The 'other' Pete's rant

[KingLlama]

Sometimes after I've carved my jack-o-lantern at Halloween, I sit right in front of it and drink a pumpkin spice latte, just to show it who's boss.

 

[disneysteve]

Y'all realise that you don't HAVE to book everything 180 days in advance?
You don't HAVE to eat at BOG to have a great vacation.
Also, Disney could change the ADR window to 30 or 60 days and you'd have the same issue getting an ADR, it's not the booking window, it's the crowds.

Thanks, Jes. I would emphasize the same thing.

We do NOT pre-plan our Disney trips. We book where to stay and that's it. Nothing else gets planned until we are actually there. Each night, I go on and pick 3 FPs for the park we've decided to visit the next day. Sometimes we use them, sometimes we don't. It depends how the day unfolds. We typically do no ADRs. The last time we did one was 2-3 years ago because I decided I really wanted to try BOG and I was able to get a dinner reservation purely by luck. I'm glad we got to see the place but I have no desire to go back. It wasn't anything special and we could get far better food offsite for the same or less money.

I think it was Kevin who recently said how Disney creates a frenzy where none is necessary. The whole ADR and FP+ system does exactly that. It convinces people that they MUST plan every moment of their trips months in advance or else everything will be ruined. It's just not true. I just made our July reservations last week just over 10 weeks from our arrival date. Last trip was planned even closer to the arrival date, less than 8 weeks I think. We don't care about ADRs. We don't care about FPs. We want our vacations to be relaxing, not a military operation.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

But what variety of pumpkin? Those big orange things you use for Jack-o-lanterns? They don't have enough flesh do they? (We have like 2 growers in all of Australia that grow what we call "Halloween pumpkins") otherwise there's grey/jarradale or jap, as well as butternut (I used to work for a large fruit and veg wholesaler, I know more about pumpkin and potato than most normal accountants)

So we have those orange ones which are generally just used for jack-o-lanterns and then for roasting the seeds. You can use them for pumpkin pie and soup and stuff but they aren't the best

I know my wife likes to get the Long Neck Pumpkins for when she is cooking pumpkin (be it for pie or bread or soup).

Oh, small tip, if you use Pumpkin beer in place of some of the water your pumpkin bread turns out even better ... and it is an excuse to buy more beer

Beyond that we have butternut squash and acorn squash and bunch of other winter squashes that we get from the farm near us that we tend to cut up and roast in the oven

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Thanks, Jes. I would emphasize the same thing.

We do NOT pre-plan our Disney trips. We book where to stay and that's it. Nothing else gets planned until we are actually there. Each night, I go on and pick 3 FPs for the park we've decided to visit the next day. Sometimes we use them, sometimes we don't. It depends how the day unfolds. We typically do no ADRs. The last time we did one was 2-3 years ago because I decided I really wanted to try BOG and I was able to get a dinner reservation purely by luck. I'm glad we got to see the place but I have no desire to go back. It wasn't anything special and we could get far better food offsite for the same or less money.

I think it was Kevin who recently said how Disney creates a frenzy where none is necessary. The whole ADR and FP+ system does exactly that. It convinces people that they MUST plan every moment of their trips months in advance or else everything will be ruined. It's just not true. I just made our July reservations last week just over 10 weeks from our arrival date. Last trip was planned even closer to the arrival date, less than 8 weeks I think. We don't care about ADRs. We don't care about FPs. We want our vacations to be relaxing, not a military operation.

Though that is a bit of the point ... Disney creates the frenzy but then Disney can't get their hours set before the point they are asking people to start making their plans

And I fully agree that you don't have to make plans that far in advance, but at the same time I know my kids would really like to meet Anna and Elsa so yeah, I am up at midnight or whatever to try to make those FP+ as soon as I can. Is the trip ruined if I don't? Absolutely note - but if we didn't get that in it would be slightly disappointing - and seeing their faces when we meet A&E makes it worth it to me

 

[loves to dive]

Good rant, I have to say it misses out on something from "other" Pete's rants but that might be because we can't see and hear you. I agree with part of it and parts I don't. Which is what makes it a good rant in my eyes.

Like disneysteve, I don't plan anything in advance other than my reservations. I'll be there in mid-September and haven't made those yet either. Yes, I know I'll probably be chewing my own foot off since I'm waiting for possibly better AP rates, but hey, it's my foot and who needs two. Then I can ride one of them there fancy motor wheelchairs and run all over innocent children who won't get out of my way.

I agree with the Starbucks but for a different reason, I don't like Starbucks coffee. I know, tar and feather me now, I said it and I don't take it back. I've lived in the Middle East and have had Turkish coffee which can stand up on it's own and Starbucks is worse than that to me. Too bitter, I don't drink silly girl coffee (I am a silly girl but hey, let's not stereotype) I drink mine black. No sugar, no cream, no fru fru nothing, just black. Love the kona coffee from Hawaii, and love pressed coffee, hate Starbucks (there I said it twice). I don't mind the sponsored by, Starbucks can sponsor it, just serve some different coffee.

