2022 Disney World Vacation Day 4 - Pool Day

Wednesday was our rest day/pool day.  When we went to Disney World back in 2018, we made the mistake of going to all four parks four days in a row without taking a rest anywhere in between.  The kids begged to go to the pool on that trip, but we just didn’t have the time to work it in, so this time, we added an extra day into our trip to have that cushion, and we sandwiched it right in between our park days. 

By the time our pool day rolled around, we’d already visited Disney Springs, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom, and we were all grateful for the break.  We knew we’d have to find food, so B ended up booking brunch and dinner reservations for us that day, and we figured we’d relax and go to the pool in between.

We all slept in until 7:30 AM on Wednesday morning, and then we all lay around in the bed for a bit before getting up and getting ready.  Brian had made our brunch reservation for 10:20 AM so we could take our time getting up and getting ready, and it was so nice to not have to rush!  I was also excited because that meant we had time to take pictures with my birthday balloons in the hotel courtyard before heading out! 

The wind didn’t cooperate at all, but Brian was able to get one good one where the balloons weren’t blowing away, even though I was a little bummed that you couldn’t see my Belle balloon.  Haha.    

Once pictures were done, we drove ourselves over to the The Polynesian for our brunch at Kona Café.  We arrived a little bit early, so we explored the grounds to kill some time, and we also stopped to take some pictures at the PhotoPass spot… after receiving our leis, of course! 

On our last trip, we’d eaten at Ohana at The Polynesian, but we’d never been to Kona Café before.  Their brunch menu was amazing and there were so many delicious things, but Brian had read that the “Tonga Toast” at Kona Café is the very best breakfast that you can get in all of Disney World.  I mean, I couldn’t say no to that, so it was a no-brainer for me. 

But first, pineapple mimosas!!

Funny story, while getting Brian to take a picture of me with my mimosa, I totally dropped the champagne glass and spilled my entire mimosa.  Haha.  Fortunately, it didn’t spill on any of us, and our waitress was really great, and she brought me another one free of charge.  Whew! 

When our Tonga Toast came out, I think my eyeballs popped out of my head because it looked SO good and SO HUGE, y’all.  Tonga toast is banana-stuffed French toast rolled in cinnamon sugar, and it was served with a strawberry compote that took it to another level.  I got mine with bacon, extra-crispy, and it was one of the best meals I had on the entire trip.  That, paired with my pineapple mimosa, was just heaven.  Why oh why have I never thought to make a pineapple mimosa?!  Pineapple juice is soooo much better than orange juice!  It’s like a whole new world, y’all!

The kiddos both opted for Mickey pancakes and sausage, and they also had fresh fruit with their meals.  Yet another thing to love about Disney… they have SO many healthy side options for kids at every single restaurant.  It was so nice for them to be able to eat fruits and veggies that they actually like with every meal instead of fries!!

By the time we’d finished up at Kona Café, we were all stuuuuffed, and we made the ten-minute drive back to our hotel to get changed for… the pool!!!!

Man oh man, Olivia had been more excited about the pool day than any other day and she could not wait to get out there.  All week, the weather had been showing storms on Wednesday, but as with most of the other days on our trip, we lucked out yet again with partly cloudy skies and a high of 90 degrees.  Perfect for the pool.

My favorite thing about our hotel was that it was very compact, and it wasn’t more than a 2-3 minute walk to anywhere in the complex.  Therefore, our walk to the pool was super short and easy, and we got there right at noon. 

Unfortunately, the place was already packed, but we lucked out and found one single beach chair to drop all of our stuff.  I’m pretty sure it was the last chair in the entire complex. 

After sunscreening everyone, the four of us headed to the pool area nearest the water slide.  The water was freezing to me, but B and the kids didn’t mind, and they all got right in.  The kids got right on the water slide, and I swear, they had to have gone down that thing 50 times each that day.  The slide was short, and there were never more than 3-5 kids in line at a time, so they were able to just keep going up and down and up and down.  I loved that it was small and safe so B and I didn’t have to accommodate them, and I loved that we could see them the entire time.  It was ideal.  Although, it would have been more ideal if there had been beach chairs in that area.  Haha.

The slide had a red light at the top, and when the light turned green, that was when you could slide down.  So, there was never any question about when to slide, and it was easy for all of the kids to understand the rules.  They also had lifeguards on duty at every corner, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen such diligent lifeguards as the ones at our Disney resort.  They were constantly pacing and searching the water every single second.  It was exhausting just watching them. 

B and I sat on the edge of the pool for most of the day, but he and the kids eventually coaxed me to get in the water and even go down the slide.  I love a water slide, but that water was just too cold.  Haha.

Towards the end of our time there, B took kid-duty while I took a break and lay on the beach chair in the shade for a bit, and then B and I switched, and he did the same.  We had some rain sprinkles for about ten minutes at one point, but they were so light and brief that we never had to leave the pool.

