A Very Lurkyloo Christmas is FINISHED! New 3/16: Last Day of the Trip!

[inkedupmomma]

HOLY CRAP! Can you say Jelllly! Yay for you though! I am so looking forward to your awesomely detailed TR.. I may not even follow your twitter or FB just so I can be surprised..although, I will expect a few texts if you can remember

 

[ampooh]

Sorry about your job. I agree with others that I hope you find a new one soon. I also agree that letting your talent go is a huge mistake. Another vote for Tennessee here.

We got back Thursday night from our trip. I went with one ADR for Crystal Palace. We were able to eat at Cape May's Clambake and Trails End by making PS ressies at the resort. Actually DS checked in at Cape May and hr before our time and they came hunting him. Course he had to call us back from the boardwalk. I was trying to stalk a wedding and he just didn't get it.

I think after reading all yoru plans I want to leave my bunch at home and bring you in their place.

 

[MAGICFOR2]

OOOOh the D23 plans look so fun! D23 looks more appealing all the time! I was thinking it was a chance to pay money so you can spend more money, but the events are awesome - may have to jump in!

 

[NeverlandClub23]

Yep, I think that's a plan. From here on out, you must be at WDW starting the week after Thanksgiving and running through the week before Christmas. And your good DISfriend Andrea must accompany you. Purely for research purposes.

Sounds like a plan to me!! Wait, who's financing these trips? Oh, and we have to take Carrie (purely for documentary purposes ) and the Roots (purely for photography purposes ). I'll put a collection jar out at work.

Carrie, I'm not even going to comment on how JEALOUS I am about all of the INCREDIBLY cool things you are going to get to see/do!!!!! (well, commenting about not commenting is commenting ) I can't wait to read all about it! (Hurry up and get here December!!)

 

[8disneyfans]

Can I come too? Purely for whatever reason will get me there.

 

[8disneyfans]

OK, so I hopped online a few minutes before tickets went on sale today and managed to score two tickets (well, three tickets, but I'm working on getting a refund for the accidental extra ticket) to D23's Magic & Merriment event over the weekend that we'll be at WDW.

Now, in addition to all the fun stuff we're already doing, we will get to participate in:

Saturday

• Special morning "Holidays Around the World" presentation that is everything I hear the Yuletide Fantasy tour is *not*.
  
• Access to D23 hospitality suite all day at Epcot
  
• Reserved seating for Candlelight Processional at 5pm
  
• Dinner on the set of Lights! Motors! Action!
  
• "Last ride of the night" on an unspecified DHS attraction*
  
• Private viewing of Osbourne lights with "a special presentation hosted by two of Walt Disney World's top creative minds"*

Sunday

• D23 hospitality suite at MK all day
  
• Private lunch at Diamond Horseshoe, prolly with characters
  
• Tour of the Cinderella Castle Dream Suite
  
• Admission to MVMCP and another D23 hospitality suite
  
• Reserved parade viewing

*We prolly will have to skip these in order to get into the DIS party at DHS. I can't believe Disney scheduled two private events for huge fans on the same night in the same park. They didn't even warn the DIS they were doing it, so now some of us have to pick which thing we want to go to more, b/c so far both sides are saying we cannot be escorted from the D23 event to the DIS event already in progress.


Here's the full description of the event:
The holly jolly happenings begin Saturday morning, December 12, at the D23 Member Lounge in Epcot, where guests will be greeted by the D23 Team and some very merry surprises and special guests that will certainly add some ho-ho-holiday sparkle to your day. The magic-makers at Walt Disney World Holiday Services will then give you a special behind-the-ears glimpse at how they transform Walt Disney World into a sparkling holiday haven — from gigantic candy-coated gingerbread houses and glistening snowfall on Main Street, U.S.A. to twinkling Christmas trees beaming with thousands of lights. You'll then be invited to spend the afternoon enjoying the holiday splendor of Epcot at your own pace before re-joining the group at the America Gardens Theatre as the sun begins to set.

