Booked our Oct trip - now what?

[koquinn]

I'm so obsessed with planning for WDW but I don't know where to start with DL. I'm a little disappointed I can't book dining online - what's up with that?? Can someone help me with where to start on planning? (As an FYI, it'll be me, DH, 6yo DS, 3yo DD, and an infant, we have park hoppers, and plan on staying on property the whole trip.)

1) Dining - do we plan something sit-down for every night? We do in WDW. How bout character meals? Must dos? Ones I really need to call right at 60d to get?

2) Park hours - we get a one-day deal to go in early for Toontown and another day to do Magic Mornings. I thought if we stayed on property (staying at GC) we got to go in early every day? But the CM I spoke with wasn't sure about that, said it was dependent on the deal we had with the resort. I booked it as a vacation package so I'm confused on that.

3) Shows to plan on?

4) Room views to request? We're staying at GC, just a standard room so maybe it's not an option.

Thanks in advance!!!

 

[Sherry E]

Well, I know that many of our other wonderful DIS'ers will jump in and answer your questions, but one thing you can do (if you have not done this already) is join us in the Halloween at DLR Superthread. This will help you plan certain seasonal things to ride, see, do, eat, buy, etc.

If you don't have time to scroll through the whole Halloween Superthread (which is understandable!), just look at the first 2 posts on Page 1 (the Intro/Welcome post and the Table of Contents), and those will give you sort of an overview of what to expect at DLR for Halloween Time and will guide you to lots of HalloweenTime-related information and photos.

 

[blackjackdelta]

At the top are a number of very useful stickys, here is one of hydroguys links for WDW people..http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1162599.

There are also a number of superthreads about most of your questions..When you have a standard room, you do not get your choice of view, but you can pay for a view of either DTD or the park.


Jack

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

I'm so obsessed with planning for WDW but I don't know where to start with DL. I'm a little disappointed I can't book dining online - what's up with that?? Can someone help me with where to start on planning? (As an FYI, it'll be me, DH, 6yo DS, 3yo DD, and an infant, we have park hoppers, and plan on staying on property the whole trip.)

1) Dining - do we plan something sit-down for every night? We do in WDW. How bout character meals? Must dos? Ones I really need to call right at 60d to get?

I have not been to WDW, but from everything I have read dining is a big, big deal there. Not so much at Disneyland. Not that there aren't some nice places to go. If you're into atmosphere, you may want to check out Blue Bayou, the restaurant inside the Pirates ride. If you want to eat right along Main Street, go to Carnation Cafe. If you're into character meals, there are five to choose among, and you should be able to do a search on the boards here and find a lot of recent posts about those. If you really like sit-down meals, you may also want to learn more about the World of Color dining options in DCA. I would recommend doing your dining reservations 60 days out since you are a planner and since October can get busy with so many people wanting to go see the Halloween offerings. As for whether you should plan sit-down every night, that depends on your preferences. Personally, I like to not be over-scheduled when on vacation, so I don't always want to have to plan our whole day around meal reservations. We book a couple sit-down meals each trip and then enjoy counter service the rest of the time. There are actually quite a number of good counter service choices, and if you just try to go eat a little off the absolute peak times, you will be fine getting through the lines and finding a place to eat.

2) Park hours - we get a one-day deal to go in early for Toontown and another day to do Magic Mornings. I thought if we stayed on property (staying at GC) we got to go in early every day? But the CM I spoke with wasn't sure about that, said it was dependent on the deal we had with the resort. I booked it as a vacation package so I'm confused on that.

If you stay on property, you can show your hotel key to get early entry each morning that it is offered (currently Sat., Sun., Tues., and Thurs.). This is a "surprise" perk that you are usually told about upon arrival.

3) Shows to plan on?
Thanks in advance!!!

I would definitely recommend the Aladdin show in DCA. The Billy Hillbillies at the Golden Horseshoe in Disneyland are surprisingly fun. There will be a new parade starting in Disneyland this May. World of Color at DCA is popular with many, although I myself am not a fan. The Disneyland Fantasmic is awesome. I have only seen the WDW version on youtube so maybe it's not a fair comparison, but I think the Disneyland version is better. If you want the Halloween fireworks, you will need to buy an additional ticket for the Halloween party. Those dates probably won't be made known for a little while though as I don't remember ticket pre-sales starting until at least May last year.

 

[HydroGuy]

I'm so obsessed with planning for WDW but I don't know where to start with DL. I'm a little disappointed I can't book dining online - what's up with that?? Can someone help me with where to start on planning? (As an FYI, it'll be me, DH, 6yo DS, 3yo DD, and an infant, we have park hoppers, and plan on staying on property the whole trip.)

