When my boyfriend informed me he had to go to Orlando mid-week for a work conference, I replied with "darn, too bad it's not Friday, we could turn it into a trip to Disney World!". Well we didn't let that stop us, and decided to go see Mickey Mouse anyway! Since it wasn't on our list of vacations we wanted to take in 2020, we thought we'd do something different and use points to book it. Between American Airlines and American Express points, we were able to book our flight and hotel room for free! 🙌🏼
We flew in on Wednesday morning and made our way to the Four Seasons Resort for three night's stay. By using points to book, our room was available for an upgrade. The front desk informed us they had a suite that normally goes for $4,200 a night that we could have for only a couple hundred a night! Um, yes please! 🤩
Needless to say, we were not disappointed. The room included a living area with dining table, mini bar (to be stocked to our liking) with wine dispenser, two full bathrooms, two flatscreen TVs, plus one in the main bathroom mirror, a king bed, walk in closet, a huge balcony, and a breathtaking bathtub.
[For a room/resort tour, check out the "Orlando Resort" highlight story on my Instagram @dallasinthedetails]
My boyfriend had meetings to get to (oh yeah, this was a work trip!), so I explored the resort grounds. Sometimes on vacations I don't like to do too much research on where we're staying so I'm still surprised when we get there. I thought I had explored the Four Seasons website, but I guess not so much, because I was blown away with this resort! There were at least 3 pools; an adults-only one lined with cabanas, a family friendly one with volleyball net, beach-style entry, and a huge projector TV, and an entire water park with lazy river, water slides, and splash zone!
Near the lazy river was a rock climbing wall, full size basketball court, sand volleyball court, and an entire area just for kids! I named this area "kiddy castle" due to the architecture. It included a life-sized checkers board, pool tables, ping pong table, fuse ball, giant connect four, playground, and indoor play area that apparently features a volcano to climb on. I was definitely wishing I was a kid again! FYI parents, they offer day care services for guests at no cost! Which is perfect because adults have a beautiful gym, yoga center, outdoor workout area, spa, golf course and several bars and restaurants to keep the parents occupied.
After traversing the resort grounds, I consulted the concierge about where to find some good Disney swag. She suggested Disney Springs, which is an area that definitely looks like you're at one of the parks, but there's no ticket required to get in. It's filled with restaurants and souvenir stores of all kinds. While I did find a cute shirt to wear, some Mickey ears, and the cutest backpack ever, I must say I thought they would have a better selection of adult shirts. There were a few other cute ones (Mickey taking a selfie in front of the castle, Cinderella in her AM vs PM looks), the color of the shirts themselves weren't that flattering. So if you have something specific in mind, I'd suggest searching Etsy or elsewhere before depending on finding your outfit there. I will say though, that there were some pretty cool souvenirs that I wish I had grabbed then & there.
After doing my shopping, a quick Uber ride took me back to the resort where I got got ready for dinner. My boyfriend arrived, informed me that he crushed it at his meetings, and we made our way though the bright and cheery halls up to the 17th floor to have dinner at Capa. Our champagne arrived just in time to step outside (on one of their two terraces) and see the 8 o'clock fireworks display from the parks. Such a magical way to start our evening! We honestly ordered so much food, I don't even remember what we ate anymore, but it was delicious. 🤤
The next morning I was up before the alarm went off, and ready to go see Mickey! Since we saved so much by using points, we splurged and opted for the VIP tour experience. 😎 Every review I saw for it was a raving 5 stars, and since we only had one day to see as much Disney as we could, we thought it would be best, and we were right! It was not cheap (around $450/hr), but man did we feel like VIPs! Our personal tour guide picked us up from the hotel around 10 am and drove straight to the Magic Kingdom.
We entered through an employee entrance and were immediately greeted with an assortment of snacks and water bottles. Cody, our guide, lead the way to the nearest shop so we could buy autograph books and Magic bands. I bought an autograph book for a girl I nanny, & Cody had the brilliant idea of leaving it in the employee break room so that every character signed it. I took mine around with me for when I met the characters in person. Cody even set up our Magic bands for us while we were in line to see Mickey. (Magic bands link your park tickets, are scan-able to receive pictures with characters or from rides, and you can even link your hotel key and credit card so you can leave your wallet at home.)
Having Cody with us was like having a human fast pass. He led us around the park to see everything that was on our list, opened doors for us, escorted us to the front of every line, and even stood in line for us so we could experience other attractions. We were definitely thankful to have him when it started raining. He quickly led us through crowded shops to the nearest covered ride, and eventually to find some ponchos. (Every article I read on what to pack for Disney included a poncho, but the weather called for sun everyday, so I didn't listen.)
Since we had already met quite a few Disney princesses, enjoyed a handful of rides, & gotten some good photos, we thought we'd attempt to beat the rain by heading to the next park. We figured a little liquid courage would improve the mood & help us forget our socks were wet, so Epcot it was! Epcot is pretty cool if you haven't done much traveling and want to get a realistic look at other countries. If you have been around the globe, it can serve as a reminder of your travels. (We spent a good amount of time in "Japan" reliving my years spent in Okinawa.).
But if you ask me, the best part about Epcot is drinking around the world! It's one of the only Disney parks that's not stingy about where they sell alcohol. Each country serves a few options of what's native to them; so stop in Mexico for a shot of tequila & a margarita🍹🥃, Germany for a beer 🍻, Japan for a sake bomb 🍶, & Italy for a glass of wine🍷. Just don't go overboard, I also drank a Guinness in the UK & let's just say all that doesn't mix well.
With the help of all that alcohol, we felt like new people and were ready to head to the third and final park of the day; Hollywood Studios! The rain actually helped thin out the crowds and created a picture-perfect rainbow; win-win! We only had a short time left on our VIP tour, so we had to rush a bit, but I'm extremely glad that we were able to make it to Toy Story Land! I think it was my favorite part of all. Cody pointed out that all the "toys" were purposely built big so that visitors feel toy-sized while walking among them. Needless to say, it worked! Straws became lamp posts, popsicle sticks became walls, build-a-blocks created actual buildings, & game boards formed ceilings.
We rode the slinky dog dash while laughing & screaming the whole time. Next, we popped over to the Toy Story Mania ride, which was a blast! You play against your seat-mate in an arcade like battle to get the most points. We thought we were doing really well until we realized our score was about half of Cody's, but I think being an employee gives you an unfair advantage. 😜
After thoroughly feeling like a kid again, we made one last necessary stop at the Hollywood Tower of Terror. With a 130 foot drop, it stands as one of the tallest attractions throughout the parks, making it a must ride. In fact, Kylie Jenner was at the park the same day & we missed her by minutes on this eerie elevator ride! We actually found out later that she was also staying at the same resort as us!
So to sum it all up, I give 5 stars to Four Seasons Resort & Spa Orlando, as well as to Disney VIP Tours! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I hope this helps with your next Disney Orlando experience! Share your adventures in the comments. 😁
#Disney #DisneyWorld #DisneyOrlando #FourSeasonsOrlando #FourSeasons #DisneyVIP #VIPTour #MickeyMouse #HollywoodStudios #Epcot #drinkaroundtheworld #ToyStoryLand
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