Team Renfroe trip report with TONS of pics & reviews

[vassar36]

Oh my goodness...you got to ride Toy Story Mania!!!! How awesome is that?!! So glad you took those pics, that was awesome....

 

[alan_renfroe]

Great Pics of Toy Story Mania. Glad to hear how much you liked this. I love Buzz Lightyear and you say this is even better. Woo hoo can't wait to ride it!!!

Trust me...we love Buzz Lightyear also! This is even better! It takes riding one good time to get the hang of it, but your score should improve the second time you ride.

Cool pictures of the Toy Story ride. I haven't seen any pictures of the queue or the building. It looks like a lot of fun!

It has a very long queue area, but it is neat. The concept is that you are supposed to feel like one of the toys in Andy's room. We breezed right through it the first few times, but by mid-day the wait was already over an hour. Since it was a preview day, fastpasses were not available yet.

I was wondering right before I started reading your latest update if you were going to ride Toy Story Mania on your last day! I can't wait to ride it this December, looks fun. Enjoying everything, Alan!

I was SO glad we got to ride. DD was finally back to 100%, and she loved this ride SOO much! This is a Disney classic and it will be popular for a very long time. Every age group would love this!

wow you got to ride TSM! It looks fantastic, not looking forward to the queue length when we go though! What a great ride to do on your last day!
Looking forward to the second half!!

Thanks, disneyhockeymad. The queue area is really long, but I suspect it will need to be. It will be interesting to see what kind of touring stategy the experts will give now that DHS has three "big" rides. I've got one word for you: Fastpass!

Oh my goodness...you got to ride Toy Story Mania!!!! How awesome is that?!! So glad you took those pics, that was awesome....

We had been hoping that Toy Story Midway Mania would be open for our trip. In fact, that is one of the main reasons we saved Disney's Hollywood Studios for our last day. The ride is just awesome!

 

[englishrose47]

I can't wait to ride Toy Story next year .I am a huge Buzz fan and this promises to be even better !! As I don't like RnR or ToT I know where I will head first!!!

 

[irky416]

That's so awesome that you got to ride Toy Story! The pictures look great! I can't wait to ride it.

 

[Sarah39652]

Hi just saw your report and love it!! We are going in August and can't wait!!!!

 

[alan_renfroe]

After riding Toy Story Midway Mania several times, we headed over the the Studio Backlot Tour:

DD wanted me to take this picture of Wall-E. She and DS are excited about seeing this movie this summer.

This was one of the planes used in the movie Pearl Harbor.

A prop from the Pirates of the Caribbean movie -

Herbie:

Walt Disney's private jet

Catastrophy Canyon -

Darth Vader costume:

Phantom Menace:

Chronicles of Narnia props:

I loved this wall of the 50 Greatest villians in film history!

Replica Oscars were available in the gift shop:

Up next - more Disney Hollywood Studios pics, then lunch at the 50s Prime Time Cafe

 

[~Fisharefriends~]

your trip report had been recomended to me, and it has not disappointed. Its Fantastic, just a shame i discovered it near the end!!!

Loved all your food reviews, glad you liked Tonys as thats on our adr list. o your son on being so adventurous food wise, both my ds will eat anything and i hope they stay that way!!

Your daughter looked so beautiful going to CRT, a true princess. I also was impressed wih the face painting and how well it lasted.

cant wait to read the rest of your trip.

 

[Figment's Friend]

The AFI building is so great, isn't it? Love the greatest villains wall -- so many good ones Can't wait for more!

 

[lindseynleah]

Loving this!!! I wish it would not end!!!!! The pics of Toy Story are great. That looks like it could be a lot fun. We are headed to Disney in December of 09, and my girls will be 6 and 3 1/2. They should get a kick out of this! Thanks again for posting this wonderful report!!!!

 

[CHEK]

Great start to your final day , Toy Story look's fab, looking forward to trying it in Feb , but don't think we'll be queing for RNR...

 

[MAJ RN]

I can't wait to ride Toy Story Mania, it is one of the main things I am looking foward to this trip!! Did you like the Backlot Tour, I have never done this. Maybe we will try it this year. Can't wait to read more and I can't believe it is almost over



Melissa

 

[Michelle_and_Aaron]

Alan I am so glad that you and the rest of the Grizwald clan got to ride Toy Story Mania on your trip. We rode it on our second day at DHS and it was awesome! Josh was dissappointed that his father beat him but you are right, the controls take a minute to get used to. This ended up being one of my fav "non rides" of the trip. I know it is a ride but my guys classified things like this and buzz light year as non-rides. I guess it is not macho to say something like this is your fav "ride" when you are 9 (or 39)!

 

[SunnieRN]

Woo hoo!! Toy story mania, r&rC and Tower of Terror the first two hours!! How cool is that???!!!!
Having only been to disneyland I can say that Tower of Terror is absolutely wonderful!!! I love that so much!! Toy Story Mania looks so cute! I'll be excited to see that for sure!!
Looking forward to your 50's Cafe review!!
Hope the day continued to be that great!!

