Disneyland, Wdw, Universal & Disney Cruise 2015-2016

Hi, I didn't write anything down from our fantastic trip, but it all comes back to me when I look at the photos & videos.
Myself, my sister & my son 17 & daughter 14 left Sydney on 16th Dec for our Christmas trip to Disney.
This was my kids 4th trip to DL & 2nd to WDW. I have been to DL that many times I have lost count, it was before I had kids & my aunt lived 20 minutes from Anaheim
16th Dec, We flew Delta all flights, no complaints , they were very, very good.
The flight attendants were older, there was plenty to eat & drink & they got us there & back safely.
Only complaint is how much hand luggage they allow passengers to lug on board, especially when I have 4 seats and on the way home our one bag each was about 10 aisles away from us, because some one beat us on board & took ours over our seats.
Originally the flight was to depart at 2pm, but about a month prior to leaving it was changed to 11.30am, which was a pain as I picked Delta as V Australia's flight left in the morning, and getting to Sydney airport in morning peak hour is horrendous.
Anyhow I then had to get the shuttle from home ( I live around 50kms from airport) at 6.30am, I didn't want to be late! We got to the airport around 8.10am.
Flight as I said was fine, but long & boring , especially when you cant sleep & I just couldn't get into any of the movies showing.
We were about 25 mins late leaving Sydney, as a thunder storm was brewing, and ended up landing at LAX right on 6am, hey where are all the people???
Straight through immigration & customs, we went out to Super Shuttle, waited 10 mins for a van & we were on our way to the Camelot Inn, we were the only ones in the van.
The guy checking us in, said hey I know how long that flight is from Sydney, I am going to give you a room now. How happy was I to hear those words lol I was saying to my sister in the van, geez I wished I had booked it from the night before.
Found our room, unpacked a little, then went for a walk to Downtown Disney & then we had lunch at Dennys, had a early night as we had 3 full days at parks coming up.
I called our American cousins & arranged to meet them in DL the next day at 2pm, we had hopper tickets, so were heading to Calif Adventure first.

17th Dec -
We were up early, did the short walk over to the CA.
The time on my camera photos says 7.50am we were with Chip & Dale
Wow, it wasn't crowded at all, anyhow we were walking along and I saw a Cable Car on the street & said look its Chip & Dale, I have to get a photo, anyhow I walked over & the cm said "welcome aboard" , I said oh ok thanks . So I yelled out to my sister , get on .
My kids were just strolling along & then just sort of were looking at us in the car, I think they were thinking to themselves, what the hell is mum doing now.
Anyhow there was a photographer on board & Chip & Dale were so funny, we had so many photos taken & next thing the conductor says , " well off we go", so we said thanks & went to get off, they are started laughing & said NO, we are taking you down to The Tower of Terror, we went oh ok, but first I need to get my kids, they said get the kids & we'll be off, I am yelling cmon on get on board, Chip & Dale were all over them , cuddling them, laying on them on the seat, it was quite hysterical.
So off we go & when we pull up at the TOT, they say we have a lift reserved just for you. Wow , great , but first we had our photo taken outside the ride with Chip & Dale.
Was a fun way to start our day in the park.
After that adventure, we headed to Carsland to get our FP's. We joined the queue to go on the ride ( our first time on it) & it took about 20 mins. Loved it!!!!!
We then wandered around the area & in the shops, kids went on another ride in Carsland & then it was time for our FP.
After the FP , we went on Bugs Life, wandered over to Toy Story, rode that & the ferris wheel.
Stopped for corn dogs , then onto Little Mermaid ride.
Basically we just wondered around & rode rides lol. The lines were not bad at all.
At around 1pm we headed over to DL, we were meeting cousins now at 3pm outside the Magic Shop on Mainstreet.
Gee, it looked beautiful on Main Street with the big Christmas tree, anyhow we went & got our birthday badges, as myself, my sister & my daughter all have December birthdays, had a wander up Main Street and then realised the Christmas Parade would be starting soon, so we went & stood opposite the Magic Shop looking for the cousins.
Anyhow they were a bit early & we had a great front row position for the parade, so we all watched that.
It was so good, Disney sure knows how to put on a parade
We had a lovely time , going on the rides with the cousins, we rode BTM 3 times, HM twice, Pirates, Autopia, Splash Mountain & or course Its a Small World, which was decorated for xmas, I loved it.
It was more crowded as the evening wore on, but we managed to get a few fp's which helped.
By around 10.30pm, my cousins daughters were flagging, they had to get up early for school, so we said our goodbyes & headed back to the hotel.
All in all a good first day.

