Five Days at BWPPI with 3 adults and 3 kids

[Piglet99645]

Our trip starts in 3 hours!!!!

 

[Butterfly123]

Yahoo! Don't forget to give us a trip report...including BWPPI report. I'll be staying there for the first time on our June 20th-26th trip. I like knowing what to expect . Have a wonderful trip!

 

[Piglet99645]

I arrived via car from Pasadena where I was working this week, and my DH, DS10, DD5, SIL and Nephew (2) arrived by plane. FYI, according to experience and the front desk at the BWPPI, GPS cannot find the BWPPI. It sent us the wrong way on Harbor toward Fullerton. (??) Anyway, don't rely on GPS to get you here.

We had a little snafu with our Von's delivery. The delivery guy was early and the front desk refused the delivery, I think because there were perishables. When I called and spoke with someone, they said they always accept deliveries, so I'm not sure what happened.

But by the time I got here at 1:30, my family was here and checked into one of our two adjoining rooms (early - checkin is at 3) and Von's had delivered our groceries to the room.

We dumped our stuff, changed our clothes (I had been up since 6am Calif. time and my family left North Dakota at 6 am CENTRAL time) and we were in the park by 2:30.

There was no line at the ticket window where I had to pick up our tickets (I got a discount through my husband's work, so had to pick up the tickets at the window instead of the turnstyle).

We breezed right into the park. We are a menagerie with a walking 10yo and the 5yo and 2yo in a sit n stand stroller. THE BEST MONEY I HAVE EVER SPENT.

I CANNOT believe how much ground we covered in 1/2 day. We went into the park, waited a few minutes at City Hall for "first visit" buttons and decided to get those later. Walked down Main Street. Got a great picture of my daughter's first view of the castle. Priceless. Then we meandered around the castle and into Fantasyland, where we had a very short wait to get on the Carrousel and Pinocchio. A short wait for the Tea Party. We then walked directly on to Small World (using apps to check out which rides had little wait). As we got off Small World we caught a good portion of the 4pm parade.

We then went to Toon Town and pretty much did all of it. First we got a FP for Roger Rabbit. Then we did Minnie's house, Mickey's house (complete with a 5 minute wait for Sorcerer Mickey) and Gadget's Go Coaster. The sign said 20 minutes and we waited at least 40. I was not happy about that. But the kids loved the coaster - it was the first ride on one for both. We did the Treehouse which you could SKIP, then did Roger Rabbit which was great, with practically no wait with the FP. Oh we also ate while we were there. They had a good variety of choices, all close together. Pluto and Goofy were also running around. They don't stand still long for pictures, though.

AFter leaving Toon Town and seeing bits of the 6:30 parade on our way, we stumbled on a short wait for Dumbo, then a zero wait to do the Carrousel again.

We then headed to Autopia and again were fooled by a sign that said 20 minutes. It was more like 30-40.

The late departure from Autopia put us behind for the 8:40 pm fireworks. We went to the Tomorrowland Terrace and got food, and carried the tray back to Main Street. We had a crappy viewing spot for the fireworks, but we will see them again while we are here, and the kids were still enthralled. We saw both Tink and Dumbo fly. It was awesome.

The park closed at 9 due to grad night, so we came back to BWPPI and got the keys to our other room and unpacked. The kids crashed hard. I doubt if we will be there for rope drop in the morning, but with 4 full days ahead of us I think we will have plenty of time to see and do everything.

 

[OregonMickeyLover]

Sounds like you had a great first day! We like going for 6 days so that we can take our time and take those much needed breaks and not feel like we are missing something. And we also stayed at the BWPPI for our last visit and had no complaints. The location was awesome! In Oct. we are staying there again!

Have fun!

Traci

 

[GeminiAngel]

Great first day! Waiting for more!

 

[skiingfast]

Sounds excellent an average days number of attractions in a half day!

 

[Piglet99645]

I am so sorry I did not come back promptly and complete my trip report!

We just had so much fun, that I was too exhausted at the end of each day to do the update as I had planned.

First a note on the BWPPI: It is absolutely fine. It was not amazing, but I would stay there again.

Pros of BWPPI

- Location location location!!!
- Front desk was always courteous and helpful when I called and during the trip
- Housekeeping was prompt and thorough each day.
- I prefer the entry out to the sidewalk directly in the warmer climates (some people prefer the interior hall)
- Bed was comfortable. I did not try the sleeper sofa
- Exterior sink (with commode and shower behind the door) is a good arrangement
- plenty of counter space for toilettries
- good sized closet to stash suitcases
- free internet
- The food offered at breakfast was plentiful (we only went twice)

Cons
- Not as spacious as I had envisioned, but still enough room for 3 adults and 3 kids in two adjoining king rooms
- Room was dark.... I couldn't seem to get enough light and furnishings were dark.
- carpet could use replacing, but was vacuumed
- Breakfast facilities were up a flight of stairs, and very crowded
- Walls were thin. The first night I actually heard a guy sneeze. Subsequent nights I didn't hear much.


