Just back ...

Hootch

DIS Veteran
Joined
Mar 4, 2006
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well, almost. Just back after a couple of days at the beach and a week catching up at work.

Were were there 6/15 - 6/21 with five days in the major parks and one day at Typhoon Lagoon and Disney Springs. We hit the MK four times, Hollywood Studios three times and Epcot and DAK two times. Epcot was the park we spent the least time in. We cut short one of our days to head to the MK. (And had to take the bus since monorail was dropping things that day.)

The highlight was Pandora. My kids and I did FOP while my wife did the river ride. For the three of us, the ride was much better than expected. I just listened to an older podcast with Len Testa that mentioned their surveys for FOP showed a 4.5 on a 5.0 scale, third most popular attraction at DAK. I can see it take a hit due to the wait, you can hit Everest on single rider, which we used several times, with little wait.

Traffic was rough with the road construction. We stayed at POFQ and watched the bus arrival time climb every time we headed to the parks in the afternoon. I would add a few minutes in the afternoon for bus transport. We did not see an issue in the morning or evening. There were multiple times when there were two Disney Springs buses at the resort at the same time.

The first part of the vacation showed lower crowd levels, and they appeared to be correct, but the MK closed at 10:00 PM which was a disappointment. Hours were extended the following week with noticeably higher crowds.

Even though crowds were higher, we still were able to get additional FPs for almost everything in the MK, Hollywood Studios and DAK excluding Pandora. Epcot was not so easy. At 10:00 AM the single rider line was showing a 45 minute wait and it was down the other time we were there. The other major disappointment was Soarin'. I have been to the Eiffel Tower and Schloss Neuschwantein. Neither of them bend. It's unfortunate that two-thirds of the audience have a sub par view.

Dining was at Sci Fi, Yak and Yeti, Wolfgang Puck and Art Smith's place. The first two were okay. I liked the reel at Sci Fi. The other two were very good. If you like mac and cheese substitute it for your side for about a buck fifty. It's a large portion and really good.

We have stayed at POFQ the last six visits now and still enjoy it.
 
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It was rainy, probably more than we usually see in June, i.e. the afternoon rains. Kali closed just as we were ready to board. They provided FPs that could be used before the end of the month on any DAK attraction other than Pandora. I'm not sure how much the rain impacted our ability to get additional FPs. It did not seem that bad to me.

I'm sure the locales appreciated the rain.

Our beach stay was at Longboat Key when the tropical depression was pounding the Southeast. It was clear except for a brief shower during dinner our last night.The water was at double red level I would guess with a heavy tow.

Enjoy your trip.
how was the weather? We arrive next week.
 
We almost had the same trip! We did Lido Key 6/24-28 then POFQ 6/28-7/1. This is our 5th time at a PO resort, second at FQ. Love the resort!! Was somewhat taken aback by the heat. We usually go in spring or fall and I was unprepared. Lines weren't too terrible. Pandora was highlight for us as well. Dining was probably our biggest disappointment this trip. So unbelievably $$ for mediocre food. Best meal was apps at Tambu Lounge. Still had a fun time though we may do a Disney hiatus for a few years. Glad you had a good trip!!!
 

In our modern era, (modern times meaning we could afford to stay on site) we have stayed at POFQ six times now. I don't see that changing anytime soon. Yes food is often not worth the money. I thought the meal we had at Art Smith's was very good and my grouper sandwich was about the same price I saw at the beach.
 
In our modern era, (modern times meaning we could afford to stay on site) we have stayed at POFQ six times now. I don't see that changing anytime soon. Yes food is often not worth the money. I thought the meal we had at Art Smith's was very good and my grouper sandwich was about the same price I saw at the beach.
I wish we had eaten more of our meals at Disney Springs. I hear the food is better there.
 
We did just four table service meals. The kids want to be ding rides.

I would say at Sci Fi, you are not going for the food. Stick with the burgers. I am a fan of those old kitchy movies so that made it worthwhile this time. Matinee with John Goodman is fun look back to those times.

Yak and Yeti was okay. We were looking for something different. And we may still be next trip.

Our daughter is so picky we have to limit our choices.

I comfort myself with the second part of the trip at the beach.

What other places that you ate at were not that good?
 
Loving the POFQ love, we have booked that for our stay in October - so excited to hear people love it!
 
Loving the POFQ love, we have booked that for our stay in October - so excited to hear people love it!

Well, I wasn't that happy when we were trying to book at the resort. We adjust things to to make the reservations work. And it almost always is excluded from discounts, But I understand well why people like it.
 


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