My report...
me-almost 29, love Disney, not a thrill seaker-although will try almost anything(except Screamin)
dh -almost 31, goes along for the ride(not a disney fan
) He's not a scaredy cat like me
ds - 8 not into any scary rides
ds - 7 willing to ride almost any ride
dd - almost 3 - turning into a daredevil, loves everything princess
This was a last minute trip, dh and I were there briefly in Jan. (althought hat trip was marred by a little accident with my rental car so that doesn't count
) and we'd been to WDW for a week in October, but couldn't pass up the free kids tickets. Unfortunantly, all the local hotels were booked, but we got the 4 star Hyatt by the airport for $191 for both nights, which was a good deal. The most expensive part of our trip was food (we packed snacks).
Got in Thurs morning and spent the day at California Adventure, it was nice weather, wasn't really as crowded as I thought it might be, left about 6pm as we did most things we wanted to do and it had been a long day-we left our home at 4 am for the drive to the airport - to top it off, I didn't get home until midnight the night before due to a bad car accident coming in 30 minutes before I was supposed to leave work.
Highlights:
*Aladdin, dh and I saw it in January and wanted to make sure the kids saw it. They loved it and talked about going back the next day, but we ended up not making it back to the park. There was a little difference in the two shows we had seen. We thought the Genie was better in the Jan show, but Jasmine was much better this time (in the Jan show-she seemed out of breath the whole time).
*the Bugs Life rides are cute and fun for little kids, as my dd is too small for many rides at that park, although the ride for the flying one was like 30 minutes-so beware! While we didn't scout out characters this trip, the Bugs Life characters were there without much line, so we took advantage
*All of my kids loved the adventure place by the Rapids Ride-can't remember the name. I almost passed it by, cause I had never heard of it before. They played for 30 minutes and they would have stayed longer if we'd have let them.
*Soaring was great of course, my boys had done it at WDW, and I wish my dd was old enough to ride cause she would have loved it - she's 38", so next time. The only thing was there was this black spot in the middle of the screen that was distracting. Still good. Anyway, we ate at the resteraunt by Soaring, and my DS8 son found a hidden mickey. He had mentioned that something on the wall was shaped like a mickey, and I told him about Hidden Mickey's, he spent the rest of the trip looking for Hidden Mickeys. He didn't find any other true Hidden Mickey's, but before we go next time we will find out where some are ahead of time.
Dissapointents:
Didn't get to ride the ferris wheel, the wait times were long,and DS7 was unsure about riding it. Will definantly do it next time!
Dh tried talking DS7 into going on Screaming, but he wasn't ready. I told DH just to go, but he said the trip wasn't for him. He didn't go in Jan. because I wouldn't go with him. I really wish he'd just go on it already!
Too cold to do the rapids ride. I've heard it's better than the rapids ride at WDW, but I got soaked on that ride, and didn't want to risk it this time.
Edited to add that on this night we got to the hotel tired and needes showers, so we ordered room service for the first time ever. $65 for food that was not even very good.
DS ordered macaroni & cheese and it didn't even taste like the Kraft brand. Oh well live and learn.
Anyway, Friday was cool & drizzly but didn't dampen our spirits. We didn't get to DL as early as I wanted, and spent way to much of food, because I wasn't prepared. Also, it was very crowded,but I wasn't surprised about that. What I was not prepared for, was someone taking our stroller while we were in the Haunted Mansion! We kept an eye out for it all afternoon - although it is a popular style and never actually thought we'd find it, but get this - found it outside Buzz Lightyear hours later(yes! we're sure it was ours). Unfortunantly, this was at 9 pm after we traded carrying our tired( and eventually sleeping) almost 3 year old around for hours.
Some people...
Highlights:
*My DS7 tried Space Mountain and loved it! He had tried most rides at WDW but had been scared of Space. I went on it in January, and so decided to ride.
*While Ds7 and Dh were on Splash Mountain, I took the other two to Winnie the Pooh, getting off, we saw Tigger and Pooh with major lines. DD had seen them several times at WDW so I wouldn't get in line. Meeting Dh after Splash I turned around, and Rabbit appeared, with no line. I hurried DD over there, and she was #2. I snapped a picture and she gave him a big hug. We had never seen Rabbit before, and she was very happy about that!
*DS8 loved Tom Sawyers island. We had done it at WDW, but it was pouring rain then and we didn't stay long. He has a great imagination and it paradise for him! Although I was so tired of walking I wanted to just sit. Unfortnantly, DD loved it too, and so I had to keep up with her. Is it just me, or does the thought of going through small caves not as exciting as an adult!
*DS8 found a cool aviator hat with mouse ears. He's a pilot in the making(dh is a pilot), so it was perfect for him. We got some pink mouseears for DD, which she loves
*Only half of us had seen the Muppets at WDW, so we all went. They all enjoyed the 3D show. Nothing scary, like Honey I Shrunk the Audience. I had to take DS8 out. He's pretty sensitive, and he didn't like Bugs Life show at WDW-so we didn't go to that one at CA. Ironically, DD2 did okay with the show.
