"ENCHANTED TALES with ROB" - A Birthday/Christmas DISer Celebration! **NEW TR LINK**

[stinkerbell007]

Okay, Rob, you lucked out with the Jingle Cruise. Or maybe I should just say that I really did NOT luck out. I was able to squeeze in a one-day trip at the beginning of December, and we went on the Jingle Cruise. I was so excited. I could hear the audio of one of the female skippers approaching. I had heard her on one of the awesome early recordings (on YouTube maybe?) and recognized her as one of the very funny ones. Howeevvveerrr, ugh. What we got was one of the very worst skippers I have ever had. Ever. And I have had many! (wacka wacka, yuck yuck yuck). But really, he was so terrible. No excitement. EXTREMELY monotone. No jokes. It was so, so sad. Because I know how awesome that attraction can be with the right skipper. The good skippers create the receptive passengers, and then it just becomes a great trip.

sigh. Next time, I guess. Well, I hope!

Anyhoo, carry on, my friend.



Linda

 

[shan23877]

I always wonder how wise it is to ride an attraction after a breakdown. I still do it, but it doesn't seem wise

Cute mickey in that little boy's hair! I love it when people really get into their trips!

Jingle cruise sounds disappointing. You have a great attitude about it!

 

[emmysmommy]

Darn! You had to create your own alternate Splash experience. The only down side is no ride photo! Well, that and no plunge, and missing the zippity do da song...

I anticipated more from the Jingle Cruise since it was a little misleading that the queue was decorated, and then the boats re-named and then.... nada. Not a whole lot of difference for the ride experience. Oh well, I still enjoy that ride.

That's kid's Mickey head shaved on his head... So cool! So are you considering that look for your next trip?

 

[Credit Man]

I just love "Splash Fountain"!!!

 

[amazingact21]

That is one dedicated Disney fan right there.


At least you're the ever-optimist, Rob, and created your very own Splash Mountain. It looks like you'd have less chanc of getting soaked, which I would be happy with.

But man oh man, what the other guests were probably thinking.
"Has that man never seen a water fountain before? Where is he from? Children, do you see how lucky you have it? This man came all the way to Disney World and he got to see a water fountain for the first time!"



I think it's a tradition that on every person's visit to WDW, Splash be broken down at some point. They really need to extend their refurb from a few months in winter and do a majoy overhaul like they did on Thunder a few years ago.

 

[missangelalexis]

Awesome that you got to see Ne-yo!

Ugh such a bummer that Splash was down, but at least you got to switch out your FP+.

Omg the boy with Mickey shaved on his head, awesome!

 

[NancyLuvsMickey]

OMG!!! Love that little boys hidden Mickey!!! Best Mom Ever for doing it to him!!!

 

[shesCamii]

Just joining in now and boy I have a lot to catch up on!

Excited to read from a fellow Canadian though!

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Fab xx

Why THANK YOU VERY MUCH Kellea!!

Awe man, we were totally crossing through the hub at the same time!!! I remember hearing that song when we were on our way into CRT, but we were on the tomorrowland side! SO CLOSE lol.

Glad that fp+ wasn't too big of a problem for you, we managed to have a pretty good time too that week with ours!

Also, the whole "listing to a song and then your batteries start to die"…that's a sentence that there are people in this world who would have no clue what you're talking about…as music players nowadays don't run like that…and that's weird...

Aww Katt, really???!!! I remember you had an ADR that day. Bummer.

You know, it really didn't bother me at all. If I had been on a more "ride oriented" trip it probably would have, but as it was, I was just happy to be there, lol.

Oh wow really? I honestly had no idea. It was seriously funny to hear though, OMG.

Wow! What a cute head!

I love all the Christmas decorations in the queue for JC. I expected there to be more Christmas themes too, to be honest. Not that I saw it, except for in your pictures!

I loved at your Splash improv... good job!

OMG I thought it was SO COOL!

Yeah, they did "Christmas up" the queue, but the ride just had nothing. Still fun though.

Ahahaha, Thank You.

What a bummer they didn't do more for the Jingle Cruise

You really lucked out with all the understanding CMs, but what was going on with your FPs?!

Ugh, Splash is ALWAYS closed!!!!!

Super AWESOME hidden Mickey! I wonder if my son would let me do that on his head... hmmm

I was a little disappointed, but I had heard beforehand not to expect too much, which did make it a little easier to take.

