Disney World 2011

This year's Disney World trip was great, despite the fact that I was under the weather for the duration of the trip. My mom, my youngest brother Kevin, and I took Amtrak's AutoTrain. It was interesting enough that I'll devote a separate post to it, but for here, we'll say that it got us down there, and I didn't get much sleep in either direction.

My other brother Eddie and his wife Rachel came with the three of us, creating our own little Party of Five...except without Neve Campbell...or Matthew Fox...okay, it's nothing like that show, it was just a reference to the number of people.

Our accommodations were at Old Key West. It was a very nice, very quiet area, with a restaurant, a couple pools, and We got a three bedroom villa, which was big, but lacked a little on community areas. Also, the seating wasn't particularly comfortable, but hey, you're in Disney World. Get off your ass and go do stuff.

The one big disappointment on this trip was that several of my favorite rides were closed for refurbishment/repairs: Star Tours, Kali River Rapids, and my favorite ride, Splash Mountain. Lesson learned, though. Next time, we'll be planning our trip on short notice, and making sure that the important rides are open.

I went on a couple new rides, including finally trying out Space Mountain. Now, I apparently misspoke about the ride. I told Rachel that I thought Space Mountain was the fastest ride at Disney World; I wasn't even close. Space Mountain tops out at 28 miles per hour. I have no idea where I got it in my head that it was the fastest.

As I did last year, I'll give you ratings on the rides I went on for the first time:

Maelstrom Adventure Cruise (Epcot) (3/5)
This is an attraction in the Norwegian portion of Epcot. It's basically a short boat ride with a couple of tiny drops. I think if Splash Mountain wasn't closed, this would've gotten two stars, but it was closed, so three stars.

Space Mountain (Magic Kingdom) (4/5)
It may not be as fast as I thought, but it's definitely fun. My only qualm with it is that the ride is perhaps TOO dark. Still, it's a fun ride with a lot of twists and turns. I'm glad I finally checked it out.

Yep, that's it. Just two new rides for me. But I've got big plans for my next trip to Lake Buena Vista. First, Splash Mountain will be open the next time I head down there, and I'll be getting my fill of it. Second, it sounds like Star Tours is getting a dramatic overhaul that includes incorporating 3D video; that should be a lot of fun. I also want to go on the Silly Safari in Magic Kingdom; I wanted to go this year, but it closes at night. So, next time.

Who's in?