As you nestle into your reserved seat, sit back, snuggle up and delight in the warm embrace of Walt Disney World's perennial Christmas favorite, Candlelight Processional. This time-honored tradition of classic carols and hymns sung by a choir of hundreds will be narrated by renowned singer and actress Vanessa Williams ("Colors of the Wind" from Pocahontas; Ugly Betty). Following this special performance, you will be transported to Disney's Hollywood Studios for a sumptuous holiday feast on one of the park's largest backlot sets – Lights! Motors! Action!™ After the park closes, enjoy "the last ride of the night" on one of the park's signature attractions, and then head over to New York Street for a private viewing of The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights during a special presentation hosted by two of Walt Disney World's top creative minds.

On Sunday, you'll head to the Magic Kingdom for a day of Christmas fantasy and fun in this delightfully wintery wonderland. After a morning of enjoying the park's sparkling holiday majesty, everyone will gather inside Frontierland's iconic Diamond Horseshoe for a private holiday luncheon complete with special entertainment to keep the holiday spirit alive. After dessert, D23 members and their guests will get another "suite" treat… the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for an exclusive tour of the magical Cinderella Castle Dream Suite, situated high above Fantasyland.

Come nightfall, celebrate together at Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party and relax at D23's private hospitality lounge (located at the Swan Boat Landing in front of Cinderella Castle) for holiday treats and cocoa. You'll also enjoy reserved viewing for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Parade. Holiday magic abounds, and, of course, it wouldn't be a D23 event without a very special holiday gift to commemorate the weekend! Happy holidays from your friends at D23!




So now I gotta rejigger some of our plans. The main thing that was affected was our Tusker House lunch/Nemo seating combo, but I was able to get an ADR for that later in our trip. Also, now we are going to be going to MVMCP twice and Candlelight twice - pretty funny, considering originally I didn't want to go to either. The Roots said it's OK to cancel our plans with them, but I really wanted to go to Candlelight with Jensey so that her enthusiasm might rub off on me!

Was this part of the D23 membership or did you have to pay extra to do it?

 

[8disneyfans]

Nevermind I saw the cost.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

Can I come too? Purely for whatever reason will get me there.

Of course!

 

[lazydoxy66]

Hey there Carrie!

Life drama has kept me from DISing. I'm glad to see you are still alive and kickin'!

I'll have to flitter over to Twitter to see some of your pics and talk on LA and such.

I'll now be at WDW Dec. 6-12. I don't know if we will get to the DIS thing on the 11th as that is our last day in WDW. We leave early on the 12th. It sounds like it will be great! It is too bad that they are doing DIS and D23 on the same weekend.

I will try to keep up with ya' now!

 

[lurkyloo]

First, I just want to say that I am so sorry if I seemed like I was crowing about getting into the Magic & Merriment event - I had no idea how many people actually wanted to go and were shut out by the stoopid online ticketing system. I don't want to be one of those Mrs. GotRocks who just posts on the DIS to brag about all the exclusive stuff she gets to do. So I'm sorry if I made anyone feel bad or jealous, and I vow to have a terrible time and write an hilarious report about it!

Oooh, I got shut out of the Magic & Merriment. So disappointed! Take many pics!!

I would also be torn between M&M and the DIS party. But a good torn.

If you want to get rid of your ticket, please let me know!!!

We've PMed about this, but I'll let you know when I (if I!) hear back from the ticketing service.

Can I voice my extreme jealousy without taking away from how exciting this all sounds for you!
A tour of the castle suite!?! Sweet! Sounds like you are going to have a pretty great Disney weekend!
I'm so excited for you (even though I am also incredibly jealous)
It is really funny that you are doing all of the things you didn't even know if you wanted to do...twice! Maybe the extra special D23 benefits will make the CP and MVMCP more appealing to you

Yeah, it could be that repeated exposure will soften my attitude toward these events.

Oh man, the Magic and Merriment event sounds so cool!!!! Can't wait to hear your report on it - especially the tour of the castle suite. I'm green with envy!

I just wish the Roots could go with us to take pictures! I'll have to see if they can lend me the shots they got of the Castle suite last year to round out my trip report.

I can't wait to hear about the D23 events! It sounds like a lot of fun. Maybe next year I will be able to attend some of them.

I am hoping that D23 will start to get the hang of these special events and offer more of them to more people!

That sounds awesome Carrie. I cannot wait to hear all about your special D23 events!!!! I can't wait to see your pics of the Dream Suite!!!!!
P.S. I am doing the single digit dance.....:

Congrats! You'll have to repost the link to your blog here so we can follow along on your trip!

