degrapevine
Has a serious Disney watch addiction!
- Joined
- Jul 29, 2003
- Messages
- 586
Okay, finally getting some time to post trip reports, so here goes:
Cast of Characters:
DH (David), 38; Myself (Rose), 35; DS10 (Eric); DS (Patrick); and DD4 (Gina).
Wednesday, June 22nd
Alarm goes off at 6:30 - Quick, get ready!
Breakfast Buffet at 7:00 - Not as crowded as we feared, great selection.
Got on the first hotel shuttle bus at 7:30 headed to DL.
Arrived at the turnstiles (well, the lines anyway!) at 7:45, only to see signs for "Early Entry" - I was confused - This was a Wednesday, I thought EE was on Thursdays.
Come to find out it's been switched this week because of Grad Nights.
Didn't think to ask about the schedule at the hotel last night (got in late).
Well, I was a little upset, 'cause we were planning to use it on Thursday, but since we had a 5 day PH and were coming back to DL on Monday, we'd just use it then - Go with the flow!
So, we get in the park, get our free stroller (thanks, Disney Visa!), and head straight to Indy for a FP.
Well, Indy was having technical difficulties, no standby or FP, so we walked over to Splash and got a FP for that.
Stopped in NOS to get a picture in front of the Mickey Sorcerer photomosaic.
I was really taken by how beautiful NOS is. Just being able to see the Gallery Balcony I've read so much about and the great exterior of the HM was awesome. Just the beginning of some of the things I'll miss at WDW.
Well, next we headed to Thunder Mt., Gina's favorite coaster. I love watching and listening to her on this ride - Hands held high, screaming at the top of her lungs!
On to the Jungle Cruise! I always enjoy the CM's humor on this at WDW and the one at DL this time didn't fail me, either! I heard quite a few jokes/puns that I hadn't heard before. Nice to see the different scenes, too.
Grabbed a FP for Indy, went through Tarzan's Treehouse (at 9:05!). Gina and Patrick were just going, going, going while the rest of us were feeling like we'd been on a stairmaster a little too long! They really like the play area at the end, banging on the pots.
Next stop, POC - All I can say is WOW! I loved all the great scenes at the beginning of the ride - Definitely beats WDW's hands down. Need to do this one again.
On to the HM - Not one of my favorites, usually - Gina doesn't like the popping heads in the cemetary and I have to keep her eyes covered. She always ends up peeking out, though! The entrance to this, though, is much superior to the "underground" one at WDW. I like the feel of going in the front door of the mansion. I'd like to come back to see the holiday overlay someday.
Okay, our Splash FP are ready! I like the logs on this one, rather than the side-by-side ones at WDW. I think you get wetter on that one, though. But that's okay - The water was cold!
Stopped in Pooh Corner and had a Tigger Tail - Mmm! How can marshmallows, caramel, and chocolate taste so good? Must be some added pixie dust! Picked up a penny press book, too.
Went on Winnie the Pooh - Oops! Forgot to look for the Country Bears - Go back around and ride again - Found them and snapped a quick picture!
One more stop - Indy, before lunch.
Have to child swap on this one, since Gina's not tall enough. David takes both boys on while we wait, then when they get off, I go back on with Patrick (my daredevil - one ride was enough for Eric!).
Great ride - Much superior to Dinosaur at AK. I put the theming right up there with Mummy at US. Thoroughly enjoyed it - Another one to put on the "Do Again" list!
We were starving by now, so chose to eat at the French Market.
The jazz band was playing and we easily found a table.
The line was not too long and we got a Po'Boy (David), French Dip (Me), and 3 Chicken Nugget Meals for the kids. Bill was around $38, I think.
Yummy food and a relaxing rest listening to the awesome musicians.
Done with most of this side of the park, on to Tomorrowland!
Went on Buzz - Like the ride design better here, but having to push the trigger each time to fire was tiring! At WDW, you can just hold it down and it keeps firing for you. Having the bonus targets highlighted was nice, though. We didn't have a chance to email our score, but that's a nice feature if you have the time.
The boys wanted to go on Star Tours, but I knew that it was the same as at MGM and I get enough of the bouncing around there, so Gina and I went on the Astro Orbiter.
We loved how the ride loads on the ground, rather than having to take an elevator up like at WDW. Makes the line much shorter! Got some great pictures while on this. Too bad those tracks in TL aren't being used anymore! We love our Tomorrowland Transit Authority (AKA Peoplemover) at home.