I really did, especially having heard about so many others being turned away. There was just something wrong with the communication of my band or something. Whenever I used it to log into the account, everything was as it should be. I just couldn't be bothered waiting at Guest Relations to sort it out.

Oh Man I KNOW!!!!!!! This is why I always rush to Splash first thing on trip because I just know it'll be down later.

IT WAS SO COOL Jennifer. I HAD to get a picture.

SO cool that you got to see Ne-Yo, Rob! Although I do wish he had picked something a bit more Christmassy, but oh well.

Santa hats on the animals would have been so cool! Yeah, I was expecting a new spiel and more details, but it was still fun.

The question is, can I get FP+ for that water fountain?

So glad to hear that the FP+ CMs were so understanding!

Oh me tooo Courtney, especially since he was the only one performing that I actually knew. He may have done some Christmas songs before I got there, though I'm really not sure.

See that's what I wanted to see, and what the poster alluded to. But not a big deal, and I did like the Santa hats the CM's wore.

Bahahahaha, I hear it's a tough get since it's now very very popular.

You know Courtney, I've heard so many stories of other people being rejected, end of story. I really feel lucky that I got so many CM's that took me at my word, no arguments, nothing.

 

[DisKH]

Why is splash mountain always broken!?!?!?!
Some people are so ignorant..my gosh magic mountain...…so disappointing

hahahahaha hat mickey head is hilarious!

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

We spent quite a bit of time in BOG too, just taking in the atmosphere. It's a beautiful place to spend some time!
That's really cool that you got to see Ne-Yo performing.
I can't say I was a big fan of the Jingle Cruise. It felt to me like they could have done so much more with it.
Omg those FP+ lines! Whoa! I hope they can do something to make them more efficient or something.
BOOOO Spash being down, love your improvisation though.
Jeeez, blue Mickey heads all around for you. Not cool, but glad you had all kinds of understanding CMs!
Speaking of Mickey heads...
OMG that little boy's haircut is the best thing ever!!!

How can you not Wendy???? Honestly, I could have stayed even longer.
It was so awesome even though I only caught the very end. The finale's always the best part anyway!!
Yeah, it was nothing special at all. I still love the ride, but it probably would have been better if they hadn't advertised it. Then it would have been a cute "surprise" because there would be no expectations.
And these were some of the shorter ones. I think with more people using FP and the extra time to scan, it will create a real mess at busy times. Here's hoping they come up with a solution.
I think I've just come to expect Splash to be down, which is really sad. But you always have to have a backup plan, lol.
FP+ just would not work for me. On a different trip I might have looked into getting it fixed, but on this trip, it just didn't matter to me as much. If they wouldn't let me though, I honestly wouldn't have cared... apart from a few notable yet to come exceptions.
RIGHT???!!!! I thought that was so adorable and so glad his mom was willing to share, lol!!!!

I really love that castle picture with all the confetti or snow or whatever it is. Very cool to look at!

What a cool kid! That is awesome!!

Oh me too. It was confetti and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

He was so cool. I just loved that!

That kid's Mickey head was awesome!! Thankfully we never saw the lines for FPP returns like those long ones! Whew! Crazy!! I did think the Jingle Jungle Cruise was cute...even just on the surface, I did appreciate the effort as well! Splash in the water fountain ...hilarious!!

It was one of the neatest things ever. Some of the FP+ return lines were so insane that people didn't even know where to go. Oh I thought the Jingle Cruise was a cute idea too. It would have been better had it not been advertised, because the poster was awesome! Haha, thanks. You always have to have a backup when your first choice is down.

Very cute hidden mickey!!!

Were the crowds bad around the hub with the taping going on? We almost went to the park on a taping day in 2010, but opted to go elsewhere for fear of the crowds.

Bummer that Splash was out of order.

Double bummer that the Jingle Cruise wasn't more holiday specific and special.

One of the best EVER!!!

The crowds were not bad at all. Being a Friday and with the park "closing" at 7 for the party, a lot of the crowds stayed away. I imagine the crowd could swell depending on the performers though. This years group really wasn't a huge draw I don't think. I didn't attend, but I heard the next day for the actual parade (Saturday, later close) was INSANE!!!

It was, but (and this is actually really sad to say) I just expect it now.

Thankfully the Jingle Cruise wasn't as disappointing as it might have been had I not heard to lower my expectations. It was fine for what it was, but certainly nothing major.

