Category: Travel

Where to Go When You Have to GO at Walt Disney World

Where to Go When You Have to GO at Walt Disney World

davidpwahr

When you suffer from an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) as I have for most of my life (Crohn’s) you become very familiar with restroom facilities where ever you happen to be. As a relatively frequent visitor to Walt Disney World (WDW) over the years – since 1975 – I think that I can safely say I have seen a majority of the restrooms in each park at WDW. So, with the understanding that I speak strictly from a male point of view and as a single childless person I don’t pay attention to things like baby changing stations, here are my observations:

The Good News:
In general, as with so many things, WDW on the whole does a great job with their restrooms. They are cleaned frequently and you rarely encounter an “out of order” sign on any given stall. I cannot even recall an single incident or time where I visited a restroom at any of the parks and found that the stall I chose was out of toilet paper or, worse, clogged up by the previous occupant. Given the number of people who must use the facilities at any of the parks on even a slow day this is an impressive feat.

Also, in all the parks the restrooms are spaced out fairly regularly and are generally well marked so that they are easy to find. Given how sudden the urge may strike for those of us with IBD this is a blessing. Even during my most recent visit to EPCOT (February 2020) with construction closing off the usual walkways between Future World and the World Showcase I still found the restrooms to be located in good proximity to each other.

The Bad News:
Yes, you will find the occasional wet seat because some nervous dude was afraid to lift the seat before he tinkled (trust me guys, in case your wife hasn’t clued you in yet your aim isn’t as good as you think). This is by no means the fault of the cast at WDW, however, but it’s still disappointing. Can you guys who don’t want to lift the seat maybe try doing it with your foot? Oh, you wear flip-flops exclusively…sigh. You know you can wash your hands immediately afterwards, right? You DO wash your hands immediately afterwards, right?

Moving on…

Part of the Tangled restroom theming – if you saw the movie you know.

The Best of the Best
In my humble opinion the best restroom at WDW is the one in the Magic Kingdom’s Tangled Rest Stop. This is one of the newer facilities and it is large and roomy. There always seems to be a seat open when you need on even when the area is packed full of guests – as it usually is. This location is also nicely themed in keeping with the character of the area. A close second are the restrooms over in Galaxy’s Edge (near the Market Merchants). These restrooms are more industrial and utilitarian in appearance but again fit nicely into the theme.

The Best Placed Restroom
The restroom which is best placed is without a doubt the one about halfway through the queue line for Avatar Flight of Passage over at the Animal Kingdom. Given that even with a Fast Pass you may be standing in line for over an hour having this restroom was a true blessing. It’s a one seater though so you may have to wait if someone else is using it and, of course, the line will keep moving while you are doing your business so to avoid angering your fellow guests your entire party will have to wait for you there (fortunately, there was only one person with me last time I visited).

If I were king of the Magic Kingdom I’d be looking into how a restroom can be added into any line that stretches more than an hour in length (I’m talking to you Peter Pan).

The restroom is where now?

The Worst Restroom
This one is a bit of a surprise, but in my opinion the worst restrooms are over at the Magic Kingdom’s Tomorrowland between Auntie Gravity’s Galactic Goodies and Star Traders. Usually crowded and, though it might be my imagination, an unusually narrow passage way between the stalls and the wall. I’ve had to use it several times and for some reason it always seems to be a less than stellar experience – but in port in a storm as they say.

So there you have it. My opinion of the restroom situation at Walt Disney World. Like I said, overall pretty good. The fact that I don’t recall most of my visits to restrooms is a very good thing and just how it should be.

These are my thoughts and I’d love to hear yours!


Going Solo

Going Solo

davidpwahr

I think it was Rick Steves , one of my favorite travel personalities, who said in one of the many guides he’s written (I forget which one) that he felt the best way to see Europe was to travel alone. He had a couple of reasons for thinking this. The first was that if you travel alone there’s no debating or negotiating about what you’ll be doing or seeing on any given day. That’s true enough. But it was his second reason that intrigued me more. He pointed out that if you travel as a group the people you encounter along the way will treat you as part of a group. In other words with the same frightened frenzy that occurs behind the counter of any McDonald’s when an unscheduled bus filled with teenagers on a class trip pulls up. Not an ideal situation by any means. But, if you travel alone, you’ll be greeted as a person and likely have a better experience.

Well, due to certain life decisions that I’d rather not go into, I have often traveled alone and I have to agree with Mr. Steves that there are certain advantages to going solo but there are some other considerations, too.

Pros:

  • You are treated like an individual: no one sees you coming and yells out to someone in the back “oh %*!@ here comes another bunch of ’em!”
  • There is often room for one more on tours or at attractions that are otherwise sold out: there have been several times that I was allowed to squeeze onto a tour because “what’s one more>” or because there was still one seat left and everyone else was in a group of two or more. In some amusement parks there are also single rider lines which let you avoid an hour of waiting for the top new coaster.
  • If you like solitude and the great out-of-doors you can’t beat hiking to the sound of your breath and heartbeat only: want to really understand nature? Find a secluded trail with literally no one else around for miles.
  • Flexibility when dealing with last minute changes to your plans: for example, once on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington the mountain I wanted to visit was socked in by fog. No problem – I went whale watching instead.
  • You learn to make friends easily: see my entry on Talking to Strangers.
Not another soul in sight. North Chilco Peak, ID

Cons:

  • You are treated like an individual: it’s sometimes easy to blend into a crowd and not be noticed. Even when they are looking for single riders at your favorite amusement park.
  • No one to assist or commiserate with when problems arise.
  • Danger of walking into the woods and never walking out again is greater: or frankly, walking down a city street at night. A lesson I learned the hard way one evening in Atlanta when I took what I thought would be a shortcut to a downtown restaurant.
  • Selfies are harder to take: a selfie stick and tripod are a must!
  • No one to talk with about the day’s adventures at the end of the day: probably the worst thing about traveling alone.
  • Meals in restaurants can be awkward at best – down right lonely at worst.

So in my opinion there is nothing wrong with traveling alone as long as you are prepared. In fact, some of my favorite moments have been while traveling alone. But some of my least favorite moments have been traveling alone, too.

As long as you have an adventurous attitude, enjoy solitude, making decisions on your own, can make smart decisions, and you make it well known to loved ones at home where you are and where you’re going – just in case (cell phones are great but they don’t work everywhere) then going solo might be right for you!

ITS GO TIME. Pacific Coast Trail or Bust!

davidpwahr

My niece (Caitlin) starts her next epic adventure!

beccagarfinkel's avatarNot Washed Up...Yet

This is it! We are currently on a train to Yosemite National Park, where we will spend the night preparing our packs for tomorrow’s kickoff in Tuolomne Meadows. But first, let us recap the last few days for you.

After Becca got back from OKC on Thursday, we got to work. And by that we mean food shopping, including an EPIC trip to Costco where we are pretty sure we set the record for most instant mashed potatoes purchased in one trip. Many thanks to our cashier friends Eric and Jon, who checked out our absurd amount of food with surprising glee (we even took a selfie! see below).

After that it was off to Whole Foods, where our good friends at the Cranbrook store had donated $100 of store credit toward our trip! Needless to say, Becca was completely overwhelmed and a little emotional. Thanks WF Cranbrook!

Once we…

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