A Winter Escape to the Enchanted Forest-Jan'13 TR:**5/21 Parting Thoughts/New PTR!

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Great update. Love the ToT pictures in B&W. They look great.

Thank you! I've got a series of pictures of the 5 ghosts almost ready to share. Probably by tomorrow.

 

[MelMel11]

Really enjoying your TR..

 

[StitchIsOurHero]

Caught up!! WOW...as always your pictures are INCREDIBLE!! Love those Tower of Terror photos and the foggy Main Street one!! Beautiful!!

I am loving your trip report..it is still making me SO excited for ours! We have a CP ADR at 8:05 (with a 9 opening). Thinking we will send one of us for Ariel FPs and then get in line for ETwB. I am thinking D will only want to do those once, so we could get them knocked out. Do you think that will work? Which ones let you pull more than one FP? Sorry for my million questions...just making my plans!!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Really enjoying your TR..

Thank you! Happy to have you on board!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Caught up!! WOW...as always your pictures are INCREDIBLE!! Love those Tower of Terror photos and the foggy Main Street one!! Beautiful!!

I am loving your trip report..it is still making me SO excited for ours! We have a CP ADR at 8:05 (with a 9 opening). Thinking we will send one of us for Ariel FPs and then get in line for ETwB. I am thinking D will only want to do those once, so we could get them knocked out. Do you think that will work? Which ones let you pull more than one FP? Sorry for my million questions...just making my plans!!

Thank you!

Based on what I saw during our trip and what I've been reading, I think you should just head straight for ETwB before the rope drop crowd comes in. We barely squeezed all of the characters in and left CP at 8:57am when the opening ceremony ended and the fireworks went off. We were ready to leave CP without seeing all of the characters if we needed to. We stayed ahead of the front of the rope drop crowd during our brisk walk to ETwB. The queue filled up rapidly behind us and the wait time just shoots up like you wouldn't believe. We managed to be the very first group to be let in. It's such a slow loading process though I was very happy that we were one of the first in line.
I think for every minute you lose getting in the queue it will add 5-6 minutes of wait time. The wait time jumped up to 60 minutes within the first 10 minutes.

You should be fine drawing the FPs for Under the Sea after you come out of ETwB and you'll still get a reasonable return time. The FPs for this ride don't appear to go out as fast as some of the others. In fact, if you are planning for Peter Pan this same morning, then you should draw PP ahead of Ariel after ETwB. (Sorry, I couldn't remember from your PTR whatelse you had planned for this morning).

Feel free to PM me if there are other rides that need to be put into consideration and would be happy to put my two cents in for the touring plan So excited for you!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

With DW working all weekend, I tried to come up with some things to do with the kids especially with the weather being sunny and temps hitting the 60s! I didn't want to be cooped up in the house by myself with two restless kids.

On Saturday, DD had two sessions of ballet classes/practices separated by only 3.5 hours. Her ballet school is a good 30 minutes from our home so I decided to look for something to do closer to the school rather than driving back home. So, during the in-between time we made a short excursion to the Udvar-Hazy Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. I think I posted some pictures to this museum on my last PTR when we took the kids to their halloween party. On second Saturdays of each month, the museum puts together a science day where they set up interactive and craft stations. The theme for this day was the Space Shuttle. The kids spent a good 30 minutes at a craft desk set up next to the Blackbird where they got to color some pictures of the shuttle.


IMG_7847 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Afterwards, we took a stroll around the Space Shuttle Discovery. DD and DS don't find this as much interesting as I do mostly because they cannot ride or get inside the shuttle. I just can't get enough of it.


IMG_7865 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_7860 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_7856 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

We also got a view of the hangar that the museum uses to restore and salvage aircrafts.


IMG_7861 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Finally, on our way out of the museum we went up the observation tower. This is one the kids favorite activities. Because the museum is located right next to Dulles airport, we get a great view of the planes landing and taking off from the runways. We spent another 20 minutes before getting lunch and heading back to DD's ballet.

