How much Christmas can we squeeze into 3 days? Nov/Dec 2015 TR *NEW TR Link 5/18!*

[hokieinpa]

Wow, that Santa looks fantastic! Good job Disney, great beard and mustache and good costume! Thank you for sharing

He was really awesome! They boys were in total awe.

Santa looked like lots of fun. I love the pager method too.

Waiting to hear about the T-Rex wait! We may or may not be there tomorrow night.

The pager system was a lifesaver - I can't imagine waiting in that kind of line.

I hope you're having a great time!

Shorter than expected waits are always a bonus!

Agreed!

Aww....

It was a really sweet moment!

Now this is one to save and bring out on his 21st birthday!

That will be going into the "Blackmail File" I've started compiling on each boy...

I'm glad it was such a great meet with Santa!

It was really fun for the boys! And the pager system was really amazing!

I loved meeting Santa at Downtown Dis...er...Disney Springs in November! We had the same problem trying to remember what to call the darn place! And my son is also a pretty new reader, so believe me I totally get it about not being able to get ANYTHING past him!!

I'm not sure when I'll get used to saying Disney Springs!

My Mom and I were there pretty early in the month, so I didn't even think we'd have the opportunity to see Santa. Well, lo and behold, the night of our MVMCP we were wandering afterward and THERE WAS THE CHALET!! SANTA! I KNOW HIM! in full force for sure We didn't get to use the pager system though because there were barely any people around. We waited for about 10 minutes until he came back from his milk and cookie break. Pure magic

Yay! What a fun memory! It was such a cute set up.

(Oh, and HUGE UGH at the in-laws and their extra guest to join your ADR. People have NO CLUE!!!!! how much that could throw a wrench in your plans!!!)

Yes! I know they assume that reservations can be changed quickly and easily but that's in the regular world...this is Disney!

Joining in!! We stayed at Pop Century last year, and had a very similar itinerary to yours! Seeing the pictures of the tree in the lobby and the hotel, I'm all flooded with emotions!

Thanks for following along!

Pop was such a fun resort! The perfect spot for our quick trip!

How did you like your room? We were on the ground floor in the 50's building and I really wasn't THAT crazy about it. We could hear everything going on above us (toilets flushing, water rushing through the pipes, etc.) and in both of the rooms next door were very LOUD families lol
I'd like to try staying there again, because it's such a great value. So I'm curious if the preferred rooms are any better.

The only issue we had was a little guest noise from the pool area. But that quieted down by about 10 each night. We were on the 3rd floor and didn't have any issues with noise from the rooms around us.

Your boys are adorable and I'm really enjoying your TR!

Thank you!

I just haven't even bothered yet. I know if I try to refer to it as Disney Springs. I also confuse myself if I shorten it down to DS so I just stick to DTD.

It's been so hard to make the switch! I may just boycott and stick with Downtown Disney!

Sigh! Good point. I suppose I should at some point explain to Little Miss that the name has been changed.

She'll keep you straight once she knows the new name, I'm sure!

Right???

This is where I get beyond grateful for 2 things..... 1) I have a DH that understands how these things work and always defers to my judgment on these issues. 2)My in laws are far far far away and I don't have to deal with them.

You are a lucky girl! I'm not sure Jim will ever really understand the amount of planning it takes!

Well I guess its not that bad if you aren't standing around for the full 2 hours.

The 120 minute wait was pretty scary but the pager system was great! Like Dumbo, except with shopping!

I always forget to really look up while I'm in there. I'm always doing too much shopping or watching Little Miss.

I never used to look at ceilings until I read TRs and people would have amazing pictures of these details in shops that I never noticed!

I applaud your patience!

It was soooo hard at times!

That picture is just so him! I'm glad the photographer captured that moment for us!

Here's hoping everything works out!

You and me both!

I knew you would understand!

Oh man, I think I can already relate to this. I loved T-Rex, but I did NOT love the meteor showers!

We were NOT fans!

Joining-in and am all caught up! Loving your trip report ..and your boys are totally adorable! Reading your report has me thinking about scheduling a Christmas trip for the same time-frame this year..... Day afer Black-Friday and WDW is already decorated and in the full holiday-swing? Sound perfect to me Can't wait to read what happens next!

Thanks for following along!

And we loved our Christmas trip! It was the perfect time to visit - all of the parks and resorts are decorated and celebrating. But the crowds were pretty low the entire time!

