Kiwis Do Dis! - AGAIN! - This time our first ever Halloween

[Saskiwi]

Okay we are off again!! Two and a half years on from my first T/R which was April 09, we are now planning a visit in October for our first ever US Halloween! So the PTR for that trip starts at the end of pg 2

Hi all - we got so much great info and tips from these boards in planning our trip (Thanks Hydroguy and Hound!) it really allowed us to maximise our time at the park. I hope our trip report might be able to help other Dis planners in some small way! I will write this with an angle towards Downunder Dis visitors, so hope it will be ok for any US Dis-ers reading!
Background details:
Us: Family from New Zealand - me (mum) and DH (both 40-mumble), and sons 9 and 6.
DH and I are DL fans from way back - he first visited in the late 1970s on a youth exchange and has been back 7 times since, including a couple of times to WDW.
I was a late starter - my Dad worked for GM and visited the US in the early 70s just after Pirates had opened. He told us all about how amazing DL was and brought back a big wall map of the park - my brother and I pored over that map and planned our imaginary trips in detail, but because of the distance and expense, our family never made it. So, I first visited as an adult in 1992 with DH, and have been back 3 times since, including once to WDW.
We both like DL best because of the intensity of the experience, the compact nature of the park and the history. We love the old rides, such as the Tiki Room, Fantasyland etc.
Anyway, we last visited on a US trip in 1998, pre-kids, so this was the first time ever for our sons - we were more excited than them I think!
We planned a two week trip, with one week taking advantage of our Easter school holidays - we booked our flights, forgetting of course, that it would be Spring Break in the US!
I was so upset when I realised the parks would be busy - would this ruin our trip? We looked at cancelling our tickets and rebooking but we had got them on sale and the cancellation fees would have been horrendous, so we had to suck it up and just plan on how to deal with the crowds. To allow for the crowds, we bought 6-day Park Hoppers, so we had plenty of time to ride everything.
We bought the Unofficial Guide, and then I got researching online and discovered Disboards!
After a 16-hour journey, including the 12 hour Auckland-LAX flight, we arrived on Friday about 10am and after a loooong wait at Budget's LAX depot to pick up our hire car (jet-lagged DS 9 slept for half and hour on the concrete bench outside while DH queued inside!) we reacquainted ourselves with the LA freeway system and made it to Hojo's around midday-ish.
We had booked a premium Disney-view room, away from the freeway, and got exactly that - great view of the Matterhorn between the pine trees. (please don't cut them down Hojo's - they're cool!) We unpacked and crashed for an hour-long nap, then headed out to Von's supermarket to pick up supplies.
We planned on having breakfast in our room most days to save $$ and allow us to get to the park early. We asked about getting a Von's Club card at the store, and the helpful manager sorted us out and got one straight away which instantly saved us about $US20 on that first shop - a great deal!
We had told the boys they could choose the trashiest box of cereal they could find so, with Lucky Charms (marshmallows for breakfast!) and Fruity Pebbles in our trolley, we also picked up milk, disposable bowls, cups and cutlery and lunch supplies for packing into the park (more $$ savings)
We found food prices much more expensive than on our last US trip 10 years ago, so that blew our budget out a bit. Prices were about the same in US dollars as they are in NZ dollars- BUT with the NZ dollar being worth only about 50 US cents - ouch!
We had one Magic Morning pass with our 6 day Hopper and planned to use it the next day (Saturday) so after dinner at Taco Bell (super-cheap and a novelty for us - no Taco Bell in NZ!) we planned an early night on those very comfy Hojo beds! Then of course, the fireworks started, so we had to all stay up and watch theme - so beautiful and so exciting knowing we would be there the next day! But there's nothing like finally crashing into bed when you are jet-lagged - bliss!
Day One at DL to come....

Update: Have uploaded some video and pics of our trip on youtube:
Magic Morning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6H7aYU-hIMk
Splash Mountain: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75DIjvD_n2U
Adventureland/NOS: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoYrculZScw
Photos of our trip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cztVIFZM2yg

 

[maryr1oz]

Yay for another Down Under trip report...

Can't wait to hear more about your trip, including the crowds...

 

[Caroline NZ]

Thanks so much, I can't wait to hear more. We leave in 2 1/2 weeks. Can you tell me more about the Vons club card please? And also where is the store? We will also be staying at Hojos and renting a car .

