MAGIC KINGDOM Part ONE of TWO

- ORLANDO TRIP 2009 PART ONE -
READ PART ONE HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/magic-kingdom-part-one-of-two.html
READ PART TWO HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/magic-kingdom-part-two-of-two.html
READ PART THREE HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/epcot-world-showcase.html
READ PART FOUR HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/epcot-future-world.html
READ PART FIVE HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/sea-world-orlando.html
READ PART SIX HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/disneys-hollywood-studios.html
READ PART SEVEN HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/orlando-trip-2009-part-seven-read-part.html
READ PART EIGHT HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/orlando-trip-2009-part-eight-read-part.html
READ PART NINE HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/universal-islands-of-adventure.html
READ PART TEN HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/orlando-trip-2009-part-ten-read-part.html
READ PART ELEVEN HERE
http://ultimateparkreview.blogspot.com/2009/06/reed-bingham.html

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STATS
THEME PARK: Magic Kingdom
RATING: 10 out of 10
Address: Lake Buena Vista, Florida 32830 USA
Phone numbers:(407)-824-4321
Official website: http://www.rcdb.com/redirect68.htm
Status:Operating since 1971
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First I want to say keep an eye out all week as I will be posted reviews from our trip for the next two weeks. At the end of reviewing all the parks I will give an overview of our trip including our hotel, transportation, rating the CM's, how we did it for 40 bucks a day and more.

Secondly I want to apologise for the lack of pictures. My wife and I was so caught up in the magic we didn't want to waste time taking them.

We arrived at TTC on 6-01-09 and caught the monorail arriving at the front gates to the Magic Kingdom at around 8:15 am. We were right up front at the gates about 5 people back. It was tough standing there so long but when the gates opened and we made our dash through a nearly empty main street, it was worth it. It was below 90 all day long and quite comfortable really. The Lines today were very manageable if you had a plan. I stress you MUST have a plan at this park or you'll be one of those people leaving at 4pm because your exhausted. We stayed from open til close and did everything we wanted to do without EVER feeling worn out until we hit the bed back at our hotel.

Our first stop was Splash Mountain. The waits here when we arrived was 0! The lines for the fast pass were longer than the walk on time to ride.

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SPLASH MOUNTAIN
This is a nice ride. Though NOT the best water ride in Orlando (I will release our favourite in upcoming blogs) it was full of Disney magic and excitement. The animatronics here were amazing and plentifull. From the time we got onto this ride until the time we got off it felt like we were definitely in a Disney dreamworld. The ride was a very good reflection of the film SONG OF THE SOUTH. My only complaint would be the lack of Uncle Remus.If the ride had some of Remus in it I would have felt the ride was complete but without Remus something was missing. The splash down was much to be desired as well, although the drop was exhilarating. I give Splash Mountain 8 out of 10 stars due to the fact that there are better water rides of its type in Orlando and the missing Remus character which would add so much more to the ride.
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Next we ran over to Big thunder Mountain where again there was no lines. In fact we rode Splash Mountain and Big thunder Mountain in the first 25 minutes of park opening! We just walked right on and rode the classic coaster like it was nobodies business!

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BIG THUNDER MOUNTAIN RAILROAD
My wife and I have ridden much bigger coasters than this one. We have also ridden more intricately themed ones as well but something about this one just feels magical and for me to give a smaller coaster of this type such a high rating is unheard of. There were no real G's on this one or no inversions in fact we only felt a little air time in the back seat. We didn't care about those things on this ride. What we did care for was the fact you felt like you were on a runaway train in the dessert and we smiled the whole time. There's just a sweet retro Disney appeal to this ride and we both enjoyed it to its fullest! I give Big Thunder Mountain Railroad 9 out of 10 stars because it was so fun for what it was and it was so retro Disney. You'll NEVER see me give a coaster of this type that high of a rating again! My wife and I LOVE it.
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It was about 9:30 and we were already heading to fantasy land to start riding the slow loading dark rides. As we passed Peter Pans Flight I noticed a 20 minute wait so I grabbed a fast pass and we headed over to Winnie The Pooh!
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WINNIE THE POOH
The line looked long but here's a tip, All the lines in fantasy land LOOK long but that doesn't mean they are. We waited a whole five minutes to board our honey pot! The whole time waiting I told my wife she was MY honey pot! This little dark ride is quite a surprise and very fun! The animatronics are NOT the best at Disney but the ride is still enjoyable. I really liked the part where your honey pot jumps with Tigger. I can see why little ones would love this ride and I also can see why us 30 somethings love it too! Though not the best Dark Ride in Orlando or even Magic Kingdom it is a fun little experience. I give the Winnie The Pooh Ride a honest 6 out of 10 stars. Better than other parks but not Disney's best.
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We made our way to the next ride and again the line looked long but we got onto Snow Whites Scary Adventures in less than 5 minutes!

