First Trip as a Parent, 3 Days, PPH stay - Lots of Photos (Update: 4/26/2015)

[MeishkaD]

Welcome all! This is my first attempt at what (I hope) will be many trip reports. I suppose I should start by introducing myself. I am Meishka a full time mom from rainy Oregon. I will be celebrating my tenth year of marriage to my amazing husband this October. I have a eight year old daughter, a two year old daughter, and a son who will be turning one in a few weeks.

I have loved all things Disney since I was a small child. I was lucky enough to travel to Disneyland for the first time the year Indy was opened and my love of the park has only grown in the years following. The summer after high school I convinced some close friends to save our cash and make a week long trip in the fall of 2001 so we could see the new DCA and experience the magic of DL without parents. I returned to the parks for a single day a couple years later on a visit to my sister who had relocated to the LA area for school. We made a trip to LA to visit my sister and her huband a year or so before the birth of my second child, but ended up forgoing a stop at DL due to time constraints.

For the last year my daughter had been asking when she could visit her Aunt and Uncle again, while also begging to go see Disneyland. Fearing that she was fast approaching the age where the magic will change, I worked it out with my husband for just the two of us girls to make a trip for our birthdays. We worked everything out so my sister could join us for part of our stay as well.

Here is a picture of our group. Left to right you have me, my daughter in the middle, and my sister.

Confession Time: I used to be one of those folks who thought you must wait until a child was old enough to remember a trip for it to be worth it. Anyone want to take bets on how I felt after spending a few days watching toddlers and preschoolers squeal with delight and awe in the parks?

Once the decision was made and a budget was decided upon the planning began. Originally I intended to save some money with a Good Neighbor Hotel, but as I figured we would probably not make another trip until the little ones were much older, I decided to splurge and go with Paradise Pier. I asked my daughter for her opinion and she said that Paradise Pier was the hotel she thought looked the most fun. We decided on three day single park passes as I figured too much walking would wear her out and bouncing between the parks would only increase the fatigue.

We managed to get a great deal on flights and arranged to have my sister pick us up and drop us off. We would spend our first night at her home and get up early the next day and drive to Anaheim. We decided to start our adventure with the Surf's Up breakfast as my daughter was really hoping to meet Stitch. I knew we wouldn't be able to make it to rope drop, so it seemed like a great way to kick things off.

After much anticipation and planning, we finally reached our travel day. My husband insisted on bringing the whole family to the airport, so we woke everyone up well before sunset and got on the road. The little ones fell back asleep in the car, but my daughter chattered non-stop for the whole ride. Once we arrived I pulled out the ears I had made in advance and we were ready to go. My only regret was not making an extra pair for my younger daughter as she seemed to feel a bit left out. I had very carefully packed the pair for my sister in the center of my bag and had we more time, I may have dug them out for the little one.

We had just enough time to check our bags and get to security before we needed to say our farewells. The little ones were sleepy and quite confused. My husband reported that my younger daughter was very insistent on hanging around the airport for a bit to watch the planes from the top of the parking garage. I don't think we will be able to bring her to the airport again without letting her get on a plane as she was quite enchanted and not thrilled to be left behind.

Our flight was largely uneventful. I was delighted to discover we had free WiFi so I happily enjoyed some quiet internet browsing while my daughter played games on her Kindle. Before we knew it we had landed in Long Beach. Dragging our luggage out to the loading area was a bit of a task without Dad, but we muscled through and did it.

After a short wait, my sister arrived and we loaded up and made our way to her house. After settling in for a bit we ventured out and visited Pollywog Park in Manhatten Beach and stopped by Chick-Fil-A for lunch. Always a hit as we don't have them at home.

When we arrived back home I remembered that my parent's had given me a couple of cards to be opened upon our arrival. We were excited to discover that they had given us some gift cards to spend in the parks.

We relaxed around the house until my sister's husband returned from work. My sister whipped together a quick dinner and we settled in to eat and watch Big Hero 6. A few cookies for dessert and it was time to go to bed so we could once again get up at a far too early hour. My daughter crashed quickly as she had been up and active for quite awhile. My sister ended up packing late into the night.

The next morning we launched out of bed and into the car to drive the 45 minutes or so to Anaheim. I was again grateful for my local relatives as the LA freeways seem way too busy for this rural girl. Fortunately traffic was relatively light that morning and we made great time. While I checked us in, the other two explored the lobby and a kind bellhop took this great photo to mark the official start of our trip.

I know that many people report that PP doesn't feel quite Disney enough, but I have to say that we were very happy with our stay. I had heard complaints that the elevators were slow, but we never experienced that as a problem. We had a standard view on the sixth floor, so perhaps it is a greater problem for those higher up. The themeing in the room was nice and not overdone. Everything being in one building made it easy to avoid extra walking while at the hotel.

