Epilogue
Closing Thoughts

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(Originally posted January 20, 2013)

Well, that’s it, folks. If you’ve been following along with the Real-Life Updates or my other trip reports, you basically know what happened after we returned.

Looking back at this trip for the last eight months (six of which have included all of you), there are a few things that really stick out that I haven’t talked about thus far.

Perhaps one of the most staggering differences between this trip and our others to Walt Disney World is how drastically the ordering of our favorite parks changed. Both Tracy and I have always loved Magic Kingdom, and it will continue to be our favorite park, just on principle. The biggest climber of the lot on this trip, however, was Epcot. We both developed a new kind of respect and total appreciation for Epcot this time around such as neither of us had ever felt before. I would rank it as my new second favorite park in WDW, which I never would have said before. Between the awesomeness that is the different pavilions of Future World and the food mecca that is World Showcase, I think we’ll be spending more time at Epcot on our future trips than ever before. In a way, I feel like this means we grew up a little on this trip.

Similarly, Hollywood Studios took a little bit of a dive this time around. Perhaps because we weren’t seeking as many thrills as usual, and perhaps just because almost all of the rides at the Studios are ones with clones at Disneyland and DCA, I can’t see us spending much time at Hollywood Studios in the future. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with it, but until they build “the next big thing” there, we won’t have as many reasons to be excited about the Studios.

Port Orleans Riverside certainly blew our minds, and it’s now (obviously) the favorite resort Tracy and I have stayed at. The upgrade to Moderate level felt like a pretty big one. I can certainly understand the difference between Riverside and Pop Century, for instance. I still struggle with the idea of paying a huge difference between the prices of a Value and Moderate Resort, but I would certainly love to get to keep staying at Moderates, and even try a Deluxe sometime. We’ve also toyed with the idea of renting DVC points the next time we go down, which I think would definitely be an interesting change.

Now, for a word about dining: I think this trip solidified the fact in our minds that we will only ever do the dining plan again if it is free. We loved having access to so much free food, but in all honesty, it was way more than we would EVER actually need. In the future, we’ll probably pay out of pocket for our food and come out way ahead. Or we’ll go during free dining and pig out again. We’ll see.

This trip was filled with so many once in a lifetime experiences (the free trip, the Royal Room, being parade Grand Marshals, etc.), but it was also filled with some great new experiences that we’ll be anxious to repeat on future trips. Whether new-to-us rides and shows (like the Carousel of Progress and Flights of Wonder), restaurants we hadn’t tried before (like ‘Ohana and Via Napoli), or simply new discoveries of hidden treasures around the World, this trip made Disney World feel “brand new” all over again. While I dream of someday being able to be one of those families who can afford to go to WDW multiple times a year, I think there is still something really special about not being able to go all the time and having each trip feel like a momentous occasion.

Of course, we’ve already started dreaming about our return to Walt Disney World. Right now those dreams are still very abstract, and I honestly have no idea when we will be back. When we do, I can’t wait to experience New Fantasyland and everything else that has opened recently or will be opening soon. Obviously, in the much nearer future, however, we have our own new adventures to start here in Disneyland. It will be interesting to see how my viewpoints shift during that experience. WDW has always felt like my home. We’ll see what, if anything, changes now that Disneyland actually is REALLY close to our home.

I don’t really know how much else there is left to say about this trip. Thank you to all of you for continuing to read through almost 70 updates. I started this trip report when I was feeling really terrible and wanted a nice Disney distraction, but it’s turned into an awesome creative outlet. I’ve realized how much I love writing, since this is probably the first time I’ve ever really written something that wasn’t required for school. I’ve also loved connecting with people from around the world. I know the internet isn’t exactly new, but I think it’s absolutely fascinating that some of you are reading from Australia and the U.K. as well as all over the U.S.

Finally, while I don’t think they’ll ever read this, I of course have to thank both Lou Mongello (and the WDW Radio team) and Beci Mahnken (and Mouse Fan Travel) for giving us this amazing trip. It truly brought us Disney magic when we needed it most.

I hope you all will continue to read along, as my reporting on Tracy and my adventures is far from over. If you’re looking for a more traditional trip report, check out the one about our September 2011 trip to Disneyland, Can We Move Here and Be Pancho’s Handlers? A Throwback Trip Report. And if you’re looking for something totally non-traditional, I hope you’ll join me at the new trip report all about our move and new life in California, We Moved to Disneyland!! Now What…?

Thanks for reading!

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