Orlando 40th Birthday Trip 2025 - PART 4
Staying at Universal, visiting Orlando's Theme Parks,
relaxing in the Water Parks and animal sightseeing!
Disney's Magic Kingdom
It was around a 40 minute journey from Universal to the Disney parks, which meant making use of the green buses named the “I-Ride Trolley” which stretched the thoroughfare of restaurants and hotels of International Drive. I would get off at a shopping outlet and take a short taxi, which proved a much more cost-effective option.
All of a sudden, the giant Disney archway appears across the road on the horizon, and you literally enter Disney’s land, and certainly the first time I felt goosebumps. Finally, I had arrived at this magical land of make believe.
The journey into Magic Kingdom certainly builds the anticipation, a ferry boat trip across Lake Buena Vista, with Cinderella Castle glistening in the background. You can hear the buzz, especially with young kids, which is what this park is all about.
The atmosphere along Main Street USA is buzzing and especially a hit for young kids, but there is plenty for adults to get caught up in too. It is full-on, bonkers and every bit of cheese Disney is famed for, particularly when the cartoon character parade is in town.
A mingle through the chaos took me to an Ice Cream shop, where I purchased their signature Mickey Mouse shaped desert with vanilla and chocolate scoops and chocolate button ears - quite indulgent but tasty!
Tomorrowland is a futuristic area, with near 50 year-old indoor ride Space Mountain, which packs an intense punch. For a different experience, there is an audience participation Monsters Inc show which is surprisingly pretty good fun. I also enjoyed the speedway, with petrol-powered cars scooting round a miniature motorway course.
Although it is geared more towards kids, there are plenty of overall family crowd pleasers, such as the Seven Dwarfs mine train, It’s A Small World water ride with its multitude of animatronics and musical score creating such a spectacle, and similar awe-inspiring sequences with the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.
Another highlight was the ride TRON, where your innovative seating position is leant forward as if on a motorbike, which then launches you around a luminous circuit for an amazing sensation. Quite unlike any other ride I’ve experienced to date, and stunning lit up at night.
What better way to end the day than with the signature fireworks display with the castle as the backdrop, accompanied by virtually every Disney tune you remember from your childhood. I had regressed 30 years and loved it, and I felt quite emotional by the end of the night. Disney had done what it does best, tugged at the heartstrings with its wondrous storytelling.
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