Not thrilled with MK TS options...advice?

[linzjane88]

Before you submit your time to my rambling....basically what I am asking is "Am I making any fatal flaws here?"

SUN 9/7-AK (closes at 5) Boma 5:45
Mon 9/8-Ep -- Teppan Edo 7:20
Tue 9/9- MK--(closes at 7) Raglan Road 7:30
Wed 9/10-DHS (Closes at 8) Sanaa 7:00
Thur 9/11 AK til close then Ep for the evening and 7:55 Akershus
Fri 9/12 MK (closes at 7) Kona 7:10
Sat leave park by 4 for flight out.


Now the rambling if you so choose : As someone new to this whole DDP thing I feel a little overwhelmed. We wll be 4 adults traveling for an uh-mazing grownups trip 9/6-9/13 and this will be the first time for the other couple to DW and our first time using the DDP. While I am super excited about the dining plan I am also nervous that this may turn me into a vacation Hitler (yeah, not PC. But I am usually not so you may have to get used to it ). I really want to it to be a trip where we can relax and eat good food. Those priorities are not working together! Because of the so-so reviews for most of the sit downs in MK & DHS I noticed most of our ressies are not in the parks we will be spending the day and I am looking for advice on whether thats an OK gameplan? I don't want to feel like I am running to hit reservations but I also don't want to not have them and get stuck with a mediocre meal. I have never gone kidless, so maybe the sheer extra time and energy I have will negate the annoyance of hopping around (Did I mention: NO KIDS!!!)

I think because I am booked for 7 nights I have 1 table service left. Not sure where to spend it! Our day coming in is sort of wasted as we won't be to the hotel until about 730 PM.
P.S. my method of choosing good restaraunts if you are wondering was basicaly trip advisor. 6 best non-character 1 credit table service places? I'll take them! Really nothing based on personal experience.

 

[figment_jii]

Tue 9/9- MK--(closes at 7) Raglan Road 7:30
Fri 9/12 MK (closes at 7) Kona 7:10

Are you hoping/planning on staying at MK until the park closes at 7? If so, you will need to allow more time to get to DTD. There are no buses that go from MK to DTD directly, so you'll either need to take the monorail or walk to one of the MK resorts and then take a bus (or taxi) to get to DTD. I'd allow about 45 to an hour at a minimum (assuming you walk to CR and then take the bus).

Similar comment about Kona...you will have to leave MK earlier than closing to make it on time. I'd probably plan to leave around 6:15 pm-6:30 pm at the very latest (that is the time I'd plan to be at the monorail or boat dock).

I think because I am booked for 7 nights I have 1 table service left. Not sure where to spend it! Our day coming in is sort of wasted as we won't be to the hotel until about 730 PM.

Yes, DDP credits are based on the number of nights. So I'm guess you are arriving on Saturday (9/6) in the evening. Given that you have an extra TS credit, I'd consider adding in a Signature (2 credit) venue or planning a dinner for your arrival night. While you won't get in until 7:30 pm (is that when you'll get to your resort?), there is still time to have a TS dinner at one of the resorts (many restaurants continue to seat until around 9:00 pm or 10:00 pm).

Wed 9/10-DHS (Closes at 8) Sanaa 7:00
Thur 9/11 AK til close then Ep for the evening and 7:55 Akershus
6 best non-character 1 credit table service places? I'll take them! Really nothing based on personal experience.

Just a note, but Akershus is a character meal (princesses).

Do you have park hoppers? If you do, I would consider hopping over to Epcot on your DHS day. It should be open until 9:00 pm and there are lots of good restaurants in World Showcase. I really like Via Napoli, Rose & Crown, and Les Chefs de France.

 

[linzjane88]

Thanks for the great idea about the 2 credit dinner! Our flight gets in at 5, so I figure by the time we get bags, rental car, drive to resort (CSR) it will be 7:30ish. I am hoping for earlier but I think that might be a good ballpark. We are for sure doing 6 day park hoppers but I am not sure about the potential of a 7th park day on the day we leave. I figure I will leave some part of our vacation up for input from others. Ha!

We also have our own rental car--I am just too much of a control freak to do Disney transportation. I will see if I can make my dinner reservations a little later to be able to work in staying til closing at MK. I did think about doing one more dinner and evening at Epcot and hitting either Chefs/Biergarten/Via Napoli so I might revisit that idea.
I have been to many times growing up but we never did much onsite dining and have only stayed at a resort once so lots of new things!

