Just back from dlrp

[Sweetsus]

So I've never done this but thought I'd share anyway.

Just back from a stay in Newport Bay Club. Stayed 29th Aug - 3rd Sep.

HIGHS
Brunch at Inventions (for the most part) - expensive but really enjoyed it.

Characters (exceptions below!) - great with my 23 mo lb & saw more than I expected! Jack sparrow, Peter Pan interaction was great.
Swimming Pool in hotel - had a great time here, never used it before but decided to this time 4 a break.

EZYSHUTTLE - great service highly recommend.
The smile on our kids faces - DH, DS, our friends & their DD who is 3 months younger than our little lad. The 2 kids loved it. They were well behaved considering the crowds & heat. It was a great family holiday.

The cast members - the first time I've actually gone & all but 1 CM were amazing. Esp wit 2 toddlers.

LOWS

Crowds at the beginning of the hol - to be expected really

Queuing 4 the parade & ppl expecting u 2 move 4 them bcoz they're 2 lazy to q themselves- again to be expected but still I wonder why they thought I should move my son so they could sit where they wanted. Unfortunately I didn't speak their language so couldn't tell them exactly where to go
Prices - 4 what u get not worth it. Seriously €3.09 4 a coke!!! I live in rip off Ireland & even I think that's expensive.

Lack of merchandise - better variety & range. A lot was the same as last year.

Server in inventions - if u don't like kids then Disneyland is not a career 4 u. He was not happy that out kids were making a bit of a mess or a bit of noise. He was fuming when he dropped some food on the floor (I always clean what he drops) & really annoyed to see my lb spill his drink - u gave a 23 mo a TALL GLASS. He should be grateful it was only spilled and not smashed.

The q 4 princesses - where to start. The 90 min q 4 the pass was crazy!! My main gripe is controversial so I hope I don't offend & I don't mean 2 either I am all 4 disabled rights & have no issues with ppl in this situation having their own queues etc but I was v annoyed 2 c that ppl who queued in the disabled section were given out passes 30 mins b4 everyone else. Is this normal 4 the pavilion? It was my first time there so not sure if it is? I also think u should get 2 c both princesses that are on.

Upkeep/standard of the rides & park - everything is looking shabby. One morning 4 EMA dumbo broke down quickly followed by small world then at 10am Snow White couldn't open due to technical issues.

Character issues - lack of orderly q system is a gen problem 4 some of the characters. Trying to wait patiently 4 a long time at the front & to the right of Mulan only to be ignored while she focused on her left. If u saw ur going to work from one side to the other then do it. I hate to say it & hope I don't get in trouble but the side where I stood had mainly English speaking guests while the side she stayed at had another nationality. We & others ended up walking away due to it. DS was v disappointed as he loves watching Mulan.

Biggest issue - 4 a kiddie destination it's actually not v childproof. I asked for socket covers 4 the room & was told they didn't have any. Yet the sockets r at perfect height 4 exploring hands & look ideal 4 placing anything that'll fit into it! No kids cups in places unless I wanted 2 fork out 11€ 4 a novelty cup. I remember Annette's used to have a plastic Disney village cup with a lid 4 kids & a frisbee - all cutbacks I suppose. I still think its ridiculous to give kids full glasses & that happened in a few places.

OVERALL

Overall we enjoyed the break. It was a nice family holiday wit friends & we made the best of everything. I'd rather focus on the good times & happy memories. I say we had a good holiday & we did. I can just see DLRP falling apart. I've been going fairly regularly over the past 13 years & I'm now thinking that it may be just a place we go to every 5 yrs 4 the big celebrations - 25th,30th etc. I'd rather go to Florida. It's nearly as cheap & better value.

One final question - I can't find my plaques outside the 2 parks - r they gradually getting rid of them all if they get damaged & not replacing them? I thought they'd always b there. V disappointed.

 

[crmscotland]

Glad you enjoyed your trip overall. re the personalised plaques/paving stones
l remember when we bought ours in 2001 it was guaranteed to be there for 10 years. It will be interesting to see if it's still there when we go to DLP next month. Last trip l noticed some others were damaged/broken.