Okay, Rob, you lucked out with the Jingle Cruise. Or maybe I should just say that I really did NOT luck out. I was able to squeeze in a one-day trip at the beginning of December, and we went on the Jingle Cruise. I was so excited. I could hear the audio of one of the female skippers approaching. I had heard her on one of the awesome early recordings (on YouTube maybe?) and recognized her as one of the very funny ones. Howeevvveerrr, ugh. What we got was one of the very worst skippers I have ever had. Ever. And I have had many! (wacka wacka, yuck yuck yuck). But really, he was so terrible. No excitement. EXTREMELY monotone. No jokes. It was so, so sad. Because I know how awesome that attraction can be with the right skipper. The good skippers create the receptive passengers, and then it just becomes a great trip.

sigh. Next time, I guess. Well, I hope!

Anyhoo, carry on, my friend.



Linda

Awww gee I am really sorry you had such a rotten cruise Linda. That's the things about this ride... the skipper makes ALL the difference. And it's just luck of the draw.

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

I always wonder how wise it is to ride an attraction after a breakdown. I still do it, but it doesn't seem wise

Cute mickey in that little boy's hair! I love it when people really get into their trips!

Jingle cruise sounds disappointing. You have a great attitude about it!

Hahaha, probably totally unwise Shannon. But then again, since things are breaking down so often, you almost have no choice.

Oh me too, and this was just so amazingly awesome. I HAD to get a picture.

It was a little, but it's still a great classic ride. My only real disappointment was the advertising made it seem like it was going to be more. The queue was pretty cute though, and some of the Christmassy jokes did help to freshen it all up a bit.

Darn! You had to create your own alternate Splash experience. The only down side is no ride photo! Well, that and no plunge, and missing the zippity do da song...

I anticipated more from the Jingle Cruise since it was a little misleading that the queue was decorated, and then the boats re-named and then.... nada. Not a whole lot of difference for the ride experience. Oh well, I still enjoy that ride.

That's kid's Mickey head shaved on his head... So cool! So are you considering that look for your next trip?

I hate that Splash breaks down so much since it's such a favourite. But sometimes you just have to roll with it. AND, I will get back before the trip is over. But... still disappointing. Thankfully I had my backup.

The only thing that really saved it for me was knowing in advance what to expect (or maybe more importantly, what NOT to expect). Honestly, if I had ridden without that knowledge, I would have been VERY disappointed.

Brenda, it was SO AMAZING!!! Hmmmm, I'm not sure I could pull that off, lol.

I just love "Splash Fountain"!!!

AHHHHHH HOW DID I MISS THAT?????????? Nice!!!

That is one dedicated Disney fan right there.

At least you're the ever-optimist, Rob, and created your very own Splash Mountain. It looks like you'd have less chanc of getting soaked, which I would be happy with.

But man oh man, what the other guests were probably thinking.
"Has that man never seen a water fountain before? Where is he from? Children, do you see how lucky you have it? This man came all the way to Disney World and he got to see a water fountain for the first time!"


I think it's a tradition that on every person's visit to WDW, Splash be broken down at some point. They really need to extend their refurb from a few months in winter and do a majoy overhaul like they did on Thunder a few years ago.

OMG totally!!!! It was so awesome Alisha!

The way I look at it, you always have to have a Plan B. And you're right, Plan B was much less wet.

BAHAHAHAHAHA, honestly there really was some hysterically funny looks from people. You know there are some pretty cool fountains in "The World" that wouldn't raise an eyebrow if you were taking a picture. This one was as plain and "normal" as they come. If nothing else, I feel I provided someone with a great story to tell so I'm comfortable with that.

At LEAST once. Honestly, it's become such a sad thing that it's now expected to be broken.

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Awesome that you got to see Ne-yo!

Ugh such a bummer that Splash was down, but at least you got to switch out your FP+.

Omg the boy with Mickey shaved on his head, awesome!

I thought so too Alexis even if it was just the finale. But everybody knows the finale is always the best part. Plus, I actually knew who he was!!!!

I've just come to expect this now, which makes me really sad. It's good that the FP's can be swapped around though.

THAT was incredibly awesome. You gotta respect that kind of fandom.

OMG!!! Love that little boys hidden Mickey!!! Best Mom Ever for doing it to him!!!

HAHA, see so many people would think it was cruel, but we ALL know better.

Just joining in now and boy I have a lot to catch up on!

Excited to read from a fellow Canadian though!

And I am so VERY PLEASED to welcome a fellow Canadian. Thank you SO MUCH for joining in.

Why is splash mountain always broken!?!?!?!
Some people are so ignorant..my gosh magic mountain...…so disappointing

hahahahaha hat mickey head is hilarious!

