charlene1974
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Sep 24, 2011
- Messages
- 23
I wanted to share our experience while on our trip to Disneyland, so that anyone, especially someone who is new to the parks can have some ideas as to what to expect.
Hotel - Sheraton Park - We would stay here again in a heartbeat. We brought our dog with us, so we were on a 1st floor room. Our room was 136 and it was really quiet. We were on the end of the hallway, but we were near the doors and ice machine, but heard very little. The only sounds we heard was a family coming back down the hall, their daughter was laughing and screaming at the same time. And someone next to us also had their dog and the dog barked 1 time. That was it. During the morning, we could hear the outside work noise such as the lawn mower, but we were already up by 8am, so that didn't bother us.
At Sheraton Park, in our section was 4 rooms, all with patios that faced a tree enclosed grassy area for the dogs to do their business without being disturbed or without bothering other people. The room next to us let their dog off the leash, but we didn't. They also didn't clean up after their dog, which isn't the hotel's fault. That was the fault of the people. After a day of the business still being there and the people still being there as well, we just cleaned up the mess ourselves. Sad that some people just don't care about other people, but again, that wasn't the hotel's fault.
The staff was really friendly and nice, so no issues there. We did have a $100 gift card for the hotel's restaurants, which we used at Molly's Kitchen in the morning for breakfast. I can't comment on the food, other than the plates looked huge, but I also noticed a lot of people didn't finish their plates. I don't know if that was due to the quality of the food or the quantity being so big. We simply had bagels and muffins for breakfast, so again, can't comment on the food there.
Parking - We booked our trip through AAA and so, had free parking in the Mickey & Friends parking lot. No issues there, but the biggest piece of advice we can give anyone...if you end up parking very far from the front of the parking lot, you may want to take a few minutes, take the tram back to the parking lot and then see about parking your car closer to the escalators. We did this 2 times, because we ended up parking in Sections H & K. After a long day at the park, having to then walk about to the car was not our favorite thing to do. So, if you have time, I would really consider moving the car. Usually around 4pm, the parking lot on our floor was about half full, so we were able to move our car without any problems. We were there 4 days, 2 days we parked in Sections B & D, so that was bad, but the other days, wow, by the time we got to the tram in the morning, we were already tired!
The tram was very simple to use and they came by pretty quickly. What caused the biggest issue was when they would announce the tram was no longer taking riders and people would still hop on. But, even if you miss the 1st tram, within a minute after it moves, another tram is right there. There are sections on the first car and last car for families with strollers or wheelchairs, which filled fast. Once you get to the parks, you are dropped off at Downtown Disney.
Kennel Club - We brought our 4 year old Corgi with us. We have not been on a vacation in 6 years, so our Corgi was not used to driving a long distance or staying in a hotel. He has stayed in a kennel when he gets groomed, so we had hoped he would be OK. He did great. The kennel is very clean, very organized, there was no smell. Honestly, you wouldn't even know there were dogs in there because the place did not have any smell. There is a walk area outside the kennel where we allowed our dog to walk without his leash, as long as other dogs weren't there. He had no problem doing his business and several times during the day, the area is closed due to cleaning. I was very impressed with just how clean the kennel was.
It's $20 a day and you have to bring your vet records to show that the dog has his vaccines up to date. They don't make copies of the papers, so each day you go, you have to bring the papers with you. They also won't walk your dog for you, so when you fill out your sign in form, you have to sign off that you agree to visit your dog every 3-5 hours. For us, this was fine, we were able to still do the parks, then would go to the locker, reapply our sunscreen, then check on our little boy. Of course, he was happy to see us, but he would bark when we walked away. The girls at the kennel said he did really well, they had no problems with him at all. He would be kenneled about 10 hours a day, but when we would visit him, we would stay with him for about 30 minutes a time. Gave us a nice break from walking non stop and gave him a break from being in the kennel.
Foxy was able to get on the tram, which he loved. most of the people were really intrigued to see a dog walking around the grounds. We did hear a couple of comments about how cruel it was to bring a dog to the parks. But, honestly...if it was cruel for us to bring our dog to their kennel, well isn't it cruel to bring a 5 month old baby to the parks too, especially when it's a 100 outside? I mean, it wasn't as if he was walking around the parks, he was in a kennel, was well behaved and well taken care of. That just rubbed me the wrong way. We can't have kids of our own, so our dog is our kid. We went on a family vacation because we wanted him to be close to us. Disneyland was perfect. We were able to have fun, he was taken care of, and we were there to check on him throughout the day.
Entrance - If you have a bag, you will need to have it checked out. The best way to save time, have the bag already opened. They just check to make sure things look OK. We had no problems, except for those in front of us, who saw that you have to open the bags before entering and didn't open their bag till they got right to the gate. We had our backpack opened prior to getting to the gate and one of the workers actually thanked us for being ready.
The entrance line moved pretty fast to get into the park. My advice, please have the tickets ready for all members of the family. I couldn't believe how many parents would not have their kids tickets ready. I guess they assumed that the ticket takers wouldn't ask for tickets for kids. I don't know. But that was the biggest tie up, parents having to get their kids tickets out of their bags or wallets. So, just have the tickets ready for everyone in your party.
