

I did that years ago when I was out at a postal school in Norman OK.
Got a cheap 3 speed at a yard sale and a lock, then told my co-workers that were heading out to school after me where to find it locked up and the combo for it.

I wish they had some sort of ticket for a FL Passholder to buy an out of state visitor  inexpensive tickets.

https://wdwnt.com/2020/02/photos-rats-return-to-the-muppets-courtyard-fountain-at-disneys-hollywood-studios/
 
HOORAY!!!
 
When the Muppets Courtyard fountain was revealed after refurbishment, we were happy at the return of a perfectly polished Miss Piggy, but somewhat downtrodden at the sight that the fishing rats had been left out even after the fountain was turned back on. Today, we are pleased to inform our readers that the fishing rats are back!
See the link for the photos
 

I think that is the biggest complaint.
Prices do need to go up to cover operational costs, make a profit, etc, but each year it feels like you get less for your $$ and more and more crowds.
Yes, I know new rides and attractions that are coming cost major $$ to develop and maintain, but when you're crammed into the parks like sardines about 95% of the time, it's no longer a magical/pleasant experience.
Disney has done too good of a job marketing themselves, and did not keep up with the influx of crowds.
Instead of expanding the parks, creating new lands, or new parks somewhere else in the US or South America, they spent their $ on expanding DVC resorts.  Which just brought more bodies to the already overcrowded parks and transportation systems.
Oh wait, if they don't expand the transportation systems, then more people will use Minnie Vans.  A win win as TCD would say!

Ironically, this new system seems is similar to the original ticket books that Disney once used, where guests had to pay for each attraction individually. While the new systems would still likely have standby or other wait systems for guests without reservations, it does seem odd to revive a concept the company did away with nearly forty years ago.
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I would love to see some sort of senior citizens/old fogeys type of AP that just got you into the park and maybe allowed you access to a couple of rides per day (at a greatly reduced price of course)!
When we go without the adult kids we just wander around, maybe catch a show or two, people watch, and catch a ride if there is a very low wait time.
We have a hard time keeping up with the kids and grandkids because of the wonderful FP system that bounces you across the parks all day long.  With the crowds it's not real enjoyable rushing around the parks fighting the crowds.
We can keep up with them (easier when we take the walkie talkies) but we usually arrive at the next destination a bit after they get there.

We renewed our passes 1/20, beat the increase.

I'll be able to work from home in June when I retire!

It seems like the majority of new sub-divisions being built still don't make anything walkable.
To me, it would seem like the developer would offer space within the development for grocery stores, gas stations, etc, to make it easier for the residents to get what they need instead of having to drive a mile to get out of the sub-division then another couple of miles to get to a store along overcrowded streets.
 

Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance Boarding Groups Now Being Distributed Starting at Official Park Opening Time Beginning Today
 
Since Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance opened, the attraction has utilized a boarding group system that required guests to enter the park and then obtain said group in the MyDisneyExperience app in order to ride. On top of this, the park has been unofficially opening anywhere from 30-120 minutes ahead of the scheduled opening time, allowing guests to grab that boarding group way before the park’s official opening time. Today, things have gone a little differently…
While the park did allow guests in before the official 7am opening time (at 6:30am guests were admitted), cast members have informed guests that they will not be able to join a boarding group until 7am. On top of this, the attractions in the park did not open prior to 7am either.
It is unknown if this is a one-day policy change or if it will be the way the process works from now on.

I'll be able to work from home in June when I retire!

The second thing you here from a CM after hello is "Do you have a meal plan?".
I see so many posts on FB pages about people having unused credits and ending up using them on snacks or just plain losing them.
A friend used to get the meal plans for his family and also book the concierge levels at the resorts with all the "free" food, so they never used their credits up.
The dining plans probably make Disney a fortune.  They figure most familys won't use them up so it's pure profit on the unused credits.

That's for sure. They are probably hard pressed to afford the apartment rentals also.
I'm surprised Disney doesn't build a "company town" where the workers get indebted to them and have to pay them back the rest of their lives like the coal miners used to do.
I know it's endless building on 54 from the Suncoast out to Trinity/Little road.
Where are all the people coming from?  

