Anyone taking the Christmas '09 Knights and Lights trip?

[PixieDustLuv]

WOW! My first ABD trip! Christmastime in London and Christmas eve and day in PARIS, I cannot wait!!! Is anyone else going at this time?

 

[WeLoveABD]

Not this year--but we went Christmas 2008 (with Eddie and Sonya as our wonderful guides). It was chilly--but no snow when we went (but you never know). It'll be chilly, especially in Paris (but we still bravely rode bikes at Versailles!)--so bring gloves etc, and we were also thankful we brought a bunch of hand warmers that we picked up for a buck each at Sports Authority (when you break the seal they keep a steady warmth for most of the day, so we stuck them inside our gloves). Things were adjusted due to the holidays--we spent Christmas Day at DLP, with VIP tour guides, parade spots, dinner at Walt's on Main Street and many other great details (in fact--we saw so much that we ditched our plan for two days at DLP post-tour, and stayed an extra day in Paris to take in things we hadn't seen--museums, opera house--and did one full day the next day at DLP). The guides really worked hard on the details, and we were very happy with what we were able to see. We loved especially the Christmas huts in Paris, and ice skating rinks in London--really a magical time to be there. I see that Disney is now promoting holiday trips, as they should--we are doing their Germany Christmas trip this year, and can't wait!

 

[PixieDustLuv]

I am happy to hear of the adjustments made, but did you still get to do the things planned for Christmas eve and Christmas day? I do not want to miss the Louvre and lunch on the Eiffel Tower. Was there anything on the regular itinerary that you did not get to do? My travel agent is still waiting to hear from ABD about the schedule, and I am a bit anxious about missing any of the planned activities. I am sure Disney will make it awesome no matter what!

 

[WeLoveABD]

Two things only that I am aware of that we didn't do: one was walking in Lincoln Fields (eh), and the other was the changing of the guard--we went to Buckingham, but it wasn't scheduled that day (fewer changes in the winter time as I recall)--so they took us to other areas where the palace guards stand by and that was fine with me. We went to the Eiffel Tower (to the top), plenty of time--but the restaurant in the tower was under renovation, so Disney took us across town to the only other high tower--great lunch with a view of the Eiffel tower. (A cafe was open in the tower, so we had snacks and coffee--very windy and chilly up there; my son did his "king of the world" at the top with the wind blowing like crazy!). I'd say they fit it all in, and then some.

 

[PixieDustLuv]

OH! Those are changes I can deal with! I am so excited I could explode!Do you have any other tips to pass on? I am definitely getting some of the hand warmers; I am NOT a snow bunny! This is my dream vacation, and I want to make sure I have all the bases covered to ensure it stays that way!

 

[WeLoveABD]

DW and I went down to the Arc de Triomphe which is a short walk from the Hilton--I assume you'll stay there again (I haven't checked!)--we walked down at night and if you get there in time you can go to the top and check out the view and a nice museum--a must if you can (we let the kids hang out at the hotel). Also--along the way to the Arc near the hotel is a wonderful park--you'll see the metal with gold gates--do take time if you have time to walk in that park (very unique). At Christmas, the Champs Elissya (I know I misspelled that!) is filled with christmas huts, hot wine, a few rides and lots of lights--walk some of that, if you can! On Christmas eve we meant to catch a boat on the Seine (dinner cruise), but thought it too pricey so ended up eating at a small place along the Seine with the Eiffel Tower in the background--not a feast, but what a memory! The tube in London and the Metro in Paris are very easy and can get you all over the place--and the Disney guides are great with helping you with that. (Best to bring some euros and pounds--you can use credit cards in the subway ticket machines, but I don't recall now if those were always available but I do know we used coins on occassion). Will you have pre or post nights? We arrived a day early on our own, stayed at a hotel near the airport and hired a private van to take us out to Windsor Castle for the afternoon, with a terrific dinner at the Crooked House in the small town of Windsor. On a free afternoon we also took a train out to Hampton Court (very easy to do--train stops a short walk from Hampton Court)--be sure to see the Henry VIII part of that castle! (Since we did a pre night on our own, we had to take the hotel shuttle back to the airport and were met there by the Disney reps--after that, it was nice to have most of the trip details handled by someone else!). We did two post-trip nights through Disney, staying at the New York hotel at Disney Paris. That was a short walk through a "downtown Disney" and you first walk by the entrance to the studio park (a combined MGM/Disney and California Adventure) and then to the main gate of Disneyland. Beautiful grounds--be sure to check out the winter theme in the western section, with fake snow on the ground and a holiday show. The Disneyland Hotel is right on the entrance to the park--but costs more; we were happy with the NY Hotel, and booking with Disney came with a few room surprises and included breakfast and fast passes (be sure to ask at check in for the ABD package that includes the fast passes). The hotel in London was really great--and a short walk to the tube. The hotel in Paris was equally nice--metro stations relatively close to that as well. Disney does a nice job selecting accommodations. I could go on and on, but will stop here--memories keep flooding back, all good. (One exception: the rides in DLP are more extreme than here--Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain...so much so that while I had a Mickey santa hat at the beginning of the day, I did not have it at the end--it came in handy for other reasons!).

 

[PixieDustLuv]

The more I think about it, the more I am considering adding some days to our trip. I wonder how hard it'd be to change my reservations with Disney? Oh yes, did the Disney characters make an appearance at any of the dinners? My daughter is a bit skiddish when it comes to people in big costumes. I know it's strange we'd go on a Disney trip, but it seems to have the best itinerary for escorted tours.

 

[stenogoddess]

Unless you sign up for a character meal at DLP with Disney characters they won't be there. They come out to sign autographs around the hub, etc. like they do at Orlando, but y'all won't have a hard time missing that.


Now totally OT but, hey! we're sort of not really neighbors! LOL I get down to work in St. Marys every blue moon, and I just wanted to mention in case somehow you didn't know that that Chick-Fil-A y'all have right there off the exit ramp is the best Chick-Fil-A I have ever eaten in. I have NEVER had such service.

I'll now return you to your regularlly scheduled program!

 

[WeLoveABD]

If you mean during the ABD tour, there are no Disney characters--there may be an actor or two playing a role (such as Marco Polo in Venice), but that's it. You get the Disney attention to detail, but for characters you gotta go to the Disney parks or ships! As to adding on, we have done that later in the trip without problem--BUT, we always book our own airfare and made those decisions before locking in the flights. I can't say if you would be able to change things if you booked flights via Disney already.

 

[sayhello]

If you mean during the ABD tour, there are no Disney characters--there may be an actor or two playing a role (such as Marco Polo in Venice), but that's it. You get the Disney attention to detail, but for characters you gotta go to the Disney parks or ships! As to adding on, we have done that later in the trip without problem--BUT, we always book our own airfare and made those decisions before locking in the flights. I can't say if you would be able to change things if you booked flights via Disney already.

From what I've been told, you can certainly change your flight reservations, but you'd be subject to the same charges that you'd be subject to if you'd booked them yourself, ie, $150 to $200 per person, plus any increase in airfare.

I also imagine that if they had pre- or post-day trip addon days left, they'd be happy to add that to your reservation. But I'd call ABD to find out for sure.

Sayhello