To Walt Disney World, that is!

From the moment you pass under the Walt Disney World sign to that first sighting of the monorail, there’s nothing quite like your first visit.

As a child, I went a few times, and even though I was really young, I still have such vivid memories. I’ll never forget singing along with the birds in the Enchanted Tiki Room, getting chills riding in a Doom Buggy through the Haunted Mansion, or sitting in Pinocchio’s Village Haus waving to the people below on It’s a Small World. I even remember riding 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, peering out the window, and realizing we weren’t that far below the surface. And I can’t forget one of my favorites back then, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride.

But if I had to pick one memory that stuck with me the most, it would be the first time I rode the monorail. It felt so futuristic and so special. My siblings and I loved hearing the monorail spiel. The best part was when it passed right through the Contemporary Resort. It was the most modern thing I had ever seen, and I remember thinking, “I would love to stay there someday.”

Fast forward to 2012…

I was married with a three-year-old princess of my own, and Edward surprised us with our very first family trip to Walt Disney World. He announced that we’d be staying at the Contemporary. He had no idea it had been on my bucket list for years.

We only had 45 days to plan, so I immediately grabbed the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World and dove in. We planned for three park days: Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and a third park to be chosen by our daughter. This was back when paper FastPasses were still a thing, so there was a little more flexibility. I made touring plans and we were ready to roll.

We flew down to Orlando. It was Audrey’s first flight, and I decided to book a car service instead of using Disney’s Magical Express (which sadly no longer exists). I’d read that the bus could take a while to get to your resort, and I didn’t want to waste any time. Seeing Audrey’s little face light up when she spotted the “Tanchez Family” sign was so much fun, and we were off.

The magic begins

I’ll never forget the feeling of driving under the Walt Disney World sign with excitement and anticipation. When we arrived at the Contemporary and tried to check in, the Cast Member was having a hard time locating our reservation (thanks, AAA, we had booked with them and that was a mistake!). I took Audrey to the restroom, and when we came back to the lobby, about five Cast Members were waiting for us, including a manager, holding balloons and yelling, “You’re Family of the Day!”

Audrey was a little shy when she was young, and being the center of attention isn’t her thing. She immediately turned to me and cried a bit, which I understood. We were all so surprised and overwhelmed. They snapped a picture of us and later delivered it to our room. It’s a keepsake I’ll always cherish.

As Family of the Day, we were upgraded from a Garden Wing room to a Bay Lake View room in the Main Tower. I honestly had no idea what that meant and, being a skeptic, I wasn’t sure if it was really a “special” upgrade or just a way to make up for the reservation issue. Either way, it was magical.

We headed up to our room, and as the elevator opened, we saw the monorail coming into the resort. I had pixie dust in my eyes. It felt like stepping into a childhood dream, and of course, Audrey loved it too.

The room was modern, spacious, and really pretty. When we stepped out onto the balcony and saw the view of Bay Lake, we couldn’t believe how peaceful and beautiful it was. That night, just as we were about to settle in, we heard strange music outside and ran to the balcony. We discovered the Electrical Water Pageant floating by. We had no idea it was even a thing. It reminded me of the Main Street Electrical Parade I loved as a kid, and Audrey was mesmerized.

Magic Kingdom day

Our first park day started early. Audrey wore her favorite Snow White dress. She wore that thing everywhere before our trip. Snow White and Pocahontas were her favorite princesses, so we made sure to plan time to meet both at their respective parks.

We were told it was quicker to walk to Magic Kingdom from the Contemporary, so we made the short 10-minute walk over. Hearing the entrance music as we arrived really set the tone for the day.

Our first ride was Snow White’s Scary Adventures. I had read that it could be scary for little ones, but Audrey loved it. We ended up riding it over and over that day. It quickly became her favorite ride, and she was so sad when she found out it would be closing later that year to make way for Princess Fairytale Hall.

We followed my touring plan through the park and eventually made our way to meet Snow White in front of Town Square. Edward saved our spot in line while Audrey and I watched the Main Street Trolley Show. When Audrey saw Snow White, she started yelling to tell her daddy. She didn’t realize he was already in line. It was so sweet. When it was our turn, Audrey was in heaven. Snow White held her hand, twirled with her, and chatted for quite a while. I remember other adults around us smiling at the interaction. Right at that moment, I knew how special Disney was.