We had just enough time to get our bags settled and check in and it was time to go have our breakfast. My sister had decided to pack a granola bar and a book and wait in the lobby to save some cash. To each their own I suppose, but meeting Mickey Mouse was the perfect way to start our trip. My daughter practically squealed when we came around the corner and saw him greeting guests.

Once we were at our seats I had to remind my daughter that we were there to eat! She had been complaining she was hungry only about 15 minutes prior. We dashed off to the buffet and made our selections quickly as to avoid missing any character opportunities. She spent most of the meal with her eyes glued on the other side of the room as the characters made their way slowly towards us.

This was proabbly the least healthy meal she has ever eaten for breakfast. Waffles, pancake, chocolate muffin, cinnamon roll, and a bowl of fruit loops. I forgot to take a picture, but I had an egg white scramble with spinach, some roast chicken, melon, and some sort of pastry. I am not much of a breakfast eater so I know I didn't get anywhere near my monies worth, but what I did try was fairly tasty. Not anything worth going out of your way for, but perfectly fine.

After much anticipation, Stitch finally arrived! They shared a fist bump (he was very excited when we made the Baymax sounds), hugs, and he autographed her book. He made a bit of a fuss over our homemade ears and after a quick hug was off to make the rounds.

Next we got to meet Pluto. He was very sweet with my daughter as well, really taking the time to play before he had to go backstage for a bit. After that we finished up our meals and sat for a bit. My daughter was just starting to get antsy when Stitch marched back over to grab her to go dance with Mickey. She was easily one of the tallest kids up there, but she didn't seem to mind and danced along with everyone.

At this point she was really excited to get to the parks so we paid our check and got ready to leave. I had pre-purchased Photopass+, so I asked our waiter if we could exchange the voucher there. He wasn't sure, but guided me to a photographer and she said it would be no problem, but it would take her a few minutes. She told me that we could go ahead and meet up with my sister in the lobby and explore the gift shop while we waited. About ten minutes passed and she arrived with our Mickey photos, the PP+ lanyard, and an extra copy of the photo CD we had received at home. Bell services were sweet enough to grab our bags for us so we didn't have to carry the photos around the park and risk damaging them. Once we had that squared away we were out the door and on our way.

I will have to leave off here as it is fast approaching midnight and I need to get some sleep. Stay tuned for our next installment when we actually get to the park! Thanks for reading along.

CHAPTER ONE: First Morning: Terrific Tomorrowland and Mild Chaos

CHAPTER TWO: A Brief Interlude to Discuss Paradise Pier Hotel

CHAPTER THREE: Princesses, Puns, and Pyrotechnics

CHAPTER FOUR: Repeats, Fireworks, and some Brief Solitude

CHAPTER FIVE: A Truly Magical Morning

Wrapping Up the Family Chaos

CHAPTER SIX: Roller Coasters, Tasty Food, and Characters, Oh My!

CHAPTER SEVEN: Boats, Fairy Photos, and Fantasmic

 

[Jaina]

Following along! I'm excited to see how it all goes for you! We had our first trip-as-parents about 2 years ago, and it was a blast! (if a lot of work...) Our kids were 6, 5, and 2.75. When we go again they will probably be 9, 8, and 5-6 (and maybe a 2-year-old) so I am interested to see what kinds of things your 8-year-old had the most fun with. What an awesome memory for her!

 

[MeishkaD]

Following along! I'm excited to see how it all goes for you! We had our first trip-as-parents about 2 years ago, and it was a blast! (if a lot of work...) Our kids were 6, 5, and 2.75. When we go again they will probably be 9, 8, and 5-6 (and maybe a 2-year-old) so I am interested to see what kinds of things your 8-year-old had the most fun with. What an awesome memory for her!

Thanks for following along! She really had a great time and enjoyed nearly everything. I may have some questions for you about your experiences in the park with a toddler as (SPOILER ALERT) we are already planning a return trip in December with the whole crew.

 

[Jaina]

Fun times! Yes, ask whatever. And/or if you have time, glance through my trip report ("1st trip with our kids" in my sig). I try to go into a lot of detail about what worked and what didn't.

 

[MeishkaD]

FIRST MORNING: Terrific Tomorrowland / Mild Chaos

SIDENOTE: We did experience some bumps in our trip, largely due to some personal and family dynamics. I won't go into too much detail as I prefer to focus on the positive aspects of our trip. I will mention things from time to time if I feel we learned something that may be helpful to share with someone else planning a trip.

Some quick background:

I was hit with severe post partum anxiety following the births of my little ones. Along with this came panic attacks and difficulty dealing with large amounts of stress. This trip was the first chance I had to spend some quality time with my eldest since the birth of my second. My eldest managed the shift from being an only child and my difficulties with an amazing amount of grace and patience for one so little. I really wanted to make this trip extra special for her as a way of acknowledging how special our bond is and that I will always make time for just the two of us even though it's not as frequent as it used to be.

