The family
myself - Rita - 36 and loves Disney
my dad - 70, lives in Norway, he came to Utah for the Olympics
my son - 12
my foster son - 11
my daughter - 4
We had a wonderful trip to Disneyland, and we stayed at the DL hotel this time. Usually we stay at the Candy Cane, but since my dad was here from Norway for the Olympics, we splurged and stayed at the DL hotel.
I will have to say that after being at the outdoor arenas in the mountains for the Olympics, it felt nice and warm in California. May not have been warm for the locals, but it sure was warmer than 28 degrees at Soldier Hollow.
We drove from Utah to Las Vegas and stayed at the Luxor for $59 per night. Then the next day we drove to Anaheim. I stopped at the 15 minute parking on Harbor BLVD, ran and got Season tickets for the kids and I, then we drove to the hotel. I figured I needed the passes before we checked in since I had the $99 per night season passholder rate. I was never asked for the pass at DL hotel. I had already bought a 3 day hopper with a day free for my dad, at the local Disney store.
The kids were checking out the stores, while I checked in, and we got a room in the Bonita tower. I had asked for a room with a daybed, so my dad could have his own bed. I am glad I called and asked, because they had put us in a regular room, but when they checked the notes, they saw my request and gave us one with a daybed.
The room was in the Bonita tower on 6th floor. It was quiet and very nice. We all went to the DL park together to get our season passes, and then the boys took off. We hardly saw the boys after that. My dad, my daugther and I started out with Dumbo. There was only a 5 minute wait at Dumbo. I have never before seen a longer line at Peter Pan then Dumbo. Peter Pan took 10 minutes. All the other rides were almost walk ons.
After we had been in the park for a few hours, we walked through downtown Disney and ate at the Rainforest Cafe. The wait was not long, the waiter was friendly and the food was good.
When we got back to the hotel, the boys were there. They were unhappy. They had gone to the pool, and the lifeguards told them they had to be 14 to be there on their own, so they got kicked out. So, we all got changed and went to the pool together. My 4 year old loved the little kid slide. I stood right next to it, and she would go on it, swim over to me, I would lift her out of the pool, and she would go on the slide again. Best upper body workout I have had in awhile. There were life vests available pool side, as well as towels, so it was very nice.
After we got out of the pool, the boys took of to DL, an my daughter and I went to CA. While walking on the hotel property we met Goofy. No other kids were around, so he spent some time with her. Then he acted like the two of them were going to walk off together and leave me behind. My little girl laughed herself silly. We sure got some Disney Magic today.
We got to CA and headed for Soarin over California. My daugher is 40", but to make sure she got on, I bought her sandals at Wall-Mart with 1" heels. Boy, am I glad I did. She barely made it on. I am sure the height markers they have are a little taller than 40". But she was tall enough with the shoes. This was her first time on Soarin, and she loved it. I loved watching her face while we were on the ride. She was amazed. After Soarin we went to I'ts Tough to be a Bug. Two of the characters from the movie was outside, so we got pictures and autographs. When we came out there was a Monsters Inc show going on. When the show was over we got in line, and got pictures with Sully and his friend. The Monsters Inc characters do not sign autographs, but we got great pictures.
Then we headed for Jumping Jelly Fish. This was another ride she was to short for last September, but we had no problems this time. We really enjoyed it, and since nobody was waiting we got to go on it 3 times without getting off.
We then wen't on the Sephyr and we enjoyed that, before we headed over to DL. In DL we ran into the boys, and went on the Haunted Mansion togeter. No waiting, we really enjoyed that. We got a switch pass at Indiana Jones, and I waited with Ashley while the boys went on the ride. Ashley and I went on the Jungle Cruise while waiting. When they boys came out of the ride, my son and I went on Indiana Jones. When we got to the part where the big boulder is coming towards us, the ride stopped. The lights came on, and we got to see the magic of how the boulder comes towards you, etc. We were sitting right under Indy's feet. He kept moving. I have to say Harrison Ford is cuter. The CM's came with a ladder and we all got to walk out. It was a fun way to end the ride, I felt bad for the people still in line, at least we had almost made it through the entire ride, and got to see some behind the scenes stuff.
