TheDailyBuzzherd
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Nov 23, 2003
- Messages
- 10
How DEEE!!!
Well! we just returned from Disney World® and The Caribbean Beach Resort
and MUST SAY we had a fantastic time! We were there 11/29 - 12/7/03.
Again, I can't emphasize enough the joy that goofing around for seven days
in the parks does ... seven days of nothing and nothing BUT nothing but
Disney and its wonderful shows!
We hit all four parks and The Magic Kingdom twice and did some mini-golf.
No water parks ... too cold.
Participants: two adults, one five-year-old-going-on-six.
Basically, we mapped out our plans something like this:
Saturday, Check In and settle in. Room in Bldg 22. Good location. Dinner at Shutters.
Sunday, Disney/MGM studios. Fingerfood dinner at Sci-Fi.
Monday, Epcot. Dinner at The San Angel in Mexico and The Candlelight Processional.
Tuesday, The Magic Kingdom. Breakfast at The Bakery, Main Street. Dinner in-room. Beer.
Wednesday, Character Brunch at The Crystal Palace, The Magic Kingdom
and The Hoop-de Doo Revue at Pioneer Hall at Fort Wilderness.
Thursday, Day Off at CBR. Character Dinner at 1900 Park Fare.
( Also planned but didn't attend Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party )
Hey, ya gotta. It's just all too much. So, we rented a surrey for a half-hour for $20
or so ( gulp ), swam in the big pool and had some drinks.
One mistake: not enough time to properly nap our five-year old. Was supposed to get
her in at 3pm but "We were having sooo much fun at the pool!" it was more like 3:45pm ...
since we had to be at The Grand Floridian for 6pm reservations at 1900 Park Fare,
this turned out to be a serious miscalculation.
Well! she threw up inside the restaurant as we were leaving. Are we having fun yet?
Stupid, stupid, stupid ... she turned out OK but we canceled the Xmas party.
We learned she needed more nap time, say, three hours rather than half that.
We knew better, but hey! we're in Disney! NOPE, in order to save time, money
and illness, it's much better to plan LESS and therefore everyone has a better
time of it. Yes, the kids want to go! Go! GO!!! but they need temperance. All plans
can fall like a cake if sound reasoning prevails.
Friday, The Animal Kingdom. Slept late at expense of park, GOOD MOVE.
Seriously! If a kid has already had a meltdown, slow down. Be unafraid to scotch
plans or give more downtime. You'll find you save an entire day, perhaps the entire
vacation, if you learn to pace your family.
Saturday, mini-golf and splitsville. OK, tentatively. Golf happened.
Our 6:30pm flight did not. Evidently, much to our surprise, the Northeast "blizzard" bore
down on our ultimate destination and scotched that idea perty fast. If it wasn't for family
calling us to alert us, we may never had known. Note to self: Weather Channel CAN be used
for weather reports for ANY region other than Orlando! We were having so much fun, well,
we had our heads in the sand.
Net result: pay for that extra night. We decided a night at CBR was much more hospitable
than a night in Reagan Internat'l Airport, so we sat tight and caught a bird the next morning.
OK, The Highlights!
CBR is a nice place to stay! Our room in Bldg 22 was next to a small pool PLUS we got the
corner room we asked for ... with partial water views to boot! Not bad for our first try.
The exterior was lush with flora and the playground just outside. The interior was very
comfortable, roughly the size of your average HoJo's room. Recently redone, the room
was replete with color and the furnishings in great shape. We didn't see signs of vandalism.
Plenty of room for our stuff: suitcases fit under our double beds; plenty of drawer space.
Only real complaint is I wish they put more outlets in the room for boomboxes, etc. and
yes, the fan vent needed a dusting. There were some small ants but they didn't bother us.
Some may freak over this. Some freebies: an iron and board, hairdryer, Mr.Coffee though
we suggest pouring in the water to make 4-6 cups ... the coffee packets make weak coffee.
One thing we noticed: no ponchos or mugs in the room. They sell that stuff at The Port now.