I haven't had any problems with smokers, I don't smoke but both my parents did (Daddy died of lung cancer even) my honey smokes so maybe I'm smoke nose dead. Sometimes I walk right through the smoking section just because I can. I'm a rebel.

Hard tickets experiences are fine with me, sometimes I do them (but not parties cause I'm old and grumpy) but I have been known to do more than one wine seminar during F&W. I did drink around the world once if you count the fact that I took a sip out of my son's beers when he got them and it took us 3 days to make it through each country, I don't have the Tshirt though, I do have a pretty purple Figment one, does that count?

 

[kbelle8995]

I agree about most things except Starbucks. It is nice to get a viente Ice Tea and stroll Epcot. And their Frappachinos are delicious. Plus I remember when COP used to sell the wonderful products of General Electric.

I could not agree more about the drinking at Epcot. As for the hard ticket event, I only went once the Christmas one and thought it was not worth. Beside for a long time I was an Annual passholder and I didn't like shelling out more money to go to an event.

I think we plan where we eat and that's it. I have to say that I like the changes to FP+ where you can just pick one now if you would like. Makes me want to give the system another try.

 

[pjweaver]

perhaps I should have started with "people, please" to make it more Pete like.

At some point I will update from a rotary phone to one of the fancy cordless things that can make video, but for now you're stuck with me typing on this Apple 2Gs

 

[TheMaxRebo]

perhaps I should have started with "people, please" to make it more Pete like.

possibly should have included some pearl clutching as well

 

[TCups4Me]

If you look for negative you will find it. Everywhere and in everyone. When we want an easy vacation, we pick Disney because it's one stop shop. We don't have to get a cab or pull out the GPS. We arrive with a plan but that plan is just that...a plan. If we'd rather swim, we swim. If we want to sit and people watch, we do. We eat ice cream and drink coffee that we can get at home but we don't have homework or dishes or yard work or bosses waiting for us when we're done. So it's better than at home.

 

[pjweaver]

We plan... a lot. We don't do it out of a sense of need though, rather it fills a hole caused by bot being at WDW. What really yanks my chain is the park hours published now may change in a week.

We also aren't planning just to make sure we do everything. There is little we haven't done that we feel we need to (magic carpets, Tom Sawyer come to mind). Much as kids eagerly wait for summer break from school, we need this planning to build up a reason to go to keep going to work everyday.

 

[TCups4Me]

Much as kids eagerly wait for summer break from school, we need this planning to build up a reason to go to keep going to work everyday.

Yes! This is a huge part of all vacations for me too!

 

[pjweaver]

If you look for negative you will find it. Everywhere and in everyone. When we want an easy vacation, we pick Disney because it's one stop shop. We don't have to get a cab or pull out the GPS. We arrive with a plan but that plan is just that...a plan. If we'd rather swim, we swim. If we want to sit and people watch, we do. We eat ice cream and drink coffee that we can get at home but we don't have homework or dishes or yard work or bosses waiting for us when we're done. So it's better than at home.

We will do the same thing. Last summer we had breakfast planned at Whispering Canyon then planned to hit the MK. After eating way too much (and me starting to fall asleep on a chair in the lobby) we took the boat and back to our room for nap time. missed a FP+ but we were not bothered by it. Our plans are never written in stone.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

We plan... a lot. We don't do it out of a sense of need though, rather it fills a hole caused by bot being at WDW. What really yanks my chain is the park hours published now may change in a week.

We also aren't planning just to make sure we do everything. There is little we haven't done that we feel we need to (magic carpets, Tom Sawyer come to mind). Much as kids eagerly wait for summer break from school, we need this planning to build up a reason to go to keep going to work everyday.

I agree with that too. I love the planning aspect. I love having my spreadsheets, etc. ... so I also then have to say a small part of me doesn't mind when Disney goes and changes hours which then puts the spreadsheets in disarray as i get to re-plan all over

 

[rteetz]

Definitely a Starbucks for this Seattle girl! Now, I don't like their drip coffee because I think it's bitter, but their Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha is the bomb!

Oh I'm with you on that peppermint mocha Jackie!

 

[SarahDisney]

I like Starbucks Dark Roast ... apparently that's not a popular opinion here.
And in my experience, Dunkin Donuts is always burnt. I use DD coffee at home, but I won't buy it in the stores because they don't seem to know how not to burn it (that said ... I do still sometimes get coffee with my donut, I just complain).
Never had McCafe, so I can't comment on that.
So, Disney, if you're reading this ... please keep my Starbucks! Just give @pjweaver his old cinnamon bun back so that he stops complaining.

