barbeml
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 8, 2002
- Messages
- 5,422
For and DH me, this was our ninth trip together, and the first one to be somewhat disappointing (still a good time, but nowhere near as wonderful as all of our previous trips). I have broken my report into categories, rather than a day-by-day account, so that you can find what interests you. Happy to answer any questions.
October 24-28: Me, DH and our good friends Bill & Stacey, our first time at Coronado Springs. As usual, Dreams Unlimited (Merrie) did a PERFECT job with all of our arrangements. Our room location was ideal for us: Casitas 3405, near the quiet pool and an easy walk to everything.
Coronado Springs: We arrived at around 11:30 and were able to check right in to our rooms with no wait. Very spacious lobby. We were impressed with the beautiful landscaping and quiet, and since we are all adults without kids, the relatively small number of children was pleasing.
We were not impressed with mousekeeping. Our room was only serviced ONCE. Granted, we slept late once, but we did call and ask for servicing and never got more than fresh towels. B & S had their room serviced, but were always shorted on towels, and the paper products (TP and facial tissues) were never replenished. Our AC was on, but the air did not circulate without the ceiling fan on high. The room was always stuffy when we came back from the parks. Luckily, we drove and had a small fan with us. Our fridge got cool enough for beverages, but anything else would have spoiled. The light in the bathroom went on dim and gradually brightened (nice feature for late night), but the exhaust fan stopped working on day three.
We loved Maya Grill (had a wonderful dinner there, see below), but Pepper Market was awkward and overpriced, and the food was seriously bland. Everything was fresh and the CMs were lovely, but we expected better tasting food for the price. Francisco's makes a fabulous margarita, but the salsa is nothing more than cold canned tomatoes. Far fewer kids than other resports was a plus for us, and even outweighed the mousekeeping issues. We may return.
Drinks: We had planned a Monorail drink-a-thon and were horrified to see that most of the lounges/bars now use a standardized drink menu featuring lots of awful and overly sweet drinks. We first encountered this at Victoria Falls at AKL, where it is our tradition to have a Mt. Kilamarita or an African Beer before dinner at Boma. The standard drink menu was a huge turn-off. Our Monorail drink-a-thon was aborted after one (lousy) round of drinks at the Outer Rim at the Contemporary (wow, this place has NO appeal at all) and gave up. The trend toward food & beverage uniformity at the resorts is not a good one.
At CSR, we enjoyed fantastic authentic margaritas at Franciscos. Nice server, a great bartender and an open, relaxed atmosphere here. They offer comp chips and salsa. The chips were warm and pretty good, but the salsa was a bowl of watery canned tomatoes. Im not kidding.
Thank goodness for the Dawa Bar at AK. I had a Harambe Cooler and DH had a Lost on Safari. Both were mixed fresh, strong and excellent.
Food & Wine Festival: For the first time we found this event lacking. Fewer items to sample and almost everything was BLAND. Portions were noticeably smaller, prices were higher. The honey, peanut and Peru booths were on the order of Why did they bother? We sampled:
Spicy Beef Empanada from Argentinapretty tasty, not spicy.
Chilaquiles from Mexico (which we enjoyed so much last year), and found the portion and flavor reduced significantly, although it was OK. The quesadilla was pretty good.
Chile: DH liked the sautéed Corvina (white fish), and the portion was decent.
From Scandinavia we had the Grilled Salmon Tartare (cold salmon salad) and the Meatball with Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes. Both were pretty tasty.
China: Green Tea Plum Wine Cooler was very good.
Thailand: Vegetable Curry with Jasmine Rice was mostly broth & rice, little flavor.
Japan: I dont eat Sushi, but the other three raved about it, as usual.
Morocco: The beef Kefta pocket was supposed to have hummus. They left that out, along with any flavor.
Oktoberfest: B&S really enjoyed the Pretzel Roll with Sauerkraut and Debriner Sausage, and it was a good portion.
Canada: We all enjoyed the cheddar soup (as always), and DH raved about the Maple Glazed Salmon.
Poland: B & S said the Kielbasa & Pierogie was OK, but small.
Dining:
We had a light lunch at the Pepper Market on arrival day. The other three had a seafood soup, which they enjoyed (small portion), and I had the salad special, Southwestern Chicken Caesar. The only thing southwestern about it was a spoonful of cold corn and about 5 black beans sprinkled over it. Even a couple of packets of salsa failed to liven it up.
Dinner at Boma was wonderful as always, and our server was terrific. The soups were a highlight, including seafood, butternut squash and chicken corn. I missed the coconut curry chicken stew, however. The meats were fabulous and there was a great variety of veggies. I note that the chocolate mousse crunch is now done in a big bowl, as opposed to the individual servings. The bread pudding was as delicious as usual. DH and I were celebrating our anniversary, and were presented with an edible anniversary greeting done in chocolate and cookies and dipped strawberries. Very nice.
