"This is NOT the once in a lifetime trip I was hoping for!" - (Baby Simba - 12/18)

[KatMark]

WOW! I have not seen crowds like that since we went on the 4th of July back in 2004. I'm so glad we went the week we did for Christmas...it was pretty empty for the holidays.

Peanut is just so cute...each picture is more precious.

 

[shan23877]

Yikes! Those were some crowds! At least you found some things to do. Those are some scary wait times.

 

[Pluto0809]

Holy cow, that's some crazy crowds!! I thought it was kind of bad last week but that was nothing compared to what you had.

I love all the detail in the Storybook Circus area. All of the footprints on the ground are so cute.

I'm anxious to see if Claudia liked Dumbo. That was my favorite ride the first time I went to WDW at the age of 2.

 

[Marsheliz]

220 minutes?? is that for real?? GEESH!!!

I can't believe it was that crowded!! ;(

We never do the PeopleMover or the Carousel of Progress but I am going to make plans to do them next time!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Goodness! I don't think that I've ever seen a 220 minute wait for Space Mountain. Even during the busiest times we were there, it's only been 120. Not that 120 is good but I think you know what I mean.

 

[SAT887]

Wow! That is definitely not a 5.6!! That is very crowded. I wonder if the calendars being off is due to, FLE opening, schools changing vacation times, people just taking off when they can (because I know with DHs job we will rarely ever get the standard school vacation time off)....

And as a fellow mom, completely understand you give your child whatever you must to entertain them! We will sick in WDW as well which led to Olive (my 1.5) being cranky at times... Yeah the iPhone came in very handy, between chewing on the otterbox cover and watching MMC...

 

[firsttimer4]

I am enjoying reading about your trip. We are going for our first time in May. I really hope the crowd is not this bad!

 

[Tiggerrn2]

Wow!!! That looked just nuts! That is why I avoid holiday seasons like the plague. I will do summer - in parks early, break for lunch/swim and then back for evening entertainment. But friends of ours are going over spring break. I just laugh and tell them to have fun! I do give them only 1 piece of sage advice-Rope Drop!!!! If they listen to nothing else I have ever told them, I do hope they follow that one lead. It is just not enjoyable to be shoulder to shoulder with smelly folks.
You did fairly well getting onto rides with the crowds they had.

 

[cheekypoppins]

I don't know how you survived I have BIG issues with my personal space n I think i would've died,I couldn't stay if it was like that and not because i wouldnt want to be at Disney but because i'd be so anxious n nauseus i'd have no choice.

 

[monica23535]

Oh my goodness! I can't believe the wait time for Space Mountain!


I love the secret walkway between Tomorrowland and Storybook Circus. During MNSSHP they did a huge trick-or-treat trail along the whole path, which was great as we got so much candy. In fact, too much as we have some left over even now!

I don't really blame Ron for his little Carousel of Progress nap.....

 

[ronnmel]

Wow, that is A LOT of people. Definitely not a 5.6 if IASW had a 90 minute wait. And 220 minutes for Space Mountain!!

Nope, definitely not. It was CRAZY!

No way that was a 5.6 crowd
I do love people mover and carousel of progress though! Sometimes it's nice to break from the crowds (or heat) and relax on those rides! Again, Claudia is super adorable, I love the pics of her sleeping with her hands behind her head

The crowd calendar really got it wrong!
We love doing those rides, so at least it was good that we got to do them.
She used to sleep with her arms over her head a lot as a newborn, but not anymore. In the stroller though she did it all the time!

Holy COW! 4 hours for SM..and even bigger OMG is 90 minutes for IASW!! I have never seen more than a 10 minute wait for that and I always was shocked to see that! While I would love to go around Christmas, I am just NOT a wait person :/ Glad yall made the best of it, and agreed, gotta keep a baby happy however you can

Who in their right mind would wait 4 hours for a ride??? I had seen wait of 20-30 minutes for IASW on several occasions, but for sure 90 minutes was new. If you can ever manage to make it to Disney for late November/early December, you would be able to enjoy some of the Holiday things without the massive crowds (though for sure bigger crowds than what you are used to).

I have noticed the crowd calendar has been so off lately. It was terrible when I was there in Nov too.
I think the new fantasyland is bring in quite a few people right now.

I ended up emailing Touring Plans to tell them how off they were on their crowd calendar. I find it weird that Disney (apparently) says that New Fantasyland did not give them the boost they expected. Everyone's experiences in the parks seem to point to the contrary.

I guess we left at a good time. We never really did see those crowds. We were there the 28th-1.

That's kind of crazy that we had bigger crowds after New Year than you did just before.

