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| 237.1 | Brouillet family trip report - 2/14-2/23 | GOLF::BROUILLET | I (heart) my Ford Explorer | Thu Feb 28 1991 12:10 | 215 |
| Well, if I don't write this right away, I probably never will. So, with
the guidelines in 182.* thrown out the window, because we don't take notes
on vacation, here goes while my memory is still fresh...
WHO: The Brouillet's: Don, Kathy, Jeff (11), Nicole (10), Greg (5).
WHEN: February school vacation, actually left the afternoon of 13-Feb,
and returned at 02:30 on 25-Feb (today, as I start writing this).
WHY: Scene: Early February, 1991. We are definitely NOT going to WDW
this year. Too much uncertainty at DEC, economy in general, etc.
Yup, have to skip this year, no doubt about it. Then, one snowy,
cold day, Kathy suggests "why don't you call just to see if they
have any availability". The rest, as they say, is history.
HOW: Borrowed in-law's motorhome, and stayed at Fort Wilderness.
DISCLAIMER: I haven't been following this conference very closely in the
last year, so please excuse me if I repeat things that are already
discussed in another note.
AVAILABILITY:
Many people have canceled vacation plans this year, and we had no problem
booking a campsite at Fort Wilderness for 9 days. In fact, they had empty
campsites there just about every day. Occupancy was probably something
like 95% at FW, no idea about other resorts. Usually, school vacation week
(starting President's Day) is booked 100% well in advance. So, if the
Disney bug is hitting you hard, and you're willing to take the risk that
your job will still be there when you return, give them a call. There's a
good chance you'll get the accommodations you need.
THE TRIP:
Left (central MA) around 4 PM on Wednesday, 2/13. Arrived at WDW about 28
hours later. Our only stops were for fuel and breakfast. I never drove a
motorhome before, but the convenience was great. No "Daddy I have to go to
the bathroom" stops every few minutes. Easy storage for sandwiches and
drinks on the road. Plus, the kids were sitting at a table in back, so
they could play games, draw pictures, throw things, and kick each other to
stay amused on the ride.
When we drive to Disney, we're on a mission - GET THERE. Safety first, but
as long as one of us is fit to drive, we keep going. We like to leave some
slop in the schedule just in case, though. Our reservations at FW started
Friday night. When it was clear that we'd arrive early, I called ahead and
got Thursday night tacked on with no problem.
For the first time, there were NO major construction delays or detours on
the way down. The route we took, for those interested in driving down,
was:
I-190
to I-290
to I-395
to I-95
to I-287 (Tappan Zee Bridge)
to Garden State Parkway
to I-95 (New Jersey Turnpike)
to I-695 east around Baltimore
to I-95
to I-4 to WDW!
FORT WILDERNESS:
Still as nice as ever, and still our favorite Disney resort. We stayed in
the 800 loop, which was a pretty good location. Another note in here
mentioned some refurb work going on there. I think it's mostly just normal
maintenance. They seem to be constantly repainting and rebuilding
different areas as necessary.
There have been some minor improvements. Some of the comfort stations have
been rebuilt (new tile, fixtures). New trees and flowers were being
planted outside our loop. The "preferred loops" now have cable TV, which
was being installed last year while we were there. The beach has a new (or
relocated) playground set (swings, slides, ropes, things to climb). There
was a pile of pressure-treated lumber down by Marshmallow Marsh, not sure
what that's for.
CONSTRUCTION:
One of the first questions from confirmed Disneyholics is "What's new in
the World?" I was going to put this in different sections, but it might be
easier to just make notes on all the new construction in one place. And,
since at least some of you are anxious to know about this, without further
ado...
FW: Though nothing is going on in the campground, there is a lot of
new construction right next to Fort Wilderness. The new Fort
Wilderness Lodge (new hotel) is under construction, and a lot of
framing was done in the week we were there. I guess they'll have to
rename the reception building once the new hotel opens, since that is
currently called the FW Lodge. Also, if I read the sign correctly as
we drove by, there is a new golf course under construction beyond the
new Lodge.
PORT ORLEANS: New moderate-priced (similar to Caribbean Beach) resort
is shown on the maps as being between Fort Wilderness and the TTC, on
Bay Lake. I think it's due to open this summer or fall, but didn't
notice any physical signs of construction. Could be well hidden by the
trees.
DIXIE LANDINGS: New hotel off the road between FW and Disney Village.
Looks like a very large development. Much land clearing done, and
concrete pouring was starting. Should be an interesting place when it
opens.
MEDITERRANEAN RESORT: Based on last year's land-clearing, I thought
that something would be going on here, but it isn't. It looks like
they're using the future site of the Mediterranean to harvest topsoil
for now.
CONTEMPORARY: New attached convention center in progress. Really
looks ugly right now, but the model showing how it will look is more
reasonable. Still kind of a different building that seems to detract
from the appearance of the Contemporary A-frame. The convention center
has a curved roof, like an airplane hangar. It will add another 90K sq
ft for a grand ballroom, plus shops, many smaller rooms, etc.
DISNEY BOARDWALK: Major new project just starting. Land clearing in
progress. This will take in the area across the lake from Swan/Dolphin
and Yacht & Beach Club. It's supposed to be an Atlantic City style
boardwalk with shops, restaurants, nightclubs, and many other places to
separate you from your money ;^)
MAGIC KINGDOM: Splash Mountain construction has started, with lots of
heavy equipment moving dirt. Sorry, I forgot the planned opening date.
Lots of heavy equipment at work. Also, there is scaffolding all around
the Swiss Family Treehouse. Not sure what they're doing to it.
OTHER PARKS: We only spent a couple of hours at EPCOT, and didn't
notice anything new. Disney/MGM Studios is expanding the parking lot
significantly, according to a bus driver, and that work has started. I
don't know about the inside, because we didn't hit the Studios this
time.
WHAT WE DID:
Most trip reports give a play-by-play itinerary of the trip. Since I
didn't keep notes, and one day has a tendency to blend into the next, I'll
just give you a general description of what we did, without date/time
references. We find it more fun to just do what we feel like, whenever we
feel like it, rather than plan ahead. If we miss some stuff that we wanted
to do, it just gives us more reasons to go back. Since we drive & camp,
and keep expenses down, we're usually able to go once a year.
As we approached Orlando, we tuned in a local radio station for traffic and
weather reports. The weather report was disappointing - "tonight's low
near freezing, high 45 tomorrow, tomorrow night a hard frost with the low
in the lower 20's". Hey, we come to Florida for WARM weather. However,
from past experience we knew how variable the weather could be, and were
well prepared. It never did get as cold as they forecast, and only stayed
cold for one day.
We took advantage of that cold day to hit the parks, hoping the crowds
would be light. This was the only day we spent in the parks, using last
year's leftover tickets. We stayed in the Magic Kingdom most of the day,
going over to EPCOT around 7PM. The crowds were very reasonable for this
time of year. I think the longest line was for Thunder Mountain, about 20
minutes. My son was really disappointed that Space Mountain was closed,
and looks like it will be closed for a while. One thing I was happy to
find - they FINALLY have George Bush in the Hall of the Presidents.
At EPCOT, we were able to walk right in to Spaceship Earth, Universe of
Energy, Horizons, etc. We didn't really have too much time left, and it
was getting cold, kids were tired, etc., so we didn't stay for
Illuminations.
The weather warmed up after the first couple of days, so we took advantage
of the sunshine to just relax by the pools and explore the new resorts.
The Yacht & Beach Club is worth checking out. They have an area of pools
called Stormalong Bay. The place is like a small water park, with a long
waterslide that starts in a shipwreck on the beach. Many pools are
interconnected, and the area is crisscrossed by bridges and walkways. They
have a couple of Jacuzzi's there too. The pools have sandy bottoms, are
purified by ozone (no chlorine), and some are supposed to be loaded with
fish for snorkling (none yet, just "do not feed the fish" signs). It's
very well done. Also, some of the best and most reasonably priced fast
food at Disney can be found at Hurricane Hannah's Grille in the pool area.
One nit - if you're from another resort, you can't sign out any of their
towels or life jackets (for little kids). That's for Yacht and Beach Club
guests only. According to the castmember in charge of towels, "you're
welcome to use the facilities, but you'll have to bring your own towels."
He said they're doing that to prevent overcrowding. The only way to get
to Y&B is to take a bus from the MK, or boat from MGM. They're probably
thinking that most people will go over there once, find out they can't get
towels, and just go back to the other resorts thinking it's not worth the
hassle. Some of us are more persistent, though. One more thing - there's
a way around this, if you don't mind a little walk. Stormalong Bay is in
the middle, where the Yacht Club meets the Beach Club. Near the opposite
end of either hotel is another pool area (with bigger hot tubs), where
grab-your-own towels are available for "WDW resort guests". In any event,
if you have the time, the Y&B is a good place to spend a relaxing day.
As for the rest of the trip, we spent some time swimming, eating, and
boating at the Poly; swimming at the Grand Floridian; letting the kids shop
(on their credit cards) and play in the arcade at the Contemporary. We
spent quite a bit of time at Fort Wilderness, bicycling, canoeing, hiking
trough marshmallow marsh, and just sitting around on the back porch at the
Meadow Trading Post, Pioneer Hall, and the pool & beach. We were almost
perfect Disney guests - stayed there the whole time except for a short trip
to get groceries.
It was a great vacation, but, as usual, much too short. I don't normally
have time to follow this conference anymore, so please direct any questions
by mail.
/Don
|
| 237.2 | Trip report | PENUTS::BATOR | | Fri Mar 22 1991 14:20 | 68 |
|
TRIP report to DisneyWorld Mar 9-16, 1991.
Four of us went to Orlando last week. My wife and friend were in Florida
a couple of days early. Our other friend had to fly TWA.
I flew Northwest $79/each way nonstop Boston - Orlando. Flight would have
left on time except it was overbooked. They kept asking/looking to bump
6 volunteers and finally got them by offering: the next NW flight out and
would get in at 4pm via Detroit, instead of 10:30am nonstop. Their Bonus:
A free round trip ticket anywhere NW flies, including Mexico and the
Caribbean. Was tempted!
We stayed the week at our timeshare in the Vistana Resort. Very nice!!
We shopped for food, wine, sundries, etc at Goodings, the 24-hour
store. Great!! Why can't we have places like that up North?
We rented an Avis car. Got a Dodge Spirit. No problems.
At Disney the parking fee is $4/day. We went to the Handicapped parking
area right up front because my wife's friend has braces on her legs and
can't walk too well (and has a H plate which we displayed on the car).
At the parks, wheelchair rental is $6 day. When you return it, you
get a Disney $ back. Lots of people just leave them around the park.
One big advantage to a wheelchair is that when the host/hostess at a
ride or building see you coming, they take the wheelchair party right
in, usually thru a side or rear exit. Many buildings (The Land, Kodak,
etc had elevators.) Some of the rides had specially modified cars for
wheelchairs. Our _longest_ wait was 5 minutes. We never stood in line in
any of the three parks. I highly recommend it. We were never embarrassed
or made fun of. If a ride is stopped, the reason is never given.
When you rent the wheelchair, a Guide to DisneyWorld for
Handicapped Visitors booklet is given out.
In the "standing" attractions such as 360 degree or 3D movies,
there was always a row or two reserved for wheelchairs.
Epcot at nite: Wheelchairs had a special section up front for
Illuminations. Our whole party saw it sitting down!
We ate at Italy, in Alfredo's. This is a branch of the famous
restaurant in Rome. Nice. There were even strolling musicians.
Another night ate at China, disappointed. Took remnants of an egg
roll outside and gave it to the birds. They rejected it too. Outside
of Disney, we ate at Red Lobster (Good), Olive Garden (Great), and
Flamingo Cafe at Vistana (disappointed).
Another night we went to the Polynesian Revue at the Polynesian
Village. Due to renovations, it was held indoors in the main restaurant.
Which was fine, since evenings were cool, approx 45-55F. Guess we missed
the record heat by one day. Oh well.
At MGM, we were there the day Howie Mandel was the in person celebrity
and saw him being interviewed. Also appearing were the 4 Ninja Turtles
along with their special green van. They had long lines at each one
of them giving out autographs and posing for pictures. We skipped them.
We only used 3 of our 4 days on the passes. Bought them at the Pheasant
Lane Mall with MKC card. Got the discount and saved the Florida 6% tax.
The week's other event was going to the Atlantic Ocean one day near
Cocoa Beach. We bought T-shirts etc at newly expanded Ron Jon's! These
are truly one of a kind. Bought one for every member of the expanded
family. We ate in a nearby town (Indian River) on route A1A, in a place
called The Cove Restaurant. Great menu at very reasonable prices.
One example: complete roast beef dinner including soup, salad, rolls,
vegetable, etc $11.95. Best thing about it: "Seconds are on the house!"
|
| 237.3 | Trip report length warning!!! | LUDWIG::ROBROSE | | Thu Mar 28 1991 07:48 | 7 |
| The next reply will be a trip report of about 450 lines.
You have been warned.
-Rob
|
| 237.4 | Trip report Premier Cruise/WDW Trip. | LUDWIG::ROBROSE | | Thu Mar 28 1991 07:49 | 535 |
|
Trip Report for Premier Cruise/WDW vacation 3-15 to 3-22-91
We left on Friday 3-15 for a three day Premier Cruise and five days
in Orlando. Our flight was out of Newark on Continental Airlines. We
sailed on the Oceanic to Nassau and the Premier out island of Salt Cay.
All things considered, the cruise was fun but, Premier does not come
close to the excellent food and pampering service of the larger cruise
lines like (RCCL), IMO. It rained on Friday but, Saturday on the out island
was just beautiful. Plenty of sun and just plain heat on that day. If
anyone is interested in specifics on the cruise I can provide them. Since
this is a Disney file I will not clutter up the disk with non Disney data!!
Monday 3-18-91
Cruise returned to port Canveral on Monday 3-18 and we were off to
Orlando. The weather was looking better and better the closer we got to
Orlando, it was raining like crazy at Port Canaveral.
Check in time at the package hotel (Gold Star Inn on I-Drive) was
not until 4PM so I drove right for the TTC to trade in my package 4 day
passports and upgrade to 5 day superpasses. This was around 11:00 am and
Guest relations had a pretty large line. Once that was done we were off
to EPCOT. Crowds were light and we had no more than a five minute wait
for any attraction. We skipped lunch in anticipation of dinner at the
Hoop-dee-doo that night. Just as aside I had never been to the show before
in all the times I have gone to WDW.
While in EPCOT we rode Imagination, Spaceship Earth, and Maelstrom. We
spent the rest of the time in the communicore buildings, playing with
everything we could get our hands on. We left EPCOT about 4:30 to check
in at our Hotel. I waited longer in line to check in at the hotel than
I did at any Disney Attraction!!!!
We relaxed for a little while then headed back to the WDW. Got to MGM
around 6:45 and went straight for Star Tours, NO lines we walked right
through the pre-show area and onto the simulator. I loved it!!!
When the ride was over and still no one was waiting,
Castmember:"Would you like to go again?"
US:"Let it ride"
Well, we ended up riding Star Tours three times before we felt like we
had bounced around enough. Then it was on to The Great Movie Ride, Western
side 'cause I like the fire. I love the Bogart and Bergman AA's and the
movement on the Wicked witch is just fantastic. Depending on how close you
are to her you might actually think she is flesh and blood. The remainder
of the GMR does not really impress me that much.
We then went over to take the backlot tour (tram tour). This tour has
changed since my last visit in July '89. They no longer drive down the NY
street but, you can walk down the street and check everything out which I
thought was nice. I got pretty wet at Catastrophe Canyon but, that Disney
animated water dried right up in about a half hour just like they said it
would!!!! How do they do that, I wonder. We walked through the "Honey I
shrunk the kids" playground area. The signs going in say that it is best
enjoyed by children 10 and under. Well I feel a bit younger because I
found it to be pretty neat.
At this point is was 9:00pm closing time so we headed for the parking lot
stopping to browse in Sid "Whatchamacallits" shop on the way out. I had to
leave there quick because I saw plenty that I wanted to buy.
Next over to Fort Wilderness for the Hoop-dee-doo. First we watched the
electric water pageant on Bay lake from the FW beach, then onto Pioneer
Hall for the 10pm show. As I said earlier I had never been to this show.
I can now say I will always want to go to this show when I go to WDW
from now on. We had a blast, went to the 10pm show the crowd was great,
the show was super. The food was good and plentiful, fantastic
chicken, salad, beans, and corn. The ribs were a good quality but, were
very light on the BBQ sauce so they didn't really make a big hit with us.
We had a table right next the the Piano player so we did get a bit of
attention, those of you who have been know what I mean!!! We had a great
time and wanted to go to Pleasure Island but, we were just too tired from
the long day to make it there.
Tuesday 3-19-91
The weather was nice sunny and mid 70's. We headed for EPCOT center and
made lunch reservations at Mexico and dinner reservations at the Land
Grille Room. We then went to try out Body wars. I only rode this once. I
don't know if it was just me but I found my eyes could not focus on the
images going by the screens. I know that this is the same mechanical type
of attraction as Star Tours but I did not enjoy it enough to want to ride
it a second time. We then watched the GOOFY about health movie and played
around with the hands on exhibits. We saw Cranium Command but skipped the
Making of Me, I think I have a handle on that one.