Ask for a room closer to the front of the building. We were in the back in 138/139 and it added an extra long block to our walk at the end of the day.

The pool looked fine but I didn't go in. It was smallish.

I would skip the breakfast if you want to be prompt to the park. It is crowded and not that "good," but I did take a bagel to go one morning. We only sat down to eat there the day we left, before going to the airport.


PS. I will try the Park Vue next time, just for comparison, but I wouldn't want to stay any farther away. Or further away. Whichever is correct.


Park reports coming up.

 

[Piglet99645]

Sounds excellent an average days number of attractions in a half day!

YES! I felt as though we had very good ride/line karma going for us. I had to abandon any Ridemax ideas because my party was just not right for it. We relied on apps and luck. I refused to wait for any ride that was longer than 20 minutes (either by app or by the sign) and that rule of thumb worked out well.

A note about Ridemax.

I loved to use it for planning. And I would love to try it out sometime maybe just with me and my husband.

But with three kids and a stroller..... it was hopeless.

Working against us:

1. Random character sightings. These stopped all 3 kids in their tracks.
2. A 2 yo who didn't want to get in the stroller
3. Potty breaks for a barely-trained 5yo.
4. Just the random looking around that we all wanted to do.
5. The excitement of seeing a short line for Dumbo and JUST GETTING IN LINE and doing it!

I didn't want to do Disney commando style (this time) so decided the first day to go with the flow (with some rules, like not waiting more than 20 minutes for any ride) and it worked out really well.

Also Ridemax didn't work well for my group because criss-crossing the park with three kids just is not practical. We did send FP runners, but we didn't do the back and forth thing. That is for adults and hard-core kids who aren't distracted by Mickey!

 

[Piglet99645]

Any hope of using Ridemax plans again went down the tubes on Day 2. I had planned to do Adventureland before our 10:30 am Breakfast with Minnie. But we were all so exhausted from travel and a late night on Day 1 (even with grad nights, we didn't get back to the room until 10 after fireworks, and then we unpacked and stuff) that nobody could get out of bed on Day 2!!!

So we got to DL after 9:30 and let the kids see characters and such before breakfast. I ran for Indiana Jones Fastpasses, and we all had breakfast together.

I have to say with three kids who are excited about characters, breakfast was not much of a meal. The selection looked really good but I felt like I didn't want to leave the table for fear I would miss a good photo op.

I remember at the Crystal Palace at WDW the characters were more organized. You could see who was coming as they made their way around the room. At the Plaza Inn they just randomly appeared.

Also, despite our reservation, they did not have a table prepared for us when we arrived. And they were NOT busy. I don't think they ever came to offer drinks or anything. We had to get those ourselves. So there was absolutely no service at the table after seating us.

So I wasn't impressed with the breakfast or the service, but the character interaction was really, really good.

We saw
Chip
Dale
Captain Hook
Minnie (finally, right before we left)
Brier Fox
Tigger
Pooh
Eeyore

Maybe a couple of others but I can't get my photos to open right now.

Alas, no Piglet.


Each character stayed a decent amount of time and patiently signed 3 books and posed for pictures. Except for Gepetto, who never came to our table.

 

[Piglet99645]

Yikes, I cannot remember specifically what we did on Day 2. But I do remember that it was a grad night, and that it was the day of TWO MELTDOWNS (both by my 10 yo). Fortunately they were the only meltdowns of the trip.

There was no early entry due to grad night the night before.

My sil and 5yo daughter and I went back to the park to see the fireworks again, this time from Main Street..... we still couldn't see much of the castle effects, but we had a much better view of the fireworks themselves this time.

The problem with grad nights is that there is this pressure to get everything in by about 8:00..... so we did not take the recommended afternoon break on Day 2. Mistake mistake mistake. And hence the meltdowns.

I did appreciate the "forced" early turn-in on those two nights, the first two nights of our trip.... but I would avoid grad nights if we did this again and had a choice. I much preferred the afternoon break, and staying in the parks until very late.

 

[Piglet99645]

My 10 yo was dying to see the "rope drop" for some reason.

We couldn't motivate everyone else early enough, so I ran over to the park with him about 1/2 hour before opening. We managed to make our way through the stores as far as they would let us go.... and out into main street.

He then managed to snake his way through the crowd up to the rope. I didn't want to be obnoxious, so I stayed back. There were probably 150 people between us, but I could see him, and he's a smart kid.

He came back and told me that they told the people up front (as if this crowd of thousands could hear these directions) that if you wanted to do Star Tours you had to follow a cast member immediately to the right at rope drop.

I told him OK, and that if we got separated that he should wait for me.

So they dropped the rope and it was a stampede!! One lady fell down but she was ok.

And they were not kidding. The line for Star Tours started right in front of the Plaza Inn!!!! They had it roped off so you could barely go more than single file, and I think this was wise. It kept people from building up too much speed.

I was totally separated from my son and starting to panic a little as I went through the STar Tours line. After about 10 minutes I got to the front, and there he was, with the CM, waiting for me!!! Good boy!!