We also had breakfast at Boma on our departure day. Everything was delicious, especially the roast pork with Boma mustard. Our server was wonderful and attentive, even though she had to chase the family of pigs next to us who tried to skip out without paying. They left the most disgusting mess, including broken bowls and food on the floor.
Breakfast at Kona Café never disappoints. DH and I shared a press pot and each had the Kona Delight, plus biscuits for me and a bran muffin for him. Bill had the pineapple macadamia pancakes and Stacey had the Tonga Toast.
Dinner at the Crystal Palace was the real surprise of the trip. We picked it because we had never been before and always like to try new places each trip. The food was soooooo good, especially the pork, asiago chicken pasta, vegetable pasta and fire roasted corn spoon bread. All was piping hot (or icy cold) and fresh, and the selection was great. We found out that Bill is a "closet" Pooh fan, so we got great pix of him with the characters. Also, the service was surprisingly good and attentive, considering how much of a zoo a character meal can be (especially when the clueless parents at the next table allow their daughter [at least 6--old enough to behave better] to crawl all over the floor and under several other tables, creating a hazard for servers and characters). We will definitely return.
Artist Point was a lovely experience. We highly recommend the 3 course fixed price menu with the accompanying wine flight. For starters, DH had the Smoky Portobello Soup and the rest of us had the Fresh Field Greens, Roasted Beets, Hazelnut Gremolata, Echo Mountain Blue Cheese & Blackberry Vinaigrette. For entrees, B & S had the cedar planked salmon, DH had the buffalo and I had the tenderloin. We all had the cobbler for dessert. The service, food and wine pairings were outstanding. A memorable meal was had by all.
Lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express is always a good bet for us. DH and I both had the Asian Noodle Salad with Chicken (HUGE and flavorful), and we tried the home made chips (Yum!) and a bowl of butternut squash soup for DH.
We decided to stay at the resort for our last night and have dinner at Maya Grill, which the men termed their favorite meal of the trip. Great service (Tania was the best), great food. Tania brought us a large basket of warm bread and incredible chimichurri for dipping (we got the recipe). For starters, we sampled the Caribbean Chicken Roll, Empanadas and Seafood Skillet. DH and Bill had the tuna special, Stacey had the filet and I had the tenderloin tips. Both beef entrees came out seriously undercooked and were sent back for replacement. Mine was a little bland, so I added some of the chimichurri to liven it up. We would definitely go back.
Crowds: We have been spoiled by light crowds with every one of our October trips...until now. The parks and Downtown Disney were mobbed. The Brits and Aussies were on a school break. We met many nice people and remarkably polite children, but got much less done than usual.
Sadly, Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party was a disappointment for us. Last year, we walked on every attraction (maybe we were just lucky). This year, the MK was as crowded as I have ever seen it. We did not get good value from our party tickets. I wonder how "limited" the admission is these days. I would caution you that the party can be as crowded as a normal day at the MK, so plan accordingly if you are making the party your only MK visit. The decor was not as good as last year either, and the parade seemed shorter. On a positive note, the fireworks were great and the candy offerings were more varied and generous.
Year of a Million Dreams: On our first day, DH and I returned to CSR for a late afternoon break and said hello to two CMs we passed. The woman called me back and presented me with a pair of special edtion Tink pins one to keep and one to share. At Studios, we met a fun CM named Brian who really got into his role at Star Tours. As we exited after our ride, he asked if anyone wanted to ride again, and I jumped at the chance. Brian asked our names and where we were from before sending us back to Endor. It was just the four of us .very cool. As we were leaving, he presented us with a certificate with all of our names to commemorate our Return to Endor. Stacey got a huge kick out of that.
Other than our experiences, we only saw one couple with the Dream FastPass, and never witnessed anything else.
The Parks: In EPCOT, the Nemo clam mobiles were broken every time we tried, and Test Track broke down (see my tags) while we were in line. Having ridden the intense Mission Space several times, I tried the less intense version with Stacey and actually enjoyed it more since I was not worried about deep breathing, I noticed more details.
In the Magic Kingdom, we loved the new Pirates of the Caribbean, but poor Bill dropped his glasses into the water. It is unlikely they will be recovered. The Haunted Mansion seemed refreshed and appeared to have some new elements since our last visit.
At Animal Kingdom, Dinosaur seemed refreshed as well. All of us felt that the ride was improved and more exciting (not as good as the original Countdown to Extinction, however). B & S waited 40 minutes for Everest, and were a bit underwhelmed by the ride itself, although they raved about the queue areas.