My sister is older than I and childfree. She has some very strong opinions about how children should behave. She also lives locally and has made many trips to the parks as an AP. She is used to passing up long lines with the mentality that you can always come back again. She also had some strong opinions about how one should "best" maneuver through the parks, not necessarily taking 8 year old patience levels into account.

Back to the happy!

We had some brief chaos regarding how to best navigate to front gates. Over breakfast DD8 and I had decided we wanted to take the monorail in even though the walk from the hotel wouldn't be the most convenient. My sister would have preferred walking through Downtown Disney. So, some chaos happened... and we eventually settled on the monorail. (TIP: They had no problem scanning our passes and taking our photos as this was our first entry into the park) My daughter was so excited and we were lucky enough to board right before it launched. The views were great and it was fun to catch a peak of some of the things going on backstage and behind the construction walls around the Matterhorn. Once we had arrived we skipped down the ramp and into Tomorrowland.

My sister is not a huge fan of Autopia, but the line was maybe 10 minutes so we decided to take advantage and got in line. It moved quickly and after a brief discussion it was decided that DD8 and sister would ride together with DD8 driving. This left me to a car on my own. For years my father would say I wasn't ever allowed a driver's license as my attempt at driving the Autopia cars previously had been less than successful. It has long been a family joke, made funnier by the fact that I am now the only person in my family to have never received a ticket or had so much as a fender bender. Thankfully the cars were a bit easier to drive this time, although I swear they have expanded the guides in the road that keep the cars from being free moving.

I ended up in a pack of cars behind the other two, so I was able to snap this shot as they launched on their way.

There was a bit of a back up at the end of the ride, so I had a chance to snap a quick selfie.

My trip around the course was uneventful, but I had some issues with the car stalling out as I was attempting to make my way back to the loading area. This provided a great deal of entertainment to the two teenage boys waiting for my car. They were having quite the chuckle as I lurched my way into the parked position. All in good fun of course.

Upon exciting the ride, I realized that I needed a bathroom stop so I left the girls to plan our next event by Tomorrowland Terrace and made my way to a facility. When I returned I was informed that it looked like people were starting to gather for the Jedi Training Academy. This was a top priority for my daughter, so they went ahead and found a place to sit close to the front. We had a few minutes so I ran over to grab some photos of the submarine lagoon as it is a personal favorite of mine. I was really looking forward to riding the new version as I had loved the original on my first visit.

I got back just as they were finishing up selecting kids to participate. My sister informed me that DD8 was one of the first selected.

TIP: The previous night we had made a few signs. One my daughter decorated and a couple simple ones that my sister put together to share with other kids who were hoping to be picked. Somehow we lost the one my daughter used, but here is a picture of one of our spares. (The signs were successful for each child holding one)

She was very patient waiting on stage and listened to all the instructions carefully.

TIP: My daughter is fairly brave, but doesn't do well with surprises. Knowing this we watched a couple videos of highlights from the show so she would know what to expect. We particularly focused on Darth Maul as I knew from research that she was old enough and big enough to be put in the group going saber to saber with him. The smaller and younger kids go on stage to face off with Darth Vadar. Knowing what to expect made her very confident.

The whole event was an impressive example of organized chaos. The cast members did an amazing job herding 25(ish) children, keeping the audience chuckling, and maintaining the safety of all involved. It was quite impressive to watch them run through the show.

The empire forces really knew how to make an entrance.

Darth Maul was very intimidating in person. I was very glad that we had taken the time to prepare a bit so my daughter knew what to expect ahead of time.

DD8 took the whole thing very seriously. My sister took some video from the side of the stage and I was able to get some great shots from the eating area at Tomorrowland Terrace. I asked those eating very nicely, explaining that my daughter was on stage and they generously allowed me to squeeze in to get some shots. We also had our PP+, which is nearly worth the cost just for the great shots of this event. Highly recommend investing in the price ahead of your trip if this is on your to do list! Here are a few of my favorite shots they took for us.

After successfully defeating the evil empire we decided to go track down some fairies. The wait was about 30 minutes, but my sister insisted that was way too long a wait...

And then some chaos happened... TIP: If you are traveling with a local AP holder who visits frequently, discuss wait time preferences ahead of time. Had I known my sister would balk at anything over 20 minutes, I would have made advance contingency plans to deal with these situations. Eventually I made a deal with my daughter that anything with a less than 30 minute wait was her decision, anything over 30 minutes had to be agreed upon by the whole group. Not ideal, but sort of worked.

This was all we would be seeing of the fairies that day.

Fortunately, Buzz Lightyear is right around the corner and had a 15 minute wait so we settled into that line. My daughter absolutely loved the Toy Story movies when she was a toddler and quite adorably referred to everyone's favorite space ranger as "Buzz Right Here" so I couldn't resist this photo of her pointing out that he was in fact, right here. (Apologies for quality of image, I was still getting used to using my DSLR again)

I think you can see shades of the teenager to come in this shot, lol. Thankfully she is still young enough to at least humor her mother. Once again it was decided that I would be riding solo, so I took advantage and attempted to get a shot of the two of them sitting in their vehicle at the loading station and another whilst on the mission.

