Rachel had been giving me a lot of grief for booking a reservation at a Moroccan restaurant on the 4th of July.  So to make up for it, I planned the rest of the day to be distinctly patriotic.



Yesterday when we were shopping in Magic Kingdom, Rachel snuck away to Guest Relations to pick up a bunch of celebration buttons for Dad because we realized that he would be turning 60 this month.

We drove 8 hours through the night to get to Disney World.  And by "we", I actually mean my parents (primarily my father) because I drove a total of zero hours.  Indeed, while they were fueling themselves on caffeinated beverages to make it to Orlando, I was sleeping soundly in the backseat.  Thank you, Mom and Dad!

The last time we drove through the night to the Grand Floridian, we arrived to a vacant porte cochere where we sat confused until Dad went inside and got us a bellhop.  This time, at 7:30 AM, we weren't alone.  In fact, there were so many people there that the self-parking lot was reportedly full.  Dad tried it anyway (and was lucky enough to find one empty spot) while I checked us in.

I was especially relieved to hear that our room was ready since I, a veteran of through-the-night driving, made a newbie mistake of not packing a change of clothes with my getting-ready bag.  We were located in Boca Chica on the fourth floor in a dormer room.



For more photos, check out my review of our Grand Floridian Garden View Dormer Room.

Breakfast - Grand Floridian Cafe

I had made us a breakfast reservation at the Grand Floridian Cafe at the resort because after driving through the night, a welcome breakfast is a necessity.  We had never eaten at the Grand Floridian Cafe before, and I was excited to try it.

Being incredibly patriotic people, spending the Fourth of July at Walt Disney World (who also happen to be annual passholders) was an easy decision for us.



In fact, it was decided in less than 24 hours via group text.


This was actually our third time spending the Fourth of July at the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, as we had stayed there previously over Independence Day in 2008 and 2011.  Before discovering the Beach Club, the Grand Floridian was without a doubt our favorite Disney Resort.  So it was good to return to our first favorite (and it still has a fighting chance for my all-time favorite).

I took it easy on the dining reservations, booking just one meal on all but one day.  We dined for the first time at a few restaurants - Grand Floridian Cafe and Marrakesh, and also revisited a few favorites - Crystal Palace, Beaches N' Cream, and Garden Grill.  I was able to photograph patriotic fireworks at Magic Kingdom on July 3 and Epcot on July 4.  We were also there for the debut of Frozen Summer at Disney's Hollywood Studios!

You're invited to join us on our Fourth of July adventure at Walt Disney World!  [I'm trying something new!] Go ahead and bookmark this page, as it will serve as an index for the Trip Report.  The links below will become active as each post is published!

Day 1 - Fighting the pre-Fourth of July crowds at Magic Kingdom!
Day 2 - Celebrating (the United States of A) MERICA at Epcot
Day 3 - Conquering Hollywood Studios overrun with tour groups, as well as our first (mini) Kitchen Sink
Day 4 - Hitting Three Parks and Two Character Meals in One Day
Day 5 - Getting Frozen at Hollywood Studios

Thanks for following along - comments and questions are encouraged!  Leave me some comment love!

We had the day off for Independence Day.  Our only real plan was to watch the Macy's Fireworks over the Hudson River, but we didn't really know how to go about doing that.  The Macy's website listed where the barges would be and where to view from, but we didn't know how early it was necessary to be there to reserve spots.  We also didn't know if we'd be allowed to bring coolers, chairs, and the like for holding spots after reading mixed reviews online.  I decided it was worth it to try to bring my travel tripod.

We got off the subway at 34th Street, and after talking to our friends who were ahead of us getting there, we knew that we needed to start moving south.  We ended up finding a location at 30th and 10th, right by the High Line.  Because of the construction, it wasn't the prettiest view.

I think by the time we finally got settled, it was 7:50 PM.  We thought fireworks started at 8:30 PM, but they ended up starting at 9.