A couple months after the protests started getting intense, there was an article about the drop in overall tourism to that area.  They had a lot of pictures of Disney with very little visitors and no lines.
I'm sure it hasn't gotten any better.

Whelp, the TCD Gang rode ROTR today. 
Its amazing.
we agree that it's the best ride in a Disney park. And the TCD twins have been to Tokyo and Hong Kong. 
I stand by my statement that they opened it too soon. We had to be evacuated half way through our fiirst attempt to ride and were given paper fastpasses, which we were able to use about an hour later, and the second time was a charm. 
Disney has had to mobilize hundreds of extra CM's, and they're having guest relations CM's from other parks getting paid double time to deal with guest recovery. So stupid and wasteful. 
The kinks will get worked out, and to me this quality of this attraction saves Galaxy's Edge. 
TCD

Hopefully Imgur is going to co-operate and I'll be able to add some photos to this report.
Some of you may have seen some of my other posts looking to purchase a T@B.  We found one about 6 weeks ago in Atlanta, and this was going to be our maiden voyage in it.  Previously we camped in a tent then moved up to a old 1986 Coleman PUP.  The T@B is in another universe all together.
We went to the Fort over Veteran's Day weekend.  I worked a 1/2 day Friday, so we left Tampa around noon.
I had hitched up the camper Thursday night, and used my wife's car Friday to go to work.  While I was at work, she loaded 3 tubs and the tent in the bed of the truck and the suitcases in the back seat along with our snack bucket.  When I got home, I filled the ice chest and tossed it into the truck and we were off.
It was an uneventful trip, other than trying to avoid the numerous potholes on I-4 and keeping from getting run over by semis and idiot drivers.
We were able to check in as soon as we arrived, but then hit our first snag. 
We were assigned to the 2000 party loop or as some people refer to it Miami North.  We tried to get a site in 1500 but they said it was full. 
They did allow us to pick our site in 2000 and we picked 2030.  We got over to the site which was just about at the upper part of the loop.  It was a nice site and we had the big grassy area behind us which led to the comfort station.
I attempted my second time backing the camper.  It went better than my first time into our driveway, but I ended up unhitching on the road and pushing the T@B back into the site.  We arranged the camper enough to get my truck off the road and then started setting up the tent for my daughters and our screen room.  We worked on those first because the sky was getting darker by the minute.
We were able to get those set up and the camper and it still hadn't rained.

 
My daughters and granddaughter showed up around 5 and we had dinner.  By then it had started to sprinkle.
We decided to catch a bus to Disney Springs and go to the Christmas Tree Trail.  It rained on and off while we were there, sometimes pretty hard and other times just a mist.
We saw some trees



Had a frozen eggnog fortified by Captain Morgan.
We walked around to a few stores but as usual, Disney has done a wonderful job promoting themselves so everything was packed.  The kids decided to stay and my wife and I caught a bus back to the Fort.
 

https://abcnews.go.com/amp/GMA/Travel/heartwarming-story-disney-worlds-holiday-decorations/story?id=67049102
 
Check out the snowflakes on the buildings on Discovery Island.
 
 

We try to rectify that later in the saga.
I also picked up a limited edition Santa Jack Skellington with a toy bag full of jack o lanterns

Maybe, maybe not?
 
https://www.orlandoweekly.com/Blogs/archives/2019/11/15/monorail-manufacturer-bombardier-has-a-new-mystery-client-big-enough-to-be-disney?utm_source=feature&utm_medium=home&utm_campaign=hpfeatures&utm_content=HomeTopFeature
 
For years now, Disney World fans have been hoping the resort will finally add new monorails to replace the aging fleet that continually makes the news for breaking down and stranding passengers. Despite literal pieces falling off the three-decade-old trains, Disney hasn’t given any indication that it plans to replace them.

Rumors circulated last year that Bombardier, which built the current Mark VI trains, had been contracted for a new fleet. At the time, the primary source of the rumors was a fan site that Disney has since publicly called "unscrupulous," due to publishing multiple unfounded rumors. However, the speculation about a new fleet was supported that same year when retired Imagineer Bob Gurr, who designed both the original Disneyland monorails and WDW’s first monorail fleet, publicly stated "there are contracts underway" for new monorails.

