October’s “Not So Scary” Food and Fun Trip – Day 3

The original plan for today was to sleep in a little bit, and order breakfast from Artist’s Palette on our way to Disney Springs to get to Gideon’s Bakehouse at opening, then chill at the resort until it was time to head over to Magic Kingdom for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party tonight. Side note: Gideon’s always has a long line, so I think the best strategy is to get there about an hour before opening so that you can be one of the first people in the store. Well, once Riley and Jess woke up, they decided that breakfast in the room sounded better than going to Disney Springs, so they ordered breakfast from Artist’s Palette while I walked over to Disney Springs to grab a coffee from Starbucks. Once I returned to the room, they decided that we should go to Epcot instead of spending the day at the resort, so once we were all showered and ready off to Epcot we went.

I am still not a fan of having to purchase Genie+ (the new paid version of the previously free Fastpass), in fact, I never purchase it on my individual trips, but the crowds this week have been worse than some of the summer trips I have taken, so I sucked it up and bought it for us today. I figured it was the best way to be able to ride multiple things with little wait since the kids had limited time here on this trip. Once we got to Epcot, we rode Soarin’…. For the 100th anniversary, they have brought back Soarin’ over California, which was the original version of the ride. It is currently Soarin’ around the world. I enjoyed being able to ride the original again, and Riley and I both agreed that it was very nostalgic. After Soarin’ we hit Living With The Land, a slow boat ride that takes you through the history of farming and the working greenhouses of the Land Pavilion. Some of the restaurants around Disney World use the produce and seafood grown here. It’s always a favorite of mine! Then we rode the Nemo Ride and checked out the aquarium in The Seas Pavilion. Fun Fact: this aquarium is the largest in Florida, the second largest in the US…The Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta is the largest…and the 6th largest in the world. After we had our fill of marine life we headed to the World Showcase for lunch. Jess got a Baguette from France, Riley got Chicken Strips and Fries from the Regal Eagle Smokehouse in America, and I opted for a Lamb Gyro from the Greece Marketplace Kiosk and an Orange Blossom Pilsner from America.

Once we were done eating, Riley and Jess went to Japan to look around the pavilion and do some shopping in the Mitsukoshi Department Store, while I found a quiet place in the Japanese Garden to finish my beer and listen to the the Japanese drummers. Another Fun Fact: This store is named after the oldest department store in the world, the original store dates back three centuries. Inside you will find anything from traditional Japanese clothing, footwear, chopsticks, fans, and bonsai trees, as well as tons of Anime, Super Mario, Hello Kitty, and Zelda-related merchandise. Inside at the back of the store, there is also a Sake Tasting Bar.

After they were done shopping, it was time to head to the Magic Kingdom, as we wanted to get there before 4 p.m. so we could enter before the masses of Halloween partygoers arrived. Since we had day tickets we were able to enter in the regular turnstiles and pick up our party wristband from a much less crowded location inside the park. As we walked in we caught the end of the Festival of Fantasy Parade on our way to the Emporium to check out the exclusive party merchandise and to get shirts for Jess and I to wear for the party, while Riley dressed up as a frog.

Next, we rode Pirates of the Caribbean, Tron, and Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin, before stopping at Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe to get dinner for Riley. I also tried the Zombie Fingers…which were almond cookies shaped like fingers with a key lime mousse. They were pretty good. Then we stopped at The Friar’s Nook to get dinner for Jess and I. She got the Creamy Bacon Macaroni & Cheese Tots, and I got a Halloween Party exclusive, the Buffalo Chicken Hand Pie.

Next, we walked through Storybook Circus, and New Fantasyland stopping to ride Little Mermaid and go trick or treating at some of the candy stops available for the party. Then we rode Winnie the Pooh and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, before heading to Main Street for the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular. It was super crowded on Main Street, so after the show, we headed to Frontierland to find a much less crowded area to watch the Boo To You Parade. Several minutes before the parade the Headless Horseman rides down the parade route. We were able to catch him here in Frontierland and then again later on our way out on Main Street at the beginning of the second parade! Below are some of the pictures I took from the parade! Once the parade was over we knew we would have to head back to Main Street to watch Disney’s Not So Spooky Spectacular Fireworks show. They were amazing and worth fighting the crowds to see. Below are a couple of pictures of the Parade, the Spelltacular, and the Fireworks. For the full album of the night click here.

Headless Horseman Leading the Boo To You Parade

As soon as the fireworks were over, we hightailed it to the Haunted Mansion, as this was the one ride we really wanted to ride during the party. We made it there before the huge crowds got there and it was a walk on. Then we hit up a few more trick-or-treat spots before we decided we were all beat, so we called it a night and jumped on the bus back to the resort.