Report for 3/7-3/11 trip

[Palerider4146]

Sorry I did'nt post earlier, just been real busy since we got back. Since DW tells me I can tend to be a bit long winded, I'll post a different report for each day. I know that a lot of the detailed reports I read helped us with our trip.

Trip background: DW (33 4th trip), DD (3 second trip, last one just 2 days while visiting friends), DMIL (mother in law, 54 3rd trip) and myself (32, 3rd trip, but like I said, last one just 2 days and before that was there before Epcot, 1981) so I was real excited to do this quick 5 day trip before DW starts school. We will go back next spring hopefully for 10 days with more grandparents. We booked through the Disney Reservations phone line and overall were very pleased with the experience. We booked a handicap accesible room since DMIL uses a scooter to get around since she has two bad knees. Rooms were pretty limited since this was a last minute trip but we got a reservation for the French Quarter, standard view, non-smoking with a handicap bathroom. The room is to have 2 full beds. I also made reservations for various character meals, including Crystal Palace for lunch on our arrival, Cinderella's Gala feast at the Floridian, Hoop Dee Doop review and Chef Mickey's for breakfast. I also suprised DW with a reserv for the Princess Perfect tea on Friday. ( she really wanted to do that with DD). Both the hotel reservation and dining reservation people were very helpful as I called back numerous times to change a little here and there. We booked airfare through Jet Blue out of Newark, NJ for a total of $882 for the four of us. The hotel and 5 day park hopper pass was about $1650 with a AAA discount. One word of advise. We booked the earliest flight possible leaving home and the latest (9:55 pm) out of Orlando on Sat. This way we were able to enjoy another full day at the parks.

I'll now post a report for each day, I told you I'm long winded!

 

[Palerider4146]

Started the day early since we had a 7:40 flight out of Newark. We arrive in Disney at about 10:30 and the Disney Magic Express is worth booking a disney resort alone. No worry about bags at Orlando was a wonderful experience, just make sure you pack a carry on with a change of clothes since you may not see your bags for a while. As stated before DMIL uses a scooter to get around because of bad knees, so the 5 steps up into the bus was a bit rough, but it worked out.
We arrived at POFQ by 11:30 checked in, but was unable to get into our room yet. We were told that normally check in was'nt until 3pm but to keep calling them to try to get in early. No problem, we go to the bathroom by the lobby to change into shorts and we are on our way to check out the grounds. By the way, we rented a scooter down there for DMIL through Walker Mobility. This was one of 3 companies recommended by the reservation line. The scooter was waiting for us just outside the lobby. It was a older model that had some quirks to it. I did see other companies, one notable Pride, that seemed to rent out newer models. We may try them next time, although it wasnt the companies fault that DMIL cant drive these things for her life(read later posts and you'll see why!)
The lobby at POFQ looks like a old bank, very cute. Nice fountain next to the lobby that leads to the Floatworks food court, again very cute with numerous Mardi Gras decorations and float pieces hanging from the ceiling. We tried the beignets as recommended here. They are very much like Italian zeppoles that you get at every Italian Feast in the NY metro area. Made fresh for us, they were extremely hot and covered with powdered sugar that of course made a mess. I have never been to NO so I dont know what real Beignets are supposed to be like.
The grounds looked great. Again, I have never been to NO, but from pics I have seen, this seemed like a real nice rendition of it. Beautiful wrought iron railings and each section of the building had a different color scheme to the roof that gave it a nice look. Since our room wasnt ready we decided to go to MK. I had made reservations for 2:30 at Crystal Palace for the character lunch buffet. We made our way onto the bus, and all I will say is that I'm sorry for anyone who may have dealt with us during our stay. DMIL can not drive for her life. Getting her and the scooter on to the buses was an adventure and although I firmly believe people need to be patient with others with disabilities, I dont blame anyone who may have lost patience with us. Overall the buses are very accessible. A few times I had to drive the thing up and park it in the secure area for her and let her use her walker to get up. Often she would make a 47 more K-turn to park the thing. Hmmm, maybe I should soften up a bit, DW may find this post one day.
Upon arriving at MK we walked around a bit, actually got DD on some rides and just soaked it all in. DD is still a bit scared of some simple rides but as she gets older she get's better each time. Crowds were pretty light. We made our way to lunch which was fantastic. Food overall was very good, but what was better was DD reactions to the characters. Last October when we were there for 2 days, she was real tenative around them. This time she took pics with Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet and Tigger. She got them to sign her book and even ran off with Pooh during there little song and dance parade through the restaurant. It was a great time.
After lunch, we caught the Cinderellabration and got right up front. It's only about 25 mins long, perfect for DD and she couldnt have been happier seeing all the princesses. The best was her little princess wave like she was on a float at the Rose Bowl. At this point we decided to head back to the POFQ to get into our room and settle down.

