A Naive Aussie's TR - Completed!

[zanzibar138]

Great view of the fireworks from your room.

Glad to see it really was a Happy Anniversary to you and your DH. What a lovely surprise that was.

Yes, he's a keeper

I was a bit nervous about the view because at the HKDL the rooms that faced the park had a very obscured view of the fireworks. I guess it's why they call those 'standard view' as opposed to 'park view'.

 

[Minniemum]

It's great that BA compensated you for no IFE. Pity you can't use it. Is it transferable? Could your dad use it in his travels?

What a lovely 1st anniversary surprise from your DH. Can't believe he managed to find you and them stalk you on to the train! Fireworks from your room was the perfect finish.

 

[zanzibar138]

It's great that BA compensated you for no IFE. Pity you can't use it. Is it transferable? Could your dad use it in his travels?

What a lovely 1st anniversary surprise from your DH. Can't believe he managed to find you and them stalk you on to the train! Fireworks from your room was the perfect finish.

DH has found a few possible uses for it - although it would mean another short trip for us later in the year (yep, that would be terrible ) Apparently I can use it for a Qantas/BA codeshare for travel to Asia, and being a BA flight number would also mean extra AA points

Yeah I'm not quite how he managed to get it to all turn out either! His back up plan if he hadn't found me at the airport was to go to our hotel and send a message up to my room that there was a present from my DH waiting for me in the lobby

 

[zanzibar138]

I am about to start the first full day in HK, and just thought I'd warn everyone that it will be a long, detailed, and photo heavy day! I will only do half at a time to give you time to catch up

 

[zanzibar138]

Hong Kong

We woke up to a beautiful sunny morning. It actually would have been a perfect day to do the cable car if I hadn’t decided to give it a miss! DH had said when he surprised me that he would be happy to work around my schedule, so we got up relatively early with the aim of being at the park for rope drop.

DH had his shower and decided to wait for me in the lobby so that he could use the internet. I had my shower, then decided that I really needed to tidy up the room before heading out for the day.

There were hidden Mickeys in the carpet in the hallway.

And it was a perfect day to capture the view from the window at the end of the hallway.

Unfortunately there had been a miscommunication about breakfast. Since DH had said he would be happy to just go with my original plans, I assumed that meant he was happy to pick up something from the bakery when we got to the park. However, he had been wanting something more substantial for brekky, and wanted to go to Walt’s. I decided it probably wouldn’t be the end of the world if we arrived half an hour after opening, so we agreed to go to Walt’s, but since it was such a beautiful clear day, I wanted to walk along the sea.

I got a few photos of the back of the hotel as we were leaving.

And took some more photos as we walked along the sea between the two hotels. It was about a 10 minute walk, and DH was getting a bit anxious that we would miss the timing for breakfast at Walt’s.

We eventually made it to the HKDL Hotel, and entered from the back, past the Mickey maze and up the grand staircase.

Turns out DH needn’t have worried. There was still plenty of time for breakfast, and the place was just about empty, so there was no problem getting seated. The CMs wished us a happy anniversary.

DH got the continental breakfast with bacon and eggs. I didn’t really feel like that much, so I just got a Mickey waffle.

We both enjoyed a nice breakfast, and it was about 10:30am by the time we were finished. DH was keen to relax in the lobby for a while before heading off to the parks, and since he was only going to be 10 minutes, I thought it would be easier to just stick with him than to try and organise to meet later. We found some chairs (just, the lobby was busy!) and got out our electronic devices.

We finally set off at about 10:50am, and walked to the park again. I can never believe how quiet that path is between the hotels and the park, considering it is really only a 10 minute walk from the HKDL Hotel. I can’t believe everyone catches the bus!

We were slightly concerned about whether our tickets would work, but the machines remembered our fingerprints, and we were soon through to the park! The CM at the turnstiles wished me a happy birthday lol!

My mission was to head straight to Grizzly Gulch, before it got too crowded. I was pleased to see that it looked pretty quiet still.

It was a bit of a hike to get there, down Main Street, then through Adventureland. It would be good if they could make a shortcut! But eventually, we were entering Grizzly Gulch! You can thank PIO for the incredibly long and detailed section coming up next lol!

Since it looked so quiet, I was happy to slow my pace down, and explore the area before lining up for the mine train. It even looked like there were a few half empty carriages going around! The mine train tracks took wound through the whole area.

Continued in next post...

 

[zanzibar138]

Continued...

Next we checked out the geysers area. I was quite happy to be running around in jeans and a t-shirt playing under the water, despite the fact that it was only 20C lol!

While we were playing with the geysers, I noticed Kenai and Koda doing a meet and greet. I managed to convince DH to join the short line with me, and continued snapping away with my camera until it was our turn.

The characters and handlers noticed our anniversary buttons and, after a bit of confusion about whether it was our birthdays, it resulted in great interaction with Kenai and Koda. They were real goofballs! The first photo is Koda trying to sneak me away from DH lol! The handlers gave us some stickers too.

