Ridin’ Solo – ‘Une Personne S’il Vous Plait’ **COMPLETED (Plus Lunch At Walt's)**

[Linda67]

Hi everyone and welcome to my first ever trip report

[post=39945552]Day One, Part One[/post]

[post=39947053]DLH Photos[/post]

[post=39969251]Day One, Part Two[/post]

[post=39982346]Day One, Part Three[/post]

[post=39982428]Day Two,Part One[/post]

[post=39987004]Day Two, Part Two[/post]

[post=39996132]Day Two, Part Three[/post]

[post=40010224]Day Two, Part Four[/post]

[post=40010350]'Cocktails Around The Lake'[/post]

[post=40030511]Day Three, Part One[/post]

[post=40030525]Day Three, Part Two Plus Lunch At Walts[/post]

I love reading every one else’s reports and use them a lot for researching trips so I thought it was time to return the favour and attempt one of my own

So why did I end up on a solo trip to DLP?

Just before Christmas the Disney Marketing Machine seemed to be following me everywhere I turned, tempting me with their pixie dust sprinkled advertising campaign together with a promise of ‘up to 40% off’

Well I just had to have a quick look at prices didn’t I?, it would have been like kicking Mickey Mouse in the shins and running away if I didn’t

I had visited DLP with DH three times in the past, the first time we stayed at the Hotel Santa Fe and the next two trips we stayed at the Sequoia Lodge but the last visit was in 2006 so it really felt like time to head back

We are heading off to WDW in May and I thought that getting some Disney Magic early in the year would make the waiting less painful

I was torn between heading back to the Sequoia Lodge or trying the Newport Bay for the first time. The prices for both looked pretty good to me. We checked out the prices for the Eurostar and it was certainly cheaper to book this separate to the hotel/ticket package

Anyway, just before it came time to book DH got offered a new job which he would be starting at the end of January and it just wasn’t practical for him to take time off in February.

At first I thought ‘no problem, we’ll just go another time’ but then I thought ‘well why don’t I go anyway?’ I had a load of holiday entitlement at work that I really needed to use up and really didn’t feel bothered about travelling on my own so I got back on the DLP website right away

I was still in two minds about which hotel to book and as I was now going to be travelling on my own I decided to take a look at the Disneyland Hotel as it was clearly going to be the most convenient for the parks and the train station

Sure enough the 40% off offer covered my dates so with the click of a button I was booked for two nights/three days arriving on Feb 9th and checking out of Feb 11th

Coming Up – Travel Day & A Trip To The Studios

 

[Isila]

nice

 

[ExpatDisneyLover]

A fantastic idea- no need to cancel - can't wait to see photos of the DLH!

 

[J Marley]

Looking forward to reading more.It must be lovely only having yourself to please and to do what you want .....very relaxing.Can't wait to see piccies of DLH

 

[Linda67]

nice

Thanks for reading along

A fantastic idea- no need to cancel - can't wait to see photos of the DLH!

Thanks for joining in, photos coming up real soon

 

[Linda67]

So I was up bright and early and excited about my day ahead.

DH drove me the short distance to the train station and once I had bought my ticket the train to Paddington was just pulling into the Station

After a 20 minute journey I arrived in London and took a quick walk through to the Hammersmith & City line and arrived at St Pancras just a few minutes later.

The last time I had taken the Eurostar, the trains left from Waterloo and I have to say that St Pancras is a much nicer departure point.

There are plenty of good places to eat and some great shops to look around so I would suggest that if you arrive at the station early you would have more to do by staying in this area for as long as possible before checking in as there really aren’t many facilities once you are in departures

I still had loads of time before I needed to check in so I headed to ‘Le Pain Quotidien’ for some breakfast. I highly recommend this chain, there is a branch close to my office and I have always really enjoyed the food and service there.

I ordered a Latte as well as a Granola, Yoghurt and Fresh Berries Parfait which was absolutely delicious.

After a quick look around the shops it was time to check in which all went very smoothly. There was a huge school party ahead of me in the queue so I thought it would take ages but the teachers made sure that the kids were ready with passports etc and they moved through really quickly.

Once I was through Passport Control I headed to Caffé Nero for another shot of caffeine and had a quick read of my book.

Just as I took the last sip of coffee an announcement came over the loud speakers saying that the train was now ready to board

The train didn’t seem to be that busy and there were only a couple of other families in my carriage so I settled down with my book and enjoyed the journey

As I was staying at the Disneyland Hotel there didn’t really seem much point in booking the Magical Express Service as it literally only took five minutes to walk from the station wheeling my bag happily behind me

I had never been into the Disneyland Hotel during my previous visits and upon entering the lobby I was really impressed with the look of the place.

Nobody else was checking in ahead of me and the Cast Member behind the counter was really friendly and welcoming

I hadn’t called ahead with any room requests but I was hoping to be fairly close to reception as I was travelling on my own and my wish was granted when I was handed a key card for room 1114

As I headed to the lift Chip & Dale appeared in the lobby and Chip decided to escort me to my room!

He jumped in the lift with me and when we arrived on the first floor he kindly pointed me in the right direction and jumped back in the lift!

As soon as I entered the room I heard the familiar sound of a train pulling into Main Street Station and when I dashed to the window I could see the train with steam pouring out of the funnel, what a great room location, I couldn’t believe my luck

The room was lovely but I was so excited about getting into the parks so I popped my passport etc into the safe and headed to The Studios

Coming up next – Lights, Camera, Action!

