Aussie Disneyland Planners come on in and lets plan together :)

[keptwoman]

I travel a lot and one thing I always do is have something to declare to customs, even if it's just lollies. I do this because the declare queue is always shorter and the customs guys quickly look at what I have and wave me through.

Ditto. I've declared all sorts of random things.

 

[kylieh]

I travel a lot and one thing I always do is have something to declare to customs, even if it's just lollies. I do this because the declare queue is always shorter and the customs guys quickly look at what I have and wave me through.

In Sydney now there is only the one line, with no difference between declare and not to declare. XRays are done on probably 80% of bags regardless. May be different in Melbourne.

 

[aussiegirls]

Hi all,

Was just wanting to get some feedback from the people that have already been to Disneyland (and possibly just the US in general). I think I just automatically assumed that the food over there would be not too different to the food here in Australia, but I think I might be wrong.

I have been looking at a thread on here about DL food with lots of pics and stuff. To be honest most of it looks disgusting. Seems to be just a lot of greasy, creamy, sweet stuff, looks nothing like what we get in restaurants here.

When we go over there I don't want to live off fast food so was thinking that proper restaurants would be the go, but from what I have seen even "proper/healthy" food looks a bit..... blech!!! I have seen deep-fried sandwiches, packets of chips served as a side dish, and salads that look like what you normally leave on the plate when you have eaten all the good bits

I am a bit concerned so if anyone can put my mind at rest or even just prepare me a little as to what to expect it would be much appreciated.

xxx

 

[emum]

Hi All

I'm not doing a great job of keeping up with the boards at the moment - sorry !

Bec - hope you're having a great time back with all things Disney ! I'm looking forward to a TR from you - I really enjoyed reading your one last year.

Chickyann - so good to see you posting again ! I went through withdrawal too, but was determined to make a trip happen for our 40th birthdays at the end of next year. I've gone back to f/time work to pay for it !

Aussiegirls - TBH, the food is hit and miss in the US. The one constant is the portion size. They are always HUGE portions - most meals are enough to feed two people. And yes, a lot of the food (particularly in DL/DCA) is fried or sugary. We got sick of it very quickly - our systems weren't coping w/in a day or so, so we'd head back to our hotel for a "normal" lunch of sandwiches and fruit (the RI Maingate has a free grocery shopping service, and we placed an order most days. Also, they had a full buffet breakfast, so we'd have cereal, fruit, and something egg-based to help sustain us through the day). That said, there is ample opportunity to purchase items like fresh fruit in the parks - we were often buying watermelon, grapes, and pineapple.

There are plenty of restaurants with food you'd find in restaurants here, it's just that, as I said, the portion sizes are huge. The Anaheim Garden Walk has quite a few restaurants, and we found the food there to be similar to that which we get here.

I LOVE my food, and saw our trip to DL and the US in general to be a bit of "food holiday", being able to try new foods, and "let myself go" for a couple of weeks. But it's always nice to come back to what you know.

Hope that helps a bit.

Cheers,
Sally

 

[kylieh]

AussieGirls - just some thoughts late on a Sunday night....

I tend to agree with Emum, it is a food holiday. We didn't eat a lot of our meals in DL, I think some of the best meals inside the parks were at Wine Country Trattoria. It took preplanning. Yes, there are fruit carts within DL, must most are fairly exe, even for DL. Have a look at the menus. We went to the Outback Steakhouse in Garden Grove a few times and purchased grilled chicken/steak/etc with sides of steamed veges. Same with Red Robbin next door. They weren't huge servings but at least we got some veges and what appeared to be "fresh"! We found a lot of places didn't even have steamed veges as an option.

But I don't think the food is a lot like here. Generally it is a lot greasier/fattier than what we're used to, and more cooked, hence you'll see the food is a lot browner. The servings are huge.

I think you will need to eat at the better resturants to find food similar to what we have at home.

 

[keptwoman]

I'd agree with the others on the type/size of the food.
We will be making our own breakfasts in our hotel room of cereal and toast and fruit. We are buying a toaster there.
For lunch we will either take it to the park or go back to the hotel for sandwiches and yoghurts and fruit etc.
Our choice is partly budget oriented thats for sure. But it's mostly just not wanting to eat like a hog. Poor quality/fatty/sugary food is not good for fueling busy bodies on holiday. I think that if we want to enjoy our holiday and be energetic we need to fuel ourselves well.
I'd rather go out and have one good meal a day than have 3 average/unhealthy ones.