View of Dulles Airport from the observation tower.

IMG_7867 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

This is right outside the entrance to the museum called the Wall of Honor recognizing all of the contributions and donations to the museum. Sort of reminds me of what they have set up by the entrance at Epcot. Those plaques are made in the shape of airplane flaps.


IMG_7880 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

On Sunday, I decided to take the kids to the National Zoo. As we always do, we got there about an hour and a half early before opening time. (I know, I can't drop my rope drop habits anywhere ) This ensures a parking spot in one of their extremely space limited lots (free with our membership) and most of the animals are out that early including the pandas so we can enjoy viewing the animals with minimal crowds.


IMG_7884 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

The two cheetahs you see inside the small cave have grown quite a bit. They're not even a year old yet - I'm pretty sure they were born in May of last year.


IMG_7888 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Pandas are usually enjoying their bamboo breakfast between 8-9am (park officially opens at 10am).


IMG_7893 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_7895 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

DS made a special request to view the zebras. Maybe because we didn't get to see them on KS?


IMG_7892 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

The Elephant Trails were empty. This whole elephant exhibit has been a multi-year project. They will finally open up the brand new elephant house to the public in two weeks.


IMG_7899 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_7903 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Some interactive stations for the kids to learn about studying elephants. This station caught my eye.


IMG_7910 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_7911 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Don't worry. They're not real.

The American Trail which opened only a few months ago houses the exhibits for the river otters, beavers, Bald Eagle, sea lions, and seals. The kids enjoyed watching the otters swim around in their pool. The sea lions were really active this morning and were a hoot to watch at both of the underwater viewing areas. Some of them would come right up to the window and follow our hands and fingers around!


IMG_7922 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_7931 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Lastly, will post some pictures demonstrating a pet peeve of mine when grown adults do not follow safety rules and instructions at zoos. I looked up while watching the otters swim in the pool and saw this.


IMG_7913 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

The drop was a good 10 feet into some more rocks. First he climbed up on his own with his ipad out front and recording a video clip. Those rocks are not part of the viewing path. It actually acts as a barrier between the viewing path and the enclosure. And they are clearly marked not to be climbed both in English and a fairly easy to interpret picture.


IMG_7914 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Then he pulled his toddler son up. I tried to say something to him about how close they were to the edge but with the window between us he obviously didn't hear a thing. Finally, one of the other visitors actually said something to them.

 

[StitchIsOurHero]

Thank you!

Based on what I saw during our trip and what I've been reading, I think you should just head straight for ETwB before the rope drop crowd comes in. We barely squeezed all of the characters in and left CP at 8:57am when the opening ceremony ended and the fireworks went off. We were ready to leave CP without seeing all of the characters if we needed to. We stayed ahead of the front of the rope drop crowd during our brisk walk to ETwB. The queue filled up rapidly behind us and the wait time just shoots up like you wouldn't believe. We managed to be the very first group to be let in. It's such a slow loading process though I was very happy that we were one of the first in line.
I think for every minute you lose getting in the queue it will add 5-6 minutes of wait time. The wait time jumped up to 60 minutes within the first 10 minutes.

You should be fine drawing the FPs for Under the Sea after you come out of ETwB and you'll still get a reasonable return time. The FPs for this ride don't appear to go out as fast as some of the others. In fact, if you are planning for Peter Pan this same morning, then you should draw PP ahead of Ariel after ETwB. (Sorry, I couldn't remember from your PTR whatelse you had planned for this morning).

Feel free to PM me if there are other rides that need to be put into consideration and would be happy to put my two cents in for the touring plan So excited for you!

Ok!! Great! Thanks for the info!! I will probably be pm'ng you! I need to find my list of D's "must do's"!

 

[arbolita]

I love the Air and Space Museum! And I'm trying to remember if I've ever been to the National Zoo - maybe as a kid?