 

[ArdyG]

Thanks Saskiwi. I'm not sure if it's the recession or a Kiwi trait but we too are planning on having breakfast in our room most days to save $$ and so will be going to Vons as well.

I note in your TR you wrote that you had gotten cups, amongst other things, from Vons. Were these plastic cups or mugs which I'll be able to drink hot chocolate from?

By the way Caroline NZ, we'll be at Hojos from 3 - 11 May. How about you?

 

[Saskiwi]

Hi Kiwis - I am going to finish my trip report - once I finish unpacking and getting through all the washing!
But in the meantime...Vons is in a small strip mall on the corner of Chapman Ave and Haster St. There is a good map of the Anaheim Resort area here: http://www.anaheim411.com/Resort_Map.html which I printed out and took with us - it shows Vons and other useful stores such as Walgreens (big drug store) Target (like KMart) and a few restaurants.
Vons is not a flash supermarket - other posters said Ralphs (@ Chapman and Euclid) is nicer, but it is cheap with the card - and handy (kind of like Pak n Save maybe??) We just asked at the checkout when we went in about getting a card, and the manager had the forms to fill out.
After we had been in the US for a week we finally got around to visiting a giant Wal-Mart store and I would recommend doing that if you can early on, to buy things like plastic cups etc, as Vons didn't have such a great selection (we ended up drinking our morning coffee out of plastic glasses!)
According to that map I mentioned, there is a Wal-Mart further up Euclid, but maybe do a search on their website - or maybe another poster can help with locations.
Also, check out the forums on Hojos own website - lots of useful stuff there about closest stores etc. (that's where I got the tip about the Vons card)
I would even think about packing our own plastic cups, bowls etc next time - if you have room in your bags.
Also, Hojos has a guest laundry (takes quarters and you can get change from a machine in the kid's games room) so if you want to save, bring detergent from home too - although the nice ladies at the hotel store sell little boxes of it quite cheaply.
Another tip I got from a friend of mine is always take some sort of washing line and a few pegs with you - even though there are dryers in the laundry, it is handy for hanging togs to dry on your balcony. We were on the 4th floor and it saved having to trek downstairs to fish swimsuits out of the garden when they blew down - as I saw other guests having to do!
If I think of any more tips I'll post them - and promise more trip reports soon
cheers
Sarah

 

[Caroline NZ]

Thanks for all the great info Sarah, it is much appreciated.
ArdyG, we will be at Hojos from May7-22

 

[Caroline NZ]

Here is a good Kiwi query, are we allowed to take Milo into the US? My kids have it every night!

 

[DizNee Luver]

Well I'm from the good ol' US but I'm enjoying reading your report so far!!! I love everyone's take on Disneyland, so I'll be sticking around to see more!!!
Anyone else want popcorn???

 

[Saskiwi]

So... Saturday, Magic Morning and our first day at DL in over 10 years for me and DH - and first time ever for DS's 9 and 6 how excited were we??? - we were up at 5.30am (not too hard actually as we are all early risers at home anyway) and after our in-room breakfast we were out the door of Hojo's at 6.15am.
Catering Note: We didn't take lunch with us that day - I knew making sandwiches and getting to the park by 6.30am was just not going to happen! - but we took a few muesli bars (granola bars in the US), little bags of chips and crackers and a pack of those peeled baby carrots (just to make me feel like my kids weren't living on a diet made up entirely of processed junk food!). We had an insulated backpack which we got given as a Xmas pres one year and had never used (it came with a picnic set inside) - but it was great for taking lunches to the parks. We brought a couple of small chilly-bin blocks from home and froze them in the tiny freezer in our hotel fridge over night. Also a couple of water bottles which we could refill from drinking fountains.
I had bought the kids bum-bags (fanny-packs in U.S. - that name cracks me up - Down Under, fanny refers to a different part of the anatomy - also down under...!) but they ended up not using them - a bit young really. So I used one for my camera, sunglasses etc. - they look pretty dorky but you see so many people looking dorky at DL- it's all part of the Disney experience! (Families wearing matching t-shirts, matching hats, big 6 foot plus, 180kg guys in mouse ears, people-watching at DL is the BEST!)