We continued going through future world seeing the Universe of Energy,
Horizons, and The World of Motion. We then went into communicore to vote
for the Person of the Century. I wont tell you who I voted for so not to
sway your opinions!!
Lunch time, off the Mexico. The restaurant was pretty full, I had the
churrico tortillas, which were very tasty. Salads were good and fresh
and the service was very good, nice lunch. I don't consider myself a
gourmet by any means but I do enjoy good food so I will probably go
on a little about the restaurants and the food. I like the atmosphere there
over looking the Rio del Tiempo boat ride, it makes for a pleasant break
in the day.
After lunch we strolled through Norway, China (where there is a lot of
painting going on), Germany, and Italy. We like to look through all the
shops so this leg of the journey takes some time. Once we hit the American
Pavilion we stopped to see the American Adventure, which brings up a
question I have, Was Mark Twain a cynic? he seems to be portrayed that way
in this presentation but I have never detected that in his writings. I
was just wondering if there is some documentation on this or the Twain
AA is just being the bad cop to the Ben Franklin AA's good cop.
I have to touch on this one other point which is a sore spot with me. It
deals with the EPCOT resorts. I notice them as I walk through World Showcase
and I really don't like seeing them there. I wish they had not built the
Swan and Dolphin hotels. I can only hope that something will block them from
view sometime in the future. They really let the outside world into the park
for me and that ruins the illusion, for this Disney fan atleast. The Dolphin
figure is not even a Dolphin, its a fish!!! Dolphins are not fish, they don't
have scales like this thing does.....oh well.
While walking through the UK section of world showcase we, and just about
everyone else were attacked by Robin hood and some of his men. These
characters were great. They even went so far as to follow some of the guests
to the restroom and wait for them to come out. It really was a scream.
At one point the Friar Tuck character stood perfectly still and waited until
someone would get close enough to him, then he would jump out and grab them
It was great.
At this point it was getting close to dinner so we wandered over to the Land.
We had some time so we rode the "Listen to the Land" boat ride then went
up to the Land Grille Room for dinner. I like the atmosphere in this
restaurant because it revolves and you can see the scenes from the boat ride
downstairs. The only drawback is that when you rotate past the entrance to
the restaurant where there is a large open area it gets pretty noisy with all
the people eating downstairs at the farmers market and the people waiting in
line for the ride. We were not very imaginative in our dinner selections we
both chose shrimp cocktail followed by the chef special of the day, Grouper.
I guess it shows that we are seafood fans -eh. The only difference between
our selections was our salad dressing. Once again the salad was very fresh
and not too big which I like. I really like this restaurant much like Mexico
I find it very easy to relax there with the scenery from the ride and all.
I don't find that in Italy or France where I have felt rushed and crowded.
After dinner we decided to follow the same plan which had worked so well on
Monday, so we drove over to MGM studios. Rode on Star Tours again, then went
over to the Monster sound show. I got picked to run the Foley stage. I had
a lot of fun and was much less than perfect. Since it was not crowded we spent
some time in the sound effects post show area. I was very impressed by the
sound booths. If you get the opportunity wait for one of these to open up and
try it out. The 3D sound effects are great, you find yourself looking behind
you to see who is coming. I was terrible trying to match the sound effects
to the star wars battle scenes, I guess this guy has no future in sound
effects!! This area really is fun and I suggest you give everything there a
try. I know with hands on things like this there is always a wait since people
always exceed their recommended time but, wait it out and try some of these
you will enjoy it.
We went on to Superstar Television which is always great fun. Then over to
The Indiana Jones Stunt show for the 8:15 show. This is the first time I
have viewed this show at night and I have to agree with a lot of other
people that it is better at night. They did the boulder scene, the street
fight and the finale with the airplane. The last time I saw the show the
boulder scene was not done. After the stunt show it was closing time so
we decided to stop at Pleasure Island on the way back to the hotel.
Pleasure Island was packed, parking was a slight problem. Once inside we
went to the Adventurers Club and had a couple of drinks. This is a neat
place you never know what is going to talk to you next. It was not very
crowded at the AC so we hung out there until 10:50pm then went outside to
see the new years eve fireworks at 11:00pm. After the fireworks we went back
to the hotel to get some much needed sleep.
Wednesday 3-20-91
We were tired and woke up kind of late ~8:30. I had a craving for the
famous Banana Stuffed French toast so we made our way over to the
Polynesian Village. At this point I goofed but everything turned out OK.
I thought that the Tangeroa Terrace offered the French Toast I was looking
for but it has become the new home of Minnie's Menehue Character Breakfast.
Well I was not planning on a character breakfast but it was 10:30am and I
was pretty hungary so a Buffet sounded good, we went in. They stop seating
for this meal at 10:45 so the place was mostly empty. That being the case
the characters have nothing to do but pay attention to the people that are
there. We had a lot of fun. Chip came over to our table and shoved his way
into the booth next to my friend. I then made a passing comment that she
would be wise to go along with Chip since he is a rich celebrity and I am
just an average guy. Well that started a flood of activity at our table
Chip ran over and got Goofy and Dale and all three took turns trying to
impress her. I was almost laughing to hard to take pictures. They were all
doing muscle poses and hugging her, Goofy got on his knees gave her a flower
and kissed her hand. Well, this went on for several minutes before a
business like castmember made a gesture to the characters that must have
meant they should move on because they wrapped it up shortly after his
visit. I can't remember when I laughed so hard. Later on Goofy came back
and we had a short conversation, us with words and (him or her) with
mime. Sometimes it took a while for us to figure out what he was trying
to say.
This was great fun for both of us. Now onto the food. Disney
puts out a nice buffet breakfast. There were scrambled eggs, cheese
omlets, bacon, sausages, ham, breakfast potatoes(my personal favorite),
French toast, pancakes, and a special Mickey waffle station. Grits and
sausage gray and biscuits were also available. Blueberry, Cranberry,
Corn, and Bran muffins. There was a wide selection of melon and
other fruit salads and a few dessert items like chocolate muffins
and chocolate chip toll house squares. Boxed cereal is also available.
I never thought about going to one of these as late as we did but it
seemed to work out great for time with the characters. When we finally
left there was just one family with two children in the place and they
were having a great time. Well I didn't get the French toast I was
looking for but I had such a wonderful time, so I really didn't care!!!
After the eventful breakfast we took the Monorail to the MK. Once inside
we went right for our favorites, Pirates of the Caribbean and the Jungle
cruise. I noticed something which I think is new in Pirates but, I maybe
mistaken. Right after you go down the drop there is a voice which sounds
pretty lame, kind of like an 80 year old man and it says something like
"Ye may not survive to pass this way again". I don't recall this being
in the ride before does anyone know if it is a new addition? I didn't
like it because it doesn't sound like a pirate, it sounds like some 80
year old man. Oh well other than that both rides were as good as ever.
MK was the only park which had lines but in most cases they were
artificial. At big thunder mountain the line stretched down the hill to the
entrance of the Tom Sawyer Island rafts. I thought something looked fishy
because the line was moving in big chunks so we got on it. We were on the
train within ten minutes. The cattle corral inside the build was not being
used at all so you just went up, around, and down to the ride. I don't
really understand why they were doing this unless it is to try and channel
people into other sections of the park. You can't really see much of the
Splash mountain construction,(normally but more on that later).
We decided to skip lunch because we had 9pm reservations at Victoria and
Alberts. No frontierland train station anymore with the Splash Mountain
construction. I like that ride around the park on the Disney railroad so
I can't wait for that to reopen. The train still runs but only between
Main St station and Mickey's starland.
We went over to the Haunted Mansion and encountered the same thing as at
BTMRR. There was a line outside the mansion doors but once inside when
we were deposited for the ride part of the show there was not a sole
in front of us waiting for the coffins, which I thought was great. The
ride had to be stopped when we were in the cemetery section which I liked
since I was able to examine things closer.
We rode 20,000 leagues, the WED Way people mover, Carousel of progress,
Mr. Toads Wild Ride, and Dreamflight.
We decided to take a break so he got on the monorail for the Contemporary
resort. We went up to the Top of the World for a drink and to take in the
view. It was a nice day around 78', no wind to speak of so we went on the
outside observation deck and soaked everything in.
There is construction going on for a new convention hall on the park side
of the tower,(yeah Rob, like there is room on the Bay Lake side of the
tower).
We went down to the marina and rented Water sprites. These are great fun
and I think quite reasonably priced at $11.00 per half hour. You can do
a complete tour of Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay lake in that time. It is a
nice break. If you are not a Disney resort guest you will need a drivers
license to rent any watercraft.
After our nautical adventure we decided to go back to the Hotel and take
a rest before dinner at V&A.
We dressed up and drove over to the Grand Floridian for 9:00pm, well
we actually got there at 9:10 but who's counting. I used the valet parking
since the self parking lot is now a considerable distance away from the main
building. At V&A we were greeted by our maid and Butler, Victoria and
Albert, (there real names were Mary and Sal). This is a fantastic place
very, very beautiful flower arrangements and a harp player in the lobby
area where there is also a fireplace. I will list the full menu for the
day.
Victoria & Alberts Menu for March 20, 1991
Cajun spiced "Pink" Ahi Tuna Loin with Soy Vinaigrette and Tropical fruits
Sesame Seed Seared Scallops with a Chive Cream
Carpaccio of Beef on a Green Peppercorn Mustard with Tomato Relish and Black
Truffle Vinaigrette
Plum Tomato Soup with Peppered Vodka, Pasta Shells and Pesto Cream
Chicken Consomme' with Veal filled Morsels and Chives
Sauteed Breast of Duck with Caramelized Glace de Canard and Peppercorns
Roast Loin of Veal filled with Carrot and Spinach Mousse, Akvavit Cream Sauce
Grilled Key West Pompano with Ginger-Scallion Honey Butter and a Citrus
Buerre Blanc
Filet Mignon topped with Roquefort and Hollandaise, Truffled Potatoes
Seasonal Salad leaves with a Pineapple Sage and Kumquat Vinaigrette
Royal Stilton with Poached Pair
Puff Pastry Box with Fresh Berries
Lingonberry Souffle
Chocolate and Vanilla Swirl Souffle
Coffee, Friandises
We had the Tuna and Scallops, Tomato Soup, (We were then served a stuffed
veal dish, compliments of the chef), for entrees we ordered the
Veal and the Filet Mignon. Salad was next, followed by a cheese selection
served with Port Wine which was not listed on the menu. For dessert
we picked the Chocolate and Vanilla Swirl Souffle, and the Pastry box.
They put the V&A symbol on everything, the butter, and even the soup
course has the letters V&A floating on top!!
The food was very good and the service was outstanding, we never wanted
for anything. Water and wine glasses were always kept full, bread dishes
were constantly being resupplied, and completed courses were removed
promptly. Coffee is brewed right at your table and it is pretty interesting
to watch the glass percolator (I really don't know what you call the thing)
do its' job.
At the end of your meal, the lady receives a boxed long stem rose and the
gent gets the bill, seems fair doesn't it guys!!
V&A is pretty expensive. Would I do it again? Probably.
There was a little chill in the air with the breeze so we scrubbed our
plans for a nighttime stroll around the Poly and instead opted for a
round of miniature Golf at Pirates Cove on I-drive which was almost across
the street from our Hotel. I had seen the Pirates Cove Mini golf course
at Lake Buena Vista many times and thought it looked interesting. Well
turns out I was right it looks interesting but it is not very challenging
to a golfer. Most of the holes are either incredibly simple or have
a twenty foot downhill drop and are just plain luck. We had fun, being all
dressed up as we were, miniature golf just seemed like the thing to do!!
Back to the hotel and much needed sleep.
Thursday 3-21-91
We decided to do something a little different this morning so we stopped
at 7-11 had some sandwiches made then went and rented an air boat. We
cruised through the marsh areas saw plenty of small gators and other
Florida wildlife and had lunch out in the marsh. It was fun, I would do
it again but the boats are incredibly noisy!!
We stopped at EPCOT and made reservations for dinner at the Corral Reef.
It was pretty hot so we decided to go to River Country. Bay lake water was
COLD. You got used to it after a while but it was a jolt. The pool there
must be heated because it must have been 80 degrees. We went down the tube
ride a couple of times and I went on the body slides. There was not much of
a line for any of these things. Could have been due to the water temp -brrrr.
We left River Country at 5:00 which is closing and drove over to EPCOT for
our 6:00 dinner reservation.
At the Corral Reef, we got a table on the bottom level one row
back from the tank windows. I prefer this to sitting right up on the windows
because I feel the peripheral view is better and there is less distortion.
Service here was excellent, our waiter was very attentive and made very
interesting conversation. We ordered Fried squid and baked clams for
appetizers. Both were done very well, the baked clams looked to good to
eat, but we did anyway. For entrees' we had Grilled Swordfish and
baked Mahi-Mahi. Both were fantastic and were very large portions of
fish. The Mahi-Mahi I had was the largest portion I have ever seen for that
dish. We finished off with coffee, a vanilla/walnut Mickey Mousse,
and a chocolate cheesecake. This was a truly excellent meal in a fun
atmosphere. When you enter the restaurant they give you a fish guide and
it is fun to try and identify what just swam by your window. There was
a diver in the tank feeding the fish and it was funny watching the Rays
trying to steal the food bags from the divers utility belt.
After dinner we went over to Imagination and rode with Figment,then played
around in the Imageworks. We watched Capt. EO, then went out to find a
nice spot on the lagoon to watch Illuminations. Illuminations was as
good as ever, I get a big kick out of strolling the lagoon afterwards
and finding the special light poles that pop up out of rocks along the
lagoon for Illuminations.
We went over to pleasure island and watched the comedy show next.
It was well done and very funny.
Back to the hotel and some sleep.
Friday 3-22-91
This was our last full day with our flight on Saturday leaving at
2:40pm. This was a hot day well in the 80's. We first went to the Disney
Inn and played a round of golf on their nine hole executive course. I
have always wanted to play one of their courses, now I have. We then went
over to MGM to have lunch at the Brown Derby. I really wanted to try the
50's primetime cafe but we were in the mood for a good hamburger and 50's
doesn't have those on the menu so we were off to the Brown Derby. We were
seated in about 5 minutes with no reservation this is around noon.
We both ordered burgers which were very good, we skipped dessert because
we wanted to get moving again. The Brown Derby is a nice place but I did
not care for the atmosphere. It was very busy with a lot a hustle and
bustle. I probably will not go there again.
After lunch we went on the walking section of the backstage tour.
Then we walked down hollywood Bld and looked in some shops. Since it was
hot we headed for Typhoon Lagoon. We got there around 3:00, with a 5:00
closing the crowds were thin so we were able to ride everything we wanted
to including two trips around castaway creek. It was a nice break in our
day. We got changed and decided to spend our final Disney Evening at MK.
We parked at the Poly and took the Monorail to the entrance. Went to the
Walt Disney story. Disney was such a fascinating man this attraction
really does him an injustice. Much of the Audio of his old interviews
is difficult to understand. I think they could clean that up with some
of the sound equipment available today and sitting at MGM. We decided
it was time for dinner but had no idea where we wanted to eat. We both
felt like Italian food so we checked out the menu at Tony's and there
really was not much in the way of Pasta on the Menu so we went for a
stroll in search of a place to eat. We looked at the menus for King
Stephans and The Crystal Palace but neither really looked that great.
We ended up at the Liberty Tree Inn. I really like the look of this
place inside. We ordered fried Cheese as a appetizer and Freedom
Fighter chicken and a pasta Chicken combo dish were our entrees.
The pasta chicken was tasty but, the Freedom fighter chicken came in a
white cream sauce which had no flavor at all. Service was slow here
and we did not get out of the place until 8:15. Only 45 minutes till
closing. We went to ride our favorites, first the Haunted Mansion,
next Big Thunder Mountain, and our final ride for this trip was
Pirates of the Caribbean. I always end my trips with Pirates and
usually a RR ride back to main St, but no train this time. It was now
about 9:10 and we were walking out of Caribbean Plaza toward Frontierland
when I saw a small hole in the construction fence of splash mountain.
I decided I would take a look. I could not see very much but I had my hand
on this latch that opened the door!! Well, what else could I do so I
walked into the construction area. I really can't tell you much, they are
just moving dirt around at this point. There is some structural steel
beams going up but not much else. There are no concept drawings displayed
to show what the park will look like once this attraction opens. There
is a scale model of the Splash Mountain attraction concept on display
at the Main St RR station.
We walked down Main St and got on our Monorail back to the Poly.
It was a beautiful evening so we went down to Capt Cooks Ice Cream
shop and ordered ice cream sundaes. We then walked down to the beach
and ate our Ice cream while listening to the waves roll up and watching
the ferrys run back and forth. We finished our Ice cream laid down in a
hammock for a little while then walked back to the car. Another trip
to WDW had ended. But it was a nice ending.
Saturday 3-23-91
We took our time in the morning and checked out of the hotel at 11:30.
