Main Street Talk - A Disney World Podcast

Disney World News, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Spotlight, Dumbo & Our Vacation

• Nick Garcia • Season 2 • Episode 31

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 In this episode of the Main Street Talk podcast, we recap our recent vacation, including our stay at Bay Lake Tower and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge. We talk about our time at Typhoon Lagoon water park and share our favorite gingerbread displays spotted around Disney World resorts. We also cover the latest Disney World news, including ride reopening's, upcoming attractions, and new experiences coming to the parks. Plus, we explain how you can enter our $100 gift card giveaway. This episode features a spotlight on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, with a detailed discussion of the ride’s unique elements, hidden Easter eggs, and overall experience. We wrap things up with a review of the classic Disney film Dumbo and highlights from our visit to Universal Studios. 

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Nick:

Hello everybody. Welcome to this week's episode of the Main Street Talk podcast, your go-to podcast for all things Walt Disney World related, all the tips, the tricks, and the updates. I am your host Nick, and as always with me is Joni. Hi

Joni:

everyone.

Nick:

We are back.

Joni:

We've been back.

Nick:

been back, but we're back on, on the air.

Joni:

Yes, we are.

Nick:

Yeah.

Joni:

Nice to be back.

Nick:

Thank you for your understanding about last week we had to take one week off due to some things that happened on our arrival back to our hometown. But here we are. We are back. We had a great visit.

Joni:

Yeah. We

Nick:

Disney. We went and didn't do a whole lot of Disney things. We did the free water park day. You did, which was our first time in water park. It was

Joni:

It was really, it was. It's

Nick:

was a cool water park. Typhoon

Joni:

typhoon Lagoon. This time'cause Blizzard Beach was closed.

Nick:

Yeah. And we did go see Gingerbreads

Joni:

Uhhuh

Nick:

and we did two days at Universal. So we were there for six days.

Joni:

Yeah. We did the islands and Universal. We kept Epic out of there.

Nick:

stayed away from Epic. I

Joni:

give it a little bit more time to

Nick:

Yeah. Let that

Joni:

down.

Nick:

So today is December 14th, so all news is current as of to this day. And there's one week left actually at the time. This errors five days left to get registered for the a hundred dollars gift card.

Joni:

By the time we do our show next weekend, we are drawing next weekend. Yep.

Nick:

We will announce the winner next week. So Saturday at noon central time is a deadline to, to get registered for that. The pin post is on our Facebook page, main Street Talk podcast. And you just gotta like, and follow the page and comment gift card. Once we like your post, you are entered. That's

Joni:

That's right. So

Nick:

So don't forget about that. Simple,

Joni:

easy peasy.

Nick:

So with that, are we ready to get into the news?

Joni:

Yeah.

Nick:

So there was, as you can imagine, two weeks. We have not done a show. There was a ton of news. Mm-hmm. So I had to kinda cherry pick the news to not make this a two hour show.

Joni:

Yeah. Well we're not gonna, we're not gonna stretch everything out. You know, cause we do have a lot of news in our regular programming. Plus we'd like to touch a little bit on our experiences with the couple of parks that we went to. But

Nick:

So

Joni:

so we'll do our best to get through this as. As

Nick:

as quickly as possible,

Joni:

but as understandably as possible,

Nick:

Yeah.'cause there was a ton of news, like I said but here we go. At Magic Kingdom, the construction wall is up at the back of the Haunted Mansion, graveyard of Magic Kingdom. This is to block views of the construction going on in the the old Tom Sawyer area for the news cars, land area. And Disney has announced that Buzz Lightyear, space Ranger Spin and Big Thunder Railroad Mountain will reopen Imagine Kingdom in the springtime of 26. So both of those, they have officially announced that,

Joni:

Oh, good. And

Nick:

December 22nd through December 31st at Magic Kingdom, Nikki's once upon a Christmas time parade will be performed twice daily during regular park hours. These are usually performed during the Christmas parties, but like I said, the 22nd through the 31st, they'll be twice daily, once at noon, and once at three. So

Joni:

Well, that's nice. Yeah. Little extra special magic. If you're not able to go to the parties, if you wanted to get in and couldn't make it, at least you can have a little bit of that'cause it is. It is cute

Nick:

is a cool parade. Yeah. And over at Epcot Frozen Ever after will be closed, beginning on January 26th. It will reopen with new figures, featuring physical faces on the animatronics. It's kind of been I think since they opened that they have like the projection faces on the animatronics. So they're finally they're finally fixing that and it'll reopen sometime in February. So it'll, you know, won't be too long.

Joni:

Okay.

Nick:

And Disney confirmed. Memorial Day 2026 is when the new Soren across America will be debuting.

Joni:

Yep. Just tell me that date again one more

Nick:

Memorial Day 2026. Okay.

Joni:

Okay. How long is that supposed to run?

