Princess&JackMom
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jun 7, 2010
- Messages
- 200
We are back from our first full trip to the World with our 4 year old twins and this is my first trip report. I will try to be brief.
It was truly a magical time. And for those of you considering going with 4 year olds or going the first week of September, you cant pick a better time. It was a little hot but not unbearable and a little rain really helped (the rain did not impede us in any way; in fact, I hoped for rain at one point at HS because it was so hot there.)
First, there were no crowds at all. We literally walked on most rides with no wait. The only waits at MK were for Dumbo (about 15 minutes) and meeting the Princesses (10 minutes); I should say we do not get to the parks before 10 so there probably wasn't a wait before then. At MK it rained one night and we road Tea Cup 3x in a row without getting up (or getting sick) and then moved to Pooh for two rides then did Buzz 3x in a row. It was fab! It rained a little the next two days (maybe 15 minutes at a time) and that was it. At AK, we went on Everest with little wait and went on the rapids 4x in a row. The place was a ghost town after 4 (we went there the day after EMH).
The longest wait time of the week we saw was at HS with TSM. We got to the park after 10 and got a FP for it to come back at 2:40 and when we came in to do it, the regular line wait was 60 minutes so we only did that once. Still, for my twins, it was similar to Buzz and they liked Buzz better (I think because the gun at Buzz is easier to use for them).
We arrived at WL on Labor Day. The Magical Express was waiting for us and we got right on and after we checked in to our room, our bags arrived a few minutes later.
We really enjoyed staying at WL. The standard room was a little small for us but it worked out because we really only slept there. Next time, when our twins our older, we will have to do a bigger room. While we only had a woods view, we had a great location, room 3112, around the corner from the elevator and right off the lobby. The room was super quiet (maybe because there werent many people staying that week?).
The twins favorite thing about the hotel? Running down the long ramp to Roaring Fork and the docks each morning. My daughter loved the pool, too, and I absolutely loved taking the boat to MK. The bus to AK was a little long from WL.
We also did the QSDP for this trip and that worked out great. However, I dont think we got the most use out of our refillable mugs because my children dont drink soda. We did end up with a lot of beverages, though, because my husband and I each got two drinks every morning with our breakfast so we never were without water or juice or milk. If would do QSDP again the next time we stay on property, though we did have to struggle a bit the last day to use up all our snack credits. We thought the breakfast at Roaring Fork was great; we only had snacks and drinks there the rest of the time so I can't really comment on lunch or dinner.
My DD went on every ride she was tall enough for, even ones I thought were too scary for her. I didnt want her to do Snow White, but she insisted and liked it. My DS is a little more timid and he was actually asleep at that time so he missed that but they both did Haunted Mansion and Pirates. My DD also did Dinosaur at AK and was a little scared but she understood it was pretend (my son did not want to go on it). They both liked the play areas the best (at AK and HS) though they really wanted to keep going on rides so next trip we probably wont do HS as there arent enough rides there for them. My DD also found every water splash area and loved getting soaked. My DS doesn't like getting splashed with his clothes on so she usually went in those while he was napping.
On our last day the twins went to the Pirate League. My DD loved it; my son was tired and wasnt really in the mood for it but his pirate was able to get him to wear a little make up and once he heard he would get a sword and get some treasure he behaved better and enjoyed it. He did, however, immediately fall asleep after we left. The photos in the secret room came out great so I had to buy them. Spent a little more $$ there than I expected but again, this is not something they are going to do every trip so the expense was worth it.
All in all, a great first experience for them. I am still recovering though as I got blisters on day three from my Crocs.
The coolest part for me was being at the parks and staying to closing and being the last one in an area. I had never seen the parks so empty (after 7 at HS and after 5 at AK). We ran into characters left and right with no to little waits and Photopass photographers were everywhere.
As for Photopass, we did the pre-order of the CD so I tried to use them as often as we could because I didnt want to bring my big Canon camera. It worked out great. Their photos of us were beautiful. We ended up with about 140 Photopass pictures I would say 135 were usable (meaning we were all looking at the camera), so it was definitely worth the $99. After I added borders, we ended up with more than 400 photos (I do wish they had more borders, though). I would definitely do it again.
I hope this helps anyone thinking of going next September with twins or little ones who want to stay at WL. It was a great time and seeing the joy and twinkle in the kids eyes as they saw the characters (especially when they saw Mickey) was worth every penny! Though, for my son, I think next time we will stay at a Monorail hotel because that was his favorite part of the trip.