That's awesome! I'm still trying to decide if I want to join D23 or not. I haven't really looked into it. Hmmm, off to investigate!

One thing I'm hearing - if you decided to join specifically for a certain event, don't wait until just a few days before tickets go on sale or your info may not be in the system yet and you won't be able to buy tickets.

Thanks for the info on TGM. If I bought it now, it would expire a year from now, right? Ideally, I could get some info from this year's holiday season, and then compare it to his 2010 stats. My fear is that he won't post info quickly enough for me to make plans and ressies, so I'd like to have '09 historical info to base some decisions on.

The subscriptions expire a month after you return from your trip, no matter how far out your trip is, so if you buy it now, you'll have it all year. Also, he provides links to historical info, so you can see his December 2009 advice while you're planning for 2010.

Not sure if you saw yet Carrie but it looks like we might get to sign up for the DIS event soon

Hooray!!! Waiting with bated breath...

HOLY CRAP! Can you say Jelllly! Yay for you though! I am so looking forward to your awesomely detailed TR.. I may not even follow your twitter or FB just so I can be surprised..although, I will expect a few texts if you can remember

Hee hee! Well, I'm sorry to make you feel jelly, but I'm definitely excited about writing an awesomely detailed TR!

Sorry about your job. I agree with others that I hope you find a new one soon. I also agree that letting your talent go is a huge mistake. Another vote for Tennessee here.

Thanks!

We got back Thursday night from our trip. I went with one ADR for Crystal Palace. We were able to eat at Cape May's Clambake and Trails End by making PS ressies at the resort. Actually DS checked in at Cape May and hr before our time and they came hunting him. Course he had to call us back from the boardwalk. I was trying to stalk a wedding and he just didn't get it.

I think after reading all yoru plans I want to leave my bunch at home and bring you in their place.

I'm glad you were able to make last-minute ressies - that give me hope! Too bad about the wedding stalking, though...

OOOOh the D23 plans look so fun! D23 looks more appealing all the time! I was thinking it was a chance to pay money so you can spend more money, but the events are awesome - may have to jump in!

I thought that too, especially early on when the only special items available to members were $800 pens at DisneyStore.com After getting blasted for offering only free events that sold out too quickly, now they're getting blasted for offering only paid events that cost too much (and/or sell out to quickly). There's gotta be a happy medium.

Carrie, I'm not even going to comment on how JEALOUS I am about all of the INCREDIBLY cool things you are going to get to see/do!!!!! (well, commenting about not commenting is commenting ) I can't wait to read all about it! (Hurry up and get here December!!)

I'm sorry! I dinnit want anyone to feel jealous! I will try to do an extra-funny trip report to make up for it....

Can I come too? Purely for whatever reason will get me there.

Yes! Now we just need a mysterious and wealthy benefactor to fund these trips!

Hey there Carrie!

Life drama has kept me from DISing. I'm glad to see you are still alive and kickin'!

I'll have to flitter over to Twitter to see some of your pics and talk on LA and such.

I'll now be at WDW Dec. 6-12. I don't know if we will get to the DIS thing on the 11th as that is our last day in WDW. We leave early on the 12th. It sounds like it will be great! It is too bad that they are doing DIS and D23 on the same weekend.

I will try to keep up with ya' now!

Aw poop - it's too bad you'll miss DISapalooza, but there's so much other fun stuff going on during your trip, I'll bet it will be a blast! I hope your life drama has been resolved...

 

[lurkyloo]

OK, while we're waiting for December to arrive, how about an all-photo trip report of our visit to Disneyland last weekend? I'll just stick in captions where necessary....


... Wait, here are some words first: We hadn't done an opening-to-closing trip to Disneyland in ages, so we got down there half an hour before the park opened at 8am and stayed til about 12:30am! Our strategy on crowded weekends is to bang out all the rides we want first (especially those w/o FastPass) and collect FastPasses for later. So DH didn't really start shooting pictures til mid-morning, when we took a break for lunch over in California Adventure.

The newly renovated Lucky Fortune Cookery at the wharf. Too bad they didn't renovate the quality of the cuisine!

We had to remove our wedding rings to get on Toy Story Midway Mania quicker

Paradise Bay is completely drained while they install the new World of Color lagoon show:

They've recently re-themed the games of the BoardWalk to be more, well, themed! DH won me a bunch of plush, including a surprisingly high-quality Dumbo!

