TheColtonsMom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Dec 9, 2010
- Messages
- 2,092
After breakfast we moseyed back down main street and caught the ART back to the "not so Quality Inn" to get our bags which we had packed before we left for the park and move them to the bell desk at our new (thank goodness) hotel (Anabella check in wasn't until 3pm). We gathered everything up and checked out and headed back to ART stop at HOJO to go back to DL and get the bus to the Anabella.
At this point let me stop to talk about ART. We did buy the ART passes for our trip specifically for this "hotel switch" any walk is enough of a walk when you are hauling everything you have brought or bought. We also figured we would ocassionally be too tired and it would be nice to have a way to get home without carrying an exhausted 6 year old who weighs over 50lbs. We had read alot of "not so favorable" reviews on the boards and figured we would just have to do our best. Many of the unfavorable reviews had included complaints about strollers having to be folded and such which didn't apply to us so we went for it. WE LOVED ART! The drivers were not just courteous but most were friendly. You see the same faces day after day as the driver's are dedicated to their routes. We had nice conversations with both our morning and night drivers on the number 9 every day. They remembered Coltons name wished him Happy Birthday and helped him when he insisted he was big enough to swipe his pass without Mommy's help they were patient even when it took him 2 or 3 tries to get it right. They let him regale them with his adventures in the park that day (when he was awake LOL). He is not the only kid they ever encounter, they do this every day it's their job, but they laughed in all the right places asked him questions and generally made him feel like they had been waiting all day for him to get on the bus and tell them his daily adventures. The morning driver always asked what he did yesterday. Only once was the bus so crowded that we all had to stand, Colton was asleep on his feet and another Mom put her daughter on her lap so that I could sit with Colton on mine. Alot of the time there were less than 10 people on board and we all had some nice conversations during our rides. Remember we were there between Christmas & New Years the parks were crowded and still ART was a good experience. The only thing that could be improved is the actual shuttle area (I've heard rumors a remodel is upcoming in the 2nd phase of all this construction I hope so) Only a few of the stops have covered areas to wait, important during the rainy season when we were there as well as I imagine in the summer sun, Several of the stops were nothing but the pole with the number on it not even a bench to sit while you waited. Anyway enough sidetrack back to the trip.
Well so anyone staying at HOJO that day may have seen this...my overstimulated son was asleep at the HOJO ART stop less than a minute after we got to it LOL
By the way anyone considering a "pillow pet" we didn't buy this one at DL although they do sell them in DTD he has had it since last summer but it is by far the best "toy" I have invested in for a long time and I hesitated due to the price for "another stuffed animal". It has been through the wash several times and still looks great, he sleeps with it every night, it was amazing in the car & on the plane for naps (obviously at bus stops too
)
It was also a piece of home at the hotel. (our maid at he Anabella always did something different with him everyday when she made Coltons bed so it seemed as if he had been playing around the suite every day while we were gone) "Spotz" is much more than a toy he is a friend at the end of every day.
So we arrive via ART at the Anabella Hotel with the aim of checking our bags at the bell desk only to find that our Casita suite has been upgraded to a Mission Suite and it is ready! Our room was beautiful No pics not sure how we overlooked that but here is the link to pics of the hotel on their site.
http://www.getaroom.com/properties/the-anabella-hotel/photos
So we settled into the hotel and rested for a while as Colton obviously needed a break...there had still been no signifigant sleep since Christmas Eve Eve just car naps, plane naps, and a short night last night.
After resting we headed off on foot back to DL. If you stay on this side of the parks take the "shortcut" back to the parks through GCH much shorter! For some reason we ate much less at Minnie's than we normally would at a buffet, maybe so busy with the characters never got up to do 2nd trips LOL. but we were hungry! Not starving but ready for a snack. I had heard so much about the nachos at Whitewater Snacks that we decided to hit it on the way through the GCH.
The Lobby of the GCH is everything you have read here on the boards and more it is beautiful. It was very crowded all week while we were there so we never had the opportunity to just sit and soak it in, but it was our path to and from our hotel so we caught new details and were awed by something new everytime we went through it.
This lamp in Whitewater snacks got a snap for the lamp quest as well as because it is what we have been looking for without even knowing it for the new lighting in our kitchen LOL.
Whitewater snacks turned out to be the perfect stop. Not crowded, drinks of all types were available in bottles so we could shove them in the backpack for rides & such, and the Nachos were even better than described the beef was WONDERFUL! and they were plentiful Brant & I split them...so here they are Brant's first food porn
Colton got a kids picnic pack which included a grape jelly uncrustable sandwich (these are an amazing invention we take them out on our boat all summer) grapes & juice plus he added a chocolate milk.
