A Few Questions

[TigerLilly's Mom]

I can't believe we are leaving in two weeks! I'm starting to get nervous and excited. I hope someone can answer these questions.

We are going to San Diego first and doing the Zoo. We could do it on Sunday the 19th or Monday the 20th. I'm thinking crowd wise it would be better to go on Monday, but would rather go on Sunday if crowds are not really a big deal at the zoo.

Hubby keeps talking about going to the Wild Animal Park. I was planning on skipping it since we will be doing the zoo, and because I also heard that you see most of the animals from up high on the tram, not up close. Is this a must see? We could do it Sunday or Monday, whichever day we don't do the zoo. We will be going up to Disneyland on Tuesday morning and I don't want to tire the kids out too much. I was thinking one day at the pool and relaxing, but will do the Wild Animal Park if it is a must see.

What time would you suggest we leave San Diego on Tuesday morning to drive up to Anaheim? I am hoping to get an early start to check into the Grand Californian and get right to the parks. I don't want to get into the middle of a traffic nightmare though!

I requested bunk beds and a courtyard view at GC. Actually, I just requested the bunk beds, but the very nice gentleman I spoke with said he would put in a request for a courtyard view also, and send up a fridge. I made it clear that the bunk beds were my first choice. How likely am I to get bunk beds? Any personal experiences?

I was hoping to start out everyday (Tues., Wed., and Thurs. - EE) in Disneyland and then head over to DCA after it started getting busy, then back to DL at night. Is this a good idea or should I start one morning over at DCA? Do the ride lines there ever get long? Keep in mind that Wed. and Thurs. are Grad nights so the parks close at 9:00 - DL, and 8:00 - DCA.

We will be doing EE on Thursday morning. The park is scheduled to open at 8:00 which means early entry would be 7:00. Should we get in line at 6:30 or is a few minutes before 7:00 ok?

Last question for now! Has anyone viewed the new fireworks from the balcony seating for Fantasmic? If we will miss a lot of the effects, we will watch the fireworks again from the hub on Wed. or Thur. night.

Thanks for all your help!!

 

[Tandyc]

I was wondering the same thing about the view of the fireworks from the Fantasmic! balcony. I have not booked it yet because of the fireworks issue. If you can see both I'll spend the $, otherwise I will not.

I have not requested the bunk beds at GC yet. How did you do this? Did you call direct or have your TA do it? If you called direct do you happen to have that number?

Thanks for posting these questions!

Have a magical vacation! Wow, 2wks I'm so jealous!

Tandyc

 

[Vanvmom]

Our relatives in the area prefer the Wild Animal Park over the zoo. The zoo is great, don't get me wrong. It was just a lot of walking around for our kids. I loved it though! As for going into CA adventure early... we always start one day out over there. They actually open the park gates 30 minutes before the park actually opens that way you can be in line for a ride right when it opens. We always headed straight for Soaring over CA to get fast passes as soon as the park opened, then went to get in line for Tower of Terror. The line for it is pretty short early in the morning.

 

[TigerLilly's Mom]

Tandy - I think this is the number I used -(714) 635-2300. I just told them I wanted to make room request and they connected me with someone from the front desk I believe. Also, I know you can see the fireworks from the balcony, but I don't know about seeing the "special" stuff - castle projections and Tink flying.

Thanks for the Wild Animal Kingdom info - any other opinions?

 

[HaleyB]

You need to watch the fireworks facing the castle to get the full effects and to see Tink fly. I think you will miss out on a lot with a 'side' view and don't think there is a chance of seeing Tink, she is on the other side of the castle. My advice for seeing Tink fly is to find the wire while it is still light. Standing in the hub area near Tomorrowland entrance look up and over towards the castle. I am having a brain freeze, so can't remember where Tink lands (Matterhorn?) but it is easy to spot the wire when it is light out. I used to know the sound que, so I knew exactly when to look up and point her out to my kids, now with the new show I will have to figure it out... if you can talk to people around you while waiting for the fireworks to start ask about Tink. There should be a local near by (because there are always a ton of locals at DL) who might help you out. It is over pretty fast and easy to miss.

Fantasmic is a real treat. You are so going to love that show!

Did anyone address traffic from SD to DL? Take the toll road route, you will not regret it. Traffic is hard to perdict although some areas are always bad at rush hour (which can be as early as 4:30 and is longer than an hour). I have not lived in the area since the 5 was finished, so someone else can give you better info.

 

[Mom2Joce]

We'll be there the same time as you guys and doing EE the same day...I'll keep an eye out for you and shout out a DIS Hello if I recognize your kids
Kel (getting VERY excited)

 

[TigerLilly's Mom]

Mom2Joce - Yes! Say "Hi" if you see us

 

[Canuckdad]

You need to watch the fireworks facing the castle to get the full effects and to see Tink fly. I think you will miss out on a lot with a 'side' view and don't think there is a chance of seeing Tink, she is on the other side of the castle.


We watched the Fantasmic show from the balcony with the dessert buffet and had a wonderful view of the fireworks. And yes, we saw Tink!

 

[Snow Brite]

We got back last week and I don't see how you can get the new fireworks show from the Fantasmic balcony. It is not only Tinkerbelle you want to see but there are some amazing things that happen on or right behind the castle that you will want to be able to see as well.

We watched the 7pm parade from the train station which gave us a great view and is where the reserved seating is (we were right next to them).