It was truly a magical time. And for those of you considering going with 4 year olds or going the first week of September, you cant pick a better time. It was a little hot but not unbearable and a little rain really helped (the rain did not impede us in any way; in fact, I hoped for rain at one point at HS because it was so hot there.)
First, there were no crowds at all. We literally walked on most rides with no wait. The only waits at MK were for Dumbo (about 15 minutes) and meeting the Princesses (10 minutes); I should say we do not get to the parks before 10 so there probably wasn't a wait before then. At MK it rained one night and we road Tea Cup 3x in a row without getting up (or getting sick) and then moved to Pooh for two rides then did Buzz 3x in a row. It was fab! It rained a little the next two days (maybe 15 minutes at a time) and that was it. At AK, we went on Everest with little wait and went on the rapids 4x in a row. The place was a ghost town after 4 (we went there the day after EMH).
The longest wait time of the week we saw was at HS with TSM. We got to the park after 10 and got a FP for it to come back at 2:40 and when we came in to do it, the regular line wait was 60 minutes so we only did that once. Still, for my twins, it was similar to Buzz and they liked Buzz better (I think because the gun at Buzz is easier to use for them).
We arrived at WL on Labor Day. The Magical Express was waiting for us and we got right on and after we checked in to our room, our bags arrived a few minutes later.
We really enjoyed staying at WL. The standard room was a little small for us but it worked out because we really only slept there. Next time, when our twins our older, we will have to do a bigger room. While we only had a woods view, we had a great location, room 3112, around the corner from the elevator and right off the lobby. The room was super quiet (maybe because there werent many people staying that week?).
The twins favorite thing about the hotel? Running down the long ramp to Roaring Fork and the docks each morning. My daughter loved the pool, too, and I absolutely loved taking the boat to MK. The bus to AK was a little long from WL.
We also did the QSDP for this trip and that worked out great. However, I dont think we got the most use out of our refillable mugs because my children dont drink soda. We did end up with a lot of beverages, though, because my husband and I each got two drinks every morning with our breakfast so we never were without water or juice or milk. If would do QSDP again the next time we stay on property, though we did have to struggle a bit the last day to use up all our snack credits. We thought the breakfast at Roaring Fork was great; we only had snacks and drinks there the rest of the time so I can't really comment on lunch or dinner.
My DD went on every ride she was tall enough for, even ones I thought were too scary for her. I didnt want her to do Snow White, but she insisted and liked it. My DS is a little more timid and he was actually asleep at that time so he missed that but they both did Haunted Mansion and Pirates. My DD also did Dinosaur at AK and was a little scared but she understood it was pretend (my son did not want to go on it). They both liked the play areas the best (at AK and HS) though they really wanted to keep going on rides so next trip we probably wont do HS as there arent enough rides there for them. My DD also found every water splash area and loved getting soaked. My DS doesn't like getting splashed with his clothes on so she usually went in those while he was napping.
On our last day the twins went to the Pirate League. My DD loved it; my son was tired and wasnt really in the mood for it but his pirate was able to get him to wear a little make up and once he heard he would get a sword and get some treasure he behaved better and enjoyed it. He did, however, immediately fall asleep after we left. The photos in the secret room came out great so I had to buy them. Spent a little more $$ there than I expected but again, this is not something they are going to do every trip so the expense was worth it.
All in all, a great first experience for them. I am still recovering though as I got blisters on day three from my Crocs.
The coolest part for me was being at the parks and staying to closing and being the last one in an area. I had never seen the parks so empty (after 7 at HS and after 5 at AK). We ran into characters left and right with no to little waits and Photopass photographers were everywhere.
As for Photopass, we did the pre-order of the CD so I tried to use them as often as we could because I didnt want to bring my big Canon camera. It worked out great. Their photos of us were beautiful. We ended up with about 140 Photopass pictures I would say 135 were usable (meaning we were all looking at the camera), so it was definitely worth the $99. After I added borders, we ended up with more than 400 photos (I do wish they had more borders, though). I would definitely do it again.
I hope this helps anyone thinking of going next September with twins or little ones who want to stay at WL. It was a great time and seeing the joy and twinkle in the kids eyes as they saw the characters (especially when they saw Mickey) was worth every penny! Though, for my son, I think next time we will stay at a Monorail hotel because that was his favorite part of the trip.