Not the greatest shots, but you get the idea. It turned out that the blasters on their car were not properly functioning (or at least that's what they claimed) so I didn't get to truly bask in the glory of my first time Level 3 score. So I will brag away here! (I am aware that this is not actually impressive...)

After we finished up there we decided to cross the path and check out Star Tours. I was very excited to experience the updated version and my daughter was still excitedly chattering about her defeat of the dark side. I was a bit nervous about the 3D aspect as I had discovered on my previous trips that the 3D theater shows and I do not mix well. Something about the effects and glasses makes me queasy, so I had spent the better part of HISTA, Bugs, and Muppets with my eyes closed waiting for them to end. Thankfully, the 3D in Star Tours did not have the same effect. We had an amazing time and made sure to snag fast passes for later that evening on our way out.

At this point everyone was getting a bit hungry and crabby so we decided to stop for lunch. My daughter was eyeballing Tommorowland Terrace, but one look at my sister and I knew that would not go over well. I quickly pulled out the map and announced that we should head to Jolly Holiday as it was close by and offered a more adult friendly menu. My daughter is hit and miss when it comes to eating at meal so I ordered her the Kids Power Pack as I figured she could always save whatever she didn't eat for later. My sister and I decided to split a sandwhich and she chose the oven roasted turkey on ciabatta bread served with house chips. It was very tasty, but I only managed to eat a few bites before my daughter announced a need to dash to a bathroom. Thankfully there was one located not too far down the street. By the time we returned to our table, my sister had finished eating and my daughter had lost interest in her meal. So we decided to pack up my lunch and head back to the hotel for awhile to cool off in the pool.

My daughter again wanted to take the monorail, but sadly it wasn't running so we made the hike back to the hotel. There was a small amount of whining about this which led to a bit more chaos. By the time we reached the hotel my sister announced that she needed a break so my daughter and I quickly vacated the room with an agreement to meet at the pool in about an hour. (I did manage to cram the rest of my sandwhich in while my daughter was changing) I will admit a small part of me was glad for the break as well.

I somehow failed completely to take any photos of the pool area. I can say that although there was no strong theme it was a perfectly pleasant place to spend the hottest part of the day. What it lacks in fancy decorations it makes up for in being compact enough to watch your child without having to constantly move location. I found a lounge chair where I could see her in both the pool and at the stand alone water slide. Life jackets were available for use and their were a handful of lifeguards at both the pool and slide locations. Sadly the bar was not open during the week as we were not visiting during a busier season. Even though we had no use for them, I was pleased to see a basket of swim diapers available for use free of charge. I took advantage of the relatively quiet surroundings and called to check in with my husband at home. We had a pleasant chat although I was sad that both little ones were napping so I didn't get a chance to say hello to them.

After about an hour my sister arrived refreshed and ready to start our second round at the park. We gave my daughter a few more minutes and then returned to the room to change for the evening ahead. I had been carrying everything in my camera bag up until this point and was already starting to feel the stress in my shoulder. I made the wise decision to switch to a more cumbersome but far more comfortable back pack. This also allowed me to carry sweaters for evening and some snacks for me to eat on the go should we run into a similar issue like we had at lunchtime. We also all swapped our shoes out, a trick I had learned working long shifts in retail. A new pair of shoes goes a long way towards extending your ability to remain on your feet all day.

And with that we were headed back to the park. Fearing the monorail would still be down and the extra steps away from the park would just add to our walk we decided to just march back through DTD. Thankfully after an hour in the pool and a switch of shoes we sailed out the door with no more whining and chaos.

I will leave off here and return shortly with the rest of our day. Thanks for following along!

 

[Jaina]

Mixed-company trips (with different priorities) can make a vacation more stressful than fun sometimes! My least-fun-visit was actually on Senior Trip (which should have been a blast) when there were 6 of us, and one single person was being rather difficult. You definitely have to tour differently as an AP and as an infrequent visitor!
Also, I'm really glad the 3D on Star Tours didn't bother you - that's a favorite! (but 3D movies can give me a 3 day headache, too)

 

[MeishkaD]

Mixed-company trips (with different priorities) can make a vacation more stressful than fun sometimes! My least-fun-visit was actually on Senior Trip (which should have been a blast) when there were 6 of us, and one single person was being rather difficult. You definitely have to tour differently as an AP and as an infrequent visitor!
Also, I'm really glad the 3D on Star Tours didn't bother you - that's a favorite! (but 3D movies can give me a 3 day headache, too)

We learned a lot of lessons. Next time we will make sure everyone has their own accommodations and we can split when necessary. We will also be scheduling more days in the parks so we don't feel as rushed.

I read through your trip report and loved it! I kept thinking you looked very familiar and then realized I had already read your more recent report about going with your son and friends. Looks like you had a great first trip as a family. So lucky that your little one took naps in her stroller.

