Quick Thoughts from a 16 hour DLR day!

[KrazyKat4DIS]

Well, I am finally recovered from a 16 hour Disney day! That’s right – we were there from rope drop to closing time on Friday, December 11th. It was such a fabulous day! I thought I would post a quick review of the day and share my thoughts. Unfortunately, we were anticipating lots of rain so I did not want to mess with a camera, therefore, I do not have pics. Sorry guys!

Here are my thoughts:

DLR in the rain:
Pretty much the whole morning and early afternoon were dry. However, since it had rained the night before, the crowds were not that bad at all. Now, I was reading that some people said it was still crowded, but compared to what I experienced in October, the crowds were nonexistent. We were able to do almost all of DL and DCA. This includes shows and shops! It was great! The evening brought in some showers, but we never had to use our ponchos. The first showing of Fantasmic! was awesome. You could find a viewing spot right before the show started! For the most part, if it started to sprinkle, we jumped in a queue that was mostly indoors and we were ok.

Food:
Carnation Café for breakfast…I had posted a question asking if they closed this due to rain. I was expecting not to be able to eat here, however, since it hadn’t rained in awhile, it was open and ready for our 8 a.m. ressie. Surprisingly, it wasn’t that cold sitting outside. Our server was excellent about refilling my coffee to keep it nice and warm. The restaurant appeared to open all day, although if it were raining hard those umbrellas would not be enough to keep you dry. As for the food, I know it’s a popular place here on the DIS, but at least for breakfast, I was not all that impressed. I had the cinnamon roll French toast and my DBF had the Mickey waffle. The French toast (which, btw, those are two my fav breakfast items so I was really excited) was “meh”. Admittedly, I probably built it up too much in my head. DBF’s waffle was good. We are both pescatarians so we got our dishes with a side of eggs instead of the meat. His was poached and COLD and mine were scrambled with cheese on top. Obviously, cold eggs are never good, but oh, well, we gave it a go.

Overall, I liked the ambiance of Carnation and we even got to meet Oscar. He was very charming and sweet. I was happy I got to check that off of my “Disney-to-do list”. If I wanted to get a breakfast again, I would do a buffet. We really enjoyed Storyteller’s. However, most of the time, I am content with just getting a muffin from the bakery and running on rides.

Pacific Wharf:
I got the vegetarian chili and loved it. DBF had the shrimp louie salad and loved it. We ate each others’ as well. Two thumbs up! Plus, the sourdough bowls are delicious and warm – great for a cold day! It also helped that we enjoyed our lunch with a Karl Strauss beer (IPAs for both of us!).

Dinner: This is where the whole, “I’m Disney, who cares?”-thing came into play. I think my dinner pretty much consisted of a churro and snowman sugar cookie. Of course, it was completely delicious! I bought some Tiger Butter fudge to take home. I ate that yesterday – WOW!! I highly recommend it! Disney sure knows how to make a good treat!

Other random thoughts:

DLR at Christmastime is always spectacular. I can’t recommend this time of year more highly. Plus, if you have a special someone to go with, it’s very romantic as well. We loved walking around and just looking at all the lights! So pretty…

The GCH is a great stop during the day when you’re tired. We went to the Hearthstone Lodge and had a drink and enjoyed the carolers and even got our picture with Santa. It was a fab retreat from DLR. We were able to relax and recharge our batteries, which was definitely needed!

All in all it was one of my favorite trips to DLR. It was so nice being able to take our time and stroll through the parks and walk on everything. It has been sooooo crowded this year at the parks, so it was great to be there on a lighter attendance day, even if it meant getting a little wet.

OK, I guess that does it. Feel free to ask me anything if you have questions!.

 

[Sherry E]

I took particular interest in your thread here because I, too, may be doing exactly what you did - a 16-hour trip this coming Saturday (I am about 80% sure I am pulling it together). I have not stayed until midnight since 2000, and the old bones are tired now, but I will have coffee and see what happens! Actaully, my friends and usual DLR companions have been so flaky and weird about DLR trips lately that I need to find new DLR buddies who are not so weird. I should have gone with you (we are both in L.A.)!!!

Anyway, a couple of thoughts on your thoughts!!

1. I agree with you about the Carnation breakfast. I have never thought the breakfast I had there was that great, and they barely refilled my coffee at all. I much prefer to eat there for lunch, dinner or dessert (yummy apple pie a la mode and that Matterhorn sundae). I prefer to hit one of the buffets for breakfast, even though my last Storytellers experience was not great food-wise.

