Crystal Palace---can you help me figure out how to make this work?

[tandksmommy]

Hello all,

This is my first post, so please forgive any mistakes. I've been lurking for about a week and learned so much already. Thank you!

Anyway, we're going on our first family trip to WDW in May 2010. Because this was planned by my DH on much shorter notice than I would prefer, we got some but not all of our desired ADRs.

We did get an 8:10 breakfast at the Crystal Palace---DS loves Pooh and friends. He is terribly concerned that we'll never find Pooh in WDW and so this is going to be a great surprise for him.

The only day I could get the ADR, however, is a EMH morning for MK. (I've tried to switch it now, but there's no other availability for our visit, and I don't want to miss this, given DS's pro-Pooh stance.) As a result, it seems like I've made a big mistake in booking for that day. I know we'll miss out on the "private park" feeling on Main Street, but is this really as bad as it sounds? We're staying at the Boardwalk, too, so any advice on when and how to get to the Crystal Palace that morning would be helpful.

Thanks,
Meredith

 

[Stinkerbell's Mommy]

Honestly, when we were in DW in December Pooh and his friends were the only character we saw everywhere except DHS. We started to think we were being stalked by them. At Epcot we saw them in England in the toy store. In AK we saw them down a pathway on our way back from the Nemo Show. At DW we saw them right across from the Pooh Ride. They were EVERYWHERE. I wouldn't worry so much about Crystal Palace if it's not working for you.

We did the CP breakfast one morning of our trip. The food was good and we did see every character. My dd (3) was more interested in stuffing her face with strawberries and my birthday cupcake than she was in seeing the characters.

 

[jngwright]

Keep the ADR You need to arrive for ADR's early, so technically-you can still get into the park for that "empty feeling". Personally, we have never stood in line to see a character; we see them at character meals-and that is plenty for us. You will be killing two birds with one stone, and saving yourself the time of standing in multiple lines later to meet the Pooh characters.

You can take a resort bus from Boardwalk to Magic Kingdom to get to your Crystal Palace ADR. Just plan for plenty of travel time- the busses will be busy with MK being an EMH day.

Welcome to the DIS and have a great trip. We have travelled in May the last couple years and LOVED it!!!!!

 

[pumba]

welcome to the dis and to the restaurant board. If you need any help just ask away and someone will always be happy to help.

I agree, keep the reservation and get there early enough to walk thru the gates maybe before they open to the others......have fun.

 

[Withacy]

I say keep the reservations too!

Some people don't mind standing in line to meet the characters, but I much prefer using the character meals for that, and spending my time in the parks actually DOING stuff.

 

[PoohGal05]

Keep the reservations. My family has a wonderful time when we go to Crystal Palace for breakfast and eat and meet the characters. Hope you do too!

 

[goofy4tink]

Welcome to the DIS boards!!
I would keep the ADR. This is my dd's favorite...she's now 16!! I would get the MK bus from BW about 7:15ish. THat should get you to MK in plenty of time.

 

[MrsLS]

Pooh, eeyore & tiger are at a character meet spot in Animal Kingdom. I would keep trying though, I got a choice of 3 days last week when I was there, so even if you can't get in before you leave, keep trying when you are there, more people might cancel when you are there then before their trip. But I would go because the food was great & I can't say that about most buffets and the characters were good too.

 

[Hootch]

keep the ADR also. I like CP for the atmsophere, characters and food.

Pooh does appear at the UK pavilion regularly in the afternoon. I have also seen him in the area in front of the Great Movie Ride in DHS.

Here are a couple of links that identify places where charcaters have been seen. You'll need to ignore Pooh's Playful Spot. I believe that was shut down earlier this month.

http://sites.google.com/site/wdwcharacterhunt/home

http://www.wdwinsiders.com/character_finder.php

 

[tandksmommy]

What a wonderfully helpful group! I think I'll keep the ADR and just plan to get there early.

Thanks, too, for the character-finder links and info. I figured Pooh wasn't too hard to find, but I think DH has been suggesting to DS that Pooh's elusive just so he'll be even more delighted to see him at the breakfast.

Thanks,
Meredith

 

[2Tiggies]

Keep the ressie. CP is a favorite of ours and we do it MORE than once per trip.

Congratulations on an 8.10 ADR there too. The early ones can be hard to get so you have done really well.

What a lovely surprise for your Pooh fan! Another good reason to keep it.

And last, but not least, WELCOME TO THE DIS!!! As others have said, whatever you need to know, just ask.

 

[KTJAY]

Definitely keep the ressie-CP is one of my favorites!! Also-I friend of mine was going in MK early for a res at CP and her family was asked to stand at the train platform to open the park with Mickey. They were thrilled!!

 

[RescueRanger]

My family loves, loves, loves CP. However, I am going to have to be the first voice of dissent. I am going to assume your son is young. I would never give up my morning EMH for MK in order to attend a breakfast. The ability to ride Fantasyland rides with little or no wait is priceless. There will be plenty of opportunities to see Pooh. Could you maybe do a lunch or dinner at CP?

 

[ktlm]

Hello all,

we got some but not all of our desired ADRs.

If there are ADRs you really want that you couldn't get, get on line everyday and check again. You would be surprised at what might pop up suddenly available. People move things around and cancel trips. I checked online every day for almost 2 months to get a specific ADR our last trip and it finally popped up available. We go to lunch at CP every trip (DD is not an early enough riser for a pre-park opening breakfast). CP is great. I would keep the ADR, if you can't move it to a time you prefer.

 

[topmonkeygirl]

Keep trying up until the day you want them for people will cancel for what ever reason up until the last minute.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

We love CP, especially for breakfast. I would keep the ADR even if you miss out on morning EMH. If you eat fairly quickly, you can still be out before the park opens to non-resort guests. Just ask for the check as soon as you are seated. It may take a while for all the characters to come around, depending where you are seated.

Have you thought of CP for lunch instead on that same day? You can start touring at 8 and break for lunch instead. CP is a nice, cool place for a midday break. You'd miss the empty park in the morning for pictures, but you could take advantage of shorter lines for rides.