 

[khertz]

Adorable pics with Santa! It looks like a really nice meet & greet area. I'm sure it's tough to get three kids all looking at the camera and smiling at the same time. lol

Looking forward to T-Rex. I'm interested in checking that out now that DS is craaaaaazy about dinosaurs.

 

[kastoney]

Love all the Santa pictures. I think I would have been yelling to meet the real Santa too. Can't wait to hear how dinner turns out

 

[DisMom1981]

Love the Santa pics. We saw him and the Mrs at Epcot. I miss our Disney Christmas!

 

[MissMaryQC]

Jamie! I have caught up and I am loving this trip!

Those boys of yours are just the cutest. And you get big props from me for being so patient and calm about the added guests; hope your hubby knows how lucky he is!

My SIL said they LOved the Santa experience at DS, our meet with Santa was less than magical this year, I do hope DD meets "the real Santa" at DS some day.

Can't wait to see how dinner unfolds!

 

[ashw100]

All caught up . How awesome that you got connecting rooms. I know the rooms are plain but I'm still excited to say there because it just looks fun. I hope Trex was able to accommodate you extra people without too long a wait. I know the stress you felt, my in laws joined us on half our trip 2 weeks before we left and I had to squeeze them in our ADRs and FPs . I can't believe 120 minutes for santa. The pager system is nice though, glad you got to shop instead of wait in line.

 

[hokieinpa]

Adorable pics with Santa! It looks like a really nice meet & greet area. I'm sure it's tough to get three kids all looking at the camera and smiling at the same time. lol

Looking forward to T-Rex. I'm interested in checking that out now that DS is craaaaaazy about dinosaurs.

We really enjoyed the meet - especially with the pager system in place! And the chalet was really nice. And you're so right about our pictures - I take an insane amount of pictures just trying to get one where they are all looking at me!

I think it's a must-do, at least once, for all dinosaur fans!

Love all the Santa pictures. I think I would have been yelling to meet the real Santa too. Can't wait to hear how dinner turns out

I'm just going to go ahead and claim that it was just my excitement over the boys getting to experience all the magic of Christmas that had me so giddy at the thought of meeting Santa...

Love the Santa pics. We saw him and the Mrs at Epcot. I miss our Disney Christmas!

I read that the meet at Epcot was really amazing! I wish we had gotten to that. But so much Christmas...so little time!

And I miss Disney Christmas too!

Jamie! I have caught up and I am loving this trip!

Thanks for following along again!

Those boys of yours are just the cutest. And you get big props from me for being so patient and calm about the added guests; hope your hubby knows how lucky he is!

Thank you!

And looking back, I realize that not everyone really understands how much planning goes into these trips. To them, it's just a normal reservation that can be changed the same day with no problem. I think most people have no idea that we make these reservations 6 months before the trip!

My SIL said they LOved the Santa experience at DS, our meet with Santa was less than magical this year, I do hope DD meets "the real Santa" at DS some day.

Oh, no! I'm sorry your meet wasn't great. We really enjoyed our time with Santa. Even more so with the pager system meaning we didn't have to wait in line!

Can't wait to see how dinner unfolds!

Hopefully an update will be here soon!

All caught up . How awesome that you got connecting rooms. I know the rooms are plain but I'm still excited to say there because it just looks fun.

Thanks for joining in!

I was so happy to have connecting rooms. It made life so much easier since Nate was staying with my parents.

And Pop is so much fun! I love the theme. I felt so bad that we didn't get a chance to swim or explore the resort since we were there for such a quick trip. But I'm pretty sure Pop will be where I say for my solo trip in the fall unless an amazing discount comes out. The dedicated bus system with one stop is so nice!

I hope Trex was able to accommodate you extra people without too long a wait. I know the stress you felt, my in laws joined us on half our trip 2 weeks before we left and I had to squeeze them in our ADRs and FPs .

I think most people have no idea that Disney takes so much thought and planning. Most dinner reservations can be made/changed the day of and I don't think anyone who hasn't planned a Disney trip gets that we do this stuff months in advance!

I can't believe 120 minutes for santa. The pager system is nice though, glad you got to shop instead of wait in line.

It was a crazy wait but that pager system was a lifesaver!

 

[NJlauren]

All caught up! I have fallen really behind around here!

Seems like you had a pretty uneventful flights, and DME experience, even if you had to wait a bit...