The character meet and greet area was near the future entrance to Mystic Point, and I was able to get a decent view of Mystic Manor. It looked very close to completion.

I took some more photos on our way to ride the mine train.

I didn’t have much of a chance to take photos of the queue, because we literally walked straight through it. It’s one seriously long queue though!

Our mine train wasn’t even full when we took off! It was a fun ride, and I liked how it started off tame and got scarier as we went. The theming was great all the way through – in fact, I think the whole area was the best theming I saw for the whole trip! The bear animatronics were cute, and the effects along the way were cool.

After our ride, we had a bit more of a poke around the area. Kenai and Koda had gone, but there was some singing and dancing entertainment in their place.

Continued in next post...

 

[zanzibar138]

Continued...

After a bit more a wander, we thought we’d have another ride before moving along. We walked the queue slowly this time to take it all in, and one of the CMs at the ride saw me trying to take a selfie before we took off, and offered to take one for us. Then we got some more stickers!

After our next ride, we stood and watched a couple more go past, then left Grizzly Gulch in search of more adventure!

Unfortunately on our way out we noted that the Lion King show was out of action, again!

We didn’t actually visit Tarzan’s Treehouse on this trip, but took a few photos from the mainland on our way to the Jungle Cruise.

The wait time for the Jungle Cruise was 15 minutes, which is basically one boat per language, so not too bad.

Before too long we were on our way, past the crocodiles lurking under Tarzan’s treehouse, the elephants, the temple ruins, gorilla camp, African jungle, head hunter country, and finally into the hands of the water and fire Gods before arriving safely back at the dock.

We didn’t understand a lot of what our skipper said, but she was very animated lol!

Continued in next post...

 

[zanzibar138]

Continued...

I was planning to go to Mickeys Philharmagic next, but since I didnt spend much time in Toy Story Land in Paris, I thought Id have a wander. I stand by my earlier comments about liking Pariss version better.

As promised, I checked out Andys Toy Box and took a few photos in there.

We wandered around a bit more. There was a better view of Mystic Point from the Grizzly Gulch side, so I didnt waste too much time there. I did notice that there was only a 10 minute wait for the parachute drop though, which I havent done yet, so we lined up for that.

Unfortunately we were on the wrong side for views of Mystic Point, but I enjoyed the views we had anyway.

We were both surprised by how much fun this ride was!

By that time DH was getting hungry again. I didnt want a pizza cone from Jessies Roundup, so we made our way out of Toy Story Land in search of food.

We saw some green army men on the way out, but couldnt be bothered trying to get photos. Whoever it was that asked me about what people wear in HK, take note. The girl in the light outfit with heels is definitely in the minority. Mostly you can see it was casual dresses, or jeans or shorts and t-shirts.

Soon we were entering Fantasyland.

Since we were going straight past it, we figured we had time before lunch to catch the next showing of Mickeys Philharmagic. The theatre was only half full.

People seemed a lot more polite on this visit to HK. There was a lot less pushing and shoving, and I only saw a couple of people spit in the whole time we were there. On another note, the toilets were disgusting. Whoever complains about the toilets in Paris has clearly not been to HK.

Anyway, back to Philharmagic& I love this show! DH doesnt really as he struggles with 3D. Apart from the usual suspects trying to catch stuff off the screen, it was fairly uneventful.

We had a quick look at Merlins gift shop on the way out.

Then we made our way over the Royal Banquet Hall for some lunch.

Continued in next post...

 

[PrincessInOz]

I love the pictures of Grizzly Gulch! Thanks for taking them. I can see that I might need to think about a stopover in HK at some stage when Mystic Manor is finished.

Looks like you're having a great day.

 

[maryr1oz]

Great update - what a pretty park!

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

I have been thoroughly enjoying your trip report and all of your lovely photos. Thank you so very much for sharing, and in so much detail.

 

[Minniemum]

Wow you really did take the time to look at the theming. The photos are awesome, I especially like Andy's Toy box.

 

[zanzibar138]

I love the pictures of Grizzly Gulch! Thanks for taking them. I can see that I might need to think about a stopover in HK at some stage when Mystic Manor is finished.

Looks like you're having a great day.

I really enjoyed HKDL this time around - even more than last time. I'd definitely be interested in going back again once Mystic Point has opened.

Great update - what a pretty park!

I really like the effect of the mountains in the background. I think it really adds to the aesthetics of this park.

I have been thoroughly enjoying your trip report and all of your lovely photos. Thank you so very much for sharing, and in so much detail.

Ms Shuttergirl! Glad you managed to have a read before you left Hope you found some of it useful, and looking forward to seeing DLP again through your TR

Wow you really did take the time to look at the theming. The photos are awesome, I especially like Andy's Toy box.

For me, Disney parks are all about theming. They don't even need rides And as much I still stand by my comments about not really liking Toy Story Land, I did think Andy's Toy Box was quite well done.

 

[zanzibar138]

Continued...