Rides - There is something for everyone, kids and adults. Scary and easy. The shocker to me was how long the waits for the rides were! Peter Pan had a 40 minute wait. Captain EO on one of the days was a 70 minute wait. Space Mountain, Star Tours, Indiana Jones, and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad had waits of over 45 minutes most of the time. Tuesday was the best day, because of the Halloween Party. While families were trick and treating, we were able to get on all the rides we wanted with less than 15 minute waits. However, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, that was not the case. Most of the day, we waited in line for at least 20 minutes or longer, depending on the ride. The Halloween Party was the best event...it allowed us the chance to do Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, Matterhorn, Space Mountain, Haunted Mansion, Star Tours, and Indiana Jones all in just a matter of 3-4 hours. The rest of the days, we just had to grin and bear the lines.
I am a Pooh girl. Im 5'3 and 275lbs. I have lost 70lbs over the last couple of years, but I know that I am still a big girl. I was really really really nervous about the rides. I even convinced myself that I probably wouldn't get to do the rides because I kept thinking I wouldn't fit in them. However, I was able to do everything without any issues. I was pleasantly surprised that I could do the rides and not be rejected for being too big. I did Space Mountain, Tower of Terror, Matterhorn, Big Thunder, Snow White, Peter Pan, etc. So, don't let your weight scare you from having fun. I almost let my weight scare me from having fun, but once I did the first ride and then the 2nd ride, my weight was no longer on my mind!
I think that's it that I wanted to share. We got the meet some characters, not a lot, but we did get to meet Mickey Mouse! Disneyland is truly the one place where adults can be kids and that is just A-OK. The biggest and best advice I can give everyone...just have fun. Go in with a plan, but also know, that plan may not work out. You may not be able to do all the rides in 1 day or you may have to wait in line for 30 minutes, but you will still have fun. I can't imagine doing the parks in 1 day. We were there 4 days and still didn't do all the shows or rides. But we still had fun. We had a plan, but of course, that plan went out the window the minute we got there. But just relax, bring comfy clothes and shoes, bring the camera, and just have fun. Know you may not do everything, but that doesn't mean you won't love your trip. You will LOVE IT!!!!!
I hope this helps everyone and if anyone has any questions, just ask and I will try to answer. My husband, our dog, and myself had such a great vacation that we are already looking at dates for next year!
Have a wonderful vacation!
Charlene
Hotel - Sheraton Park - We would stay here again in a heartbeat. We brought our dog with us, so we were on a 1st floor room. Our room was 136 and it was really quiet. We were on the end of the hallway, but we were near the doors and ice machine, but heard very little. The only sounds we heard was a family coming back down the hall, their daughter was laughing and screaming at the same time. And someone next to us also had their dog and the dog barked 1 time. That was it. During the morning, we could hear the outside work noise such as the lawn mower, but we were already up by 8am, so that didn't bother us.
At Sheraton Park, in our section was 4 rooms, all with patios that faced a tree enclosed grassy area for the dogs to do their business without being disturbed or without bothering other people. The room next to us let their dog off the leash, but we didn't. They also didn't clean up after their dog, which isn't the hotel's fault. That was the fault of the people. After a day of the business still being there and the people still being there as well, we just cleaned up the mess ourselves. Sad that some people just don't care about other people, but again, that wasn't the hotel's fault.
The staff was really friendly and nice, so no issues there. We did have a $100 gift card for the hotel's restaurants, which we used at Molly's Kitchen in the morning for breakfast. I can't comment on the food, other than the plates looked huge, but I also noticed a lot of people didn't finish their plates. I don't know if that was due to the quality of the food or the quantity being so big. We simply had bagels and muffins for breakfast, so again, can't comment on the food there.
Parking - We booked our trip through AAA and so, had free parking in the Mickey & Friends parking lot. No issues there, but the biggest piece of advice we can give anyone...if you end up parking very far from the front of the parking lot, you may want to take a few minutes, take the tram back to the parking lot and then see about parking your car closer to the escalators. We did this 2 times, because we ended up parking in Sections H & K. After a long day at the park, having to then walk about to the car was not our favorite thing to do. So, if you have time, I would really consider moving the car. Usually around 4pm, the parking lot on our floor was about half full, so we were able to move our car without any problems. We were there 4 days, 2 days we parked in Sections B & D, so that was bad, but the other days, wow, by the time we got to the tram in the morning, we were already tired!
The tram was very simple to use and they came by pretty quickly. What caused the biggest issue was when they would announce the tram was no longer taking riders and people would still hop on. But, even if you miss the 1st tram, within a minute after it moves, another tram is right there. There are sections on the first car and last car for families with strollers or wheelchairs, which filled fast. Once you get to the parks, you are dropped off at Downtown Disney.