Arrival day to be continued...with a Room problem.

Look at me making a cliffhanger out of my trip, I should produce TV dramas.

 

[iluvallthingsdisney]

Enjoying your report.

 

[Palerider4146]

So we arrive back at POFQ and go to our room on the first floor in Building #3. We go in and find...just one king sized back and a roll in cot, not quite what I reserved. I do love DMIL but I'm NOT sharing a bed with her. We go down to the lobby where they at first tell us that this was the reservation and that is why they gave us a free roll in cot. After a brief half hour discussion with the manager things were taken care of. By the way, everyone was very helpful and respectful, especially when they realized this was not our mistake. We were told that they had no more handicap accessible rooms at POFQ. When we told them that they had to find us either something the same or better for us they did exactly that. We wound up getting adjoining rooms at POR in one of the mansions, Acadia. They comped us the handicap room and we now had the other room for DD, DW and myself (with the nicer themed bathroom by the way which was much nicer than the handicap rooms.) By the way we decided to take this time to walk over to POR from FQ when our room got changed. Very nice walk especially at sunset, took about 7-10 mins but was very manageable for anyone at FQ who wants to check out Riverside. We got settled into our room after checking in, took a brief 3-5 min walk to our room which had a parking lot view, but still very nice and settled in for the night. DD passed out and we decided to order a pizza to the room. Not bad for DW pizza, but not NJ/NY pizza either.

Day 2 to follow...

 

[DeterminedOne]

Keep 'em coming.

 

[bellenbuzz]

THANKS FOR REPORTING !!

 

[vpack05]

You're making me laugh!

Can't understand what red-blooded american male WOULDN'T want to share a bed with MIL..

 

[NJOYURLIFE]

I love detailed reports. Keep it coming....

 

[Minniespal]

Enjoying reading your reports ~ Thanx for posting.

 

[TLinden16]

Wow. That is great that they took care of you with the room! How great that they comped you the extra room, even if you had to move over to the POR. Both resorts are great (although I'm partial to the POFQ).

Thanks for posting, and welcome to the DIS!

 

[Palerider4146]

So we had planned on doing Animal Kingdom on this day. We had been there once before for a few hours back in October and were looking forward to checking it out again. We did get a late start (DMIL a little slow in getting ready) and we finally got out the door at about 11. We had a very short walk from our room to the POR north bus depot. Also considering we did not get to see the resort during the daytime the day before, I was very impressed. Each mansion has a different look and feel to it. It really was a beautiful resort, and even though it was more spread out than FQ, it was not bad at all. We also had one of the quiet pools about 100 ft. from our room. The magnolias were blooming and just really added a special touch to the place.
Well the bus comes and DMIL has another hard time getting on but we finally get it done. About 15 mins later we are at Animal Kingdom and lookingn to get going. We decide to do the "it's tough to be a bug" first. The line was very short and we walked right up to the doors and waited about 10 mins to get in. There were signs leading up to the show that said "may be frightening to small children" but I though it was just because it was showing bugs. I was wrong. Although it was done very cute, DD 3 did not like it at all. One bug spews "acid" at the audience that is simulated with loud noise, a burst of air and splash of water. At this point DW is carrying DD out of the show crying. She would not have liked the rest of the show at all. At one point about 20-30 large neon spiders come down from the ceiling, heck DW would have freaked out. Depending on how your child is, really consider this show before going.
After that we checked out some of the other animals around the tree of life. Expedition everest was open but DMIL really cant keep up with DD if she started to run off, plus the whole Asia area was packed and hard to negotiate with the scooter. We decide to do Asia next time we are at DW and head to Africa. We get on the safari after about a half an hour and as the last time, it is so worth it. We were put in a seperate area since DMIL was in a scooter and she made her way onto the truck with some assistance from her walker. Although there was not as many animals out as last time we went it was still very nice. Just about every animal we saw last time was seen again, although the giraffes were more hidden this time and not as many animals were out in the savanahh. A few lions could be seen up on their rock perch and as our last trip, two rhinos were within 5 feet of the truck, the rhinos making the ride worth it alone. Elephants were also plentiful. DD was shy during the ride but did enjoy herself very much.
Will continue with day 2 after getting home from school tonight.