 

[linzjane88]

Just a note, but Akershus is a character meal (princesses).

Is the food good? I was having a hard time differentiating between restaurants that had really god food VS the ones that (IMHO) have falsely inflated 5 star reviews for the 'character experience'. I thought from what I had gathered the food sounded good but if it is just so-so I will change to something else. I am not anti-character necessarily I more or less just want good food whether it comes with a character or not. But maybe 4 adults at a character meal would be awkward....

 

[figment_jii]

Is the food good? I was having a hard time differentiating between restaurants that had really god food VS the ones that (IMHO) have falsely inflated 5 star reviews for the 'character experience'. I thought from what I had gathered the food sounded good but if it is just so-so I will change to something else. I am not anti-character necessarily I more or less just want good food whether it comes with a character or not. But maybe 4 adults at a character meal would be awkward....

It's been a bit since I've been to Akershsus, so things might have changed. I found the food to be good for a character meal, but not on par with the Signatures (or even some of the a la carte TS locations). I think most folks go to Akershus for the characters, so food is somewhat of a secondary priority. I liked the cold board appetizers. The entrees were fine, but nothing outstanding. The desserts were okay, but not high on my list.

 

[linzjane88]

It's been a bit since I've been to Akershsus, so things might have changed. I found the food to be good for a character meal, but not on par with the Signatures (or even some of the a la carte TS locations). I think most folks go to Akershus for the characters, so food is somewhat of a secondary priority. I liked the cold board appetizers. The entrees were fine, but nothing outstanding. The desserts were okay, but not high on my list.

Thank you for such helpful comments! I made our reservations for CG at 9:10PM--it was all they had and I will check back for sooner however it does give us enough time to get checked in and settled before going to dinner. Not to mention we are from the West Coast so it will be like dinner as usual for our built in clocks. Ha! I am also cancelling our Akershus and we can just pay OOP at Via Napolli--I have a TIW card. [sometimes it's alarming looking at how much Disney gets of our money. Oh well, it's worth it for the memories!]

 

[supersnoop]

SUN 9/7-AK (closes at 5) Boma 5:45
Mon 9/8-Ep -- Teppan Edo 7:20
Tue 9/9- MK--(closes at 7) Raglan Road 7:30
Wed 9/10-DHS (Closes at 8) Sanaa 7:00
Thur 9/11 AK til close then Ep for the evening and 7:55 Akershus
Fri 9/12 MK (closes at 7) Kona 7:10
Sat leave park by 4 for flight out.

I would recommend doing Sanaa on your second Animal Kingdom day, so you have a shorter distance to travel.

I'd do Akershus on your DHS day, since you can take the boat from DHS to the International Gateway. Or, I'd do Flying Fish (which is uh-mazing) on that day, since you can take the boat to from DHS to the Boardwalk, and use up that extra credit.

 

[Aurora0427]

If you are doing an adults only vacation, you need to check out the Yachtsman Steakhouse at Yacht Club, Victoria & Albert's, Narcossee's, Restaurant Marrekesh, Coral Reef. Any of those have better food than Akershus.

 

[linzjane88]

If you are doing an adults only vacation, you need to check out the Yachtsman Steakhouse at Yacht Club, Victoria & Albert's, Narcossee's, Restaurant Marrekesh, Coral Reef. Any of those have better food than Akershus.

I'm not feeling the love for California Grill. I **love** sushi but am mainly wanting to go on our first night into Fl just for the setting....up in the sky over all of Disney hopefully catching some of the fireworks. (not sure if you can even see Epcot fireworks from there). Are the other options considerably better?

 

[Aurora0427]

I'm not feeling the love for California Grill. I **love** sushi but am mainly wanting to go on our first night into Fl just for the setting....up in the sky over all of Disney hopefully catching some of the fireworks. (not sure if you can even see Epcot fireworks from there). Are the other options considerably better?

I did not recommend California Grill. See my above post.

 

[figment_jii]

I am also cancelling our Akershus and we can just pay OOP at Via Napolli--I have a TIW card.