Sounds like a great start!

Yay, another Trip Report! Thank you LivingforDisney.

18th Dec
We were up and off to DL around 7.30am this morning.
We stayed until early afternoon and walked back to the hotel for a rest.
We seemed to be able to ride quite a bit in the morning.
After a rest we ventured back to the park and stayed and watched the fireworks, we were on a Main STreet somewhere lol.
19th Dec
We were up again early and managed to get to DL at 7am, so did some rides we hadn't done yet and then around 10.30am went to CA, where we got FP for WOC for both shows and of course Radiator Racers.
We were not sure if we would see the WOC, but got the fp's in case.
The line was quite long for the racers, so my kids did single rider. We had some lunch & then it was time for our fp, so off we went, the ride actually stopped whilst on it, when we were in the inside part, for about 4 mins.
Anyhow when the ride finished they asked if we wanted to stay on and go again, you betcha lol.I think over the 3 days we rode it about 5 times.
We were not seeing Fantasmic as we had seen it before, and wanted to do rides instead.
Our plan was to head back into DL to watch the paint the night parade.
The ride lines were bigger today and there were lots more people around.
Anyhow back in DL we saw everyone were getting their spots for the parade & managed to find a place where we could actually sit on a wall.
Sitting there for about an hour, when it started spitting rain. Ugh! Then it got heavier but we had our trusted ponchos with us, but then it poured and people started to scatter.
We decided to walk towards Main Street, people were still waiting for the parade, we asked a few CM's, and they all were not sure what was happening.
So we just hung around and then the rain got heavier, so we decided to leave.
Tip, don't leave parades ect to your last day.
Anyhow, we got to Denny's and to decided to have dinner with a lot of other drowned rats!
When we got back to our room, we had to change and took our clothes & shoes down to the laundry and put them in the dryer.
Anyhow the rain finally ceased, so we decide we might as well use of WOC fp's.
We managed to get close to the front, but had to stand there for about a hour, show was great, but we did get slightly wet from the spray.
It was quite crowded and squishy & of course we had the late comers trying to squeeze in front of you.
Then we had to wait a while for the next show, so rode the Little Mermaid.
I think it started raining slightly again, so then it was time for the 2nd WOC show, my sister and son decided to head back to the hotel as they had had enough of standing around.
For the 2nd show, they were not even asking for the fp's , they were just letting anyone in.
My daughter and I got a great position, this time further back from the water ( I think it was better than being close to the water)
What a difference in the crowd numbers from the 1st and 2 nd show.
I actually enjoyed the 2nd one better, a tribute to Walt Disney.
After if finished we left the park and caught the fireworks going off in MK , so we stood between the 2 parks and watched them.
A busy day and we had a early pickup the next morning for our flight to Orlando.
Had a a great 3 days, we rode everything and did our favourites a couple of times, the park looked beautiful, the Xmas parade was wonderful. The castle was decorated for the 60th birthday.
Just as we were getting back to the room that night , it hit me....
Oh no, I had made reservations for lunch at the BBQ resturant in DL, for the day before, one that was closing in Jan.
Ugh I had completely forgot, that's what I get for not looking at my plans.
Oh well , a bit disappointed. I was expecting to get charged the $10 per person for not showing up or cancelling, but it hasn't appeared on my credit card.

[GALLERY=][/GALLERY][GALLERY=][/GALLERY]20th Dec
Up early , Super Shuttle were right on time 6.30am, he then picked picked up another family, from their home, 10 mins away from Anaheim and then we were on our way to LAX.
Oh my , when he pulled up , I think it was around 7.30am, there were so many people. You couldn't even get onto to the footpath!
Anyhow we managed to get inside and then it was "it this for real"?

There were lines going everywhere, we didn't know which one to join, so I said you guys get on this one and I will go up the front and see where it ends, anyhow it was the right line, but I hadn't done online check in, so I went to the kiosk whilst they were in line and printed the boarding passes.
Anyhow, it all moved quite fast and before we knew it we had checked our bags and we're heading up to security.
Stop!
They were not letting anyone upstairs, as it was too crowded, after about 15 mins they let groups up stairs, somehow we had been given TSA approved, so we just had to go through a short line, didn't have to take our shoes off or be xrayed and we were heading to the gate.
Man, the other line was massive, would have took about a hour I reckon to get through that one.
Time to relax and wait, well the flight ended up being around 30 mins late departing.
We flew Delta all legs of the journey, and I have to say they were very good. Friendly, plenty of food, snacks, drinks.

