Well, this DL vet is back from a first trip to WDW!

[disney-super-mom]

DH and I just got back Thursday from a whirlwind 4 day tour of WDW. We made it to all of the parks (except the water parks of course), and also toured a few resorts. We saw SSR, a little of OKW, the WL, the BC, and the AKL. All of them are truely gorgeous!!!

I have a full trip report on the trip reports board if you want to read it. It's kinda long, but hopefully a fun read, and I have pictures included too.

We had a great time and found the pros and cons of WDW and DL to be interesting, fun to discover, and even more fun to discuss. The best part though is that neither WDW or DL has any cons that would make me not want to visit again. Both places are awesome in their own right and for completely different reasons. Now, of course we liked many of the rides at DL much better than the same rides at WDW, but let me tell you, the queues (spelling?) at WDW are really cool and detailed. So are the buildings. It was fun to see the differences.

Here's a link to our trip report.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1338109

I'll be happy to answer any questions you might have about WDW.

It's nice to be back!

 

[pumpkinfish]

Welcome back from my 2nd home at WDW! I hope you and your DH had a magical visit! I am about to get started reading your trip report

I did notice you have stayed at PP (2006). DH and I are staying there next month. Any advice or tips for us about the resort? Room with best view, places to grab snacks, ect would be helpful!

 

[disney-super-mom]

Welcome back from my 2nd home at WDW! I hope you and your DH had a magical visit! I am about to get started reading your trip report

I did notice you have stayed at PP (2006). DH and I are staying there next month. Any advice or tips for us about the resort? Room with best view, places to grab snacks, ect would be helpful!

We had a very magical trip at WDW! It was AWESOME!

We also really like the PP. We had a great time staying there. As far as views go, on one side of the building you have a view of DCA and GCH. The higher up the rooms, the better the view. The view of DCA at night is spectacular.

The other side of the building has views of the pool deck area and slide, parking lot and parking structure, the DLH, and the DVC sales building.

There's also rooms with private patios right on the lower portion of the pool deck. I'm not sure I would like these rooms. A patio would be nice, but the noise from the pool could be bothersome.

Tips:

1. You will always cut through the GCH to get to the parks. Use the GCH's private entrance into DCA (yes, you can do that because you're a Disney resort guest, but you will have to show your PP room key card). Use the GCH's Downtown Disney entrance to get to the front gates of DL.
(The only time you wouldn't cut through the CGH when going to DL is if you want to ride the monorail instead).

2. If you have a rental car, I suggest going to the 7-11 at the corner of Harbor and Katella (about 1 block away) and loading up on snacks and drinks. You'll have a fridge in your room to keep things cold. We did this twice during our last trip and it was great!

3. You can bring your own snacks and drinks to the pool deck. Just make sure that any drinks are either in plastic containers or cans. Bringing anykind of alcohol to the pool deck is perfectly fine and allowed.

4. Just so you know, the slide there is 185' long! Also, it empties into a shallow catch trough (not into a pool), so even non-swimmers can use it without fear of "going under". It's a pretty gentle slide, so young ones can use it too (my 3 year old loved it!).

5. If you're tired and don't want to fight the crowds, but you really want to see the fireworks, you have a great view right from the pool deck. They pipe in the music and narration too, so it's almost as good as watching it from in the park. Just grab some snacks and drinks from your room, head down to the pool deck, pull up some chairs, then sit back, relax, and enjoy the show. After the show, it's a quick ride in the elevator back to your room.

Have a great time!

 

[Disney Magic]

I am glad you had a great trip...even in the rain! You did a whole lot in a short 4 days at WDW. At least you were able to get a sampling of each park, see and experience some of the great hotels and restaurants, and hopefully get a feel for some of the "extras" that your kids might love...like the pirates cruises, tea with Rosepetal, recreational opportunities, etc.

Loved the pics. They are like my "fix" until my next visit to the World. Especially loved the pics of you and your DH....cute, cute, cute!

For first time visitors, it seems like you got the park hopping/transportation system figured out (getting from parks to hotels for dinners). That's a key.....once you figure out the best ways to get from one place to another, the "WORLD" and everything it offers, it at your fingertips. Sometimes, when you take monorails or boats from one point to another, they are like attractions unto themselves.