 

[ronnmel]

WOW! I have not seen crowds like that since we went on the 4th of July back in 2004. I'm so glad we went the week we did for Christmas...it was pretty empty for the holidays.

Peanut is just so cute...each picture is more precious.

It really did feel like a 4th of July/Easter day kind of crowd. The time you went was perfect!

Thanks! It really means a lot to hear you say this about my sweet little girl.

Yikes! Those were some crowds! At least you found some things to do. Those are some scary wait times.

I wish we had known in advance how big the crowds would be so we could have planned better and done even more things. The worse was waiting 30 minutes for the train...

Holy cow, that's some crazy crowds!! I thought it was kind of bad last week but that was nothing compared to what you had.

I love all the detail in the Storybook Circus area. All of the footprints on the ground are so cute.

I'm anxious to see if Claudia liked Dumbo. That was my favorite ride the first time I went to WDW at the age of 2.

Haha, I'm sure the crowds you experienced were nothing like it was that day!

They did such an amazing job with all the details of Storybook Circus. I'm not even a circus fan, yet I love the new area!

I don't even know if I did Dumbo as a child. I know that, according to my baby book, It's A Small World and the Tiki Room were my favorite at the age of 2.

220 minutes?? is that for real?? GEESH!!!

I can't believe it was that crowded!! ;(

We never do the PeopleMover or the Carousel of Progress but I am going to make plans to do them next time!

I have a hard time believing it myself. I mean, who sees a (say) 150 minutes wait time and thinks "Let's get in line", then a 180 minutes, then 200... ?????

You've never done the People Mover? It's like the best thing ever to get off your feet for a few minutes, it never has a line (except that day apparently), and you get to see Tomorrowland (and The Hub) in a whole new way. Carousel of Progress is outdated, but it's a classic and is another great place to get out of the heat/crowd for a little while.

Goodness! I don't think that I've ever seen a 220 minute wait for Space Mountain. Even during the busiest times we were there, it's only been 120. Not that 120 is good but I think you know what I mean.

I think 220 minutes may be the longest wait I've seen for any ride ever, though maybe Soarin has gotten close to that. I just wish I had known about the crowds in advance, it would have been a perfect day to check out the Tree House or Country Bear Jamboree.

 

[pktbMouse]

oh my gosh..Im in shock at the pictures of the crowds..I have never seen 220 mins for a ride in my life!! you deserve a medal for staying in that park that day because I surely could not have done it. That wall of people!! WOW! just.....WOW!

 

[Fantasyland Mom]

I do not know how I missed pretty much an entire day of updates?! I am so sorry! Bad friend! Bad DISer!

I want to go to WDW at Christmas so badly, but days like this one are what I fear! A wait for IASW that's ten minutes sometimes makes us turn around, but NINETY!? Can you imagine how upset Brynn would be? But that Christmas tree! I must see it! Decisions, decisions!

All my kids sort of freak out at the Space Mountain part of PeopleMover, even though they aren't particularly scared of the dark. Maybe it's the unknown?

Now that I'm going to be staying at AoA, I can't wait to try these smoothies I keep hearing about!

Otaku with the solitaire is totally something I'd be doing. I'm addicted to solitaire and play it every time I have the least bit of boredom.

I LOVE that secret path! And if our secret path gets turned into a smoking area like I heard, I'm going to pout. Heck, it may already be one. Boo.

 

[ronnmel]

Wow! That is definitely not a 5.6!! That is very crowded. I wonder if the calendars being off is due to, FLE opening, schools changing vacation times, people just taking off when they can (because I know with DHs job we will rarely ever get the standard school vacation time off)....

And as a fellow mom, completely understand you give your child whatever you must to entertain them! We will sick in WDW as well which led to Olive (my 1.5) being cranky at times... Yeah the iPhone came in very handy, between chewing on the otterbox cover and watching MMC...

I actually emailed Touring Plans to tell them how off their crowd calendar was. In that email I noted that in (I believe) 2008 (I did my research... only AFTER! ) New Year fell on the same day (Tuesday) and that year they had predicted crowds of 9.5 for MK on the 3rd (the hours were also fairly similar). That made so much more sense! I think because New Year was on a Tuesday and most schools go back on the 3rd minimum, it made no sense to have the students go back for only one day or two, thus extending the break until the 7th for way more people than usual. Couple that with the fact that a big discount (room-only and reduced dining) started on January 2nd, that would be my guess as to why the crowds were so crazy. New FL might have had an effect, but not as much as those two factors IMO.

I'm usually against having our phones out while we are touring the park (I'm obviously the only one who thinks like that since Ron spent our entire Disneymoon playing Angry Bird in every queue and you've all see Otaku playing solitaire this trip), but I could bend my rule and let Peanut watch some MMC if it meant keeping her happy.