Questions welcome.
Barbe
October 24-28: Me, DH and our good friends Bill & Stacey, our first time at Coronado Springs. As usual, Dreams Unlimited (Merrie) did a PERFECT job with all of our arrangements. Our room location was ideal for us: Casitas 3405, near the quiet pool and an easy walk to everything.
Coronado Springs: We arrived at around 11:30 and were able to check right in to our rooms with no wait. Very spacious lobby. We were impressed with the beautiful landscaping and quiet, and since we are all adults without kids, the relatively small number of children was pleasing.
We were not impressed with mousekeeping. Our room was only serviced ONCE. Granted, we slept late once, but we did call and ask for servicing and never got more than fresh towels. B & S had their room serviced, but were always shorted on towels, and the paper products (TP and facial tissues) were never replenished. Our AC was on, but the air did not circulate without the ceiling fan on high. The room was always stuffy when we came back from the parks. Luckily, we drove and had a small fan with us. Our fridge got cool enough for beverages, but anything else would have spoiled. The light in the bathroom went on dim and gradually brightened (nice feature for late night), but the exhaust fan stopped working on day three.
We loved Maya Grill (had a wonderful dinner there, see below), but Pepper Market was awkward and overpriced, and the food was seriously bland. Everything was fresh and the CMs were lovely, but we expected better tasting food for the price. Francisco's makes a fabulous margarita, but the salsa is nothing more than cold canned tomatoes. Far fewer kids than other resports was a plus for us, and even outweighed the mousekeeping issues. We may return.
Drinks: We had planned a Monorail drink-a-thon and were horrified to see that most of the lounges/bars now use a standardized drink menu featuring lots of awful and overly sweet drinks. We first encountered this at Victoria Falls at AKL, where it is our tradition to have a Mt. Kilamarita or an African Beer before dinner at Boma. The standard drink menu was a huge turn-off. Our Monorail drink-a-thon was aborted after one (lousy) round of drinks at the Outer Rim at the Contemporary (wow, this place has NO appeal at all) and gave up. The trend toward food & beverage uniformity at the resorts is not a good one.
At CSR, we enjoyed fantastic authentic margaritas at Franciscos. Nice server, a great bartender and an open, relaxed atmosphere here. They offer comp chips and salsa. The chips were warm and pretty good, but the salsa was a bowl of watery canned tomatoes. Im not kidding.
Thank goodness for the Dawa Bar at AK. I had a Harambe Cooler and DH had a Lost on Safari. Both were mixed fresh, strong and excellent.
Food & Wine Festival: For the first time we found this event lacking. Fewer items to sample and almost everything was BLAND. Portions were noticeably smaller, prices were higher. The honey, peanut and Peru booths were on the order of Why did they bother? We sampled:
Spicy Beef Empanada from Argentinapretty tasty, not spicy.
Chilaquiles from Mexico (which we enjoyed so much last year), and found the portion and flavor reduced significantly, although it was OK. The quesadilla was pretty good.
Chile: DH liked the sautéed Corvina (white fish), and the portion was decent.
From Scandinavia we had the Grilled Salmon Tartare (cold salmon salad) and the Meatball with Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes. Both were pretty tasty.
China: Green Tea Plum Wine Cooler was very good.
Thailand: Vegetable Curry with Jasmine Rice was mostly broth & rice, little flavor.
Japan: I dont eat Sushi, but the other three raved about it, as usual.
Morocco: The beef Kefta pocket was supposed to have hummus. They left that out, along with any flavor.
Oktoberfest: B&S really enjoyed the Pretzel Roll with Sauerkraut and Debriner Sausage, and it was a good portion.
Canada: We all enjoyed the cheddar soup (as always), and DH raved about the Maple Glazed Salmon.
Poland: B & S said the Kielbasa & Pierogie was OK, but small.
Dining:
We had a light lunch at the Pepper Market on arrival day. The other three had a seafood soup, which they enjoyed (small portion), and I had the salad special, Southwestern Chicken Caesar. The only thing southwestern about it was a spoonful of cold corn and about 5 black beans sprinkled over it. Even a couple of packets of salsa failed to liven it up.
Dinner at Boma was wonderful as always, and our server was terrific. The soups were a highlight, including seafood, butternut squash and chicken corn. I missed the coconut curry chicken stew, however. The meats were fabulous and there was a great variety of veggies. I note that the chocolate mousse crunch is now done in a big bowl, as opposed to the individual servings. The bread pudding was as delicious as usual. DH and I were celebrating our anniversary, and were presented with an edible anniversary greeting done in chocolate and cookies and dipped strawberries. Very nice.