Once out we figured we would find that good Italian meal we were looking
for the previous evening. We drove to Lake Buena Vista and had lunch
at the Olive Garden. The place was nice, the food was nicer. We ordered
fried ravioli appetizers, and Pasta Primavera and Chicken Parm as our
entrees. They also give you a salad bowl for you to serve yourself from
and garlic breadsticks which I went crazy for. I must have had four of
them which is no easy task since they are quite large. We finished off
with Cheescake and coffee. It was a nice meal of good quality food and
considerably less than Disney prices. I would recommend this place for
good Italian food long before I would send anyone to Alfredos in EPCOT.
Nothing left to do at this point but drive to the Airport, and fly home.
General Comments:
This was a wonderful trip. I can't wait to return but, I will. I think
I will give Disney and Universal(which we skipped) a couple of years to
build new attractions and complete the ones already in the works. I hope
MK tomorrowland closes for an upgrade soon because it really really
could use a facelift. If not for spacemountain the place would be empty.
And indeed it was because Spacemountain was closed. The Hotel we stayed
in which was The Gold Star Inn, for those of you who are familiar with
Orlando this hotel use to be the Econo Lodge on International Drive.
The hotel was nice enough, it is not going to win any awards but they do
have an attraction desk in the lobby where you can purchase tickets and
get directions to anywhere you need to go. The room was kept clean and the
air conditioning worked. They also have a VCR in each room and a tape rental
machine in the lobby, I didn't try it out no time to watch movies. Hotel is
about 20 minutes from MK. 15 from EPCOT, MGM.
Closed attractions:
1) Space Mountain.
2) Swiss Family Treehouse.
3) River Boat
4) WDW Railroad (not closed but only runs between Main St and
Mickeys Starland)
5) Discovery Island (Which was scheduled to re-open March 24)
Site Construction:
Resort Hotels:
1) Dixie Landings- has some sections with completed exterior.
2) Port Orleans- is in about the same shape.
3) Contemporary- Construction is well under way for a new convention
center here. Parking is reduced and some lower tower levels are
closed to guests.
4) Grand Floridian- There is expansion going on here. I don't really
know if this is more guest rooms or a banquet facility but it has
been placed were the old self parking lot was. To park yourself
now you must pass by the main entrance of the hotel and make
your first left turn after that which is the self parking lot.
5) I really only saw minor excavation at Fort Wilderness and I would
guess this is for the Lodge??
6) There is a golf course going up near FW.
7) A sign across the street from Typhoon Lagoon proclaims
"Disney Boardwalk Construction entrance"
8) Across from Pleasure Island is a new build which has a sign
calling it "TEAM DISNEY" I don't know what this is.
I saw no real evidence of a new hotel on the MK monorail loop.
I know that there has been talk of a new hotel in the conference.
I either missed it or it just plain isn't there. I also saw no
sign saying watch for our opening in Princeton Mass, either so
I don't know what that was all about.
Well, thats all I have to report to all you Disney fans. If you
have any questions fire away.
-Rob
|
| 237.5 | Trip report 2/3 - 2/10 | LAVETA::J_PARSONS | George Stark: Not A Very Nice Guy | Sun Mar 31 1991 22:44 | 173 |
| Trip report for Parsons family, 2/3 - 2/10, 1991.
Sunday 2/3
Travel day. Left Colorado Springs mid-morning on Continental. Took a
quick hop to Denver, then a 4.25 hour non-stop to Orlando. Flight was
uneventful---the 2 little guys (2.5 and 5 months) were surprisingly
well-behaved.
Arrived around 6 pm, got the rental car squared away, and headed toward
the Travellodge in the Disney Village ($80/night). Almost missed the
exit, because there were cars backed up for close to a mile on I-4 for
some reason. Never seen that before in Orlando, especially at a
(supposedly) non-peak time like early February. Checked in to the
hotel, scoped out the room (only fair. Don't think I'd stay there
again), and headed over to the Disney Village for shopping and dinner
at Chef Mickey's (which wasn't very good this time around). Back to the
room, and crashed, with plans of heading over to our "real" hotel
before 8 am.
Monday 2/4
Got up around 7 am. Ended up getting to the Yacht Club around 8:30,
which was later than we had hoped. Got checked in, and got all our
World Vacation Plan paraphernalia. After about a 15 minute walk (no
exaggeration-----it was a *LONG* way from the desk to our room) finally
got to the room and got oriented. The room was very nice, with a
wonderful view of the Stormalong Bay complex, and EPCOT in the
background.
Had a late breakfast at the Yacht Club Galley. This was a buffet, and
I'd say it was only fair. The buffet at the Beach Club restaurant
turned out to be much better, and it's a character buffet too, but we
didn't realize that for a couple more days.
Decided to walk into EPCOT, which was a pleasant 5-10 minute stroll.
Spent the morning browsing the shops in France, Italy, Japan, Germany,
and England. Had lunch at Alfredo's. I had looked forward to eating
here for a long time, but now that I've done it I don't think I'll be
so anxious to eat there in the future. Food was pretty good, but there
is a definite sense of being packed into the place.
Kids were pretty tired, so we went back to the room fairly early in the
afternoon. While the wife and little guys were napping, I took a
reconnaisance run around the whole hotel complex, while our 10 year old
checked out Stormalong Bay.
Rode the tram back to EPCOT around 7:30 or so, and had a late dinner at
the Land Grille Room. As usual, this was an excellent meal. This was
our first $100+ meal on the "Gold Key" for this trip. After eating,
spent a few minutes watching the fountains at World of Imagination, and
then got into position for Illuminations, which was great (as usual).
It was pretty cool to be going the opposite direction of the crowds as
we headed for the "rear" exit!
Tuesday 2/5
Overslept! Thus, no breakfast today, as we wanted to be at the Magic
Kingdom very early. Got there about 9:10 or so. Buses from Yacht/Beach
Club were kinda slow getting there.
First order of business was making a beeline to King Stefan's
restaurant in the castle, to make lunch reservations. There was a
surprisingly long line to do this, but we did get a reservation. Headed
over to Fantasyland, and did Dumbo, 20K Leagues, and Small World, as
well as many of the shops, before our early lunch. We had a very good
table in the restaurant, and the food was pretty good.
After lunch, we saw Hall of Presidents and the Haunted Mansion, then we
took the gang over to Tom Sawyer's Island for an hour or so. The kids
really liked this. This was my 5th or 6th trip to WDW, and my first
time on the island. Thought it was pretty good, but it is being overrun
by those *&^% seagulls which appear to be trying to take over all the
Disney parks.
Finished up the day by monorailing over to the Grand Floridian and
having a leisurely dinner at Narcoosee's. This turned out to be our
most expensive meal of the week, at $148, but it was *really* great.
Elizabeth had a very large whole lobster, and I had a swordfish steak
in some kind of raspberry sauce. To me, this is the best restaurant on
Disney property (must admit I haven't tried the truly fancy places,
like the Empress Room and Victoria & Albert's, though).
Wednesday 2/6
This was MGM day. Went to the Cape May Cafe at the Beach Club for an
excellent buffet character breakfast. Got some good photos of Goofy,
Pluto, and Chip 'n Dale. The shots of Pluto "licking" the kids were
especially good.
I had to get Melony to MGM at park opening time for a Wonders of WDW
program, so we caught the first shuttle boat over. After I got her
situated in the class, I zoomed over to Star Tours, and walked on.
There was still no line when I finished, so I walked back on. I had
promised to get back to the hotel asap, since my wife had the 2 babies
with no assistance, so I hoofed it back to the dock, where I made it on
the 2nd shuttle of the day. Total round trip time for all this was less
than an hour!
We spent the morning just lazing around the "pool" (Doesn't seem fair
to refer to Stormalong Bay as just a pool!). Went back to the Cape May
Cafe for lunch. Lunch buffet was OK, but not as good as the breakfast
or dinner buffets.
We all went back to MGM to pick Melony up around 4:30 or so. Managed to
do Star Tours (again), Great Movie Ride, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, and
SuperStar Television. Elizabeth got to be one of the Ed Sullivan
singers, and had a blast.
Finished up the day with dinner at the Prime Time Cafe. Got back to the
hotel just in time to watch Illuminations from our balcony.
Thursday 2/7
This was my fishing day. If you're ever on the World Vacation Plan, and
care anything about fishing, you should do one of the fishing
excursions they offer. At $110/2 hours, I'd never do this if it wasn't
part of a package, but it's quite the experience. I had to be at the
Poly at 8 am, which was a challenge since I wanted to use the bus
system and they don't really get started good until about 8 or so. I
just about broke my neck getting there on time, to find that my guide
was nowhere to be seen. To make a long story short, turns out he had
gone to the Contemporary instead of the Poly, and it was after 8:30
before we finally met up. They gave me 30 extra minutes of time to make
up for the inconvenience. I only got 1 good fish (about 3 lb. or so) on
the boat, but had numerous strikes.
Once my trip was finished, I had to race back to EPCOT to meet
Elizabeth and the rest of the gang for lunch at the Rose & Crown Pub.
After lunch, I went back to the hotel room with the babies, while
Elizabeth and Melony spent the afternoon at River Country. They claimed
to have had a great time, though the temp's were only around 70 or so.
We spent the evening at EPCOT again, checking out the stuff in Future
World. Saw Spaceship Earth, World of Motion, and Wonders of Life.
Headed back toward the hotel before Illuminations began, and had a late
dinner at the Yachtman's Steakhouse, which was excellent, and very,
very filling. I had a 12 oz. filet mignon which couldn't have been much
more than 2-3" in diameter, and about 8" tall!
Friday, 2/8 thru Sunday, 2/10
Unfortunately I don't have detailed notes for our last 3 days. We spent
the time in EPCOT and the Magic Kingdom, and saw almost everything. The
things I regret missing most are Captain EO in EPCOT (never seen it, in
4 or 5 trips!) and Snow White's Scary Adventures in TMK (ditto).
General Notes
o I believe the Yacht/Beach Club resorts are going to be too
business-oriented to be good family places to stay in the future.
There was a convention or something starting the last night we were
there, and I felt like we were one of the few families there. It's a
shame they can't build a really elaborate mini-water park like
Stormalong Bay at some of the other resorts.
o Dolphin and Swan are still as ugly as ever, but they do have a
certain kind of beauty at night, with all the illuminated fountains.
o Once the Boardwalk area is completed, the EPCOT resorts area will be
quite congested.
o February is not a great time to go to WDW. Though we managed to avoid
many long lines, there *were* lines for almost everything. There were
lots of Latin American tour groups, also. The parks weren't open late
any day we were there. Next time we'll try December, to see if that's
as crowd-free as everyone says.
o Construction notes--Contemporary and Grand Floridian are both
building large convention centers. Work on the hotel at Fort
Wilderness is well underway, as is the golf course there. Was told by
a bus driver that the planned monorail hotel (he called it the
"Mariner") was on indefinite hold since the pilings they sank didn't
hold. Further engineering studies are being done now. Didn't see
Dixie Landings or Port Orleans sites at all.
o Was told by 2 separate drivers that Disney is working very diligently
on a 4th theme park in Orlando. Noone seems to know exactly what it
will be, but both drivers seemed to believe it'd be some kind of
wildlife-oriented attraction.
That's about all I can remember. Sorry for the delay in getting this
posted.
Jack
|
| 237.6 | Report for our March Trip... | PHONE::POIRIER | Disney Bound | Fri Apr 12 1991 14:14 | 570 |
| I've started this trip report with a brief summary of what we did and where we
ate. Following it is a detailed report for those die hards. It gives more
detailed reviews of what we went on, how we liked the rides and shows, what we
ate and what we thought of the restaurant etc.
Dates: March 24th - April 1st
Airline: Delta
Car Rental: Thrifty - red Dodge Shadow convertible
Hotel: Caribbean Beach Resort
Sunday: Arrived at our Hotel and settled in, took a nap and headed to
the Magic Kingdom for the evening.
Dining: Old Port Royale for lunch and Mile Long Bar at MK for dinner.
Monday: Spent the day at Typhoon Lagoon
Dining: Home made lunch, Fireworks Factory for dinner.
Tuesday: Universal Studios from 9:00 AM til 10:00 PM. Back to the future
was open for the week for "Technical Rehearsal" It doesn't officially
open until May. This ride was awesome (see detailed report).
Dining: Hard Rock Cafe for a late lunch.
Wednesday: Slept in...got to River Country around 10:30.
Dining: Home made lunch, Dinner at Top of the World for the Broadway
at the Top - we both enjoyed this.
Thursday: Spent the day in EPCOT from 8:00 AM til 3:00 PM.
Dinning: Hoop De Doo Revue - lots of fun
Friday: Spent the morning 8:00 AM til 1:00 PM at MGM
Spent the afternoon 1:00 til 5:00 sunning and napping. Hit EPCOT for
dinner. Spent the evening 7:30 til 11:00PM at MGM.
Dinning: Home made lunch, dinner at Arkershus (Norwegian Restaurant).
Saturday: Since it was raining we spent the morning in Future World at
EPCOT. Went back to the Hotel for a nap in the afternoon. Spent
the evening finishing up what we hadn't seen in EPCOT.
Dinning: Late lunch at Biergarten, home made dinner.
Sunday: It rained, actually poured during the morning but we braved
The Magic Kingdom. Got in a few of the rides before we were
too wet to go on. Spent the afternoon snoozing and watching
the celtics game in our hotel.
Went to Village market place to buy some souvenirs and eat
dinner. Drove to EPCOT and took the monorail to the TTC
from there we took another monorail back to the Magic Kingdom
for a few more rides.
Dinning: Fisherman's deck at the Empress Lily.
Monday: Beautiful day we spent by the pool. Later in the afternoon we
went golfing at the Executive course (9 hole junior course).
Dinning: Home made lunch and McDonald's for supper (yum).
The Gory Details:
Sunday: Limousine picked us up at 6:00 AM. This is the way to travel to the
airport!! It only cost $100 round trip. Our flight left on time
and we arrived in Orlando at 11:30. Rented our car (we spent more
for the convertible but it was fun to drive) and headed to Disney.
When we arrived at the Caribbean Beach our room wasn't ready
so we changed and sat by the pool til 2:30. We got the room we
requested, non-smoking king size bed. It was located in Jamaica.
The room was really perfect and the view of the gardens was nice.
The CBR landscaping is really quite nice and very reminiscent of the
Caribbean.
When we got our room we settled in and took a nap. At 4:30 we
headed to the Magic Kingdom. We followed the touring plan in the
Unofficial guide - day 2 of evening touring. This took us to:
Magic Journeys - OK if you like 3-d
Small World - I still like this ride but once is enough. Kids would
love it.
Wedway People Mover - good to get off your feet, some nice views.
Since space mountain was closed the lights were on inside
when we went through. It was interesting to see it all lit up.
They were also running the cars on the tracks at this time.
Both a sign out front and the Wedway ride said it wouldn't open
until May. This was a major disappointment since I love this
ride.
Carousel of Progress - cute
Mission to Mars - boring, unimaginative. This ride needs a face lift.
American Journeys - worth seeing. Reminded me of how many places
in the country I want to see.
At this point it was about 8:15. This is where we broke off from the
touring plan. The evening went smoothly and we waited in no lines.
We headed to Frontierland and got a bite to eat and staked out a spot
for the 9:00 parade. We sat on the corner in front of the Hall of
Presidents (per a recommendation from this file). This is a great
spot and doesn't fill up til right before the parade. Most spots
on Main street were gone at 8:15!
After the parade we headed to the castle to watch the fireworks and
tinker bell. Immediately after the fireworks they had a character
show - we stayed to watch for about a half hour. The show was very
well done and you got to see many of the Disney characters.
Since the crowd was thinning we headed over to Thunder Mountain.
They said it was a 30 minute wait but we ended up waiting only
15 minutes and this ride is worth it.
We then went to the Haunted Mansion where we got right on with no
wait. The special effects are still amazing to me!
We ended the night by taking the Skyway to tomorrow. Not worth the 10
minute wait but some good views of the castle.
Monday: About 8:30 we headed to the Goodings grocery store at the Crossroads
plaza and bought breakfast, lunch and snack foods for the week.
My brother drove up to see us so we wanted to do the things he hadn't
seen yet at Disney. We spent this day at Typhoon lagoon. We had
bought the Super plus pass so this was included in our ticket. I
bought him a one day pass at guest services. This proved to be
a good move since the line for tickets was very long when we got there
at 10:00. All the slide rides are fun and worth trying. The scariest
one was the Kowabunga (sp). You have to go on everything early...
later in the day the lines grow. The wave pool was a lot of fun - the
waves are huge! The landscaping in this place is incredible - not
like any water park I have ever seen. Castaway Creek runs completely
around Typhoon Lagoon, and is alot of fun if you don't feel like
riding any of the slides, or just want to drift around for a while.
We left around 3:00 and took a nap...headed to Pleasure Island for the
evening around 7:00. Ate at the Fireworks Factory. The drinks were
neat with the sparklers, the service was incredibly slow, the buffalo
wings weren't at all spicy, the food was ok. It took one hour after
ordering to get our buffalo wings (not worth the wait) and another 35
minutes to get our dinners. Since we were anxious to start seeing
Pleasure Island a 2 hour dinner wasn't really what we wanted so I
wouldn't do that again.
