Mini trip report

[Chrisfilm]

Got back from Disneyland yesterday. As with every time I go to Disneyland, it was a great time and I didn't want to come home. I don't do well with full trip reports, so here's some thoughts from the time there:

• I posted in another thread that the parade/fireworks crowds were terrible. In fact, I was pickpocketed one night in the big crowd. Remember to keep your wallet in a bag or a front pocket.
  • Some of the cost cutting measures have caused this, I believe. No day parade and losing an hour at DCA are big factors in the horrid crowd levels during parade.
  • The rest of the crowd levels were reasonable, as were the wait times considering the number of ride closures for Star Wars construction. Of course, no other major attractions were closed while we were there, so that helped.

• They have done a GREAT job of hiding the construction. This was my biggest worry going into the trip and it was for naught.
• The walk from DLH to the parks is not as bad as I remember. Overall, I enjoyed the stay at DLH over GCH (but they upgraded us to a DTD view at no charge, so that helps!). I also liked the pool better. Much less crowded and good slides.
  
• Disney has hit gold with fast passes. We had a bad experience on our 2nd day in the hotel and the housekeeping manager gave us a bunch of fast passes. Normal hotels would be comping with discounts or upgraded amenities. But Disney has come up with a system that allows them to make up for bad experiences with something that costs them nothing. Kudos to them.
• I preferred Soarin' Over California to Soarin' Over the World. On first ride, I was wow'ed by the unexpected. But the 2nd time on wasn't nearly as good as all subsequent experiences on Soarin' over California.
• Enjoyed eating at Carnation Cafe. I had never been before, but liked the inside of the restaurant and the food was very good too.
• We happened to go on Matterhorn right as the fireworks were starting. That was a great happy accident.
• In an unexpected turn of events, my kids were angels in the gift shops. I read a suggestion a while back to take pictures of items they like and then pick out the favorites from the pics to buy later. That seemed to work like a charm. No whining or complaining about not buying things. No fights to get out of the stores.
• Pre-pickpocket, my wife had my wallet on a ride and I tried to buy some churros with my room card, but since I didn't have my ID the CM wouldn't let me. After I got my wallet, I went back to pay and the CM was very apologetic. I told her I completely understood and she gave me a free extra churro. It was a small moment, but made me happy.
• My kids loved spending so much time with their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousin. That is probably the highlight of the trip. Doing big family trips is a lot of fun.

 

[ADLFAN]

Glad you had so much fun! You are right, the memories you make on a multigenerational trip are so precious!


I appreciate the reminder about pick - pocketing! A stealthy dishonest person could really make a killing and wreck a few vacations in there every night in the fireworks crowds.

 

[Astylla]

I am so sorry you got pick pocketed , sadly dishonest people are everywhere. My husband was an almost victim about 6 months ago walking by Paradise Grill towards TSMM. Some guy ran into my husband who already keeps his valuables in front and went away empty handed but we reported it immediately and gave a description.

 

[greewe]

It sure was a great trip!!

 

[gottalovepluto]

That photo thing is genius, I'd never come across that before. And not just for kids, I can totally see myself using that trick next trip to make the most of my budget!