I could go on about the CBR, but I've probably already lost most of you.
On to the parks.
MGM/Disney®: Wow! what a great park. As we focused on kid-friendly attractions, we blew
off things like R'n'R Roller Coaster and Star Tours ... a drag, but one with kids must compromise.
Sci-Fi Dinner was a hoot! Food was good and love them cars!
Epcot: Blew too much time in Innoventions, but that was neat all the same.
Highlights: Honey, I Shrunk the Audience; The Land and World Showcase. Loved China's new
film and all of Norway. America's film was cut short due to tech probs, this happened in
several instances throughout DW ... here, at Honey, I Shrunk the Audience, and Haunted
Mansion. Some salvagable, some a loss.
The Magic Kingdom: Well, what's to say? The Best Highlight of all! In two days, got to see
most of everything. Some we did not: Time Keeper, Thunder Mtn, Tom Sawyer Island,
Goofy's Jamboree ... oh well. Wanted to see more of Main Street, but that was reserved
for the Christmas Party. Oh well. LOVED the Main Street entertainment ... walking musicians,
a piano roll player outside of Casey's ... GREAT fun. The pastries at Bakery are to DIE for ...
GO. Crystal Palace: what can beat breakfast with Pooh-boy? If you want a taste of Cinderella's
Castle minus the characters, go at 11am and 3pm. Can walk inside The Royal Table this time
of year. The parade was a gas, it's worth it. No Wishes, but go - the fireworks are awesome ...
we could see them from the ferry back from Pioneer Hall.
The Animal Kingdom: A great park, period. Overgrown with lush plantings, it really was a
welcome break from the commercialism of the other parks. The Tree of Life is amazing ...
see how many animals you can find in the sculpture. "A Bug's Life": The best of the 3D shows ...
we did the trails and Killimanjaro Safaris first ... a must particularly in the warm months since
the animals go for cover. Killimanjaro is a great blend of Disney antics and serious critter
watching ... it's very bumpy, so hang on to yer hat. The trails featured 10 gorillas ... another
trail had flamingoes, tigers and monkeys. Again, the attention to detail was amazing ...
I taught my daughter to look all around her 'cuz there's something happening at all angles.
Winter Summerland Golf: Worth it! Cool course which we found harder than expected.
18 holes with the Disney touch. A pain to get to, though. We had to go to Epcot then
connect with the Blizzard Beach bus, which takes you there. It was cold Saturday too,
but nobody caught colds.
Net: The first week of December is a GREAT time to visit Disney World®. The longest wait
time I saw posted for the most popular attractions was 35 minutes. Not bad considering
that one can stand for 2 1/2 hours during July. Frankly, I simply won't go then. Ever.
May and late October are good months too, but do your research. The weather was prickly
but generally cooperative: a high of 73 vs. a low of 61. Factor in the windchill and we're
talking roughly the mid-50s. So, be prepared. For young children, a heavy coat and long
pants are a must. For adults, a pullover sweater and a medium coat should do it.
Overall, the food was exceptional. I met some who were outraged at the quality of the
food at the food courts. Generally, I reason this: these people are servicing a ton of
guests everyday. What you get is military-style breakfasts ... I've been on several
airforce bases, and that's pretty much on target. I guess the naysayers would prefer
to PAY military prices for the food, but ehhh, you're at Disney, sooo ...
If you want to have a good time at Disney, go cheap and count yer beans. Is it worth it
to stay onsite? Yes, at least during the slow times. Transportation was great - most
times we got to the busstop as it rolled up! Perhaps that's a bit of Irish luck there.
If you want to have a GREAT time at Disney, do your research but don't fuss over the
money too much, that burns precious time. Go during the slow times. The parks close
much earlier, but you want time OUT of the parks too. So, save up your beans. Although
we planned this trip relatively shotgun, we started in August for a holiday trip, the best
way is at least a year in advance. That way you have more options as to where to eat
and stay. I've stayed onsite and off, and I liked on much better. It's cheaper offsite,
but YOU DON'T DO DISNEY TO SAVE MONEY ... buWHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
Well! we just returned from Disney World® and The Caribbean Beach Resort
and MUST SAY we had a fantastic time! We were there 11/29 - 12/7/03.