Sounds like a great start to the trip and you certainly fit a lot in that first day!

[GALLERY=][/GALLERY]
A photo the photographer took

Dec 20th
The flight to Orlando was fine, but couldn't wait to land to start our 14 nights at the Caribbean Beach Resort.
We had managed to get free dining for the 14 nights and I had all our Adr's and FP booked, let the fun begin.
We had no problems at MCO, off the plane, onto the monorail got our bags, kids remembered how to get to the ME, we checked in there and waited about 10 mins for the bus and we were off.
On arriving at CBR we checked in and the girl said I will got get your magic bands.
Disappointment, they were Gray!
I told her I had customerised them on line and we all chose our colours. She replied, they are not here.
I was a bit tired and unhappy at this stage and I think she could tell, so she went off to look again, as I told her I had a email to say they were at the resort.
Anyhow, no , she could not find them.
I then said "well I don't want Gray ones". We had Gray ones our last trip.
So she said she would speak to a manager and next things he comes out with magic bands in the colours we had chosen. Of course they didn't have our names inside. But I got my coloured ones lol.
She then arranged a small bus to take us to our room as we had a lot of luggage, it was dark & CBR is big.
The room was lovely, quite big, it had 2 queens & a small pullout bed, perfect for my daughter.
We unpacked a little, then had a wonder around & found the bus stop & food court, food court looked great, the food was ok, so we had dinner & then headed to bed as we were hitting Hollywood Studios in the morning.
A few photos of the resort added, hope they work.
Oops never added photos before. Looks like one has come up twice.
Anyhow the pool is the little kids one, will try and add the bigger pool.

[GALLERY=] [/GALLERY]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!! We are off to Disneyworld in September and have booked Caribbean Beach Resort, so I am super keen for people's thoughts on the resort as well as photos (rather than just the official Disney ones). Did your daughter find the pull out bed comfortable? And do you mind if I ask you how old she is? I am thinking it will be a good option for my 8 year old as the photos I have seen it looks a little on the small size (more suitable for a child/early teens rather than an adult?)

The bed will be suitable for your 8 year old. My daughter was turning 15 when we stayed and she slept in it fine for 14 nights . Her feet did hang of the end , but she didn't mind lol. I think most nights she was asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, from the walking and long days. I will see if I have a photo of the bed.
CBR was lovely, we stayed in Jamaica 21, which was close to a bus stop. This stop was always the first stop on the way back from the parks.
Going to the parks, they did stop a a couple of times before leaving the resort, but most of the times the buses were not crowded and we always got a seat. The busses were pretty frequent.
It was about a 10 minute stroll from our room to the food court and main pool.
I swam in one of the pools, which was close you our room and there was a laundry there. Thee kids always went up to the main pool, which did always look crowded.
It was a lovely resort and funnily the only place it seemed crowded was up near the main pool and food court.

21st Dec
Our first full day was Hollywood Studios.
We left CBR about 8am, didn't worry about breakfast as we had a early lunch ADR.
First FP was TOT, why do I do this, this ride terrifies me lol.
The 2 kids chickened out,so it was up to my sister and I.
It was crowded, but not unbearable.
So after TOT we rode Great Movie Ride, which was about a 20 min wait, had a walk around and the went to 50's Prime Time Cafe for lunch, four our first adr. This was a fun resturant and big servings. My sister, my daughter and I wore our Birthday badges and were given a cupcake and card each.
We waddled out and headed to Toy Story Mania for our 2nd FP, the standby time was nearly 2 hours! The FP line took us about 20 mins. Such a fun ride and a bit different to the DL one.
We then lined up for Star Tours and went to the Stunt Show.
We got 2 FP for Indianna Jones in liew of the kids TOT fp's, so my sister and son went to that & my daughter and I went to Beauty & the Beast.
Our last FP was for Frozen singalong. We all enjoyed this, was very well done.
Time for our adr at Sci Fi Resturant, this is such a fun place where you sit in cars like you are at a drive inn, and they show old movies.
We were paying for this adr out of pocket and to tell you the truth we were not very hungry, so we all ordered something small and again got cupcakes and cards lol.

Leaving the SCi Fi, we were close to the entrance for the Osborne Lights, I was expecting this to be wall to wall people, but was pleasantly surprised to see it wasn't that crowded at all, we could walk around freely and take photos. They were pretty amazing and I am so happy I got to see them.
By around 9.30pm we decided to leave and slowly wandered out with detours through the shops.