More lagoon construction pix...

World of Color VIP viewing platform atop the new DVC wing of the Grand Californian

California Adventure has an area called the Blue Sky Cellar where they preview the attractions coming to DCA in its makeover.

Model of the World of Color viewing area

Some famous paper-cutting artist made these to be filmed as some of the projections on the water screens in the World of Color show.

Up next: Halloweentime at Disneyland!

 

[lurkyloo]

When we got back to Disneyland, the band was still out playing - we never get to see these guys!

Check out the bandleader's Halloween finery!

Off to Roger Rabbit's CarToon Spin - DH wanted to wander thru the queue just to take pictures.

The newish Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough...

The castle moat is being refurbished.

There's a nifty Dia de los Muertos display at the Frontierland stage, between Big Thunder and the Golden Horseshoe

We were sad to hear they've nixed Halloween cookie decorating this year - prolly because most of Big Thunder Ranch, where it used to take place, is now a moribund, overpriced outdoor table-service restaurant serving buckets of BBQ carted in from somewhere backstage. However, one small section of the ranch is still open as a petting zoo.


Pocahontas the Burro

They have a little cabin in the back where Santa does meet-and-greets at Christmas.

Up Next: I've discovered my photos were out of order, so it's back to the beginning of our day!

 

[pinkcow]

Ooh!! Makes me want to go to Disneyland!! DF and I have never been, gosh darn it!! However, I am secretly plotting a trip to DL and Vegas... The who, what, where, when, why have yet to be determined.... Technically I've been to Vegas before, but I don't think running through an airport attempting to make a conecting flight counts!!

 

[eandesmom]

Ok I have GOT to get back down there, so much has changed since I've been!

I love the Halloween pictures!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Donald'sGirl]

YAY a mini trippie for a day at DL! I have never been there so this is so cool to see. Thank you for sharing Carrie!

 

[aharbin88]

Sounds like a plan to me!! Wait, who's financing these trips? Oh, and we have to take Carrie (purely for documentary purposes ) and the Roots (purely for photography purposes ). I'll put a collection jar out at work.

Surely there's a research grant out there for such important study. It's certainly more important to studying the fact that sex makes men sleepy, right? I actually heard that there was a study to prove that was true. Duh!

Loved the DL pics! I so want to go there some day. If I ever get a Disney dream fulfilled, I want to be involved in decorating for all the different holidays. Their attention to detail is astounding. Those pumpkin carvings? Stunning. I can't imagine the time and creativity it takes to make those. I wish I had some talent like that. I wonder what those carvers do the rest of the year, though?

Thanks for the info about TGM. That's pretty awesome. I assumed if I bought it today, it would expire on October 20, 2010, which is too early. I love that I could buy it now and still be able to have it when I'm planning next year.

How do they know when I'm going? Do I have to tell them when I purchase? Our week is up in the air right now, so if I have to tell them now I will pick the last possible time that we would go, which would be the second week of December, 2010.

 

[Disneygrl36]

I love the Halloween decorations at Disneyland-----must get back out there! Hmmmmm next fall??????

 

[lurkyloo]

We're on the way to Disneyland to meet DH's parents today, but I wanted to make sure you knew that sign-ups for the DIS party at DHS start tonight at 9pm ET! The link will be prominently displayed on the boards, or you can keep checking the thread about it on the Podcast board.

See you on Twitter!

 

[beatlesblonde]

We're on the way to Disneyland to meet DH's parents today, but I wanted to make sure you knew that sign-ups for the DIS party at DHS start tonight at 9pm ET! The link will be prominently displayed on the boards, or you can keep checking the thread about it on the Podcast board.

See you on Twitter!

I listened to the podcast this morning...it bites cause of the "curfew" they're putting on the TSM event, which means we can't go because we already have ADRs at the MK and I know with free dining the chances of getting an earlier time are slim to none....maybe next year!

 

[annnewjerz]

Carrie---I just wanted to make sure I sent you a link to my dining review of bluezoo at the "Swolphin."

I've got to say, this is like a must-do for any time we go back now. I don't know if it was so great because we were STARVING, or because it's really just that great, but regardless, we're going back in December.

Here is the link. Scallops + short rib + cauliflower puree = heaven.