The uncrustable becomes a "smile"
Refreshed we headed into the park to get down to some serious business...
At this point let me stop to talk about ART. We did buy the ART passes for our trip specifically for this "hotel switch" any walk is enough of a walk when you are hauling everything you have brought or bought. We also figured we would ocassionally be too tired and it would be nice to have a way to get home without carrying an exhausted 6 year old who weighs over 50lbs. We had read alot of "not so favorable" reviews on the boards and figured we would just have to do our best. Many of the unfavorable reviews had included complaints about strollers having to be folded and such which didn't apply to us so we went for it. WE LOVED ART! The drivers were not just courteous but most were friendly. You see the same faces day after day as the driver's are dedicated to their routes. We had nice conversations with both our morning and night drivers on the number 9 every day. They remembered Coltons name wished him Happy Birthday and helped him when he insisted he was big enough to swipe his pass without Mommy's help they were patient even when it took him 2 or 3 tries to get it right. They let him regale them with his adventures in the park that day (when he was awake LOL). He is not the only kid they ever encounter, they do this every day it's their job, but they laughed in all the right places asked him questions and generally made him feel like they had been waiting all day for him to get on the bus and tell them his daily adventures. The morning driver always asked what he did yesterday. Only once was the bus so crowded that we all had to stand, Colton was asleep on his feet and another Mom put her daughter on her lap so that I could sit with Colton on mine. Alot of the time there were less than 10 people on board and we all had some nice conversations during our rides. Remember we were there between Christmas & New Years the parks were crowded and still ART was a good experience. The only thing that could be improved is the actual shuttle area (I've heard rumors a remodel is upcoming in the 2nd phase of all this construction I hope so) Only a few of the stops have covered areas to wait, important during the rainy season when we were there as well as I imagine in the summer sun, Several of the stops were nothing but the pole with the number on it not even a bench to sit while you waited. Anyway enough sidetrack back to the trip.
Well so anyone staying at HOJO that day may have seen this...my overstimulated son was asleep at the HOJO ART stop less than a minute after we got to it LOL
By the way anyone considering a "pillow pet" we didn't buy this one at DL although they do sell them in DTD he has had it since last summer but it is by far the best "toy" I have invested in for a long time and I hesitated due to the price for "another stuffed animal". It has been through the wash several times and still looks great, he sleeps with it every night, it was amazing in the car & on the plane for naps (obviously at bus stops too
)It was also a piece of home at the hotel. (our maid at he Anabella always did something different with him everyday when she made Coltons bed so it seemed as if he had been playing around the suite every day while we were gone) "Spotz" is much more than a toy he is a friend at the end of every day.
So we arrive via ART at the Anabella Hotel with the aim of checking our bags at the bell desk only to find that our Casita suite has been upgraded to a Mission Suite and it is ready! Our room was beautiful No pics not sure how we overlooked that but here is the link to pics of the hotel on their site.
http://www.getaroom.com/properties/the-anabella-hotel/photos
So we settled into the hotel and rested for a while as Colton obviously needed a break...there had still been no signifigant sleep since Christmas Eve Eve just car naps, plane naps, and a short night last night.
After resting we headed off on foot back to DL. If you stay on this side of the parks take the "shortcut" back to the parks through GCH much shorter! For some reason we ate much less at Minnie's than we normally would at a buffet, maybe so busy with the characters never got up to do 2nd trips LOL. but we were hungry! Not starving but ready for a snack. I had heard so much about the nachos at Whitewater Snacks that we decided to hit it on the way through the GCH.
The Lobby of the GCH is everything you have read here on the boards and more it is beautiful. It was very crowded all week while we were there so we never had the opportunity to just sit and soak it in, but it was our path to and from our hotel so we caught new details and were awed by something new everytime we went through it.
This lamp in Whitewater snacks got a snap for the lamp quest as well as because it is what we have been looking for without even knowing it for the new lighting in our kitchen LOL.
Whitewater snacks turned out to be the perfect stop. Not crowded, drinks of all types were available in bottles so we could shove them in the backpack for rides & such, and the Nachos were even better than described the beef was WONDERFUL! and they were plentiful Brant & I split them...so here they are Brant's first food porn
Colton got a kids picnic pack which included a grape jelly uncrustable sandwich (these are an amazing invention we take them out on our boat all summer) grapes & juice plus he added a chocolate milk.
The uncrustable becomes a "smile"
Refreshed we headed into the park to get down to some serious business...
looking forward to hearing more! Especially keen to read your character meal reviews ... we will be at DLR in 79 days (not that I'm counting 
