chrisn
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2000
- Messages
- 1,273
So we are just back from our DLR trip October 2-6. We spent 3 days in the parks. Wednesday and Thursday was spent at DL and Friday at CA. We also did Mickey's Halloween Treat on Friday night. You guys helped me so much with this trip so I thought I would give back just a little with some general thoughts, comments and observations in no particular order but definitely written with a smile!
Aladdin - OMG! I have a new favorite Disney stage show. Amazing, wonderful, brilliant, hilarious, touching and memorable. Worth the price of admission. A MUST do. Period. My favorite thing during the entire trip. We sat 1st row Mezzanine and it was perfect! I laughed and I cried.
Blue Bayou - I am 38 yrs old and have wanted to eat here since I can remember. It's totally hokey I know, but my dream came true on Thursday. Waterside table, middle of the restaurant. Just perfect. This was my favorite meal. The food was delicious and the ambiance was fabulous. It did not disappoint. Everyone must do this at least once. Honey had the Jambalaya. He said it was good but hot. DD had the Island Chicken and thoroughly enjoyed it. DS had the kids Chicken Drummets with the noodles and scarfed down every bite and I had the Monte Cristo and loved it. The sammie was good, the dip was yummy and the potatoes were delicious! This is definitely enough to share. Definitely. We also had the Cookie Boat for dessert. YUMMO!
Breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen was a little underwhelming. Food was very, very average with the exception of that Peanut Butter and Jelly Pizza. Oh good lord that stuff is good. I had two pieces. I think DD had like 4. That was her breakfast. Everything else was very mediocre but that PB&J Pizza almost made it worth the cost. Characters were Cinderella, Goofy, Baloo, Mad Hatter and I think Pluto. I wouldn't hurry back...well, maybe for that Pizza!
Lunch at Ariels Grotto was also underwhelming. Food was extremely average and we are not picky. We had the Cheeseburgers and the Fish & Chips with Salads. The Cheeseburger was very blah. How can you mess up a CB? Fish & Chips were maybe like a C grade. The steak fries were my favorite thing here. The dessert was even very average. We had one of each. Characters were Ariel in her dress, Cinderella, Belle in her yellow dress, Aurora in her pink dress, and Snow White. Wouldn't hurry back here either.
Stuffed Baked Potatoe Soup at Carnation Cafe. OMG! Sooooo Yummy!!! I'm gonna go out on a limb and say probably the best thing on the menu!
The Nachos at Whitewater in DGC are overated. The cheese was not all that (trust me, I know my cheese sauce), the chicken processed and the chips strange.
Breakfast at La Brea was tasty.
My favorite snack was the Carmel Corn Nemo bucket from the cart in Tomorrowland. Yummy and the bucket is adorable. I love it!
I loved the old subs and was really excited for Nemo. We were at the front of the rope drop pack and did the sprint stright there on our non EE day. We had no wait at all. Walked right in and boarded first sub immediately. We were on the ride by 9:10. It was cute and sweet and I liked it but I can see why some peeps might be underwhelmed. SPOILER ALERT: The technology and way it was done was very like Nemo at WDW only not under water. I'm glad we did it but I'm really glad we didn't use EE for it and am also glad we didn't take up an extraordinary amount of park time to see it. Oh, by the way, DH did run and grab FP's for SM while we sprinted to Nemo. He met us in line with a minute or two to spare and hopped in at a convenient location so as not to piss anyone off. It can be done but must be done quickly. We walked off the ride at 9:28.
Early Entry is the only way to do FL. We knocked everything out in that first precious hour. I wouldn't do it any differently next time. We broke down in Snow White at the end of the ride and had to walk out. That was cool but I wouldn't want to make a habit out of it.
Weather was perfect for us. 82 on Wednesday, 78 Thursday and 70 on Friday. Sunny, clear and no rain.
Mickey's Halloween Treat was fantastic! We had a great time and brought home like 20 pounds of candy no joke. Loved it. Would definitely do it again!
Favorite rides or rides we did numerous times were Splash, Big Thunder, Pirate's which is FAR SUPERIOR to WDW's version, Space Mountain which is FAR SUPERIOR to WDW's version, TOT which is not as good as WDW's and Grizzly Rapids which is WAY better than Kali at WDW.
I was really looking forward to Haunted Mansion Holiday. I WAY prefer the original version. Glad I saw it once but once was enough for me.
Paradise Pier at CA is out of place. A glorified carnival (sorry, I know some of you are fans), but it just felt like another world. I really liked all the other areas of the park though. Very MGM-esque.
We had vouchers from Southwest and Getaway Today. We were not staying at DLR and were able to get all our tickets from the front desk before breakfast. It was nice and convenient.
We stayed at the Anabella. It was adequate. I'm kind of a hotel snob. Room was small. Service was friendly and the walk to the parks was maybe 15 minutes. I have to chuckle at some of the threads I read on how it was quite a hike. Ok, so 15 minutes of walking to the park and then 20 miles walking the rest of the day in the park. I don't know, it's funny. We ate breakfast once at Tiffy's and once at Coco's. Your average truck stop cafe fare. It was adequate, fast and filling.
