In my last pre-trip post I got us out of Boston, through Connecticut, and into Virginia Beach. About 11 hours of driving so far and still not at Walt Disney World. But by the time this post is over, the road trip portion of the trip will have ended and we will have commenced Disney-ing.
I mean, hopefully.
Hurrrr we gooooooo……
The Goody 2018 Christmas Vacation: Day 3 – Heading to Savannah, GA
Day 3 will be our longest day of driving, so the plan is to get up at around 6AM (or maybe even earlier), get packed, and then head for breakfast in Virginia Beach before heading out. Those that follow me on Instagram know that we are somewhat doughnut-obsessed. So we obviously need to try and hit the famous Duck Donuts in Virginia Beach.
This place looks pretty sweet (pun obviously intended.) They do custom made-to-order doughnuts where you start with a freshly made vanilla doughnut and then choose your coating, topping, and drizzle. At the moment, I am thinking peanut butter, graham cracker, and marshmallow. Also at the moment, I am feeling some pre-shame. Eh, I bet eating a doughnut will help get rid of that.
It’s a vicious cycle.
After breakfast, it’s back on the road for our 7-hour drive. To Savannah! I have always wanted to see Savannah, so I am super psyched to be heading there, even if it is just for a short stopover. We still have some Savannah-ish stuff planned for today…and tomorrow.
And on the way, I mean we will obviously be stopping at South of the Border. We kind of have to. What with all the signs.
Like this one…
And this one…
Heh, and this one…
I feel like every time I have stopped at South of the Border, I go in thinking it will be fun and kitschy. I leave thinking it was neither of those things. But. Eh. It’s a rite of passage. To you know, go. And be disappointed. And scared for my life.
After South of the Border, it’s about a 3 hour drive to Savannah. On the way, I am sure we will stop for lunch somewhere. Hopefully, someplace with authentic local cuisine. Like Taco Bell.
In Savannah, continuing the theme, we will be staying at the Hilton Garden Inn Historic District. It’s in a pretty perfect location in Savannah and looks like a nice place. Plus, I mean why stop now with the Hilton Garden Inns?
That night, we are planning on doing a combo trolley ghost tour and dinner at the Pirate’s House. This works out as we wanted to do a ghost tour and we wanted to eat at the Pirate’s House, which is supposed to be this haunted restaurant. And also,I hear they have good fried chicken. And I have always said, “I’d be willing to die at the hands of an angry pirate spirit for really good fried chicken.” You guys know I always say that.
After dinner, I think we are going to continue with the WEIGHT GAIN 4000 plan…
…and head over to Leopold’s for some ice cream. And I know I don’t have to decide now, but eh….I think I am either gonna go with peppermint or the Savannah socialite (Milk and dark chocolate ice cream with roasted Georgia pecans and swirled with bourbon-infused caramel.) I mean, bourbon-infused is the best kind of caramel.
And then it’s probably time for bed. Or maybe a second ice cream?
The Goody 2018 Christmas Vacation: Day 4 – FINALLY Heading to Walt Disney World!
Day 4 is cool because we really don’t have to wake up THAT early. I know we will be itching to get to Walt Disney World, but we have one more piece of Savannah planned for lunch that day. So we will probably wake up around 7ish and grab a quick, light breakfast in the hotel.
We are planning on lunch at Mrs. Wilke’s Dining Room so eating light is a must. Mrs. Wilke’s is a pretty famous spot in Savannah so the lines can be kind of insane to get in. They don’t take reservations and are only open Monday through Friday from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM. In order to get a seat, we have to line up sometime between 9:30 and 10:00 AM so after breakfast, we will probably walk over to Mrs. Wilke’s (it’s about a 15 minute walk, which would be a nice way to get a look at some of the famous Savannah squares on our way.)
And I know, waiting in line for like an hour and a half for lunch seems crazy, but it seems like a must-try when in Savannah. The menu changes regularly, but it’s served family style and all-you-can-eat. It looks like the fried chicken is kind of a staple, but other comfort foods like mac and cheese, dumplings, okra, squash, black-eyed peas, mashed potatoes, etc. are also served. All-in-all, it comes out to about 20 different items plus dessert. It’s gonna be insanity. Thanksgiving starts early, I suppose.
After lunch, we will waddle on back to pick up our car and then it’s off to Orlando. It’s about a 4 hour drive from Savannah to Orlando. And on the way, we are pretty psyched to see this…
The Florida welcome center is obviously going to be a stop on our way. I mean, free orange juice? Yes, please. As we are just getting into the Disney-verse, we are gonna take all the “free” we can get. Before we spend the kids’ college money on dole whips and pillow pets.
And from the Florida Welcome Center, it’s a 2 ½ hour drive to Walt Disney World. I feel like once we reach the gates, it will feel like no other start to a Disney trip has ever felt before. I remember when we drove cross-country and finally reached California. Like we accomplished something and earned the rest of our vacation. Plus, it’ll be such a cool feeling that we have already done so much and yet have like 12 more days of vacation left. Score-town!
We will be staying at three different hotels for the Disney portion of the trip and for the next two nights, we will be staying at the Wyndham Lake Buena Vista in the Disney Springs area.
So yeah, this will be our first time being at Disney but not STAYING at a quote/unquote Disney hotel. Yeah, I wrote “quote/unquote” rather than actually putting quotes around the term. Then I put quotes around “quote/unquote.” I don’t know. Is that quote/unquote “meta?”
But the hotel looks pretty nice. Especially the outdoor pool and hot tub…
But with us most likely rolling in at 5ish, I will probably be leaving Nickie and the boys to check into the hotel so I can drop the car off by 6PM at the Alamo down the street. Once that’s handled, we will probably walk the bridge over to Disney Springs for dinner. AND WE DON’T HAVE AN ADR.
I know. OHAI ANXIETY. But we just figured we would like to kind of keep that night open with so much up in the air – driving in, checking in, dropping off the car. I think we are leaning towards hitting The Polite Pig mainly because that Butcher Board for 2.
After dinner, I think we will check out the Christmas Tree Trail in Disney Springs. For those that read our report from last year’s trip, we tried to see it after dinner one night, but got there too late and it was closed. We still managed to see a couple of the trees, unlit, but hope to have more time and more…you know…lights this time.
And for sure, we are thinking Amorette’s for dessert. I mean, look at all those little cakes. They’re so tiny and pretty. Almost too pretty to eat. But not really. Because I am pig face.
It’s kind of cool to be able to start our trip in Disney Springs. It’s a nice ease into the trip. Eating. Shopping. Disney. But, in the next post we will FINALLLLLLY hit a Disney park.
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