When we got out the park was closing and we took the monorail back to DL hotel.
Next morning we went to Goofy's Kitchen for breakfast. The characters were Goofy,Baloo, Chip, Dale, Princess Jasmine, and the Mad Hatter. Jasmine sat down at our table and wrote something for the Mad Hatter to read, it said "Your Fired". It was hillarious. We got some great pictures, great character interaction, and wonderful food.
My dad, Ashley and I went to CA, and started out with Soarin. This was my dad's first time on it, and he loved it. He did not know you could go skiing in California. Then we went over to Grizzly River Rapids, but Ashely was 1" to short. You have to be 42" for that. Maybe next time. While we were walking we saw a crowd of people and we stopped. We finally figured out they were looking at Devine. Creeeeeeeepyyyyy. Then we walked and did Jumping Jelly Fish, no waiting, The Zephyr, no waiting, King Tritons carousel, no waiting. I kind of wanted to do the Maliboomer, but don't have enough courage yet. Maybe next time. We walked into a little show with Daisy, Donald, and some other characters, and we got pictures and autographs.
Next we went back to DL hotel to eat dinner and swim. For dinner we did Goofy's Kitchen, and this time we had Chip, Dale, Goofy, Princess Belle, Geenie. When they did the dance, my daughter got to dance with Belle. It was sooooo cuuuute. Bell was in her beautiful yellow gown, and she was holding my daughters hands and dancing. Of course we got pictures and autographs. The food was also great.
After dinner we went back to DL, and did the rides we missed yesterday. You can sure do a lot of rides in a few hours when the max wait is 15 minutes.
Next morning was our last day at DL. We did CA adventure first, and did Soarin and Tough to Be a Bug, then we went to DL. We stayed at the park all day. Our favorites were Roger Rabbit, Goofy's coaster, we did that one many times and got front seat several times, The Mattehorn, BTMRR, etc. etc. We watched the parade and had a wonderful time. We stayed until closing and walked back to the hotel slowly.
The next day while we were packing the fire alarm went off. I gather all the kids, and we followed the map and walked out of the hotel through the stairwells, and emergency exits. When we got out we were told it was a false alarm caused by construction. No biggie, we went back up and finished packing. This is where I want to make a comment. We were the only people who evacuated the building. This really disturbs me. Yes it was inconvenient, yes it was a false alarm, but if there really was a fire, I can't imagine what kind of disaster it could have been. Please take fire alarms seriously and evacuate. The worst thing that can happen if it is a false alarm is that you get to walk some stairs, and then get to go back up. If it had truly been a fire, my family and I would have made it out, others may not have been so lucky. After 9/11 we should all have learned a lesson about taking fire alarms and emergency signals seriously.
Some observations:
We saw a lot of characters at CA, and got great pictures and autographs. It was especially fun to meet the Monsters Inc characters.
Here are some reasons I prefer the Candy Cane to the DL hotel:
Even though we like the DL hotel, my boys hated having to be supervised at the hotel pool, and prefer the Candy Cane pool where they don't have to have an adult with them.
We felt kind of trapped when it came to dining choices, and everything at Disney is expensive. Did not feel like going to the parking lot and drive out of the park. When we stay at the Candy Cane, our car is right outside our room and it is more convenient to drive up to Denny's on Katella or wherever else you want to eat.
Walking from the Candy Cane and into the park, is just as close as walking from the Bonita tower into the park. Instead of walking through Downtown Disney, you just walk through the shuttle parking. Yes, you can take the monorail from the DL hotel, but you can also take the shuttle from Candy Cane. I did not find a great deal of advantage at staying at the DL hotel.
I love the free breakfast at the Candy Cane, at the DL hotel, nothing is free.