I am enjoying reading about your trip. We are going for our first time in May. I really hope the crowd is not this bad!

I'm glad you decided to join the TR. There is no way crowds can be that bad in May, don't worry!

Wow!!! That looked just nuts! That is why I avoid holiday seasons like the plague. I will do summer - in parks early, break for lunch/swim and then back for evening entertainment. But friends of ours are going over spring break. I just laugh and tell them to have fun! I do give them only 1 piece of sage advice-Rope Drop!!!! If they listen to nothing else I have ever told them, I do hope they follow that one lead. It is just not enjoyable to be shoulder to shoulder with smelly folks.
You did fairly well getting onto rides with the crowds they had.

I'm totally fine with summer as well. We seriously don't mind the heat, and know ways to get out of it if it becomes too much. I don't think Spring Break is as bad though as schools don't all have the break at the same time, it's spread out over almost all of March and April as opposed to everyone off during the same two weeks at Christmas. Now, if your Spring Break falls in line with Easter though, watch out! Rope Drop is probably the best advice you could have given them, along with reminding them that FP is FREE and to use it!

I don't know how you survived I have BIG issues with my personal space n I think i would've died,I couldn't stay if it was like that and not because i wouldnt want to be at Disney but because i'd be so anxious n nauseus i'd have no choice.

I went to school downtown for 7 years (college and university) and had to take the (very crowded) subway to and from school every single day so crowds don't bother me too much. I'm pretty good at weaving myself in between people, though that's a lot harder to do with a stroller. It's the waiting in lines that I HATE. I've stopped going to the local amusement park (6 flags) because of it. Since our summer is so short, it's crowded every single day waits of 2-3 hours are common.

Oh my goodness! I can't believe the wait time for Space Mountain!


I love the secret walkway between Tomorrowland and Storybook Circus. During MNSSHP they did a huge trick-or-treat trail along the whole path, which was great as we got so much candy. In fact, too much as we have some left over even now!

I don't really blame Ron for his little Carousel of Progress nap.....

I couldn't believe it either!

I've heard about that trick-or-treat trail! Since it's kinda hidden, you can get so much candy there (or so I've heard). That's awesome that you're telling me it's true.

Ron actually LOVES Carousel of Progress and does not like to miss it by taking a nap, so he was not happy about that. I can udnerstand how some people might think differently though.

 

[SAT887]

I actually emailed Touring Plans to tell them how off their crowd calendar was. In that email I noted that in (I believe) 2008 (I did my research... only AFTER! ) New Year fell on the same day (Tuesday) and that year they had predicted crowds of 9.5 for MK on the 3rd (the hours were also fairly similar). That made so much more sense! I think because New Year was on a Tuesday and most schools go back on the 3rd minimum, it made no sense to have the students go back for only one day or two, thus extending the break until the 7th for way more people than usual. Couple that with the fact that a big discount (room-only and reduced dining) started on January 2nd, that would be my guess as to why the crowds were so crazy. New FL might have had an effect, but not as much as those two factors IMO.

I'm usually against having our phones out while we are touring the park (I'm obviously the only one who thinks like that since Ron spent our entire Disneymoon playing Angry Bird in every queue and you've all see Otaku playing solitaire this trip), but I could bend my rule and let Peanut watch some MMC if it meant keeping her happy.

Sorry had to laugh because that sounds like something I would do!! I am horrible at pointing out things that need "improvement"... Then they usually try to offer me a gift card or something and I'm always like.. "No just fix it!!" Hehe and silently say to myself "and don't let it happen again...." However, that's how I operate... Like to take good and make it better.

What I have learned about being a parent with a cell phone... Yeah I can't tour and use the phone too much... It's kinda like driving and texting... You have see the studies that it impairs your driving as bad or if not worse than alcohol consumption!! I would hurt people But YouTube = Full length episodes of MMC (MMC saved a lot of aggravation for us sickies) and Otterbox - Held up to toddler teething better.....

 

[ronnmel]

oh my gosh..Im in shock at the pictures of the crowds..I have never seen 220 mins for a ride in my life!! you deserve a medal for staying in that park that day because I surely could not have done it. That wall of people!! WOW! just.....WOW!

We kind of had no choice but to stay in the park all day since we had Claudia's first haircut appointment at 11:30am (and that was pretty much impossible to switch) and a dinner ADR at Kona. We would have wasted too much time trying to go back to the resort, (and to do what?), only to have to turn around and come back to the Poly. Especially since by the time we really noticed how bad the crowds really were, it was past 1pm.

I do not know how I missed pretty much an entire day of updates?! I am so sorry! Bad friend! Bad DISer!

