HollyEpcot
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2010
- Messages
- 304
Well, we are just back from a short but fun whirlwind tour of the Magic Kingdom (2 days) & EPCOT (1 day).
This was our 2nd trip with the kids. Our first family trip was last year, and what a difference a year makes! Kids are DS- 5 and DD- nearly 3. Last year the little one was in diapers and we were stopping constantly! This year, even though we kinda went commando, it felt like we had a lot more freedom & time to relax.
A few things:
We somehow managed to surprise the kids with the trip. Dad left from work and met us at the airport wearing mouse ears. Kids were not initially excited- they didn't quite get that we were about to get on a plane to Disney. A few minutes later, when I gave them their special Disney back-packs (with stuff for the plane ride) , then it sunk in and they were really excited! And then of course they wanted to go RIGHT NOW (which is why we had waited to surprise them in the first place- if we had told them about our plans we would have spent every day fielding questions about how many more days till Disney!)
DVD players & Disney dvds, activity book, coloring book, crayons, markers, snacks, blank paper, cars & some dolls were all part of our airplane carry-on- kept the kids busy for most of the flight to/from.
We absolutely loved our hotel- French Quarter. We would definitely stay there again (we are already talking about making plans for next year!) The hotel was small, quiet, had great bus service, nice New Orleans theming (theming was laid-back, not in-your-face). Rooms were nice & clean. The food court was not too crowded- we were always able to find seats for 6. We didn't get to use the pool until our last day, but it had a really nice water slide- slide was fun for the kids and for us parents! Water in the pool was heated to about 80 degrees or so. One drawback- minimum depth was over 3 ft. and pool did not have zero depth entry, so we had to be especially vigilant with DD. The kids got beads and a plastic coin every day, which they loved. They also loved the playground and the crocodile statues. The food court has lots of huge Mardi Gras items suspended from the ceiling - the kids loved the ice cream & lollipop decorations. I was worried that the large faces/heads would scare DD, but neither kid commented on them. Other Disney hotels are much more lively, but this hotel was pretty quiet, which is exactly what we wanted.
Even though Halloween just ended, all the Halloween decorations are gone- replaced by Christmas decorations, especially in the MK. MK looked very festive!!!
We used our own touring plan- our first day began in Fantasyland (with some running to Fronteirland for fastpasses) and our second day began in Tomorrowland. That way, we got all the popular rides in at the beginning of the day. And we pretty much got everything in (although due to different ages, not all of our group rode everything together). We got to the parks early but did not make rope drop. Our group was a bunch of night owls, so we let the kids nap in the strollers or on us, and that way we got to ride some of the popular rides after the crowds thinned out at night.
Grandpa had some mobility issues, but in the end refused to rent either a wheelchair or electric vehicle. Fortunately there were lots of places to sit down, and sometimes we would just pick spots to re-group.
So, the big difference this year is my son rode on the big kid rides! Splash Mountain (loved it- wanted to go again), Big Thunder Mountain (was ok, but a little scared), the Haunted Mansion (was a little scared, but got through it), Pirates of the Carribbean (was proud to go on the Captain Jack Sparrow ride), Test Track (he loved it!) and Soarin (he loved it!).
Both kids loved the raceway and Buzz Lightyear's space ranger spin. We went on small world and Peter Pan twice (early in the day and just before park closing) - those are their faves!
My DD cried during Mickey's Phillharmagic- it was not a scary movie at all, but it was a huge screen and she didn't like 3-D. She also cried during the fireworks- DH had to take her inside a store.
A great time to ride the Carousel is at night, right after fireworks. Also, great picture spot- the Sword in the Stone is right in front of the carousel.
DD loved the Country Bears. Surprisingly, given all the things she is afraid of, she also enjoyed Pirates of the Carribbean! (We didn't take her to the Haunted Mansion, and she was a little too small for the 40" rides).
The Electric Light Parade is not to be missed. Frontierland is a great viewing spot.
There is a great light show on the castle.
The Move it, Shake it Parade is ok, but loud.
The People Mover, the Carousel of Progress and the Hall of Presidents are indeed great places to get kids to nap.
Renting single DIsney strollers for both kids was a great idea. Yes, we could have bought a nice stroller for that price, but it was worth it to not have to take the stroller on the buses. (Last year, we were carrying the kids, the strollers & the backpacks). The hotel was so compact, we really didn't have to carry the kids that far from the bus stop to our room.
We did not get to go on Dumbo or Winnie the Pooh rides this trip - kids were ok with that. They didn't want to go to the tiki room (bad experience last year) and weren't interested in the tea cups.
We highly recommend the following restaurants at MK-
Liberty Tree- sit down family style dinner is like Thanksgiving- our group loved it!
Columbia Harbor House- great menu- this quick/ counter service restaurant still has a nice relaxing ambience.
Crystal Palace- just a beautiful restaurant- tons of dessert choices, nice salads, recommend the carved turkey & beef - Winnie the Pooh & friends spend nice amount of time visiting our table.
Cosmic Ray's Stardust Diner- this is more hectic than the other places we went too, and not much ambience at all (unless you are near the stage) but you can get a great deal on good food- 1 quick/ counter credit can get you the 1/2 chicken with ribs combo, which was very good.
For snack credits, if the item was only 1 or 2 dollars, we paid for it out of pocket. It the snack was 3 or 4 dollars, we used a snack credit.