I loved that they had the blocks, and hula hoops at the front i think its a cute idea for the kids.

Love the pics at Disney Springs! I think the buzzer for Santa is a great idea, the lines for Santa get so crazy its kinda nice to be able to cut the wait time down! Plus that's a good Sanat!

Interested to see what happens with wait at Trex....

 

[hokieinpa]

All caught up! I have fallen really behind around here!

You and me both!

Seems like you had a pretty uneventful flights, and DME experience, even if you had to wait a bit...

I'll take a little wait over fussy kids or travel drama any day!

I loved that they had the blocks, and hula hoops at the front i think its a cute idea for the kids.

It was a really nice touch! It got the boys in play/vacation mode right away!

Love the pics at Disney Springs! I think the buzzer for Santa is a great idea, the lines for Santa get so crazy its kinda nice to be able to cut the wait time down! Plus that's a good Sanat!

It was a really great system. Like Dumbo but with shopping! And he was an awesome Santa!!

Interested to see what happens with wait at Trex....

Update coming soon!

 

[hokieinpa]

"Not another meteor shower!"


*I'm switching my photo storage over to Flickr from this point on...and if I'm feeling ambitious I might try and go back to redo all the photo links in this TR. Hopefully it will help with the huge size of the images!


After our short and sweet wait/meet with Santa, it was on to dinner...aka the center of the family drama.

I had called TRex Cafe to make our reservation since I couldn't find any times on MDE. I made the reservation for 7 people for 6:00...since that was the number of people in our travel party and everything. Or so I thought.

When I called TRex Cafe in the morning to add on our new dinner guests, the hostess told me our wait might go up but they would be able to squeeze us all in. So I speed walked ahead of everyone else and waited in the short line to check in. I was really shocked at the number of people walking up with no ADRs!

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When it was my turn, I explained the situation and the hostess was all like "No problem here!"


Really? I mean, I'll take it. But in all honesty, I was hoping there would be a little hassle to show Jim and his family how changing plans a the last minute can make things difficult. I feel like the lack of repercussions justifies their lack of planning. Darn that Disney customer service!

I was given a slip of paper and directed to wait near some kind of jeep. They told me our name would be called in about 15 minutes. Sure enough, 15 minutes later we were being led to our table. So just as an FYI, increasing your party by up to 3 people appears to have no impact on wait time.

I think we were all in awe of the sights and sounds as we walked through the restaurant!

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Our host led us to a table in the ice cave. Now this was the one room that I really didn't want to be seated in. But with our situation being what it was, I didn't really want to argue too much about our seating location.

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As we got settled, we took it all in. And then it started. Our first meter shower.

Lights flashing, drums beating (maybe feet stomping?), and dinosaurs roaring. Needless to say, it was not my favorite part of our meal. Nate was really not a fan. It seemed like the meteor showers started about every 20 minutes. At which point Nate would dramatically throw down his crayons and shout "Not another meteor shower!" I feel ya, buddy.

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I took Colin on a walk while we were waiting for our food and we had fun exploring!

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I didn't take pictures of the food but the boys all got Dino Bites (dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets), my dad and Jim got the Brontoburger, I got the Pteradactyl Salad, and my mom got some kind of veggie flatbread. Everything was delicious so no complaints there.

The two things that did bother the entire table - it was COLD (ice cave, remember) and the lights were regularly changing colors. Red to blue to purple and back again. It made reading the menu or even really seeing your food difficult. Overall, I would go back to TRex but just make sure to request NOT to be seated in the ice cave!

After we were done, we all headed over to the dump shop area to check it out!


Next up - Dinos and Dance Parties

 

[DonnaBeeGood]

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[KathyM2]

I would recommend this Santa meet if you have plans to be in Disney Springs! It was nice to check in and then take care of our browsing while we waited.

This sounds awesome. I wish that the Santa meets at malls would take some tips from this because those lines can be interminable.

I was really shocked at the number of people walking up with no ADRs!

Right? I remember being boggled by this when we went to Sci Fi Diner. I was all "seriously? you think you can just walk up and get a table?" Snark. Sorry...ahem.

But in all honesty, I was hoping there would be a little hassle to show Jim and his family how changing plans a the last minute can make things difficult

I totally know what you mean. They should learn to plan!!!!

