Furnacefighter
Sixthtimer
- Joined
- May 11, 2005
- Messages
- 37
Disney Parks
Furnacefighter and his family has just returned from WDW and would like to share our reflections of the Disney World Parks with you. Trip takers consisted of DH-me, DW, and DD-17. We reside in the Philadelphia area. We vacationed at CBR between July 24 and July 31.
EPCOT
We spent two of our six Disney park days a EPCOT. We road Soarin, Test Track, and Mission Space. All three of these headliner rides were great. We got a little light headed in Mission Space but the thrill and the rush of that ride was worth the ill effects. We also rode Ellens Universe of Energy and got to see Impressions of France. In the years weve been going to WDW we never got a good chance to shop in the World Showcase. Well this year we got the chance to take a good look. Found Mission Space to be a great place to find a photo opportunity with Stitch. Stitch is my DDs favorite character and we were disappointed that he was not hanging around his ride at MK. Very glad to find him at EPCOT. Stitch was very entertaining, posing for pictures, stealing snack food, and even walking children in strollers. Every time were in the World we always go back for Illuminations. The fireworks and laser show seems to get better with age.
Animal Kingdom
Spent only one of our six Disney Days at AK. We walked straight to Kilimanjaro Safaris. The poacher story has gotten a little old but the animals encountered are just marvelous. We took the train to Rafikis Planet Watch, Walked the Maharajah Jungle Trek to view the tigers, enjoyed the Flights of Wonder, road Dinosaur, saw the Its Tough to be a Bug show, then took a ride down the Kali River Rapids. We enjoyed seeing Lucky the Dinosaur as he pulled his cart around the AK. Looking forward to the Everest Roller Coaster opening, this park could stand another headliner.
Magic Kingdom
For the last couple of trips we took at WDW we only spent a day at MK. Since we covered everything we wanted to see at AK in one day we decided to spend two days at MK. Rode the Walt Disney Railroad to Frontierland and walked right to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The Railroad was down, not working so our plan of fastpassing Splash Mountain and going stand by on Big Thunder went down the tube. Oh well, thank goodness that the Disney Cast Members were up front and closed the ride rather than making guest wait an extended time for a crippled up ride. Anyway, on our two day tour of MK we rode Splash Mountain, and Big Thunder Mountain RR (yeah they fixed it), Its a Small World, Peter Pans Flight, toured the Haunted Mansion, Rode the Riverboat, Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, Indy Speedway, Dumbo, and my old friend the Carrousel of Progress. The Carrousel and I go way back to the 64 New York Worlds Fair. When we were down three years ago the ride was closed and I took it that the Carrousel was closed forever. Very happy to take at least one more ride with my friend.
Our two favorite attractions at MK were Stitchs Great Escape and Mickeys Philharmonic. Rode the Stitch ride last time when it was Alien Encounter. We hated Alien but were very happy with the changes Disney made to tell the Stitch story (the chili dog burp part was very funny). Technology in making 3D movies has improved. Mickeys Philharmonic was fresh and funny. A wonderful experience.
One evening we returned to view the evening Spectromagic Parade. We had a great view of the parade from the Main Street Exposition Hall steps. The Wishes Fireworks display is the finest use of fireworks that I have ever seen. In prior visits we had been in the park during the fireworks but always used the show to ride the attractions that we had not seen earlier in the day. Were glad we got to see the fireworks. They were an event, not just a show.
MGM Studios
We spent only one day at MGM. The largest crowds we encounter was the day we toured the Studios. Upon entering the park we decided to fastpass Rock & Roller Coaster and go thru stand by for Tower of Terror. After we had waited about 15 mins a cast member announced that only one lift was operating and waits would be longer than expected. Well an hour and a half past and we still were not in the hotel yet. In fact both lines, fast pass and stand by had stopped completely. In reality the ride was completely shut down but Disney Cast Members did not inform the guests patiently waiting. They had no regard for guest valued park time. A decision was made to letem wait and that really ticked me off. The day before at MK a ride was shut down, no stand by or fastpasses were accepted. We were very happy not to waste valuable morning park time standing in a stopped waiting line.