Nick:

I don't

Joni:

Because they switch'em out. Yeah,

Nick:

do switch'em out. This is for the the America's 250th birthday. Okay. So yeah.

Joni:

yeah. So maybe the year.

Nick:

Yeah, maybe a year, I don't

Joni:

maybe.

Nick:

And over at Hollywood Studios, fantas will perform three times on the Saturday after Christmas. That's December 27th to accommodate the expected crowds.

Joni:

It'll be, wow.

Nick:

it'll perform at 6 38 and nine 30. Wow.

Joni:

Wow. Again,

Nick:

that's on December 27th. And the pre-show at Rock and Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith is now boarded up. It is no long, there's no longer a pre-show. This is in preparation for the upcoming rock and roller coaster starring the Muppets. Now, the last day of operation for the Aerosmith version will be March 1st, so it'll be officially be closed March 2nd.

Joni:

Okay.

Nick:

And Disney has begun pouring foundation for the monsters. Ink roller coaster. Aerial photos showed some trucks out there pouring some foundation

Joni:

There's lots going on. Yeah. Simultaneously.

Nick:

Yep. It's gonna be like this for a while.

Joni:

Uhhuh. Yeah. Well, we expected it and we all cheered for it,

Nick:

Yeah.

Joni:

Disney.

Nick:

Disney is bringing Disney Junior, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse live to Disney's Hollywood Studios this summer. It's featuring Mickey and Friends in an interactive stage show for young guests. The new production will invite families to sing, dance, and help the gang on fun-filled clubhouse

Joni:

Oh my goodness. She's going to love it when we take her Hot

Nick:

dog. Hot dog. Dog

Joni:

hot Diggity dog and o tooles and Oh I'm excited. Oh, she's gonna love it. We're taking our granddaughter next year. So,

Nick:

Yep. Next December, actually. Yeah. And vacation fun has been closed for refurbishment since October 20th, and according to the Disney World Calendar, it's opening on December 27th, so over an animal kingdom. This has been rumored for a while, that bluey is

Joni:

Mm-hmm.

Nick:

Well, bluey is

Joni:

Oh, I know.

Nick:

yeah. Disney has

Joni:

We kind of got an insider while we were on vacation too.

Nick:

Disney has announced details of the new Bluey experience coming to Disney World. It's in 2026, starting in the summer. Guests at Animal Kingdom will be able to dance, play, and meet Bluey and Bingo during a fun-filled visit to conservation station. Oh.

Joni:

Oh, okay.

Nick:

So yes. The rumor was that I always heard was Hollywood Studios,

Joni:

but

Nick:

It's animal kingdom, which I guess is fitting.

Joni:

so you gotta do the train ride to get to it, right? Yeah. Oh, okay. So it back there with Rafiki. Yeah. Yep. And the petting zoo and whatnot.

Nick:

the vet lab, all that.

Joni:

So plan that in your day.'cause just the ride back there and then the walk. And that's a trek in itself.

Nick:

It is. And Cali River Rapids reopened on December 12th, so if you have an upcoming trip, it is reopened and this is pretty exciting.

Joni:

Yeah. Good luck with that because I think everyone's got record low temperatures.

Nick:

Yeah. You know it was in us.

Joni:

the us. Yeah.

Nick:

they were getting, I know the water parks were closed the other day'cause the weather was

Joni:

Yeah, like

Nick:

cold by Florida

Joni:

Texas are reporting. Yeah.

Nick:

In construction for the new encanto. Attraction to Animal Kingdom is going vertical. Steel framing can be seen, so it's reach in the sky. Mm-hmm. That's it for Park News.

Joni:

We already have a Toy story lid.

Nick:

Did I say Toy

Joni:

No. When you said reach for the sky,

Nick:

for the guy. I was like, did I say Toy Story?'cause I'm literally reading. In miscellaneous news for Disney World. Walt Disney World has extended their hotel bounce back offer, and now runs through the end of 2026. And card members can use their Disney Visa card to book a room with special rates at select Disney resorts with rates as low as$99 a night this winter. The offer is valid for two nights or longer stay must be consecutive nights most Sunday through Thursday nights from January 4th to February 10th, 2026. And I did post a blog about this. It's on our website with all the details and examples of resorts and pricing,

Joni:

Perfect.

Nick:

and Disney has confirmed that the free water park perk on check-in day is coming back next year, but it's only coming back for the summer.

Joni:

So

Nick:

Not an all year thing as it was in 2025. For the first time ever, DVC has revealed a new administrative fee of$500 for resale transfers. What that means is if you are buying a resale contract DVC is gonna charge you$500. To transfer the contract may not be a big deal. For bigger contracts'cause it's, you know,$500 added into the price. But it's really, I think, gonna make a bigger deal on smaller contracts, you know? Yeah. 25 points for$2,000 or whatever, and they tack on that$500 fee. That's, you know,

Joni:

it's

Nick:

on top of 2000.

