WDW Vets go to Cars Land Have we been converted?

[Pesky]

Loved your TR and the video of your DD playing piano with Bert and Mary Poppins watching in the background is adorable. Makes me excited for our own trip this December, for which we have rented points at the VGC as well and asked for the same rooms! Fingers crossed!

 

[ValpoCory]

Loved your TR and the video of your DD playing piano with Bert and Mary Poppins watching in the background is adorable. Makes me excited for our own trip this December, for which we have rented points at the VGC as well and asked for the same rooms! Fingers crossed!

Thanks Pesky! The VGC is the best. You can't lose with any room, but those 4 rooms have ridiculous views. You are going to love it. Feel free to ask me any other questions as your trip approaches.

 

[disneyismyheart247]

I really enjoyed reading your report. Glad you had such a great time!

 

[PoohsFan1]

And the GCH entrance into DCA is great, except for Extra Magic Hours. This is largely due to the bottleneck issue, where the GCH entrance has only 2 turnstiles while the main entrance had about 10 open. Also, the GCH is physically farther away from Cars Land than the main entrance.

We walked right past people who had been in the GCH EMH line for 45 minutes when we were headed to the main entrance. When we got to RSR, we saw them about 50 places behind us in line.

I first want to say, what an awesome trip report you put together . You have such a beautiful family and I am so glad that you all had a wonderful time (I absolutely love the view that your family got, I am crossing my fingers that my requests get granted so we can get the same view).

Secondly, not using the GCH entrance during EMH is a tidbit of information that I did not know about. My family would of been one of those people, like you saw, stuck in line for over an hour because we would of used GCH's entrance on a EMH day, and then DH would of gotten really cranky after awhile because he doesn't like to wait in long lines . Thank you so much for saving me from a headache if not a migrane .

 

[ValpoCory]

I really enjoyed reading your report. Glad you had such a great time!

Thank you disneyismyheart247! I appreciate it.

I first want to say, what an awesome trip report you put together . You have such a beautiful family and I am so glad that you all had a wonderful time (I absolutely love the view that your family got, I am crossing my fingers that my requests get granted so we can get the same view).

Secondly, not using the GCH entrance during EMH is a tidbit of information that I did not know about. My family would of been one of those people, like you saw, stuck in line for over an hour because we would of used GCH's entrance on a EMH day, and then DH would of gotten really cranky after awhile because he doesn't like to wait in long lines . Thank you so much for saving me from a headache if not a migrane .

Thanks PoohsFan1! I hope you get the same (or a better) view for your stay. It was a privilege to get that room. And I'm happy to hear you'll use that tip about using the main entrance for EMH. I got that and others from the DISboards, so it's great to be able to pass them on to others going.

 

[stacy~**]

I really enjoyed your report. The video of your daughter playing the piano was great! What a magical moment!

 

[czmom]

Mind if I ask you a couple more questions? Our trip is planned exactly like yours, 6 nights, 5 days at the parks. Was that a pretty good length with the ages of your kids? I know no ones is ever really ready to leave, but were you able to do just about everything you wanted?

And did you use any touring plans or ridemax?

 

[ValpoCory]

I really enjoyed your report. The video of your daughter playing the piano was great! What a magical moment!

Thank you stacy! Definitely something we'll remember forever.

Mind if I ask you a couple more questions? Our trip is planned exactly like yours, 6 nights, 5 days at the parks. Was that a pretty good length with the ages of your kids? I know no ones is ever really ready to leave, but were you able to do just about everything you wanted?

And did you use any touring plans or ridemax?

Hi czmom,
We liked that length. There were a lot of ride and show closures last week, and we still didn't get to see and do everything that was open. So it didn't feel too long or anything. However, I think you can have a great vacation regardless of how many nights you go. It's all a matter of pacing. But going for 6 nights, in my opinion, allowed us to take naps, to take it slower without feeling like we'd never be able to "get it all done".

I did not use any touring plans or ridemax. I just used a couple key hints from the DISboards, like I mentioned in the report. But mostly we toured based on our past WDW Disney trips, and what we got the most enjoyment out of on those trips. And if ever I had a question I thought a CM could answer, I'd call the GCH's Guest Services desk. Very helpful resource.

 

[lifesgr8]

great report!! posting so I can find it later for tips

 

[ValpoCory]

great report!! posting so I can find it later for tips

Thanks lifesgr8! I appreciate it, and let me know if you have any questions.

 

[Edelweiss]

Thank you for such a detailed and well written report. After reading your trip report, I definitely now want us to stay at GCH. I loved your pictures. I loved the tidbit about doing the powerwalk. I DEFINITELY want to participate in that! FABULOUS! Thanks for sharing!

 

[ValpoCory]

Thank you for such a detailed and well written report. After reading your trip report, I definitely now want us to stay at GCH. I loved your pictures. I loved the tidbit about doing the powerwalk. I DEFINITELY want to participate in that! FABULOUS! Thanks for sharing!

No problem Edelweiss! Assuming we'll have over 7 months notice, I can't see us returning to Disneyland without staying at the VGC. It's just incredible.