 

[MeishkaD]

A Brief Interlude to Discuss Paradise Pier Hotel

I thought I would take a quick moment to discuss the details of our experiences at the Paradise Hotel. I didn't get nearly as many photos as I would have preferred, but I will post what I have.

The front desk and guest relations cast members were very helpful. I had called a couple weeks out to request a room as high up as possible, and we were given a room on the sixth floor. This was still technically a standard view room, but we could see parts of both the Grand Californian and DCA from our windows. They were testing the new WOC late at night (post 1am) during our stay and I discovered that if I went up a few floors I could get a sneak peak, super fun! Being in the middle of the building I found that even during the busy park opening morning times, the wait for the elevators was not too bad. I would imagine it could be a bit trickier the higher up you stay.

Here is a nice view of the intersection at the entrance to the Grand Californian.

I thought I got views right, center, and left but I can't seem to find our view on the left. Here is the view looking out dead center. You can just barely make out the top of TOT. (It's behind the tall tree that is not a palm)

Had I got a photo looking to the left you would have been able to see the tip top of the Fun Wheel and just a glimpse of the peak of Screamin. Not a bad view for the cheapest price.

I already covered our experience at the Surf's Up breakfast a bit previously, but I will add a few things here. Due to the location of the PPH, I wouldn't recommend scheduling a meal here unless you are either staying at the hotel and/or really want to eat with Mickey Mouse. If a member of your party wants to meet Stitch, this is also a good bet, but there is no guarantee. We met Mickey, Stitch, and Pluto. While we were there we also spotted Daisy and Minnie. The food was decent enough for a breakfast buffet, but I can't say that anything was particularly outstanding.

The check in area was very light on theme. The goofy statue with surfboard was great for a photo op, but that was about it. There was a nice little gift shop, Mickey in Paradise, that was well stocked and staffed by a friendly CMs. My daughter was excited to find a pressed penny machine in the waiting area for the Surf's Up breakfast. It's off to the side of the wall just past the gift shop, so if you weren't waiting for a reservation you might miss it.

Here's a different shot of the Goofy statue with slightly less cropping. Bell services in the immediate background. A small cafe immediately behind that. The gift shop was to my sisters left and the elevators were off to my daughters right, just around the corner.

Bell Services were outstanding! We lucked out and were fortunate to mostly interact with John. He took the photo of my sister and daughter in the first part of my trip report. He brought our bags back out so we could drop off our photos from our breakfast before heading to the parks on that first day, and was always willing to stop and answer any questions we had. He remembered our name each day and just really made us feel like we were guests in his home.

There were a few times when I needed to attend to business (or chaos) and I was so excited to find a quiet room where my daughter could sit on the first floor while I dealt with whatever needed doing. It had dim lighting and plenty of small chairs (and a couple parent sized benches). They ran a loop of cartoons, most of which were starring Donald Duck, a personal favorite. We frequently used it as a calm oasis during the trip and were so happy to have it available at all hours of the day.

Although the Disney theming was light, the hotel theming was quite nice. Here is a photo of the waiting area for the elevators on our floor.

The hallways were themed in a similar manner. I really liked the use of colors and the hallways always seemed quiet regardless of what time of day we were traveling through. I may be misrembering, but I think there were a couple hidden Mickey's in those carpet swirls as well.

Our room had two queen sized beds and a futon that folded out into a small child sized bed. This took a minute or so to figure out, but my daughter was delighted to have her own space and I was thrilled that it didn't take as much room as fold out couch would have so we left it open all day. The Queen beds were lovely and we all really enjoyed the beach ball pillows. (Don't be too tempted to sneak one into your bags, they charge $65 for each missing ball!)

There were plenty of nice beach themed Disney touches in the room. My favorites were the poster for Donald in "Bee at the Beach" and the adorable lamp with Mickey as lifeguard.

I didn't get any pictures of the bathroom, but there were a few things I feel I would be remiss not to mention. The bathtub was AMAZING. So large and wonderfully deep. I am a huge fan of bubble baths and rarely find a tub that I can truly get a full relaxed soak in. The angle on the back was perfect, the water temperate was plenty hot, and I was thrilled to take some time to just quietly relax after a long day. There was also a clothes line that pulled out from the wall above the tub so we were able to hang our swim clothes to dry and didn't have to climb into cold wet swimsuits. A small addition, but huge life improvement!

Walking from the hotel to the parks and back was a bit of a hike, but it wasn't too terrible. We choose to leave through the front doors and cross the street to walk through the GC. Once thought that hotel and into Downtown Disney, we could either go left towards the Monorail, or continue on the right to enter the main gate. I never really felt out of the Disney bubble doing this. Cast members from the GC and possibly DCA seemed to use this route to get to and from employee parking, so it was fun to see all the different uniforms and we enjoyed thanking everyone we passed for their hard days work and wishing them a quick trip home and relaxing rest of their day. The walk up to the GC and into the lobby was a treat in it's own way. Such a beautiful property and a fun way to enjoy the splendor without spending the money to upgrade accommodations.