Joni:

matter the size of the contract. It's a flat.

Nick:

500 bucks, no matter how big the contract is.

Joni:

Okay.

Nick:

And DVC also has. Released their 2027 DVC points charts. So that is out unavailable if you're interested to look at that. Mm-hmm. And this was exciting for us. The refurbished rooms at Kani Village at Animal Kingdom Lodge debuted on December 12th, so we were able to see pictures of the new rooms. Yeah. Overall, I like the refurb.

Joni:

I do too.

Nick:

Very, it kani needed an update for sure. I mean, they're gonna do it at Jambo too, but those rooms did need updated and I like it. I'm happy with it.

Joni:

I think the, I'm just gonna give a couple things on here and people can see the photos if they haven't already, but I missed the artwork in the shower.

Nick:

The Lion King. Yep. Yeah. Those weren't in studios though. Those were only in the one bedrooms.

Joni:

okay. What about the ostrich egg? Egg

Nick:

Yeah. I looks like they took those out.

Joni:

Looks like they're gone.'cause those match the ones in the lobbies.

Nick:

Mm-hmm. A big plus as they put Murphy beds in.

Joni:

Yeah. Oh yeah, for sure.

Nick:

Because we, I mean, we ourselves experienced the pullout couches a couple weeks ago at Animal Kingdom. It was pretty rough. Yeah.

Joni:

Even the 10-year-old grandson was reluctant to sleep on

Nick:

He opted to sleep on the couch instead of pulling out the

Joni:

Yeah. So if that doesn't say it needs to.

Nick:

yeah. But pretty happy with it overall though, for sure. the Disney character Warehouse, remember we went there and bought

Joni:

yeah. Yep.

Nick:

They have issued a new stricter return policy for their, their store no refund return or exchanges. Pretty much you buy it, it's yours. This is the combat resellers.

Joni:

Oh.

Nick:

Oh. So be aware if you're going to the character warehouse mm-hmm. That what you buy is what you buy, that's yours.

Joni:

Well, I know there for a fact there are people that go and buy abundance, you know, buy the lots of things that come out and then they turn around and sell it for 2, 2, 3 times the price.

Nick:

Yep.

Joni:

Shame.

Nick:

And Disney's Zootopia two has smashed global box office records by crossing the 1 billion mark in just 17 days, becoming the fastest ever PG rated film to ever reach that milestone.

Joni:

Get out

Nick:

out 17 days, they hit$1 billion. We have not seen that

Joni:

yet. I, we're not part of that$1 billion, but I do, I am. We're gonna see

Nick:

Yeah. Oh yeah, for sure. That's crazy. And you know, when you talk all your numbers with your, when you do your movies and Yeah. 17 days,$1 billion. That's insane. It's crazy. And along those lines, Disney earned 27 Golden Globe nominations for film, television and streaming. So 27 Golden Globes. That is it for the news? Like I said, I touched on what I thought was interesting or important. Okay. There was a lot that I left out.

Joni:

so should we do the ride or the movie first, or do you wanna get into our experiences first?

Nick:

Let's do the spotlight and traction. Okay. Yeah.

Joni:

So with that one being said, we're gonna go over to, I think we're on Tiana's. We are Tiana's Bayou Adventure Today.

Nick:

Tiana

Joni:

This is actually going to finish up. Frontier land for us.

Nick:

Sure is. We're on our way.

Joni:

we ha this is described as a water, indoor and outdoor ride. And the ride vehicle is a log flue where there are high speeds, heights, and sudden drops and stops. The highest speed is 40 miles per hour at the final drop when the ride vehicle descends, the 52 foot drop at a 45 degree angle.

Nick:

Did you say 40 miles an hour? Is

Joni:

40 miles an hour, that's the one where you're coming down and everyone can sit across the bridge area and overlook you. So this ride is a log flume, and you are to embark on a thrilling journey with Tiana and the jazz loving Alligator Lewis as they transverse windy waterways to find critter musicians who can jam out and entertain at Tiana's Southern Soiree. The musical adventure

Nick:

CDOs.

Joni:

CDOs with a 50 foot drop that leads you to the grandest, actually a 52 foot drop. One says 50 and one says 52. I'm gonna go with the highest one but to the grandest celebration. This side of the Mississippi, during Mardi Gras season, the height requirement is 40 inches. Children under seven must be accompanied by someone 14 years or older. The capacity is eight riders per log with two riders per row. Typically, those in the front get the most wet.

Nick:

Mm-hmm.

Joni:

I think we sat third row.

Nick:

were third row. We didn't get it Too bad. No,

Joni:

we didn't get it too bad. But you definitely get it in the first and then therefore, moving on back. It's a tier one multipass. You must be able to transfer from an electric vehicle or wheelchair. There is an action photo and I cannot recall exactly where it's at. I'm sure it's right at the top of, right at the top of the drop.

