Hi. We just got back after almost 5 weeks away, 8 days at WDW and a 4 day Wonder Cruise included. I'll talk about the Wonder Cruise at another time.
I can't possibly manage a day by day report as it is all a blur to me now but a few comments:
Brickbats first
- we were really disappointed with the Service at ASMovies. It took us almost an hour to check in (only about a dozen people waiting) which seemed an incredibly long time to us.
- When I went to check out (we were leaving before 8am and I wanted to see my bill) there was one staff member on duty. After she took some 20 minutes to check one family in she disappeared for 10 minutes. The fellow at the conceirge desk avoided eye contact until I was forced to ask him if he could help or find someone who could (there were 6 people waiting behind me and at least 2 of them commented they had planes to catch). The lady eventually showed up and all was well - but what a hassle! Most hotels manage to put your account under the door during the night. Apparently that isn't possible at ASM
- my 8 yo daughter fell on her foot badly at the Animal Kingdom and to my distress I was advised that I would have to either carry her to the First Aid station or walk all the way to the entrance, hire a wheelchair, return to her and then wheel her to the station - way over the other side of the park. I was told that by 2 different cast members! Not being satisfied I tried again and a cleaner told me she would take care of it. She returned with a Supervisor who organised a wheelchair and gave my daughter and her cousin a stuffed toy in apology. It turns out she only badly sprained it and was in a wheelchair for 3 days which was better than it could have been, but the system was crazy.
- my impression overall was that the parks just aren't as clean and the staff not as attentive as they used to be (last visit 6 years ago)
- wheelchair hire is way too far away from the Disney transportation system!
Bouquets
- The ASM rooms were much bigger than I had expected after reading reports, books etc. They were quite comfortable and while the decor was very 'bright' the kids loved it. We were travelling with my sister's family and my father and were lucky enough to get rooms for my sister and I right next to each other which allowed us to have adult conversation while the kids watched TV next door.
- My DD loved the Disney Channel (we don't have cable at our house in Australia) and stayed up late watching it every night.
- Eight days meant we could arrive at the parks late and still manage to see everything as we didn't have to cram it into a few days so the holiday was quite relaxing
- Disney transportation was awesome! Our only real wait was our first night when we stayed for the fireworks at MK. While we had cars we didn't use them - too much stress (we drive on the other side of the road and I had my Dad's car which is a tank compared to mine) when the Disney system was so good
- MK in particular is amazing for people with disabilities. We had the wheelchair for a day at MK and one at Epcot and I cannot praise the staff for the way in which they found us and helped us in a totally unobtrusive and generous manner. At a few places we were sent to the Fast Pass lines (which made me feel guilty as we bypassed the queue) but we didn't take advantage and only did those rides once.
All in all the kids had a marvellous time and the Disney magic is still there, just a little less magical and far more commericial then I remember. My preference for hotels is not All Star but we were travelling with my sister's family who were on a tight budget which ultimately decided our accomodation.
I can't possibly manage a day by day report as it is all a blur to me now but a few comments:
Brickbats first
- we were really disappointed with the Service at ASMovies. It took us almost an hour to check in (only about a dozen people waiting) which seemed an incredibly long time to us.
- When I went to check out (we were leaving before 8am and I wanted to see my bill) there was one staff member on duty. After she took some 20 minutes to check one family in she disappeared for 10 minutes. The fellow at the conceirge desk avoided eye contact until I was forced to ask him if he could help or find someone who could (there were 6 people waiting behind me and at least 2 of them commented they had planes to catch). The lady eventually showed up and all was well - but what a hassle! Most hotels manage to put your account under the door during the night. Apparently that isn't possible at ASM
- my 8 yo daughter fell on her foot badly at the Animal Kingdom and to my distress I was advised that I would have to either carry her to the First Aid station or walk all the way to the entrance, hire a wheelchair, return to her and then wheel her to the station - way over the other side of the park. I was told that by 2 different cast members! Not being satisfied I tried again and a cleaner told me she would take care of it. She returned with a Supervisor who organised a wheelchair and gave my daughter and her cousin a stuffed toy in apology. It turns out she only badly sprained it and was in a wheelchair for 3 days which was better than it could have been, but the system was crazy.
- my impression overall was that the parks just aren't as clean and the staff not as attentive as they used to be (last visit 6 years ago)
- wheelchair hire is way too far away from the Disney transportation system!
Bouquets
- The ASM rooms were much bigger than I had expected after reading reports, books etc. They were quite comfortable and while the decor was very 'bright' the kids loved it. We were travelling with my sister's family and my father and were lucky enough to get rooms for my sister and I right next to each other which allowed us to have adult conversation while the kids watched TV next door.
- My DD loved the Disney Channel (we don't have cable at our house in Australia) and stayed up late watching it every night.
- Eight days meant we could arrive at the parks late and still manage to see everything as we didn't have to cram it into a few days so the holiday was quite relaxing
- Disney transportation was awesome! Our only real wait was our first night when we stayed for the fireworks at MK. While we had cars we didn't use them - too much stress (we drive on the other side of the road and I had my Dad's car which is a tank compared to mine) when the Disney system was so good
- MK in particular is amazing for people with disabilities. We had the wheelchair for a day at MK and one at Epcot and I cannot praise the staff for the way in which they found us and helped us in a totally unobtrusive and generous manner. At a few places we were sent to the Fast Pass lines (which made me feel guilty as we bypassed the queue) but we didn't take advantage and only did those rides once.
All in all the kids had a marvellous time and the Disney magic is still there, just a little less magical and far more commericial then I remember. My preference for hotels is not All Star but we were travelling with my sister's family who were on a tight budget which ultimately decided our accomodation.