*Also, while standing in line for Alice and Wonderland, we ran some friends of our family that we've known from childhood, althogh they moved away years ago and still keep in touch with my parents. It's a small world...
*DD was tall enough Matterhorn and seemed to like it, although likes the coaster in Toontown better. She went on the little coaster at WDW and so we knew she'd like the Toontown one.
Speaking of Toontown. We ended up in the house that takes you to meet Mickey. Why oh why don't they post a waiting time. (we didn't even know what it was going into it) Every time we thought we were close to the end, we entered another long line. My 2 boys wanted out, but they were the ones who took us in there, and once we figured out what it was, my dd wanted to see Mickey(it was her most magical moment at our WDW trip last Oct). Anyway, it was a looooong wait. We didn't do autographs this time, so we snapped a picture and left. My kids promised me we'd never do that again!
Other dissapointments, (besides the stroller being taken):
I really wished Pirates was open. It is my faviorate, but will give me something to look forward to next time. We did go to the store, and it was surprisingly busy. DH bought a dew rag with cross bones (the only disney thing he's bought for himself) DS8 found a cool gun and DS7 bought a bunch of jewels and jewelry. DH asked if he should be worried that one son is getting a gun, the other jewelry?
We were letting the boys do what they wanted, and they didnt' feel like staking out a spot at Fantasmic, so once again we have not seen Fantasmic. One of these Disney trips I will see this show!
The crowds. I know it's been more crowded, but next time we will go at non-peak time. Also we will stay closer, so we can come and go, and not have to pay for parking!
As for Sat., Dh had to take an early flight out in the morning for work. DD woke up with him at 5 something and wouldn't go back to sleep
In the morning, it was pouring rain. We had said we would go swimming, so we went. We mostly stayed in the hot tub The "heated" pool was chilly but the boys got in. After check out. It cleared up, and so I drove around until I found a beach in Newport, where they donned their swimsuits in the not so warm weather and played mostly in the sand and a little water. There was abunch of debri on the beach, I wouldn't go back to that particular beach, but the kids loved it, and I love being at the ocean,, so it was nice. Unfortunantly, trying to get sand off of 3 kids and ready for the airport in a public bathroom isn't much fun. Oh well, we got on our flight(we fly standby), and got home safely( after a four hour drive, arriving at 1 am - thanks to a bag of sunflower seeds-it's the only thing that will keep me awake). I got home with the intention of going to bed, and remembered my ebay auctions, etc etc and now I'm wide awake at 4 am. Thank goodness it's Sunday-a day of rest.
Jeni
me-almost 29, love Disney, not a thrill seaker-although will try almost anything(except Screamin)
dh -almost 31, goes along for the ride(not a disney fan
) He's not a scaredy cat like meds - 8 not into any scary rides
ds - 7 willing to ride almost any ride
dd - almost 3 - turning into a daredevil, loves everything princess
This was a last minute trip, dh and I were there briefly in Jan. (althought hat trip was marred by a little accident with my rental car so that doesn't count
) and we'd been to WDW for a week in October, but couldn't pass up the free kids tickets. Unfortunantly, all the local hotels were booked, but we got the 4 star Hyatt by the airport for $191 for both nights, which was a good deal. The most expensive part of our trip was food (we packed snacks).Got in Thurs morning and spent the day at California Adventure, it was nice weather, wasn't really as crowded as I thought it might be, left about 6pm as we did most things we wanted to do and it had been a long day-we left our home at 4 am for the drive to the airport - to top it off, I didn't get home until midnight the night before due to a bad car accident coming in 30 minutes before I was supposed to leave work.
Highlights:
*Aladdin, dh and I saw it in January and wanted to make sure the kids saw it. They loved it and talked about going back the next day, but we ended up not making it back to the park. There was a little difference in the two shows we had seen. We thought the Genie was better in the Jan show, but Jasmine was much better this time (in the Jan show-she seemed out of breath the whole time).
*the Bugs Life rides are cute and fun for little kids, as my dd is too small for many rides at that park, although the ride for the flying one was like 30 minutes-so beware! While we didn't scout out characters this trip, the Bugs Life characters were there without much line, so we took advantage
*All of my kids loved the adventure place by the Rapids Ride-can't remember the name. I almost passed it by, cause I had never heard of it before. They played for 30 minutes and they would have stayed longer if we'd have let them.
*Soaring was great of course, my boys had done it at WDW, and I wish my dd was old enough to ride cause she would have loved it - she's 38", so next time. The only thing was there was this black spot in the middle of the screen that was distracting. Still good. Anyway, we ate at the resteraunt by Soaring, and my DS8 son found a hidden mickey. He had mentioned that something on the wall was shaped like a mickey, and I told him about Hidden Mickey's, he spent the rest of the trip looking for Hidden Mickeys. He didn't find any other true Hidden Mickey's, but before we go next time we will find out where some are ahead of time.
Dissapointents:
Didn't get to ride the ferris wheel, the wait times were long,and DS7 was unsure about riding it. Will definantly do it next time!