We rode the ride together and it was GREAT! Loved the improvements. I didn't know it was 3D!

We got off and promptly got 2 Fastpasses for later so the rest of our party could go. If we had not gotten up, been at rope drop, ridden the ride and gotten FP's right away, we would not have done this ride this trip. The wait got up to 120 minutes.

I think FP's were sold out by 9:30.

Some people did get FP's first thing and got on the ride even before I did.

It's a great ride but I wouldn't wait for two hours for anything.

 

[Piglet99645]

Day 3 was our first opportunity to see Fantasmic (something we skipped at WDW). I had seen Fantasmic at DL before, but nobody else in my party had ever seen it.

When we went back for our afternoon break, I remembered to get the picnic blanket! We were a little late getting to the viewing area at 7:30 for the 9:00 show, and people were already camped out and CM's were directing traffic.

We found a spot (too close to a trash can but DEAD CENTER) and a kind CM who could see that we were towing children and prepared with blanket ushered us in to get that spot.

I staked out the spot for awhile while my DH and DS went and did splash. My SIL and I took turns pushing the little ones in the stroller. I ended up getting clam chowder from Harbor Galley just past the Fantasmic viewing area, and it was awesome. Very good and filling for $8.99.

We had snacks for the kids, and the glow bracelets I bought for a buck at Walmart were a big hit.

On Day 4 we were still in the park when Fantasmic started at 10:30, and we were again eating at Harbour Galley, and a CM there suggested that we watch the show from the deck. We didn't but it would have been an ok view.

With small children I'm glad we had a spot to watch the show, but I would not spend 1.5 hours holding a spot again, especially not for adults or older kids. I think it is just as easy to walk up right at 9 or 10:30 and stand for 20 minutes and watch, then beat it out of there before all the poor people with strollers and tired children are trying to find their way out! Or if you play your cards right, get something to eat and sit on the Harbour Galley deck.

 

[Piglet99645]

Turns out my 5 year old beat the 40 inch mark by a good enough margin that it was never questionable! And she LOVED the big rides!!!

We did Space Mountain MULTIPLE times! I think that ride could really use a single rider line.

Once my 10 yo son got a taste of Splash Mountain, he couldn't get enough. HINT: During and after Fantasmic, there is NOBODY on Splash. He went over and over and over two or three nights in a row. Use the single rider entrance at the exit to avoid the long walk. Even going as single riders, and and my husband always rode together.

With no FP, Buzz Lightyear is hit or miss on wait time. We waited the first day because we didn't want to miss out, but discovered the last day that late in the evening there was virtually no line.

Big Thunder Mtn Railroad re-opened while we were there, and we all loved it, but I forgot to try the "goat trick"!

I had forgotten from my last visit that I don't like the Matterhorn. It is too herky-jerky. But the good news is our 2yo nephew could do it b/c the height restriction was only 35 inches, so this is one non-Fantasyland ride that we all did together.

The child swap option worked out great for our party. We always had Fastpasses, it seemed, so we would go to the FP line, get a child swap pass, ride the ride (Soarin', Space Mountain, Big Thunder, Indiana Jones) relatively quickly while my SIL would wait with the 2 year old. Then we would come out of the ride, and one of the kids would get to go again with the SIL, b/c the child swap pass allows the person who waits to take someone along! It was a great way for the kids to get to do back to back rides, and totally makes up for the fact that it takes extra time to do each of those rides b/c of the little one.

Also, the re-entry for the second rider is usually at the EXIT of the ride, and boarding was always almost immediate.

 

[stubby]

I arrived via car from Pasadena where I was working this week, and my DH, DS10, DD5, SIL and Nephew (2) arrived by plane. FYI, according to experience and the front desk at the BWPPI, GPS cannot find the BWPPI. It sent us the wrong way on Harbor toward Fullerton. (??) Anyway, don't rely on GPS to get you here.

The hotel I work at is the same way. People call and cuss me out because they are lost. We didn't put the info in the GPS...lol. Anyway, I always tell people that use their GPS or cell phone as one to take the directions with a grain of salt and if it looks like you are going the wrong way you proabably are.

 

[stubby]

We then headed to Autopia and again were fooled by a sign that said 20 minutes. It was more like 30-40.

They probably had that STOOPID brown car out again. My poor oldest dd had this brown car that kept stalling. Even the CMs had to restart it about 5 times before we got out of the place where you get in. I think it took us about 20 mins longer than it should have to get around the track. They should have just put that one in the junk pile...lol.

 

[stubby]

Yikes, I cannot remember specifically what we did on Day 2. But I do remember that it was a grad night, and that it was the day of TWO MELTDOWNS (both by my 10 yo). Fortunately they were the only meltdowns of the trip.

That is funny. The only MELTDOWN we had was a fight between dh and I on our first full day. No sleep for 2 days caused it...lol. Glad to see others have the same problem.

 

[Piglet99645]

Alas, another unfinished trip report by Piglet!!

So sorry!