 

[alan_renfroe]

I can't wait to ride Toy Story next year .I am a huge Buzz fan and this promises to be even better !! As I don't like RnR or ToT I know where I will head first!!!

If you like Buzz, you should LOVE Toy Story Midway Mania. It is SOO much fun! Also, nothing scary about it!

That's so awesome that you got to ride Toy Story! The pictures look great! I can't wait to ride it.

I wish I would've made some pictures of the actual ride, but I was having wayyy too much fun! The 3-D is awesome! For instance, if you shoot a water baloon, you get a little splash of water in the face! It is sooo cool!

Hi just saw your report and love it!! We are going in August and can't wait!!!!

Thanks, Sarah39652! Glad you are enjoying the report.

your trip report had been recomended to me, and it has not disappointed. Its Fantastic, just a shame i discovered it near the end!!!

Loved all your food reviews, glad you liked Tonys as thats on our adr list. o your son on being so adventurous food wise, both my ds will eat anything and i hope they stay that way!!

Your daughter looked so beautiful going to CRT, a true princess. I also was impressed wih the face painting and how well it lasted.

cant wait to read the rest of your trip.

Thanks very much, Kirstie! I'm glad you are enjoying my trippie.

I think you'll like Tony's. DS and I really enjoyed it. He is quite the adventurous eater, isn't he? He'll make a nice date for the girls in a few years.

Thanks so much for your comments about DD. She is definitely our princess! We loved the face painting - well worth $12.

The AFI building is so great, isn't it? Love the greatest villains wall -- so many good ones Can't wait for more!

Yes, we really enjoyed it. I was impressed with all of the props they had onsite - I love that kind of thing!

Loving this!!! I wish it would not end!!!!! The pics of Toy Story are great. That looks like it could be a lot fun. We are headed to Disney in December of 09, and my girls will be 6 and 3 1/2. They should get a kick out of this! Thanks again for posting this wonderful report!!!!

Thanks, lindseynleah! Your 6-yr old will DEFINITELY love Toy Story Midway Mania, and possibly even your 3 1/2 yr old too. It is NOT dark, like most of the Disney attractions, and nothing scary about it whatsover. There are a few moments where the vehicle moves quickly to the next scene, but that should not be a problem I wouldn't think.

Great start to your final day , Toy Story look's fab, looking forward to trying it in Feb , but don't think we'll be queing for RNR...

Thanks, Karen! I know you're not a fan of the big, wild rides....so Toy Story Midway Mania should be RIGHT up your alley! It is AWESOME!

I can't wait to ride Toy Story Mania, it is one of the main things I am looking foward to this trip!! Did you like the Backlot Tour, I have never done this. Maybe we will try it this year. Can't wait to read more and I can't believe it is almost over



Melissa

Melissa, you will love Toy Story...it's great! We really enjoyed the Backlot Tour! It was painfully hot that day, and we were just happy to be in a moving vehicle to get a little air! Besides that, though, we really did enjoy the tour.

Alan I am so glad that you and the rest of the Grizwald clan got to ride Toy Story Mania on your trip. We rode it on our second day at DHS and it was awesome! Josh was dissappointed that his father beat him but you are right, the controls take a minute to get used to. This ended up being one of my fav "non rides" of the trip. I know it is a ride but my guys classified things like this and buzz light year as non-rides. I guess it is not macho to say something like this is your fav "ride" when you are 9 (or 39)!

Yes, the Griswolds were is utter bliss! I'm glad you enjoyed it also! I think DW had the highest score in our group, but she rode it two more times than did I! The last time we rode, DW & I rode together and I beat her head-to-head! (yay, me!)

You are right about being macho....DS would never admit that he liked TSM almost as much as RnRC.

Woo hoo!! Toy story mania, r&rC and Tower of Terror the first two hours!! How cool is that???!!!!
Having only been to disneyland I can say that Tower of Terror is absolutely wonderful!!! I love that so much!! Toy Story Mania looks so cute! I'll be excited to see that for sure!!
Looking forward to your 50's Cafe review!!
Hope the day continued to be that great!!

Hi SunnieRN! It was a great last day! With DD back to 100%, we really enjoyed the day to the fullest. We did a LOT before lunch!

New report is on its way.

 

[RachelNinja]

Yay! Caught up again. I've been busy with work and a church event that I haven't had time to read. That Italian restaurant looks so yummy! Was the pasta cooked al dente? I know that's like, the authentic Italian way, but I'm not a fan of al dente. And then the first I saw on that dessert menu was mocha tiramisu ... droooooooooool.

Toy Story Mania! Wow! How great that you got to ride on a preview day! And so many times in a row too! That must have been exciting. Thanks for those queue pictures! All those oversized objects ... so much fun!

