I know every family says this… but our vacations are actually the MOST dysfunctional of all family vacations. Like, we take the cake. The crown. The trophy of MOST arguments, storm-off’s and runaway’s, yelling, hangry/tired mood swings, and overall general stress about seeing everything we want to see in the little bit of time we have. It’s absolute bliss.
No, really. We LOVE our family vacations. They are just most enjoyable in hindsight when it’s all said and done and we’re back home telling stories and reliving memories and laughing about all the funny moments! Haha. It’s become the inside joke of the family that Disney World is more fun AFTER you leave… and after the credit card bill has been paid. Lol.
When we started throwing out ideas for where to go for our first family vacation in almost three years, I’m not sure when Disney came up… but we’re so glad it did!! We originally planned on going in September for the start of Food & Wine Festival (a first for all of us), but Hurricane Irma came through and we decided it probably wasn’t the best idea to fly to Florida the day before the storm arrived. We would have been okay, but who knows how much time we would have gotten in the parks… or if we would have had running water! We’ve never had to cancel a trip before, but thankfully we were able to postpone to two months later in mid-November, when we got the best of both worlds… the end of Food & Wine Festival and the start of Disney’s Christmas celebration!! Justin was able to come because of our postponement and that made it even better! It honestly worked out perfectly!
Guide to Epcot Food & Wine Festival + Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party:
We had about a week in Orlando, and here is how we decided to spend it:
Saturday: Arrive in the morning, check in, attempt to see fireworks from the rooftop bar at one of the Disney resorts, wait 1 hour in traffic just pulling up to the resort only to learn that Disney now requires you to have a reservation to walk into the resort, which who has a reservation for a bar? (no one), decide on Mexican and margaritas instead at On The Border and call it a night.
Sunday: Visit Disney Springs (formerly known as Downtown Disney), realize just how crowded the week is about to be because #DisneyatChristmastime, spend the day eating and drinking everything in site and go to bed early in preparation for the park adventures to begin
Monday: Arrive at Epcot 30 minutes before park opening. Watch opening ceremony (a real Disney treat for the early risers). Literally RACE everyone around you to the Frozen ride to see Elsa, Anna, and Olaf sing and dance and get your feet rolled over by strollers in the process and heels stomped on in the stampede but #worthit because 10 minute wait vs. 3 hour. Attend the final day of Epcot Food & Wine Festival, spend approximately $150 each on bite-sized food & drink samples, realize you’ve only put a dent in the options available throughout the park and make a plan to come back someday with twice the time and twice the cash. Leave Epcot mid-afternoon and head to Animal Kingdom to walk around Pandora (but not ride any rides because lol 2+ hour wait), somehow manage to snag a seat at River of Lights parade, head home around midnight to prepare for Disney day 2.
Tuesday: Arrive at Hollywood Studios, ride Tower of Terror, Rockin Roller Coaster (the single riders lane of course because #lines), and Toy Story Mania (for the first time because the lines had always been SO long but it was wonderful to experience), then head to Magic Kingdom for DISNEY CHRISTMAS MAGIC. Attend Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. Eat all the Christmas cookies in sight. Have the entire family separate when no one can agree on which ride to ride next. Literally walk around alone at said Christmas party because everyone is cranky. Meet up at the Christmas parade. Cry when Santa rides down Main Street USA as snow falls and Christmas music plays. All lines, ticket expenses, bad attitudes, and crowds worth it. Pure magic.
Wednesday: Have breakfast at Chef Mickey’s (childhood dream come true!!!), watch your sisters meet Mickey Mouse and friends for the first time (!!!), explore every resort possible and admire all the Christmas decorations EVERYWHERE. No one does Christmas like Disney!
Thursday: Get to Animal Kingdom at the crack of dawn to attempt to get in line for an Avatar ride, realize everyone else on planet Earth has the same exact idea, still wait 120 minutes for Flight of Passage, watch dad leave and ride the River raft ride instead, cry the entire time your banshee flies through Pandora, leave ecstatic and convinced it was worth every minute in line, write Yelp review absolutely raving about the ride (yep that’s a thing and you can go find my emotionally charged review if you’d like), spend the rest of the day admiring God’s amazing creation through all the beautiful animals. End the day with Reflections of Earth at Epcot.
Friday: Walk around Celebration (Disney’s own little real life town), have edible cookie dough in a cup, one last lunch together, and a little bit of pool time before flying home. Best week ever.
Here’s a little recap of our trip in video and photo form. Note the hilariously awkward vacation selfies all throughout this post with weird angles and squinting into the lens. You’ve been warned… may the Marcus family vacation traditions live on forever.
Meeting the Coca Cola polar bear at Disney Springs!
Enjoying some margaritas in the Florida weather!
This photo is blurry but it still captures our dinner together haha!
Had to finish off the evening with a Ghirardelli sundae!
Armed with our MagicBands and ready to go for Disney Day 1!
Probst!
Disney Day 2…!
We were so excited to see Magic Kingdom in all its holiday glory!
Our wristbands for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party!
Someone looks a little too excited to watch the Splash Mountain log flume come down…
Living my absolute best life.
Dream come true!! So magical!
So exciting meeting him together!!
No clue what’s happening here. Lol.
Apparently we only took one photo at Animal Kingdom. Haha! Alexa loved this spot!
Such a fun vacation and one we will forever remember and cherish!!
