Texans in Cali...loved it!

[cal2net]

This was our first trip to DLR and I was worried as to how it would all work out. I ordered both Touring Plans and Ridemax, just to compare the 2 for touring options. We purchased the 3 day military park hopper pass and made reservations at the Embassy Suites South, got a great military rate.
If something was going to happen on this trip rest assured it would be happening to me. That being said, the night before we departed I stubbed my pinky toe and seriously think I broke ithttp://disboards.com/images/smilies/eek.gif. Since nothing can be done for a broken toe, I just buddy taped it and just rolled with it or should I say, limped.
Day 1: Arrived at 2 p.m. in Orange County/SNA on Monday and opted for a taxi. Taxi driver was friendly and got us to the hotel quickly, $35 + tip. Check in was not until 4 but front desk had a room ready for us. We were on the 12th floor and our view was of the back of the hotel but hey we were not there for the view so no biggie. Actually we never opened the curtains in order to keep the room cool.
After unpacking we decided to grab a bit to eat. We walked over to Bubba Gump at the Anaheim Garden Walk. Little bit of a walk but not too bad. After we ate we walked over to Downtown Disney to look around and maybe pick out my new Disney Dooney! In our planning for Disneyland we located our free Fast Passes voucher we were given when we joined DVC. We visited one of the DVC carts in DTD and they instructed us on how to obtain them. Hubby headed over to the DVC office at DLH while daughter & I shopped in World of Disney. When hubby met back up with us we were given 18 FP tickets , unfortunately they were not valid for Radiator Springs but we were still very excited to be in possession.
We stopped at a local store on our way back to pick up bottle water & beer. We determined after our little walk that it's a little too far to try to make it in the mornings for park openings so we will be utilizing the hotel's shuttle. Tomorrow morning, Disney California will be our first park since DLR is early entry.

 

[RHMH]

This was our first trip to DLR and I was worried as to how it would all work out. I ordered both Touring Plans and Ridemax, just to compare the 2 for touring options. We purchased the 3 day military park hopper pass and made reservations at the Embassy Suites South, got a great military rate.
If something was going to happen on this trip rest assured it would be happening to me. That being said, the night before we departed I stubbed my pinky toe and seriously think I broke ithttp://disboards.com/images/smilies/eek.gif. Since nothing can be done for a broken toe, I just buddy taped it and just rolled with it or should I say, limped.
Day 1: Arrived at 2 p.m. in Orange County/SNA on Monday and opted for a taxi. Taxi driver was friendly and got us to the hotel quickly, $35 + tip. Check in was not until 4 but front desk had a room ready for us. We were on the 12th floor and our view was of the back of the hotel but hey we were not there for the view so no biggie. Actually we never opened the curtains in order to keep the room cool.
After unpacking we decided to grab a bit to eat. We walked over to Bubba Gump at the Anaheim Garden Walk. Little bit of a walk but not too bad. After we ate we walked over to Downtown Disney to look around and maybe pick out my new Disney Dooney! In our planning for Disneyland we located our free Fast Passes voucher we were given when we joined DVC. We visited one of the DVC carts in DTD and they instructed us on how to obtain them. Hubby headed over to the DVC office at DLH while daughter & I shopped in World of Disney. When hubby met back up with us we were given 18 FP tickets , unfortunately they were not valid for Radiator Springs but we were still very excited to be in possession.
We stopped at a local store on our way back to pick up bottle water & beer. We determined after our little walk that it's a little too far to try to make it in the mornings for park openings so we will be utilizing the hotel's shuttle. Tomorrow morning, Disney California will be our first park since DLR is early entry.

Hello Fellow Texan - We just returned this past Sunday from DLR.. Enjoyed it tremendously.. Have Fun

 

[cal2net]

Day 2: Disney California Park.
We were up early to get there at park opening (still on Texas time so not too much of a big deal). Ate a good breakfast and picked up our shuttle tickets from the front desk. Surprised that even though we weren't there that early that the lines were not that bad. I had a plan already in place, RSR would be our first stop and since we had the DVC FP's already, I wasn't too concerned about racing to get other FP's. They allowed us in and then we were held in place at the rope. That's when we learned that the ride was down and would be until approx. 11 and FP wouldn't be issued until that time either Bummer, so we headed to Toy Story and got on in less than 10 minutes. Hubby and daughter threw caution in to the wind (along with my touring plan) and wanted to stick around that area so we rode a couple of the rides in that area. We loved Ariel's Undersea Adventure! It reminded me of Finding Nemo at Epcot but we liked this so much better. Next we headed to Soarin' and once again, very little wait. We then grabbed FP's for World of Color, Blue . The lines for Grizzly River was very minimal but I sure didn't want to get wet that early in the morning so we headed over to Hollywood Land. As we headed there saw that people were lined up for RSR FP's. The line was HUGE, it ran all the way back around Carthay Circle! When 11 rolled around, we headed back to RSR to see what was happening. Sadly, the ride is down so no RSR for us today, seriously trying to convince daughter to try single rider line cause I really don't want to wait hours to ride. We grabbed a quick bite and enjoyed a couple more of the rides and Aladdin (which we loved) before heading back to the hotel for a little rest. Once back at the hotel, we took in a swim and a soak in the hot tub which felt pretty good on my sore toe. We then took advantage of the hospitality hour and grabbed a couple of drink and snacks before getting ready for dinner. We figured we could grab the shuttle back to the parks and then take the walk over to Garden Walk, tonight Cheesecake Factory.
After a delicious meal we headed back to the park. Initially we thought we'd grab a couple of rides in before lining up for WOC but saw that people were already gathering. I couldn't remember for sure where the area for Blue was so I walked up to ask a CM and that's when they opened up the first set of ropes and so I kind of just got caught up in the flow of people and wound up close to the front of the second rope hold, luckily I was in the right area. Hubby and daughter managed to catch up with me and so we waited. We managed to get a good place to view and were waiting once again. While we waited a lady and her friend were playing the Heads Up game and daughter of course turns to me and says "mom" So there I go on my phone looking to download. Once the show started we were in awe, it was so wonderful! It's amazing the things Disney comes up with. Now back to the hotel for a good nights sleep. Tomorrow, Disneyland!