*Marty_Mouse_House*
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2004
- Messages
- 60
August 18, 2005
Me: Mid-40s
Husband: Mid-40s
Son: Teenager
The Beagle - age 10
It was a Thursday and we heard that the Florida schools were back in session. Hopefully, it wouldn't be as busy today. We woke up in the Contemporary and there was just not as much of a magical feeling when you opened the curtain and looked right out -- onto the parking lot. I tried to make the most of it by sitting on the patio, but the view was just not the same as last time when we looked over the lake. Anyway, we walked over to the Magic Kingdom - the reason why we were staying in the Contemporary to begin with. Right inside the front gate was Chip and Dale so we had pictures taken with them. **The Beagle loves chipmunks and cornered one in the drainpipe once - it got away unharmed**.
The fellas headed on over to Space Mountain while I looked for PUSH the trashcan. He was so cute last time! I didn't see him so I continued on to Winnie the Pooh and walked on, then did Dumbo and walked on, then did Peter Pan and walked on. I guess it was less busy today! Then we all met up and DH and DS were complaining how rough the ride was on Space Mountain and they were not feeling so great. We've all done Space Mountain umpteen times, but for some reason they just didn't enjoy it today. We continued on and did the Indy Racecars and then the Teacups. Then we all walked on Peter Pan again. I wanted to do Small World since it had been renovated and I really loved the new white scenery in the entrance. Everything looked so fresh and bright - the renovation really made a difference. Next, we walked on Big Thunder, did Aladdin's Carpets and took a break with Dole Whip - $2.79 each. We rode Buzz Lightyear and visited Toontown and saw Minnie's House. We decided to stand in line for the Characters Tent (it was a small line) which was something we had never done and didn't know what it was. This was wonderful - you just walked in, and all of the characters were right there! The photographers were great too - they used the photo pass and also took the pictures using our own camera. When we came home we downloaded the photo pass and it was great! We will definitely have lots of pictures taken with the photo pass next time. This time we did the "Pooh" character line, but next time we're going to do all 3 lines (the fellas have already been warned that we're doing the Princess line too). Next we took the Train back to the main entrance and then took the monorail back to the Contemporary.
We got back to our room and started thinking about how expensive this room was. We concluded that for what we were paying, it just wasn't worth it. We absolutely loved the Contemporary the last time we were here and wondered how we would ever be satisfied staying anywhere else. There was just something about it this time. DH had always wanted to try the Hilton over in Downtown Disney. We called over there and got a rate of $99 with concierge level privileges. A cheap room and free food? That answered our question and we started packing up. We took our luggage down to the lobby and checked out. They knew we were checking out a day early but all they asked us was "do you have an emergency"? We said no, we were just checking out a day early. Then we went to the 4th floor balcony next to the gift shops and took lots of scenic view photos. It is one of the best views ever up there.
We drove over to the Hilton and checked in. We were very pleasantly surprised about the resort-like feel. Check in was easy and friendly. The lobby area had lots of things to see such as a Disney gift shop employed by Disney cast members, and bistro-type restaurants which made up a food court. Also, there was an internet room, business center and beautiful pool. Our room had a beautiful view of Downtown Disney. The furnishings were first-rate. We headed over to the concierge area and they had a soda machine set up and also snacks were offered. We headed over to the pool and it was a beautiful area with cabana chairs and sun shades. It was very relaxing. There was also a game room right there but we didn't use it. We were flying out the next day and we wanted to have everything ready before we got to the airport so we found the business center and they printed up our boarding passes for us.
We had some time before the 5:00 hot snacks at the concierge so we drove over to Downtown Disney and got another look at the Lego Store and World of Disney. Then we headed back for snack time **Beagle rated as "Sit up and beg!** The hotel had a really good selection of hot food and some cold items too. It was enough for a dinner so that's what we did.
For our last night at Disney, we decided to spend it at Epcot. We parked in AAA parking and got a spot in the 2nd row and walked in. We did Spaceship Earth. Test Track was closed. We went over to Innoventions and did the IBM video card to send to relatives. We toured Italy. We saw the musical group American Vybe in the American Pavilion. We really enjoyed British Invasion later. While we were listening to the music, Pooh, Tigger and Piglet popped out from one of the houses there and started dancing.
We had to get ready for our flight the next day so we headed back to the hotel. From our room, we could see Wishes from the window - and later looked out and saw Illuminations in the distance. It was a lovely ending to a lovely trip. Would we stay at the Hilton again? For that price it was definitely worth it. The room was lovely, the free food was wonderful, the lobby, scenery and pool were great. The only downside - you can't walk to a park and the parks are the main reason why we go to Disney. I would definitely stay at the Hilton again if it was the first or last day of our trip.
The next morning we checked out and drove to the airport. We returned the rental car which was a wonderful vehicle. We got through security easily with no long lines. Our flight was slightly delayed but we finally got underway. I got my last seat in the last row this time! I really missed the leg room of the exit aisle. Also, the door to the teeny tiny bathroom was right next to my seat and there was a lot of traffic coming and going. But, we enjoyed our flight and were home before we knew it. **The Beagle would have rated the whole flying experience as 4 Beagle paws up**. She was very happy to see us when we picked her up from the kennel.
Another wonderful Disney trip. Can't wait to go again!
--------------------------------
Previous Trips: 30 plus trips in 33 years staying at -
Fort Wilderness Campground, Fort Wilderness Cabins, Yacht Club, Caribbean Beach, Polynesian, Beach Club, Swan, Dolphin, All-Star Sports, All-Star Music, Port Orleans Riverside, Contemporary Resort.