 

[missangelalexis]

I'm glad everything worked out for you all, though I'm sorry the seating location wasn't ideal! Love those pics of Colin, so cute!

 

[BlvInMagic]

Oy, I feel your pain! We were seated in the Ice Cave at T-Rex this summer and it was just an awful place to be seated......between the bad lighting, the coldness of the room and the constant meteor showers........it was definitely one of those "we're not going there again" experiences. Our ears were ringing once we left womp womp

 

[Gracefulskinny]

When it was my turn, I explained the situation and the hostess was all like "No problem here!"

Really? I mean, I'll take it. But in all honesty, I was hoping there would be a little hassle to show Jim and his family how changing plans a the last minute can make things difficult. I feel like the lack of repercussions justifies their lack of planning. Darn that Disney customer service!

I totally get that! Frankly I might have been the same way.

Lights flashing, drums beating (maybe feet stomping?), and dinosaurs roaring. Needless to say, it was not my favorite part of our meal. Nate was really not a fan. It seemed like the meteor showers started about every 20 minutes. At which point Nate would dramatically throw down his crayons and shout "Not another meteor shower!" I feel ya, buddy.

And this is why I won't ever eat there. I actually saw an interview once with the head of the Franchises and he point blank admitted that the show is timed to discourage people from staying at the tables longer. The volume and timing of it is set in such a way as to make it annoying to linger longer than they want you there.

 

[kastoney]

Glad they were able to accommodate your whole party, but with ya on the no repercussions parts. Kudos to T-Rex and all, but unfortunately for you it sounds like being able to seat everyone may continue the party crashing in the future. Hope for your sake this isn't the case.

That meteor shower sounds "interesting." Does it just happen in the ice caves or in the whole restaurant?

 

[hokieinpa]

So glad that the reservation change did end up going smoothly for you. Murphy's Law - since you worried about it, it turned out great. If you had just assumed there would be no problem, probably colossal problems. Thanks for your insight into the restaurant - I don't think either DH or myself would cope very good with the noise aspect, no matter how great the food and ambiance, but that's why there are different choices for different people!

It really was Murphy's Law! All of my worry and stress for nothing!

And TRex is not a relaxing dining experience. I feel like one visit was more than enough for me but the boys love it so I see a return trip in our future.

This sounds awesome. I wish that the Santa meets at malls would take some tips from this because those lines can be interminable.

The pager system was so nice! And our mall actually had a text deal this year - you sign up on an app and then they text you when it's your turn. We went to a shorter line and waited less than 10 minutes. It was perfect!

Right? I remember being boggled by this when we went to Sci Fi Diner. I was all "seriously? you think you can just walk up and get a table?" Snark. Sorry...ahem.

Isn't it crazy? And these people were genuinely shocked at the 2+ hour wait. And no need to apologize for snark here!

I totally know what you mean. They should learn to plan!!!!

That is my biggest wish but I sadly think it will never happen. Which is why I plan all of our family vacations!

I'm glad everything worked out for you all, though I'm sorry the seating location wasn't ideal! Love those pics of Colin, so cute!

Eating in the ice cave was not a relaxing dining experience! But I was really happy that we didn't have to wait long with the change to our reservation. And thanks - dinosaurs are a huge deal around here!

Oy, I feel your pain! We were seated in the Ice Cave at T-Rex this summer and it was just an awful place to be seated......between the bad lighting, the coldness of the room and the constant meteor showers........it was definitely one of those "we're not going there again" experiences. Our ears were ringing once we left womp womp

The Ice Cave was AWFUL! And I had read reviews of it online saying it was awful. I just didn't want to push it with changing our reservation too. I felt like I had a headache the entire time! But the boys really did love it and unfortunately, I see a return trip in our future.

I totally get that! Frankly I might have been the same way.

Right? And I'm glad someone else gets it! Sadly, I don't think a long wait (or anything really) will change their lack of planning!

And this is why I won't ever eat there. I actually saw an interview once with the head of the Franchises and he point blank admitted that the show is timed to discourage people from staying at the tables longer. The volume and timing of it is set in such a way as to make it annoying to linger longer than they want you there.

That really does make sense. It was not a relaxing dining experience at all. I would be fine never going back but Nate has declared it his "favorite restaurant EVER" and I think we might be making a return visit at some point.

Glad they were able to accommodate your whole party, but with ya on the no repercussions parts. Kudos to T-Rex and all, but unfortunately for you it sounds like being able to seat everyone may continue the party crashing in the future. Hope for your sake this isn't the case.