 

[afwdwfan]

I would have LOVED to have tried JTA when I was a kid. In fact, if Disney would let me I would have no hesitation donning a jedi robe and swinging a plastic lightsaber at Vader right now!

I'm right there with you.

She was from Michigan and works part time at Disney during the winter months and spends her summer months back in Michigan.

And another good CM. You were having quite a good morning with them!

We had a blast on RnRC. This being the second time I’ve been on this ride, I was able to pay more attention to the theming along the coaster as we flipped and spiraled through the course.

I love this ride.

Was able to snap more pictures before tucking my camera away and getting ready for the drops! I just love this ride.

The theming in ToT is incredible. I love the effect of the black & white photos.

Don't worry. They're not real.

That's what you think...

Then he pulled his toddler son up. I tried to say something to him about how close they were to the edge but with the window between us he obviously didn't hear a thing. Finally, one of the other visitors actually said something to them.

Just like Disney World. The rules are only there for all the other people.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Ok!! Great! Thanks for the info!! I will probably be pm'ng you! I need to find my list of D's "must do's"!

Sounds good!

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

I love the Air and Space Museum! And I'm trying to remember if I've ever been to the National Zoo - maybe as a kid?

I love the Dulles (Udvar-Hazy) Air and Space Museum. The kids prefer the Air and Space Museum at the National Mall mostly because there are a lot more interactive and hands-on exhibits. If I let them, they would be perfectly content entering and exiting in a loop through the Space Station replica.

You should consider visiting the National Zoo! Especially now that all of the construction is completed. For awhile there, they had two major construction projects (American Trail and Elephant Trail) which was a hot mess. Now, everything is pretty much completed. The only beef I have with the Zoo is that it sits on a very long hill. Trying to haul two kids from the bottom of the hill all the way to the top can be quite taxing. Wish they had some kind of skyway like the San Diego Zoo but don't think they have the space for that type of construction.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

The theming in ToT is incredible. I love the effect of the black & white photos.

That's what you think...

Just like Disney World. The rules are only there for all the other people.

Thanks! Thought the black and white looked better for the ToT photos. It also does a pretty good job of masking some of the deficiencies in the pictures

Those "poop" as they called it were quite disgusting. I must have been at that exhibit a half dozen times and somehow never really payed attention to what exactly those things were!

Yeah, that really irritated me seeing that man climb up on those rocks like that. You hear in the news about these horrific accidents occurring at zoos and a lot of times it's because the visitors don't abide by the safety rules. The icing on the cake for me in terms of pet peeves for this man was that he was holding up his iPad filming and taking pictures everywhere he went. I guess I should just be thankful he wasn't sitting in front of me at PotC.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Did I already say I'm a huge fan of Tower of Terror? I really can't get enough of this attraction and was a little disappointed that I only got one chance to go on it this time around. It's amazing how much background information you can get on something like this on the internet - found this website over the weekend: http://www.towerofterror.org/

Had no idea there was TV movie in 1997! Although, based on the synopsis and Guttenberg in the lead role, watching this movie may be more of a scary experience than the ride itself!

Anyway, here is the photo sequence of the encounter with the 5 ghosts at ToT during the ride that I was able to get. All this time, I mistakenly assumed that the child and her nanny were part of the same family as the couple. The backstory says the child is not related to the couple.


IMG_6081 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6082 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6083-3 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6084 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6085 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6086 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6087-2 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6088 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

 

[afwdwfan]

Had no idea there was TV movie in 1997! Although, based on the synopsis and Guttenberg in the lead role, watching this movie may be more of a scary experience than the ride itself!

I've seen it. I wouldn't make any effort to try and watch it.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

I've seen it. I wouldn't make any effort to try and watch it.

That was my first impression!