A great Castmember showed us where to stand after the 7pm parade. You know how the "park" in the middle of the hub has a cross in the middle of it? Well follow the arm of the cross that goes toward Frontierland. Right where it ends in the street that circles the hub, look down. There will be a small (quarter sized) hole where the rope pole goes in for crowd control during the fireworks. Now go a few steps out into the street, looking toward the castle, until you have a full view of the castle, but not so far that the tree on the lefthand side of the street is blocking your view of the sky. Then park it right there, staying behind that hole where the rope is going to go. This was the PERFECT spot, especially for little people, as there is a gap between there and the other side to allow people to walk, so no one is standing right in front of them. Also, the fireworks are a little to the left of the castle. If you can't quite picture what I am talking about, just ask one of the crowd control castmembers. The big thing is to have a full view of the castle, and not be behind a tree. Since this spot is kinda unusual (it is sort of in the middle of the street...lol) it was still available 30 minutes before the show started.

After the fireworks we headed over to New Orleans Square and got were standing with the crowd waiting for the 10:30pm Fantasmic Show. There was a new thing though since the last time I was there though, and all of a sudden our group was ushered into a roped off area that was seated only. It was GREAT! The pavement was still warm from the day and we had a terrific time making friends with the people sitting around us.

All in all, for just bumbling along we ended up with great seats for everything. I didn't watch Fantasmic from the gallery seats so can't say for sure about the fireworks, but I just don't see how you could see everything from there. There is a ton of stuff that happens pretty low to the ground from the castle. And for some of the effects being in the hub is essential, like the Haunted Mansion part.

I also cant say enough about how awesome the fireworks are. They made me cry every time I saw them. Truly the best fireworks show I have ever seen. And from the conversations going on around me each night, I was not alone in that assessment.

Jennifer

 

[abby]

I vote for the zoo over the wild animal park. We come from Portland with a great zoo, but love S.D. zoo. The wild animal park is good, but with my DD 5, it was hard for her to see the animals from the train, and unlike the zoo the train goes by, even is she is looking elsewhere. I would do the zoo and skip the wild animal park. (although if given a choice my DD would go to sea world over the zoo)
As to disneyland, get to the parks 1/2 hour before they open, know what the first three or four things you want to do are and go. We were there and April and had a great time. (see our trip reports, mom and abby's great adventures day one and two , haven't finished the last two days yet...)

 

[lntsmom]

You want to be along the cross of the hub...on the opposite side from the castle! We staked out a bench there and it was perfect!

We saw the fireworks from near where you mention...and you miss a HUGE part of the show from there. There are fire and fireworks effects from the ground, plus the fireworks that make shapes and the laser effects look completely different from a side-view.

As for Tink, this show is different! She's out there quite awhile, going back and forth! Unlike the shows we saw a WDW where it was more like she did a zip line and was gone, on this one she flies back and forth slowly, and the spotlight follows her the whole time.

I say do Fantasmic one night if you can...do the fireworks another!

 

[TigerLilly's Mom]

Thanks everyone for the great advice! We will definately see the fireworks from the balcony seating the first night and then from the hub on our second or third night.

Still undecided about the Wild Animal Park. I guess maybe we will see how the kids feel. I think we will do the zoo on Sunday and leave Monday open for whatever. We have done the Orlando Sea World two times in the past two years, so I think we can skip that.

Any suggestions on what time to be there for the Early Entry day? 6:30 seems awfully early, but I will be there if I have too. I I know at WDW Early Entry, we get so much done before people even get to the park. But, maybe it is not the same as WDW Early Entry since it is not limited like it is a WDW.

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

Early entry is one hour before the park opens, so if the park opens at 8, then you probably want to be there by 7:30. I recommend doing Early Entry on a weekday - Tuesday or Thursday, because with more people being in the park on the weekends and Monday, early entry is also bound to be more crowded, based on a couple of reports I've read. Tuesday & Thursday would offer smaller lines, IMO.

 

[TigerLilly's Mom]

If posted time is 8:00, then early entry would be 7:00 right? So that would mean getting in line at 6:30? Sorry if I'm being a pain, I just want to make sure I understand. I'm not sure I can convince my family to be in line at 6:30 though! Also, It will be a Thursday, so hopefully that will help with lines.

 

[Mom2Joce]

Don't worry, if you're there at 6:30am, I'll be there with you...the 2 of us can get in line first and wait!! But that's my understanding and plan. Get in line at 6:30am, doors open at 7am (EE), and then the park opens at 8am

 

[TigerLilly's Mom]

Mom2Joce- That sounds like fun! I can leave my two late sleepers at the hotel (DH and DD), and bring my early riser (DS) with me, LOL!

 

[Mom2Joce]

LOL!! I'm there

Seriously I don't think sleeping late will be a problem since the park closes early the day before!! We'll get back early and get some sleep! Also the day before we've got PS at the Royal Princess Breakfast for 7:30am so we'll have been up early that day as well!

 

[TigerLilly's Mom]

I know the parks do close early that week. We will be on east coast time, so it may be easier for us to go to bed earlier and get up earlier too.

Can't wait, it is getting so close!! My son and I have been up all night playing virtual magic kingdom, it's so addictive, but it really gets us in the mood for Disney!!

 

[Mom2Joce]

never heard of it?? is it www.virtualmagickingdom.com?

 

[TigerLilly's Mom]

This is the link I used:http://vmk.disney.go.com/vmk/en_US/index?name=VMKHomePage

Or you can just go to Disney.com and they have link. You create a character and walk around the park. You can play games and talk to other fans. My son and I found all 50 hidden mickeys tonight. You can win pins (virtual of course) and different clothing. It really is a lot of fun. You can even ride the virtual monorail.

The good thing is it's by Disney, so I don't worry about my son playing. Everything you type is edited by their dictionary, so nothing bad can be said. I do sit with him while he plays though - but it is a blast!