Also at the time, it was speculated that new trains would likely be a custom-built version of Bombardier's INNOVIA 300 trains, which are strikingly similar in exterior design to WDW’s monorails.
Since then, there has been little to indicate that Disney is actually moving forward with the supposed contracts. In June of this year, Disney began rolling out a refurbished version of the current monorails, with the first updated train being Monorail Silver.

Despite being less than six months old, the refurbished Silver cars are already showing wear, with some guests complaining about poor air conditioning, loose vinyl on the seating, and an unpleasant smell best described as "nursing home meets middle-school locker room."
Rumors of a new monorail fleet are heating back up, thanks to a small note in Bombardier’s latest quarterly earnings report.click to tweet Now, thanks to a small note in Bombardier’s latest quarterly earnings report, rumors of a new fleet are once again heating up. The report notes a North American deal for $104 million in rolling stock and $247 million in services for an undisclosed client. Some fans have begun guessing that the undisclosed client could be Walt Disney World.
 
 

As we mentioned in 2018, the combination of services and fleet is more common, as Bombardier shifts to a service-based profit model, similar to the direction Apple has been moving. This fleet-and-operations double-contract is the type of arrangement Bombardier has with SunRail, where it delivered both the trains and oversees the continued maintenance of them.
The $104 million in rolling stock would be enough to replace at least a few of the aging monorails at WDW. Bombardier’s newest trains use the latest technology for seamless autonomous operations, meaning Disney could choose to save costs by eliminating monorail pilots. Not to imply the company would ever choose profits over people.

Automated trains would also mean a single contract for Disney, instead of negotiating contracts with local labor unions.

While Disney would clearly benefit from new monorails, there are plenty of other options for who the undisclosed North American client could be. Las Vegas is expanding its monorail system, which initially used monorails that Disney sold them, though, unlike Disney, it has since updated to newer trains. The new extension of the Vegas monorail will add two new stations when it opens. That expansion should open in late 2020 or early 2021, which would be a logical time for another update to its fleet.
The new contract could be for multiple other airport expansions and train projects ramping up around the nation.click to tweet Other possible clients include the San Francisco International Airport, where just two days prior to the end of the second financial quarter, Bombardier announced a $220 million service contract, which like the SunRail one, has a ten-year minimum. The similar cost of the new service contract to the SunRail and San Francisco contracts point to the recently announced deal also being for a ten-year minimum.

With multiple other airport expansions and numerous other train projects ramping up around the nation, there is little to indicate that this new contract is for Disney World. As with the previous reporting, for now, there is nothing to suggest that this latest speculation regarding a new monorail fleet is anything more than wishful thinking, but here’s to hoping Disney replaces the fleet before more pieces of the current trains fall off.

I checked out the pin display at the Meadow and saw some fairly new pins (still no Musket Mickey) and found this one.


Had to have it. 
Found out a couple of days ago that they were supposed to go on sale on 11/11, but I guess the Fort jumped the gun.  They have them for all of the WDW resorts, also California, Hawaii, and Paris.
No Musket Mickey pins, but they still had the 51 cent Musket pressed penny!
We decided to walk down to the Settlement and look around.  It was pretty sad to see all of construction fencing up and the beach blocked off.
Nothing new at the Settlement Store.  We looked around some more then headed to the bus stop.
Some Reflections pictures thru the construction fence at the bus stop.

New Barn?

We got back to the site and had lunch.
Everyone was happier being fed, and also that it warmed up and the sun dried out the tents indoor swimming pool! That's my two oldest girls and youngest granddaughter.