But back to Day One....we got to the gates in time to be first in line at one of the entrances. I had read online to make sure you don't just line up behind everyone else, as they usually open all the gates, and we found this to be the case. The boys passed the time spotting Hidden Mickeys in the plaza area, and then an older male CM who came out to do a Countdown to opening - and we were in!
"Hastening purposefully" as someone has described the fast-walking-but-not-running pace, we made our way under the tunnel. I ducked into City Hall to pick up 2 "First Time" badges for DS's and caught up with them and DH halfway up Main Street - I got some great video of us heading up the street with hordes of people behind us but no-one in front - priceless! (Will try and post in sometime when I work out how!)
We crossed over the castle drawbridge and into an empty Fantasyland - it is SO worthwhile getting up early just to see the park virtually empty, at least once! We were first onto Peter Pan and rode it twice, and then did all the other FL faves - Dumbo, Toad, Snow White, Matterhorn (twice), Alice, Mad Hatter, Pinocchio in our first hour. DS 6 was a bit scared by the witch in Snow White - which I didn't expect - this is a kid who has watched most of Lord of the Rings (big brother is a huge fan) But I guess being immersed in the experience is different to just watching it on screen.

At 8am DH headed off to Space Mountain to get our first FP and joined us over at Indiana Jones. We rode that with no wait and then did Pirates, one of our old faves, and a big hit with the boys. Haunted Mansion was next - DS 6 continued to have a love/hate thing with that ride for the rest of the trip - he wasn't sure if he loved the scariness of it, or was actually too scared by it - he never rode it again so I guess it was the latter!
We then headed over to Splash Mountain and rode it twice in a row as hardly anyone was about - and by the time we finished we could get another FP so got one to ride it again later in the day - we love the combination of thrills and atmosphere on that ride - plus the crazy animal animatronics and the singing!! - it pretty much has everything you could want in a Disney ride I think!. We all got pretty wet on our second ride, so had to find a bathroom and dry off with paper towels, before heading over to Winnie the Pooh, which we also stayed on and rode twice as it was almost empty.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was next - and halfway through, at the foot of one of the hills, it broke down! A couple of CMs came along and walked us all out - it was quite interesting seeing how the system worked to deal with these situations as it was the first time DH and I had ever experienced a breakdown at DL. They gave us a FP to ride it again later in the day too.
The rest of the morning we went to the Tiki Room (with Dole Whips for a morning tea treat!), jungle Cruise, and then headed over to Tomorrowland and rode Star Tours and Buzz Lightyear. We kept picking up FPs along the way whenever we could, to use later on.

For lunch we went to Cafe Orleans, as a first-day treat. It was okay - not great. Our orders got mucked up (we got the all-cheese Monte Cristo sandwich (blurg) instead of the traditional one) and DS9's order was forgotten all together until we asked the waiter about it. The quality of the food was just okay - the macaroni cheese that appears on kid's menus everywhere it seems (outside DL also) is pretty blah packet stuff in a slimy sauce- if you are used to homemade like our kids are, it doesn't really cut it! The fries with parmesan cheese were good though - what's not to like about fries and cheese together!? Cafe Orleans terrace is a nice spot for watching the crowds go past though - by lunchtime the park was pretty busy it seemed - Saturday during Spring Break and all.

After lunch we used our BTMRR pass and then caught the raft over to Tom Sayer Island to explore the Pirates Lair.
This is a great pirate-themed adventure playground, where kids can roam around through tunnels and bridges and forts, discovering all sorts of hidden things. Make sure you try and pick up the gold bar in the underground treasure pile - and try to open doors! The boys had a blast. It is easy to lose kids there though, but at least you know they can't get off the island easily! We were all getting pretty tired and the crowds were getting to us so we headed back to Hojos for a swim and long naps. This was probably about 2 or 3pm.

We drove down Harbor to Taco Bell for a quick, cheap dinner (Taco Bell is a novelty for us - we don't have it in NZ) and then returned to the park around 8pm.
We used all our FPs collected in the morning and rode Indy, Space, Splash - passing long stand-by lines of an hour or more on all of them - yay FastPass!
We stood in the plaza area of Tomorrowland to watch the fireworks, which were fantastic - and during the rest of our visit we discovered it's great to see them from different vantage points around the park, as you get a different effect each time.
We did It's a Small World and Storybook Canalboats after the fireworks, and then headed over to the Finding Nemo submarines to check out the lines which had been 1-hour plus during the day. The wait time was down to 5 minutes so we walked on - and I have to say I would have been very disappointed if I had waited an hour or more to ride it - it's a nice enough experience but nothing special in my opinion. We didn't bother riding it again over the next 5 days.