Pleasure Island was fun. The lines for the Comedy Club were too long.
We never hit it at the right time. We spent most of our time outside
with the band, inside XFRs and Mannequins. The one things I felt was
missing was a club that played oldies or swing music. Most of the
clubs appealed to the younger crowd. Although I'm only 26 I still
prefer a better mixture of music than top 40's dance tunes. So
although we had fun we only went this one time. I would have gone back
if there was a wider variety of music. Perhaps I'll write a letter!
Tuesday:This day we spent at Universal Studios. (I know this is the
Disney file but it was part of our trip) What a place!!
Ghost Busters: a neat show with great special effects. 5 minute wait.
Kongfrontation: An enormous King Kong attacks you and other passengers
during your tram ride through New York. It was very realistic. 10
minute wait but boy did the line grow long later!!
Earthquake: Great ride. First you watch Charlton Heston talk about
the making of the movie Earthquake. They show you how the special
effects were done. Next you take get on a subway and experience an
earthquake 8.3 on the Richter scale. Lots of special effects with
water, fire and things falling. 5 minute wait - again the line grew
much longer later in the day.
Back to the Future: We didn't think this was open - if we had known it
would have been the first ride we went on. We heard someone talking
about it so we headed over. They had said the wait was 45 minutes -
actually turned out to be about 30 minutes and the ride was worth it.
It turned out to be the best ride we had ever been on. You become a
time travel volunteer and help Doc chase Biff through time. You are a
passenger in a 8 person Delorean. If you get sick on Body Wars or
Star Tours don't even bother with this ride - it is 10 times more
realistic and bumpy.
Phantom of the Opera Horror Makeup Show: I didn't care for this at all.
It could have been a lot more and they really didn't show much for
makeup/gore/special effects. Not worth seeing (imho).
Went to the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch. It was only a half hour wait so
while we waited for our table we looked around at all the music
memorabilia. Lunch was typical Hard Rock fare - good but nothing to
write home about. My brother loved the place.
Animal Show: Extremely well done and entertaining. You watch Lassie,
Benji, a cat, a bird and chimps perform tricks.
Alfred Hitchcock's the Art of Making Movies: Good if you like Alfred
Hitchcock and his movies (my husband loved this show!). Children were
bored in the show. After the movie presentation of clips of all his
movies, they showed a neat 3-d "Birds" movie. After that you moved to
another theatre where they did a reenactment of the Psycho shower scene
and discussed how Alfred made the scene so scary without showing any
gore - this was interesting. Worth viewing but not worth a long wait.
(15 minute wait)
Hanna-Barbara: Similar to the "Back to the Future Ride" but the
special effects are all animated! It was cute and thrilling at the
same time! (35 minute wait - one of the longest all week!)
Ghost Busters & Beetlejuice show: This took place outside on the steps
of the New York Library. It was very well done and enjoyable.
Beetlejuice shows up and Ghostbusters arrive by their special car to
save the day!
Back to the Future: Yes we did it again! But it was better - only a
10 minute wait.
E.T.: This was a cute ride - worth doing once but not worth a long
wait. The line is deceiving. We were told it was a 25 minute wait
which it was on the outside!! Then you are admitted and end up waiting
in the forest for another 20 minutes! Disney does a better job on
these types of rides (imho).
Back to the Future: Again! This time there was no wait at all. We
hopped right on! Hints for getting the best ride - if you are on the
top or middle level try to sit in the front row of the car. If you are
on the bottom level, sit in the back row of the car.
When we got off our last ride on Back to the Future they had started
the stunt show on the lagoon. It's hard to get a good spot where you
are close to all of the action. It was worth watching though I think
the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular is better at Disney/MGM.
Just a few more comments - the outdoor sets were spectacular and so
realistic. We saw them shooting in quite a few places.
Wednesday: After an incredibly long day we were happy to sleep in. We didn't
get to River Country til after 10:30. Though Typhoon Lagoon and River
Country are both water parks, they are so different. I'm glad we did
both of them. River Country has some different things to do, a great
view of the Magic Kingdom and you swim in the lagoon rather than a
pool.
We headed over to the Fort Wilderness Marina at about 2:30 and rented
a water sprite. With two adults it was even slower than usual but
it was still fun. We drove by all of the hotels - the Grand Floridian
is just gorgeous. Definitely the place to stay on those special
vacations.
After our ride we headed back and changed quickly for dinner.
We got to the Contemporary at 5:30 for the Broadway at the Top
dinner/show. They ask you to be there a half hour before the 6:15
seating but this really isn't necessary. We did however enjoy a drink
and the view from the lounge. There is quite a bit of work going on at
the Contemporary - they are adding a convention center of sorts.
I know it is currently under construction but I didn't think it added
much to the Contemporary. It makes it look much more crowded.
Anyway we enjoyed our dinner and the show was very well done. Most
children were bored, as were some young adults (they actually left in
the middle of the show). You need to enjoy Broadway musicals - they
sung many of my favorite songs.
After the show we headed to the Grand Floridian to watch the Electrical
Water Pageant. It is suppose to be shown there at 9:20. Well we
caught the tail end of the EWP across the lagoon at the Polynesian and
then we waited and waited - no show!! So if you want to see the show
get the time and location pinned down. We were disappointed. So we
walked through the GF - wow!! Wonderful! Spectacular! After
listening to the piano player for a while we headed out to the GF
docks to watch the fire works. This was nice and they even broadcast
the fireworks music out on the docks.
Thursday: Today was our EPCOT day. We got to the park at 8:15 and followed
the first day of the 2 day touring plan in the Unofficial Guide.
It took us to
Body Wars: Worth riding but a let down after being on Back to the
Future.
Making of Me: Well done show! Great education for children.
Listen to the Land: Interesting! I enjoyed this.
Journey to Imagination: Enjoyable.
Captain EO: I liked this - I came out of it dancing. My husband
doesn't care for 3-d though.
Walked through Canada.
Explored the UK.
Explored France and watched Impressions de France. Excellent. Stopped
in the Pattisiere and had a chocolate eclair - it was sinful.
Explored Morocco and watched some dancers there.
Took the double decker bus back to the UK and had lunch per our
reservations at the British Rose & Crown. We ate outside by the
lagoon. The food was very good and authentic. Our waitress was
pleasant and fun.
Didn't have much energy left but continued.
Listened to some excellent singers in the American pavillion.
Watched the American Adventure - excellent show. One of the best.
Just took a look around in Japan and Italy. We took the ferry across
the lagoon and headed out of EPCOT for the day around 3:00. We spent
the late afternoon by the pool and napping.
At 6:00 we headed for Fort Wilderness for the 7:30 Hoop De Doo Revue.
They also tell you to be there 45 minutes ahead of time - if you
already picked up your tickets at guest services there is no need to
get there until 15 minutes prior. This is when an entertainer comes
out and starts the crowd singing and clapping. However don't forget to
leave time for the bus that transports you from the parking lot to
Pioneer Hall.
We got there early and spent some time in the petting farm. Had to
wash up so we headed over to the shop and looked around.
We both enjoyed the show and there was so much food, even my husband
was full. We started with salad, bread, nacho chips and salsa. Dinner
was fried chicken and ribs (my husband had no complaints about the
ribs!) Dessert was strawberry shortcake - which was yummy. I had only
made the reservations 3 months ahead of time so I was afraid we would
have bad seats but we were in the front row!! Since we were so full
afterwards we walked around the CBR lagoon. We watched Illuminations
from the bridge that goes to Old Port Royale.
Friday: Today was MGM day. We arrived at the park at 7:55 just prior
to opening. Today we followed the touring plan in the Unofficial
Guide. It took us to:
Star Tours: Short wait early in the morning. Unfortunately we had
problems with our "space car" so we had to re-load. It took us 45
minutes to go on this ride - valuable morning time! But it was a fun
ride.
The Great Movie Ride: I really enjoyed this. I would have liked to go
on it again but the wait was 45 minutes later in the day. We went on
the second car so we got the mobster scene. The animation was so good
I thought the witch in the Wizard of OZ was real...was she?
Back Stage Tram Tour: Worthwhile!! Catastrophe Canyon had me going!
Good special effects.
Monster Sound Show: Excellent Show! Very funny. Good audience
participation.
Superstar Television: Very Good Show! It's incredible what they can
do with the cameras.
Animation Tour: Excellent tour. Got to see the artists at work.
The tour guides - Robin Williams and Walter Cronkite were really funny.
I enjoyed this tour.
This is where we quit for lunch. We went back to the hotel and sunned
out by the pool. Took our regular afternoon nap!
Went to EPCOT at 5:00 just for dinner at Arkershus in Norway. The food
was good and I enjoyed eating from a buffet. You could try everything
and have as much as you wanted. This was perfect - we weren't afraid
to try new foods.
Headed back to MGM to finish up what we hadn't seen. First stop was
the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular. We went to see it at night per
the recommendations in this file. It was an excellent show....
especially on the stage! Yes I got picked to be the "crowd" on stage.
My husband flung my arm up in the air just as the woman looked at our
section. At first I was ready to kill him - but I had so much fun!
The stunts were great.
After this we walked around and enjoyed the sights. Went to see "Here
Come the Muppets" - this was well done & enjoyable.
Next we went on the backstage special effects tour. I got my revenge -
my husband got picked to be in the "water special" effects. He was
captain of a submarine that was being attacked. His sub blew up!!
HA! Again this tour was very well done, informative and enjoyable.
By the time we got out of the tour it was 10:30. Time to stake out a
seat for Sorcery in the sky. We sat right in front and had a great
view. For those touring MGM be forewarned that a large section gets
roped off about 10:15 for the fireworks...so don't save the Great Movie
Ride for last. The music and fireworks were great!
Comparison to Universal: They were both different and worth doing
I'd have to say on the whole Disney does much better with
the shows; they are more informative and better coordinated.
Universal's "Thrill" rides were a notch above Disney's Star Tours
and Body Wars.
Saturday: Overcast, light drizzle today. We spent the morning in Future World
in the Pavilions.
The Living Seas: Good...very informative. Quite a collection of sea
life.
The World of Motion: I enjoyed this ride - taking you through time to
see the progression of travel.
Universe of Energy: I had a hard time with this one - presented by
Exxon. I had a hard time dealing with the presentation - showing off
shore drilling, shipping of oil by sea etc. I couldn't help think of
the blackened coast lines, the stripped land...Anyway I didn't like
this presentation.
Communicore East & West: These were fun but being in the telecom &
computer field most of this stuff was pretty basic for us. It would be
a great place for children to learn though.
Went to the Biergarten for Lunch. This was quite good. We were
disappointed however that they only served Becks beer. The selection
at the British Rose & Crown was much more diverse. I had a combination
plate which allowed me to sample various meats - everything was
good. The only entertainment they had for lunch was an accordion
player. Had we known this we would have gone for dinner instead.
Next we went to China and saw the "Wonders of China" movie - excellent.
We called it quits - nap time. Returned at about 4:00.
Went to Canada and saw "O Canada" - enjoyed this movie.
We walked all the way around the world showcase even though we had seen
many of them. We wanted to take night pictures.
Went to Norway and went on the ride - it was enjoyable.
Next we went to Mexico and took the ride - good. The inside market was
cute. I wish we had the time to eat at this restaurant.
We went to the outside Mexican restaurant, ordered two margaritas and
staked out a spot for illuminations. It's quite a popular place to
watch the show so you have to get there early. The fireworks display
was incredible, the use of water, fireworks, laser and music was
fantastic.
Sunday: Easter morning we woke up to pouring rain....we decided to be
troopers and head out to the Magic Kingdom anyway. If Space
Mountain was open we would have done this first...however
we did the following:
Jungle Cruise: cute, worth one ride. The rain actually made things
seem more realistic. Short wait.
Pirates of the Caribbean: I like this ride. Short wait again.
Swiss Family Tree House was closed for refurbishment.
Haunted Mansion: AGAIN!! One of my favorites.
Hall of Presidents: Well done but a bit long.
The Walt Disney Story: I enjoyed this but sometimes the sound
track was difficult to hear.
We wanted to go on Thunder Mountain since the lines were so short
every where but I guess they close it in the rain. Makes sense
since the tracks were so wet.
This is where we got a bit too wet to go on. We wanted to watch
the Easter parade in person but we decided to head back to the
hotel and watch it on ABC instead. Funny thing about watching the
parade...it was suppose to be live...however when we turned on the
television it was sunny and 80 degrees at the parade. First I
thought - they must be at Disneyland instead. Well they actually
taped it on Friday just incase of inclement weather. A parade
with soaked participants and a crowd full of yellow ponchos and
umbrellas isn't a very happy Easter parade. After the parade
we took a snooze and watched the last quarter of the Celtics game.
About 3:00 it had stopped raining so we headed back to the Magic
Kingdom. First stop was the Locomotive ride. This ride only goes
from the train station to Mickey's Starland and back because of
construction going on in Frontierland for Splash Mountain (projected
finish date Fall of 92 - guess we'll have to go back then :-)
Quick walk through Mickey's Starland. Headed to Frontierland
for the Country Bear Jamboree. Stopped to take lots of pictures and
browse before dinner.
Headed to the Empress Lily and Disney Village Market place to buy some
souvenirs and eat at the Fisherman's deck. Though the food was very
good and the atmosphere nice, it was incredibly pricey. For the money
we spent I would have enjoyed another EPCOT restaurant more.
We wanted to finish the evening off at the Magic Kingdom.
First we went to EPCOT to pick up a map and entertainment schedules for
our souvenirs. We left our car at EPCOT and rode the monorail to the
TTC. From here we walked to the Polynesian for the 9:00 showing of the
Electrical Water Pageant - enjoyable but short :-(.
From there we took the monorail back to the Magic Kingdom. We took
more pictures of the kingdom at night. Then headed to Thunder
Mountain. The wait was only about 10 minutes. As we approached the top
of the Mountain the 10:00 fireworks started to go off. What a site.
Every time we came to the top everyone would start cheering and
screaming at the fire works display - it was awesome!!
Since we had such a good time on this ride we did it again...
Well we were just about to call it quits when we heard some one talking
about their ride on Space Mountain!!! Well we couldn't believe it was
open - we had just been there a week ago and they said it wouldn't open
til May!
We booked it over to tomorrow land and got in line. This was probably
the longest wait of the week. The tunnel into space mountain was too
hot which made the wait seem that much longer. I love this ride - I
wish we had the umph to do it again but we were too exhausted to wait
in line again. So we ended off our stay at the MK with a bang...
We took the resort monorail back to the TTC since the other was too
crowded. This can be a real time saver when the crowds are heavy...be
forwarned though, they do check resort ids ocaisionally. From the TTC
we got on the monorail back to EPCOT - we asked to ride in the front -
what a treat. This was great. What a nice view of EPCOT too.
Monday: This was our last day :-( We spent the morning by the pool,
checked out and spent lunch time by the pool. Headed over to the
Disney Inn about 1:00 to play some golf on the Executive Golf Course.
This is their nine hole "Junior" golf course. We enjoyed it - it
wasn't crowded and not nearly as expensive as their other golf courses.
Headed to the airport at about 3:00. Ate a quick bite at McDonalds,
dropped the car off at Thrifty and made it to the airport by 4:45
for our 5:45 flight. Flight was smooth and uneventful and the limo
ride home from the airport was a nice ending.
Comments:
1)The guide books we bought were invaluable. They helped us
get the most out of our trip. This file was great too - I printed
out many notes
2) We took 10 rolls of 36 exposure film. Needed a loan to
have them developed - so don't forget this cost when adding up
vacation expenses.
3) Want to know when we can go again. It was sooooo much
fun.
4)Things I would change:
- wouldn't eat at the Fireworks Factory or Empress Lily
- would schedule the Hoop dee Doo for a day we spent at a water park.
- would try to spend more time in EPCOT & eat there more too!
5) I loved the CBR - the landscaping was so tropical.
However the one thing I didn't like was the "motel" style, with
all the rooms off of the main balcony. This didn't prove to be
a problem until we had a few children check in towards the end of
the week. Seems their favorite activity was chasing each other
around the main balcony. This was annoying. In addition it
just lacked the privacy you get from a "hotel" style residence.
Other than that I loved this place.
6) There is still quite a bit of construction going on at the
Contemporary so keep this in mind when making plans.
|
| 237.7 | The Mattioli Trip 4/10 to 4/17 | USMFG::RMATTIOLI | | Mon Apr 22 1991 17:33 | 201 |
| Hello all you Disney fanatics, here is the Mattioli family DisneyWorld
trip report from April 10th to April 17th.
Who: Ron, Martha, Danny (6 years old), Bryan (4), Shawn (3 on 4/21)
Wednesday 4/10 - Left Logan @ 9:15 a.m. and arrived at the Grand Floridian
@ 2:45 p.m. The flights from Logan to Dulles and Dulles to
Orlando were very choppy! I felt that they were good training
for Body Wars and Star Tours!