 

[owensdad]

If a guest has a disabled priority card then they don't need to get a pass for the Princess Pavilion as they can just go directly to the exit and enter without any waiting, that's how it was last year for us and presume it hasn't changed, although they never had the fast pass thing for the Pavilion then but it shouldn't make any difference as the disabled card will get you in without having to get a fast pass or waiting.

 

[Sweetsus]

There was a separate q 4 disabled pass holders. Im not sure if this is recent or not?

 

[kizzabel]

That was an expensive bottle of coke. The Casino or Relay shops are in MLV train station and are handy for stocking up on bits like drinks and snacks and are more affordable.
I agree on age appropriate beakers for the kids, its just so much more sensible then glasses, we got them in Annettes, CM and RFC - must keep an eye out next month when we are there.

We always try to be early for the Princess pavilion fp as it gets busy. Id rather be there 20mins early then arrive to a long queue. The queuing area for the Princess FP was narrow and winding so it would make sense to have a seperate disabled queue for ease of access also maybe that's why people in this queue were admitted 1st - to allow extra time to access the princesses without being rushed.

Did the waiter say something in inventions? You'd need to be an octopus to keep them clean / stop food being discarded when they are that age. DD used to lick everything and drop it over the side of the highchair. She thought it was hilarious. Its hard to settle them quietly too if they'd had a full on day of Disney - I find it makes them hyper but that is one thing I'm a stickler for - I like to chill out over dinner and the kids know I hate if they are shouting or bouncing around during dinner - but they are a good deal older then your little chap! Ya think if you work in inventions you'd be used to small kids though!

 

[MickeysFavouriteGirl]

I take a tub of straws with me for my children's drinks, and those flip up straw beakers from the Disney store for refilling with squash.

 

[manicdave]

"My main gripe is controversial so I hope I don't offend & I don't mean 2 either I am all 4 disabled rights & have no issues with ppl in this situation having their own queues etc but I was v annoyed 2 c that ppl who queued in the disabled section were given out passes 30 mins b4 everyone else. Is this normal 4 the pavilion? It was my first time there so not sure if it is? I also think u should get 2 c both princesses that are on. "

I have to agree about this. again, Im all for disabled rights, but being in the que for 90 mins and then having a gang of kids allowed in ahead of everyone because one of the party is disabled is not right. It makes a joke of the spirit of allowing disabled access. AS with football matches, one/two ( parents of a child ) extra person should be allowed per disabled person being allowed on a ride. 6 is taking the p**s

 

[owensdad]

I can understand your point to a degree, I'd probably limit things on actual rides but things like character meets etc then it really makes no difference if a whole family goes with the disabled guest, from my own point of view we are a family of 5 and would insist on all of us being together for everything, the only ride we could actually do as a family would be IASW so I have no issues, but meet and greets and photo opportunities should be available for the whole family and not just the one with the disabled pass.

 

[Vala]

If a guest has a disabled priority card then they don't need to get a pass for the Princess Pavilion as they can just go directly to the exit and enter without any waiting, that's how it was last year for us and presume it hasn't changed, although they never had the fast pass thing for the Pavilion then but it shouldn't make any difference as the disabled card will get you in without having to get a fast pass or waiting.

It has changed. Parties with a disabled person need to pick up a pass like everyone else. Unfortunately although I know several people (us included) left comments about this in City Hall there is still no sign at the disabled entrance saying that.

I never understand this party of 6 thing too. There's just no rhyme and reason. Parties of six are allowed in fine sometimes and although my pass says I could take 4 people (something I have never done) a couple of times I was given grief for asking to take 2 people - twice even when the second person was a 10 year old boy.

Regarding the earlier hand out of disabled passes: The tickets given out vary by about 10 or 15 minutes in admission times. There's only a limited number of disabled parties allowed in at the same time too. So if they give out the tickets earlier they are not getting ahead of anyone in the line, the queueing remains stacked (if that makes sense). It's not like 20 disabled people got in first because they got their tickets first.

I can see the sense in starting the hand out for the disabled tickets earlier. The hand out for disabled tickets is done at the exit of the normal ticket queue. When I went last in July they only started handing out tickets way after the regular handout started. That meant lot of congestion in the area and people leaving having to squeeze through the waiting handicapped group. Wheelchairs, crutches etc. - I guess they may start early now to decrease the chances of an accident. In July it was quite scary at some points.