I so wish I knew. It's so sad when you expect a ride to be broken a lot.

HAHAHAHA, yeah, they really need to start screening people better.

That just blew me away. So much love for that!!!

 

[USAFdad]

I posted on Facebook,
”Just watched Neo perform in Magic Kingdom... No big deal”

Immediately after posting I realized my spelling error as it was Ne-Yo the R&B singer performing,
AND NOT, in fact, Keanu Reeves dodging slow motion bullets, although that would have been cool too.
And really not totally out of the realm of possibility since there is a White Rabbit around sometimes.

The performance was over, but it was fine, as it was time for my first FP+ of the day, the Christmas themed Jingle Cruise.

I really was expecting some Santa hats on the animals or something based on the advertising Disney had done,
But the only “Christmas” change came in the form of some of the jokes, and our good buddy Trader Sam who had a Christmas necklace on.

… I improvised.

And yes, I did indeed get quite a few weird looks as I stood there taking photos of a water fountain substituting for Splash Mountain,
But I was just thinking of you all and this very trip report, so the relative embarrassment was completely worth it.

So obviously I did what any self respecting Disney fan would do under the same circumstances…

SHOOT THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!… (a very dirty look).
​

I think it would have been better if it were neo dodging slow motion bullets.

Personally I really enjoyed the jokes from the "Jingle cruise" of course I love a good pun.


I wish I could have seen you taking a picture of the water fountain. I bet that made someone’s trip

I too would have been shooting a dirty look.

 

[deedee2177]

Hi Rob! Thanks for another great update. I definitely understand your hesitancy to ride Splash after it's been down. My DH and I got stuck on there for a good 20 minutes when we were there on our Honeymoon. It was the Jumping Water section and I was just preparing myself for something to happen and for us to get drenched with some of the jumping water.

I loved the little boy...typical that it appears the Mommy had to hold his head still for your picture. Those little guys do not like to keep still!!

So, cool you got to see Ne-Yo. We watched the show on Christmas so it's funny to know you were in the crowd for taping.

Ok, the FP lines are scaring me a bit!!! When we go in April we are staying off-site so I'm going to have to wait and make my selections when I get to the Parks. Hope it won't be too much trouble!

 

[Pluto0809]

So cool that you got to see Ne-Yo perform!

I have to agree that they could have done more with the Jingle Cruise. I didn't get to see it in person but I did watch the ride through on You Tube. They did such a great job with the queue area you would think they could have done one or two more things throughout the ride.

Bummer that Splash was down but that seems to be the trend. We got one of those "the ride is down please change your FP+" e-mails for Splash in October. But by the time the actual FP+ time came around it was back up and we went on with no problem.

Awesome Hidden Mickey!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

great effort in recreating the next best approximation of Splash Mountain. It would have only been funnier if you took the time to put on a poncho before braving the water fountain

Pretty cool with the Mickey Head Shave .... they should offer that up in the Main St. Barber Shop .... or if not shaved, then like take a pattern and use colored hair spray to "paint" the image in

sticking with the Matrix theme, at least you were only getting the blue "pill" rather than the red one when your magic band was scanned

 

[peachmermaid]

I love Ne-Yo!! That is so cool you got to see him. Jealous!

The eighth wonder of the world, the back side of water! Ooh, aah. Bummer that it wasn't too Christmas-y though.

I thought you posted the water fountain as a PSA to say don't drink this nasty water. We spend a ton on bottled water everyday in the parks but one sip of the tap & you know it's money well spent. Magic mountain, really? I'm glad you shot that guest (a dirty look)! Omg people...don't you read ANYTHING before you go?!

That is the coolest hair style ever! They should offer that at the bibiddi boppidi boutique. It'd be a lot less painful than those updos. I love that you asked to take a picture & the mom said yes. What a cute & fun experience in the HM line!

 

[scottny]

Your pics are beautiful. Wish I was there now.
Dancing Barbara I saw too but did not get a pic. 
I love that room in BOG with the falling snow.
LOL about the color scheme of the glass. I never noticed it before.
Nice you got to see Ne_yo. I love that song.
Nice “jingle” Cruise pics.
OH MY. The line for Big Thunder.
LOL. The kids head. Kinda cool.
All caught up again.

 

[Tracy161]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA on your entire Spalsh Mountain (or as some refer to it, Magic Mountain ) commentary. Priceless. I lost it on the water fountain. And awww... That kid with his hidden Mickey head?! Amazing