Eric came out of Star Tours so happy he found a toy robot bird he's been looking for at MGM, but they've seemed to be out of for a long time. $10 spent and he's a happy kid!
On to Autopia - Love the Chevron theming here, great stuff in queue to look at. Cute track portion where you go offroad. I have to get one of those California I-5 signs to take home!
The kids saw Innoventions and wanted to check it out. We needed a break, so we headed in there and played around for a couple hours (and left for bathroom breaks and came back - had to go to beginning again!). Nice time to recharge our batteries!
Done with Tomorrowland, on to some of Fantasyland.
We headed over to Small World - The beautiful exterior took my breath away! I love how it's been made to look even more incredible with the gold accents. The show every 15 minutes is wonderful - The line looks terrible when you walk up to it, only because in WDW, the line is all on the inside. Once I realized that the line is only on the outside, I was relieved! This is Gina's favorite ride by far - How can that song be annoying when sung by your own DD? We enjoyed it all - Have to do it again and I REALLY want to come back sometime to see the holiday overlay!
Okay, time for one more before finding a spot for the parade, so on to the Teacups. I can ride coasters like crazy, but this one always gets me. Somehow not having a roof like at WDW helped the nausea factor, though, and I do love to see the kids trying to spin faster and faster as they giggle.
Found a spot for the parade right next to the churro cart - Coincidence?
Got 3 of these - yum!, then waited for the parade to come from the front of the park.
Wonderful song for the parade, loved seeing Tink, Russian acrobats were awesome, the Ariel float was incredible (the girls in the blue/green costumes - angelfish? were beautiful), the rhino was so real looking! I was in tears by the end ... Very moving.
Our location got the parade stop with Ariel - perfect, since it's my favorite Disney movie and my oldest son is named for Prince Eric!
Headed to the monorail for the ride to DTD (Park closed at 8) - Boy, was that line long! Even so, it was nice to get off our feet and relax for a while.
Got off at DTD, walked to shuttle, then back to hotel for an early start again tomorrow (but not as early as we had hoped!).
Our first day at DL was incredible - We got so much done and had a wonderful time!
Sorry for the long post - I just wanted to include as much detail as I remembered... and this was only our first park day - Lots more to add!
Days 3-8 to come ...
Rose
P.S. - I know I refer to the Magic Kingdom at WDW just as WDW, but since DL is also sometimes called the Magic Kingdom, I didn't want to be confusing!
Cast of Characters:
DH (David), 38; Myself (Rose), 35; DS10 (Eric); DS (Patrick); and DD4 (Gina).
Wednesday, June 22nd
Alarm goes off at 6:30 - Quick, get ready!
Breakfast Buffet at 7:00 - Not as crowded as we feared, great selection.
Got on the first hotel shuttle bus at 7:30 headed to DL.
Arrived at the turnstiles (well, the lines anyway!) at 7:45, only to see signs for "Early Entry" - I was confused - This was a Wednesday, I thought EE was on Thursdays.
Come to find out it's been switched this week because of Grad Nights.
Didn't think to ask about the schedule at the hotel last night (got in late).
Well, I was a little upset, 'cause we were planning to use it on Thursday, but since we had a 5 day PH and were coming back to DL on Monday, we'd just use it then - Go with the flow!
So, we get in the park, get our free stroller (thanks, Disney Visa!), and head straight to Indy for a FP.
Well, Indy was having technical difficulties, no standby or FP, so we walked over to Splash and got a FP for that.
Stopped in NOS to get a picture in front of the Mickey Sorcerer photomosaic.
I was really taken by how beautiful NOS is. Just being able to see the Gallery Balcony I've read so much about and the great exterior of the HM was awesome. Just the beginning of some of the things I'll miss at WDW.
Well, next we headed to Thunder Mt., Gina's favorite coaster. I love watching and listening to her on this ride - Hands held high, screaming at the top of her lungs!
On to the Jungle Cruise! I always enjoy the CM's humor on this at WDW and the one at DL this time didn't fail me, either! I heard quite a few jokes/puns that I hadn't heard before. Nice to see the different scenes, too.
Grabbed a FP for Indy, went through Tarzan's Treehouse (at 9:05!). Gina and Patrick were just going, going, going while the rest of us were feeling like we'd been on a stairmaster a little too long! They really like the play area at the end, banging on the pots.
Next stop, POC - All I can say is WOW! I loved all the great scenes at the beginning of the ride - Definitely beats WDW's hands down. Need to do this one again.