Me: Mid-40s
Husband: Mid-40s
Son: Teenager
The Beagle - age 10
It was a Thursday and we heard that the Florida schools were back in session. Hopefully, it wouldn't be as busy today. We woke up in the Contemporary and there was just not as much of a magical feeling when you opened the curtain and looked right out -- onto the parking lot. I tried to make the most of it by sitting on the patio, but the view was just not the same as last time when we looked over the lake. Anyway, we walked over to the Magic Kingdom - the reason why we were staying in the Contemporary to begin with. Right inside the front gate was Chip and Dale so we had pictures taken with them. **The Beagle loves chipmunks and cornered one in the drainpipe once - it got away unharmed**.
The fellas headed on over to Space Mountain while I looked for PUSH the trashcan. He was so cute last time! I didn't see him so I continued on to Winnie the Pooh and walked on, then did Dumbo and walked on, then did Peter Pan and walked on. I guess it was less busy today! Then we all met up and DH and DS were complaining how rough the ride was on Space Mountain and they were not feeling so great. We've all done Space Mountain umpteen times, but for some reason they just didn't enjoy it today. We continued on and did the Indy Racecars and then the Teacups. Then we all walked on Peter Pan again. I wanted to do Small World since it had been renovated and I really loved the new white scenery in the entrance. Everything looked so fresh and bright - the renovation really made a difference. Next, we walked on Big Thunder, did Aladdin's Carpets and took a break with Dole Whip - $2.79 each. We rode Buzz Lightyear and visited Toontown and saw Minnie's House. We decided to stand in line for the Characters Tent (it was a small line) which was something we had never done and didn't know what it was. This was wonderful - you just walked in, and all of the characters were right there! The photographers were great too - they used the photo pass and also took the pictures using our own camera. When we came home we downloaded the photo pass and it was great! We will definitely have lots of pictures taken with the photo pass next time. This time we did the "Pooh" character line, but next time we're going to do all 3 lines (the fellas have already been warned that we're doing the Princess line too). Next we took the Train back to the main entrance and then took the monorail back to the Contemporary.
We got back to our room and started thinking about how expensive this room was. We concluded that for what we were paying, it just wasn't worth it. We absolutely loved the Contemporary the last time we were here and wondered how we would ever be satisfied staying anywhere else. There was just something about it this time. DH had always wanted to try the Hilton over in Downtown Disney. We called over there and got a rate of $99 with concierge level privileges. A cheap room and free food? That answered our question and we started packing up. We took our luggage down to the lobby and checked out. They knew we were checking out a day early but all they asked us was "do you have an emergency"? We said no, we were just checking out a day early. Then we went to the 4th floor balcony next to the gift shops and took lots of scenic view photos. It is one of the best views ever up there.
We drove over to the Hilton and checked in. We were very pleasantly surprised about the resort-like feel. Check in was easy and friendly. The lobby area had lots of things to see such as a Disney gift shop employed by Disney cast members, and bistro-type restaurants which made up a food court. Also, there was an internet room, business center and beautiful pool. Our room had a beautiful view of Downtown Disney. The furnishings were first-rate. We headed over to the concierge area and they had a soda machine set up and also snacks were offered. We headed over to the pool and it was a beautiful area with cabana chairs and sun shades. It was very relaxing. There was also a game room right there but we didn't use it. We were flying out the next day and we wanted to have everything ready before we got to the airport so we found the business center and they printed up our boarding passes for us.
We had some time before the 5:00 hot snacks at the concierge so we drove over to Downtown Disney and got another look at the Lego Store and World of Disney. Then we headed back for snack time **Beagle rated as "Sit up and beg!** The hotel had a really good selection of hot food and some cold items too. It was enough for a dinner so that's what we did.
For our last night at Disney, we decided to spend it at Epcot. We parked in AAA parking and got a spot in the 2nd row and walked in. We did Spaceship Earth. Test Track was closed. We went over to Innoventions and did the IBM video card to send to relatives. We toured Italy. We saw the musical group American Vybe in the American Pavilion. We really enjoyed British Invasion later. While we were listening to the music, Pooh, Tigger and Piglet popped out from one of the houses there and started dancing.
We had to get ready for our flight the next day so we headed back to the hotel. From our room, we could see Wishes from the window - and later looked out and saw Illuminations in the distance. It was a lovely ending to a lovely trip. Would we stay at the Hilton again? For that price it was definitely worth it. The room was lovely, the free food was wonderful, the lobby, scenery and pool were great. The only downside - you can't walk to a park and the parks are the main reason why we go to Disney. I would definitely stay at the Hilton again if it was the first or last day of our trip.
The next morning we checked out and drove to the airport. We returned the rental car which was a wonderful vehicle. We got through security easily with no long lines. Our flight was slightly delayed but we finally got underway. I got my last seat in the last row this time! I really missed the leg room of the exit aisle. Also, the door to the teeny tiny bathroom was right next to my seat and there was a lot of traffic coming and going. But, we enjoyed our flight and were home before we knew it. **The Beagle would have rated the whole flying experience as 4 Beagle paws up**. She was very happy to see us when we picked her up from the kennel.
Another wonderful Disney trip. Can't wait to go again!
--------------------------------
Previous Trips: 30 plus trips in 33 years staying at -
Fort Wilderness Campground, Fort Wilderness Cabins, Yacht Club, Caribbean Beach, Polynesian, Beach Club, Swan, Dolphin, All-Star Sports, All-Star Music, Port Orleans Riverside, Contemporary Resort.
