More on Our Week at the Dolphin and the Parks

[Bill From PA]

We couldn't have had a better week, arriving at 11.30 am 11/8 at MCO. Using Dollar's FastLane, I got our rental quickly and met Mary, my wife, at the baggage carousel. This time she had the bags by the time I got there so off we were. I took one wrong turn before getting on rte. 417 but lost only a few minutes. Our room was ready for us at the Dolphin and I think they gave us a break on the room view as they were booked up but still gave us a view of Swan and the boat launch area. We were able to waive the resort fee without a hassle.

After settling in, we headed for Downtown Disney to catch Cirque du Soleil. We stopped at Bongos for a pre-show Corona and while there, the bartender made too many Margueritas by mistake and gave us each a freebie! Great start to the night. The show itself was unique, fascinating and entertaining, highly recommended. After the show we hit PI for the first Comedy Warehouse show, then on to the Adventurer's Club. We were glad to see some of the 'old timers' there.

Sat., we hit MGM as it was the EE park in spite of the fact that it was Super Soap Weekend. The park itself was crowded, but the rides were mostly walk-ons. At the rope drop facing Tower of Terror, the crowd was only about 8 deep and we did Tot and RnR twice without FastPass. I've read others reporting bad crowds for this whole weekend, and maybe it was bad for early Nov. We're used to going the first week in March and there's no comparison, last week had the lightest crowds we've ever seen.

The previous night at PI we took advantage of the $5 Deal in which you buy a regular admission and for $5 more you get in for the next 5 nights. This way we hit PI every night and we still have Plusses left for next year on our 7Day Hopper Plus passes. This may work out for others, too.

Adventurer's Club fans might want to check out the links below. One of the veteran 'Emil' characters did a stint at the CW. The show was great.

http://www.wcdaniels.com/wdw2002/emilcw.jpg

Later in the week, we met him at the monorail station outside of MK. I introduced myself and told him how much our group liked his character over the years. He seemed thrilled to be recognized and that night at the Club he remembered me and said 'hi' while he was doing his 'Emil' bit, shown below.

http://www.wcdaniels.com/wdw2002/emil.jpg

Also later in the week at the Club I discovered that my wife's Coronas were the same price as the Bud Light swill I was drinking. Better late than never, and this follows the old saying, 'Life's too short to drink cheap beer!'


More Later,

Bill From PA

 

[Trekker]

Thanks for sharing Bill - sure glad you enjoyed your trip!

 

[Gillian]

Thanks for the report! Sounds like you had a great time

Just a practical question - who was with the car while you went inside to meet your wife? Or did you park it in somewhere? Just wondering

 

[Bill From PA]

Gillian,

We've got the 'Get the Heck Out of MCO' thing down to a science. With FastPass, I get the paperwork done in a minute or two, take a fast stroll to the lot, get the keys and locate the car. Then I get back to the baggage carousel where the rest of our party, this time it was only the two of us, is collecting the luggage. This year is the first time she had the bags before I could get back. Next we tote the bags to the car and hit the South Exit. One thing I'll do next year is get all 'wheeled' luggage that you pull behind. I'll NEVER lug a regular suitcase again.


Bill From PA