Low season, high life DL adventures--complete 6/17!

[Hawleys]

We showered and got ready, then walked to McD for buy one, get one free Egg McMuffin. Back to the Hojo where DW indulged my curiosity and we walked back to take a peek at the garden pool. Pool looked nice but no hot tub.
The grounds staff was out in full force, clipping, sweeping, watering, etc and the grounds looked very well maintained. We also noticed that Castaway Cove was closed for renovations. You can see the caution tape in this photo.

We checked out of the Hojo and headed down Harbor toward DL. DW was fretting about taking our bags through security check to get to the GC. It was no problem at all do this. Security had a cast member escort us across the plaza and we didn't have to open our bags at all. The CM who escorted us was very shy. Now, DW and I are pretty shy, especially in situations with lots of new people but this young woman took the cake. DW tried to ask her about the possibility of Captain EO opening and got nothing at all. Sigh.

We meandered through DTD, excitement mounting, I couldn't wait for my first glimpse of the GC lobby. Wow! It did not disappoint. I was however, totally disoriented by the positioning of the registration desk. Somehow in all the pictures I had seen, I expected the registration desk to be opposite from the entrance with the sliding stained glass windows. But since the registration desk is on the same side of the lobby as the entrance and street, I got toally turnd around. It's a good thing DW knew where she going.

Totally sleep now...more tomorrow.

 

[Eeee-va]

Nice report so far! How funny about the shy CM. I'm shy too but at least I can answer questions...though I reckon most people on the DISboards know about as much about Captain EO's opening date as quite a few CMs do.

As for the beds at Hojo, I think oversized doubles are the same WIDTH as regular doubles, but are LONGER. I've always thought double beds were too NARROW more than too SHORT, so they looked outright tiny to me too!

I found that I would not want to share such a small bed with someone (if I had a husband it might be different, but I still have that kind of "invisible line" idea like I did when I was a kid in hotels, that you can't touch your travel partner and have to stay on your side of the bed!). We booked 2 queens for our next trip, even though it's more expensive.

 

[Hawleys]

Nice report so far! How funny about the shy CM. I'm shy too but at least I can answer questions...though I reckon most people on the DISboards know about as much about Captain EO's opening date as quite a few CMs do.

As for the beds at Hojo, I think oversized doubles are the same WIDTH as regular doubles, but are LONGER. I've always thought double beds were too NARROW more than too SHORT, so they looked outright tiny to me too!

I found that I would not want to share such a small bed with someone (if I had a husband it might be different, but I still have that kind of "invisible line" idea like I did when I was a kid in hotels, that you can't touch your travel partner and have to stay on your side of the bed!). We booked 2 queens for our next trip, even though it's more expensive.

Hi Eeee-va!
Your explanation about the oversize doubles being shorter not narrower makes total sense. I must have misunderstood the Hojo video. No wonder they seemed so tiny! To tell you the truth, we didn't even share a bed because I had a cold. (Hope that's not TMI. ) We're staying in the same room type in June and we'll see if the bed is big enough. If not, well, I can always sleep in the other one.

 

[Hawleys]

Checking in at the GC took some time. Not because the CM was slow but because I was interested in a very specific view of Paradise Pier. This is what happens when you hang around the Dis too long. I asked for a room in the new wing which we were assigned but with a pool view. I expressed some surprise because I thought we had paid for a park view. The CM helping us told me that pool/park view were the same category. So I asked if we could have a Paradise Pier view instead and showed her on the map where we wanted to be. The CM helping us might have looked a tiny bit grumpy at this request. However, she did find us an awesome room (4252). It took about 10 minutes and she had to go to the room behind the registration desk, I think to ask her supervisor about releasing the room to us. The CM was training a new person as well. DW commented that I was the perfect example of a difficult customer and a fantastic training opportunity. I had to laugh at this and the trainee cracked a smile but the CM looking through each room individually to see if it would accommodate us did not even blink. Stone cold.

Once we had a room, the CM gave us our Keys to the Magic (room keys with Magic Morning and charging privileges) and took our cell phone number so that the GC could text us when our room was ready. No problem there as it was getting close to 8:40am and I desperately wanted to be at the gates for opening. We checked our bags with Bell Services and they let us know that we didn't need to come back to the bell desk, just call from our room once it was assigned and they would be delivered. Nice!

We stopped at the restroom and then hustled through DTD to get to the gates. There were pretty long lines already (5 or 6 families) so we used another Dis trick and lined up at an entrance behind a planter where there were only 2 families in line. The CM scanned our passes so we were all set to go in as soon as the park opened. We all counted down from 10 and yelled out "Let the Magic Begin" or something similar. I'm a ashamed to say that I couldn't count or yell very loud because I was tearing up at bit because we were finally going to Disneyland!