Although, DD who has never been on it is starting to take an interest in ToT. Yesterday she asked me who the ghosts were and what had happened to them. Then she wanted to see a Youtube video of the ride and afterwards she said she wanted to try it next year! Maybe showing her the movie will lock her in to her commitment? I'm 90% sure she'll just love this ride.

Also, is it just me or do other people hear inside their heads the Stonecutter's Song from the Simpsons whenever they see or hear about Steve Guttenberg?

"Who makes Steve Guttenberg a star? We dooooo, We dooooo"

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

Sunday, January 27th - 12:20pm

DW was waiting with the kids outside the exit. I gave her and DFIL two of the four FPs I drew for the 12:15-1:15pm return times and sent them on their way. It was 12:20pm. Did I time these FP draws perfectly or what? Sorry, I had to give myself a pat on my back there. So as I watched DW and DFIL walk in to ToT, I was still holding a pair of FPs that we were clearly not going to be used since we would have to leave for Epcot after they were done to meet with DWs relatives. I didnt want to waste these either, so I once again started looking for a couple of people to give the FPs and spread some Pixie Dust and hoping I would have better luck than I did in front of EE. I really couldnt hold out the tickets in my hand and stand in front of the queue entrance because that looks too much like scalping. Plus, what am I going to do when a mob tries to get their hands on the FPs all at once. So I was scanning the people approaching the Standby queue but of course dont see any groups of two until finally I spotted two girls probably 13-14 years old standing just off to the right of the queue line staring at the posted wait time with a weary look and looking quite undecided as to whether they really wanted to spend 35 minutes in line for this ride. I approached them with the kids and told them if they would like the FPs that we werent going to be able to use. Their eyes just lit up and one of them said Oh my god, yes!. They were so happy and quickly entered into the FP lines.

While waiting for DW and DFIL to come out, I noticed these four CMs huddled in front of the entrance. I eavesdropped and found out that the two younger women were trainees and were getting an orientation on the history and timeline of the Hollywood Hotel.


IMG_6091 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr
The other thing I really like about this picture is how all of the guests are so focused about getting into the queue that they are completely unaware of the four CMs.

About 15 minutes later DFIL and DW exited and we were on our way back to our car to park hop over to Epcot. We were planning on meeting DWs four relatives at 1:30pm in front of Test Track. The relatives had entered the park around 10:30am. At the time I had been monitoring return times for TT FP distributions on My Disney Experience App, and had texted DWs cousin to see if he could make a run to Test Track to grab four FPs when I saw the window for 1:30pm-2:30pm opened up. As a side note, I just loved how I was able to monitor FP return times on the app during the whole trip. It just made timing my FP runs so much easier. We left DHS around 12:40pm in our minivan, parked at Epcot, and were through the Epcot gates by 1:10pm. We sat down in the shade in front of Spaceship Earth since we were a little early. I called DWs cousin and asked him to meet me at Soarin so we could grab some FPs (also reminded him to bring everyones park passes with him) while sending off the relatives to TT to meet up with the rest of my group. I met up with DWs cousin in front of the Land Pavilion and walked inside. Asked him how his transition to Orlando was going since they just moved here about 6 months ago. Sounded like he and his fiancée was really enjoying the new scene. Also asked him about their wedding planning. When we got to the FP machines, the return time was 6:45-7:45pm which is what I had been hoping for. I grabbed 5 using the key cards for my group. DWs cousin forgot to bring everyone elses park passes so he could only draw one FP. It was still okay. We could get a Rider Swap pass for DS and be able to get everyone at least once on Soarin later in the evening.