After we’d bought our meals, a nice CM showed us to a quieter spot outside. I didn’t feel like much, so I just got the chicken wings kids meal.

After lunch we headed over to Winnie the Pooh.

Unfortunately the wait time was up to 30 minutes, so I decided to get a fastpass instead. Then we made our way around the back of Fantasyland to Tomorrowland, making a beeline for Space Mountain. The wait time was only 10 minutes.

I have to say Paris’s version of SM has spoilt me! HK’s was not nearly as dark or thrilling as I remembered. But I did enjoy the soundtrack, which I have learnt off by heart from my Disneyland album. It was fun anyway.

By this time DH was getting tired and both our backs were quite sore from our flights. So we decided to make our way back to the HKDL Hotel and see if they could fit us in for a massage.

We swung by some shops on the way. I needed biscuit tins! I bought about half a dozen lol!

DH decided he felt like a snack then, so we stopped at the bakery. He got the mango mousse thing.

I finally got my ice-cream!

Those Minnie ice-cream bars are just the best things ever! Yummy!

By the time we’d finished eating, there was only 10 minutes until the parade started, so we decided we may as well stay and watch it.

We strolled right up to the edge of the footpath just outside the bakery, and staked our spot there. Yes, 10 minutes before the parade started. While we were waiting, some vendors were going up and down with balloons and popcorn.

Before long, we could see Mickey’s float in front of the castle. That is one of the spots where they stop and do the interactive thing, so that was all we could see for a few minutes.

Soon enough Dumbo was leading the parade down Main Street.

Continued in next post...

 

[PrincessInOz]

Well....the smallest park in the Disney stable has one thing going for it. No need to stake out a spot hours in advance for the parade.

Nice pictures. Hope you made it for a massage.

 

[HappyPanda]

I am so enjoying your whole trip report. In fact, I read some of your updates while queueing for rides in DLP! Was a great way to pass the time!

Really loving the update from Hong Kong, it's making me want to visit now! Maybe one day!

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Since I have to be up at 5.30 I need to go to bed so will double back and catch up on HKDL tomorrow but wanted to say thanks for the advice re DLP. Bit of a traumatic trip to the airport for you - lol. Not fun when its happening.

We have flown BA once-long haul to Europe on a Qantas code share - my IFE didn't work and worse, my seat was broken, but the flight was full so I had to put up with it. Even had a struggle just getting a spare pillow to try and pad the metal bits that dug in. I forget now the other dramas but I seem to recall there were more and basically we will NEVER fly BA again!

So sweet of your DH to meet you as a surprise. I'm off to bed now. Look forward to catching up on the HK tales tomorrow!

 

[zanzibar138]

Well....the smallest park in the Disney stable has one thing going for it. No need to stake out a spot hours in advance for the parade.

Nice pictures. Hope you made it for a massage.

Now I'm not promising it will be like that all the time! But both times we've been in March it has been very quiet.

Spoiler alert... the massage didn't happen

I am so enjoying your whole trip report. In fact, I read some of your updates while queueing for rides in DLP! Was a great way to pass the time!

Really loving the update from Hong Kong, it's making me want to visit now! Maybe one day!

Great idea! I'm waiting for Disney to roll out free wifi at all their resorts so I can do that too!

As nice as HKDL is, it's really not a destination in itself. It's good for a stopover though, or as part of an Asian holiday.

Since I have to be up at 5.30 I need to go to bed so will double back and catch up on HKDL tomorrow but wanted to say thanks for the advice re DLP. Bit of a traumatic trip to the airport for you - lol. Not fun when its happening.

We have flown BA once-long haul to Europe on a Qantas code share - my IFE didn't work and worse, my seat was broken, but the flight was full so I had to put up with it. Even had a struggle just getting a spare pillow to try and pad the metal bits that dug in. I forget now the other dramas but I seem to recall there were more and basically we will NEVER fly BA again!

So sweet of your DH to meet you as a surprise. I'm off to bed now. Look forward to catching up on the HK tales tomorrow!

That sounds like a terrible flight My experience hasn't completely put me off (after all, it's not their fault I forgot to request an aisle seat and the plane was full), and I still much preferred them to Air France.

So glad to hear that you've learned from my mistake Definitely get the TGV! Luckily I managed not to get too stressed out at the time, just had to make the best of it.

I was going to add another update this morning, but I've run out of time, so looks like you'll be able to catch up on last night's one first

 

[Aussie Wendy]

It may be small but it looks a pretty park and so quiet this day (and beautiful weather after all those grey skies!) Somehow Grizzly mountain looks more like a wolf than a bear to me? What sort of ride is it? (very rollery coaster in the end?) I like all the Asian food!!

 

[Minniemum]

I have to say Paris’s version of SM has spoilt me! HK’s was not nearly as dark or thrilling as I remembered. But I did enjoy the soundtrack, which I have learnt off by heart from my Disneyland album. It was fun anyway

Did you sing along out loud? Our family love singing along on POTC....Yo Ho Yo Ho a pirates life for me.