Unvoiced_Apollo
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2018
- Messages
- 1,013
For background, my dad and I were at WDW when Rise of the Resistance opened on December 5th. Unfortunately, my dad & I already had plans that day and we didn't know about Virtual Queues (or I should say it wasn't clear what the system would be for its premiere).
So, 5 years later, my dad said he wanted to go back so he could have a chance to ride RotR. And I decided to go all out as a thank you for all he's done.
We stayed at the Polynesian & had the dining plan. Wonderful resort. We were actually able to use all of our credits (more into that later).
I was able to plan things out that got us on RotR, Tiana's, & Guardians several times using lightning lanes & virtual queues where applicable. My favorite of any of the attractions right now is Guardians. I only rode Tron twice (each time using ILL). And tbh, that one was disappointing. It feels way too short, and if you have to use the lap bar seating (my dad had to so i sat with him on the first ride), it's not giving the full experience. I went by myself the second time, and it just felt slow even in one of the seats made for how it's meant to be experienced.
Extras:
Lightning Lanes (both individual & mpll - latter only for MK & HS)
MVMCP
Jollywood
La Cava Experience
On reflection, I probably should have chosen just one party. We'd done MVMCP before and other than the complimentary treats & beverages, I felt doing it again was underwhelming. And that could just be I'm all MK'ed out. Jollywood on the other hand was a good mix of family & adult oriented activities. I was able to meet a lot of Disney Afternoon characters from my childhood (Rescue Rangers chip n dale, tailspin king louie, & max goof as powerline). The Nightmare Before Christmas Singalong and the show with Kermit, Piggy, Tiana, & Bell were entertaining. I really appreciated the giant sized Jack puppet. Plus we were able to finish the night out from the Tip Top Club (pretty much a pop up bar with only a couple drinks), where we got a specialty cocktail in a souvenir champagne flute.
La Cava Experience: It's a great experience, but probably overpriced at $180 per person. We were one of only two groups (the other was a party of one), so the experience seemed really personal. This can change though as the only reason we were such a small group is because a lot of other canceled. Humberto was our Tequila Master and he was great. He gave us a technique to help taste tequila without the burn affecting you too much. And we used different items (lime peels, lemon peels, chocolate, etc) to note different aromas and see how different tequilas could also give off a similar aroma. The actual drinks were 5 tequilas (blanco, reposado, añejo, extra añejo, & joven) & 1 mezcal plus a spiked horchata to go. And vodka as part of an inital palate cleanser. We also had chips & quac as well. Like I said excellent experience, just quite a bit for it.
Dining:
One of the downsides to the dining plan is the sheer amount of food you get & trying to milk it's value for all it's worth instead of just getting the most well known/best dishes. Be aware if you get a dining plan, 21 & over get an alcoholic beverage with each quick service/table service credit
Hollywood Brown Derby (two credits) - enjoyable but I got the Filet instead of the Cobb. My dad sprung for appetizers, and I did like the burrata. Grapefruitcake was excellent.
Steakhouse 71 - I got the Filet here as well but chose the horseradish as my sauce & asparagus as my side. It was a really good pairing as the asparagus was crunchy but still wrll-cooked & seaaoned. So it was hearty and paired well with the horseradish & filet.
Ohana (dinner & breakfast) - Good all you care to eat dinner but definitely needed two other people to help us
. I know a lot of people say they feel rushed because it's dishes nearly back to back. But the vibe I get is "we're bringing these out because we want to feed you like family, take your time & enjoy everything". Loved the characters too at breakfast. Pluto shook hands and Stitch claimed he kept hus badness levels down (at least to shoulder height)
Kona Cafe (lunch) - nothing to write home about. Decent stir fry and lava cake was good
Space 220 (lunch - out of pocket) - Not included in dining plan. Lunch is a pre-fixe that includes appetizer & entree. My dad had the fried cauliflower & pad thai. I had the calamari and steak & frite. Everything was pretty good but you still proof feel like you're paying more for the experience than the food. Plus, other than the giant screen woth the view of space, it doesn't really give that feel. Maybe if it rotated or the screen gave the appearance of 220 rotating in space, it would be better.
Crystal Palace - Food is decent. It's a buffet so always have to consider the effect of mass production. Again, characters were fun. Piglet trying to stay for lunch was great.
For snack credits, they all went to Festival of the Holiday dishes. My personal favorites were the peanut stew (plant based), reuben croquettes, & beef bourguignon
Overall, great trip. MK sadly doesn't hold the magic for me anymore. Maybe that will change when we get that villains land. If I were to return before that, MK might be the park I visit the least. EPCOT & DHS are currently my two favorite parks because they have that solid mix of attractions & entertainment for groups of older ages.[/b][/B]
So, 5 years later, my dad said he wanted to go back so he could have a chance to ride RotR. And I decided to go all out as a thank you for all he's done.