The man in front of us pushed his stroller through the gate making us the second party through the turnstile. Then it was a walking footrace to our first destination; Space Mountain! Our touring style definitely tends toward commando and the plan for this morning was to ride a bunch of non-FP rides before the lines got long and collect FPs as efficiently as possible. First stop--FP machine, return time 9:40am--sweet! We rode Space with almost no wait at all.

We debated going on Nemo as there was no line but it's such a long ride that it eats up precious minutes of uncrowded time. We will have to ride Nemo one more time on our final (sniff) Year of a Million Trips trip in June. (That's what I've been calling the 12 months that we have our APs. Catchy, eh?) During our Oct trip, we were at the gates for opening with plans to grab Space FPs and ride as soon as the park opened. DW's medical condition was acting up and she couldn't walk fast so she sent me ahead. I was super annoyed because Space was down but thought it would be a good opportunity to ride Nemo, which we had missed in August. There was no wait so I called DW to let her know where to meet me. Waited and waited some more for her. Called again and found out she had stopped for a bathroom break. I hung up the phone in a huff asking myself "Why didn't she take care of this at the hotel? Doesn't she know the morning hours are golden touring time, not to wasted on bio breaks, eating, taking pictures or meeting characters!?" Turns out she had stopped to buy me some Disney dollars. Long story but my sister gave me Disney dollars for my birthday in July and instead of spending them, I just gave them to our nephew for our August trip. Of course, my sis asked what I bought and I had to tell her nothing. She was a bit peeved as apparently the Disney store is FAR away from her house in MA and she had to send our Mom on a special trip to get them. Ok, that was long story long. Well, after grousing at DW, she pulled out the Disney dollars. Boy did I feel terrible. Especially because the awesome CMs held the boat for us and we got on a sub immediately. Then, when we were sitting in the dark on the ride, I felt DW take my hand and put something in it. I looked down and it was a rainbow Mickey head pin (we were there for Gay Days). Of course, I got all choked up and felt like an even worse wife for grumping about the "bathroom break". So...that's why Nemo will always have a special place in my heart, even though I think the ride is just ok. If you look closely at the pictures for the TR, you will be able to spot my one and only pin. It like a Hidden Mickey for all my readers.

Ok, back to my TR for real now. We decided to ride the Astro Orbitors.

You may recall that one of our Year of a Million Trips (YOAMT) goals is to ride every last darn attraction in the parks. Here was our first "new" attraction of the trip. We waited through one ride cycle before boarding our rocket. The CM asked if we wanted one rocket or two. We opted (unfortunately) for one, thinking it would be like Dumbo and we could ride together. Didn't work so well; those suckers are NARROW. Now, I'm a bit plumper than I would ideally like to be but those rockets were just not designed for people with hips. DW was half laughing, half yelping in pain when I squeezed in. I was afraid they would have to get me out with a shoehorn! Since I was in front, I got to control the up and down motion of the rocket. Feels higher than Dumbo and going up and down makes you feel more like your going to fly out of the rocket. Two big thumbs up.

 

[Eeee-va]

We will have to ride Nemo one more time on our final (sniff) Year of a Million Trips trip in June. (That's what I've been calling the 12 months that we have our APs. Catchy, eh?)

 

[Hawleys]

After our spin on the rocket ships, we walked on Buzz so that DW could trounce me as usual.

It was fun to be early enough in the day that we were ranked, even though our scores were not that high. We got better as the trip went on.

Next up was the Matterhorn, where we rode both sides. Fantasyland side seems smoother and slower to me. DW thought it would be fun to try riding with no hands...not recommended. She was tossed all around, banging into me and after about 3 seconds she was gripping the handles again.

I just love this pic that DW took. It captures all the things I love about the Matterhorn, snow, waterfall and toboggan. I should make a disclaimer here that DW takes almost all of the pictures in my TR. Please direct any compliments or complaints in her direction.

We wandered over to Fantasyland to hit Casey Jr. (another new ride) before the line got too long. We waited about 10 minutes and ended up in one of the cages. Of course we had to do our best monkey impressions. I'll spare you the pics.

That little train goes faster than you would think. I read in "The Imagineering Field Guide to Disneyland" that it was originally designed to be a roller coaster. Ok, I have to confess that I read it in the preview pages on Amazon. But I'm planning to buy, borrow or steal this book somewhere. If you truly want to look at the miniatures, and you should, they are lovely, don't bother with Casey. Ride the Storybookland Canal Boats for a closer, more leisurely tour.