Dh tried talking DS7 into going on Screaming, but he wasn't ready. I told DH just to go, but he said the trip wasn't for him. He didn't go in Jan. because I wouldn't go with him. I really wish he'd just go on it already!
Too cold to do the rapids ride. I've heard it's better than the rapids ride at WDW, but I got soaked on that ride, and didn't want to risk it this time.
Edited to add that on this night we got to the hotel tired and needes showers, so we ordered room service for the first time ever. $65 for food that was not even very good.
DS ordered macaroni & cheese and it didn't even taste like the Kraft brand. Oh well live and learn. Anyway, Friday was cool & drizzly but didn't dampen our spirits. We didn't get to DL as early as I wanted, and spent way to much of food, because I wasn't prepared. Also, it was very crowded,but I wasn't surprised about that. What I was not prepared for, was someone taking our stroller while we were in the Haunted Mansion! We kept an eye out for it all afternoon - although it is a popular style and never actually thought we'd find it, but get this - found it outside Buzz Lightyear hours later(yes! we're sure it was ours). Unfortunantly, this was at 9 pm after we traded carrying our tired( and eventually sleeping) almost 3 year old around for hours.
Some people...
Highlights:
*My DS7 tried Space Mountain and loved it! He had tried most rides at WDW but had been scared of Space. I went on it in January, and so decided to ride.
*While Ds7 and Dh were on Splash Mountain, I took the other two to Winnie the Pooh, getting off, we saw Tigger and Pooh with major lines. DD had seen them several times at WDW so I wouldn't get in line. Meeting Dh after Splash I turned around, and Rabbit appeared, with no line. I hurried DD over there, and she was #2. I snapped a picture and she gave him a big hug. We had never seen Rabbit before, and she was very happy about that!
*DS8 loved Tom Sawyers island. We had done it at WDW, but it was pouring rain then and we didn't stay long. He has a great imagination and it paradise for him! Although I was so tired of walking I wanted to just sit. Unfortnantly, DD loved it too, and so I had to keep up with her. Is it just me, or does the thought of going through small caves not as exciting as an adult!
*DS8 found a cool aviator hat with mouse ears. He's a pilot in the making(dh is a pilot), so it was perfect for him. We got some pink mouseears for DD, which she loves
*Only half of us had seen the Muppets at WDW, so we all went. They all enjoyed the 3D show. Nothing scary, like Honey I Shrunk the Audience. I had to take DS8 out. He's pretty sensitive, and he didn't like Bugs Life show at WDW-so we didn't go to that one at CA. Ironically, DD2 did okay with the show.
*Also, while standing in line for Alice and Wonderland, we ran some friends of our family that we've known from childhood, althogh they moved away years ago and still keep in touch with my parents. It's a small world...
*DD was tall enough Matterhorn and seemed to like it, although likes the coaster in Toontown better. She went on the little coaster at WDW and so we knew she'd like the Toontown one.
Speaking of Toontown. We ended up in the house that takes you to meet Mickey. Why oh why don't they post a waiting time. (we didn't even know what it was going into it) Every time we thought we were close to the end, we entered another long line. My 2 boys wanted out, but they were the ones who took us in there, and once we figured out what it was, my dd wanted to see Mickey(it was her most magical moment at our WDW trip last Oct). Anyway, it was a looooong wait. We didn't do autographs this time, so we snapped a picture and left. My kids promised me we'd never do that again!
Other dissapointments, (besides the stroller being taken):
I really wished Pirates was open. It is my faviorate, but will give me something to look forward to next time. We did go to the store, and it was surprisingly busy. DH bought a dew rag with cross bones (the only disney thing he's bought for himself) DS8 found a cool gun and DS7 bought a bunch of jewels and jewelry. DH asked if he should be worried that one son is getting a gun, the other jewelry?
We were letting the boys do what they wanted, and they didnt' feel like staking out a spot at Fantasmic, so once again we have not seen Fantasmic. One of these Disney trips I will see this show!
The crowds. I know it's been more crowded, but next time we will go at non-peak time. Also we will stay closer, so we can come and go, and not have to pay for parking!
As for Sat., Dh had to take an early flight out in the morning for work. DD woke up with him at 5 something and wouldn't go back to sleep
In the morning, it was pouring rain. We had said we would go swimming, so we went. We mostly stayed in the hot tub The "heated" pool was chilly but the boys got in. After check out. It cleared up, and so I drove around until I found a beach in Newport, where they donned their swimsuits in the not so warm weather and played mostly in the sand and a little water. There was abunch of debri on the beach, I wouldn't go back to that particular beach, but the kids loved it, and I love being at the ocean,, so it was nice. Unfortunantly, trying to get sand off of 3 kids and ready for the airport in a public bathroom isn't much fun. Oh well, we got on our flight(we fly standby), and got home safely( after a four hour drive, arriving at 1 am - thanks to a bag of sunflower seeds-it's the only thing that will keep me awake). I got home with the intention of going to bed, and remembered my ebay auctions, etc etc and now I'm wide awake at 4 am. Thank goodness it's Sunday-a day of rest.Jeni