As part of our package we had Mears transportation take us
to the Grand Floridian. Enroute I noticed the construction
at Dixie Landings on Vista Blvd. There were several foundations
and part of one of the buildings was beginning to take
shape. I also noticed on the opposite side of the Blvd. some
bulldozer work being done at the new home for what I recall
as being for some type of character/show rehearsals.
Upon arrival at the GF I observed the constuction of what
is to be a 37,000+ square foot convention center. Same type of
architecture as the GF.
Check in went quite smoothly and we were in our room at
Big Pine Key by about 3:10 p.m.
After unpacking and checking out the area we headed to the
Magic Kingdom around 5:00 p.m.
* Quick supper at Gurgi's Munchies & Crunchies (food was
fair)
* Big Thunder Mountain Railroad - Dan, Bryan, and Me.
* Pirates of the Caribbean - Shawn was not pleased, Danny
and Bryan loved it as much this time as they did in 10/89.
* Grand Prix Raceway - This was the boys favorite ride.
* Mickey's Starland - "Meet Mickey Mouse" - Shawn loves Mickey!
* Railroad to Main Street (MK closed at 8:00 p.m.)
* Back to the GF and watched the Electric Water Pageant from
the beach at 9:00 p.m. and again near the boat docks at
9:20 p.m.
Thursday 4/11
* Early Bird Breakfast with characters at the Tomorrowland
Terrace (food okay) 7:30 a.m.
* Grand Prix Raceway - Twice!
* Mad Tea Party
* Dumbo - Bryan, Shawn and Martha
* Snow White's Adventures - Dan and Me
* Mr. Toad's Wild Ride
* Cinderella's Golden Carousel - Bryan, Shawn and Martha
* Magic Journey's - Dan and Me
* Mickey's Starland - Mickey's Magical TV World
* The Haunted Mansion - Dan, Bryan and Me
* Back to Pool and Jacuzzi around 11:30
* Character Dinner at 1900 Park Fare ($52.00)
After Dinner we went into Epcot around 6:00 p.m.
* Body Wars at Wonders of Life - Dan, Bryan and Martha
* World of Motion
* Horizons
* IllumiNations
* Back to GF and had Ice Cream and Yogurt at Gasparilla's
Grill and Games.
Friday 4/13
Epcot 9:00 a.m.
* The Living Seas
* Shopping at the United Kingdom and Germany
* Lunch at Alfredo's - Minestrone Soup and Manicotti Excellent!
Note: Shawn slept through lunch!
Bus to MGM around 2:00 p.m.
* The Monster Sound Show - Excellent, great fun and audience
participation!
* Superstar Television - Dan, Bryan & Me. This was also a
fun show.
* Star Tours - Twice - Dan, Bryan and Me and then Dan and
Bryan went again with my Wife. What a ride! The special
effects are super!
* Animation Tour - Everyone enjoyed this including Shawn because
he saw Peter Pan!
* New York Street
* Honey I Shrunk the Kids - Couldn't get the kids out of
there! They had a blast!
* Ninja Turtles - pictures with Donatello
* Back to GF and had a bite to eat at Gasparilla's
Saturday 4/13
Spent the day at the Grand Floridian
* Pool and Jacuzzi
* I worked out at St. John's Health Club. I read somewhere
in these notes that someone did not work out because he
was on vacation, but I had to check it out and I did not
want to lose all that I worked hard for. So, I worked out
for 30 minutes then took Bryan out in the water sprite
and then took Danny out. Cost was $11.00 per half hour.
The boys and I enjoyed the rides!
* Dinner at Flagler's ($94.03) - Excellent food, ambience
and service. We especially enjoyed the singing waiters.
They sang Amore and in the song there are references to
Napoli and at the end of the song Bryan turned to me and
said "Dad, Monopoly is a game!" We just about fell off
our chairs with laughter! We will go back someday to
Flagler's.
* Electric Water Pageant at 9:20 p.m. near the boat dock.
Sunday 4/14 - Typhoon Lagoon - 10:00 a.m.
* We set up camp at Ketchakiddee Creek and all the boys rode
the floats. Given the boys liked this we decided to take
the next step and ride on
* Castaway Creek - nice calm ride.
* Lunch from Leaning Palms
* Gang Plank Falls - Family Ride - not for Shawn, too fast
and wet.
* Mayday Falls - Me - loved it!
* Keelhall Falls - Me - loved it!
* Typhoon Lagoon - Dan, Bryan and Me. Bobbed in the waves
and then did some body surfing. The three of us had a great time!
* Storm Slides - Three Times - Dan and Me. Had a blast!
By this time Danny wanted to go on the Humunga Kowabunga
and I had built up my courage but it was closed at that point
in time and was reopening as we left.
The Shark Reef Snorkeling pool was closed for renovations.
All in all a great day and it was all part of our Super Passes
which were good from the day we arrived until midnight of
the day we departed.
We then went to the Marketplace to do some much needed shoping
at Mickey's Character Shop.
We then headed back to the GF for a quick bite at Gasparilla's.
Dan, Bryan and I then headed into the MK at about 6:45 p.m.
The MK was now closing at 9:00 p.m.
* Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
* The Haunted Mansion
* Space Mountain - I hadn't been on this since 1974!
* Wedway People Mover
* Dreamflight - Bryan asked "Dad, are we dreaming?" The mind
of a four year old is really something!
* Grand Prix Raceway
As we headed back to the hotel we watched the Electric Water
Pageant from the Monorail.
Monday 4/15
* Breakfast at the Grand Floridian Cafe ($30.00)
* Pool, Jacuzzi and Health Club
* Dinner at Narcoossee's at 5:45 p.m. ($72.00)
Sorry folks, but we were not impressed.
Back to the magic Kingdom around 7:00 p.m.
* Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
* The Haunted Mansion - Dan and Me
* Grand Prix Raceway - Bryan, Shawn and Martha twice
One of the Monorail's door system was not working properly
and it took us 45 minutes to get back to the GF as Disney
worked to remove the defective Monorail.
Tuesday 4/16 MGM 9 a.m. bus from in front of the GF
* New York Street to Fototoons for a family picture with
Mickey and Minnie ($17.97)
* Star Tours - Dan, Bryan and Me
* Window shopping
Bus back to GF around 11:00
* Pool, Jacuzzi and Health Club
* Dinner at the Grand Floridian Cafe - nice meal ($40.00)
Shopping at GF stores
Early to bed - travel day tomorrow
Wednesday 4/17
* Breakfast at GF Cafe ($30.00)
* Depart GF at 10:50 a.m.
Choppy flight home - but we have survived Body Wars,
Star Tours and Space Mountain!
Observations:
* The Monorails are new since our last trip. The doors
are no longer closed by hand (the conductor/operator pushes buttons)
and the cars seemed to have more room.
* Our longest wait was 15 min. - Animation-everything else we either
walked right on or waited no more than 10 min.
* The Poly is undergoing renovations.
* One can see the Swan/Dolphin hotels from the Monorail between the
GF and the MK.
* The Convention Center at the Contemporary has a different architecture
than the Contemporary.
* The Grand Floridian is one beautiful hotel!
* I was surprised to see the GF bathrobes for not only Martha and I but
for all three boys as well. I thought they were for Concierge only.
* The turned down beds and Godiva candies were a treat at the end
of the day.
* The cast members were very good overall. We had one excellent
bus driver on our second trip to MGM. He had everyone on the bus
singing the Mickey Mouse Club song and he was cracking jokes all
the way to MGM. Our return bus driver did not even want to drive
our route. Talk about different ends of the spectrum!
* One of the best things we did was to bring small boxes of cereal,
boxed juices and coffee cakes etc. with us so that we did not
have to sit down to breakfast each a.m. Most of the time all
the kids wanted was some cereal, so we wold buy some milk at
Gasparilla's the night before and put it in the fridge till
brakfast time.
* We will return! All it takes is $$$$$!
Regards to all of you Mousketeers etc.,
Ron
|
| 237.8 | April 1991 Trip Report | AKOCOA::MACDOWELL | | Tue Apr 23 1991 10:48 | 216 |
|
WHO: The MacDowells-- Tom, Susan, Katie(2 yrs 11 months), Jenny (6 months) and
Grandma
WHEN: April 11 through 15
COST: $2253, including transportation, hotel, food, passes, and trinkets. This
figure is somewhat misleading as my husband and mother flew down on a package
she'd won at work. So, the costs represent:
Delta Dream Vacation package for myself and daughter (hotel, air, 5 day
superpass for me (daughter not yet three, so no pass needed), airport shuttle:
$1324
Additional passes to Typhoon Lagoon for Mom and Tom: $36
Additional Transportation (to and from Logan, parking, stroller rental): $125
Food (meals and snacks for all):$623
Trinkets:$145
Car, Airfare for Mom and Tom, Mom's hotel for three nights, 4 day passes for Mom
and Tom, included in her trip.
WHERE: Tom and I stayed at the Carribean Beach, Mom at the Hyatt, right outside
of WDW
THE TRIP:
Thursday, April 11
I flew down in the am with kids, Mom and Tom to arrive Thurs night.
Delta Flight left Logan half an hour late, at 9. Flight was uneventful although
we did not get a spare seat for the baby, so she was on my lap the whole way.
Found out on return that they fill the empty middle seats from the front, back,
so if you want to try to keep the middle open for a car seat, you should book as
far back in the plane as possible. Wish I'd ordered a kids meal for both myself
and Katie--it was Cheeris, cheese danish, and great looking fruit salad,
compared to standard plane eggs, sausage, biscuit, and three chunks of melon.
Land in Orlando at 11:35. Mears shuttle to Carribean Beach..Check in took
forever, but our room was ready, so we dropped off our gear, grabbed some
crackers from the minibar and headed over to the MK by bus.
Our first stop was to be Mickey's Starland, via the Steam Train. I did not rent
a stroller, as they're not allowed on the train. The show was starting as soon
as we arrived, so we went right in. I was disappointed...the show seemed to me
to be one giant ad for the Disney Channel, complete with rap music (which I
can't stand). Katie enjoyed it however. After the show, the line to meet
Mickey was too long, so we proceed directly to Fantasyland. We did the Dumbo
ride, Cindarella's Carousel, and Peter Pan...waiting no longer than 15 minutes
at each. We had a quick dinner at Tony's on Main Street, themn back to the
hotel and the pool.
I had been trying for a month to get Hoop de Doo tickets, with no success, and
had tried again at check-in, and when we returned from the MK. I tried again(out
of habit, more than hope) after our swim and was lucky enough to get
reservations for the 5:30 show on Friday. We raced over to Guest Services to
pick them up before they closed at 8, and then proceeded to the Food Court for
ice cream. I was very disappointed in the "Food Court" set up at the CBR.
After waiting in lines all day, I'm not crazy about waiting in lines to eat,
too.
Friday April 12
All five of us catch the first bus to the MK at 8 am. Gates opened to Main
Street at 8:30. Tom got the stroller, I raced up to the Main Strret bakery to
get danish, OJ, and coffee. We settled in at outdoor tables to wait for the
park's official opening at 9. This is when the first moment of "magic"
occurred. Birds flew over to our table, looking for crumbs...these birds are so
tame, they eat right out of your hand! The look on Katie's face when the bird
marched over to her, and ate from her hand was priceless. All weekend, she
called the birds "her friends". A great start to a great day.
We raced over to the Jungle Cruise, and made it onto the third boat. We thebn
did Pirates of the Carribean, and the Haunted House with no wait. 10 minute
wait in Fantasyland for Small World, and Carousel again. On the way we ran into
Chip, Brer Fox and Brer Bear near Splash Moiuntain, and got autographs and
pictures. Took the raft over to Tom Sawyer's Island at 11, had lunch, and did
some exploring.
After lunch, Mom watched the kids while Tom and I did Thunder Mountain. 15 min
wait. Katie needed a break by this point, so it was back over to Mickey's
Starland and the playground. The line to see Mickey wasagain too long, but
Pluto, Minnie, and two other mice were outside.
Tom's a music buff, so we headed over to the Coca Cola corner for ragtime piano.
He listened to the music, while I staked out our parade seats. The wait was
worth it, when during the parade, Winnie the Pooh came over and kissed Katie.
We listened to more music after the parade, then took the ferry over to Fort
Wilderness. Both kids fell asleep on the boat ride. Hoop de Doo was GREAT...as
much fun as everyone had said it would be...we all ate too much.
Everyone was still feeling chipper (but full), so we took the bus to TTC, and
the monorail to Epcot. Walked right onto Spaceship Earth...which wound up being
my favorite Future World attraction. Then went over to the Universe of Energy.
I enjoyed the ride, but the movies seemed to be pure PR for the oil companies.
We did Body Wars--which I did not like--I was so busy trying to catch up with my
stomach, that I didn't enjoy any of the visual effects. I think this could have
been much better. At this point we were too tired for anything else, so we went
back to the CBR, had a quick swim, then to bed.
Saturday, April 13
Had muffins and coffee in the car on the way to Epcot. We didn't realize that
out CBR ID card entitles us to free parking, so we paid the $4. We drove
instead of taking the bus, because we planned on spending the whole day at
Epcot, and didn't want the wait for the bus after Illuminations.
We played in Communicore East, until thte gates opened at 9. We were the first
ones in Horizons(good), then to World of Motion (good), and Journey into
Imagination (ok)...then over to the Living Seas..the reef ride was incrediibly
disappointing--it was very short, and we were glad there hadn't been a wait. It
wouldn't have been worth it. Over to the Land, where we had our first wait of
the day. Good ride, then up to the Land Grille for lunch. The food was ok, the
waiter snooty. It was the first time I felt uncomfortable about having the kids
with us.
We began the World Showcase at 12:30. Canada--good movie, and street music
(Maple Leaf Brass Band). UK--quick walkthrough, as we didn't want to risk the
shops with kids. France--stop for pastry, which I was disappointed in.
Morrocco--good street show,Japan--again, only a quick walk-through. We hit the
American Adventure with no wait--GREAT SHOW. At Italy, we took the boat back to
the plaza, and walked over to Mexico for a Margarita break. Alittle shopping
in the indoor plaza, and the the boat ride. This was a big hit with Katie, who
at the end said "Can we do this again?" I think Mexico was the first place in
Epcot that she really enjoyed. The Norway boat ride was fun, and followed by a
short movie. We saw the movie in China, which was good, but it is tiring to
have to stand dfuring these Circlevision 360 shows..especially when you have
small children who need to be lifted to see.
Then over to the Biergarten for dinner. Food was good, service quick, but beer
selection limited. But the show was fantastic. Lots of fun, we all enjoyed
ourselves tremendously.
As suggested, we staked out our spots for the fireworks between Mexico and
Norway. While we were waiting, two ducks came over and begged for food. I am
not kiddin. They walked right over, looked us in the eye, and quacked. After
about 15 minutes, when they realized we weren't going to give up our spots to
get them food, they moved down the line to someone else. Illuminations was
incredible. Best light show I've ever seen.
Sunday, April 14
Breakfast in the car on the way to MGM. Gates don't open til 9, but you can see
characters walking around on the other side. Katies gets Donald's autograph.
We were right over to the Great Movie Ride. We got the Western Scene. Good
fun. Then over to the Backstage Shuttle, on the way out, the Turtles were
signing autographs--separately, so there were four lines--over to the Animation
Studios, then Indiana Jones. There had beeen no waits, so it was 10:30, and we
had done with what we'd planned on seeing at MGM. We had an early lunch at the
Portobello Yacht Club (best meal of the trip), and went over to Typhoon Lagoon
for the rest of the afternoon. That evening, Tom and I went back to Epcot with
Jenny, while my mother took Katie to dinner. This is worth a note. Katie is a
real Little Mermaid fan, so in reading in the Birnbaum book that the Beach
Club's signature restaurant was "Ariel's", and themed accordingly, my mother
decided to bring Katie there for dinner. There was not an Ariel in the place.
Tom and I had a Guiness at the Rose and Crown, and then headed to dinner at
Alfredo's. THe service was good, the food not very. The veal was like shoe
leather, the salad watery. Good cannoli, though, and the "Cafe Alfredo", with
sambuca, brandy, and amaretto, was good, too. All in all, though, not worth the
money.
Monday, April 15
Checkout and leave for MK by car. Arrive promptly at 9. Head over to
Fantasyland, and do MR Toad's Wild Ride, and Snow White (which had previously
had lines, but none this am). THen over to Mickey's Starland, where outside we
ran into Goofy, Pluto, Minnie, Mr. Smee, Eeyore, Donald, Suzy Mouse...and,
finally, no line for Mickey. This is where Jenny finally paid her way. After
we took Katie's picture with Mickey, we started to leave. MIckey indicated that
he wanted the baby. More pictures. Next family gets there pics (we're still
packing up). Mickey wants more time with Jenny. Then of course, more time with
Katie ( to make up for spending time with the baby...then, Mickey wants a family
shot). It made up for all the times we'd tried to get in.
Over to Tommorrowland--Space Mountain closed, but we did the Delta Dreamflight,
and GE Carousel of Progress. Line too long for StarJets, and I didn't want
another Circle 360 show, so we bypassed American Journeys.