So, we have scheduled our next trip, first week of June at the Candy Cane. Can't wait to be back.
myself - Rita - 36 and loves Disney
my dad - 70, lives in Norway, he came to Utah for the Olympics
my son - 12
my foster son - 11
my daughter - 4
We had a wonderful trip to Disneyland, and we stayed at the DL hotel this time. Usually we stay at the Candy Cane, but since my dad was here from Norway for the Olympics, we splurged and stayed at the DL hotel.
I will have to say that after being at the outdoor arenas in the mountains for the Olympics, it felt nice and warm in California. May not have been warm for the locals, but it sure was warmer than 28 degrees at Soldier Hollow.
We drove from Utah to Las Vegas and stayed at the Luxor for $59 per night. Then the next day we drove to Anaheim. I stopped at the 15 minute parking on Harbor BLVD, ran and got Season tickets for the kids and I, then we drove to the hotel. I figured I needed the passes before we checked in since I had the $99 per night season passholder rate. I was never asked for the pass at DL hotel. I had already bought a 3 day hopper with a day free for my dad, at the local Disney store.
The kids were checking out the stores, while I checked in, and we got a room in the Bonita tower. I had asked for a room with a daybed, so my dad could have his own bed. I am glad I called and asked, because they had put us in a regular room, but when they checked the notes, they saw my request and gave us one with a daybed.
The room was in the Bonita tower on 6th floor. It was quiet and very nice. We all went to the DL park together to get our season passes, and then the boys took off. We hardly saw the boys after that. My dad, my daugther and I started out with Dumbo. There was only a 5 minute wait at Dumbo. I have never before seen a longer line at Peter Pan then Dumbo. Peter Pan took 10 minutes. All the other rides were almost walk ons.
After we had been in the park for a few hours, we walked through downtown Disney and ate at the Rainforest Cafe. The wait was not long, the waiter was friendly and the food was good.
When we got back to the hotel, the boys were there. They were unhappy. They had gone to the pool, and the lifeguards told them they had to be 14 to be there on their own, so they got kicked out. So, we all got changed and went to the pool together. My 4 year old loved the little kid slide. I stood right next to it, and she would go on it, swim over to me, I would lift her out of the pool, and she would go on the slide again. Best upper body workout I have had in awhile. There were life vests available pool side, as well as towels, so it was very nice.
After we got out of the pool, the boys took of to DL, an my daughter and I went to CA. While walking on the hotel property we met Goofy. No other kids were around, so he spent some time with her. Then he acted like the two of them were going to walk off together and leave me behind. My little girl laughed herself silly. We sure got some Disney Magic today.
We got to CA and headed for Soarin over California. My daugher is 40", but to make sure she got on, I bought her sandals at Wall-Mart with 1" heels. Boy, am I glad I did. She barely made it on. I am sure the height markers they have are a little taller than 40". But she was tall enough with the shoes. This was her first time on Soarin, and she loved it. I loved watching her face while we were on the ride. She was amazed. After Soarin we went to I'ts Tough to be a Bug. Two of the characters from the movie was outside, so we got pictures and autographs. When we came out there was a Monsters Inc show going on. When the show was over we got in line, and got pictures with Sully and his friend. The Monsters Inc characters do not sign autographs, but we got great pictures.
Then we headed for Jumping Jelly Fish. This was another ride she was to short for last September, but we had no problems this time. We really enjoyed it, and since nobody was waiting we got to go on it 3 times without getting off.
We then wen't on the Sephyr and we enjoyed that, before we headed over to DL. In DL we ran into the boys, and went on the Haunted Mansion togeter. No waiting, we really enjoyed that. We got a switch pass at Indiana Jones, and I waited with Ashley while the boys went on the ride. Ashley and I went on the Jungle Cruise while waiting. When they boys came out of the ride, my son and I went on Indiana Jones. When we got to the part where the big boulder is coming towards us, the ride stopped. The lights came on, and we got to see the magic of how the boulder comes towards you, etc. We were sitting right under Indy's feet. He kept moving. I have to say Harrison Ford is cuter. The CM's came with a ladder and we all got to walk out. It was a fun way to end the ride, I felt bad for the people still in line, at least we had almost made it through the entire ride, and got to see some behind the scenes stuff.