Awaiting your report on the AK (one of my favorite parks). I hope you had ADR's at either Jiko's or Boma's at the AK Lodge for that evening. Wonderful, Wonderful restaurants!!! Anxiously awaiting your report.

BTW, if you are DVC members, the AKL is expanding to include a DVC resort. I will tell you that we can spend a whole day at the AK Lodge and be entertained the WHOLE time. From breakfast on our balcony (with the animals), to the pool and the health club, to the tour of the lobby, to the tour of the restaurant (with food samplings), to outside fireside tales presented by African representatives, to cultural presentations given by African representatives in the "parlor", to nightime vision goggles to view animals at night ....it's a whole day experience.

 

[disney-super-mom]

Hi Disney Magic.

Yes, we sure did get A LOT done in the short time we were there. Unfortunately we didn't get to watch any shows like "The Lion King" or "Lights-Motors-Action" or the new "Nemo" show, but we'll schedule a much longer trip when we take our kids to WDW, and we'll be able to watch and enjoy those shows then.

I read and read so much about WDW and the transportation there before we left that when we got there, I really knew what we were doing. We were like old pros, even though it was our first time there!

I finished our trip report, so our day at the AK is all ready for your reading pleasure.

We're not DVC members yet, but we know we want to buy in. We're waiting a bit for the right time. We're hoping they announce a DVC and Disneyland, but we may buy a small resale contract at SSR first just to get our foot in the DVC door. I have to say, a DVC at the AKL is going to be terrific!

 

[pumpkinfish]

We had a very magical trip at WDW! It was AWESOME!

We also really like the PP. We had a great time staying there. As far as views go, on one side of the building you have a view of DCA and GCH. The higher up the rooms, the better the view. The view of DCA at night is spectacular.

The other side of the building has views of the pool deck area and slide, parking lot and parking structure, the DLH, and the DVC sales building.

There's also rooms with private patios right on the lower portion of the pool deck. I'm not sure I would like these rooms. A patio would be nice, but the noise from the pool could be bothersome.

Tips:

1. You will always cut through the GCH to get to the parks. Use the GCH's private entrance into DCA (yes, you can do that because you're a Disney resort guest, but you will have to show your PP room key card). Use the GCH's Downtown Disney entrance to get to the front gates of DL.
(The only time you wouldn't cut through the CGH when going to DL is if you want to ride the monorail instead).

2. If you have a rental car, I suggest going to the 7-11 at the corner of Harbor and Katella (about 1 block away) and loading up on snacks and drinks. You'll have a fridge in your room to keep things cold. We did this twice during our last trip and it was great!

3. You can bring your own snacks and drinks to the pool deck. Just make sure that any drinks are either in plastic containers or cans. Bringing anykind of alcohol to the pool deck is perfectly fine and allowed.

4. Just so you know, the slide there is 185' long! Also, it empties into a shallow catch trough (not into a pool), so even non-swimmers can use it without fear of "going under". It's a pretty gentle slide, so young ones can use it too (my 3 year old loved it!).

5. If you're tired and don't want to fight the crowds, but you really want to see the fireworks, you have a great view right from the pool deck. They pipe in the music and narration too, so it's almost as good as watching it from in the park. Just grab some snacks and drinks from your room, head down to the pool deck, pull up some chairs, then sit back, relax, and enjoy the show. After the show, it's a quick ride in the elevator back to your room.

Have a great time!

Thanks for your advice! And I am glad to hear we can bring our own liquid refreshments to the pool I just read your trip report and I want to welcome you to Drinking Around The World (or also known as LOTW). DH and I are experts! Glad you are home safe and had a great time.

 

[staley7580]

I loved your trip report, it makes me want to go alone with my dh!

 

[disney-super-mom]

I loved your trip report, it makes me want to go alone with my dh!

I hope you get to do that sometime. Actually, you HAVE to do that sometime! Trust me, it's a totally different experience without the little ones in tow. It's A LOT MORE RELAXING - AND JUST PLAIN FUN!