We went over to Liberty Square, hoping to taste the Monte Cristo's everyone in
this file had been raving about, but he Colombia Harbor House was closed for
renovations. We did the Hall of the Presidents, and then had lunch at the
Liberty Tree Inn. After lunch, we knocked down a few tombstones in the Shooting
Gallery, then back to Main Street. Mom held our parade spots, while I did some
souvenir shopping, and Tom listened to piano. We had some ice cream cones from
the Sealtest shop while we waited for the parade to start. After the parade, we
left the park (on a high note), and took the ferry to the TTC, and our cars.
The flight back was delayed from 5:45 to 7:00, arriving in Logan at 9:45. We
did manage to get a center seat for the baby, though, so the wait wasn't too
unbearable.
We're already planning our next trip!
OVERALL OBSERVATIONS:
-I don't know if it was the time of year, or our excellent planning, but our
longest wait was 10-15 minutes. In general, though, we just walked onto our
rides.
-Best meals were at the Portobello Yacht Club, and Tony's in the MK. Worst food
at Alfredo's.
-All in all, Epcot was a disappointment. It doesn't have the "Magic" that the
Magic Kingdom does. This may be because we were tied down with two children
under three, and couldn't enjoy all it offers for adults. Or, it could just be
that we were expecting so much from it, that it couldn't live up to
expectations. This is not to say that it wasn't good, it just wasn't as GREAT
as the MK.
-The tips in this file were super, and enables us to get the most out of our 4+
days.
|
| 237.9 | Carlson's April Trip report | WRKSYS::CARLSON | Dave Carlson | Thu Apr 25 1991 17:21 | 130 |
| The Carlson Family WDW trip 4/11-4-21
Who: Dave and Roberta Carlson with our kids, Nate (age 15),Allison (age 12),
Stephanie (age 11), and Nate's friend Bob (age 15).
We didn't leave Leominster until about 4:15 P.M. on Thursday 4/11.
Our first stop was Lewisburg,Pa to drop off the old dog with the
other old folks (my in-laws). It was after 11 until we got there.
Friday Morning we are up and on the road around 8 and the kids immediately
go back to sleep leaving a nice peaceful start to the trip. Until we get
to the Baltimore/Washington area.
We had a problem here which I detailed in my note in the RV conference
but won't talk about here.. Cost me about 2 hours of travel time. :-(
Friday night we stop at "South of the Border" and decided we wouldn't put
the trailer up, and instead stay at a motel. We checked into the Days Inn
while the kids visited Pedro.
Saturday morning I called WDW to confirm we could check-in later in the day
on Saturday and we set sail for Florida.
AH, Fort Wilderness...We check in and the cast person tells us that
Space Mountain has reopened early...YES!!!!!!
We arrived late Saturday afternoon and got set up. We ate at the Italian
night buffet at Fort Wilderness and after headed over to the Poly (only Guest
services office open that late) to get our Superpasses..
By the way the PRICE HAS GONE UP...It is now 147.XX including tax WITH
the MKC discount...After we got our Superpasses it was off to Pleasure Island.
The kids could go but had to stay with us (15 year olds were bummed) and
boy was it CROWDED....Could be a lot of fun (sans kids).. The line for
the Comedy club was horrendous and since the kids were a bit yancy we headed
back around midnight...We planned to try and hit P.I. again and get to the
Comedy club, but no success.
Sunday AM. Up at 6:30 and over to the showers to beat the crowds..Then off
to Epcot for the day.. The crowds on Sunday weren't bad and we got in and out
of Body Wars with less than a 10 minute wait.We had dinner that night at the
German Biergarten. Make sure you reserve early and use guest services...
We got out of the Biergarten and scurried around the lake to watch the Laser
light show at 9. It is fabulous and should not be missed!!!
Monday was Magic Kingdom day.. On the way over to catch the boat I stopped to
see if we could get the 7:30 Hoop Dee Doo that night and we could, so I
canceled our previously made reservation for Tuesday night at 10.
We were over in the park early and hit Space Mountain and the Thunder Mountain
railway before the crowds hit. We headed back toward Main street too late to
get a good view location for the parade so we decided to hit adventure land.
We leave Magic Kingdom early enough to head back for the Hoop Dee Doo..
We were two tables back from the stage.. The show is terrific and should not
be missed.. Six of us ate 1 bucket of ribs and 3 buckets of Chicken, the
whole meal is really great. The look on my wife's face when she got "served"
the chicken was worth the price of admission.
Tuesday was Typhoon Lagoon day, aka Dave the lobster day. This is a really
fun water park and worth spending a day...be forewarned that there is a limited
number of "large lockers" which is the only size a VHS Camcorder with case
will fit in. Fortunately we had decided to drive over so we filmed for a bit
and took the cameras and some other stuff out to the van.
Tuesday night we went back to Epcot in that my daughters wanted the Robot to
draw their pictures and they had not gone to the Energy or Horizon exhibit.
Wednesday was MGM day. We hit Star Tours at 9:15 and followed that with the
Indiana Jones...both really great. Wednesday we had scattered Thunder showers
but only got caught in an outside line once in the rain. I liked the
Animation attraction, Superstar TV (Didn't get picked though).
I can somewhat understand what Henson Associates might be upset about.
The Muppets show had rock songs and not the "normal" Muppet music.
For older kids it was OK, but the loud music probably scared the snot out of
young kids (Sesame street age) who were expecting " Rainbow connection" etc.
Wednesday night we ate supper in the 50's Cafe...Make Reservations if you
are planning to have supper there..The cast was great and generally will
"feel you out" to see if you want to observe or participate in the "zaniness".
YA, we participated...What a riot.....
Thursday morning we headed to the Poly for the World famous "French toast
filled with bananas". Don't use the syrup (sweet enough without it).
It may not sound delicious but it is.
Thursday was a rest day and the kids went to River Country during the day,
(Lobster Dave didn't need any more sun and hitting the water was liable
to be painful). We did some wash and got things somewhat organized. I took
down the screen room and awning after the sun went behind the trees.
OOPS remember that bad brake on the trailer?
Late Thursday afternoon we went off the property to get citrus and to go
to Camping World to buy some stuff and maybe get those brake parts.
Too late. Camping World was closed. I decided that since it behaved so well
on the way down once I disabled it, that I would got back that way.
Thursday night back to the Magic Kingdom for the last minute browsing for
souveniors and ride Thunder Mountain railway at night (one of my favorites)
and Space Mountain (of course). They didn't get us out until the final sweep.
Just soaking up the "magic". The boat ride to F.W. is always enjoyable
and beats the heck out of the bus.
What was good? All the "special dinners were really fun". HDD was the best.
The EPCOT Laser show. Imagination at Epcot.
Star Tours
Ah heck, all the features are good..
What was bad? Buses..insufficient quantity at peak travel times and typically
bunched up.
Overpacked Monorail, both times we were on it...
The Dolphin has to be the Ugliest large structure on earth.
Friday Morning we put down the camper and head out of WDW onto I-4 at 9 AM.
I learned a lesson in geography and in estimating Friday...
First,Wilmington NC really is out of the way when travelling to Florida.
Second, my Brother in law must go 90 MPH or not have to stop for anything
to travel in the time he said it took. HE said, "WDW to Wilmington? 10 Hours"
Not quite, it was just under 600 miles and took us 12 hours.The side trip to
Wilmington meant that we travelled 12 hours on Friday and 12 hours on
Saturday to get to Lewisburg,Pa.
After retrieving our dog from my in-laws in Pennsylvania, we drove home on
Sunday (Monsoon Sunday)..
It's funny, all three travel days on the way down were nice and sunny with
all three travel days on the way back being rainy with the weather getting
progressively wetter each day..sigh..
Dave, who needs a recovery time....
PS. Both my son and his friend bought the Jessica Rabbit Boxer shorts...
|
| 237.10 | April 5-10th, 1991, One great time | ASABET::C_AQUILIA | | Fri Apr 26 1991 09:27 | 381 |
| this is my first try with a trip report so you have been warned.
who? just the two of us. a nice, well behaved couple :) :)
our trip was a five-night stay at the carribean beach resort from april 5th
through april 10th, 1991.
we arrived into orlando from a non-stop flight from logan in boston, mass.
and were part of a delta dream vacation package so i can not tell you how
much the flight was. when we arrived it was a bit cloudy and soon after
we got out of the airport and into the bus that took us to our alamo rental
it started downpouring. of course i didn't realize that in florida just
because you have a shower doesn't mean that the day is blown. soon after
we arrived to the rental agency (a six (6) mile drive away from the airport
via bus) the rain stopped, clouds thinned and by the time we got our
buick century it was sunny and gorgeous, about 85 at 1:30 p.m.
we were a bit dissapointed about traveling away from the airport to get our
rental car and even more surprized that our car cost us approximately 100.00
when it was supposed to be part of our package. they did not include tax,
gas, insurance etc. we also had to wait about 30 minutes to get the car
but i wasn't complaining because afterall; i was only 30 minutes away from
disneyworld!!!!
when we arrived at our 'beach resort' about 30 minutes after leaving the
alamo rental i was surprized not to see the castle and what i always called
the 'big golfball'. i had no idea that disneyworld was 45 square miles
and has 35,000 thousand employees but that is another story. we checked
into the custom house after taking a ride around the cluster of different
building and opted for the recommendations in this note to try the aruba
complex. we had a garden view and asked to be upgraded but our package
made that impossible. didn't matter much after we chose the second story
room in room 5550 because the hallways dividing the rooms allowed everyone
to look into them so we kept the blinds shut anyways. the room was great,
regardless that we didn't have a waterview. the beds were firm, the
bathroom was just big enough and the sinks were nice outside the shower area
so two people could get ready at the same time. there was also a stocked
refrigerator in our room that had a complete bar set up with nips, wine,
beer and all kinds of food! basically everything that a child should
not be eating! of course, we thought it was very expensive (3.25 for a nip
and 5.00 for 6oz. of pistashios) but after seein' the normal prices of food
and beverage they seemed pretty reasonable!
our building was next to the pool and behind the beach. old port royale
was about a 1/4 mile walk from there which was a nice stroll in the morning.
i never swam in the water at the beach and the pool water was real hot the
first day but never too crowded to find a seat and enjoy it anytime during
the day. the pool for each complex is open till midnight and is not deeper
than 6ft deep. the banana cabana pool at old port royale is bigger than
the complex pools and offers a alittle slide and lots of atmosphere for
the children. this seemed to be the place for the kids to hang out and there
was a nice beverage/bar at the pool side.
so after we got settled we decided to head to epcott and see the first part
future world. by the time we changed and got to our bus stop which was
about a 2 minute stroll from our door we got to epcott around 2:30. now..this
is part that none of you will believe but we walked on everything that
afternoon in future world. in fact, by 6:30 we had seen everything that
there is to see in the first part of epcott cept the starship earth and
the land ride. seriously, we just walked on everything!! that afternoon
before heading to the rides there was another shower so we ate at
communicore east. we had a cheeseburger basket and a soda, each of us
and it ran about 10.00. the burger was dipped in bbq sauce which made
it quite tasty for fast food and they allowed us to use the salad bar
to get fixing like pickles and onions if you wanted to make your lunch
special. still even that however, there was considerable grease on both
the fries and burger. we left epcott and headed back to our room about
7:00 and changed to return and see the rest of the stuff that we missed
but, we just walked around admiring the fountains and stuff and before we
knew it, it was 9:15 and we hadn't eaten dinner. we were in the land building
and decided to finish up the few things that we didn't see in futureworld
and the world showcases some other day and have something to eat. we opted
for convenience to get a good seat for the illuminations show and ate at
the bbq fast food type place right there. i had a pork bbq bun with cole
slaw and alan had the same but with beef. he didn't like his beef that
much and said that the pork was much better but again, its greasy food.
the cole slaw was very different but o.k. none the less. by the time
we got to the world showcase at 9:50 it was packed so we didn't get a good
seat for the light show, but, it was still fabulous! we were close to the
gates too, considering the people that we on the other side of the park
and therefore, got to the bus station and home about 10:40ish which wasn't
too bad. we were exhausted and our feet were slightly warm so we just
headed to bed that night with a 6:30 a.m. wake up call. i don't remember
my head hitting the pillow and suddenly the phone was ringing.... its
saturday!
i was still happy to get up, dispite the lack of sleep from getting up at
4:30 a.m. the other day and not getting to sleep till after 11:00 p.m.
because let's face it, the best had yet to come. because of family joining
us and wanted to go to the magic kingdom we decided to give mgm a shot
today. we strolled over to old port royale (now referred to OPR) to have
a quick bite to eat. every restaurant that is there offers breakfast.
there was tons of people filing in and out and the pool was already
beginning to fill at 7:30 a.m.! we opted to go fast type food again, and
got a croissant filled with jack cheese, an egg and bacon. talk about
grease, it kept getting worse! we left 1/2 our breakfast, not sure if it
was from the excitement of getting there or from the greasy food but
anyways... we picked up the bus at OPR (which stopped at the actual
bus sign to the right of the front door. make sure you understand the
difference between the OPR bus stop and the different stops on the internal
route) and wound up at MGM (which is less than five minutes away) at 8:30
and the doors were just opening.
MGM was the best day trip i thought. again, we had no lines and the
streets were empty at that time of the morning. we headed right to the
great movie ride which i think was my favorite ride of all disney world.
after that we headed to the other small rides and went to indianna jones
at 10:30 a.m. for their scheduled show. this was my second favorite
show of the world... they really did a fantastic jobs with the stunts
here. (remember to take your camera as you can take pictures there!)
and then we headed for lunch (because we were smart and made reservation
(in person which are a must) when the studio opened at prime time grille).
this was my favorite place that we ate on the whole vacation. the setting
is just out of 50's and its done to perfection. i had aunt selma's chicken
salad (which i will be writing to bon appetite' to get the recipe for) and
it was filled with raisons and pineapple chunks on a bed of lettuce. alan
had a ceasar salad with shrimp and i have never seen such a big salad for
one. the food was terrific, all down to the fresh HOT rolls served from
bro who was told by mom to bring them out while we waited. the salads
were perfect for our hot and sunny 85 day and with a bloody mary and a
beer is came to 16.00 without tip. that afternoon we went to the animation
theater and saw the robin williams film (very funny!) and then headed
to back stage tour where we could take more pictures. we left after
seein' everything but muppets, shrunk the kids and let's make a deal at
3:00 p.m. the minute we got to the pool to relax and start our tan it
clouded up so we showered very early and headed to pleasure island. we
had 6:30 dinner reservations for the fisherman's desk and thought we
could have a drink before going to the riverboat to get our 20% discount
to enter pleasure island after 7:00 p.m.
the fisherman's deck is a non-smoking restaurant and the waitors are
dressed in black tux's with peach shirts. alan didn't like it but
commented he thought riverboats had a tradition of it. we had three
baked cheeses as an appetizer (4.95), mahi-mahi coated with macadamia
nuts and seafood/pasta primavera as entrees. pasta was 21.95 and the
fish was 24.95. both were o.k. but not worth the price we thought. it
started kicking in to my head finally that this was the prices of
disney food and that we were destined for average, highly priced food
for the remainder of our trip. after a glass of wine and tip the
dinner was about 70.00 and we headed to pleasure island where our
receipt for dinner there got us 4.00 off the entry fee but still it
was 20.00. because of special banquets alot of the clubs were not
opening till 9:00 p.m. and seein' how it was only 8:00 we went to
the neon armidillo (country/western) after much persuation by me. its
a typical western bar and the women wear jeans with boots, blue work
shirts and hats. the drinks are quite reasonable there, and we met
some people that tried to show me how to two-step. it was quite fun
and alan admitted to enjoying himself but we left soon after because
we wanted to see everything that there is to see. when we came out
i noticed the bands setting up and the music playing throughout the
streets and the street bars that were every 50 feet or so. quite the atmos-
here, you have to see it to believe it. our next venture was to
the adventures club where we had the time of our life. again, we
met some people and soon after chatting were interrupted but a french
maid, in outfit and all, that seemed pre-occupied with dusting the
butt of a full sized naked statue of a man. there was also other
live talented individuals that put on a show for you that you will
not forget but i don't want to spoil anyones fun so we'll leave it
at that. by this time it had gotten dark and the streets were packed
with people litterally 'dancing in the streets'. after 9:00 p.m.
i thought the children under 16 or so would be far and few between
but they were out there with their parents who seemed not to mind
the drinking atmosphere around them. we headed to the other clubs,
and at one alan played a few hands and lost 5.00 but these
clubs were very dark, noisy, and for more the single crowd type so
we just strolled on it and out and then headed home about 11:30 p.m.
yes, we did miss the fireworks but we were tired and didn't feel
like waiting for a bus with all the 'happy' people that would be
waiting and because of the time change thought it would be best.
we forgot our wake up call and didn't get in till 12:30, which in
reality was 1:30 and made it to the magic kingdom with a very heavy
stomachs had at 9:00 a.m. our breakfast of an uncooked bagel and cream
cheese from OPR was sitting hard in our stomachs but none the less,
we were still smiling!!!