We struck out the back way from Fantasyland toward Adventureland so that we could visit the petting zoo (another must do for the YOAMT, although this is not technically a ride, it is an attraction and hence goes on the list). I argued that once we cross that line it means we have to visit Fairy Hollow and the Princess Fantasy Faire and see Playhouse Disney. DW disagrees, mostly because she doesn't want to go to PFF. Neither do I for that matter but I'm a completionist (is this even a word?). Convincing arguments for either side will be duly considered so send 'em in.

We spent a few happy minutes petting the goats and chatting with a nice CM who told us about the DL herd romances and who might be pregnant with whose kidlet.

DL goat stud: Pongo (spelling?)

Hands washed, we took a moment to email DFM and DFC to let them know how excited we were that they were joining us that evening. Oh, and to send DFM a close up pic of Pongo since he has a goat phobia (small child with ice cream cone + hungry goat=lifetime of terror). Aren't we good friends?

 

[Hawleys]

From the petting zoo, we circled around to BTMRR where we got a FP and went for a ride. DW took this lovely picture.

If it weren't for the evergreens peeking through, I would totally believe this was a picture of Arizona or Utah. Ok, maybe the fossilized dinosaur eggs would give away the DL location as well.

There was hardly any line so we asked the CM if we could wait for our favorite spot on the ride:

I just love the extra bit of speed you get in the last car!

 

[Dizneydaz]

Glad you had a great trip! Can't wait to read more. Nice shooting on Buzz.

 

[Disney owl]

great start

 

[MeLaNie9]

I love the last car on BTMRR too!
Love your DW's BTMRR picture, she really caught a neat sky with that one!
Your DF's goat story is hilarious - I would have done the same thing (sent the goat picture)!

 

[Hawleys]

Glad you had a great trip! Can't wait to read more. Nice shooting on Buzz.

Thanks Dizneydaz! I got a bit competitive at Buzz later in our trip.

great start

Thank you!

I love the last car on BTMRR too!
Love your DW's BTMRR picture, she really caught a neat sky with that one!
Your DF's goat story is hilarious - I would have done the same thing (sent the goat picture)!

I passed along the compliment on DW's photo. Thank you. If you like the goat story, wait until you hear about DF riding Space M-unfortunately, he has motion sickness. I know that he didn't enjoy the ride but his discomfort made for one funny photo for the rest of us.

 

[Hawleys]

Just back from long weekend in Tahoe with the rents. Update coming soon.

 

[Hawleys]

After our spin on BTMRR, we decided it was time for the DLR breakfast of champions; the churro! We hit the cart in New Orleans Square. Delicious as always! The walls around the Rivers of America are not pretty. Usually Frontierland feels vast and open but not so much with the walls up. We knew we were traveling in off season so we tried not to let it bother us.

We had a few minutes before we could get another fastpass so we wandered over toward Winnie the Pooh. I know I've said this a million times but I find this ride to be so charming and always always always ride it when I go to get a Splash fastpass. We jumped in our honeypot to visit the Heffalumps and then grabbed a Splash fastpass on our way out. It was pretty chilly out (at least for us Califonians) which meant no line at all for Splash. We debated for a bit about getting wet and maybe cold and then said what the heck and jumped in the queue. Splash Mountain is my absolute favorite!

In preparation for this trip, we had watched the Song of the South. You can find it in its entirety on the web if you are interested. Since there was literally no one in the queue, we stopped and read all the movie quotes on the walls when you enter the enclosed area. Liked this one alot "You can't run away from trouble. There ain't no place that far."

We requested seats in the back of the log in hopes that we wouldn't get too wet. We followed this strategy throughout the trip and while we were always wet, we were never soaked. Riding Splash after seeing Song of South gave me an extra dose of respect for Disney storytelling. We kept pointing to the different scenes saying " Oh, that's when this happened!" and "Look, that's just like the movie!".

We ambled over to visit the Haunted Mansion then decided to make our way to Adventureland and grab an Indy FP. We took the back way through NO square so that I could stop at the bathroom and guess who we saw in her greeting area? Tiana, looking so beautiful. Her dress is just gorgeous. And this is from someone who rarely puts on a skirt!

Does anyone else miss the old art store above Pirates of the Caribbean? There was a little courtyard up there that no one ever seemed to sit in except us. Before DW had to go on her medical diet, we would get soup in a breadbowl from the CS stand, climb the stairs and enjoy a quiet lunch away from all the bustle. Maybe I would miss it less if I were magically granted a night in the Dream Suite.