Nick:

no, it's your, as you're dropping.

Joni:

Okay.

Nick:

somewhere on the drop. You're drop definitely dropping when the photo takes

Joni:

The ride is approximately 10 minutes. It replaced Splash Mountain where it kept the same track and only the theming was changed. Some tributes to Splash Mountain were figurines of a bear. Fox and Rabbit on the shelf in Tiana's office. Miniature Showboats in the queue are similar to the Zippity lady from the finale. The fireflies flying through the dead tree that is similar to the one on top of the chicken pin hill in the old ride. And a similar scene with Lewis stuck in a log is a callback to when Briar Bear gets stuck in a log. Okay. The Fussel Springs Crate from Splash Mountain can be found in the Muskrat or by the Muskrat, rather in Tiana's Princess and the Frog. Other Easter eggs include photos and letters celebrating her father a World War I veteran, and her mother's dress shop. Her father's gumbo recipe is on the wall and the gumbo pot from the movie is hidden under the kitchen island. A mural outside the entrance depicts musical notes from the film's soundtrack. A Hidden Mickey shaped Benet is at the end of the ride, which I did not see that.

Nick:

I didn't know a lot of what you're talking about

Joni:

These are all just little Easter eggs that I was kind of investigating.

Nick:

much of this. Most of this

Joni:

Yeah. At the end of the ride, the stars that represents Ray and Evangeline are visible in the sky and in two other locations, Apollo, the raccoon and Rufuss the turtle from the movie also appear. And there are also New Orleans specific Easter eggs, some hidden Mickeys in the safety video, Lily pads and sparkle shimmers. Three of Mondo's warts also form a hidden Mickey in the ride. Two needlepoint signs, reference quotes from both Splash Mountain and the Princess and the Frog and birdhouses scattered around the queue. Similar to Splash Mountain with the blue one being a relic from the former ride. So lots of things that. It's

Nick:

It's a lot.

Joni:

It is a lot.

Nick:

It is a lot.

Joni:

There is a lot. So this ride opened up in Walt Disney World June 28th, 2024. That's what I got on that one.

Nick:

Oh, well good. I had not Road Splash Mountain in 20 years or so. I don't remember a lot about it. I remember liking it. I don't remember a lot about the ride. But Ti Tiana's, I, I love

Joni:

Tiana. I think it's, I think it's really cute how you shrink down and then grow big and, yeah. Yeah.

Nick:

yeah it's a cool ride. For sure.

Joni:

And you can't get through the ride with either it playing in your head or somebody in your log singing

Nick:

going down the bayou.

Joni:

Yep. Exactly. Yep. So

Nick:

So you find yourself tapping your feet. Yep. In your soggy log.

Joni:

And there's always, there's so much to look at left, right? Yeah.

Nick:

it's a good ride. All right. Thanks Jonie. Let's go on to our movie. What do we got? Okay this week is, we did a classic on our last show. This is another classic. Yeah, for sure.

Joni:

actually we finished the princesses. So what I've done is gone back to how Disney released these films by year, and I've got the highlighted ones of all the princess ones we've already done. So now I'm just following along the timeline,

Nick:

going down Walt's Watt's memory. Here

Joni:

I am. However. So we did touch on Pinocchio and then we are not going to touch on Fantasia. I'll just say a little brief thing about it. It is, one of the most regarded of the Disney's Classics, a symphonic concert, and with Leopold s Stawski and the Philadelphia Orchestra embellished by Disney Animation. That's all I'm gonna say about that.

Nick:

Okay.

Joni:

19 40, 19 40. I can't watch the whole thing. I'm sorry. Fantasia fans. Yeah

Nick:

I'm with you. As you know, sorcerer and Mickey is my favorite. Mickey, yeah. And then Steamboat Willie. Yeah. But as much as I love Sorcerer and Mickey, I just, Fantasia is not for me. Yeah. And I'm sure it was way ahead of its time. When it came out, it was really good. But it's just not for me.

Joni:

same. So we are not, I mean, there's nothing really to go into, it's just music. Yep. In a lot of scenes. So the next one is 1941. The Reluctant Dragon is another one that I'm not going, that I'm just gonna basically touch on just real briefly as far as. Just say a little bit about what it is. It is. Robert Benchley visits the Disney Studio in Burbank to sell Walt Disney on the idea of making a film of Kenneth Graham's book, the Reluctant Dragon. That's all this, okay, that's all this one is. Okay. Nothing became of it. So now we're onto Dumbo. We're going down the line here. So Dumbo. Yeah. First appearance was October 23rd, 1941 in New York. October 31st, 1941. Released to the rest of the United States runtime. One hour, four minutes budget, 950,000 box office pulled in more than 1.3 million from the US and Canada. It is directed by supervising director Ben Sharpstein and sequence directors Bill Roberts, Norman Ferguson, Jack Kenny, Wilfred Jackson, and Samuel Armstrong. It's based on the flying Elephant. Dumbo, the Flying Elephant by Helen Andersson and Harold Pearl. I did not mean to say Anderson, her last name is Abson. Okay, so dumbo's traits are innocence and sensitivity and sweetness. Initially marked by shyness and insecurity due to his ear size, which ultimately leads to self-acceptance and friendship. The nationality and region of this takes place, ironically enough, in Florida. Really?