We rejoined everyone at Test Track. Greetings and hugs around. We got a Rider Swap for DS but we were one FP short so DW offered to stay with DS since she didnt do so well with EE. DW took DS over to a snack stand and got him Mickey Bar which he enjoyed. I was not expecting to see the interactive car design stations when in the FP queue but was pleasantly surprised to see the stations. We received a card to scan the choices but for some reason, it didnt scan our choices into our ride vehicles when we were getting on it. Overall, I was okay with the ride. I think with such a lengthy refurbishment and hype surrounding the project I was expecting more. But it appeared to me that the indoor track remained unchanged while they made changes to the décor and theming. The interior design reminded me of TRON. Of course the outdoor track part was exhilarating as usual. I was not in the same car as DD so I was curious as to how she was doing. We had been on TT two years ago, and she really didnt enjoy it back then. But I was pretty sure this time would be different.

After I got out of our car we rejoined the rest of the group including DD who was jumping from one car to another on exhibit in the showroom. It sounded like she loved the ride but now she was completely preoccupied getting in the driver seat of each car on display, a sight that I was definitely not ready for.
We met up with DW and DS who was finishing the last bites of his Mickey Bar. We then went into Innoventions. The kids played around a bit at the Test the Limits Lab.


IMG_6097 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

Then we hopped over to the next building to give DD try out her favorite activity in Innoventions: The Great Piggy Bank Adventure.


IMG_6113 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6114 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr


IMG_6109 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

She adores the games on this attraction. DS really got into it too, mostly getting a kick out of carrying the Piggy Bank and placing it into the slots for each game. We went through the attraction twice back to back. DD ended up getting paired with DWs aunt and uncle who are not the most video-game oriented folks for both trips. And as I later found out when she started crying because we were going to leave, she didnt get to achieve her financial goals for either attempt probably because she didnt get enough help from her adult companions. I had always assumed that the point system on those three game stations were generous enough that it would be extremely difficult for the child not to get their dream bedroom or the ultimate vacation. I guess I was wrong.

Next Up: Hanging Loose with Crush

 

[afwdwfan]

Their eyes just lit up and one of them said Oh my god, yes!. They were so happy and quickly entered into the FP lines.

Nice! I'm glad you were finally able to spread some pixie dust.

While waiting for DW and DFIL to come out, I noticed these four CMs huddled in front of the entrance. I eavesdropped and found out that the two younger women were trainees and were getting an orientation on the history and timeline of the Hollywood Hotel.

I'd love to eavesdrop on that conversation just to hear what the exact backstory is that they share with the trainees.

As a side note, I just loved how I was able to monitor FP return times on the app during the whole trip. It just made timing my FP runs so much easier

I agree. I love having that information at my fingertips, but at the same time I felt like I spent too much time screwing around with my phone.

I'm really not looking forward to the new FP+ system or whatever they're calling it.

The interior design reminded me of TRON

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

I agree. I love having that information at my fingertips, but at the same time I felt like I spent too much time screwing around with my phone.

The App was still a bit glitchy especially when I tried to refresh the wait times or FP return times. Hoping that FP+ will workout smoothly but so far from what I've read, not sure if I want to participate in it. Only 3 FP per day seems too small of a number compared to what we typically get during a single Park day. But then again, the at the Park FPs could go a lot faster if they start reserving a certain amount for FP+. We shall see.

 

[DaveinFallsChurch]

IMG_7111 by DaveinFallsChurch, on Flickr

I was a bit surprised to see how very little photos I took of Cinderella's Castle. We didn't have a single group photo with all of us standing in front of the Castle. I think part of it may have been that our attention and focus for this trip was what was behind the Castle in New Fantasyland. This one was taken from the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover with DW in looking out to the Castle during the last throes of twilight.

 

[emmysmommy]

Oh my gosh!!! your photos are AMAZING! Your Disneyland Trip link caught my eye and then I saw this and wow! Seeing the Discovery Space Shuttle - such a great piece of history - reminded me that we were on the beach in CA last September when the Endeavor flew over on its way to the LA Science museum. It was so thrilling.

My apologies for getting side-tracked...back to commenting on your actual TR... How adorable that DD asked if Disney World was the capital of Florida. I agree with your response. I have so much more to read but I am looking forward to it!!!