Again, I can't emphasize enough the joy that goofing around for seven days
in the parks does ... seven days of nothing and nothing BUT nothing but
Disney and its wonderful shows!
We hit all four parks and The Magic Kingdom twice and did some mini-golf.
No water parks ... too cold.
Participants: two adults, one five-year-old-going-on-six.
Basically, we mapped out our plans something like this:
Saturday, Check In and settle in. Room in Bldg 22. Good location. Dinner at Shutters.
Sunday, Disney/MGM studios. Fingerfood dinner at Sci-Fi.
Monday, Epcot. Dinner at The San Angel in Mexico and The Candlelight Processional.
Tuesday, The Magic Kingdom. Breakfast at The Bakery, Main Street. Dinner in-room. Beer.
Wednesday, Character Brunch at The Crystal Palace, The Magic Kingdom
and The Hoop-de Doo Revue at Pioneer Hall at Fort Wilderness.
Thursday, Day Off at CBR. Character Dinner at 1900 Park Fare.
( Also planned but didn't attend Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party )
Hey, ya gotta. It's just all too much. So, we rented a surrey for a half-hour for $20
or so ( gulp ), swam in the big pool and had some drinks.
One mistake: not enough time to properly nap our five-year old. Was supposed to get
her in at 3pm but "We were having sooo much fun at the pool!" it was more like 3:45pm ...
since we had to be at The Grand Floridian for 6pm reservations at 1900 Park Fare,
this turned out to be a serious miscalculation.
Well! she threw up inside the restaurant as we were leaving. Are we having fun yet?
Stupid, stupid, stupid ... she turned out OK but we canceled the Xmas party.
We learned she needed more nap time, say, three hours rather than half that.
We knew better, but hey! we're in Disney! NOPE, in order to save time, money
and illness, it's much better to plan LESS and therefore everyone has a better
time of it. Yes, the kids want to go! Go! GO!!! but they need temperance. All plans
can fall like a cake if sound reasoning prevails.
Friday, The Animal Kingdom. Slept late at expense of park, GOOD MOVE.
Seriously! If a kid has already had a meltdown, slow down. Be unafraid to scotch
plans or give more downtime. You'll find you save an entire day, perhaps the entire
vacation, if you learn to pace your family.
Saturday, mini-golf and splitsville. OK, tentatively. Golf happened.
Our 6:30pm flight did not. Evidently, much to our surprise, the Northeast "blizzard" bore
down on our ultimate destination and scotched that idea perty fast. If it wasn't for family
calling us to alert us, we may never had known. Note to self: Weather Channel CAN be used
for weather reports for ANY region other than Orlando! We were having so much fun, well,
we had our heads in the sand.
Net result: pay for that extra night. We decided a night at CBR was much more hospitable
than a night in Reagan Internat'l Airport, so we sat tight and caught a bird the next morning.
OK, The Highlights!
CBR is a nice place to stay! Our room in Bldg 22 was next to a small pool PLUS we got the
corner room we asked for ... with partial water views to boot! Not bad for our first try.
The exterior was lush with flora and the playground just outside. The interior was very
comfortable, roughly the size of your average HoJo's room. Recently redone, the room
was replete with color and the furnishings in great shape. We didn't see signs of vandalism.
Plenty of room for our stuff: suitcases fit under our double beds; plenty of drawer space.
Only real complaint is I wish they put more outlets in the room for boomboxes, etc. and
yes, the fan vent needed a dusting. There were some small ants but they didn't bother us.
Some may freak over this. Some freebies: an iron and board, hairdryer, Mr.Coffee though
we suggest pouring in the water to make 4-6 cups ... the coffee packets make weak coffee.
One thing we noticed: no ponchos or mugs in the room. They sell that stuff at The Port now.
I could go on about the CBR, but I've probably already lost most of you.
