Tuesday, October 30th: Fort Wilderness, continued
After dinner, we had some time to kill before we had to head over to check in for Return to Sleepy Hollow. As we exited the restaurant, we took note of all the people and activities that had materialized since we had gone inside for dinner: the whole area was abuzz with excitement. We opted to take a stroll around and check it all out.
There were all sorts of fun Halloween props and decor scattered about the resort, which made for some great photo backdrops (especially as the sun was setting and things took on a very Halloween-y feel). We gladly took the opportunity to snap a few photos as we milled about.
Despite all the chatter from a the scads of excited resort guests, we could hear some catchy music coming from somewhere nearby, and discovered that they had a DJ on the beach. Dance party under the stars!!!
It was super pretty down by the water......large jack-o-lantern lights lined the fencing along the lake, and combined with the fun tunes being spun by the DJ, it definitely set a great mood. It was easy to see why so many families fall in love with the Fort.
Several of the golf carts from the Halloween Parade....those that were selected as the best overall entries.....had been rolled in and put on display for resort guests and visitors.
People were encouraged to vote for their favorites, and this display drew a very hearty (and spirited!) crowd. Those top 6 (?) golf carts were quite a sight to see!! It was incredible to see how much time and effort some folks had put into creating a golf cart masterpiece. We weren't sure we could even pick a favorite...they were all awesome!!
In addition to the golf cart judging, a jack-o-lantern carving contest was also drawing A LOT of interest. A huge display of carved pumpkins lit up the dark night, and they were all just as impressive (in their own right) as the golf carts. Check out the detail on some of these.....I can't even imagine how much time it took for some of them to be carved!!
They even had Photopass photographers strolling through the mayhem. One of them stopped us and offered to snap a quick pic:
As fun as all the Halloween activities were, a quick check of the time confirmed that we needed to make our way back to the Tri Circle D farm and check in for the movie. We didn't want to be late
.
As we made our way up to the Tri Circle D stable across from the Blacksmith Shop, we were greeted by a wonderful, eerie display: the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery.
Ichabod Crane's hat even hung on one of the crosses. I true Disney style, no detail was missed.
We joined the short line that formed and waited for one of the CM's to come out and begin checking us in. A few minutes before the event staff started making their way through the small crowd with their clip boards, they made an announcement that the take-away gifts (which were included with the Premium and Ultimate tickets but NOT provided to General ticket holders) would be available for purchase in limited quantities for any General guests that were interested......for (gasp!
) $40 each. I instantly did the math in my head......General admission was $22 per person, and included the viewing of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow (seating in the rows furthest back in the stables, rows 11 thru.....20?, maybe?), a bag of popcorn, and a limited edition Sleepy Hollow collector pin. Premium admission, at $38, included everything in the General tier as well as one of the "swag bags" to take home (more on the contents of that later!) and seating closer to the screen (rows 6 through 10). The Ultimate ticket [which is what we purchased, $60 per person] included everything already mentioned in both tiers plus the best seating in the house (rows 1 through 5) AND admission to the Van Tassel Dessert Party. As I did the calculations.....$22 for the general ticket plus $40 for the souvenir packs = $62.....I cringed knowing that their overall cost was more than we paid for the Ultimate ticket which entitled us to MUCH better seats and the dessert party afterward. I quickly gave that breakdown to Steve and declared....no one will buy them for that much money!!
Well, butter my buns and call me a biscuit, THEY SOLD THEM ALL
. People started clamoring for them....waving down the CM's and handing over payment without batting an eyelash.
I was baffled. But maybe I'm weird. At any rate, those folks that were able to purchase the souvenir swag bags were happier than pigs in clover.....and I suppose that kind of joy is what a Disney vacation is all about.
Once those bags were claimed and payments settled, they began to check us in for the event.
As each family was granted access into the stables, the night began with family photos in front of the festive backdrop at the entrance. Photopass was there to capture the pictures for anyone who had Memory Maker, but staff were equally as happy to snap photos with personal cameras or cell phones .... in fact, for most folks, they took the time to do both (photopass and cell phone pics). Super kind.
They provided props (a lantern and pumpkin) which we both thought was a great touch. For all guests, they took a more formal "smiley" picture, and then a "scared" pose.
And just for comparison.....these were the ones they took with my phone (a decent enough quality that had we not had access to Photopass....for which a huge thanks goes to
@afan for her kindness!.....I would have been totally content with these two pics
):
Once photos were taken, we proceeded to the desk where we were each given our Sleepy Hollow Swag Bags (which include everything you see here: an insulated lunch bag filled with a souvenir lanyard, collector pin, color-changing plastic cup, and an assortment of Halloween candy). While very nice, NOT what I would pay $40 a person for
. We also each got to choose a LARGE bag of Pop Secret Popcorn: various flavors were available so there was something for every taste. While drinks were not included, a water cooler was stationed nearby so you could take small cups as you needed them. I ended up bringing my popcorn back to the villa with us (as did Steve for most of his bag) since we were just too full to do much snacking during the show.
......To be continued.....