so day three, and feeling less than settled we met alan's family
and headed toward the doors that had just opened. this day was
even less crowded than the other two. alan's family could not
believe it. we walked the frontierland with about 10 other people
in the streets and walked on to everything. because everyone in
our party knew the kingdom i was able to see every ride possible,
with the exception of three at the most and i'm not kidding. we
spent the whole day there taking the trainrides and sky transportation
when our feet were tired. we ate at the cafeteria type place and
enjoyed it very much. the food was reasonably priced and the
area was extremely clean. i had a mexican club pocket which was
rolled with turkey, hot stuff and salad stuff and it was terrific.
i split this with alan who had a side salad and his family had
some pasta. the lunch for four was about 35.00. we had a jazz
band come visit us too which i don't know about you, but make me
feel uncomfortable when 'm eating.
anyways... back to the kingdom. i suppose after seein' the newest
of the theme parks first this seemed rather old but i still loved
every minute of it. i enjoyed the kids just as much as the rides
as you saw them living out their wildest fantasies. we headed home
with a few gifts at 6:00 p.m. and this day, both alan and i limped
home. our feet were hurting so much that we just headed to the
OPR for some burritos and then went home. we got there at 10:00
and that day too i don't remember my head hitting the pillow. after
all this work we decided to have a wake up call at 7:00 and head
to typhoon laggoon for some much needed rest; if that is possible.
another gorgeous day so we packed up the backpak with camera,
our towels, sunscreen and jumped into the bathing suits to head
to the lagoon for the day. breakfast was at the OPR again and
this time i had the french toast which was pretty good. alan had
a regular eggs and bacon breakfast and commented that that too was
good. with coffee's in hand we headed to the OPR bus stop to
catch our bus. the lagoon didn't open till 10:00 that morning
because of surfers using the wave pool so we were early and had
to stand in line (after getting our 18.00 each) passes for about
15 minutes. soon after they opened we headed for the lockers,
which are now 2.00 a day and you can open it all you want without
having to deposit new quarters. the clouds hadn't thinned as
we hoped so we headed to the creek/river ride to check out the
place. that was a good idea as the river wasn't too filled with
people. we hit the waterfall and got soaked so we decided after
that to just go through everything and forget the sun, even though
by then it had come out in full swing. the rides and everything
are terrific. i can't tell you how the cowubunga slide was like,
because i didn't go down it. alan says that it was over before
he knew it but it gives you a wedge in your suit so beware. we
used the rafts, single and four person for a while and then headed
to get some lunch. i am not sure if there is more than one
place to get a bite but i'm sure its all the same. i had a chicken
sandwich that was pretty poor and alan claimed that his cheese steak
was dinty moore beef stew but hey, you are not there for the food
right????? i spent the afternoon laying out and enjoying what you
can of the wave pool. people are right; the waves are way way over
4ft tall but we found the pool to be too crowded to really enjoy
them. everytime one came you would end up with feet and hands
all over you so we took that time to take advantadge of lower
lines in the creek and the slides. alan ventured to the creek again
(15.00 shorter from losing some petty cash in the river. turned his
pocket completely inside out so beware!) and when he got me 2 hours
later he was sunburn beyond repair for days. we went home like two
lobsters and had reservations for narcoosee's at the grand floridian
at 7:30.
the grand floridian is everything that they say it is however, i
found it quite stuffy after seein' the casual attire and talk
that happened every night/morning at our resort. let's face it
though, the carribean beach is a family resort and this place
wasn't. narcoosee's sits in the back of the hotel overlooking
the water on the north side. unfortunately for us we did not
see the sun set because of that. they leave you alligator spread
with your rolls and butter and i suggest that you try it. it
tastes like deviled ham or some say bologna but either way, its
tasty and something that you probably won't see again. i ordered
snapper grilled and alan had a prime rib. his rib was quite fatty
but the meat parts were good he said. my snapper was great and
i was glad that i tried it. all vegetables for dinner btw have
been fresh since we arrived. the bill with two drinks and two
beers was around 65.00 without tip. this seemes to be the norm
now. after enjoying a leisurely dinner we headed to the lounges
at the hotel (grand floridian) but the garden view was empty and
the upstairs one (captian mitzer's?) had only a few people in
them. regardless, we had our night cap and watched the parade
in the water that was right outside our window seat. while munching
on whole cashews and having yet another one of those tropical
drinks we looked back on our vacation and smiled while thinking
of you people in massachusetts in the cold. we got back to our
room at a reasonable hour and woke up at 6:30 a.m. ready for the
rest of epcott center.
we skipped breakfast this moring (because i had other plans) and
headed directly to the world showcases in the opposite direction
that everyone usually sets out in. this was the best part of
the whole day because no one was in the countries at all! they
were all either starting at mexico on the other side, (the side
that the guide starts out in) or at the future world trying to
get in the big rides first) so ... when we got to canada i had
streets of nothing but scenery to take pictures of. no people
in the camera view at all if you can believe that. we saw the 3-d
at canada which was something else and then headed to the others.
stopped (my plans) at france for a coffee and pastry which was out
of this world. again, taking pictures with no people in them
at all we shopped and visited all the different countries ending
up at mexico for lunch at the san de cantina ??? or something like
that. its a fast food type place and i should of known that
greasy city was upon us but we still tried it and threw most
of it out. there was a band to entertain us but we left due to
the crowdes and finished up just as everyone else was leaving
the futureworld attractions and heading to the worlds. just our
luck, we walked on starship earth. never got to the land ride
though... the lines were terrible due to the fact that it was
the late lunch crowd and that ride sits in the farmers deli
complex. our guess was that people were eating there and just
getting on the ride after. still happy with our day we left
to go back to the pool at OPR and stayed there for a bit before
we headed home to shower and return to epcott for our italian
dinner at alfredo's.
our dinner reservations were at 6:15 and we arrived at 6:10
practially running through the worlds to get there. the place
was mobbed and i was not at all expecting 'that much' of a crowd.
we reserved smoking but after being asked if we would take the
first that came available we decided that it was not important
either way. when i looked into the place i saw that several noters
who said that they cram the people in there were correct and
started to frown that i had not listened to the previous warnings.
as i was thinking outloud however some lady mentioned to me that
the food is worth it so we cheered up and waited for our table.
a child started crying and whining while we were waiting and
the hostess stopped everything she was doing to give the baby
attention and a chocolate to calm her down (not sure if the
chocolate would help) but she did something right as the baby
could not take her eyes off the authentic women from italy.
shortly after that we were seating and smiling ear to ear over
the menu selections. the waitor took our order of drinks and
when alan requested a heinekken he corrected him and said, "an
italian heinekken?" so alan agreed with him. he was quite surprized
to see his beer come back with the green bottle but an 'imported
from italy' sign. although not heinekken he said it was quite
good. the food was hard to decide on and i am happy that i
noticed their chef's selection of your pasta being anything on the
menu but served as an appetizer, a salad and anything that is
veal or chicken for an entree. alan had the spaggetti di'calamari
and i had the fettucini alfredo as appetizers so we could try
eachothers. both were quite good but not as good as we had
hoped. the entrees were veal marsala and veal parm and again
they were good but i've had better. our dinner price was average
and after that we headed to the swan and dolphin, the beach and
other club to check them out. they are very nice. the swan
and dolphin look like an apartment complex when driving by
but up close some have balconies and the inside is very modern
and beautiful. the beach and other club (i'm drawing a blank
on the name) were totally gorgeous. coming from new england
i think they did a good job with the decorations. it has short
ceilings however and must be uncomfortable for some. anyways..
the pool at the beach club is everything that they say it is.
it shouldn't be called a pool either. we saw a spiral stair
case that had a shoot coming from it into the pool but neither
one of us thought it would be a water slide. is it?????????
anyways.. after touring around these places we headed home
to our hotel extremely tired and again slept very well.
getting tired of reading? think about my hands and fingers!!
seriously, our last day we decided to have no wake up call and
took our time getting packed up. neither one of us wanted
to leave disney world so we decided to get another night.
the carribean was booked completed and the prices of the other
resorts were up in the 300's and 400's which i thought wouldn't
be worth the one night stay so we stayed at a run of the mill
(according to the operator) room at the comtemporary for 125.00.
we packed up the stuff in our rental car and headed over there
but our room was not ready so we decided to go to river country
and check out fort wilderness (oh, btw, we called for reservations
for the hoop de do review the minute we got in our hotel that
friday and guess what??? nothing all week!! we tried getting
cancellations all week too and nothing but the 10:00 p.m. show
so i suggest you do them asap!!!) anyways.. once we got to river
country it clouded up and we had family to visit so we headed
out and by the time we got back to disney it was 10:00 p.m.
we were hungry and ordered a pizza for room service at 11:30 p.m.
with extra cheese, onions and peppers. after 35 minutes the pizza
arrived and there was way too much cheese in it but we ate it
anyways. we got up that morning feeling quite depressed that
our vacation had ended. after having some blueberry stuffed
french toast at the concourse for breakfast we went to the pool
at the contemporary and layed in the sun for an hour before
heading out. just before checking out i called to confirm our
reservations and american express had cancelled our flight home.
i wanted to stay but we decided to get to the airport early
to ensure our flight home.... afterall we did have a beautiful
week there and i couldn't of asked for a better vacation.
lucky us we did get to the airport early (alamo tells you 1 1/2
hours before your plane leaves!) and they were right. the lines
to check baggage was something else at 12:30! anyways.. we got
on our flight and headed home to boston, arriving in a 5:00 p.m.,
the day the fenway park opened, and it was only 52 outside! ugg!!
so i warmed myself with memories of the best vacation of
my life.
enjoy all!
cj
a mickey lover forever!
|
| 237.11 | Schneider trip report, April 1991 | NOVA::ASCHNEIDER | Andy Schneider - DTN 264-5515 | Mon Apr 29 1991 16:17 | 138 |
| Schneider family "driving excursion" to WDW, April 1991.
Who - Andy and Shirley Schneider, with Eric (5 1/2) and Jason (2 1/2)
also, met my sister at WDW, who lives in Deerfield Beach, FL
We live in NH, and drove down to Orlando. We left on 4/2, and arrived
in Orlando on 4/5. We left Orlando on 4/10, and arrived back in NH
on 4/12. See note 48.36 for a report on the drive and the routes
we took.
We arrived in Orlando on a Friday afternoon. After being forced off
I-4 by State Police due to an accident, we wandered thru the
back roads around Orlando to get around the wreck. Unfortunately,
everyone else did, too, so it took an hour to go 2 miles. Yecch..
Our destination was the Guest Quarters Suite Hotel, part of the
WDW "Village Hotels". We checked in at our $89 per night rate,
and got a great suite. Bedroom had 2 double beds, TV, vanity
area and a full bath (with another TV). Living area had
sleep sofa, TV, dining table, chairs, lounge chairs, plus a "Kitchen
counter" with a fridge, microwave and sink. They have some
complimentary juices and coffee, but there's other "goodies" they
charge for, so beware (i.e. keep the kids hands off those
$1.50 candy bars!!). The hotel restaurant was great for
breakfasts, and the pool area was really nice (outdoor, large
pool and splash pool, playground area, and bar/arcade/ice cream
area). There was a Disney gift shop and an information stand
there where you could buy tickets for any park, from 8am-11pm each
day.
We had bought 4-day passes back in NH beforehand, and planned
our first 3 days, and left #4 open.
Day 1 - Epcot Center. Took the bus (next time we go to Disney, we'll
stay in a resort/village hotel again, just to take advantage of these
great shuttle busses) to Epcot, and spent the day (until 2pm) going
thru most of the "front" attractions, and got as far as Mexico. Body
wars was great, and the kids loved the "slow" rides like those at
the Transportation building and the Mexico exhibit, as well as
Spaceship earth. My wife lost her glasses, and couldn't find them.
After we left the park, we called back and found they'd been turned
in and we got them later that night. It was hot that day, so back
to the hotel for some swimming, then some dinner. Went back to
Epcot to get the glasses, and then hopped the Monorail to the Magic
Kingdom to catch the Electrical Parade and the fireworks. Grabbed
some snacks, too. A long day for the kids (especially after driving
4 days), but they loved it.
Day 2 - Magic Kingdom. Got there a bit after 9 (slept toooo late), and
wandered thru the different "lands". It was really hot (again), so
we kept towards inside attractions (country bear jamboree, haunted
mansion, etc) when we could. The kids got really cranky towards
mid-day, so we slowed our pace and left around 3pm back for the
hotel. We got a good amount of rides under our belts, and saw a whole
lot of characters along the way. Back at the hotel, another swimming
excursion and some rest. That night we got a sitter for the kids
so my wife, sister, and I could go to pleasure island. Pleasure
Island was really neat. We ate at the Fireworks warehouse (can't
remember if this is the real name or not), then hit the various
night spots and celebrated new years eve at 11pm that night. The
thunderstorms held off until we got back to the hotel, around midnight.
(The babysitting service we used was Fairy Godmothers, as recommended
by the hotel. The woman that came did a great job, and kept the
kids occupied throughout the evening. The price was a bit steep,
that being $6 per hour plus $5 transportation charge, but they were
reliable and we didn't worry putting our kids into their hands
1400 miles away from home. We needed that night :-) ).
Day 3 - MGM Studios. This day wasn't as hot as the others, but
for a Monday the studios was PACKED. We got to see the Ninja
Turtles, and went thru the Honey I Shrunk The Kids playground.
Star Tours was great (again), and the live show outside (a Disney
Review) was great for the kids. We ate lunch at the 50's Cafe
in the park, and it was a great time!!! Lots of nostalgia in
going back to my Mom's kitchen, and even getting yelled at to
take my hat off just like at home :-). It was my birthday
that day, but my wife forgot to tell them it was. Good thing,
because I would have hated to see what they would have done to
me!!!! Back to the hotel at mid-afternoon for some more swimming
and rest. That evening, we went to the Disney Village marketplace
for some quick dinner and gift shopping. Back to the hotel for
some sleep (zzzzzzzzzzzzz).
Day 4 - Back to Epcot for the final day. We found the kids REALLY
loved this place, even more than the MK. We hit the Living Seas
and the Land that day, and caught the dancing food show. The kids
have talked about both exhibits since we got back. My older son
insisted on seeing Captain EO, and actually survived the loud
music!! After lunch, we hit some of the country exhibits, and
relaxed in the American History show with the imagineering
characters. It was great. We wanted to come back to Epcot that
night to see the Laser show and fireworks, but we were toooo tired.
We hit the hotel mid afternoon, and crashed pretty much for the
rest of the day. There's a small strip-mall right next to the
village hotels, and they have multiple restaurants (Mc Donalds,
Red Lobster, TGI Fridays) and a full grocery store. It's within
walking distance to the hotels and a nice alternative after
getting straight shots of disney for 4 days. Packed that night,
and hit the road the next morning.....
Overall, it was a great trip. Some general impressions:
- WDW is huge. You can't express this in words. It's huge.
- Great place for kids. Lots of helpful folks. Stroller policy
is great (we got one ripped off at Epcot and got a replacement
with no questions and nothing but smiles)
- We'll never drive again. We had a TV/VCR in the van, and it
was comfortable. But next time, no matter the air fare cost,
we'll fly. However, we won't get a rental car. Once on the
WDW grounds, you'd lose big $$ by having it in the parking lot...
AS for costs, I don't have specific amounts, but generally:
- Driving from NH to FL to NH was 2800 miles. 5 nites hotel, tolls,
gas and meals cost about $700 (ballpark)
- Hotel at WDW was $500 for 5 nights.
- Meals were relatively cheap at the hotel ($8 buffets, $3 for kids),
but were OUTRAGOUS in the parks. Sometimes you get stuck and
have to eat there, so make sure you've got $$ kicking around.
- Park prices were $325 for 2 adults and a child (approximately)
- Souvenir prices weren't too bad, but lugging them around was tough
at the parks. Shopping at the disney village was better for
that reason. We spent about $100 in souvenirs, but took a TON
of pictures (8 rolls)
Wow, that's my report. There's probably stuff I'm missing, but
this should be enough for now.
andy
|
| 237.12 | May trip to WDW | TOTH::NAUTILUS | | Mon May 13 1991 03:57 | 51 |
| <<< CLOSET::W7_:[NOTES$LIBRARY]DISNEY.NOTE;1 >>>
-< The Disneyphile's Disney File >-
I am going to give this a try...
Who went.... My son, myself, my mom, my sister and my brother...
Where we stayed Sonesta Villa Resort
How long 5 short days
Well we left Logan on May 1 at 8:45 am and landed in Orlando at approx
11:45 am...Proceeded to pick up the rental car and luggage and off to
the Sonesta. Arrived at the hotel and decided that this was to be the
day we hung around the pool and enjoyed doing nothing.
Next morning off to the Magic Kingdom where we mostly stayed in
Fantasyland and Futureland. Of course we took a ride on Space
Mountain. My son who is 7 and a little small for his age just made
the height requirements He loved it and mom was a wreck. He also
misplaced his camera (Ninja Turtles) which I am happy to say we
received in the mail the day after our return from WDW. Also he really
enjoyed seeing the Disney Afternoon show. And of course the characters
themselves. Photos autographs etc. The following day I wasn't sure
what his response to EPCOT would be so we decided to take on River
Country in the mornig/afternoon and Epcot in the afternoon/evening.
Illuminations was just breathtaking and really made Epcot for my son.