Dinner in the castle

I somehow scored an early dinner reservation at Cinderella’s Royal Table. I’d read all about it and couldn’t wait to take Audrey. After checking in, we had our photo taken with Cinderella and made our way up the beautiful staircase. The stained glass windows were gorgeous, and the whole space was stunning.

We sat down for what I now refer to as the longest dinner of my life. Audrey didn’t want to eat at all. She sat turned around in her chair the entire time so she wouldn’t miss which princess was coming next. When Snow White came to our table, Audrey looked skeptical. At just three years old, she already knew it wasn’t the same “friend of” Snow White from earlier. It was hilarious.

She finally ate a bit of dessert after meeting all the princesses, but overall, the experience didn’t quite live up to the hype for us. The food wasn’t great, and Audrey was exhausted after a full day in the park. We haven’t been back since, but I’m still glad we tried it.

Animal Kingdom and Pocahontas

The next morning, we headed to Animal Kingdom mainly to meet Pocahontas. In 2012, you could find her in Camp Minnie-Mickey, which is now Pandora. Audrey wore her Pocahontas shirt proudly.

Just as we reached the front of the line, Pocahontas went on break. Audrey didn’t understand and started to cry a little. That’s when the sweetest Photopass Photographer came over and talked with her. She explained that Pocahontas had to feed Meeko and would be back soon. She sat with us, looked through Audrey’s autograph book, and made her feel so special.

Then, Meeko came out to say hello and spent some time with Audrey while we waited for Pocahontas. It was such a cute surprise. A few minutes later, Pocahontas came back, greeted Audrey with a big smile, took her hand, and spent time chatting and posing for photos. That same photographer took tons of pictures of the whole interaction. Years later, I spotted her still working at Disney, and it brought tears to my eyes. Those little moments mean everything.

We spent the rest of the day enjoying the safari and a few other rides. Audrey’s favorite part was Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade. She loved every minute of it.

One regret

That night, I was really looking forward to trying California Grill, which I had heard about from my research. I had mentioned to Edward that we’d need a reservation, but he assumed a fancy place like that wouldn’t book up. When we got to the check-in desk, they told us it was completely full for the rest of our stay.

They did offer seating in the lounge, which also had a menu, but we didn’t know at the time if it was kid-friendly, so we skipped it. I was so disappointed.

Instead, we ate at The Wave downstairs (now called Steakhouse 71), which was wonderful, but I’d had my heart set on California Grill. I made up my mind right then that on our next trip, we’d eat at California Grill. And we did. It’s now my favorite restaurant in all of Walt Disney World!

We ended that night watching the Electrical Water Pageant again. Before bed, we asked Audrey what park she wanted to visit the next day. Of course, she chose Magic Kingdom.

A perfect final day

On our last day, we headed back to Magic Kingdom to do a few things we’d missed and to ride Snow White’s Scary Adventures as many times as we could. I remember standing in Fantasyland and thinking how empty it felt. It was perfect. Looking back, I think a lot of people were waiting for New Fantasyland to open later that year.

We checked out of the Contemporary and flew home. And before we even unpacked, we started planning our next trip for February 2013. We were completely hooked, and that’s how our love for Disney began.

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A few things we learned:

• We didn’t book enough Advance Dining Reservations. The idea of being charged for a no-show made us nervous, so we skipped too many and ended up eating more quick service than we would have liked. You can cancel most dining reservations up until the night before (check the cancellation policy), so now we make plenty of them and cancel before the penalty.
• My touring plans were a little too efficient. We zigzagged across the park to save time but wore ourselves out. Now, we stick to one land at a time. It’s easier on our feet and less stressful.
• We aren’t rope-drop-to-close people. Being in the parks for 8 or more hours without a break was too much. Now, we go early, leave after lunch to relax or swim, then head back in the evening.
• Once you stay at a monorail or Epcot-area resort, it spoils you! Being able to walk to a park or hop on the monorail makes everything easier. That’s certainly not a negative, but it does make other resorts feel like a bit more work regarding transportation.
• I avoided Magical Express because I thought it would take too long. When we finally tried it, we loved it. I’m so glad we got to use it before it ended.

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Do you remember your first Disney trip? I’d love to hear about it!

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