here's part 2 of the non-trip report:
who we are: The Hearne family--mom, dad, and 2.3 (literally--I am 3 mos. pregnant) kids
when we went: 13-20 March (7 nights)
where we stayed: The Swan Resort
Here's what we thought: (your opinions and experiences might vary)
Since this is our 5th trip as a family to the World, we had a pretty good idea of attractions, restaurants, activities, etc. that we enjoy. Our trips usually occur the first week of October, so this was the first time we ever took a Disney trip during "peak season" (we took a trip to Gatlinburg once in October-which is peak season-and we should have learned from that experience
). I have to say that it will be our last trip during "peak season". Our children attend a school that uses an alternative calendar so we are blessed to have a Fall break. After baby #3 arrives, we will stick to that plan.
The Swan: loved it!!!
I posted some remarks a few days back about our experience there. We had a balcony room and club privleges, which means we ate a lot of free bagels in the AM and cheese and crackers in the afternoon. The Epcot resort area is fabulous--our new favorite. One of our biggest pleasures was strolling the Boardwalk at night and people watching while enjoying a snack from the ice cream shop.
Where we ate: no place really special. This trip was relatively last-minute so I only made one PS for Chef Mickey's dinner. I will post a separate comment about that meal on the dining board. there are a couple of things that have changed not for the better (in our opinion). We enjoyed a lot of counter service places this trip:
MK: pecos bills (twice) and the columbia harbor house
epcot: the land food court (love that!!), germany for brats and kraut, as well as fish and chips on st. patrick's day, complete with green sprite
AK: restaurantasaurous (my five year old's pick for lunch) I traveled 600 miles for a happy meal.
Boardwalk: pizza window. it was fine for what it was.
Swan: splash grill--service was slow, but the food was tasty.
Crossroads: TGI Friday's (typical food) and pizzaria uno. nice change of pace from the fast food we experienced.
The crowds: too big for us! we saw waits on rides that never have lines in october: small world, the carousel, spaceship earth...just to name a few. there were a lot of high school kids, which really surprised us. On the upside to that, there were plenty of buses and boats running to handle the crowd. the crowds might not be as bad if you are used to going in a peak situation, but for us it was unpleasant.
the parks: lots of construction, which was a little disappointing. I'm sure when it is all finished things will look great, but in every park there were walls up at least in one location. we saw very little trash this trip, except after the parades. Some of the rides need a little sprucing up with paint, but nothing truly major. We used fastpass a lot and at least a half-dozen times people asked us if they had to pay to use it
magical moments: the boys were asked to march with the fife & drum corps at epcot (march 18 if you saw the 3:55 parade, that was them!), st. patrick's day in england was a blast, and on our final morning at the MK my youngest got to ride in a hunny pot with tigger on the pooh ride. sometimes it pays not to run to dumbo first thing! my youngest also lost his first tooth during this trip, which was a pretty big thrill as well.
transportation: flew southwest--loved it! we rented a car from national--we are rental converts for life! we picked an SUV from the EA and paid $146 for the week.
That's about it, we had a blast this trip--hopefully we'll be able to get there sooner than the 18 months until october 2002
Madge
who we are: The Hearne family--mom, dad, and 2.3 (literally--I am 3 mos. pregnant) kids
when we went: 13-20 March (7 nights)
where we stayed: The Swan Resort
Here's what we thought: (your opinions and experiences might vary)
Since this is our 5th trip as a family to the World, we had a pretty good idea of attractions, restaurants, activities, etc. that we enjoy. Our trips usually occur the first week of October, so this was the first time we ever took a Disney trip during "peak season" (we took a trip to Gatlinburg once in October-which is peak season-and we should have learned from that experience
). I have to say that it will be our last trip during "peak season". Our children attend a school that uses an alternative calendar so we are blessed to have a Fall break. After baby #3 arrives, we will stick to that plan.The Swan: loved it!!!
I posted some remarks a few days back about our experience there. We had a balcony room and club privleges, which means we ate a lot of free bagels in the AM and cheese and crackers in the afternoon. The Epcot resort area is fabulous--our new favorite. One of our biggest pleasures was strolling the Boardwalk at night and people watching while enjoying a snack from the ice cream shop.Where we ate: no place really special. This trip was relatively last-minute so I only made one PS for Chef Mickey's dinner. I will post a separate comment about that meal on the dining board. there are a couple of things that have changed not for the better (in our opinion). We enjoyed a lot of counter service places this trip:
MK: pecos bills (twice) and the columbia harbor house
epcot: the land food court (love that!!), germany for brats and kraut, as well as fish and chips on st. patrick's day, complete with green sprite
AK: restaurantasaurous (my five year old's pick for lunch) I traveled 600 miles for a happy meal.
Boardwalk: pizza window. it was fine for what it was.
Swan: splash grill--service was slow, but the food was tasty.
Crossroads: TGI Friday's (typical food) and pizzaria uno. nice change of pace from the fast food we experienced.
The crowds: too big for us! we saw waits on rides that never have lines in october: small world, the carousel, spaceship earth...just to name a few. there were a lot of high school kids, which really surprised us. On the upside to that, there were plenty of buses and boats running to handle the crowd. the crowds might not be as bad if you are used to going in a peak situation, but for us it was unpleasant.
the parks: lots of construction, which was a little disappointing. I'm sure when it is all finished things will look great, but in every park there were walls up at least in one location. we saw very little trash this trip, except after the parades. Some of the rides need a little sprucing up with paint, but nothing truly major. We used fastpass a lot and at least a half-dozen times people asked us if they had to pay to use it
magical moments: the boys were asked to march with the fife & drum corps at epcot (march 18 if you saw the 3:55 parade, that was them!), st. patrick's day in england was a blast, and on our final morning at the MK my youngest got to ride in a hunny pot with tigger on the pooh ride. sometimes it pays not to run to dumbo first thing! my youngest also lost his first tooth during this trip, which was a pretty big thrill as well.
transportation: flew southwest--loved it! we rented a car from national--we are rental converts for life! we picked an SUV from the EA and paid $146 for the week.
That's about it, we had a blast this trip--hopefully we'll be able to get there sooner than the 18 months until october 2002
Madge