2. I agree 100% with your GCH thoughts as well. We have always done that - we just go and sit in the huge lobby in those comfy chairs or on the sofa and recharge our batteries. During the holidays I love to sit there and listen to the carolers or the guitar player or the pianist, and last year we got a Santa picture too, by the tree! (And I also ate my gingerbread man with ears cookie!) It is so Christmasy in there - or at least it feels that way to me. It is even fun to just sit there and watch everyone else go up to the tree and take their picture because everyone is in festive spirits and conversation is flowing freely. People are just chatting amnongst each other, enjoying the whole vibe!

 

[Judy from Boise]

great report, thank you. For a breakfast that is a nice compromise between a full on buffet, and a muffin at the bakery, try River Belle terrace. It is one of my Fave spots to eat breakfast alfresco.

 

[KrazyKat4DIS]

Sherry - I am so sorry to hear that your usual Disneyland friends are being weird. That is terrible! Yes, next time, come with us! We are always up for DLR day (if only that darn work didn't get in the way...).

You should definitely do the 16 hour day! It was great. I will admit, that last hour was REALLY difficult to get through, but we had to stay to say we'd done it. We just used that time for a bit of Christmas Shopping

*Sidenote* We found that the shop in Frontierland had all the stuff that the stores on Main St. had (even WOD) and there was NO ONE shopping in there. So much more relaxing.

My biggest tip if you're doing the big day - bring an extra pair of shoes and drink water all day. Also, just know you're going to feel like you got hit by a truck the next day, so buy some treats to numb the pain

Yes, Riverbelle Terrace has been on my list, especially since you can the Mickey Waffles there and we love those! yummy!

 

[Eeee-va]

Nice report! I feel like a slacker now; our longest day was only about 15 hours total. I agree that Friday wasn't that bad, but it was more crowded than Wednesday and Thursday, even with the rain. I thought Fantasmic had been canceled; I guess that was just the second show? (Which is the one I always see, so that would've really irked me, which is why I saw it on Wednesday.)

It is hard to stay from open until close, but with medium (or low) crowds and cool weather, I think I could have done it. The only reason we didn't technically stay from open until close any day was because overall, people come in to see the night entertainment, and to me the parks seemed busier then most of the time. So I didn't feel that it was worth potentially sacrificing the delightfully small early morning crowds (by needing to sleep in the next day) for an extra hour at night. We never took an afternoon break this last trip (3 full days and 2 part-days in the parks).

In the summer, I think staying from open until close might have killed me, though.

 

[Sherry E]

Sherry - I am so sorry to hear that your usual Disneyland friends are being weird. That is terrible! Yes, next time, come with us! We are always up for DLR day (if only that darn work didn't get in the way...).

You should definitely do the 16 hour day! It was great. I will admit, that last hour was REALLY difficult to get through, but we had to stay to say we'd done it. We just used that time for a bit of Christmas Shopping

*Sidenote* We found that the shop in Frontierland had all the stuff that the stores on Main St. had (even WOD) and there was NO ONE shopping in there. So much more relaxing.

My biggest tip if you're doing the big day - bring an extra pair of shoes and drink water all day. Also, just know you're going to feel like you got hit by a truck the next day, so buy some treats to numb the pain

Yes, Riverbelle Terrace has been on my list, especially since you can the Mickey Waffles there and we love those! yummy!

Good tips!

The point you made about the shop in Frontierland is an excellent one. In fact, I was just saying something about that very topic in another thread by Hurleysweety. She was unable to find an ornament that she wanted after combing through WOD several times. I was saying that if the certain 'main' stores (such as WOD or the Emporium) have run out of particular items, always check the lesser-known stores like the ones in Frontierland or Adventureland - or even the hotel gift shops - not to mention the shops in DCA, because people would be less likely to look in those stores for certain things, thinking they are themed only to those lands or that the selection is more limited, when, in fact, just as you said, the Frontierland shop had all the same goodies but without all the people!! I have even found that the Gag Factory in ToonTown sometimes has items that have sold out in the Emporium or the more convenient stores in DL, simply because the Gag Factory is all the way at the back of DL and some folks don't think to look there.

Yes, I know that 'got hit by a truck' feeling even on shorter days at DLR! You know what is weird is that, for me, I don't notice the all-over body fatigue and foot pain while I am walking around in the parks so much. Somehow my body goes into protective mode and unless I get a blister or something, generally I don't feel the overall 'truck-ran-over-me- feeling' until later. What happens with me is that I just get very, very sleepy and can barely keep my eyes open. And as I said, it has been about 9 years since I did a 16-hour-all-the-way-until-midnight DLR visit and I was very tired even back then (and I am older now). But as soon as I get home or get back to the hotel room, that is when I feel it. As soon as I sit down, all the pain and physical exhaustion that my body has been protecting me from hits me once it senses I am no longer in the parks! It is like a built-in defense mechanism so I don't collapse in the parks!