I would love to stay here sometime in the future, but I think I would prefer to wait for an anniversary trip with my husband and/or until our children are a bit older. For now our money is better spent maximizing mouse sightings.

Hope this information was useful to anyone considering a stay at Paradise Pier. If you can squeeze the cash to stay on site, but don't want to stretch into the DLH or GC it is a great option. I will definitely consider booking again should I make a quick adults only trip as the savings can stack up quickly, but I do really prefer to stay at a Disney property. (Also that bath is nearly worth a trip on it's own!)


ETA: If you have any questions at all about the hotel, please feel free to ask!

 

[MeishkaD]

Also, I would love to add chapter links to the top post if anyone would be so kind as to explain how it works. I am not familiar with how the coding works here, I am used to the reddit system. Help? Pretty please?

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Joining in! Sound like a really nice 1:1 (+1) time with your oldest daughter and great how into everything she seems! Just in that picture of her looking for the characters at breakfast you can see the excitement!

We are planning our first trip ever to Disneyland this October and despite being a veteran to Walt Disney World the planning had seemed very foreign to me - so finding a lot of your tips really helpful!

Still amazes me how overly organized things are at WDW compared to at Disneyland - even for things like the Jedi Accademy - at WDW you have to sign up first thing in the morning for a specific time slot, etc. - vs just holding up a sign and hoping to be chosen as you experienced at Disneyland.

Glad you enjoyed the hotel. If we stayed on site I think the PPH is where we would have wound up but just cost wise felt we got more for our money at a good neighbor hotel (we booked a 2-room suite at the HoJo)

BTW, if you want to do chapter links, the easiest thing to do is click on the little number of the post you want to link to (found in the lower right just to the left of "Like") and that will bring up a pop-up with a direct link to that post - copy that link in the top text box. Then, where you want the link to be, type out what you want to see in the post, highlight that text and then click the icon at the top of the edit area that looks like a chain link. That will bring up a pop-up window - paste in the link you had copied into this text box and click ok.

For example, for your first post, clicking on the little #1 brings up this link:
http://www.disboards.com/threads/first-trip-as-a-parent-3-days-pph-stay-update-4-6-2015.3395858/

Then I typed the below, highlighted it and based in the above link into the text box in the pop-up window and clicked ok
Link to first post in this thread

Hope that works for you!

 

[MeishkaD]

Joining in! Sound like a really nice 1:1 (+1) time with your oldest daughter and great how into everything she seems! Just in that picture of her looking for the characters at breakfast you can see the excitement!

We are planning our first trip ever to Disneyland this October and despite being a veteran to Walt Disney World the planning had seemed very foreign to me - so finding a lot of your tips really helpful!

Still amazes me how overly organized things are at WDW compared to at Disneyland - even for things like the Jedi Accademy - at WDW you have to sign up first thing in the morning for a specific time slot, etc. - vs just holding up a sign and hoping to be chosen as you experienced at Disneyland.

Glad you enjoyed the hotel. If we stayed on site I think the PPH is where we would have wound up but just cost wise felt we got more for our money at a good neighbor hotel (we booked a 2-room suite at the HoJo)

BTW, if you want to do chapter links, the easiest thing to do is click on the little number of the post you want to link to (found in the lower right just to the left of "Like") and that will bring up a pop-up with a direct link to that post - copy that link in the top text box. Then, where you want the link to be, type out what you want to see in the post, highlight that text and then click the icon at the top of the edit area that looks like a chain link. That will bring up a pop-up window - paste in the link you had copied into this text box and click ok.

For example, for your first post, clicking on the little #1 brings up this link:
http://www.disboards.com/threads/first-trip-as-a-parent-3-days-pph-stay-update-4-6-2015.3395858/

Then I typed the below, highlighted it and based in the above link into the text box in the pop-up window and clicked ok
Link to first post in this thread

Hope that works for you!

Thanks for following along, I am still new to this and learning as I go. Finally got the chapter links to work, thank you very much!

I feel the same way about WDW planning. Seems so complicated. So many things to figure out well in advance. I am super jealous of all the hotel options though. I was playing around with possible future vacations and managed to put together a trip for a week stay at POR in the royal rooms with the dining plan for not much more than a week at DLH with no food plan. (The DLR dining plan is a total waste) I love planning possible future adventures. The flights to Florida from the West Coast always sadden me, but I was delighted to discover that Tokyo Disneyland is not out of the question for us at all!! I am also starting to eyeball some cruises, I think I may be addicted to Disney, lol.

I got so many great ideas for our trip from this site, but also from a couple of sub reddits. I am not sure what the rules are about linking other sites here, but some googling about might get you started. There are quite a few posts from current and former cast members that I found very helpful. We also were sent a little pixie dust in the mail in the way of some pins to trade from a friendly local.