I forgot what that (relaxing and fun) was like on a trip with my DH. I got used to always keeping the kids happy, fed, dry, clean, entertained, going on the rides they wanted to go on, meeting the characters, taking their pictures, pushing and navigating the strollers, oh wait - one of them needs to go potty, oh great - now the other one needs to go potty....and it goes on and on. OMG, I'm exhausted from just reading this!

Yes, of course taking a trip with your kids is fun too, but I would call that more like "COMPLICATED, ALWAYS ON TASK FUN".

Adult fun.................NOW THAT'S WHAT I CALL FUN!

 

[Disneyluvr81]

Welcome back!!

My boyfriend and I just got back from our first trip to WDW too. We were there for 5 days. I haven't had time to write a trip report but we were doing the same thing, comparing the two parks and what rides we liked better and so on and so forth. The pros and cons and like you there was nothing that would stop us from going again. I loved it, absolutely loved it!

We didn't get to see any of the shows either. My boyfriend really wanted to see the Lights, Motor Stuntshow and Indiana and I wanted to see Nemo but we just ran out of time. We keep telling each other now we just have to back to do everything we didn't do the first time. hehe - like I need an excuse!

It was funny, we just got back Thursday and went to Disneyland on Sunday and my goodness did Disneyland seem little, especially the Castle. Compared to Cinderella's Castle it is so unimpressive, but we did not ever think that before we had been to Disney World. Same with their Fantasmic, for someone who had never been to Disneyland, Fantasmic at MGM Studios would have been amazing -- but I have to say Disneyland wins out big time! You can't beat the Mark Twain and the Columbia!! =D

I am glad you guys had a great trip!

 

[Disney Magic]

Supermom, I finally got around to finish reading your trip report. You have such a way with words....I felt like I was experiencing everything with you.

I am truly not surprised that the AK turned out to be your fav WDW park.
AK, along with EPCOT, are my family's favorites due to their attractions, size, events and attention to detail. Long gone are the days (when our kids were small) that the MK was THEE park of choice for us. As our girls grew older, I was informed that they "outgrew" a lot of the MK attractions (they won't step foot in Fantasy Land now except for PhilharMagic). To them, the MK is now a l/2 day park. To me, it's still a full day park and I still like it.

Imagine the time we had when we went to DLR for the 1st time last year. They went on all the attractions with me, (although threatened to throw me overboard on the canal boat ride and SM and they walked out of Tiki and left me in there), but they went with me because it was my life-long dream to see the DLR. Wasn't their favorite type of park, but they still enjoyed some things very much (and disliked some things very much too), but they did it for me.

But to each their own. You and I like AK, others don't. I like that Disney provides so many different experiences that there is something for everyone, and they offer different worldwide resorts that allows families to choose the resort that best suits their family's vacation interests.

You had mentioned, in your pic of Morocco, that it made you feel like you were almost there. Well, that could be because the Kingdom of Morocco sent their own artisans to build the pavillion so it would accurately reflect Moroccan culture. You probably noticed that there was a complete absence of certain designs throughout the pavillion and noticeable flaws in some of the workmanship. That was done intentionally to hold true to their religious beliefs. Some of the buildings are landmarks, and some are patterened after everyday life. A prayer area is provided (I think in their little museum) for use. The copy of the letter from the then-Leader of Morocco to President George Washington acknowledging the US as a new nation (Morocco was the first to acknowledge this), is a very interesting read as well. All of AK, as well as the WS pavillions, share the same kind of authenticity. I found this out by taking tours, and I appreciate the great amount of research that was done to create authentic as possible experiences (given budget constraints) in a theme-park environment. Just brought this up because of your comment about Morocco.

I completely understand why you are holding out to purchase a DVC at DLR.
DLR is soooo much closer to you. Since it is your home resort and the resort in which your family memories were made, I am sure it holds a very near and dear place in your heart. Ahhh nostalgia. I guess you can use your points to take occasional trips back to WDW DVCs when you feel your children can comfortably handle a cross-country trip and have the time to do other things (pirate cruises for the kidos, water parks, etc).

Thanks for sharing your trip with us.