Great questions! First let's help you avoid one of the WDW vet's biggest mistakes at DLR. They want to try DLR. They are curious about DLR. So they plan a trip to DLR expecting (subconsiously) DLR to be a carbon copy of WDW - maybe just a little smaller. So they start out with the idea that DLR is WDW just on the west coast. They would not admit that they think this way, but in their heart of hearts they often do.

So I have to ask such people, why would you want to go to a carbon copy of WDW when you could just go to WDW itself? And they say "I want to try something different". So they start planning and, guess what? It is different. And they get perturbed and confused. No ADR's six months in advance? No park schedules six months in advance? Less Disney hotels? In the middle of a city so not the same resort feel? Parks are physically smaller? And why is dining so different?

So, let's step back. DLR is different. Not inherently worse - or better - just different. They cater to a different demographic. They have a different history. They have different weather. They are located in a smaller area in the middle of a large city. This impacts multiple things.

So let's talk about them. Why does DLR not have online dining reservations? They might some day I suppose, but understand that dining is not a big deal to most DLR visitors. They do not care about dining reservations. And do not make them. Even at the best DLR restaurants you can make reservations a week ahead of time - usually - and often can do walk in and get seated.

Why?

Because DLR visitors think differently. While 85% of WDW visitors are on vacation and from far away, only 30% of DLR visitors fit this category. Yep, 70% of DLR visitors are from among the local 20 million SoCal residents and they are there on day trips. Most DLR visitors you see in the parks are not on vacation.

On a day trip they do not care about dining. They care about rides. And shows to some degree. But dining? DLR vets don't need no stinkin' dining!

Now understand I am generalizing and not everyone fits the above description. But DLR vets place a much, much, MUCH lower priority on dining than WDW vets. Since there are so many day trippers, many or most DLR visitors do not even know they will be going to DLR until a week or maybe a month before. They are making last minute decisions to visit.

So DLR offers dining reservations 2 months in advance and hardly anyone actually makes the dining reservations. Hence little or no need for online reservations. No one cares. That is why.

So are the DLR restaurants any good? Well, if by good you mean Epcot World Showcase good, sort of maybe. There are many good restaurants at DLR but IMO they are less creative and have less good quality than WDW. But there are some good ones and you should research that.

1) Dining - do we plan something sit-down for every night? We do in WDW. How bout character meals? Must dos? Ones I really need to call right at 60d to get?

Plan? Yes. Do? No. What do I mean?

DLR lends itself to a much more dynamic visit. The biggest reason is that the two parks are right next to each and in essence just one big park. There are tons of rides at DLR. The two parks together have almost as many rides as WDW's four parks put together. Really. There are many superb shows at both parks. Plus seats for dining are not that hard to get and so you can make last minute dining decisions for location as well as time. Hey! Let's eat late this evening so we can catch the 6PM Aladdin show since we missed the show yesterday! You can do this and it works fine.

At WDW I make tons of ADR's. You have to if you want a certain restaurant at a convienent time. At DLR I do make reservations but I am much more flexible about whether I keep the reservations. And half the time I do not.

The last thing I would want at DLR is to let my dining reservations made two months before drive my decisions all day. Hey! I know we are having a great time watching a street show right now at DL, but we must leave now to make our ADR in DCA! Nope, no need for that. Just decide at the last minute.

Yes, I know it flies in the face of WDW vets inner need to plan everything 6 months in advance, but it actually is quite cool. You can actually relax. And not be a slave to your ADRs.

The only reservations you might want to secure early are the character meals. But I would recommend not to do too many. Maybe only one.

For more info on this see:

"From DLR to WDW and Back Again: My Challenge With WDW Dining Philosophy at DLR" - www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2449979

2) Park hours - we get a one-day deal to go in early for Toontown and another day to do Magic Mornings. I thought if we stayed on property (staying at GC) we got to go in early every day? But the CM I spoke with wasn't sure about that, said it was dependent on the deal we had with the resort. I booked it as a vacation package so I'm confused on that.

Magic Mornings are completely different than EMH. If you stay at the GCH you can do MM every day it is offered which is four days a week. Toontown Morning Madness is much less valuable than MM and you can do that if you book a package.

See "Magic Morning (Early Entry) Super Thread" by DLR29 www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1675403

3) Shows to plan on?

World of Color. Fantasmic. Aladdin. Make sure to see each one.

Fireworks change throught the year (DL has four fireworks shows) and the best one is Remember Dreams Come True. They are all good in their own way but just MK Wishes good. RDCT is in a league of its own and better than any fireworks show you have ever seen. If it is showing when you are there then plan to see it. Otherwise it depends on how much you like fireworks shows.

4) Room views to request? We're staying at GC, just a standard room so maybe it's not an option.

