After leaving Nomad Lounge, I decided I’d begin to make my way over toward Magic Kingdom (MK).  I had tickets for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party (MVMCP), so I would be able to enter the park around 4:00.  It was only around 1:30 when I left AK, but since I was relying on Disney transportation, I wanted to give myself plenty of time.

 

I decided that I really wanted to go to MK by way of the Wilderness Lodge.  It’s my favorite WDW resort, and I especially love to visit during the holidays to see all of the beautiful decorations.  Unfortunately, I missed the Wilderness bus by about 2 minutes, and ended up waiting about 25-30 minutes for the next bus.  The wait did give me a chance to rest my legs and plug in my cell phone to ensure it would be charged for MVMCP pictures later on!

 

I’m always happy to arrive at Wilderness, and I’m sure I was grinning like crazy when I walked into the lobby.  To me, the lobby is spectacular any time of year, but at Christmas time I love the giant tree, the welcoming fireplace, the garland on the railings – it’s just an extra level of awesome.  Stitch and other characters (I think Pluto for one) were greeting guests around the tree, and there was a special display set up in the lobby selling holiday snacks and stocking stuffer type items.  I spent quite a few minutes browsing there as well as visiting the excellent gift shop.  I don’t always get tempted by resort-specific Disney merchandise, but Wilderness is totally my vibe.  I treated myself to a buffalo check, fleece-banded Mickey ear Christmas hat to wear for the holiday party.

 

Having gotten my fill of the lobby, I decided to walk around the resort grounds a bit.  We hadn’t been to Wilderness since they added the Copper Creek Villas & Cabins and opened the new Geyser Point Bar and Grill close to the old Trout Pass Pool Bar location.  I didn’t have enough time to go see the cabins, but I did make time to stop at Geyser Point for a beer.  You know, research, and blog fodder.  I very much liked the vibe at Geyser Point, with its outdoor bar and more casual seating.  I decided not to get a snack since I was headed to the Christmas Party, but I would definitely be interested in getting food there another time.

 

With my beer in my belly and feeling content, I strolled over to the dock to catch the boat over to Magic Kingdom.  There was a line building of people headed to MVMCP, and I still had some time to kill, so I decided to take the “long way” – AKA the boat to the Contemporary by way of Fort Wilderness.  In addition to the Wilderness Lodge being very much my aesthetic and vibe, I find the boat to be such a relaxing and beautiful way to travel to MK.  I take loads of pictures and enjoy every minute of the trip.

Since it was already 3:30 PM when I arrived at the Contemporary, so I decided to head straight to MK.  Walking from the Contemporary is the most direct, but I wasn’t sure what the security and bag check lines would be like.  Fortunately, I was through very quickly — and at the entrance turnstiles, cast members were already letting people with MVMCP tickets into the park.  I got my wristband and was ready to party!

I spent some time on Main Street just soaking up the holiday vibes and doing an initial walkthrough of the Emporium to admire the Christmas merchandise.  I splurged on a MVMCP exclusive holiday phone case for my fairly new iPhone.  I also picked up my special Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom spell card.  My girls used to play Sorcerers a lot when they were younger, and we still maintain a pack of spell cards. 

 

 

I walked over to Adventureland to try and ride Pirates, but it was closed with no estimated time to reopen, so I decided it would be a good time for a snack.  I love that the My Disney Experience app offers mobile ordering for many snacks and counter service restaurants at WDW. I use it whenever possible to reduce wait times.  After snacking on a pineapple upside down cake, I knocked out a couple of rides in the backside of the park (waited in line for the Flying Carpets and used a FastPass for my favorite, Big Thunder) then stopped to take a picture with holiday Chip and Dale.

Around 6:15, I decided I would get in line to meet the Seven Dwarfs over in Fantasyland.  I know you can only meet them at the Christmas and Halloween parties, and I wasn’t as interested in meeting some of the other characters like Sandy Claws.  I knew I’d probably have to wait in line for a while, probably an hour or more — but after standing in a barely moving line for about 40 minutes, I decided I’d probably enjoy myself more if I was walking around and experiencing the park vs. waiting in Pete’s Silly Sideshow for a good part of the evening, so I bailed.  

On my way out of Pete’s, I noticed the adjacent tent was hosting Magic Kingdom’s version of the Character Dance Party that we enjoy so much on our Disney Cruises.  I watched Vampirina and Fancy Nancy dance with kids while I enjoyed a snowman holiday pretzel (the first holiday party snack of the evening)

Speaking of snacks, my next stop was Pinocchio’s to pick up hot chocolate, a snickerdoodle cookie, and a Rice Krispie treat.  Pinocchio’s is obviously a popular snack spot at the party, but the cast members were very organized and the line moved quickly.  Since I was already in Fantasyland, I decided I’d get in line to ride Peter Pan.  We usually do not ride unless we have a FastPass, so it was fun to spend time in the regular queue and notice all the details (the kids rooms, cabinets full of toys, etc.)

 

One of the things I realized as I was walking around the Magic Kingdom during MVMCP is that it just doesn’t seem the same without my family.  I definitely did not have a problem touring solo at Epcot or Animal Kingdom, but when I was at MK during the party, I was really missing Joe and the girls.  Given how I was feeling, and the fact that I was a little tired due to two days of nonstop walking, I decided I would find a good spot for the 9:00 parade and rest a bit.

 I always enjoy the holiday parade, although I’d only seen it after Christmas in prior years.  I wanted to find a viewing spot where I would also experience the magical “snowfall” on Main Street.  It was about 8:00 when I started looking for a spot, and it was clear that it was already too late for the prime viewing spots on Main Street with a view of the castle.  During a prior visit, we’d caught the parade right near the Barbershop, where the parade exits Main Street into the backstage area, so I decided to try that spot again.