We stayed at the Polynesian & had the dining plan. Wonderful resort. We were actually able to use all of our credits (more into that later).
I was able to plan things out that got us on RotR, Tiana's, & Guardians several times using lightning lanes & virtual queues where applicable. My favorite of any of the attractions right now is Guardians. I only rode Tron twice (each time using ILL). And tbh, that one was disappointing. It feels way too short, and if you have to use the lap bar seating (my dad had to so i sat with him on the first ride), it's not giving the full experience. I went by myself the second time, and it just felt slow even in one of the seats made for how it's meant to be experienced.
Extras:
Lightning Lanes (both individual & mpll - latter only for MK & HS)
MVMCP
Jollywood
La Cava Experience
On reflection, I probably should have chosen just one party. We'd done MVMCP before and other than the complimentary treats & beverages, I felt doing it again was underwhelming. And that could just be I'm all MK'ed out. Jollywood on the other hand was a good mix of family & adult oriented activities. I was able to meet a lot of Disney Afternoon characters from my childhood (Rescue Rangers chip n dale, tailspin king louie, & max goof as powerline). The Nightmare Before Christmas Singalong and the show with Kermit, Piggy, Tiana, & Bell were entertaining. I really appreciated the giant sized Jack puppet. Plus we were able to finish the night out from the Tip Top Club (pretty much a pop up bar with only a couple drinks), where we got a specialty cocktail in a souvenir champagne flute.
La Cava Experience: It's a great experience, but probably overpriced at $180 per person. We were one of only two groups (the other was a party of one), so the experience seemed really personal. This can change though as the only reason we were such a small group is because a lot of other canceled. Humberto was our Tequila Master and he was great. He gave us a technique to help taste tequila without the burn affecting you too much. And we used different items (lime peels, lemon peels, chocolate, etc) to note different aromas and see how different tequilas could also give off a similar aroma. The actual drinks were 5 tequilas (blanco, reposado, añejo, extra añejo, & joven) & 1 mezcal plus a spiked horchata to go. And vodka as part of an inital palate cleanser. We also had chips & quac as well. Like I said excellent experience, just quite a bit for it.
Dining:
One of the downsides to the dining plan is the sheer amount of food you get & trying to milk it's value for all it's worth instead of just getting the most well known/best dishes. Be aware if you get a dining plan, 21 & over get an alcoholic beverage with each quick service/table service credit
Hollywood Brown Derby (two credits) - enjoyable but I got the Filet instead of the Cobb. My dad sprung for appetizers, and I did like the burrata. Grapefruitcake was excellent.
Steakhouse 71 - I got the Filet here as well but chose the horseradish as my sauce & asparagus as my side. It was a really good pairing as the asparagus was crunchy but still wrll-cooked & seaaoned. So it was hearty and paired well with the horseradish & filet.
Ohana (dinner & breakfast) - Good all you care to eat dinner but definitely needed two other people to help us
. I know a lot of people say they feel rushed because it's dishes nearly back to back. But the vibe I get is "we're bringing these out because we want to feed you like family, take your time & enjoy everything". Loved the characters too at breakfast. Pluto shook hands and Stitch claimed he kept hus badness levels down (at least to shoulder height)Kona Cafe (lunch) - nothing to write home about. Decent stir fry and lava cake was good
Space 220 (lunch - out of pocket) - Not included in dining plan. Lunch is a pre-fixe that includes appetizer & entree. My dad had the fried cauliflower & pad thai. I had the calamari and steak & frite. Everything was pretty good but you still proof feel like you're paying more for the experience than the food. Plus, other than the giant screen woth the view of space, it doesn't really give that feel. Maybe if it rotated or the screen gave the appearance of 220 rotating in space, it would be better.
Crystal Palace - Food is decent. It's a buffet so always have to consider the effect of mass production. Again, characters were fun. Piglet trying to stay for lunch was great.
For snack credits, they all went to Festival of the Holiday dishes. My personal favorites were the peanut stew (plant based), reuben croquettes, & beef bourguignon
Overall, great trip. MK sadly doesn't hold the magic for me anymore. Maybe that will change when we get that villains land. If I were to return before that, MK might be the park I visit the least. EPCOT & DHS are currently my two favorite parks because they have that solid mix of attractions & entertainment for groups of older ages.[/b][/B]
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