I am a big advocate of staying hydrated in DLR. That seems to make a big difference in my tolerance of heat but also in terms of staving off aches and pains. If I do go this coming Saturday, I plan to get a locker to stash my coat, gloves and scarf in, so I may take your suggestion and bring the extra shoes too. Last time I was okay without extra shoes and we stayed until 9:45 or 10:00 p.m. or so (and no blisters that time, either!!!), but I may not want to take any chances!

 

[KrazyKat4DIS]

Nice report! I feel like a slacker now; our longest day was only about 15 hours total. I agree that Friday wasn't that bad, but it was more crowded than Wednesday and Thursday, even with the rain. I thought Fantasmic had been canceled; I guess that was just the second show? (Which is the one I always see, so that would've really irked me, which is why I saw it on Wednesday.)

It is hard to stay from open until close, but with medium (or low) crowds and cool weather, I think I could have done it. The only reason we didn't technically stay from open until close any day was because overall, people come in to see the night entertainment, and to me the parks seemed busier then most of the time. So I didn't feel that it was worth potentially sacrificing the delightfully small early morning crowds (by needing to sleep in the next day) for an extra hour at night. We never took an afternoon break this last trip (3 full days and 2 part-days in the parks).

In the summer, I think staying from open until close might have killed me, though.

I don't blame you for not wanting to kill yourself, especially if you're there multiple days. Why ruin the happy thoughts of the Park with crowds and cranky people?!?!?!

I have a feeling it must have been the second showing of Fantasmic! The first show went off as planned, followed by the fireworks, but we had to watch the fireworks from under a roof in NO Square due to the rain. The rainfall got worse as the evening progressed so I am not surprised the second show was cancelled.

 

[Flitterific]

OP - I'm glad you had a lot of fun on your trip! I do agree with you that the breakfast at Carnation Cafe is not as great as a lot of people make it out to be. DBF and I tried the Oscar's Choice and croissant benedict. I thought the food was tasty but I agree that lukewarm/cold eggs/breakfast food is not delicious. I'll be going there for lunch on our next trip and will let you know if that is any better

I did a 16 hour day with DBF in May. In August, we were there for 5 days but did not do 16 hour days. We would be there for the rope drop and stay until midnight (or after closing to shop), but it was way too crowded and hot to stay at the parks the entire day so we would go back to our hotel and rest for 2-3 hours in the afternoons. Even though we didn't do 16 hour days then, I definitely felt like I got hit by a truck when I got back to the hotel at night

I will attempt to do a 16 hour day on Christmas Day though since it will be our first day at the parks on our Christmas trip and I definitely want to soak in all the Disney magic. I'm anticipating crazy crowds and imagine that I'll be doing less walking since I'll probably be stuck a lot so hopefully my feet won't hurt as much

 

[DLR29]

I have done a 16 hour day, but I've never actually stayed until midnight (we had MM 7AM-11PM). It's exhausting, but soooo worth it.

 

[jlmarr]

I remember doing that in my teens and twenties - can't imagine doing it now.

 

[Leofoenget]

I was there almost the same time Friday. We arrived a little later but closed down the park at midnight. We WALKED ON Nemo about 11:45ish. The park was so empty and the rain made all the lights twinkle. I just wanted to sit and look but my DS5 had had it by that time. We saw all the shows the day before so we rode rides over and over while the crowds did other things.

ON Thursday, at the second showing of Fantasmic, which was empty for the most part, a CM gave my son a "front of the line pass" for any ride. But what do you do at 10:50 pm? YOU RIDE PETER PAN! Soo cool walked on PP on Thursday and Nemo on Friday. End of 2 perfect days. I already booked my room for the same week next year!!

 

[Judy from Boise]

It also never hurts to pop about 400 mg of Ibuprofen with your noon meal, and with a bedtime snack.

 

[blue donkey]

The first show went off as planned, followed by the fireworks, but we had to watch the fireworks from under a roof in NO Square due to the rain.

Wow, I didn't know that they did fireworks in the rain.

 

[KrazyKat4DIS]

Wow, I didn't know that they did fireworks in the rain.

Yes, they did the fireworks with rain. That being said, when the show started it was sprinkling, but mid-way through, it started to come down more heavily, but the show continued on. It was great!