sillyminny
Love Disney World. Love Survivor and Idol shows as
- Joined
- Aug 19, 1999
- Messages
- 290
Our cool but wonderful trip!
Instead of listing a day to day trip Ill just go topic by topic:
The crew: Three boys, ages 6 to 10, mom and dad
Details: Third trip to WDW, only Disney passes (7 day hopper plus special for Canadians, darn good value, believe me) First trip on site, 2nd trip Sheraton Vistana Villages, this time Marriott Spring Hills Suite at Little Lake Bryan
Flight Winnipeg to Orlando: Had to stay in Toronto overnight, this gave us four hours only from midnight to four am in hotel! Awful, avoid this in future at all costs.
Rental Car: Alamo, clean and quick, good price, lots of cars to choose from, no problems.
WDW
7 Disney Days: Awesome, the best. NO CROWDS, and I mean none. Did all rides over and over again.
Our 6 yr old did all the big boy rides this time and loved every one of them Very disappointed he couldnt do Rock n roller coaster at MGM but they gave him a special certificate at the ride.
Thought Hester and Chester a complete waste of time and extra arcade money. Sorry. It is not up to WDW standards. Bored. Except the Whirl is a good and popular idea.
I told my dh that WDW needs a theme park for older kids with more challenging rides and he said too much $$$. Disney has money problems right now.
Aladdin and Triceratop Ride is a remedy to those long lines at Dumbo as they are all the exact same ride. Too quiet for my boys now but delightful for little ones.
I did all the coasters with no problems and I am quesy on those: no problems at all. Did Space Mountain for the first time, loved it.
Did more in Epcot this year: my youngest did Test Track about ten times: I am done with that ride but I still love it. Only ride I wont do is Tower of Terror .
MGM is one of my favorites, love all the action on the street with the actors.
Absolutely adore Who Wants to be A Millionaire: had to do this four times with my oldest boys! We came in second and third.
Parades: All absolutely lovely! Right up front, lots of handshaking and smiles.
Restaurants: Prime Time of course: very busy and we did not get the attention from the server we usually delight it. WAY OVERPRICED now. Food portions are way down as well.
Peco Bills and Restaurantasauraus: the best burgers we loved the toppings bar. I love the salads
Caseys in MK for hotdogs of course.
Hollywood and Vine for the best buffet in WDW with TONS of character attention.
Tomorrow land galaxy restaurant (forget name) chicken burger HUGE and too much for a kid to eat and our kids eat lots!
Epcot Germany: It is nice to do this once, the second time was not as much fun but the German waitress is ALWAYS the best! We talk a long time as long as there arent others needing help. Kids didnt enjoy it as much but dh and I love German food. (Recipes are welcome)
I am sure I am forgetting some restaurants
Character interaction: TONS of tons of every character all the time, everywhere. My six yr old had forty photos taken with all of them! In AK we had Mickey, Minnie and Goofy with our whole family and I have blown it up and framed it. That is a rare photo.
Shows: Love Tarzan and Lion King Festival. We miss Hunchback, Little Mermaid (rehab) shows so much! Disney Playhouse at MGM is incredible: a lot better than just the Bear in the Big Blue House show a couple of years ago. Did this twice.
Indiana Jones still a great show, they may have to look at redoing some of the stuff in this as the actors are getting a bit tired of it.
Other interesting or unusual things: Training day at Great Movie Ride was neat. Cast members while learning crowd management and the script. Empty No line ups of course.
Very sad to note an elderly lady fell of a horse on the Carousel in Magic Kingdom Wed Jan 29, ride shut down while emergency crew attended her. Time thirty minute shut down and response. It gave us great respect for the Cast members who stay calm and dont alarm folks while meeting patients needs.
Spent lots of time chatting with Matt, the primate guy at the Gorilla area in AK. We learnt a lot about primates and appreciated his time.
My VISA dropped out of my wallet onto the counter at Main Street USA while I purchase an item. The Cast Member ran out on the street, during the parade, to find me and return it. Wish I had his name! He had another CM with him as well.
Our kids wore their name badges and had CMs address them by name.
Security: A step up from two yrs ago but not enough. They need to think about Kennedy Space centre lines, extreme there but needs to be done. WDW is going to have to consider no unnecessary bags as KSC does. Your bags at WDW are lightly inspected but they need more than this.
Souvenirs: not much, I bought Minnie Ears which I wore everywhere! My one son buys PVC characters but they arent around anymore, only in sets, but the sets are lovely. Good quality. He displays them so well in his room. The sets are good quality and a good value.
We went to a Wal-Mart Super store and got T shirts for $6 US. Dont look and feel much different from WDW ones! Key chains $3. Bargain World mugs were $5.99 compared to WDW $17. T Shirts at Bargain world in 2X and 3X (big brother) were $1.99. I KNOW it isnt Disney but we have tons of real on site stuff from Before. I will say this though, any real Disney merchandise LASTS forever!!!!!!! Ten years old from Disney Land and my pullover still looks new. My Wal-mart one is not going to last a year.
Mickey ears embroidery looks rich and lovely now with a satin finish as opposed to the chain stitch one from years ago.
Little girl outfits (alas not for my boys) are awesome. Please parents continue to dress these princesses up. They are delightful for other guests to see!