 

[Linda67]

Looking forward to reading more.It must be lovely only having yourself to please and to do what you want .....very relaxing.Can't wait to see piccies of DLH

I wouldn't hesitate to travel solo again, it was great being so selfish

I've got lots of pics of the hotel so I will be sure to post them

 

[Linda67]

Bathroom

Window View

TV & Mini Bar

Door Detail

Lobby

Displays In Lobby

Exterior

 

[rottie155]

What a fantastic start! I'm really looking forward to reading more of your trip as I have been toying with the idea of travelling solo throughout this year too but keep talking myself out of it!

 

[J Marley]

Brilliand photos thanks so much for posting them I want to go by myself too

 

[ben1993]

Love it! I'm so jealous that you got to stay at DLH though

 

[Disneyfanswicklow]

Fabulous photos! Sounds like a lovely relaxing trip! Can't wait to read more.

 

[ExpatDisneyLover]

Oh my goodness - LOVE this hotel thanks for sharing the pics.

 

[Isila]

wonderful, wonderful wonderful photos. Simple love it. What a wonderful trip

 

[madmish]

thanks for sharing, what lovely pictures.x

 

[disney_princess_85]

Loving your report so far Linda, can't wait for more!

 

[PhilippeP]

Any picture from your window view to the park ??

 

[Linda67]

What a fantastic start! I'm really looking forward to reading more of your trip as I have been toying with the idea of travelling solo throughout this year too but keep talking myself out of it!

Thanks, you really should give the solo trip a go, I loved it

Brilliand photos thanks so much for posting them I want to go by myself too

Thanks travelling solo can be lots of fun, you feel like you have a lot of freedom to explore at your own pace

Love it! I'm so jealous that you got to stay at DLH though

I must admit staying at the DLH has spoiled me, I will want to stay there all the time now

Fabulous photos! Sounds like a lovely relaxing trip! Can't wait to read more.

Thanks - I had such a great time, hopefully some more updates today

Oh my goodness - LOVE this hotel thanks for sharing the pics.

Thanks, I am really enjoying your TR as well

wonderful, wonderful wonderful photos. Simple love it. What a wonderful trip

Aw thanks, hopefully more photos will be posted today

thanks for sharing, what lovely pictures.x

Thanks for reading and glad you are enjoying the photos, lots more to come

Loving your report so far Linda, can't wait for more!

Thanks for reading along, if my boss isn't looking I will try and post some more today

Any picture from your window view to the park ??

Oooh good question, not sure if I have, let me go check

 

[Linda67]

As I was arriving in the middle of the day and I wasn’t entirely sure how busy the parks would be, I decided to hit The Studios first as I thought it would be good to check out some of the shows and save the rides for another time

I’d already printed off the show times before I left home so had a basic idea of what I wanted to see and also what time the Parade would be running
Last time I visited the studios there was no Tower Of Terror and this is probably my all-time favourite ride at WDW so I decided to check out the queue time and it was only 5 minutes so I thought I might as well hop on

Now I don’t know if it’s just me and I would love to hear other people’s opinions but this version of the ride seemed so much faster and intense than the Florida version. It literally took my breath away

I don’t seem to remember seat belts on the Florida ride either and it certainly felt like you got more airtime.

I really wanted to try it again just to see if I was imagining it so I grabbed a Fast Pass for later in the day whilst exiting the ride

It was nearly time for the Parade so I grabbed myself a Cappuccino and headed towards Production Courtyard. The Parade was fun although very short but the characters seemed to be having a lot of fun and interacting with the crowd well

The first show to check out on my schedule was Animagique, I had seen the show on my last trip but still enjoyed it and found myself tapping my feet along with the music

I then headed round to try out Armageddon. I don’t seem to remember this one so maybe it was closed or hadn’t yet opened when I was here last time

I didn’t really think it was that great and not something I would rush back for. A word of warning for families with small children, it’s really loud in there and this seemed to freak out some of the younger kids

Next I walked towards Rock N Roller Coaster figuring I would use the Fast Pass that the hotel had given to me (you get one FP for each day of your park ticket in your welcome pack at check in) but the queue was so short I decided to hop into the standby line

The launch didn’t seem as fast as I remember it but I still enjoyed the ride even though the audio kept cutting in and out (I’m not really an Aerosmith fan so this was actually a bonus )

I then headed back to TOT to use my FP (which wasn’t really necessary as it was still only a 5 minute wait) and yep, I still think this version is faster and scarier

Once I had checked out of the Hollywood Tower Hotel I wandered back towards Stitch Live and was happy to see that a show in English was just about to start. I hadn’t seen this show before and thought it was cute. Stitch picked out a little Irish girl at the front of the theatre but he seemed to really struggle to understand her accent and was repeating bizarre sentences back to her

I decided to save my visit to Crush’s Coaster and Toy Story Play Land until I could be in the park at opening time as I knew that the lines would be long so instead I had a walk around some of the shops and grabbed another coffee before heading to the final show of Cinemagique for the day

It was 6pm by the time I headed out of the theatre so the park was now officially closed. It was just dark enough to appreciate the neon signs around the Studios and it looked wonderful

I took a slow walk back through Studio One and was back in my room within 10 minutes

Next Up …………….. I Have Found My New Happy Place

 

[disney_princess_85]

Lovely pics from WDS. Looks like the weather was very nice too.