At 3, we were all tired from too much fun in the sun and we were all starving since we’d skipped lunch, so we packed up and headed out to find a snack.  Since we were staying at Port Orleans French Quarter, we just so happened to have easy access to Disney’s famous Mickey Mouse beignets, and we couldn’t pass up a chance to try those.  The little café that sold them was about a 30-second walk from the pool, so we were enjoying that delectable goodness in just a matter of minutes… and with the most beautiful view, too! 

The beignets were to die for, and they were HUGE, so the four of us shared three of them, and we opted for the caramel sauce over the strawberry or chocolate ganache.  They were the perfect afternoon treat, and it was just enough to hold us all over until dinnertime.  While we ate, we chatted with the kids about the trip so far, and Olivia was gushing about the water slide and how the pool day was her favorite day so far.  Lol.  I guess going forward we can just skip the expensive Disney tickets and hotels and just find some random place with a nice pool?!  Haha.

We still had some time before we needed to shower for dinner, so we stopped by the arcade after we were done with our snacks.  The arcade was right there on the property about a minute’s walk from our room, and it was open 24 hours.  The kids had been eyeing it the whole trip, so they were thrilled when we told them they could go play a few games.

A kind stranger ended up giving us an extra play card as they had to leave and wouldn’t be able to use the rest of their credits, so the kids were all over the place, playing all the games.  After about 30 minutes, I left to go back to the hotel room because I needed to start getting ready for dinner, and B hung back with the kiddos for a bit longer so they could keep playing.

By the time they were back in the room, I’d finished showering, and then they all took turns showering and getting ready so we could head over to Wilderness Lodge for our dinner at Whispering Canyon Cafe.  On our way out, we saw a horse and buggy just strolling through out hotel courtyard and it was the best thing!!

We arrived at Wilderness Lodge a little early so we could explore before dinner since we’d never been there.  We also took a few pictures at one of the PhotoPass spots.  By the time that was done, it was time to check in via our Disney app, and then we sat in the lobby for a few minutes until we were notified that our table was ready.

Whispering Canyon Cafe is a unique dining experience, that’s for sure!  Their whole “thing” is that the servers are really sarcastic/borderline rude (in a fun way), and they’re all really loud, too.  We’d barely gotten seated when they called all of the kids up to join in a rodeo where they proceeded to ride wooden horses around the whole restaurant over and over while they played loud music. 

Shortly after that, the people at the table next to us needed some ketchup, so their server yelled at the top of his lungs, “WE NEED KETCHUP!!!!” and then every single person in the whole restaurant who had ketchup at their table brought it over.  They literally had about 30 ketchup bottles on their table in pyramid form by the time it was over.  Lol.  They had to keep it on their table until somebody else yelled for it, and then they took it all over to that other table.

The food at Whispering Canyon Cafe is also served skillet-style and it’s bottomless, so you can keep requesting whichever refills you need.  B and I ordered the traditional skillet which had oak-smoked mustard barbecue beef brisket, maple-chipotle pork ribs, slow-smoked pulled pork, citrus-herb chicken, western-style sausage, smashed potatoes, buttered corn, sauteed green beans, and cornbread.  Whew!  It was so so delicious, and when we’d run out of something, all we had to do was ask for more of whatever we wanted. 

I also had a cocktail, but they had so many different ones on the menu that sounded good that I couldn’t decide which one to get.  Our waiter asked me a few questions about my favorite liquors and flavors, and then he had the bartender whip up something special for me… complete with a boujee flashing glow cube!  Haha.  It’s Disney… go big or go home, right?!

B opted for a Kentucky Mule, which has bourbon instead of vodka, and his was yummy, too.  We were too stuffed for dessert, so we opted out of that, and then we headed for the car when dinner was over.  In the parking lot, we walked by an SUV that had a Georgia Bulldogs sticker and a Dave Matthews Band sticker on the back, and I had to snap a picture because those are two of my favorite things!!  I have stickers on the back of my car for both, too.  ;o)

When we got back to the hotel, we stopped by the hotel store to grab some bottles of water to replenish our stock, and then we were back in the room by 7:45 PM.  We had a big day on Thursday at Magic Kingdom, so it was early to bed for all of us… the kids crashed at 9 and then B and I were right behind them at 9:30!

Here’s a summary of our day…

 

Summary:

Hours spent at the pool – 3 (12:00 PM – 3 PM)

Arcade games played – 14

Disney Photo Pass pictures and videos taken – 26

7,480 – Steps taken

3.3 – Miles walked

 

Schedule:

Impromptu pictures at our hotel (Lindsay)

PhotoPass pictures inside The Polynesian

Reservation – Kona Café for brunch (everyone)

Pool at the hotel (everyone)

Snacks (everyone)

Arcade (everyone)

Hotel to shower and get ready (everyone)

PhotoPass pictures inside Wilderness Lodge (everyone)

Reservation – Whispering Canyon Cafe for dinner (everyone)

Back at hotel at 7:45 PM (everyone)

 

And here are the other recaps in case you missed them!

Disney Springs

Hollywood Studios

Animal Kingdom

Stay tuned for the Magic Kingdom recap... it'll be up early next week!  Happy Wednesday, y’all!