Nick:

Really? Yeah.

Joni:

His occupation, he's a circus performer, as with his mom, Mrs. Jumbo. And. The storyline, the hand drawn animated film is about a young circus elephant born with unusually large ears teased and underestimated. Dumbo forms a close friendship and gradually discovers that what it makes him different may also make him special. The film is known for emotional warmth, storytelling, simplicity, memorable music and themes of kindness, self-confidence, and embracing individuality. Timothy Q Mouse is his sidekick. Okay.

Nick:

He's my guy.

Joni:

So it kind of goes against the whole theory. It kind of plays into the, where elephants are supposed to be scared of mice kind of thing. So they put his little friend as a mouse

Nick:

I don't think I've ever

Joni:

you never knew

Nick:

that? I don't think

Joni:

my word. Where have you been? And obviously his mom, Mrs. Jumbo. So follow up movies. So this I found interesting. Disney did plan to have an animated sequel. Dumbo too. Which was to focus on Dumbo and his circus friends embarking on new adventures and was to introduce Dumbo's father, Mr. Dumbo Jumbo. I'm sorry. And however, this was canceled in 2006 by John last sitter. However, the franchise saw a different kind of follow up with Tim Burton's 2019 live action adaptation with Reimagined. Scenes from the classic story with new characters and plot lines. I don't wanna go in too much about the Tim Burton thing, but So Disney never did the live action one we saw was not a Disney, that was a Tim Burton show.

Nick:

I think it was Disney produced, but Tim Burton directed. Is that right? Lemme look that up.

Joni:

I don't know.

Nick:

Lemme look that up. Go ahead.

Joni:

Dumbo won the Academy Award for best scoring of a musical picture with Frank Churchill and Oliver Wallace. Nominated for best music original song titled Baby Mine by Frank Churchill and Ned Washington. Other awards include Cannes Film Festival 1947 won Best Animated Design, the Photo play awards. 1942 where it won best picture for the month of January. It was also named one of the top 10 films by National Board of Review in 1941, where it placed number five and was selected for preservation by the National Film Registry in 2017. Little bonus information is that the film was produced to recoup the financial losses from both Pinocchio and Fantasia.

Nick:

Hm. Okay.

Joni:

I'm shocked. I didn't realize that there was that much

Nick:

that much deficit from the other two. Yeah, I didn't know that either.

Joni:

So Dumbo was a deliberate pursuit of simplicity and economics as it. One of the studio's Shortest Animated Features, and despite the advent of World War ii, Dumbo was still the most financially successful Disney Film of the 1940s. The sound was recorded conventionally using an RCA system. One voice was synthesized using the Sonovox system, but it too was recorded using an RCA. The film is rated G but it does contain some drinking with some hiccup bubbles.

Nick:

The mouse,

Joni:

It's got some smoking of cigarettes with the crows, and it's got the depiction of the use of hallucinogenic substances. Okay. Just to beware, parents, I mean, I'm. I'd

Nick:

we've all seen Dumbo. If you're listening to this show, I'm sure you've seen Dumbo.

Joni:

Of course. I had forgotten about all those things being in there. I didn't pay attention to'em when I was a kid. I just

Nick:

yeah, you don't. Yeah. As an adult. I think you notice things like that, Mara.

Joni:

yeah. I just thought I would mention that. But that's what we got for Dumbo.

Nick:

And can we mention the gossipy ladies that I Oh, course. Of course. That I hate. Yeah. I hate the gossipy lady elephants didn't make fun of Dumbo and his mom. Well,

Joni:

well.

Nick:

but they all get theirs.

Joni:

Yes, they do. So that's what I got.

Nick:

Okay. And I did see on, on, according to Wikipedia, I looked this up as you were talking, the production companies, there's actually like six, but the top two, they say Walt Disney production, or excuse me, Walt Disney Pictures and Tim Burton

Joni:

Okay. So they joined forces together. Okay.

Nick:

Well

Joni:

I don't know what happened with the 2006. You know,

Nick:

these things, you know. They get scrapped. Yeah. All right, well thanks Joni.

Joni:

So, yep, you bet.

Nick:

Tip or trick this week. A money saver. Once again, if you take a child that is under three years old to Disney, they are free. So our tip or trick is you wanna take that family trip.