I have heard so many great things about the HoJo, we are considering a December trip and it is near the top of our GNH list. Trying to balance budget, proximity, and my preference for theme. We shall see how the budget develops as we get closer.

 

[momtohms]

How fun! My DH and I are taking our kids for the first time since we became parents in May and we are also staying at PPH and have the Surf's Up Breakfast scheduled for the morning we arrive to kick off our trip Off to finish reading your review, I didn't make it past the first post before I had to comment but I'll be following along for sure

 

[HairyBaby]

Awesome post for first-timers traveling to Disneyland. Loved the pictures and all the tips and tricks you learned along the way. Thanks for sharing!

 

[HairyBaby]

Just one quick question about the Jedi Training Academy...In the past, they gave the new padwan graduates a certificate at the end of the show. Do they still do that?

 

[MeishkaD]

Just one quick question about the Jedi Training Academy...In the past, they gave the new padwan graduates a certificate at the end of the show. Do they still do that?

Thanks for following along and please do let me know if you have any further questions! As far as the Jedi Training Academy goes we received a nice certificate that had a place for us to fill in her name.

 

[HairyBaby]

That's a keeper! Thanks for posting the pic, too!

 

[MeishkaD]

Princesses, Puns, and Pyrotechnics

As I had stated previously, we decided not to risk the extra steps should the monorail still be down. So off we strolled through DTD to enter the park the classic way. There is just something about the main gate that is magical. Couldn't walk by without capturing a photo of this classic.

Once inside we decided to mark another item off our must do list. Off to the Fantasy Faire it was! My sister began to balk at the 30 minute wait, but I reminded her that this was one of the things my daughter was most looking forward to. I offered to let her go do something else and meet us back in bit, but she declined. So we got our places in line and began our wait. This was probably one of the slower lines we waited in, but as it was due to the princesses taking time to really make the meeting special for each child I really can't complain. While standing in line my daughter managed to make friends with the family in front of us. It turned out we all had pin lanyards, so some trades were made. This is where I learned that neither my daughter nor myself could say no to a trade with a child. (TIP: If you manage to trade for a pin you really love, just pocket it. Leaving it on the lanyard runs the risk of having to say goodbye to the pin or say no to an adorable child) The new friends made the wait seem shorter and before we knew it we were about to meet our very first princess.

(TIP: My daughter always loves bringing friends and loved ones gifts. Knowing full well that even purchasing smaller presents would add up very quickly I put a lot of thought into figuring out what we could do for little to no cost. We ended up deciding to try our hardest to get small video clips on my iPhone of her friends and cousins favorite characters saying hello. We were very lucky that everyone had a different favorite and none were too obscure.)

We came around the corner and were delighted to see Cinderella. She was very sweet with my daughter and had no problem sending a quick hello to one of our friends at home. We had paid for the Photopass+ but I wasn't sure what the quality would be so I took many additional photos. In the future I think I will trust them and just sit back and enjoy the experience.

I felt incredibly silly posing for the photos, but did it anyway. I am sure years later I will be glad I joined in on the fun. (I am normally the family photographer and I have never come home from a trip with so many photos of myself. More points for Photopass)

Next around the corner we were ecstatic to meet Belle. She was always my sister's favorite and was on our friends list as well. I have to say that Belle was in particular fine form today and was absolute perfection in her role. This friend of Belle is worth her weight in gold. She made extra sure that she got my daughter's cousins name right for the hello video and otherwise just really made us all feel special.

My daughter was really hoping to meet Aurora so I had my fingers crossed that we might find her in the next room. Sadly, she was nowhere to be found. However, we were delighted to find Mulan waiting to greet us. She was my daughter's first princess and remains one of her favorites. Going into the trip I knew that sightings of her were quite uncommon, so my daughter was prepared not to meet her. What a great surprise!

Upon exciting the royal hall, we stumbled across the beginging of the Frozen show and my sister and daughter managed to get some decent viewing spots back behind the crowds. While they watched I ran off to check the wait times for the fairies. They were sitting at about 40 minutes. I popped in a couple shops and did some quick pin trades and made my way back to my group just as the show was finishing up. We had a bit more chaos over the fairies. My sister absolutely refused to wait in the line, and also refused to separate and do something else. I should have insisted, but I was trying to keep the peace. At this point in the day all the lines were getting lengthy so it was hard to get anyone to commit to anything. Finally we settled on IASW as it was a short line.

Parts of the facade were still under construction, but what we could see was gorgeous and upon review of my previous trip pictures a nice update/refresh.

One of my goals on this trip was to get at least a few shots of the dark rides with no flash. My camera is not perfectly designed for this, but a large step up from my old point and shoot. Thankfully I had read enough forum complaints about LCD screens to know to turn that off during the ride as well so I could snap away without diminishing the experience for my fellow guests. Score one for common courtesy, woot! Here are the few that I got that turned out decently. Not bad for a first attempt.

This one would have been far superior had I actually know the gentlemen in the boat in front of us.

