My Family:
Myself Susan, just turned 40 (ouch), Disney fan with 1 trip to WDW and 2 trips to Disneyland previously enjoyed.
DH Darling husband, also just turned 40. Never been to Disney and at a loss to understand why I love it so much
Zino 7 Years, lover of all things Disney having accompanied me on all my Disney trips the first one being when he was 1 year old!
Zak 20 months First time visitor to Disney. Not really interested unless its covered in chocolate.
After the huge queues of yesterday I had finally managed to convince my husband of the benefits of arriving early, so we set the alarm, had an early breakfast (tried to make a picnic lunch but, yes, the minibar containing our butter and cheese was still locked) and were at the entrance to the Walt Disney Studios park shortly after it opened.
When you enter this park you walk straight into Studio 1, which is basically like a huge aircraft hanger containing lots of shops and restaurants. Its bright and warm and cheerful. Now this I think is a good idea and obviously done to cater for the bad weather. I remember looking at it and thinking Thank goodness Disney have finally realised that it rains in Paris!
However I was not too impressed with my first sight of the rest of the park once we left Studio 1. My first impression was of a large group of aircraft hangers all decorated with signs and notices but still looking like aircraft hangers. Maybe the fact it was raining and a dull grey day contributed but after leaving the bright colours of Studio 1 it was a real drop in atmosphere. It was raining a little today but the temperature had dropped to minus 3 degrees and even with all our layers of clothes it was pretty cold. You can tell that this park was built later than the other one because I noticed that several (but not all) of the pushchair parks had canopy covers (Yippee!). But at least I could go on the tram ride safe in the knowledge that our pushchair was dry. The tram ride had no queue (See, I boasted to hubby, I told you it was best to arrive early!), but it was a bit of a disappointment for me. After riding past a few movie props you come to the Catastrophe Canyon, which is absolutely spectacular. But this is in the first 5 minutes of the ride and after that you pass through a burnt out London scene, a few more movie props, and then thats about it. The ride starts with a bang and ends with a whimper. If they simply reversed the order of the ride to end with Catastrophe Canyon it would be much more impressive. But as it was I was very disappointed at this compared with other Disney Tram rides.
We then decided to try Armageddon as the queue was not too bad. (we were lucky as we only queued 20 minutes and the queue was an hour long when we came out.) It was freezing cold and raining and once again I had to leave the pushchair in the rain. However this was absolutely spectacular although both Zino and Zak found it a little scary. Hubby was most impressed though. But Zino was more thrilled when we came outside again to find it was snowing. He is London born and this is pretty unusual for him and within minutes he was dancing around excitedly in the snow. But within minutes the gentle snowfall had turned into a blizzard with cold gale force winds blowing snow into our faces. We sprinted across to the Flying Carpets ride to find it was totally out in the open and way too cold and wet to consider. So we went into Animagique, a 20 minutes stage show of singing and dancing Disney characters. Zak was enchanted and laughed and clapped all the way through. We came outside to find the blizzard was getting stronger and snow was piled up on top of the pushchair and it was absolutely freezing cold (minus 5 degrees we later found out). We ran to Studio One where it was warm and dry. I spoke to a cast member who told us that the seats at the Motor stunt show were undercover, so we decided to head over to that just before it was due to start (I was not prepared to stand and queue in a blizzard.) We left the pushchair this time inside at Studio 1 and literally ran over to the stadium and got seated just as it was starting. This was a spectacular show and initially we all loved it. However unfortunately the blizzard turned itself up in force and the wind was blowing snow right into our faces even undercover of the stadium roof. It was unbelievably cold and with snow being blown into our eyes and ears it was deeply unpleasant. After 15 minutes we could stand it no longer and decided we had to leave even though the show was only half way through. I felt a bit guilty until I noticed that a steady stream of people were leaving by this time and dozens of cast members were guiding people out and helping them down the stairs which were getting dangerously slippery with snow. It was incredibly cold, we were all feeling numb, and the blizzard was building in strength so we decided the only option was to give up and retreat to the Hotel. We spent half an hour looking around shops in Studio 1, but by this stage most of the guests at the park had arrived to shelter from the snowstorm and it was so crowded it was getting difficult to move around.
It was very difficult getting back to the hotel as by now the pavements were dangerous slippery and the blizzard was simply pounding snow down on us. It felt like we were struggling to get to the North Pole when all we were aiming for was the RER station a few hundred metres away! We had to hold onto each other to stop being blown over or falling over in the snow. It was with great relief we got back to the hotel and we spent a couple of hours drying out and recovering as the winds howled around the hotel and the snow piled up against the windows. We later slipped and slid across the icy road to the shopping centre and brought a few more layers of clothes for us all from the Hypermarket. We had not yet given up on our Disney holiday, just figured we needed a few more layers of protection!