We also had breakfast at Boma on our departure day. Everything was delicious, especially the roast pork with Boma mustard. Our server was wonderful and attentive, even though she had to chase the family of pigs next to us who tried to skip out without paying. They left the most disgusting mess, including broken bowls and food on the floor.
Breakfast at Kona Café never disappoints. DH and I shared a press pot and each had the Kona Delight, plus biscuits for me and a bran muffin for him. Bill had the pineapple macadamia pancakes and Stacey had the Tonga Toast.
Dinner at the Crystal Palace was the real surprise of the trip. We picked it because we had never been before and always like to try new places each trip. The food was soooooo good, especially the pork, asiago chicken pasta, vegetable pasta and fire roasted corn spoon bread. All was piping hot (or icy cold) and fresh, and the selection was great. We found out that Bill is a "closet" Pooh fan, so we got great pix of him with the characters. Also, the service was surprisingly good and attentive, considering how much of a zoo a character meal can be (especially when the clueless parents at the next table allow their daughter [at least 6--old enough to behave better] to crawl all over the floor and under several other tables, creating a hazard for servers and characters). We will definitely return.
Artist Point was a lovely experience. We highly recommend the 3 course fixed price menu with the accompanying wine flight. For starters, DH had the Smoky Portobello Soup and the rest of us had the Fresh Field Greens, Roasted Beets, Hazelnut Gremolata, Echo Mountain Blue Cheese & Blackberry Vinaigrette. For entrees, B & S had the cedar planked salmon, DH had the buffalo and I had the tenderloin. We all had the cobbler for dessert. The service, food and wine pairings were outstanding. A memorable meal was had by all.
Lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express is always a good bet for us. DH and I both had the Asian Noodle Salad with Chicken (HUGE and flavorful), and we tried the home made chips (Yum!) and a bowl of butternut squash soup for DH.
We decided to stay at the resort for our last night and have dinner at Maya Grill, which the men termed their favorite meal of the trip. Great service (Tania was the best), great food. Tania brought us a large basket of warm bread and incredible chimichurri for dipping (we got the recipe). For starters, we sampled the Caribbean Chicken Roll, Empanadas and Seafood Skillet. DH and Bill had the tuna special, Stacey had the filet and I had the tenderloin tips. Both beef entrees came out seriously undercooked and were sent back for replacement. Mine was a little bland, so I added some of the chimichurri to liven it up. We would definitely go back.
Crowds: We have been spoiled by light crowds with every one of our October trips...until now. The parks and Downtown Disney were mobbed. The Brits and Aussies were on a school break. We met many nice people and remarkably polite children, but got much less done than usual.
Sadly, Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party was a disappointment for us. Last year, we walked on every attraction (maybe we were just lucky). This year, the MK was as crowded as I have ever seen it. We did not get good value from our party tickets. I wonder how "limited" the admission is these days. I would caution you that the party can be as crowded as a normal day at the MK, so plan accordingly if you are making the party your only MK visit. The decor was not as good as last year either, and the parade seemed shorter. On a positive note, the fireworks were great and the candy offerings were more varied and generous.
Year of a Million Dreams: On our first day, DH and I returned to CSR for a late afternoon break and said hello to two CMs we passed. The woman called me back and presented me with a pair of special edtion Tink pins one to keep and one to share. At Studios, we met a fun CM named Brian who really got into his role at Star Tours. As we exited after our ride, he asked if anyone wanted to ride again, and I jumped at the chance. Brian asked our names and where we were from before sending us back to Endor. It was just the four of us .very cool. As we were leaving, he presented us with a certificate with all of our names to commemorate our Return to Endor. Stacey got a huge kick out of that.
Other than our experiences, we only saw one couple with the Dream FastPass, and never witnessed anything else.
The Parks: In EPCOT, the Nemo clam mobiles were broken every time we tried, and Test Track broke down (see my tags) while we were in line. Having ridden the intense Mission Space several times, I tried the less intense version with Stacey and actually enjoyed it more since I was not worried about deep breathing, I noticed more details.
In the Magic Kingdom, we loved the new Pirates of the Caribbean, but poor Bill dropped his glasses into the water. It is unlikely they will be recovered. The Haunted Mansion seemed refreshed and appeared to have some new elements since our last visit.
At Animal Kingdom, Dinosaur seemed refreshed as well. All of us felt that the ride was improved and more exciting (not as good as the original Countdown to Extinction, however). B & S waited 40 minutes for Everest, and were a bit underwhelmed by the ride itself, although they raved about the queue areas.
Questions welcome.
Barbe