Lastly, those Narnia props ... sooooo cool! I really need to head on over to DHS next time!

 

[alan_renfroe]

After our Backlot Tour of the studios, we explored the different facades:

Loved the name of this sundries store:

DD got to meet Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable!

Next, we went to see the Muppets 3-D:

We also saw the Power Rangers:

As it started getting closer to our 11:15am reservations at the 50s Prime Time Cafe, DS and I went back to Rock 'N Roller Coaster to use our fastpass we had picked up earlier. This was DS's favorite ride of the week. He had won the $10 bet we had after successfully riding every BIG ride in all parks! He also had $19 left of his $20 "dollar warning" money, so he used his money to buy a Rock 'N Roller Coaster t-shirt with Aerosmith on it. So, he now has his Eagles concert t-shirt and his Aerosmith RnRC t-shirt. Yep, that's my son!

Meanwhile, the girls were checking out the High School Musical 2 show:

Did I mention it was HOT?? The girls decided to go on to the 50s Prime Time Cafe and wait for us in the air-conditioning.

DS & I met them right at 11:15am and we were seated almost immediately.
We LOVED the 50s vibe!

Next installment - 50s Prime Time Cafe lunch review

 

[alan_renfroe]

We arrived at 11:15am for our 11:15am reservations, and we were seated almost immediately.

Our server was Aunt Sara. She ran a tight ship! She made it clear that there would be no elbows on the table and that everyone was expected to eat their veggies! (We really enjoyed her act, and we played along fully!)

DD and I had a milkshake as our drink.

DW had the Fried Herb Cheese with fresh fruit and French bread as an appetizer.

DD had the Chicken Noodle Soup

DS had, (not surprisingly,) the Shrimp Cocktail.

and I had the Beer-Battered Onion Rings. (YUM!)

Aunt Sara told DS that he was her "favorite" and therefore DS got away with putting elbows on the tables. (I think he liked the fact that he was Aunt Sara's favorite!) Aunt Sara also told DD that she was too cute to get in much trouble!

We started talking to a Newly-Wed couple next to us, and they were getting a big kick out of Aunt Sara also! The gentleman had already been warned about finishing his vegetables...so while Sara was away, he dumped them onto his new bride's plate! Sara came over and said, "don't think I didn't see that, Mister!" She took their dessert orders, and here is what she brought out for the guy....

Yup! His sundae was served on the top of his green beans! They laughed, we laughed...and Sara was awesome! Here's a picture of Aunt Sara holding his plate:

For our entrees, DS ordered the Stacked Turkey & Bacon with Swiss. It normally comes with a salad on the side, but Sara hooked him up with fries, since he was her favorite!

DW ordered Aunt Liz's Golden Fried Chicken with mashed potatoes and collard greens. (I knew she was in trouble when she ordered the collard greens!)

I ordered Dad's Traditional Meatloaf with mashed potatoes and green beans. I was raised as a country boy, so I had no trouble at all finishing my beans! I actually really loved the food....meatloaf is comfort food to me, so it was a nice break from all the gourmet outings we had recently experienced.

DD had the chicken nuggets and fries.

After a HUGE milkshake, a HUGE plate of onion rings, Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and every last bite of green beans, I was WAYY to full to even think about dessert. I passed...

The rest of the family, however, did not.

DW had Dad's Brownie Sundae and she LOVED it:

The kids both had the "make your own" sundae:

We loved the 50s Prime Time Cafe. If you are looking for a gourmet experience, this isn't it! (However, the food was very good!) But if you're looking to have a good time and play the role of a kid in the 50s, this place is AWESOME! This is one of the meals that both of our children remember and talk about the most. If you are a bitter person, don't go. IF you do not want to play along, don't go. But if you're ready to play along, you are in for a great time!

On our way out of the restaurant, I heard Aunt Sara trying to get DS's attention. "Rusty! Rusty! You forgot something!" He finally heard her and turned around to ask what it was he had forgotten. Then, he saw his beloved Auburn cap on her head! He started laughing his signature giggle and we all thought Sara was the coolest thing ever.

 

[CHEK]

Great report and pics as usual Alan , can't wait to read about 50's Prime Time, this is one we definately want to do

 

[CHEK]

Well Alan, I have to say it looked great and great interaction , we'd definately be up for it!, we did Whispering Canyon last year and really enjoyed the interaction, only because it was all aimed at my Mum

 

[PoppyAnna]

Another few great installments Alan
Your Son's a rocker with his t-shirts! I bet he was cool when he returned to school!
After two visits to WDW last year I am really sad to have missed the 50's prime time, we chose sci-fi and Mama Melrose's instead - another reason to go back I guess
Still loving the trippie and hanging for every last drop!
We love the Hollywood studios park, I know it's not a fave of most being quite small, but we love the theme!