On to the parks.
MGM/Disney®: Wow! what a great park. As we focused on kid-friendly attractions, we blew
off things like R'n'R Roller Coaster and Star Tours ... a drag, but one with kids must compromise.
Sci-Fi Dinner was a hoot! Food was good and love them cars!
Epcot: Blew too much time in Innoventions, but that was neat all the same.
Highlights: Honey, I Shrunk the Audience; The Land and World Showcase. Loved China's new
film and all of Norway. America's film was cut short due to tech probs, this happened in
several instances throughout DW ... here, at Honey, I Shrunk the Audience, and Haunted
Mansion. Some salvagable, some a loss.
The Magic Kingdom: Well, what's to say? The Best Highlight of all! In two days, got to see
most of everything. Some we did not: Time Keeper, Thunder Mtn, Tom Sawyer Island,
Goofy's Jamboree ... oh well. Wanted to see more of Main Street, but that was reserved
for the Christmas Party. Oh well. LOVED the Main Street entertainment ... walking musicians,
a piano roll player outside of Casey's ... GREAT fun. The pastries at Bakery are to DIE for ...
GO. Crystal Palace: what can beat breakfast with Pooh-boy? If you want a taste of Cinderella's
Castle minus the characters, go at 11am and 3pm. Can walk inside The Royal Table this time
of year. The parade was a gas, it's worth it. No Wishes, but go - the fireworks are awesome ...
we could see them from the ferry back from Pioneer Hall.
The Animal Kingdom: A great park, period. Overgrown with lush plantings, it really was a
welcome break from the commercialism of the other parks. The Tree of Life is amazing ...
see how many animals you can find in the sculpture. "A Bug's Life": The best of the 3D shows ...
we did the trails and Killimanjaro Safaris first ... a must particularly in the warm months since
the animals go for cover. Killimanjaro is a great blend of Disney antics and serious critter
watching ... it's very bumpy, so hang on to yer hat. The trails featured 10 gorillas ... another
trail had flamingoes, tigers and monkeys. Again, the attention to detail was amazing ...
I taught my daughter to look all around her 'cuz there's something happening at all angles.
Winter Summerland Golf: Worth it! Cool course which we found harder than expected.
18 holes with the Disney touch. A pain to get to, though. We had to go to Epcot then
connect with the Blizzard Beach bus, which takes you there. It was cold Saturday too,
but nobody caught colds.
Net: The first week of December is a GREAT time to visit Disney World®. The longest wait
time I saw posted for the most popular attractions was 35 minutes. Not bad considering
that one can stand for 2 1/2 hours during July. Frankly, I simply won't go then. Ever.
May and late October are good months too, but do your research. The weather was prickly
but generally cooperative: a high of 73 vs. a low of 61. Factor in the windchill and we're
talking roughly the mid-50s. So, be prepared. For young children, a heavy coat and long
pants are a must. For adults, a pullover sweater and a medium coat should do it.
Overall, the food was exceptional. I met some who were outraged at the quality of the
food at the food courts. Generally, I reason this: these people are servicing a ton of
guests everyday. What you get is military-style breakfasts ... I've been on several
airforce bases, and that's pretty much on target. I guess the naysayers would prefer
to PAY military prices for the food, but ehhh, you're at Disney, sooo ...
If you want to have a good time at Disney, go cheap and count yer beans. Is it worth it
to stay onsite? Yes, at least during the slow times. Transportation was great - most
times we got to the busstop as it rolled up! Perhaps that's a bit of Irish luck there.
If you want to have a GREAT time at Disney, do your research but don't fuss over the
money too much, that burns precious time. Go during the slow times. The parks close
much earlier, but you want time OUT of the parks too. So, save up your beans. Although
we planned this trip relatively shotgun, we started in August for a holiday trip, the best
way is at least a year in advance. That way you have more options as to where to eat
and stay. I've stayed onsite and off, and I liked on much better. It's cheaper offsite,
but YOU DON'T DO DISNEY TO SAVE MONEY ... buWHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