We used Super Shuttle and have no complaints. Service was adequate. We also had a 3 day ART pass that we did not end up using.
The Jedi Training Academy ROCKS the park people! My son is a Star Wars fan. I bought him the JTA t-shirt before we left. I made him a small (appox 13x16) lime neon-green poster board sign with the 2" black adhesive lettering. At 9:28, we exited Nemo and hustled directly over to JTA. The music was just starting and our little man grabbed a prime rope spot 10 seconds before the Jedi Master came out. The signs work!!! He was the 3rd kid picked and got to fight Darth Maul. This was a highlight of our trip and my second favorite thing after Aladdin. The FUNNIEST thing. One of the little kids on stage to fight Vader; it was his turn. He looked up, got the look of fear in his eyes and I mean FLEW off that stage. No stairs, no climbing down. He freaking sprouted wings and flew off the stage and out to his mom in the audience. We laughed for days about that. You just had to be there. It was adorable and HILARIOUS!
We did collect FP's but only really needed them for Splash. It was fantastic!!!
Crowds were great on Wednesday, pretty good on Thursday and ok on Friday at CA. We had little (5 mins) to no waits for everything all day both days except middle of the day for Splash, TOT, Star Tours (20 mins) and Autopia (35 mins).
I must try one of those Corn Dogs from the Castle at CA next trip. I missed it but dang, it looked sooooo good!
Tom Sawyer island and the new Pirate's Lair is very well done. DD got the begeezus scared out of her in the cave trying to grab for the lute.
I thought there were very few dream FP's handed out compared to WDW where they were everywhere. Maybe it is because they really were not needed. It just seemed like a lot less obvious dreams compared with the Florida parks.
DL ride waits compared to WDW same ride waits are strange. I've never seen WDW's Pooh not totally mobbed with people in the middle of the afternoon. DL's was a walkon all day. Same thing with Big Thunder and there were a few other examples although I can't think of them right now.
We missed the fireworks and Fantasmic cause we were just having way too much fun at Mickey's Halloween Treat and decided to stay. At least we'll have something to look forward to next time. We did see the parade and it was cute.
3 park days was just about right for the way we tour. Now if you like to meander and take breaks, or if you are going during a much busier time, I would suggest 4 but otherwise we saw, did, and rode everything we wanted in the time we had.
Well, that's it. It hope you get something out of this, and to all who have upcoming adventures, I hope your trip is as magical as ours was. See ya real soon Mick!
Aladdin - OMG! I have a new favorite Disney stage show. Amazing, wonderful, brilliant, hilarious, touching and memorable. Worth the price of admission. A MUST do. Period. My favorite thing during the entire trip. We sat 1st row Mezzanine and it was perfect! I laughed and I cried.
Blue Bayou - I am 38 yrs old and have wanted to eat here since I can remember. It's totally hokey I know, but my dream came true on Thursday. Waterside table, middle of the restaurant. Just perfect. This was my favorite meal. The food was delicious and the ambiance was fabulous. It did not disappoint. Everyone must do this at least once. Honey had the Jambalaya. He said it was good but hot. DD had the Island Chicken and thoroughly enjoyed it. DS had the kids Chicken Drummets with the noodles and scarfed down every bite and I had the Monte Cristo and loved it. The sammie was good, the dip was yummy and the potatoes were delicious! This is definitely enough to share. Definitely. We also had the Cookie Boat for dessert. YUMMO!
Breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen was a little underwhelming. Food was very, very average with the exception of that Peanut Butter and Jelly Pizza. Oh good lord that stuff is good. I had two pieces. I think DD had like 4. That was her breakfast. Everything else was very mediocre but that PB&J Pizza almost made it worth the cost. Characters were Cinderella, Goofy, Baloo, Mad Hatter and I think Pluto. I wouldn't hurry back...well, maybe for that Pizza!
Lunch at Ariels Grotto was also underwhelming. Food was extremely average and we are not picky. We had the Cheeseburgers and the Fish & Chips with Salads. The Cheeseburger was very blah. How can you mess up a CB? Fish & Chips were maybe like a C grade. The steak fries were my favorite thing here. The dessert was even very average. We had one of each. Characters were Ariel in her dress, Cinderella, Belle in her yellow dress, Aurora in her pink dress, and Snow White. Wouldn't hurry back here either.
Stuffed Baked Potatoe Soup at Carnation Cafe. OMG! Sooooo Yummy!!! I'm gonna go out on a limb and say probably the best thing on the menu!
The Nachos at Whitewater in DGC are overated. The cheese was not all that (trust me, I know my cheese sauce), the chicken processed and the chips strange.
Breakfast at La Brea was tasty.
