Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida Trip

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The educational trip to Walt Disney World, Orlando proved a great success. 13 students and 3 staff made the 9 hour flight from Manchester Airport to Orlando International Airport. The journey began at 3:30am at the College, and we finally arrived in Orlando at 2:50pm.

We stayed at the Walt Disney World All Star Movies Resort. The students were allocated into rooms with 2 queen size beds. Liam, Ben, Darren and Luke were in room 2728, Foxy, Oxo, Rob and Jamie were in room 2706 (having been moved twice), Greg and Liam shared room 2702, Adam, Alex (gangsta) and Tom were in room 2764, Mike and Rachel were in room 2925, and Eric had room 2757 all to himself. We discovered the the National Cheerleading Championships were being held at Disney Hollywood Studios and several US school cheerleading teams were staying at the resort.

On the first night we visited "Downtown Disney", ate at McDonalds, and experienced the arcade thrills of Disney Quest.

On the first full day, Thursday 7th Feb., we met up at 7:00am and caught the bus to the "Magic Kingdom". We took advantage of the Extra Magic Hour to enter the park at 8:00am. We immediately went on "Space Mountain", followed by "Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor", "Thunder Mountain", and "Haunted Mansion". We ate hot dogs and Dr. Pepper Jelly Beans and then Ben, Rob and Luke took part in "Woody's Cowboy Camp" street party. We then headed out of the park and took a trip on the Monorail to the Ticket and Transportation Centre (TTC). Ben got to ride in the front with the driver. At the TTC we caught a bus to "Disney Hollywood Studios".

We started by getting a Fast Pass for "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster", and then went on "Tower of Terror". We also briefly lost Darren, who had a problem with his ticket, fell behind and was lost on the crowd. However we quickly found him at the meeting point beneath the giant Mickey hat. For lunch several of us ate giant turkey legs. We learned how Disney design characters and then were shown how to draw Pluto and Chip and Dale.

On the evening we watched the fantastic "Fantasmic", and were entertained for the proceeding hour by a group of Argentinean Cheerleaders and their enthusiastic singing and mexican waves. Rob tried to amuse the group but failed miserably.

On the second day, Friday 8th Feb., we met up at 8:00am and headed to "Animal Kingdom". We watched the opening ceremony featuring Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Pluto, and then went on Expedition Everest twice within the first hour. We also went on the "Kilimanjaro Safari", "Kali River Rapids", and "Dinosaur", and watched "It's Tough to be a Bug!", "Finding Nemo the Musical" and "The Festival of the Lion King". We then left the park at 5:00pm and headed to Epcot.

In "Epcot" we went on the newly updated "Space Ship Earth" and learned about how technology has changed history, and what the future might possibly hold. We then visited "The Seas with Nemo & Friends" before participating in "Turtle Talk with Crush". We also toured the aquarium and watched the Dolphin and sharks. The group then got to drive Segways. At 7:00pm we took advantage of the 3 Extra Magic Hours to go on "Soarin'". Some of the group also went on "Mission Space".

On the third day, Saturday 9th Feb., we visited Disney's "Typhoon Lagoon" water park. After an early start we were the first to arrive at the park and were first in. Unfortunately the morning was cloudy and there was a bit of a chill. However we quickly dived in to huge pool and experienced the thrill of one of the world's largest inland wave pools. We then went on "Crush n Gusher", "Storm Slides", "Humunga Kowabunga", and the "Lazy River". After having lunch of burger and chips, and having to deal with Alex losing his locker key, we left the park at 2:00pm and headed back to the hotel to get changed before going to "Epcot". At Epcot we went on "Test Track", celebrated Foxy's birthday at the German themed "Oktoberfest" buffet and watched the amazing "IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth".

On the fourth day, Sunday 10th Feb., we revisited "Disney Hollywood Studios". As Darren and Eric had missed out on the rides on the first day, we went straight to "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster" to get a Fast Pass and rode "Tower of Terror" twice. We then went to "Muppet Vision 3D" and ate at "Sci-Fi Dine-in Theatre Restaurant". Eric, Mike, and Rachel then watched "Walt Disney: One Man's Dream" whilst others went to "Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show". Eric, Oxo, Foxy, Rob, Jamie and Darren then headed back to the hotel. Others stayed to watch the parade before heading back to the hotel to get changed before ending the night at the "Magic Kingdom" where we ate at "Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe", watched the "Wishes" firework show, experienced "Stitch's Great Escape!", watched "Mickey's PhilharMagic". We then headed back to the hotel at 10:00.

On the fifth and final day we checked out of the hotel at 9:00am and spent our last three hours at "Downtown Disney", where everyone bought gifts and enjoyed their final lunch. We departed "Downtown Disney" at 1:00pm and headed back to hotel to catch our coach to the airport.

We departed Orlando International Airport at 6:50pm. The flight home was 7.5 hours, and we arrived in Manchester at 7:30am. Our coach was waiting and we finally arrived back at the College at 11:30am.

Journey, Hotel and Magic Kingdom

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