 

[platypus67]

Hi aussiegirls. I wouldn't worry too much about the food in America. Like others have said the big difference is the portion size. Very big and generally enough for two. DLR is a theme park and like the theme parks here you aren't going to find as much healthy food as junk food. We travel to North America alot and never have a problem. At home we eat a healthy diet with lots of fresh fruit and veg, hate greassy food like sausages and chops. When you go to a restaurant ask for your dressing on the side with your salad, take the grilled rather than fried option and get the veggies rather than the fries. Even Denny's offers grilled choices. People are on holiday at DLR so tend to splurge as many are only in the parks a few days. Most of what you see in photos are these "splurges". Quite often we just grab a fruit salad or a piece of fruit, as these are available in the parks as well. There used to be fruit stands on Harbour Blvd heading back towards Katella but further down past the main hotels. I noticed that the strawberry fields were still there last time, but as we drove by very early didn't notice if the stands were there. If you are renting a car then you can pick up some healthy foods at the supermarket. If not there is a 7-11 on the corner of Harbour and Katella. We bought fresh veggie platters, fruit platters, and salads and found them to be quite good. Have a great trip. Don't be afraid to try some of those scarry looking dishes But stay away from the corn dogs. I ate one when I was a kid and I still have nightmares about those things

 

[lovintheland]

We are heading over for our 3rd trip in 4 sleeps and the food always is a concern for me. I can handle fast food for the first couple of days and then I'm over it. It's hard to find basic healthy food choices. I got excited last time in Disneyland when I found a fruit stand but our strawberries came with chocolate sauce, the apple slices with caramel sauce and carrot sticks with ranch dressing. A salad sandwich is hard to find that doesn't have 3 inches of meat and heaps of creamy mayo etc and it will come with a packet of chips. Don't get me wrong we love potato chips as a treat but even the kids wouldn't touch their Lays by the end we had so many. The breakfast cereals seem to be a lot sweetier over there as well. I think I will take a box of something I know they will eat. There are some really yummy choices over there as well though, counting down till we'll be eating at Tony Roma's (at least 3 times on our trip) the ribs are to die for

 

[arje]

I'd like to add my 2 bobs worth on the food issue, and start by agreeing with all that has been said so far.

We book hotels with decent breakfast offerings (mainly Anabella) to start with and try and find places that serve decent food with veges. We found Cocos to be one of those places. Most of the meals come with veges, there's not many fried options and the servings are not overly large (compared with other places anyway, but still large by our standard). And every now and then it's worth spoiling yourself with a slice of banana cream pie!

Unless we eat at a sitdown in the park, we limit our eating options to a light lunch only in the park. Decent wholesome and fulfilling breakfast will get us through most of the day.

 

[marvel]

Hi everyone, a bit busy to check up on our great thread for a few days.

keptwoman - we spent a week in NY last year and I would have to say you really have a lot packed in to 3 days. We did grimaldis and the walk back on the bridge and that is half a day really, and I think you have a couple of museams as well, and they are quite big too. Personallly I would list your absolute must sees and then do anything else if you have time. The ferry to see the statue of liberty is a few hours at last once you get the subway down there. It all takes a bit longer that you might think when planning. Happy to discuss anything else in detail if you want to PM me. we also drove down to florida from NY during that trip.

On the food issue, we absolutely love the food in the US. Whether its the fast food, of which there are a huge number of options, but all the restuarants are super child friendly and have a great variety. And we find it cheaper. The portions are so big you rarely order a main each and can usually share two mains for a whole family easily. And you can order healthy they are very conscious of that as well, it depends on what you like to order.

On the food pricing, I just paid $4.50 for a coke at the footy on the weekend $8 a hot dog, from memory its $2 for a coke in DL!! Now I am sorry but we are being totally ripped. If any of you saw the photos on the other thread of the sundae's in the US, the price was $7.99US around $11AUD. I paid $5.50 AUD for one scoop of icecream last week in Melbourne. Sorry, I think I am venting a little, food pricing in Australia is a pet peeve of mine.

Have a great trip Bec sorry if I am a little late you are probably already there. Have a micky ice cream for me.

 

[keptwoman]

Yeah. We are doing Grimaldis and the Bridge in the evening so we see the skyline as it gets dark. And some things we are seperating up for because, for instance, I have no interest in wasting 4 hours of my day at a ball game and the blokes of the family don't want to see Monets Waterlilies at Moma or Evensong. And some of that stuff is in the "maybe" or "might do" or "if we are passing" category. I just provided it as a list of stuff for Butterfly Kisses to look up and see if it grabbed her.

 

[dollarmite]

we also drove down to florida from NY during that trip.