Some people like DTD view where you can see into DL. I really liked the theme park view into DCA we had last July. See my trip report here:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2526004

Have an awesome visit! DLR Rocks!

 

[koquinn]

You guys rock, thanks for all the help! Actually, part of the reason we are doing DL this year instead of our annual WDW trip is so we DON'T have to be quite so rigid. Haven't done the newborn thing without grandma & grandpa along before, and we figured having everything "smaller" would be easier in terms of getting around and going back for naps, etc. I was there once for a day trip a couple years ago and between that and you guys am well aware of the tons of rides crammed into a smaller space. It's good to know we can be more flexible with the ADRs cuz honestly I hate that part of WDW in some ways. It's fun, but it also adds to the stress and pressure of planning everything else around them. Maybe I'll book stuff but then just not worry about getting there if we're doing something else. I'm not sure when we'll get back, so I don't want to miss TOO much, but I'd rather miss restaurants than shows & rides. I will definitely read through all the links. Thanks again!

 

[Jana0326]

Dining - no need to call exactly 60 days out to make your reservations. In my experience, usually calling a couple weeks ahead of time is fine. Our favorite character meals are Goofy's kitchen for breakfast and Ariel's Grotto for lunch. The character interaction is great and the food is pretty good too. Besides those character meals, we usually eat counter service type food for lunch at the parks and then have a sit down dinner somewhere in the parks or DTD.

Early Entry - when you stay at a DL resort hotel, you can get in early for magic mornings every day it is offered. You can check the online calendar for the magic morning days during your trip. If you are going to do a character breakfast, I'd recommend doing it on a non-magic morning day.

Shows - WOC and Fantasmic are our favorites. We always have trouble keeping our kids awake until the 9:00 Fantasmic show though.

 

[Hound 109]

No ADR's six months in advance? No park schedules six months in advance? Less Disney hotels? In the middle of a city so not the same resort feel? Parks are physically smaller? And why is dining so different?

HG didn't say it, but also....:

- No humidity.
- No 8 zillion love bugs in the fall.
- No brazilian youth groups.
- No need to ride a stinkin' bus...ever...the entire stay!
- No need for ADR's except for 2-3 places...maybe make them 2 weeks out.

Read all the threads that are recommended & come back & ask away.....you'll be a DLR guru in 2-3 weeks.

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

Dining - no need to call exactly 60 days out to make your reservations. In my experience, usually calling a couple weeks ahead of time is fine.

- No need for ADR's except for 2-3 places...maybe make them 2 weeks out.

I agree that this dining advice is very often true. However, if you go during a very busy time or have your heart set on a particular place at a particular time, then I would still recommend booking sooner rather than later.

 

[Sherry E]

I agree that this dining advice is very often true. However, if you go during a very busy time or have your heart set on a particular place at a particular time, then I would still recommend booking sooner rather than later.

I agree with this. While I've done both the reservations route (formerly PS) and the non-reservations route with DLR dining, it can't hurt to book sooner than later if you're a person that feels comfortable doing that or wants to do it that way. Carnation Cafe, for example, has a line of people waiting for tables that tends to build quickly due to the limited seating. We've waited longer to be seated there than we have at Goofy's Kitchen! So I would definitely recommend a reservation for Carnation Cafe, if nothing else.

 

[HydroGuy]

I agree with this. While I've done both the reservations route (formerly PS) and the non-reservations route with DLR dining, it can't hurt to book sooner than later if you're a person that feels comfortable doing that or wants to do it that way. Carnation Cafe, for example, has a line of people waiting for tables that tends to build quickly due to the limited seating. We've waited longer to be seated there than we have at Goofy's Kitchen! So I would definitely recommend a reservation for Carnation Cafe, if nothing else.

I agree too. By all means make your reservations 2 months out. But if you change your mind you can often move them a few days ahead of time or get a new one.

Now that I am more of a dining fan at DLR, I do the following:

1. Make reservations at the 2 months point if I have time - if not, do it as soon as I can after - but I do not worry about it

2. If I want WOC dining res at AG or WCT definitely make that at exactly 2 months to get the time you want.

3. Make Fantasmic res at 1 moth point at 8AM Pacific time if I want that. If staying onsire, have Disney vacation planning do it for me.

4. As it gets closer to the actual trip and I have a better idea of our group size and shows we want to see and our overall logistics, I modify, cancel or add dining reservations as necessary.

5. When we get to the parks, I do not force everyone to go to each reservation or become a slave to dining reservations. In the morning when we head out I tell people what reservations we have that day. If we make it, we make it. If we don't, we don't. If everyone says in the morning "we do not want to eat at X today" I call Disney and cancel. If they say "we would rather eat at Y today" I make a new res on the phone after canceling the old one. If I cannot get a new res at a good time, I do my best and we live with it or not.