22nd Dec
Today we had a sleep in, swam at the resort and did some washing.
The weather was actually hot, for the 2 weeks at CBR.
We had lunch at the food court and caught the bus to Disney Springs.
Wow, it was crowded here, but they had good crowd control going on, you had to walk one side in some parts which made it easier, than everyone going here and there.
I guess it was busy as it was so close to Christmas and the shops were packed.
We walked around, did some shopping and went to T Rex for our adr at 6pm.
Every adr we had we were seated right away, apart from 2 when we only waited no more than 10 minutes.
Had a good meal and then headed back to CBR as we had planned to be at MK for rope drop in the morning and it opened at 7am.

23rd Dec
My sisters birthday, so we were up and on the bus at 6.15am
Thought to myself " this is crazy" it's still dark.
Anyhow we were standing at the front of MK by 6.40am and then the welcome show began. First time seeing this and it was cute.
Then they let us us.........in
We headed to Fantasyland , we decided prior to the trip, to do one land at a time as we were going to MK for 4 days this first part of the trip.
The Seven Dwarfs mine train is so much fun, I have like 20 videos on my memory maker of this. I think we ended up riding it around 10 times on the whole trip.
I love it's a small world, but it was a bit disappointing after seeing the Holiday version in Disneyland, that was so beautiful.
Anyhow we actually went off track a bit this morning and did rides in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland.
We had lunch in BOG , a quick service adr. The food was ok, not as nice as last trip.
Was a bit surprised to see a dog sitting on the women's lap behind me. I asked the server who bought our meals, if that was allowed, and she said "yes" it is a service dog. I said isn't it a bit unhygienic for it to be sitting at the table. She said, oh don't worry it will be all cleaned for the next guest. Really?
Well when they left, the table was just wiped over like any other table, nothing special was done.
We did see other dogs in the parks, hated it , to see them getting dragged throughed the crowds.
So did I mention how beautiful the park looked, it was amazing , the decorations, the Xmas carols, I was in my glory.
Our last fp was for the Xmas parade, best decision I ever made.
There would have been only 100 people in the section, we got to sit on the curb, though I stood and got fantastic photos & video of the parade with no heads or anything in them. Lol.
After the parade, we had a ADR at Tony's Town Square Rest for my sisters birthday, the booking wasn't till 6pm, we were feeling a bit tired, so we asked if we could get in earlier, this was like 5pm, and yes after 10 mins wait we were having dinner.
We then decided to head back to CBR, but wait the park is open till 3am for resort guests.

23rd Dec cont..
After a couple of hours relaxing at CBR, I said who wants to go back to MK?
My sister & daughter said yes, son No Thanks.
So we headed off to the bus stop at 11.30pm, once on Main Street we headed into Starbucks, the only time we saw the place with no people.
First ride we went on was Aladdins Magic Carpets. Yes this is great , walk straight on.
Then head to SDMT, what it is closed?
Haunted Mansion down
Big Thunder Mountain down
Space Mountain down
Ok let's try Peter Pan, working but took us 40 mins to ride.
We then heard Haunted Mansion was back up, so we rode that.
The park was actually quite crowded still around 2am, and the couple of rides we went on they didn't check to see we were staying onsite.
Anyhow we were back at CBR at around 2.45am.
So that didn't turn out how we were expecting.

24th Dec
After our late & dissapointing night before, we had a nice sleep in , swam at the pool and had lunch in the food court.
I went to the desk which is near the food court, to ask some information and mentioned to the girl how we had a crappy time, going to MK the night before, she said she had heard a lot of the rides were down, so she gave us all 3 extra fast passes each to use on any rides the next day we would be at MK, which was going to be the 26th.
So 6 fast passes each on the 26th, yes!
Tonight we were having dinner at The Grand Floridian, 1901 Park Fare.
We headed off on the bus to MK, from there we got a ferry boat across to the GF. First though we decided to go for a ride on the monorail.
Wow, the GF was such a beautiful resort, we had plenty of time to have a look around before our dinner reservation.
They had a magnificent Xmas tree and a Gingerbread House , that smelt Devine.
I bought a couple of little gifts to put in front of our little tree at the resort.
Dinner which was a buffet, was good, the food was enjoyable and it was a character meet with the step sisters and Cinderella.
After dinner we had a walk around outside and then we stood outside a restaurant overlooking the water near the boat dock and watched the fireworks from MK, it was lovely and they had the music piped through.

More pics of GF