After getting Indy FPs, we climbed up Tarzan's Treehouse. DW claims that she had never done this before and we needed to check it off on our list. I'm pretty sure we were there in 2007 with our friend Ross.

Does anyone else find Tarzan to be a bit too muscular? I know he's King of the Jungle shouldn't the all fruit diet produce a leaner build? He seriously looks like a body builder!

 

[heatherleigh]

Great TR! I'm having fun reading, and can't wait to hear more. I really like the photos- particularly of the BTMRR.

Sorry if I missed it, but can you please tell me what the abbreviations for the friends stand for? For some reason, I have it in my head as "dear father", but I'm not sure.

 

[Hawleys]

Great TR! I'm having fun reading, and can't wait to hear more. I really like the photos- particularly of the BTMRR.

Sorry if I missed it, but can you please tell me what the abbreviations for the friends stand for? For some reason, I have it in my head as "dear father", but I'm not sure.

Hi heatherleigh! I'm glad you are enjoying the trip report.

DFM stands for dear friend Misha (or Mike)
DFC stands for his girlfriend, dear friend Cinthia

DFM and DW grew up together on the same cul de sac in Washington state. The four of us have been friends for many years. It was so exciting to take them to DLS.

 

[goofycathy]

Great TR, thanks for sharing!

 

[MeLaNie9]

We watched Song of the South just before one of our WDW trips - the one where I actually got on Splash Mtn! my brother's in laws have a bootleg copy of the movie.

 

[Hawleys]

Great TR, thanks for sharing!

Thanks for reading!

We watched Song of the South just before one of our WDW trips - the one where I actually got on Splash Mtn! my brother's in laws have a bootleg copy of the movie.

Glad you made it on Splash at least once!

Haven't forgotten you all...update coming soon.

 

[Hawleys]

When I left you all we had grabbed some Indy FPs and were heading through Adventureland toward Gadget's Go Coaster. It was getting toward noon and I rather expected there to be a long line in Toontown but we needed to check this ride off in our quest to ride every attraction.

On our way through the Plaza, a bright red fire engine caught my eye. We made a spur of the moment decision to jump on and take a ride down Mainstreet. Neither of us had ridden any of the Mainstreet vehicles before and it was FUN! We're the go go go types who usually view Mainstreet as territory to be conquered on the way to Space Mountain. It was fun to just take in the sights on our ride. I saw some of the dedicated windows that people always talk about on the Dis. Our driver was a friendly guy who recently appeared in a Disneyland commercial. How cool is that!

When we climbed down from the fire engine at the entrance end of Mainstreet, we still wanted to ride Gadget's Go Coaster so we hustled over to the waiting horsedrawn trolley and scrambled up for a ride back to the castle. Our horse's name was Kaleb. Here's a photo of the handsome guy himself.

I just have to include this beautiful shot of the castle. It was such a gorgeous day.

I'm about to say something which I have never said about any other Disneyland attraction. Gadget's Go Coaster kind of sucked. Every other attraction I've ridden at DLR, I felt like there was at least some Disney spark but this just didn't have it for me. Maybe I was grumpy because we had to wait over 20 minutes for a ride that DW describes as "20 seconds of my life that I barely remember". Maybe it was my total lack of knowledge about the theming. Maybe it's because I'm over 5 years old. Whatever it is, my advice is if you don't have kids, skip it! If you have kids that are tall enough to ride any of the other coasters, skip it! If you absolutely must ride this, go right when Toontown opens.

After our less than stellar ride on GGC, we got a text message saying our room at the Grand Californian was ready. Sweet! I was beside myself to go check out our view.

The omnibus just pulling up when we reached the Plaza. We scampered up the steps to ride down Mainstreet in style, from the top story. There was a big line in front of the Corn Dog Cart which I pointed out to DW with some surprise as I had read on another Disney site that it would be closed for refurbishment. Once DW realized it was open, there was no stopping her. As soon as we got off the omnibus, we were hoofing it up Mainstreet for lunch. So much for the food we brought from home!

We popped in to the Main Street Cinema and enjoyed a few minutes of classic Mickey before making our way to the Plaza to buy lunch.
Food porn:

We rolled down Mainstreet, stuffed to the gills with corn dog goodness.

We of course walked through DCA and into the GC using the guests only entrance by Grizzly River Rapids. Gotta enjoy the perks while we had 'em! Next trip we're back to the Hojo.

Hope you guys are enjoying our low season, high life adventures.

 

[50sjayne]

Well I am...