So two workable shots from actually in the ride. I will try again on a later trip when I am less focused on other things.

After we exited the ride of course we entered straight into a gift shop. (TIP: I established a budget early on and an agreement that we wouldn't be making impulse purchases. If she saw something she liked, she would have to think about it awhile before making a purchase) We found an amazing Aurora doll, but decided to wait and consider it.

It seemed like a good time for a rest and regroup so we went and found a stall that was selling cotton candy and a shady bench. I thouroughly enjoy both of the shots I got of girls sharing their treat.

Take note of how the Olaf on the bag has been carefully draped across my sister's lap for these candid shots. This gives a little insight into how my sister works. I will admit it makes for a nice shot and helps to make the photos instantly identifiable as Disneyland memories.

We decided it was time to check out the other side of the park that we had yet to see and made our way through the path that runs behind Big Thunder Mountain. (TIP: Although I do not believe this is faster than cutting back through the hub, the path is wide and rarely crowded. Much more pleasant and I can imagine it would be way easier to navigate with a stroller/wheelchair/ECV) Along the way we decided to get a nice shot with Big Thunder Mountain in the background. It is by far my favorite ride. Possibly due to our many trips when we were taking turns standing in the 4 hour lines for Indy during our 1995 trip. (SIDENOTE: I know that line holding is a hot topic. I personally feel that in the rare occasion where lines are spilling across the park and through various lands it is fine to swap so long as one can still easily duck under ropes to join their party and the group waiting is never smaller than the group joining. Personal opinion.)

We had previously discussed Haunted Mansion and it was an absolute no go for my daughter. Too late in the day to do Tom Sawyer and the line from Pirate's was excessive. Critter Country was still completely under wraps and my sister instant vetoed the Mark Twain. Some chaos happened. I finally got everyone excited about the fact that we could just walk on Tarzan's treehouse, no wait needed, so off we went. I have to admit that it's just not the same as Swiss Family. Pretty good, but not the same. My daughter however loves Tarzan, so I appreciated it much more through her eyes.

I was very glad to not only see this scary kitty, but get a photo to remind me. May want to re-route the toddlers should be return.

Here we took a moment for a nice portrait. There was a great little area that seemed designed just with this in mind.

A poor combination of depth perception and a bad ageing knee made for a bit of excitement for me navigating up and down the tree. Henceforth I referred to the attraction as Tarzan's Tree of Terror.

Once off we decided that we must hit Jungle Cruise as it's a classic and I inisteded. I knew that the wait listed out front must be a bit deceptive as they were running the lines through the second story of the boathouse, but I kept my mouth thoroughly shut. Subterfuge for the win! It was very cool to get a good look at all the little details up there and by the time my sister realized we had cruised (pun gleefully intended) past the expected wait time it was too late to turn back.

It was largely the same old cruise, but we were blessed with an outstanding skipper. He kept the boat chuckling the whole ride through. I was startled by a crocodile as I hadn't been paying attention and brought a smile to the skipper's face as well.

Ssh, the zebra is "sleeping"

I understand that many long time visitors don't appreciate the updates to the attraction. But I am quite happy they no longer shoot at the hippos. That would have really bothered me as a child.

The new piranha effect also got a good jump from me. I think I may have made the skipper's night. I also got splashed a fair amount.

I will leave you for the night with a friendly wave from Trader Sam. More updates to follow. Thanks so much for following along!

 

[MeishkaD]

My pictures didn't reformat to the right size, I will attempt to fix in the morning.

 

[Jaina]

Nice pictures! The hotel sounds really fun! Maybe someday we'll do a splurge trip and stay at the PP with our kids. We stayed at the WDW Dolphin when I went to WDW (since it was a sponsored school national thing) and I loved the continued theming and being "in the bubble." I'm glad you were sneaky and went on the Jungle Cruise. I'm surprised your sister didn't realize the line was long if it was upstairs if she goes so often, but a point for you. Excited to read more soon!

 

[MeishkaD]

Nice pictures! The hotel sounds really fun! Maybe someday we'll do a splurge trip and stay at the PP with our kids. We stayed at the WDW Dolphin when I went to WDW (since it was a sponsored school national thing) and I loved the continued theming and being "in the bubble." I'm glad you were sneaky and went on the Jungle Cruise. I'm surprised your sister didn't realize the line was long if it was upstairs if she goes so often, but a point for you. Excited to read more soon!

Thanks, the pictures are a mix of shots from my iPhone, my Canon, and of course the PhotoPass shots. PP is way better than many give it credit for, although if I had the extra money I would probably prefer the DLH. Things will get a bit trickier as the kids grow as many rooms are designed for 4 people.

Apparently they only consider the Jungle Cruise worth it if it's a walk on. She actually commented as we started upstairs that she didn't realize the upper portion was for queuing and not just for show. I was thrilled to get a chance to really see it as the ride has usually been about a 5 minute wait on my previous visits.