---- Whew- still have unpacking to do. Will add more later about our EPCOT visit!-----
This was our 2nd trip with the kids. Our first family trip was last year, and what a difference a year makes! Kids are DS- 5 and DD- nearly 3. Last year the little one was in diapers and we were stopping constantly! This year, even though we kinda went commando, it felt like we had a lot more freedom & time to relax.
A few things:
We somehow managed to surprise the kids with the trip. Dad left from work and met us at the airport wearing mouse ears. Kids were not initially excited- they didn't quite get that we were about to get on a plane to Disney. A few minutes later, when I gave them their special Disney back-packs (with stuff for the plane ride) , then it sunk in and they were really excited! And then of course they wanted to go RIGHT NOW (which is why we had waited to surprise them in the first place- if we had told them about our plans we would have spent every day fielding questions about how many more days till Disney!)
DVD players & Disney dvds, activity book, coloring book, crayons, markers, snacks, blank paper, cars & some dolls were all part of our airplane carry-on- kept the kids busy for most of the flight to/from.
We absolutely loved our hotel- French Quarter. We would definitely stay there again (we are already talking about making plans for next year!) The hotel was small, quiet, had great bus service, nice New Orleans theming (theming was laid-back, not in-your-face). Rooms were nice & clean. The food court was not too crowded- we were always able to find seats for 6. We didn't get to use the pool until our last day, but it had a really nice water slide- slide was fun for the kids and for us parents! Water in the pool was heated to about 80 degrees or so. One drawback- minimum depth was over 3 ft. and pool did not have zero depth entry, so we had to be especially vigilant with DD. The kids got beads and a plastic coin every day, which they loved. They also loved the playground and the crocodile statues. The food court has lots of huge Mardi Gras items suspended from the ceiling - the kids loved the ice cream & lollipop decorations. I was worried that the large faces/heads would scare DD, but neither kid commented on them. Other Disney hotels are much more lively, but this hotel was pretty quiet, which is exactly what we wanted.
Even though Halloween just ended, all the Halloween decorations are gone- replaced by Christmas decorations, especially in the MK. MK looked very festive!!!
We used our own touring plan- our first day began in Fantasyland (with some running to Fronteirland for fastpasses) and our second day began in Tomorrowland. That way, we got all the popular rides in at the beginning of the day. And we pretty much got everything in (although due to different ages, not all of our group rode everything together). We got to the parks early but did not make rope drop. Our group was a bunch of night owls, so we let the kids nap in the strollers or on us, and that way we got to ride some of the popular rides after the crowds thinned out at night.
Grandpa had some mobility issues, but in the end refused to rent either a wheelchair or electric vehicle. Fortunately there were lots of places to sit down, and sometimes we would just pick spots to re-group.
So, the big difference this year is my son rode on the big kid rides! Splash Mountain (loved it- wanted to go again), Big Thunder Mountain (was ok, but a little scared), the Haunted Mansion (was a little scared, but got through it), Pirates of the Carribbean (was proud to go on the Captain Jack Sparrow ride), Test Track (he loved it!) and Soarin (he loved it!).
Both kids loved the raceway and Buzz Lightyear's space ranger spin. We went on small world and Peter Pan twice (early in the day and just before park closing) - those are their faves!
My DD cried during Mickey's Phillharmagic- it was not a scary movie at all, but it was a huge screen and she didn't like 3-D. She also cried during the fireworks- DH had to take her inside a store.
A great time to ride the Carousel is at night, right after fireworks. Also, great picture spot- the Sword in the Stone is right in front of the carousel.
DD loved the Country Bears. Surprisingly, given all the things she is afraid of, she also enjoyed Pirates of the Carribbean! (We didn't take her to the Haunted Mansion, and she was a little too small for the 40" rides).
The Electric Light Parade is not to be missed. Frontierland is a great viewing spot.
There is a great light show on the castle.
The Move it, Shake it Parade is ok, but loud.
The People Mover, the Carousel of Progress and the Hall of Presidents are indeed great places to get kids to nap.
Renting single DIsney strollers for both kids was a great idea. Yes, we could have bought a nice stroller for that price, but it was worth it to not have to take the stroller on the buses. (Last year, we were carrying the kids, the strollers & the backpacks). The hotel was so compact, we really didn't have to carry the kids that far from the bus stop to our room.
We did not get to go on Dumbo or Winnie the Pooh rides this trip - kids were ok with that. They didn't want to go to the tiki room (bad experience last year) and weren't interested in the tea cups.
We highly recommend the following restaurants at MK-
Liberty Tree- sit down family style dinner is like Thanksgiving- our group loved it!
Columbia Harbor House- great menu- this quick/ counter service restaurant still has a nice relaxing ambience.
Crystal Palace- just a beautiful restaurant- tons of dessert choices, nice salads, recommend the carved turkey & beef - Winnie the Pooh & friends spend nice amount of time visiting our table.
Cosmic Ray's Stardust Diner- this is more hectic than the other places we went too, and not much ambience at all (unless you are near the stage) but you can get a great deal on good food- 1 quick/ counter credit can get you the 1/2 chicken with ribs combo, which was very good.
For snack credits, if the item was only 1 or 2 dollars, we paid for it out of pocket. It the snack was 3 or 4 dollars, we used a snack credit.
---- Whew- still have unpacking to do. Will add more later about our EPCOT visit!-----