Another low light was the horrendous condition of a ladies lavatory near the Sci-Fi Dine in Theater. When my DW went to the desk to complain about the condition of the lav another guest was already letting them know how deplorable the lav was. A Disney Cast Member at the Sci-Fi desk vented back at the guest how all Disney Lavatories were cleaned every hour and that if they needed to be cleaned more often then it was the fault of the guests for making a mess of the lavatories. Are Cast Members trained to take on guest who have complaints? My strongest suggestion to Disney Management will be to give all cast members training in customer service. If not for guests, there would be no cast members. The guest is not just a king, he is sole reason why the park opens its doors. Maybe when guest like us start taking our vacation dollars somewhere else, Disney will get the message. We wont be back until Disney addresses all of our issues of complaint.
Anyway, we did ride Rock & Roller Coaster (coolest and shortest coaster ride on the planet), took the voyage of the Little Mermaid (my DD still gets misty at the end of Mermaid), enjoyed Who Wants to be a Millionaire Play It, Muppets 3D, & Star Tours. Disappointed that the last Stunt Spectacular Show of the day was canceled by rain. If you really got to see this show we strongly suggest that you do it early before the afternoon thunderstorms power up. The show cant go on if the ground is wet for safety reasons and were completely cool with Disneys decision to protect their daredevil cast members.
Capped the evening at the Studios off by enjoying a performance of Fantasmic. Another great Disney entertainment experience that we thoroughly enjoyed.
Transportation report posted:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=876876&goto=newpost
Dining report posted:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=879307&goto=newpost
Resort report posted:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=883388&goto=newpost
Thank you all for taking the time to read our Reflections of Disney. We had a great time thanks to the reports of those who posted before we left and we felt obligated to post in tine to help those going after us. We hope you enjoyed both the good times reported and the rants. God bless you all, we hope you have the best of times.
Pedometer Totals
After walking thru Disney's parks for six days we totaled 95,502 steps taken for a total of 45.09 miles walked.
Furnacefighter and his family has just returned from WDW and would like to share our reflections of the Disney World Parks with you. Trip takers consisted of DH-me, DW, and DD-17. We reside in the Philadelphia area. We vacationed at CBR between July 24 and July 31.
EPCOT
We spent two of our six Disney park days a EPCOT. We road Soarin, Test Track, and Mission Space. All three of these headliner rides were great. We got a little light headed in Mission Space but the thrill and the rush of that ride was worth the ill effects. We also rode Ellens Universe of Energy and got to see Impressions of France. In the years weve been going to WDW we never got a good chance to shop in the World Showcase. Well this year we got the chance to take a good look. Found Mission Space to be a great place to find a photo opportunity with Stitch. Stitch is my DDs favorite character and we were disappointed that he was not hanging around his ride at MK. Very glad to find him at EPCOT. Stitch was very entertaining, posing for pictures, stealing snack food, and even walking children in strollers. Every time were in the World we always go back for Illuminations. The fireworks and laser show seems to get better with age.
Animal Kingdom
Spent only one of our six Disney Days at AK. We walked straight to Kilimanjaro Safaris. The poacher story has gotten a little old but the animals encountered are just marvelous. We took the train to Rafikis Planet Watch, Walked the Maharajah Jungle Trek to view the tigers, enjoyed the Flights of Wonder, road Dinosaur, saw the Its Tough to be a Bug show, then took a ride down the Kali River Rapids. We enjoyed seeing Lucky the Dinosaur as he pulled his cart around the AK. Looking forward to the Everest Roller Coaster opening, this park could stand another headliner.