Joni:

and

Nick:

And you have a little one that's under three. Take'em before they turn three. They have to be three or under at the time of check-in. Okay? So if they have a birthday during that week, they're still free. So yeah, that just saves a little bit of money and a lot of people say, well, what is there for, you know, what fun is it gonna be to take a 2-year-old to Disney? Can you imagine all the character meet and greets and the photos and all that stuff? There's plenty to do. Sure. Yeah. So that's our typical trick of the week under three. Free save some money at Disney. Okay, well, we're gonna get into a little bit. We're not gonna talk too long about it, of our experience on our vacation last week, we'll start with the Disney side of it. We stayed at Bay Lake the first night.

Joni:

and,

Nick:

It was our travel day and we got in, you know, we actually, by the time we got to Bay Lake, it was dinner time, so we didn't really do much. We went over to the contemporary and had dinner. But we went over to Animal Kingdom Lodge the next day. So we got a free water park day and we, that was the first time we had been to a water park. It was really fun. It was fun. It was a lot of fun. It was better and I was

Joni:

they have a huge wave pool. Wave pool. They've got lots of raft rides. They've got body slide rides,

Nick:

it, they got everything. A lot of water slides. Yeah. A lazy, a huge lazy river. Lazy

Joni:

raised lazy river. Yeah.

Nick:

The wave pool was awesome. And I was very impressed with the water park. I would go back, I mean, I

Joni:

lunch was nice. They have lockers, they have dressing rooms, shower rooms souvenir shop,

Nick:

everything that you expect from Disney. It is there cast members are super nice, super helpful. Big beach, Sandy beach area around the wave pool. Food was, you know, Disney food, quick service. Yeah.

Joni:

Yep.

Nick:

Yeah, I was very impressed. I've always been reluctant to go to the water parks just because it's a water park and, you know, we've all been to water parks, but I really liked it.

Joni:

Mm-hmm.

Nick:

whip, we had do whip,

Joni:

Yeah. Yeah, they did. They did. Some of the rides to, I mean, like the one, they have a banana, a pineapple, and a coconut. It's three different rides. You can, three different, one line leads to three different outlets of the slides. Mm-hmm. So you can experience all three of those. And that's just one ride in there. Yeah. So I mean it was a full day. But we didn't go hard.

Nick:

No, we didn't go hard. We got

Joni:

we had a chill day, but we Oh yeah, for sure. We got every, and we weren't there the whole time. No,

Nick:

we were probably there maybe like 10 to three, something like that. Yeah, it was a lot of fun. And they do have ex, if you need help getting up the stairs to water sites, I don't know if they all have'em, but a lot of'em have elevators and just ask a cast member.

Joni:

Yeah.

Nick:

So that was our experience at the Disney Water Park. Another Disney thing we did was we went gingerbread hopping. Yeah. We did not go to Wilderness Lodge. They didn't have their life size gingerbread, so we just kind of hung out at the contemporary that day. But we did go see the

Joni:

go back and see the Cinderella

Nick:

the Cinderella castle you've seen before. We've seen that. And then we took a special trip over to seed the carousel.

Joni:

yeah. How gorgeous. Really

Nick:

cool.

Joni:

Absolutely beautiful. A

Nick:

A full carousel of made outta gingerbread.

Joni:

Yeah. And actually the baker was there. You could meet and greet with the baker at the time that we were there. He was busy with another couple talking to them, so we just kind of waved and smiled and went around getting our photos. And there's hidden Mickey's on the carousel. There's hidden Mickey's in the castle.

Nick:

And his the chef, his. In ingredient, his ba the baker, his ingredient list was made out of chocolate frosting. Is that correct? I didn't see it. You read it?

Joni:

I took a photo of it, of everything that's in her, like how many pounds of flour, how many eggs, how many of everything went into constructing that? But it's really cool. Even the stand that this,

Nick:

what

Joni:

what you called paper would be sitting on. It was made of gingerbread. Yeah.

Nick:

was a really cool it was pretty big.

Joni:

The Maine and the tail on these and just

Nick:

detail of everything.

Joni:

Ugh. Beautiful.

Nick:

And then finally we had the animal Gingerbreads was in our lobby at John Bow House and those were really cool too. Uhhuh not as big as the carousel, but I mean, that giraffe was pretty big.

Joni:

Yeah, with very detailed. I mean, just as the horses were too. But yeah, the giraffe, what else did they have in there? Zebra?

Nick:

They had something. That I didn't see at first. You pointed out to me a little animal down on the ground. But yeah, just as impressive as everything else. Not as big. But very cool.

Joni:

and our hotel lobby was very busy the entire time

Nick:

was just gonna say

Joni:

The tree was lit up

Nick:

the lobby and the lobby at Man Animal Kingdom Lodge during Christmas is absolutely gorgeous. There was actually a photo pass person there taking people's pictures in front of the tree. Yeah. And yeah, because of that and the gingerbread animals, it was very busy lobby.