I would pencil out some rough number in terms of what you think you will order at each venue to determine if it makes sense to pay OOP for VN or CA Grill. I've found that it's actually hard to make the DDP economically efficient at the Signatures because they take two credits, but you still only get an entree, dessert, and standard drink. Depending on what you order, it might make more sense to pay OOP (with the TiW) at CA Grill.

I'm not feeling the love for California Grill. I **love** sushi but am mainly wanting to go on our first night into Fl just for the setting....up in the sky over all of Disney hopefully catching some of the fireworks. (not sure if you can even see Epcot fireworks from there). Are the other options considerably better?

I like CA Grill, but I haven't been there since the rehab last year. The food in the past has been outstanding, but the reviews after it re-opened have been mixed. I'm still planning on going on my next trip so I can find out for myself what it's currently like. I don't think the view has changed much, so that should still be amazing. You can probably see some of IllumiNations (I would guess the high fireworks) from a few of the tables, but I don't think it can be seen from the lounge area or the observation deck. So unless you're seated on the far side of the restaurant, I don't think you'll be able to see IllumiNations.

 

[jcemom]

We also have our own rental car--I am just too much of a control freak to do Disney transportation. I will see if I can make my dinner reservations a little later to be able to work in staying til closing at MK.

Going from MK to Downtown is going to take just as long in a rental car as it would using Disney transportation so be sure you allow enough time, or leave prior to park closing. You're going to need to ferry or monorail to the TTC and get to your car in the parking lot. It's about a 20 minute drive to get there. Then you need to find a parking space and walk to Raglan Road. I know it's a bit of a mess there right now with the construction and parts of the parking lot being closed or inaccessible. I'm not sure if that will improve by September or not. If you're staying at MK until 7:00 I wouldn't make a reservation for earlier than 8:00, preferably 8:30.

 

[linzjane88]

I did not recommend California Grill. See my above post.

Sorry, I didn't mean that as you were suggesting it-I meant that for a 2 credit it isn't highly rated on TripAdvisor and not usually the "must try" place suggested. Is there any reason it's not on your list? Looking over the menu it does seem pretty overpriced for sushi but I am not sure about the other items there.

 

[linzjane88]

Going from MK to Downtown is going to take just as long in a rental car as it would using Disney transportation so be sure you allow enough time, or leave prior to park closing. You're going to need to ferry or monorail to the TTC and get to your car in the parking lot. It's about a 20 minute drive to get there. Then you need to find a parking space and walk to Raglan Road. I know it's a bit of a mess there right now with the construction and parts of the parking lot being closed or inaccessible. I'm not sure if that will improve by September or not. If you're staying at MK until 7:00 I wouldn't make a reservation for earlier than 8:00, preferably 8:30.

Thank everyone for these helpful posts! I have made many modifications to my original plans thanks to the good input from you all. I definitely need to factor in my transportation time when planning park hopping and reservations. I actually just cancelled my Raglan Road res. It seemed to be well loved by many but really, nothing on the menu appealed to me--I am a cheese/pasta/seafood kinda gal. Too many things on the menu looked brown. Any meal that is primarily beef/pork in a mystery brown sauce... I think it takes me back to childhood days and my mothers horrible stew.

You know on all my other trips there has always been a more senior Disney pro making the plans for the group. This time it's all me and I love it, I just keep finding more little things I need to plan for.

 

[jcemom]

Thank everyone for these helpful posts! I have made many modifications to my original plans thanks to the good input from you all. I definitely need to factor in my transportation time when planning park hopping and reservations. I actually just cancelled my Raglan Road res. It seemed to be well loved by many but really, nothing on the menu appealed to me--I am a cheese/pasta/seafood kinda gal. Too many things on the menu looked brown. Any meal that is primarily beef/pork in a mystery brown sauce... I think it takes me back to childhood days and my mothers horrible stew.

You know on all my other trips there has always been a more senior Disney pro making the plans for the group. This time it's all me and I love it, I just keep finding more little things I need to plan for.

LOL about the stew. We haven't made it to Raglan Road yet. It always ends up getting bumped for something else. I do want to try it some day.

It sounds like you've caught the planning bug! Sometimes I think I enjoy planning my trips almost as much as taking the trips! Right now I'm planning trips for a friend's family and two relatives' families in addition to my own. I wish I was taking all four trips lol, but planning them is the next best thing.