When we got out the park was closing and we took the monorail back to DL hotel.
Next morning we went to Goofy's Kitchen for breakfast. The characters were Goofy,Baloo, Chip, Dale, Princess Jasmine, and the Mad Hatter. Jasmine sat down at our table and wrote something for the Mad Hatter to read, it said "Your Fired". It was hillarious. We got some great pictures, great character interaction, and wonderful food.
My dad, Ashley and I went to CA, and started out with Soarin. This was my dad's first time on it, and he loved it. He did not know you could go skiing in California. Then we went over to Grizzly River Rapids, but Ashely was 1" to short. You have to be 42" for that. Maybe next time. While we were walking we saw a crowd of people and we stopped. We finally figured out they were looking at Devine. Creeeeeeeepyyyyy. Then we walked and did Jumping Jelly Fish, no waiting, The Zephyr, no waiting, King Tritons carousel, no waiting. I kind of wanted to do the Maliboomer, but don't have enough courage yet. Maybe next time. We walked into a little show with Daisy, Donald, and some other characters, and we got pictures and autographs.
Next we went back to DL hotel to eat dinner and swim. For dinner we did Goofy's Kitchen, and this time we had Chip, Dale, Goofy, Princess Belle, Geenie. When they did the dance, my daughter got to dance with Belle. It was sooooo cuuuute. Bell was in her beautiful yellow gown, and she was holding my daughters hands and dancing. Of course we got pictures and autographs. The food was also great.
After dinner we went back to DL, and did the rides we missed yesterday. You can sure do a lot of rides in a few hours when the max wait is 15 minutes.
Next morning was our last day at DL. We did CA adventure first, and did Soarin and Tough to Be a Bug, then we went to DL. We stayed at the park all day. Our favorites were Roger Rabbit, Goofy's coaster, we did that one many times and got front seat several times, The Mattehorn, BTMRR, etc. etc. We watched the parade and had a wonderful time. We stayed until closing and walked back to the hotel slowly.
The next day while we were packing the fire alarm went off. I gather all the kids, and we followed the map and walked out of the hotel through the stairwells, and emergency exits. When we got out we were told it was a false alarm caused by construction. No biggie, we went back up and finished packing. This is where I want to make a comment. We were the only people who evacuated the building. This really disturbs me. Yes it was inconvenient, yes it was a false alarm, but if there really was a fire, I can't imagine what kind of disaster it could have been. Please take fire alarms seriously and evacuate. The worst thing that can happen if it is a false alarm is that you get to walk some stairs, and then get to go back up. If it had truly been a fire, my family and I would have made it out, others may not have been so lucky. After 9/11 we should all have learned a lesson about taking fire alarms and emergency signals seriously.
Some observations:
We saw a lot of characters at CA, and got great pictures and autographs. It was especially fun to meet the Monsters Inc characters.
Here are some reasons I prefer the Candy Cane to the DL hotel:
Even though we like the DL hotel, my boys hated having to be supervised at the hotel pool, and prefer the Candy Cane pool where they don't have to have an adult with them.
We felt kind of trapped when it came to dining choices, and everything at Disney is expensive. Did not feel like going to the parking lot and drive out of the park. When we stay at the Candy Cane, our car is right outside our room and it is more convenient to drive up to Denny's on Katella or wherever else you want to eat.
Walking from the Candy Cane and into the park, is just as close as walking from the Bonita tower into the park. Instead of walking through Downtown Disney, you just walk through the shuttle parking. Yes, you can take the monorail from the DL hotel, but you can also take the shuttle from Candy Cane. I did not find a great deal of advantage at staying at the DL hotel.
I love the free breakfast at the Candy Cane, at the DL hotel, nothing is free.
So, we have scheduled our next trip, first week of June at the Candy Cane. Can't wait to be back.