I want to go to WDW at Christmas so badly, but days like this one are what I fear! A wait for IASW that's ten minutes sometimes makes us turn around, but NINETY!? Can you imagine how upset Brynn would be? But that Christmas tree! I must see it! Decisions, decisions!

All my kids sort of freak out at the Space Mountain part of PeopleMover, even though they aren't particularly scared of the dark. Maybe it's the unknown?

Now that I'm going to be staying at AoA, I can't wait to try these smoothies I keep hearing about!

Otaku with the solitaire is totally something I'd be doing. I'm addicted to solitaire and play it every time I have the least bit of boredom.

I LOVE that secret path! And if our secret path gets turned into a smoking area like I heard, I'm going to pout. Heck, it may already be one. Boo.

I totally get life being busy and missing out on a few updates. You're not a bad DISer or friend (I love that we are friends ).

I think Holiday crowds and Brynn just would not mix well. However, you can always try early December, or the last week of November (after Thanksgiving). That is, if Miss Julia accepts to miss school.

I remember loving the Space Mountain part of the TTA back when I was a kid, but I was a little older than yours and they had those cool glow-in-the-dark rockets back then.

I haven't personally tried the smoothies, but when Ron saw the update he said again how good the ones at AOA were.

I'm addicted to Solitaire-type games (right now it's Freecell), as well as Sudoku and Candy Crush Saga (on Facebook), but I usually only play on my laptop. In the parks I prefer to stay away from technology. Or at least I try. Sometimes it's just too hard to resist...

I didn't pay attention to it that much so don't put too much faith in what I'm about to say, but I *think* only one part of the path is a smoking area. Either it was close to the barnstormer, in which case it was full of people, or it was somewhere in the middle, in which case it was empty. So basically, you're going to have to find out for yourself.

 

[ronnmel]

Sorry had to laugh because that sounds like something I would do!! I am horrible at pointing out things that need "improvement"... Then they usually try to offer me a gift card or something and I'm always like.. "No just fix it!!" Hehe and silently say to myself "and don't let it happen again...." However, that's how I operate... Like to take good and make it better.

What I have learned about being a parent with a cell phone... Yeah I can't tour and use the phone too much... It's kinda like driving and texting... You have see the studies that it impairs your driving as bad or if not worse than alcohol consumption!! I would hurt people But YouTube = Full length episodes of MMC (MMC saved a lot of aggravation for us sickies) and Otterbox - Held up to toddler teething better.....

Haha, I often do that, trying to help others "improve". I did that with photopass, and I've been thinking about doing it with Photobucket as well as this local restaurant chain that changed one of their quick-service option for the worse. I've never gotten a gift card out of it though, but I agree, just fix the darn issue!

I probably need to get a cover for my phone. Claudia is obsessed with it, especially if I try to talk while holding her. I need to protect the phone against drooling teething baby.

 

[ronnmel]

I totally should have gone to bed 90 minutes ago, but I didn't so since I'm already up way to late, let's make it even later and post an update!

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Day 4 part 5 - The One With DUMBO!



After we got off the train it started to drizzle. That was really the first time I noticed the clouds that day. We took out the rain shield to cover the stroller before parking it. Thats when we realized that we had packed the car seat rain shield instead of the stroller one. Oops! Thankfully our stroller (and baby) were tiny enough that we found a way to make it work.

We gave our FPs, zoomed through the line and were sitting in our elephant within minutes (wow, something that went fast today. Amazing!)

It was just starting to get dark at that point, so the lights were turning on.

Ron sat in an elephant just in front of Otaku, Claudia and I so he could take pictures of us throughout the ride.

Can you believe it was my first time ever on Dumbo? I loved it! I loved not only the view, but making the elephant go up and down a lot. It was the most fun Otaku and I had had all day, we were laughing the entire time.

We got lucky and that drizzle never turned to rain. We had an ADR to get to so after the ride we got our stroller and walked out of the park. Not without taking lots of pics, of course!

The youre blocking the view Christmas tree.

Ron loves his candy apple, though I dont think he bought any at that time.

Besides the popcorn garland (which I had never even noticed before typing this update), there isnt really anything special about this tree compared to the other ones.

Ron went to get our stuff in the locker and Otaku was not in the mood for pictures, so I went in with just Claudia. Not that you can see her behind the rain cover.

We would have liked to take the ferry or boat, but it had started drizzling again. We took the resort monorail instead.

We were not stopping here today.

We were going there!

Once at the Poly I went down to the souvenir store to get myself some Reef flip-flops. Theyre not as comfortable as my Teva Mush, but theyre better than normal flip-flops.

Then it was time to eat at one of our favorite Disney restaurants.


​

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Your first time on Dumbo??? Wow! Glad you enjoyed it so much