Joni:

that's probably how people feel when we go and visit their hotels. But hey,

Nick:

like the grand, I can't, the Grand Floridian staying there during Christmas. All that traffic, you know, from the gingerbread house. I'm sure

Joni:

you're a highly anxious person, that might not be a fantastic spot for you to be. So yeah, it was great.

Nick:

Yeah. And then yeah, that was pretty much our Disney, I mean, we stayed at Disney Resorts all week, but we Ubered to our big destinations, which was Universal Studios.

Joni:

well back on the Disney at Bay Lake. I mean, it was phenomenal watching the fireworks. Oh,

Nick:

the, yeah. Theme park. View from Bay Lake. I do have a live feed on our Facebook page. I tried to go live on TikTok, and I know I posted that I was going live on TikTok. It did not work out. It just, it was crazy.

Joni:

but it was a, but we had a great room with the park view, and then you could see the monorail coming. The underneath of it was lit up red and green, and it was just really

Nick:

And the music was piped in on the TV in our room, so it was, yeah, go to our Facebook page, the live video still up on there. But yeah, and then we took Ubers over to Universal. We did one day at Universal Studios. Then one day at Islands of Adventure Uhhuh. I thought I had fun at both Park. Universal Studios

Joni:

was my favorite. Islands

Nick:

was better and I was just gonna say that'cause Universal Studios a lot of simulator 3D rides.

Joni:

I did like the Simpson ride though.

Nick:

Yeah. And I like Simulator 3D rides, but not every single ride. I think they were all that way except the Mummy, if I'm remembering right. But it was a good time. I preferred islands. The walk to get from an Uber to get into the gates is a little lengthy too. Yeah,

Joni:

it's very

Nick:

I don't know where the buses drop you off if you're a universal guest, but yeah, if you're taking an Uber, be prepared to walk to get to the gates. But yeah, islands was my favorite

Joni:

my favorite.

Nick:

of the two parks. And

Joni:

if you are someone who is going to need some other mode of transportation, like you have a walking ailment, there are wheelchairs. There are, yes. But just be mindful, you cannot take the wheelchairs on. They have those flat like a moving

Nick:

like an escalator, but it's flat, like a flat escalator.

Joni:

You cannot take strollers or wheelchairs or anything that has wheels on that with you.

Nick:

And what I did like is they were very accessible

Joni:

Mm-hmm. And there's

Nick:

elevators and wheelchairs and there's a lot of Yeah. Accommodating things.

Joni:

And then if you are one that wants the electric scooter vehicle, they also have wheelchairs there once you return it that you can use to get yourself out to the parking area, and then you just leave it there and then they swap'em back and forth.

Nick:

Overall the universal parks, I. We're more, we're Disney people we're obviously doing a podcast. They were great theme parks. They're, you know, they're just not Disney.

Joni:

go again, but I'm not gonna be a frequent flyer.

Nick:

No,

Joni:

And in my opinion, it is a lot more expensive to eat at Universal

Nick:

I made the

Joni:

it is at Disney. And I'm shocked by that.

Nick:

I was too. I made the comment during lunch, I said, we have to get back on Disney property to have an, to have a cheap meal,

Joni:

It's

Nick:

which is crazy to say.

Joni:

isn't that the truth? Yeah.

Nick:

Yeah. But yeah, my favorite ride. What was your favorite ride

Joni:

and, well, let me just make one more comment about the whole meal things I did not see and I, maybe I missed it in somebody who might be a, you know, a lover of all parks may be able to help correct it. But I didn't see anywhere where there were children's menus.

Nick:

I think that one restaurant we ended at the first day had a kids' meal. Did it? Yeah.

Joni:

Yeah. Okay.'cause I know the burger place by Hulk did not.

Nick:

but I didn't even bring that up.'cause our grandson's three 10 he's got a bigger appetite than a kid's meal.

Joni:

But sometimes I can get away

Nick:

with. Yeah. Right, right. Yeah.

Joni:

So I was, you know, not wanting to be too weighed down or, you know, feeling kind of full and wanted something a little lighter. So,

Nick:

And as far as expensive, they have one version of Express Pass and that's it. You know, Disney has your Premier Express pass and they're, you know, multipass, they have one option. On the days we were there, it was$215 per person per day. That was the only option If you wanted to skip the line, if there was three of us, we'd be paying 600 plus dollars. Yeah. Which I was not

Joni:

And we got everything we wanted to have done. I mean, they're small, much, much smaller parks. Oh

Nick:

Oh yeah. They're very much smaller and they were only open till seven, which I was surprised at

Joni:

And we still got it all done. I don't really see a need for, maybe we just went on a great time. I don't know. I mean, it did rain a little bit. Yeah.

Nick:

When it did rain and it was dead. When it was raining. I mean it wasn't even raining. It was like drizzle. Drizzle. Yeah. But it was dead.

Joni:

but anyway, it was a good time. I had fun. I'd do it again.