This is my first report about WDW observations. Our Orlando report coming up soon: includes hotel, Gatorland and KSC as well as the best Chinese Food Buffet in the world (New York Chinese Food Buffet)
Instead of listing a day to day trip Ill just go topic by topic:
The crew: Three boys, ages 6 to 10, mom and dad
Details: Third trip to WDW, only Disney passes (7 day hopper plus special for Canadians, darn good value, believe me) First trip on site, 2nd trip Sheraton Vistana Villages, this time Marriott Spring Hills Suite at Little Lake Bryan
Flight Winnipeg to Orlando: Had to stay in Toronto overnight, this gave us four hours only from midnight to four am in hotel! Awful, avoid this in future at all costs.
Rental Car: Alamo, clean and quick, good price, lots of cars to choose from, no problems.
WDW
7 Disney Days: Awesome, the best. NO CROWDS, and I mean none. Did all rides over and over again.
Our 6 yr old did all the big boy rides this time and loved every one of them Very disappointed he couldnt do Rock n roller coaster at MGM but they gave him a special certificate at the ride.
Thought Hester and Chester a complete waste of time and extra arcade money. Sorry. It is not up to WDW standards. Bored. Except the Whirl is a good and popular idea.
I told my dh that WDW needs a theme park for older kids with more challenging rides and he said too much $$$. Disney has money problems right now.
Aladdin and Triceratop Ride is a remedy to those long lines at Dumbo as they are all the exact same ride. Too quiet for my boys now but delightful for little ones.
I did all the coasters with no problems and I am quesy on those: no problems at all. Did Space Mountain for the first time, loved it.
Did more in Epcot this year: my youngest did Test Track about ten times: I am done with that ride but I still love it. Only ride I wont do is Tower of Terror .
MGM is one of my favorites, love all the action on the street with the actors.
Absolutely adore Who Wants to be A Millionaire: had to do this four times with my oldest boys! We came in second and third.
Parades: All absolutely lovely! Right up front, lots of handshaking and smiles.
Restaurants: Prime Time of course: very busy and we did not get the attention from the server we usually delight it. WAY OVERPRICED now. Food portions are way down as well.
Peco Bills and Restaurantasauraus: the best burgers we loved the toppings bar. I love the salads
Caseys in MK for hotdogs of course.
Hollywood and Vine for the best buffet in WDW with TONS of character attention.
Tomorrow land galaxy restaurant (forget name) chicken burger HUGE and too much for a kid to eat and our kids eat lots!
Epcot Germany: It is nice to do this once, the second time was not as much fun but the German waitress is ALWAYS the best! We talk a long time as long as there arent others needing help. Kids didnt enjoy it as much but dh and I love German food. (Recipes are welcome)
I am sure I am forgetting some restaurants
Character interaction: TONS of tons of every character all the time, everywhere. My six yr old had forty photos taken with all of them! In AK we had Mickey, Minnie and Goofy with our whole family and I have blown it up and framed it. That is a rare photo.
Shows: Love Tarzan and Lion King Festival. We miss Hunchback, Little Mermaid (rehab) shows so much! Disney Playhouse at MGM is incredible: a lot better than just the Bear in the Big Blue House show a couple of years ago. Did this twice.
Indiana Jones still a great show, they may have to look at redoing some of the stuff in this as the actors are getting a bit tired of it.
Other interesting or unusual things: Training day at Great Movie Ride was neat. Cast members while learning crowd management and the script. Empty No line ups of course.
Very sad to note an elderly lady fell of a horse on the Carousel in Magic Kingdom Wed Jan 29, ride shut down while emergency crew attended her. Time thirty minute shut down and response. It gave us great respect for the Cast members who stay calm and dont alarm folks while meeting patients needs.
Spent lots of time chatting with Matt, the primate guy at the Gorilla area in AK. We learnt a lot about primates and appreciated his time.
My VISA dropped out of my wallet onto the counter at Main Street USA while I purchase an item. The Cast Member ran out on the street, during the parade, to find me and return it. Wish I had his name! He had another CM with him as well.
Our kids wore their name badges and had CMs address them by name.
Security: A step up from two yrs ago but not enough. They need to think about Kennedy Space centre lines, extreme there but needs to be done. WDW is going to have to consider no unnecessary bags as KSC does. Your bags at WDW are lightly inspected but they need more than this.
Souvenirs: not much, I bought Minnie Ears which I wore everywhere! My one son buys PVC characters but they arent around anymore, only in sets, but the sets are lovely. Good quality. He displays them so well in his room. The sets are good quality and a good value.
We went to a Wal-Mart Super store and got T shirts for $6 US. Dont look and feel much different from WDW ones! Key chains $3. Bargain World mugs were $5.99 compared to WDW $17. T Shirts at Bargain world in 2X and 3X (big brother) were $1.99. I KNOW it isnt Disney but we have tons of real on site stuff from Before. I will say this though, any real Disney merchandise LASTS forever!!!!!!! Ten years old from Disney Land and my pullover still looks new. My Wal-mart one is not going to last a year.
Mickey ears embroidery looks rich and lovely now with a satin finish as opposed to the chain stitch one from years ago.
Little girl outfits (alas not for my boys) are awesome. Please parents continue to dress these princesses up. They are delightful for other guests to see!
This is my first report about WDW observations. Our Orlando report coming up soon: includes hotel, Gatorland and KSC as well as the best Chinese Food Buffet in the world (New York Chinese Food Buffet)
) it's still in great shape & looks like new!