On to the HM - Not one of my favorites, usually - Gina doesn't like the popping heads in the cemetary and I have to keep her eyes covered. She always ends up peeking out, though! The entrance to this, though, is much superior to the "underground" one at WDW. I like the feel of going in the front door of the mansion. I'd like to come back to see the holiday overlay someday.
Okay, our Splash FP are ready! I like the logs on this one, rather than the side-by-side ones at WDW. I think you get wetter on that one, though. But that's okay - The water was cold!
Stopped in Pooh Corner and had a Tigger Tail - Mmm! How can marshmallows, caramel, and chocolate taste so good? Must be some added pixie dust! Picked up a penny press book, too.
Went on Winnie the Pooh - Oops! Forgot to look for the Country Bears - Go back around and ride again - Found them and snapped a quick picture!
One more stop - Indy, before lunch.
Have to child swap on this one, since Gina's not tall enough. David takes both boys on while we wait, then when they get off, I go back on with Patrick (my daredevil - one ride was enough for Eric!).
Great ride - Much superior to Dinosaur at AK. I put the theming right up there with Mummy at US. Thoroughly enjoyed it - Another one to put on the "Do Again" list!
We were starving by now, so chose to eat at the French Market.
The jazz band was playing and we easily found a table.
The line was not too long and we got a Po'Boy (David), French Dip (Me), and 3 Chicken Nugget Meals for the kids. Bill was around $38, I think.
Yummy food and a relaxing rest listening to the awesome musicians.
Done with most of this side of the park, on to Tomorrowland!
Went on Buzz - Like the ride design better here, but having to push the trigger each time to fire was tiring! At WDW, you can just hold it down and it keeps firing for you. Having the bonus targets highlighted was nice, though. We didn't have a chance to email our score, but that's a nice feature if you have the time.
The boys wanted to go on Star Tours, but I knew that it was the same as at MGM and I get enough of the bouncing around there, so Gina and I went on the Astro Orbiter.
We loved how the ride loads on the ground, rather than having to take an elevator up like at WDW. Makes the line much shorter! Got some great pictures while on this. Too bad those tracks in TL aren't being used anymore! We love our Tomorrowland Transit Authority (AKA Peoplemover) at home.
Eric came out of Star Tours so happy he found a toy robot bird he's been looking for at MGM, but they've seemed to be out of for a long time. $10 spent and he's a happy kid!
On to Autopia - Love the Chevron theming here, great stuff in queue to look at. Cute track portion where you go offroad. I have to get one of those California I-5 signs to take home!
The kids saw Innoventions and wanted to check it out. We needed a break, so we headed in there and played around for a couple hours (and left for bathroom breaks and came back - had to go to beginning again!). Nice time to recharge our batteries!
Done with Tomorrowland, on to some of Fantasyland.
We headed over to Small World - The beautiful exterior took my breath away! I love how it's been made to look even more incredible with the gold accents. The show every 15 minutes is wonderful - The line looks terrible when you walk up to it, only because in WDW, the line is all on the inside. Once I realized that the line is only on the outside, I was relieved! This is Gina's favorite ride by far - How can that song be annoying when sung by your own DD? We enjoyed it all - Have to do it again and I REALLY want to come back sometime to see the holiday overlay!
Okay, time for one more before finding a spot for the parade, so on to the Teacups. I can ride coasters like crazy, but this one always gets me. Somehow not having a roof like at WDW helped the nausea factor, though, and I do love to see the kids trying to spin faster and faster as they giggle.
Found a spot for the parade right next to the churro cart - Coincidence?
Got 3 of these - yum!, then waited for the parade to come from the front of the park.
Wonderful song for the parade, loved seeing Tink, Russian acrobats were awesome, the Ariel float was incredible (the girls in the blue/green costumes - angelfish? were beautiful), the rhino was so real looking! I was in tears by the end ... Very moving.
Our location got the parade stop with Ariel - perfect, since it's my favorite Disney movie and my oldest son is named for Prince Eric!
Headed to the monorail for the ride to DTD (Park closed at 8) - Boy, was that line long! Even so, it was nice to get off our feet and relax for a while.
Got off at DTD, walked to shuttle, then back to hotel for an early start again tomorrow (but not as early as we had hoped!).
Our first day at DL was incredible - We got so much done and had a wonderful time!
Sorry for the long post - I just wanted to include as much detail as I remembered... and this was only our first park day - Lots more to add!
Days 3-8 to come ...
Rose
P.S. - I know I refer to the Magic Kingdom at WDW just as WDW, but since DL is also sometimes called the Magic Kingdom, I didn't want to be confusing!
