Day 1: January 25, 2020
John Wayne Airport to Orlando International Airport
Living in Orange County, we’ve got tons of options for airports. (For posts about traveling to the Disneyland Resort area, see LAX info here, and SNA info here – and in addition, we’ve got Long Beach, Burbank, San Diego, and Ontario airports all within reasonable driving distance!). We chose to fly out of SNA, also known as John Wayne Aiport or Orange County Airport, because it’s super close to home – we’re talking 20 minutes away. TSA is always a breeze, too.
My parents were able to help us out in the morning. My mom gave us a ride to the airport, before the sun came up. My dad stayed at our house with our son, and after dropping us off at the airport my mom picked them up and went back home.
We got through TSA with enough time to grab breakfast from Starbucks, use the bathroom, and relax for a bit. We were flying American Airlines, and what was nice about American was the in-flight entertainment – tons of options to choose from! TV shows, movies, games, and music. I ended up watching a few episodes of 11/22/63. If you’re into historical sci-fi, highly recommend checking this one out.
We had a quick layover in DFW – we grabbed lunch, hit the bathroom, and boarded our next flight. This one went pretty quick too. I watched the Tom Hanks movie Big. Before long, we were at MCO!
Time for MagicBands and Disney’s Magical Express!
After disembarking from the plane it was time to put on our MagicBands. If you don’t know about MagicBands, you can read all about them here.
We made a quick stop at the bathroom, and headed downstairs to catch Disney’s Magical Express.
We got in line for the Magical Express and I was a bit surprised to find the lines longer than I expected. I assume it was because we arrived on a Saturday, and usually we arrive mid-week. However, we didn’t wait more than 15 minutes or so until we were on the bus to our resort – Animal Kingdom Villas – Kidani Village!
We were the last stop on the bus ride, but we were kept entertained by Disney cartoons, trivia, and information about Walt Disney World. Our bus stopped at Coronado Springs Resort, then Jambo House at Animal Kingdom Lodge, and then we were finally home! Kidani Village!
Check-In & Our Room
Usually I do online check-in, which is offered through the My Disney Experience website or the app. However, this feature had been glitching for about a week and I was unable to use it. I needed to stop by the front desk anyways, since I couldn’t remember the PIN that I had assigned to our MagicBands for charging privileges. Luckily, there was nobody in line to check in, so we were able to complete the check-in process in less than 10 minutes.
After checking in and getting our MagicBands squared away, we walked over to the elevators and went up a floor, to floor 3 (the lobby is actually on floor 2!), and our rooms were just a short walk away. Our friends that we were traveling with were right next door.
Since we booked standard view studios, our rooms overlooked the main entrance of the resort. Our rooms were fairly quiet, except for right around park closing time as other guests were walking in the hallways going back to their rooms. Some of their discussions were a bit… lively! Our room had a queen bed with a sofa that pulled out into a bed, a small table with 2 chairs, 2 small tables (pushed together to form a coffee table), 2 nightstands, TV & dresser area, tall armoire, closet, kitchenette with real dishes, kitchen sink, microwave, coffee maker, toaster, mini fridge, and bathroom. There was also an ironing board, iron, and safe. In the bathroom, the shower and sink area were separated from the toilet. I noticed lots of room for toiletries around the bathroom sink, and I saw that there was a hair dryer available, too.
After dropping off our carry-ons and freshening up a bit, it was time for dinner!
Dinner at Sanaa
Dinner at Sanaa was definitely a highlight and something I had been looking forward to! I have heard about how great the bread service was, and let’s face it, we were all quite hungry after a long day of traveling. We checked in on the first floor, just below the lobby, 5 minutes before our reservation time. I gave them my cell number and we were to receive a text when it was our turn to be seated. Just outside of Sanaa was an outdoor area with a fireplace and a savanna viewing area, complete with night vision goggles! There were also a couple animal experts on hand to answer questions and help point out the animals. We saw a couple giraffes in the distance (with the help of the goggles) and a couple other animals too. A very cool way to start our evening.
Pretty soon, we got the text from the host stand and it was time to be seated! The restaurant is a bit loud, but we were seated next to a wall on the edge of the restaurant so we could enjoy our conversation. We of course ordered the bread service to split. I ordered a special that wasn’t listed on the menu – it was a selection of 3 meats. It was a lot of meat. I actually hadn’t been feeling that great in the week leading up to the trip, and this was the first “real food” that I had eaten in a while. Dang. It was good.
After dinner it was off to bed – we had an early morning ahead of us.
Highlights of the Day
- Our resort! So beautiful.
- Seeing the animals through the night vision goggles was a nice surprise.
- Dinner at Sanaa. I could eat that bread service every day.
- Our bed was super, super comfy.
Letdowns of the Day
- Magical Express took a little long, but I think it always feels long when you’re antsy to get vacation started!
- Luggage delivery service through Magical Express took a very, very long time. We didn’t get our luggage until after midnight, I believe. I am not sure that I would use luggage delivery service again, quite frankly.