I was happy that TRex could seat us quickly even with a change to our reservation. Sadly, I don't think anything will change the lack of planning on that side of the family. Which is why I plan 100% of our family vacations!

That meteor shower sounds "interesting." Does it just happen in the ice caves or in the whole restaurant?

"Interesting" is the perfect word to describe those meteor showers and all of TRex, actually. The meteor showers take place throughout the restaurant but the effects seem the greatest in the ice cave where the multi-colored lights are flashing all at once.

 

[MissMaryQC]

When the great Disney service bites you in the butt...

I would have liked at least a little "it might be a few minutes." Even just to give DH that look. But it's good you guys didn't have too much hassle with the change!

Ood, sounds like dinner in a disco! I'm glad the food was good, but I'll be sure to request to not eat in the ice cave when we go!

 

[Vernie822]

Why can't they just all look at the camera? Just once??

LOL! Hey they tried! I can't imagine how hard it is to get all of them to stand still for a picture, haha.

Why, yes it is! And at that moment, Colin took off like a wild man for the giant can of Play Doh. Can you guess what was on his mind? Doesn't it just look like the perfect thing for a 3 year old to climb and play on? Luckily, Jim caught him just as he reached his target. We pointed out the no climbing sign and promised him time to go wild at the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground the next day.

Hahahahaha.. Giant can of Playdoh, I'd go running too!

Look at Jake with that remote, lol! He's all business Really we like Pop too especially for quick trips. Hopefully you guys had good luck with the buses, we always do. It's a cute resort and like you said if you're just sleeping there, it's just right.

She wanted to meet us at Disney Springs to hang out and have dinner. Which would have been ok, except we had an ADR at TRex Cafe that night. I tried to explain to Jim that it might be hard to adjust the number on our reservation but he insisted it wouldn't be a big deal. His family plans absolutely nothing so this last minute addition was no big deal to him, but for me...

Ahhahahahahaha... I feel you.. I'm sure all of us here do.. Like what do you even say to them!? "Do you understand I was up at 6 AM 180 days ago to make this reservation!?" But really my fiance's family can be the same way and I plan EVERYTHING out far in advance.. so yeah, I hear ya.

At this point, I was just like why not?

What can ya do!? Lol. It's so hard to explain to non-Disney goers!

Awwwww, this turned out really cute! Not bad at all. Seems like they had quite the system set up. That's so nice that you could go walk around and shop while you waited.

*I'm switching my photo storage over to Flickr from this point on...and if I'm feeling ambitious I might try and go back to redo all the photo links in this TR. Hopefully it will help with the huge size of the images!

Did Photobucket crap out for you too!? I tried adding pics from our November trip and it wouldn't let me get past like the third day so I had to switch to Flickr.

Really? I mean, I'll take it. But in all honesty, I was hoping there would be a little hassle to show Jim and his family how changing plans a the last minute can make things difficult. I feel like the lack of repercussions justifies their lack of planning. Darn that Disney customer service!

Lol Disney pulls through once again! I'm glad it all worked out, but wouldn't you like to say "I told you so!?"

The two things that did bother the entire table - it was COLD (ice cave, remember) and the lights were regularly changing colors. Red to blue to purple and back again. It made reading the menu or even really seeing your food difficult. Overall, I would go back to TRex but just make sure to request NOT to be seated in the ice cave!

Omg, I haven't eaten there since probably 2009 but I remember sitting in there too. It had just opened a few years prior so I had no idea what to expect. And I was like what in the world is happening!? And it was freezing the entire time. Really cute place though and it's so well themed. I'm sure the boys loved it.

 

[ashw100]

Really? I mean, I'll take it. But in all honesty, I was hoping there would be a little hassle to show Jim and his family how changing plans a the last minute can make things difficult. I feel like the lack of repercussions justifies their lack of planning. Darn that Disney customer service!

That's funny, would feel the same way too about it.

Lights flashing, drums beating (maybe feet stomping?), and dinosaurs roaring. Needless to say, it was not my favorite part of our meal. Nate was really not a fan. It seemed like the meteor showers started about every 20 minutes. At which point Nate would dramatically throw down his crayons and shout "Not another meteor shower!" I feel ya, buddy.

Connor feels the same way about the storms at Rainforest

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These pictures are too cute