Late in the afternoon the snow stopped and outside everything had turned white. It was absolutely beautiful and absolutely freezing. But we didnt want to waste the evening and so we padded ourselves up with layers of clothes and went back to Disneyland. The snow and rain had stopped and everything was covered with a thick white layer of snow. Even the fake snow scenes at Disney were covered with real snow. I was impressed to see that at both the RER station and on Main Street there was already sand spread on the main walkways, but it was still dangerously slippery and getting around the icy pathways was very slow and very difficult.
Disneyland was not as busy as the previous day and I figured the blizzard earlier had driven a lot of people away. As it was getting late, we decided that we may as well stick around for the Electrical parade and the fireworks. Meanwhile, we headed straight for Discoveryland and saw both the Jules Verne Visionary Show and Honey I shrunk the Audience. Both of these were really good, with queues of only 20 minutes or so, but we were numb with cold and the heating inside the auditoriums was not too good which meant that Zak was not too happy. Outside it was getting very icy underfoot and it was now getting dark. With the lights all reflecting off the ice and snow it was quite difficult to navigate around the park. Zino fell over twice on the ice and the temperature had dropped even more. Maybe it was the lack of movement (standing in queue and sitting inside) but we were all feeling the cold and it did spoil things a little. However we decided to continue and see Its a small world as I figure no visit to Disney is complete without this one. Once again the pushchair was left outside. Of course now the problem was not that it was getting wet, but that it was freezing cold and Zak hated having to sit in it. There was luckily only a 10 minutes queue for Its a small world and we all really loved this ride. It was just so bright and cheerful and happy and upbeat. And compared to the dullness and cold and grey outside it was just such a nice relief. So we did it again.
After that we slipped and slid over to Adventureland. We all were really keen to do the Pirates again and I knew that the Parade was due to start soon at 7.30 and this would be a good time to do some rides. Fantasyland had already closed (notices said that it closed at 7pm to prepare for the Fireworks) but the rest of the park closed at 8pm. It was only 7.20 and crowds were gathering for the parade but to my surprise when we arrived at Adventureland they had already roped it off and would not let us in. Nor would they let us into Frontierland. (Maybe because of the ice?) As it was almost 7.30 we decided that we may as well watch the parade nothing else to do really. It was a very clear night, extremely cold but with no sign of rain or snow (for once) and so I thought this would be a nice way to finish the evening. At exactly 7.30 they announced that Due to weather conditions the Parade has been cancelled. So that was that. We joined the crowds making their way out of the park there were no fireworks either. Which essentially meant that the park was closed by 7.20. I could have understood if it was still snowing or raining, it was very cold but very dry. So once again we finished out day feeling a bit down about things and a bit disappointed about our Disney experience.
Myself Susan, just turned 40 (ouch), Disney fan with 1 trip to WDW and 2 trips to Disneyland previously enjoyed.
DH Darling husband, also just turned 40. Never been to Disney and at a loss to understand why I love it so much
Zino 7 Years, lover of all things Disney having accompanied me on all my Disney trips the first one being when he was 1 year old!
Zak 20 months First time visitor to Disney. Not really interested unless its covered in chocolate.
After the huge queues of yesterday I had finally managed to convince my husband of the benefits of arriving early, so we set the alarm, had an early breakfast (tried to make a picnic lunch but, yes, the minibar containing our butter and cheese was still locked) and were at the entrance to the Walt Disney Studios park shortly after it opened.
When you enter this park you walk straight into Studio 1, which is basically like a huge aircraft hanger containing lots of shops and restaurants. Its bright and warm and cheerful. Now this I think is a good idea and obviously done to cater for the bad weather. I remember looking at it and thinking Thank goodness Disney have finally realised that it rains in Paris!
However I was not too impressed with my first sight of the rest of the park once we left Studio 1. My first impression was of a large group of aircraft hangers all decorated with signs and notices but still looking like aircraft hangers. Maybe the fact it was raining and a dull grey day contributed but after leaving the bright colours of Studio 1 it was a real drop in atmosphere. It was raining a little today but the temperature had dropped to minus 3 degrees and even with all our layers of clothes it was pretty cold. You can tell that this park was built later than the other one because I noticed that several (but not all) of the pushchair parks had canopy covers (Yippee!). But at least I could go on the tram ride safe in the knowledge that our pushchair was dry. The tram ride had no queue (See, I boasted to hubby, I told you it was best to arrive early!), but it was a bit of a disappointment for me. After riding past a few movie props you come to the Catastrophe Canyon, which is absolutely spectacular. But this is in the first 5 minutes of the ride and after that you pass through a burnt out London scene, a few more movie props, and then thats about it. The ride starts with a bang and ends with a whimper. If they simply reversed the order of the ride to end with Catastrophe Canyon it would be much more impressive. But as it was I was very disappointed at this compared with other Disney Tram rides.