In terms of planning/park hours:
I'm a big planner (as I just told someone 20 minutes ago ... I like lists), but I do also wing it a little while I'm there. I like to have a plan, I'm just okay with ignoring it. We rarely miss FP+ just because we rearrange them on the go if necessary, and we make so few ADRs (and when we do make them, it's usually for very late in the day) that we don't mind taking that chunk out of our day to sit down and eat.
That said ... I want park hours to be available and relatively accurate 1-2 months before the trip. Yes, I have benefited from last-minute park hour changes (it's how I get my last-minute last seating BOG ADRs that I love so much). But I pick my parks based on park hours sometimes, and it aggravates me when park hours change and now I don't know if I should stick to my plans or rearrange everything. I had that in January when they extended the dates for Osborne lights at the last minute - we had to decide if we wanted to switch around our days to see the lights or stick with our planned days. We decided to stick with the plan because that worked better for us - but had we known about this a few months earlier, we might have booked an earlier flight so that we could see the lights on our arrival night or made a different plan that would have allowed us to see the lights on the last night. For me, it's easier to plan to see something and then decide whether or not I want to do it than to make plans to see something last minute.
And yes, I know that makes no sense. I rarely make sense.

 

[SorcererHeidi]

I don't understand the obsession with pumpkin over there?!! pumpkin is savory here. We make soup with it and roast it with a leg of lamb, or chargrill it for a salad... none of this "pie" business (pie's are also savoury here, unless they're apple.)
Plus I hate cinnamon, which I think is a large part of any of your sweet pumpkin dishes right?

I don't understand the obsession either - yuck!! I do like my slice of sweet pumpkin pie (with ginger, nutmeg, and yes, Jes, cinnamon) at like Thanksgiving, but other than that, not a fan. I don't really like any "cooked fruit" (apples, peaches, blueberries, etc.) because it's too sweet for me. And NO fruit EVER belongs as a coffee flavor - BLECCCCHHHHH!!!!!! Nut flavors fine, but NO FRUIT!! Have had spaghetti and butternut squash at other times as a savory dish or soup, and that's okay, every once in awhile. I think the whole "pumpkin spice craze" is part of the whole "food craze phem cycle that happens - people latch onto things, and it goes viral - like the whole sea salt, salted caramel, and kale crazes going on now, for instance.

 

[SorcererHeidi]

You must get the french press at Kona Cafe on your next trip. It's about $8 and yields 4 cups, but the smell alone must be what a drug addict experiences.

I actually wanted to try their French Press for a long time. Was there twice in the morning, but unfortunately watching caffeine both times. The time I was alone, when they said how many cups it made, I didn't want to spend that much to let a loot of it go to waste by myself. The time I was there with a friend to share, I asked if it came in decaff, and she and the server looked at me like I was nuts, and she said "we're not doing that", so we didn't. I tried to get some coffee "to go" a few times from the place right outside to take to the beach and watch fireworks, but they were always either closed, or not making coffee, or something. Hey - a reason to go back, right?

 

[SorcererHeidi]

I
Never had McCafe, so I can't comment on that.

Have to say - even though not a fan of Mickey D's, except for Sausage McMuffin or fries, I have had the McCafe, and it is not bad at all. Not very strong, but not burnt, not acidy or bitter, not bad at all. I get what you say about DD sometimes tasting burnt (or acidy, for me), which is probably why I prefer the iced, and I usually only go to "high traffic" DD's, and at "high traffic" times of day, if I can.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I like Starbucks Dark Roast ... apparently that's not a popular opinion here.
And in my experience, Dunkin Donuts is always burnt. I use DD coffee at home, but I won't buy it in the stores because they don't seem to know how not to burn it (that said ... I do still sometimes get coffee with my donut, I just complain).
Never had McCafe, so I can't comment on that.
So, Disney, if you're reading this ... please keep my Starbucks! Just give @pjweaver his old cinnamon bun back so that he stops complaining.

My biggest problem with DD is they never get the concept of "just a little bit of sugar" as no matter what I say they add way too much

And I like Starbucks dark roast, though their Christmas blend is my favorite

McCafe is eh ... I prefer Wendy's Red Roasters (thought I tend to be biased on Wendys over McDs for just about everything)

 

[SorcererHeidi]

McCafe is eh ... I prefer Wendy's Red Roasters (thought I tend to be biased on Wendys over McDs for just about everything)

Never had Wendy's coffee....but.....they ARE better than McD's for MOST stuff, for sure! Last 2 times I ate McD's hamburgers I got food poisoning, so unless I'm desperate, will never eat again. Loved Hardee's the best, but haven't seen one of them in years.