Magic Kingdom
For the last couple of trips we took at WDW we only spent a day at MK. Since we covered everything we wanted to see at AK in one day we decided to spend two days at MK. Rode the Walt Disney Railroad to Frontierland and walked right to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The Railroad was down, not working so our plan of fastpassing Splash Mountain and going stand by on Big Thunder went down the tube. Oh well, thank goodness that the Disney Cast Members were up front and closed the ride rather than making guest wait an extended time for a crippled up ride. Anyway, on our two day tour of MK we rode Splash Mountain, and Big Thunder Mountain RR (yeah they fixed it), Its a Small World, Peter Pans Flight, toured the Haunted Mansion, Rode the Riverboat, Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, Indy Speedway, Dumbo, and my old friend the Carrousel of Progress. The Carrousel and I go way back to the 64 New York Worlds Fair. When we were down three years ago the ride was closed and I took it that the Carrousel was closed forever. Very happy to take at least one more ride with my friend.
Our two favorite attractions at MK were Stitchs Great Escape and Mickeys Philharmonic. Rode the Stitch ride last time when it was Alien Encounter. We hated Alien but were very happy with the changes Disney made to tell the Stitch story (the chili dog burp part was very funny). Technology in making 3D movies has improved. Mickeys Philharmonic was fresh and funny. A wonderful experience.
One evening we returned to view the evening Spectromagic Parade. We had a great view of the parade from the Main Street Exposition Hall steps. The Wishes Fireworks display is the finest use of fireworks that I have ever seen. In prior visits we had been in the park during the fireworks but always used the show to ride the attractions that we had not seen earlier in the day. Were glad we got to see the fireworks. They were an event, not just a show.
MGM Studios
We spent only one day at MGM. The largest crowds we encounter was the day we toured the Studios. Upon entering the park we decided to fastpass Rock & Roller Coaster and go thru stand by for Tower of Terror. After we had waited about 15 mins a cast member announced that only one lift was operating and waits would be longer than expected. Well an hour and a half past and we still were not in the hotel yet. In fact both lines, fast pass and stand by had stopped completely. In reality the ride was completely shut down but Disney Cast Members did not inform the guests patiently waiting. They had no regard for guest valued park time. A decision was made to letem wait and that really ticked me off. The day before at MK a ride was shut down, no stand by or fastpasses were accepted. We were very happy not to waste valuable morning park time standing in a stopped waiting line.
Another low light was the horrendous condition of a ladies lavatory near the Sci-Fi Dine in Theater. When my DW went to the desk to complain about the condition of the lav another guest was already letting them know how deplorable the lav was. A Disney Cast Member at the Sci-Fi desk vented back at the guest how all Disney Lavatories were cleaned every hour and that if they needed to be cleaned more often then it was the fault of the guests for making a mess of the lavatories. Are Cast Members trained to take on guest who have complaints? My strongest suggestion to Disney Management will be to give all cast members training in customer service. If not for guests, there would be no cast members. The guest is not just a king, he is sole reason why the park opens its doors. Maybe when guest like us start taking our vacation dollars somewhere else, Disney will get the message. We wont be back until Disney addresses all of our issues of complaint.
Anyway, we did ride Rock & Roller Coaster (coolest and shortest coaster ride on the planet), took the voyage of the Little Mermaid (my DD still gets misty at the end of Mermaid), enjoyed Who Wants to be a Millionaire Play It, Muppets 3D, & Star Tours. Disappointed that the last Stunt Spectacular Show of the day was canceled by rain. If you really got to see this show we strongly suggest that you do it early before the afternoon thunderstorms power up. The show cant go on if the ground is wet for safety reasons and were completely cool with Disneys decision to protect their daredevil cast members.
Capped the evening at the Studios off by enjoying a performance of Fantasmic. Another great Disney entertainment experience that we thoroughly enjoyed.
Transportation report posted:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=876876&goto=newpost
Dining report posted:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=879307&goto=newpost
Resort report posted:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=883388&goto=newpost
Thank you all for taking the time to read our Reflections of Disney. We had a great time thanks to the reports of those who posted before we left and we felt obligated to post in tine to help those going after us. We hope you enjoyed both the good times reported and the rants. God bless you all, we hope you have the best of times.
Pedometer Totals
After walking thru Disney's parks for six days we totaled 95,502 steps taken for a total of 45.09 miles walked.