Marvel, how long did it take you you to drive from NY to FL? We'll be in NY till Wed 28 Oct and are booked into WDW from Mon 2 Nov. Do you think 5 days would be long enough? We'd possibly consider leaving from Philadelphia or Washington DC so as to avoid driving in NYC itself.

We have driven from Toronto to Niagara to Philadelphia to Washington DC before and I think we allowed a week for that.

 

[aussiegirls]

Thank you all so much for your replies.

I understand what you mean about having a food holiday. Whilst I am not a health fanatic it just seemed to me that most of the choices I saw were a bit icky. I am actually looking forward to trying new foods, so long as those new foods are not deep fried sandwiches!!!!

So I am thinking that I will probably buy some fruit to keep in our hotel room and take with us to DL so at least we won't have to snack only on crap all day. So if we have a few junky meals I will feel a bit better about it rotfl .

I am just glad to know that in amongst all the new foods I will be trying I will have some options that are not completely artery clogging laughing

xxxx

 

[Judy from Boise]

Can I please log in as an American who has never eaten a deep fried sandwich!
There really are a lot of healthy choices....they just don't make it to the "food porn" thread. Try browsing the menu data base.
I think you would be happy with some of the choices at River belle terrace (hand carved turkey sandwich and nice salads) and in DCA the soups and salads at Pacific wharf cafe.

 

[AlyssaCameronsDad]

Marvel, how long did it take you you to drive from NY to FL? We'll be in NY till Wed 28 Oct and are booked into WDW from Mon 2 Nov. Do you think 5 days would be long enough? We'd possibly consider leaving from Philadelphia or Washington DC so as to avoid driving in NYC itself.

We have driven from Toronto to Niagara to Philadelphia to Washington DC before and I think we allowed a week for that.

We used to live in Philadelphia - about 2 hours south of NYC, and although we never drove all the way down to WDW, we did make it to SC. It took us about 8 hours, I think. So you could definitely do it in 5 days, and stop to see some other parts of the east Coast. Remember, the interestates have posted speed limits of 65mph - 105kmh - but you can easily go 75-85 (120-135kph), without drawing too much attention. In fact if you drive at 65, you better stick to the slow lane & even then will be pushed!

Enjoy the time & enjoy the states. Remember, it's not all NYC & WDW. Lots of country in between!

 

[AlyssaCameronsDad]

Just saw this on the Age

Dollar tipped to top 80 US cents

Interesting bits are 1st & last paragraph...
The Reserve Bank's decision to keep rates on hold may help push the Australian dollar past 80 US cents in coming weeks, according to an economist.

Nonetheless, Ms Auster still expects the Aussie to fall back by July with "downside pressures dominating in the second half of this year."
...
So somehow it's going to gain another 10% in 6 weeks, then fall back??!?

-Brian

 

[Flea]

I'm back been MIA with life (how dare it think it can get in the way of my disney planning ) But we have our airfares paid for, our accommodation paid for and now we are saving for our spending money.

Our dollar still sucks in NZ but it's better than what it was - it's about 60c now against the US.

 

[keptwoman]

We used to live in Philadelphia - about 2 hours south of NYC, and although we never drove all the way down to WDW, we did make it to SC. It took us about 8 hours, I think. So you could definitely do it in 5 days, and stop to see some other parts of the east Coast. Remember, the interestates have posted speed limits of 65mph - 105kmh - but you can easily go 75-85 (120-135kph), without drawing too much attention. In fact if you drive at 65, you better stick to the slow lane & even then will be pushed!

Oh that's really good to know!! Thanks! That will make a big difference on our 3 reallllly long driving days.

 

[emum]

Quick post before I pick the kids up from school..

Arje - I noticed you're heading over for a Christmas?NY at the end of next year - same with us ! We've just booked our 7 night cruise on the Wonder - must be different dates than you, though - we leave Port Canaveral on the 30th Dec. We're bound to be there at the same time at some point, tho' (we're also going "the whole hog" - DL, the cruise, and WDW).

Brian - when are you heading over ? Worth buying up some $US in advance for you ?

Flea - great news ahaving everything booked and paid for. The problem I have with saving up spending money is that I spend too much time looking for new cameras, and other Disney merchandise before we go !

Better run.

Cheers,
Sally

 

[AlyssaCameronsDad]

Quick post before I pick the kids up from school..

Brian - when are you heading over ? Worth buying up some $US in advance for you ?

We're going over December for a month. Will be at DLR early January.

We are going to buy some dollars, just working out the best way to do it.

Looking at the ANZ travelcard, or opening an account through HSBC. Of course, could use the old fashion cash or travellers cheques.

Anybody else have ideas on what worked best?

-Brian