We ended the day walking down Main Street and admiring the lights, leaving as the park closed around midnight - Despite the crowds, by using FastPass (and of course our MM) we were able to do about 30 rides in all - a BIG day!

 

[Saskiwi]

DS9 just read over my shoulder and pointed out we didn't go to Taco Bell 2 nights in a row!- it was Carl's Jr on Harbor the second night, so in the interests of accuracy....

Also, re Milo; I think as long as it was in a sealed packet, you shouldn't have any trouble - it's not like it's an animal product or anything. You can get it in those little tins which would be good as they are resealable.

 

[DizNee Luver]

Nice to see we weren't the only family disappointed with Finding Nemo Subs. My family waited for 30 minutes & thought we had totally wasted that time.....not sure why it's so popular!!

 

[caligirl stuck in va]

Can't wait for more!

We were completely disappointed with Nemo - my kids were bored. We talk about Disney every day and NOT ONCE has Nemo been mentioned - GRR, yes, Peter Pan, yes, Splash, yes, Pirates, yes, Space, yes, NEMO NO.

My curiosity is piqued - what is Milo?

 

[Saskiwi]

Kind of like Nesquik - chocolate-malted powder you stir into milk (or sprinkle over ice-cream if you are evil....yum)

 

[Caroline NZ]

Kind of like Nesquik - chocolate-malted powder you stir into milk (or sprinkle over ice-cream if you are evil....yum)

Has iron and vitamins in it too. Our kids have it in warmed up milk


Wow, that was one BIG day. How did you 6 yr old cope with being up til midnight?

 

[Saskiwi]

Pretty well - but only because he slept for over 2 hours in the afternoon! I think we were all running on adrenalin for the first few days actually!

 

[aussietravellers]

I had bought the kids bum-bags (fanny-packs in U.S. - that name cracks me up - Down Under, fanny refers to a different part of the anatomy - also down under...!) but they ended up not using them - a bit young really. So I used one for my camera, sunglasses etc. - they look pretty dorky but you see so many people looking dorky at DL- it's all part of the Disney experience! (Families wearing matching t-shirts, matching hats, big 6 foot plus, 180kg guys in mouse ears, people-watching at DL is the BEST!)

Oh my goodness, I am crying with laughter, that paragraph is an absolute classic! and a friend and I have discussed the "fanny pack" so many times when either of our families have been going to the US for a Disney holiday, for the exact reason that it cracks you up!

Thank you, your trip report really is great and not just because of the above paragraph.

 

[KrazyKat4DIS]

I am really enjoying your TR! Can't wait to hear more.

DBF and I just got back from Australia and spent a lot of time in Oz grocery stores. It was fun to see the differences in food and names of things. I am aware of what fanny means Down Under and it is rather embarrassing that we use that term so differently! Although, even without the translation issue, "Fannypack" just sounds dreadful in the first place.

 

[Czardas]

For lunch we went to Cafe Orleans, as a first-day treat. It was okay - not great. Our orders got mucked up (we got the all-cheese Monte Cristo sandwich (blurg) instead of the traditional one) and DS9's order was forgotten all together until we asked the waiter about it. The quality of the food was just okay - the macaroni cheese that appears on kid's menus everywhere it seems (outside DL also) is pretty blah packet stuff in a slimy sauce- if you are used to homemade like our kids are, it doesn't really cut it! The fries with parmesan cheese were good though - what's not to like about fries and cheese together!?

I am glad to hear somebody else say they think the food at Disneyland (America) is pretty ordinary. Serves are too large, food too greasy and it seems everything comes with massive buckets of coke, chips etc.
I was hanging out for a home cooked meal so much........................

 

[blabbermouth]

Haha, I'm glad I can say I learned something today about the whole *ahem* "waistpack" terminology.

And hey, I LOVE Milo! Heehee... didn't know it was a big NZ thing though.

 

[Saskiwi]

Hi - sorry this TR has ground to a halt on Day 2! - but, but, but...I have finally edited and upoaded some video and photos on youtube. Links have been added to my first post in this thread.
cheers!