Just back from DL & 4 night Baja cruise!

[goofyfordisney]

This was a girls trip (me, my sister and Mom--no kids!). We had a great time. I must say I had some major mommy-guilt going to Disneyland without my kids!

We were able to go at a much slower pace without the kids. We saw all of the shows and parades. We did everything we wanted to do because there were no lines, it was great! Even got my mom (68 years young) to ride Tower of Terror twice!!
We ate at Joe's Crab Shack, Blue Bayou, Rancho del Zocalo, Rainforest Cafe, Jazz Kitchen Express (twice--got to get my beignets!).

We stayed at the Candy Cane Inn (our first time staying here). I really wanted to check it out. We normally stay on-site so, I wanted to compare. I was pleasantly surprised. We had a "deluxe" room on the 1st floor towards the back of the motel. It was perfect for the three of us. The room was quiet and clean. The breakfast offerings were good. The only complaint I had was that the bed was very uncomfortable. We walked to and from the parks a couple of times. It was about a 10 minute walk to the front gates. We took the shuttle back at night. Overall, I think that the hotel fit most of our needs and would stay here again if I couldn't get a good rate at an on-site hotel.

After our 3 nights at Disneyland, we went on a 4 night cruise to San Diego, Catalina Island and Ensenada that left out of San Pedro. This was my first experience cruising. I'm not sure that cruising is for me...the ship was full and it was wall to wall people! I wish we had stayed longer at Disneyland!

We also went to the El Capitian Theater in Hollywood and saw The Incredibles. It was such a beautiful theater!

If you have any questions, just ask!

Sue

 

[JC Butterfly]

glad that you were able to enjoy a girl's trip -- very important to have those you know!

Sounds like the Candy Cane was a positive experience for you too, which hotel do you normally stay at on site?

Was the El Capitain what you expected? Better? Less than? I'm wondering if I want to add that into my itinerary next year.

Sorry that cruising was a less than stellar experience for you. Maybe you were just on the wrong cruise line and should try it again when Disney goes out to the West Coast

 

[goofyfordisney]

JC:

We have stayed at the GC and the DLH--we have never stayed at PP. I loved them both. My kids liked the GC alittle better because we were so close to the parks. We would go on the Grizzly River Run over and over and get soaked and go right up to the room to change! I really liked GC lobby and pool areas. Since our kids are older (& bigger) now, I thought the room at DLH was laid out better and had more room. It's really a toss up between the two!

As for the El Capitan Theater, It was really cool! It was better than I expected. It was alittle pricey...The VIP ticket was $24.00 (includes the movie as well as popcorn and soda). The VIP section is the middle seats in the theater (lower level and balcony). Regular adult ticket price is $15.00, Seniors $12.00--I'm not sure what the kids price was?? It's funny when the kids aren't with you--you don't look at those things!! It probably was around $13.00?? It would be pretty expensive to take the whole family.

We sat in the balcony area. When you get in, get your seats before going to get your popcorn to get a good seat. It's a large theater, but some seats are better than others. There is a man playing Disney music on a large pipe organ. After that is a 30 minute live Disney show with singing, disney characters--very good. The characters we saw were: Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Belle, Cinderella, Snow White, Scully, Mike, Buzz, and Woody. The movie that is currently playing is The Incredibles. There are some cool pictures to look at in the lobby too. I'm really glad we went.

Hope you have a great trip!

Sue

 

[missmulan]

when were you at the el capitan?? we went on thurs, nov 11th in the evening....it was sooooo wonderful that i came home to post a new thread about it!

 

[goofyfordisney]

We were there on Friday 11/12 at the 4:00 pm show. It was great! Sounds like you had a great time there too!

Sue