Thanks for reading!

 

[tcb1]

Cory...Awesome trip report! You know, for an engineer, you're a pretty darn good writer. I really enjoyed reading it a couple weeks ago, and just read it a 2nd time and enjoyed it even more. I felt like I was traveling with you guys! Wish we could have joined you all. Maybe next time!

I wished I would have been able to read this before we went last November. I learned so much. You gotta stop keeping all the tips and tricks to yourself. I promise I tell anyone. Thansk for the shoutout re the GCV room #s, but to be honest, I got that from another post here on DIS.

So happy to hear that your grandmother was able to come, and like you, I hope I'm giddy at 91 goign down the drops of PofC. So many good experiences you guys had on this trip and so many memories you'll have for a lifetime.

Like you, I'd been to WDW probably 20+ times before we finally made it out to the original. I'm not sure why we waited so long, because we love traveling out to California. But once we finally made it to DL a couple years ago, I could see why everyone thinks this park is so special. It's becasue it really is. It does feel more intimate, and I couldn't believe how much more I enjoyed the rides at DL that are also at WDW. Maybe it was because WDW had become so familiar, that experiencing these rides in a new way, with new twists, turns and special touches. It was almost like I was in 3rd grade again going for the first time to WDW.

Thanks for sharing this. One of the best trip reports I've ever read...that's why I had to read it again! Take care buddy! See ya real soon!

 

[DisSmis]

This was such a helpful TR. It looks like you had a wonderful time and the fact that your 91 year old grandmother could join in on the fun is fabulous! I would love to pick your brain about the renting DVC points process.

 

[ValpoCory]

Cory...Awesome trip report! You know, for an engineer, you're a pretty darn good writer. I really enjoyed reading it a couple weeks ago, and just read it a 2nd time and enjoyed it even more. I felt like I was traveling with you guys! Wish we could have joined you all. Maybe next time!

I wished I would have been able to read this before we went last November. I learned so much. You gotta stop keeping all the tips and tricks to yourself. I promise I tell anyone. Thansk for the shoutout re the GCV room #s, but to be honest, I got that from another post here on DIS.

So happy to hear that your grandmother was able to come, and like you, I hope I'm giddy at 91 goign down the drops of PofC. So many good experiences you guys had on this trip and so many memories you'll have for a lifetime.

Like you, I'd been to WDW probably 20+ times before we finally made it out to the original. I'm not sure why we waited so long, because we love traveling out to California. But once we finally made it to DL a couple years ago, I could see why everyone thinks this park is so special. It's becasue it really is. It does feel more intimate, and I couldn't believe how much more I enjoyed the rides at DL that are also at WDW. Maybe it was because WDW had become so familiar, that experiencing these rides in a new way, with new twists, turns and special touches. It was almost like I was in 3rd grade again going for the first time to WDW.

Thanks for sharing this. One of the best trip reports I've ever read...that's why I had to read it again! Take care buddy! See ya real soon!

Thanks buddy for reading and those nice comments. I blame you for starting me down this wonderful Disney addiction. I remember you telling me about the free dining promo back in 2007. We've learned so much since then.

We can't wait to go back to WDW and then back to DLR! And to learn new things from you guys.

Thanks again.

 

[ValpoCory]

This was such a helpful TR. It looks like you had a wonderful time and the fact that your 91 year old grandmother could join in on the fun is fabulous! I would love to pick your brain about the renting DVC points process.

Thanks for reading DisSmis! I'd love to show you how to rent DVC points. The most important thing to know is you need time. If you can firm your travel dates more than 7 months out, you are likely to get what you want. If you know your dates 10 or 11 months out, your odds of getting what you want, at a great rate (likely $10/point) are really high.

 

[pepe3penelope]

Loved reading about your trip report!!! We are fortunate to be locals and are annual passholders. We signed up w/DVC in the summer. Tomorrow morning I am booking our 1st DVC trip w/Grand Californian for July! Am hoping to do split stay w/1 BDR then later STU.

 

[ValpoCory]

Loved reading about your trip report!!! We are fortunate to be locals and are annual passholders. We signed up w/DVC in the summer. Tomorrow morning I am booking our 1st DVC trip w/Grand Californian for July! Am hoping to do split stay w/1 BDR then later STU.

Thanks for reading pepe3penelope! It's almost been a year since our trip, and we still talk about how much fun we had. Can't wait to go back in the future.

Have a great time, and be sure to make specific room requests for your 1 bedroom and studio stays. Park views are just incredible. Like a dream.

 

[pepe3penelope]

Thx for the well wishes! On Friday I had to book the 5 nights as studio because they book faster. Then yesterday I modified at the 7 month window to 1 bedroom. So 1st 3 nights are 1 BDR then last 2 are studio. It worked!!! I already put my requests for the room numbers that have the World of Color views.

 

[KCmike]

Nice report. We were WDW vets who went for the first time back in 2007 and have now also been converted. We absolutely adore Disneyland and the nostalgia and "storybook" feeling you get in that park. Glad you had the same experience!