We then decided to try Armageddon as the queue was not too bad. (we were lucky as we only queued 20 minutes and the queue was an hour long when we came out.) It was freezing cold and raining and once again I had to leave the pushchair in the rain. However this was absolutely spectacular although both Zino and Zak found it a little scary. Hubby was most impressed though. But Zino was more thrilled when we came outside again to find it was snowing. He is London born and this is pretty unusual for him and within minutes he was dancing around excitedly in the snow. But within minutes the gentle snowfall had turned into a blizzard with cold gale force winds blowing snow into our faces. We sprinted across to the Flying Carpets ride to find it was totally out in the open and way too cold and wet to consider. So we went into Animagique, a 20 minutes stage show of singing and dancing Disney characters. Zak was enchanted and laughed and clapped all the way through. We came outside to find the blizzard was getting stronger and snow was piled up on top of the pushchair and it was absolutely freezing cold (minus 5 degrees we later found out). We ran to Studio One where it was warm and dry. I spoke to a cast member who told us that the seats at the Motor stunt show were undercover, so we decided to head over to that just before it was due to start (I was not prepared to stand and queue in a blizzard.) We left the pushchair this time inside at Studio 1 and literally ran over to the stadium and got seated just as it was starting. This was a spectacular show and initially we all loved it. However unfortunately the blizzard turned itself up in force and the wind was blowing snow right into our faces even undercover of the stadium roof. It was unbelievably cold and with snow being blown into our eyes and ears it was deeply unpleasant. After 15 minutes we could stand it no longer and decided we had to leave even though the show was only half way through. I felt a bit guilty until I noticed that a steady stream of people were leaving by this time and dozens of cast members were guiding people out and helping them down the stairs which were getting dangerously slippery with snow. It was incredibly cold, we were all feeling numb, and the blizzard was building in strength so we decided the only option was to give up and retreat to the Hotel. We spent half an hour looking around shops in Studio 1, but by this stage most of the guests at the park had arrived to shelter from the snowstorm and it was so crowded it was getting difficult to move around.
It was very difficult getting back to the hotel as by now the pavements were dangerous slippery and the blizzard was simply pounding snow down on us. It felt like we were struggling to get to the North Pole when all we were aiming for was the RER station a few hundred metres away! We had to hold onto each other to stop being blown over or falling over in the snow. It was with great relief we got back to the hotel and we spent a couple of hours drying out and recovering as the winds howled around the hotel and the snow piled up against the windows. We later slipped and slid across the icy road to the shopping centre and brought a few more layers of clothes for us all from the Hypermarket. We had not yet given up on our Disney holiday, just figured we needed a few more layers of protection!
Late in the afternoon the snow stopped and outside everything had turned white. It was absolutely beautiful and absolutely freezing. But we didnt want to waste the evening and so we padded ourselves up with layers of clothes and went back to Disneyland. The snow and rain had stopped and everything was covered with a thick white layer of snow. Even the fake snow scenes at Disney were covered with real snow. I was impressed to see that at both the RER station and on Main Street there was already sand spread on the main walkways, but it was still dangerously slippery and getting around the icy pathways was very slow and very difficult.
Disneyland was not as busy as the previous day and I figured the blizzard earlier had driven a lot of people away. As it was getting late, we decided that we may as well stick around for the Electrical parade and the fireworks. Meanwhile, we headed straight for Discoveryland and saw both the Jules Verne Visionary Show and Honey I shrunk the Audience. Both of these were really good, with queues of only 20 minutes or so, but we were numb with cold and the heating inside the auditoriums was not too good which meant that Zak was not too happy. Outside it was getting very icy underfoot and it was now getting dark. With the lights all reflecting off the ice and snow it was quite difficult to navigate around the park. Zino fell over twice on the ice and the temperature had dropped even more. Maybe it was the lack of movement (standing in queue and sitting inside) but we were all feeling the cold and it did spoil things a little. However we decided to continue and see Its a small world as I figure no visit to Disney is complete without this one. Once again the pushchair was left outside. Of course now the problem was not that it was getting wet, but that it was freezing cold and Zak hated having to sit in it. There was luckily only a 10 minutes queue for Its a small world and we all really loved this ride. It was just so bright and cheerful and happy and upbeat. And compared to the dullness and cold and grey outside it was just such a nice relief. So we did it again.
After that we slipped and slid over to Adventureland. We all were really keen to do the Pirates again and I knew that the Parade was due to start soon at 7.30 and this would be a good time to do some rides. Fantasyland had already closed (notices said that it closed at 7pm to prepare for the Fireworks) but the rest of the park closed at 8pm. It was only 7.20 and crowds were gathering for the parade but to my surprise when we arrived at Adventureland they had already roped it off and would not let us in. Nor would they let us into Frontierland. (Maybe because of the ice?) As it was almost 7.30 we decided that we may as well watch the parade nothing else to do really. It was a very clear night, extremely cold but with no sign of rain or snow (for once) and so I thought this would be a nice way to finish the evening. At exactly 7.30 they announced that Due to weather conditions the Parade has been cancelled. So that was that. We joined the crowds making their way out of the park there were no fireworks either. Which essentially meant that the park was closed by 7.20. I could have understood if it was still snowing or raining, it was very cold but very dry. So once again we finished out day feeling a bit down about things and a bit disappointed about our Disney experience.