Nick:

I would do it again. It's, we're Disney people and it just didn't have that, you know, that

Joni:

and to me, I think it's more for an older child.

Nick:

yeah. Teenager for sure.

Joni:

As opposed to like littles. I think Little's are obviously Disney more themed for that. But

Nick:

Our grandson opted to, to sit a couple rides out.'cause he was just like, he wasn't comfortable and we weren't gonna force him, you know, or anything like that.

Joni:

Yeah, we already forced him on Disney,

Nick:

they, and they'd had family rooms that, that the kids could hang out That was, yeah. So he could stand in line with us until he got to the family room and they had TVs and stuff in there for him to hang out in and it was

Joni:

And then the ride lets you out right where the family room's at. So you can, that was collect your people. So, yeah.

Nick:

But yeah. What was your favorite ride there of

Joni:

Oh, my favorite ride? I don't know. You know, I really liked, oh my goodness. I liked some of the simulator ones too. I liked the Bourne Show. Bourne

Nick:

was amazing. That was, that, that was really

Joni:

I just thought the whole scenic changes was incredible. I liked

Nick:

That blows Indiana Jones. Oh, for sure. Stunt show out of the

Joni:

and I said that immediately

Nick:

it does. It's a really

Joni:

And it has nothing to do with me being a big Matt Damon

Nick:

No, Matt Damon was not there. I know.

Joni:

he was not. But the very first ride we went on, no, not the very first ride. We were headed toward the back For Hogwarts or no? What were we headed back for? Hagrid. Okay.

Nick:

Okay.

Joni:

I liked Hagrid.

Nick:

Hagrid is your favorite.

Joni:

I don't know that it was my favorite. To go through'em. I thought I thought Spider-Man was pretty interesting. Yeah.

Nick:

Transformers was for the simulators. Transformers was

Joni:

And the Mummy was good.

Nick:

I liked The Mummy.

Joni:

And

Nick:

what's

Joni:

the one with Harry Potter and Hermione and

Nick:

Oh, the one in Hogwarts? Yes. I can't remember the name of that. That was a cool ride. Yeah, that was over at

Joni:

that was, I don't know. I really I liked most everything that I went on. I can't think of one thing that I didn't like. The veloc coaster was fantastic. That

Nick:

that was my hands down favorite. Yeah.

Joni:

I mean, here I am. I'm sitting thinking about'em and as they're coming to my head I'm like, I liked all of'em really. I mean, some of the, even the Simpsons

Nick:

Simpsons, I thought Mo, most of the simulator ones I thought were okay, except for Transformers and Spider-Man. I really liked.

Joni:

I'll tell you which one we all really enjoyed was Storm. Next to Hulk, which is

Nick:

Oh,

Joni:

the similarities to teacups. Yeah. We get

Nick:

We were laughing the entire time

Joni:

and it's just such a simple, fun ride. But we were all just, yeah, I think that might have been our most enjoyed ride together.

Nick:

That was definitely the one we were laughing at, yeah, we had a really fun time on there. I'll tell you, one ride I just did not get at all was fast and furious. Oh

Joni:

yeah.

Nick:

was just like, what?

Joni:

Yeah. You know what? If you ask the ride that I, yeah, that would be mine.

Nick:

I was like what is going on?

Joni:

Well, we did not do ET though.

Nick:

we didn't, we had to hit the B well we went to the Bourne Show. They had one last showing and then the parade started right after that. So we couldn't get across the street.

Joni:

And we missed the parade. We saw the very tail end of it from a distance, but,

Nick:

we couldn't get back over to ET before Park Close'cause it closed at seven, which surprised me. I checked the park hours. I think the, when we got there and I was like close at seven,

Joni:

but I wasn't really like, like when I went to Disney that I was like, oh my gosh, I gotta do it. I gotta do it. I gotta do it. I didn't feel like

Nick:

that, no. Yeah, it's a different vibe.

Joni:

kind of a more of a chill.

Nick:

Yeah.

Joni:

I don. But,

Nick:

Alright, well I think that's gonna do it for this week's show. I know it was a little bit longer. We just wanted to share our experiences with you guys for our vacation. Don't forget the gift card. Noon on Saturday Central Time is the deadline. And our Facebook page is Main Street Talk. The group is Disney World Tips and Tricks. Instagram is Main Street Talk podcast. The website is main streete talk pod.com. That's where all of our links are. We are also on YouTube, and if you wanna plan that Disney vacation, you can contact me, nick.Garcia@academytravel.com and we are affiliates of the Magic Candle Company. The link is in the website and use code mainstreet talk at check for 15% off. So we will be back next week with more news and tips and tricks. So. Winner, winner, and a oh and a winner. Yes, winner next week, so make sure you're listening and registering. We will talk to you real soon. Bye

Joni:

Bye everybody.

Contributor

Joni

Host
Contributor

Nick

Host