My favorite snack was the Carmel Corn Nemo bucket from the cart in Tomorrowland. Yummy and the bucket is adorable. I love it!
I loved the old subs and was really excited for Nemo. We were at the front of the rope drop pack and did the sprint stright there on our non EE day. We had no wait at all. Walked right in and boarded first sub immediately. We were on the ride by 9:10. It was cute and sweet and I liked it but I can see why some peeps might be underwhelmed. SPOILER ALERT: The technology and way it was done was very like Nemo at WDW only not under water. I'm glad we did it but I'm really glad we didn't use EE for it and am also glad we didn't take up an extraordinary amount of park time to see it. Oh, by the way, DH did run and grab FP's for SM while we sprinted to Nemo. He met us in line with a minute or two to spare and hopped in at a convenient location so as not to piss anyone off. It can be done but must be done quickly. We walked off the ride at 9:28.
Early Entry is the only way to do FL. We knocked everything out in that first precious hour. I wouldn't do it any differently next time. We broke down in Snow White at the end of the ride and had to walk out. That was cool but I wouldn't want to make a habit out of it.
Weather was perfect for us. 82 on Wednesday, 78 Thursday and 70 on Friday. Sunny, clear and no rain.
Mickey's Halloween Treat was fantastic! We had a great time and brought home like 20 pounds of candy no joke. Loved it. Would definitely do it again!
Favorite rides or rides we did numerous times were Splash, Big Thunder, Pirate's which is FAR SUPERIOR to WDW's version, Space Mountain which is FAR SUPERIOR to WDW's version, TOT which is not as good as WDW's and Grizzly Rapids which is WAY better than Kali at WDW.
I was really looking forward to Haunted Mansion Holiday. I WAY prefer the original version. Glad I saw it once but once was enough for me.
Paradise Pier at CA is out of place. A glorified carnival (sorry, I know some of you are fans), but it just felt like another world. I really liked all the other areas of the park though. Very MGM-esque.
We had vouchers from Southwest and Getaway Today. We were not staying at DLR and were able to get all our tickets from the front desk before breakfast. It was nice and convenient.
We stayed at the Anabella. It was adequate. I'm kind of a hotel snob. Room was small. Service was friendly and the walk to the parks was maybe 15 minutes. I have to chuckle at some of the threads I read on how it was quite a hike. Ok, so 15 minutes of walking to the park and then 20 miles walking the rest of the day in the park. I don't know, it's funny. We ate breakfast once at Tiffy's and once at Coco's. Your average truck stop cafe fare. It was adequate, fast and filling.
We used Super Shuttle and have no complaints. Service was adequate. We also had a 3 day ART pass that we did not end up using.
The Jedi Training Academy ROCKS the park people! My son is a Star Wars fan. I bought him the JTA t-shirt before we left. I made him a small (appox 13x16) lime neon-green poster board sign with the 2" black adhesive lettering. At 9:28, we exited Nemo and hustled directly over to JTA. The music was just starting and our little man grabbed a prime rope spot 10 seconds before the Jedi Master came out. The signs work!!! He was the 3rd kid picked and got to fight Darth Maul. This was a highlight of our trip and my second favorite thing after Aladdin. The FUNNIEST thing. One of the little kids on stage to fight Vader; it was his turn. He looked up, got the look of fear in his eyes and I mean FLEW off that stage. No stairs, no climbing down. He freaking sprouted wings and flew off the stage and out to his mom in the audience. We laughed for days about that. You just had to be there. It was adorable and HILARIOUS!
We did collect FP's but only really needed them for Splash. It was fantastic!!!
Crowds were great on Wednesday, pretty good on Thursday and ok on Friday at CA. We had little (5 mins) to no waits for everything all day both days except middle of the day for Splash, TOT, Star Tours (20 mins) and Autopia (35 mins).
I must try one of those Corn Dogs from the Castle at CA next trip. I missed it but dang, it looked sooooo good!
Tom Sawyer island and the new Pirate's Lair is very well done. DD got the begeezus scared out of her in the cave trying to grab for the lute.
I thought there were very few dream FP's handed out compared to WDW where they were everywhere. Maybe it is because they really were not needed. It just seemed like a lot less obvious dreams compared with the Florida parks.
DL ride waits compared to WDW same ride waits are strange. I've never seen WDW's Pooh not totally mobbed with people in the middle of the afternoon. DL's was a walkon all day. Same thing with Big Thunder and there were a few other examples although I can't think of them right now.
We missed the fireworks and Fantasmic cause we were just having way too much fun at Mickey's Halloween Treat and decided to stay. At least we'll have something to look forward to next time. We did see the parade and it was cute.
3 park days was just about right for the way we tour. Now if you like to meander and take breaks, or if you are going during a much busier time, I would suggest 4 but otherwise we saw, did, and rode everything we wanted in the time we had.
Well, that's it. It hope you get something out of this, and to all who have upcoming adventures, I hope your trip is as magical as ours was. See ya real soon Mick!