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SNOW WHITES SCARY ADVENTURES
This was just a beautiful ride. Being a surrealist artist myself I found the ride exactly how the the emagineers intended, Through the eyes of Snow White. Also I thought the ride to be very intriguing. I can see how a small child would be frightened but compared to other dark rides of this sort I felt it not scary enough. I love the ride and felt Disney's hand all over it but as an adult I needed more. I give Snow Whites Scary Adventures a good solid 7 out of 10 but if I was a 10 year old boy I am sure it would be more of an 8! Still it is a must ride unless you have small children under the age of 10 or so.
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While waiting on the time to come for our Peter Pans Flight fast passes (they were for an hour after we got them) we headed on to Its a small world. The lines for this ride were also large looking but moving fast. After another 5 minute or less wait we were on our boat!
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ITS A SMALL WORLD
This is the one ride I KNEW I would be giving a bad rating. The chatter about this ride is very bad. "what were they thinking?" "Were they on drugs when they made this?" "The ride showcases stereotypes" "You'll get the song stuck in your head all day" etc. etc etc. Well, now that I have ridden it I disagree with all that. The song did not get stuck in my head as bad as some of the rides songs like Pirates of the Caribbean. The Ride does NOT exploit stereotypes but instead educates on cultures around the world. I don't think the designers of the ride were on drugs but were highly educated and I feel in order to appreciate this ride to its fullest you should be at least somewhat educated. This was a beautiful ride and almost a sensory overload. I say this ride should be enjoyable for anyone with an OPEN MIND! I loved this ride and thought it was very thoughtful of other cultures. In fact it celebrates the cultures of the world and in a very honorable way! I give Its A Small World a 8 out of 10 because its a relaxing escape from some of few mind dumbing rides in the park.
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Our fast pass for Peter Pans Flight at this point was still 10 minutes away from being valid. so we jumped ahead to the Haunted Mansion where we were sure there would be a long line. We were about an hour ahead of schedule at this point so it didn't matter if we had to wait for something and we expected it. Alas there was NO WAIT AT ALL! Haunted Mansion was another Complete Walk on. We have completed tons of rides already and it wasn't even 11:00 yet!

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Haunted Mansion
We watched the more than lame preshow and I was getting worried that the hype of this ride would not live up to my expectations. I was not disappointed though. As soon as we boarded our doom buggies I realised this wasn't the normal dark ride. I was in for a real treat! This is the best, THE BEST haunted attraction /dark ride ever created period! The effects are great! Since this was the first time I have ever ridden it I of course couldn't compare the new things to the classic things so the entire ride felt like a classic to me! 10 out of 10 stars, enough said! This is the best ride at the Magic Kingdom!
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After Haunted Mansion we headed back to Peter Pans flight and realised we probably didn't HAVE to use the fast pass in the first place! Of course we walked right on with our fast pass but we saw the line was actually about a 5 minute wait at that point anyway. We got into our flying ships and we were off to never land.
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Peter Pans Flight
This is the best of fantasy lands small dark rides. I can see why people would say this one gets crowded, its worth a wait but we didn't wait! The details inside this ride are awesome. the streets below your ship have cars that actually drive to what looks like a random pattern. This is also classic Disney! For a minute you feel like YOU are Peter Pan! What a great little ride that lives up to the hype! I give this one 9 out of 10 stars! I hope they never remove this little gem! My wife and I both loved this one!
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After Peter pans flight we headed to Frontier Land to catch the Jungle Cruise but by the time we arrived the lines were a 30 minute wait. We discussed the wait time and since we hadn't had to wait more than 5 minutes for anything else why should we wait on this one? We grabbed a fast pass and headed for the Tiki Bird show but it was closed and was closed every time we checked back during the rest of the day. We then headed to the next choice, Pirates of the Caribbean. We both loved the movies so the ride would have to live up to some pretty big expectations for the both of us.
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Pirates of the Caribbean
WOW! This one word pretty much sums it up for the both of us. This was classic Disney AND modern movie! What a nice ride. Even the background paintings in the ride were awesome! I don't have much to say except it deserves more than the 10 out of 10 stars I am giving it! This is only second to the Haunted Mansion in my opinion! If you visit Magic Kingdom and don't ride this your missing something spacial! The theme song for this ride was stuck in my head for the entire rest of the trip adn beleave it or not is still in my head now! "Yo ho! Yo ho! a pirates life for me!"
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We still had a little while for our Jungle Cruise fast Passes to become valid and since we did more than half the parks rides before noon we decided it was time for an early lunch. We headed to the Columbia Harbour House for our early 11:30 am lunch and was amazed that were was no line!
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COLUMBIA HARBOUR HOUSE
Sure this is a counter service place but it doesn't feel like it. The best place to eat is upstairs by a window so you can watch the crowds roll by below you as you eat! My wife ate a tuna sandwich which was huge and she claims it to be the best tuna fish she had ever had! I ate the fried fish platter and was disappointed at the portions but not in the taste! It was better than most fast food fried fish! The fries are awesome here as well! In fact I went back down to get more fries but mostly because the platter didn't feel me up! I am a southern man so I eat a lot! The food here was better than most theme parks though not the best. Busch Gardens Williamsburg can give magic Kingdom and all Disney Parks a run for their money, its still a close call though! I give our fast food meal at the Columbia harbour house a 8 out of 10 stars and would eat there again if we ever return!
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TO BE CONTINUED...
If you want to see what we did after our lunch come back tomorrow!