We hung around the site for a while listening to the neighbors blaring music and barking dogs.
I repaired the tetherball 3 times, and that was in addition to maintenance coming out in the morning and replacing the ball because the loop on it was broken.  I wonder if the kids riding on it while their parents looked on (and at their phones) was why it kept breaking?
Got changed and headed to  the MK.
Had a nature show at the 2000 bus stop


Got down to Pioneer Hall and the little store/kiosk across the walkway was open.
Found this

Picture doesn't do it justice.  This was the 8th picture I took, just couldn't get a good shot.
I had on my Country Bear shirt and the CM said she really liked it.  She asked me if I collected pins and I said ones that mean something to me.
She pulled this out of a bag and said they weren't out yet and gave it to me.

I got Pixie Dusted!!
Headed down to the boat and saw these.

Turns out they have been doing the team building contests all week. I read somewhere after we got home that they ran until 11/14?
MK was typical weekend MK. Crowded, but at least the temp and humidity was down and it felt a little more Christmassy then walking around in 90 degrees and 95 % humidity.
They were filming a bunch of different acts all around WDW for multiple specials.
Here are some pictures from the park and the MK filming.





If you've ever been there or anywhere else while a show/movie was getting filmed, you know nothing goes right on the first take or the 15th. We had gotten a note at the campsite alerting us about fireworks going off up until as late as 12:45. Now we knew why.  A lot of the re-takes involved fireworks going off behind the performers, a whole lot of times.
My wife and I decided to head back towards the campground.  We walked to the Contemporary to look at the gingerbread house. Again is was really nice walking around and not dripping sweat all over.
After the gingerbread house we went and caught the boat to the fort then the bus.
Arrived back to the site to blaring music, dogs barking and kids yelling.  But you can't say anything because it would ruin their "magical " time. At least the tetherball was still in one piece!
Sunday, a trip to AK.

The Poly ones have to be the worst.
I don't think I've ever seen anyone at any of the cabins.
Either going into or out of them, or sitting on the porch.
If I spent that much $$ on a room, you wouldn't see me getting more that 5 feet away from it.
My butt would be parked in the room or on the porch until the last click of the clock at checkout time.

Hopefully Imgur is going to co-operate and I'll be able to add some photos to this report.
Some of you may have seen some of my other posts looking to purchase a T@B.  We found one about 6 weeks ago in Atlanta, and this was going to be our maiden voyage in it.  Previously we camped in a tent then moved up to a old 1986 Coleman PUP.  The T@B is in another universe all together.
We went to the Fort over Veteran's Day weekend.  I worked a 1/2 day Friday, so we left Tampa around noon.
I had hitched up the camper Thursday night, and used my wife's car Friday to go to work.  While I was at work, she loaded 3 tubs and the tent in the bed of the truck and the suitcases in the back seat along with our snack bucket.  When I got home, I filled the ice chest and tossed it into the truck and we were off.
It was an uneventful trip, other than trying to avoid the numerous potholes on I-4 and keeping from getting run over by semis and idiot drivers.
We were able to check in as soon as we arrived, but then hit our first snag. 
We were assigned to the 2000 party loop or as some people refer to it Miami North.  We tried to get a site in 1500 but they said it was full. 
They did allow us to pick our site in 2000 and we picked 2030.  We got over to the site which was just about at the upper part of the loop.  It was a nice site and we had the big grassy area behind us which led to the comfort station.
I attempted my second time backing the camper.  It went better than my first time into our driveway, but I ended up unhitching on the road and pushing the T@B back into the site.  We arranged the camper enough to get my truck off the road and then started setting up the tent for my daughters and our screen room.  We worked on those first because the sky was getting darker by the minute.
We were able to get those set up and the camper and it still hadn't rained.

 
My daughters and granddaughter showed up around 5 and we had dinner.  By then it had started to sprinkle.
We decided to catch a bus to Disney Springs and go to the Christmas Tree Trail.  It rained on and off while we were there, sometimes pretty hard and other times just a mist.
We saw some trees



Had a frozen eggnog fortified by Captain Morgan.
We walked around to a few stores but as usual, Disney has done a wonderful job promoting themselves so everything was packed.  The kids decided to stay and my wife and I caught a bus back to the Fort.
 

Tampa has Cigar City brewery which consistently wins awards for their beers, plus we have about another 30 in the surrounding area.
All of them would probably be large enough to fill any orders that Disney would place.