Kennel Club - We brought our 4 year old Corgi with us. We have not been on a vacation in 6 years, so our Corgi was not used to driving a long distance or staying in a hotel. He has stayed in a kennel when he gets groomed, so we had hoped he would be OK. He did great. The kennel is very clean, very organized, there was no smell. Honestly, you wouldn't even know there were dogs in there because the place did not have any smell. There is a walk area outside the kennel where we allowed our dog to walk without his leash, as long as other dogs weren't there. He had no problem doing his business and several times during the day, the area is closed due to cleaning. I was very impressed with just how clean the kennel was.
It's $20 a day and you have to bring your vet records to show that the dog has his vaccines up to date. They don't make copies of the papers, so each day you go, you have to bring the papers with you. They also won't walk your dog for you, so when you fill out your sign in form, you have to sign off that you agree to visit your dog every 3-5 hours. For us, this was fine, we were able to still do the parks, then would go to the locker, reapply our sunscreen, then check on our little boy. Of course, he was happy to see us, but he would bark when we walked away. The girls at the kennel said he did really well, they had no problems with him at all. He would be kenneled about 10 hours a day, but when we would visit him, we would stay with him for about 30 minutes a time. Gave us a nice break from walking non stop and gave him a break from being in the kennel.
Foxy was able to get on the tram, which he loved. most of the people were really intrigued to see a dog walking around the grounds. We did hear a couple of comments about how cruel it was to bring a dog to the parks. But, honestly...if it was cruel for us to bring our dog to their kennel, well isn't it cruel to bring a 5 month old baby to the parks too, especially when it's a 100 outside? I mean, it wasn't as if he was walking around the parks, he was in a kennel, was well behaved and well taken care of. That just rubbed me the wrong way. We can't have kids of our own, so our dog is our kid. We went on a family vacation because we wanted him to be close to us. Disneyland was perfect. We were able to have fun, he was taken care of, and we were there to check on him throughout the day.
Entrance - If you have a bag, you will need to have it checked out. The best way to save time, have the bag already opened. They just check to make sure things look OK. We had no problems, except for those in front of us, who saw that you have to open the bags before entering and didn't open their bag till they got right to the gate. We had our backpack opened prior to getting to the gate and one of the workers actually thanked us for being ready.
The entrance line moved pretty fast to get into the park. My advice, please have the tickets ready for all members of the family. I couldn't believe how many parents would not have their kids tickets ready. I guess they assumed that the ticket takers wouldn't ask for tickets for kids. I don't know. But that was the biggest tie up, parents having to get their kids tickets out of their bags or wallets. So, just have the tickets ready for everyone in your party.
Rides - There is something for everyone, kids and adults. Scary and easy. The shocker to me was how long the waits for the rides were! Peter Pan had a 40 minute wait. Captain EO on one of the days was a 70 minute wait. Space Mountain, Star Tours, Indiana Jones, and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad had waits of over 45 minutes most of the time. Tuesday was the best day, because of the Halloween Party. While families were trick and treating, we were able to get on all the rides we wanted with less than 15 minute waits. However, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, that was not the case. Most of the day, we waited in line for at least 20 minutes or longer, depending on the ride. The Halloween Party was the best event...it allowed us the chance to do Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, Matterhorn, Space Mountain, Haunted Mansion, Star Tours, and Indiana Jones all in just a matter of 3-4 hours. The rest of the days, we just had to grin and bear the lines.
I am a Pooh girl. Im 5'3 and 275lbs. I have lost 70lbs over the last couple of years, but I know that I am still a big girl. I was really really really nervous about the rides. I even convinced myself that I probably wouldn't get to do the rides because I kept thinking I wouldn't fit in them. However, I was able to do everything without any issues. I was pleasantly surprised that I could do the rides and not be rejected for being too big. I did Space Mountain, Tower of Terror, Matterhorn, Big Thunder, Snow White, Peter Pan, etc. So, don't let your weight scare you from having fun. I almost let my weight scare me from having fun, but once I did the first ride and then the 2nd ride, my weight was no longer on my mind!
I think that's it that I wanted to share. We got the meet some characters, not a lot, but we did get to meet Mickey Mouse! Disneyland is truly the one place where adults can be kids and that is just A-OK. The biggest and best advice I can give everyone...just have fun. Go in with a plan, but also know, that plan may not work out. You may not be able to do all the rides in 1 day or you may have to wait in line for 30 minutes, but you will still have fun. I can't imagine doing the parks in 1 day. We were there 4 days and still didn't do all the shows or rides. But we still had fun. We had a plan, but of course, that plan went out the window the minute we got there. But just relax, bring comfy clothes and shoes, bring the camera, and just have fun. Know you may not do everything, but that doesn't mean you won't love your trip. You will LOVE IT!!!!!
I hope this helps everyone and if anyone has any questions, just ask and I will try to answer. My husband, our dog, and myself had such a great vacation that we are already looking at dates for next year!
Have a wonderful vacation!
Charlene
)
I'm glad to hear the report on the kennel as well - i don't have kids but do have a beautiful black miniature poodle who is my baby girl and I don't like her to be away from me either.