Also in the UK the theater players had his attention.
Day three it was off to MGM and to find those Ninja Turtles which of
course made his day but he also enjoyed the stunts from Indiana Jones
and off course the Honey I shrunk the Kids playground all and all it
was a pretty good time and then we finished up the evening back at the
Magic Kingdom and then back to the hotel. Although we still had 1 day
left on our passes it was decided to spend our last day in Orlando at
Sea World seeing Shamu and the dolphins and seals etc. So we checked
out and spent the day there then headed down to St. Pete for the last
leg of our trip whick included visits to family and friends who lived
in the area and of course a trip to Busch Gardens.
All in all the trip to Florida was 8 days with 5 being spent around
Orlando not enough time but fun anyway. BTW....weather was 90 and
above the whole week. Thunderstorms at 9:00 pm the night before we
left. Definitely worth returning when I can swing it again....Longer
stay and rest time in between trips to the sights.
As I said though A GOOD TIME WAS HAD BY ALL....
Forgot to tell you who we are....
Pat Geary and my son Jimmy, my sister Kay, my brother Mike, and my
mom Ruth.
|
| 237.13 | The Webers, May 1991 | RANGER::WEBER | | Tue May 21 1991 15:24 | 217 |
| Trip report of Danny & Judy Weber, May 3-8, 1991:
We had to be in Tampa for a few days and decided to visit The World.
This was our fourth visit--we were there last in 1987. Unlike many of
the other noters, we don't plan, don't schedule, don't stay on property
and don't read Birnbaum. Despite this, we usually get to see everything
we wish to see and rarely wait on lines. Our simple strategy--when
things get crowded, go to EPCOT. The only preparation we did for this
trip was to stop at PL Mall and buy 4-day passports. We also read
noter's comments on MGM--much thanks for the advice.
We are serious photographers who find WDW a pleasant change from our
usual scenic haunts, so we spend much time taking pictures. We already
have 1400 edited, sorted and catalogued slides of WDW. We shot 24,
36-exposure rolls this trip, the least we have ever taken. Many of them
are good--we have no idea what we're going to do with them, but I'm
hoping that some will replace some of the ones we already have.
We drove up from Tampa on 5/3, checked into the Wynnfield Inn on I-192.
We thought this was a fairly dismal place, with small, dark rooms. It
seemed even worse than it really was because we had stayed at a bright,
roomy Guest Quarters Suites in Tampa. However, it was only $39/night
and we had no intention of being there except to sleep. It did include
24-hour coffee and fruit, and the rooms appeared identical in size and
layout, if not in decor, to those of the CBR. It turned out to be
clean, quiet,comfortable and everything worked, so we stayed. It
typically took us 15 minutes to drive, park and tram to the gate of any
of the parks.
We drove over to The Dolphin to meet friends for dinner. My first
reaction to the fish and bird was gut-wrenching--these are really
grotesque places. By the end of our visit, I'd gotten use to seeing
them, and was actually getting to like them. They don't seem all that
out-of-place in a fantasy world.
We had an 8:30 dinner at Flagler's in the Grand Floridian. Didn't need
reservations for our party of 8. We have stopped eating at restaurants
in EPCOT and TMK, finding them mediocre, overpriced, crowded, noisy and
badly staffed. We'd rather snack our way through the day (and night) at
the counter services or carts, saving both money and time. We were
pleasantly surprised to find the food, service and atmosphere here to
be excellent. We both had the "surf & turf" specials, which had a
perfectly done filet mignon and half of a 1&1/2 lb lobster on angel
hair pasta with a nicely spiced marinara sauce and vegetables. Our
calimari appetizers were very lightly fried and not at all rubbery,
served with the same sauce. We have no idea what the entrees cost, but
the tab for the table ( one round of drinks, no wine, no deserts) was
$450.
5/4/91
Perfect weather all day. Low 90's, high humidity, mostly blue skies.
Got to MGM at 9 AM. Hit TGMR first, no wait, did left (gangster) side.
It was okay. Since Alien and WOO are on our top 10 movie list, we
especially liked Nostromo scene and Munchkin Land. Went right over to
Star Tours--5 minute wait. Loved it!!!
Took in Streetmosphere for awhile, did some photography. Went to
Indiana Jones 10 minutes before 11:30 show, were turned away. Were told
that wait time for Studio Tour was 25 minutes. Park was very crowded by
this time. Got on boat to Swan/Dolphin, took tram over to EPCOT.
From some noter's comments we had expected the Swan/Dolphin to trash
the view from France. We were happy to see that they are reasonably
well hidden from most views, and are far enough away to not dominate
the landscape when they can be seen. We hit the American Pavilion,
shared a foot-long hot dog, stepped inside just in time for the singers
and a show. Unabashed patriots, we really enjoy this show. Onward to
Norway, the only World Pavilion that's new to us. Enjoyed the look of
it. 10-minute wait for Maelstrom, sat in rear of boat. Got great view
of falls, couldn't see much else, Judy got soaked. Subjectively seemed
to take 30 seconds, was okay, not great. Film not as bad as I'd
expected, and was short. Spent some time in Germany (good pretzels) and
England taking pictures.
Reversed our trip to MGM, got there at 4 PM, took Studio Tour (no
wait). Disappointing. Not much studio to see, Catastrophe Canyon was
tamer than we'd expected. Did a little of the walking part, noticed
that IJ show was about to start, walked over and was seated with no
wait. Good show, though Judy figured out the gag part from the stunt
show at Knott's Berry Farm. Did Stars Tours again (no wait), TGMR right
(western) side (no wait), finished walking part of Studio Tour, walked
around taking pictures until fireworks. Enjoyed this--just the right
length, very exciting show. Park closed at 9 PM.
5/5/91
Same weather, all day.
Earlier I'd mentioned that we don't read guidebooks. We do know that
the books claim that May is a slow month and that Sunday mornings are
the best time to visit TMK, so we arrived at TCC early, along with the
rest of civilization. What a zoo!!! I guess everyone reads the same
stupid advice--this was as crowded as we've ever seen it.
We have never been on a few rides because they always seem crowded,
even during the parades. This trip we were determined to try them, so
we headed straight for Fantasyland, got right on Snow White's
Adventure. We really enjoyed it--just like an old-fashioned fun-house
ride. Waited 15-minutes for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. Enjoyed this too, not
as much as Snow White. By the time we got to Peter Pan, the wait was
25-minutes. Too long for us. Instead, we broke a 27-year-old promise to
never go on Small World (no wait) which we made at the '64 World's
Fair. Halfway through, we were thinking of swimming ashore. Not quite
as bad as the Tiki's, but close. Skyway is being refurbished.
Walked through different lands for awhile but it is much too crowded
for us, so we monorailed to EPCOT. Did East Side of Future World. As
usual, enjoyed Motion and Horizons, tolerated Energy (love the ride,
hate the movies: our favorite time was last visit, when the ride broke
and we had to leave through an emergency exit before the film). Did
Body Wars and Cranium Command at Wonders Of Life. We had been wondering
how people could love Star Tours and Hate Body Wars--now we know. We
found it boring--orders of magnitude worse than Star Tours. CC was
cute, but we had no big desire to see it again.
Back to TMK by 4:30 PM. Went to Jungle Ride, sign says 25-minute wait.
We look at line, say "no way", ask attendant, he agrees, changes
sign to 15 minutes, actual wait is 12 minutes. We know our stuff :-).
Flames coming:
This ride is hokey. It is supposed to be. Sure the puns are old, the
"dangers" laughable, the effects low-tech, but we had a guide who did a
great job, really had the patter down and seemed to enjoy it. We did
too: we laughed, we groaned, we ducked when he said to. We were alone
in this--the rest of our crew sat there like statues (yes, they did
speak English). What a bunch of duds! I've seen some noters complain
that this ride is a dull, but we always have a ball. This ride
requires audience participation and a little imagination. I think some
guests are just too jaded. Flames off.
Onward to Pirates--no wait, ride is broken. Treehouse being
refurbished. Go to Mansion, one of our favorites, walk right in. Over
to Fantasyland, do Peter Pan's Flight (10-minute wait), really like it.
Hit Teacups, Carousel, Wedway, Dreamflight. The latter is another first
time for us--we like this kind of ride. Skip Space Mountain--Judy's one
ride was enough for her. 15-minute wait for 20,000 Leaks Under The
Sink. We do it, but this is one ride that we think could use updating.
Park is closed when when we leave ride at 8PM.
5/6/91
Sunny and hot through mid-afternoon.
Hit TMK early, have to wait on Main St. until 9 AM. Go straight to
Pirates, another favorite, no wait. Thunder Mountain had just opened
when we last visited: there were constant one-hour waits that time, so
we skipped it. Walk on this time. Another winner--this is our kind of
coaster. Debated riding again, but there was a wait by this time, so we
visited Mickey's Starland. Enjoyed taking pictures. More flames: more
than once, parents pushed their small children in front of us as we
waited our turns to pose with a character. I hate to be put in the
position of having to beat out a 5-year-old to take a picture. The
parents will probably wonder why their children grow up to be rude.
Flames off.
Over to Liberty Square, do Hall Of Presidents, which could use a better
first half. Take Riverboat ride, wander up to Main St, walk through
shops, sit around people-watching, go back to Frontierland for 3 PM
Character Parade. We usually watch this from Main St. Guidebooks say
less crowded in Frontierland: guidebooks lie. Seemed just as crowded,
and parade doesn't get there until 3:15. Good parade, but we're getting
roasted in the sun.
Drive to EPCOT, park car. Just as we open car doors, torrential rain
starts. Recline seats and take nap. Half hour later, no sign of letup,
we drive back to hotel. Rain stops at 7 PM. We go to EPCOT, hit
Imagination first-no wait. This is probably our favorite ride. Then, to
Mexico. This is another of our favorite pavilions --we enjoy the
atmosphere; the ride is entertaining and never has a wait. More hot
dogs at American, get to Spaceship Earth at 9 PM, just as Illuminations
is starting. No wait.
5/7/91
Last Day. Mid-80's, mixed skies.
At EPCOT at 8:45 AM, wait at Communicore for opening. Go straight to
Living Seas, no wait. Spend 2 hours: this is another favorite of ours.
Stop at The Land for an early lunch, have Seafood Handwich. Very good,
our thanks to the noter who suggested it. We have no desire to Listen
To The Land, so after eating, we continue back through the World
Pavilions some more. Spend some time in Canada, England, China and
Japan. We skip the Circlevision shows--one viewing is enough for us. In
the afternoon, we go back to Future World, revisit Motion, Horizons and
Imagination, catch Anacomical Players at WOL--very funny show, thought
this was the best part of WOL.
Spend evening shopping in World Showcase, hit them all one last time.
No wait at Norway. We sit near front of boat, enjoy ride more--at least
we can see something this time. Still seems too short. Get to Spaceship
Earth at 9 PM (no wait) for one last ride before leaving :-( :-(
Trip costs:
Plane Fare, Boston-Tampa, Orlando-Boston: 2 @$178=$356
4-day Passports, w/MKC discount + tax: 2 @ $110=$220
Hotel: 5 nights @ $39 + tax=$215
Avis Car Rental, prorated on weekly rate: $100
Parking, 4 days @ $4=16
Food: 4 days @ $30=$120
Film & Processing, 24 @ avg $9=$216
Total damages: $1,243
Postscript: One thing we were worried about was the idea we had gotten
from some of the noters that the expansion of The World had led to
inferior recruiting and training of cast members. We were relieved to
find that all the cast members with whom we had contact were bright,
cheerful, helpful and had all the usual Disney traits. The closest
thing we had to a problem was that the attendant at the International
Gateway double-stamped our Passport. He told us not to worry and just
point it out the next day and that they would overstamp it. We did,
they did, no problem, like he said. Remember, this was the *biggest*
problem we had in four days. No wonder we keep coming back.
|
| 237.14 | The Steinhardts 5/10 - 5/17 | CSTEAM::STEINHARDT | | Wed May 22 1991 16:58 | 1309 |
| Warning: VERY Lengthy trip report with diversions and boring personal
anecdotes follows. You've been warned...
First, I'd like to thank all of those who have contributed to this notes
conference, as your suggestions and observations were very helpful!
Following is the trip report to Walt Disneyworld in Orlando for the Steinhardt
family, which included myself, my wife Eva, our twin daughters Tara and Alana
(age 6), our son Eric (age 3), and my mother (a proven qualified portable
babysitter). May 10-17, 1991.
Friday 5/10.
Everybody was awake (sort of) at 3:30 A.M. to be ready for a limo pickup at
the house at 4:30. The limo arrives on time, this was definitely the way to
go, and is actually much less expensive than the airport shuttle vans when
multiple people are traveling, and not much more than parking at the airport.
The 45 minute ride to Logan Airport seemed to go very quickly. First stop:
Drop off the women at American Airlines ($178 fare, round trip). Their flight
leaves at 6:20 A.M. They'll be connecting through Raleigh/Durham, ultimately
arriving at 10:53 A.M. My son and I will be flying direct with Northwest
Airlines on frequent flier free tickets, leaving at 7:15, arriving at 10:35,
so that we can pick up the luggage and rental car before the rest arrive.
Oops, upon arriving at Terminal E for Northwest, we learn that our flight has
been canceled due to mechanical problems! No problem, keep cool, there are
certainly alternative routings to get us there in a reasonable timeframe, but
I'm starting to worry about those Hoop-De-Doo Revue reservations for 5:00 P.M.
that evening. Since the rest of the family is leaving on American, I figure
hey, it can't hurt to ask, so I ask the Northwest agent if he can get us on
the American flights, which at this point depart in less than 30 minutes, from
a different terminal (Terminal B). They do it with a smile! OK, good thing
that we had the limo wait outside, time to pile back in, drive to terminal B,
check the bags at the curb (it's a good thing for us that they now allow this
again), I hold on to Eric, and do my best imitation of O.J. Simpson dashing
through the terminal, and get to the counter just as the flight is boarding to
get boarding passes. The rest of the family is a tad surprised to see us, but
glad that we'll all be on the same flight. I've got to give Northwest a lot
of credit; we had non-fare tickets and they purchased these flights for us
from American! Technically and legally, they were not obligated to put us on
another carrier, it's nice to see a company with an interest in long-term
customer relations, even if it means short term loss.
The flight to Raleigh arrives early, the connection is easy, and the flight
from Raleigh to Orlando arrives early as well, at 10:40 A.M.
We rented a minivan from National (Chevy Lumina), $188 per week minus another
10% using the Magic Kingdom Club card, total for the week after all of the
taxes, surcharges, taxes on surcharges, taxes on taxes, surcharges on taxes,
etc., was just under $200, with the base price having been $170.
OK, luggage loaded, everyone in, we're outta there.
We arrived at the Custom House at the Caribbean Beach Resort at about noon.
As we had expected, we couldn't get into the rooms yet, but it does make sense
to arrive early and register. They give you everything but the room key;
transportation passes, mini-bar keys, maps, information, and lots of smiles.
The kids loved the birds in the lobby. The cast member who did the
registration even suggested that it was fine to change in the Custom House
restrooms, to get out of the flight clothes and into shorts, which we did.
We had requested two adjoining, non-smoking, second floor, garden view rooms
in Martinique. Each of these requests was fulfilled. Since there were three
hours until we could get the room keys, we strolled around the lake to Old
Port Royale for lunch. No lines for lunch, and the food wasn't bad. The
spicy chicken lo mein and the fresh oriental veggies at Oriental Cargo were
particularly good, or was it the Tsing Tao to wash it down... The kids liked
the idea of all-you-can-drink soft drinks, especially as we were in the first
day of adjusting to the heat (it was in the 90s everyday all week).
After lunch, we explored Parrot Cay. The kids didn't need any encouragement
to "attack" the playground, and it was nice to sit in the Gazebo on the far
side of the island, by the tropical birds, and watch some of the guests
struggle with the watercraft ("Hey, how do you stop this thing!").
At 2:30 we walked back to the Custom House, and they gave us the room keys.
While in the Custom House, I as able to pick up the tickets for the
Hoop-De-Doo review for that evening at Guest Services, as well as make
reservations for lunch and dinner in EPCOT for the following day.
The rooms were in the 2400 building, great location, adjacent to the pool, 1
minute to Old Port Royale, with a nice garden courtyard view. The kids were
all excited over the Mickey soap and shampoo. Unpack, a quick shower, and we
drove to Fort Wilderness for the Hoop-De-Doo Revue.
We did make the mistake of taking the local loop bus to Pioneer Hall rather
than the express to River Country, well, really my mistake... I asked the
driver "Does this bus go to Pioneer Hall?" to which of course the answer is
"yes". A better qualifying question on my part would have uncovered that
first it stops at everything and anything that even remotely resembles a
possible campsite (or a tree, or a stump, or a rock...). We did make it in
time for the pre-show, where they get all of the kids up on the front porch to
sing along and make general fools out of the adults. Well done, except I may
have to live with the "it's Friday night, which means that your parents have
to eat all of YOUR vegetables for you".
Our table was right in the middle of the floor, on the right side. This was
the first time that any of us had been to this, and having read many of the
comments in this conference, we had high expectations. We were not
disappointed! It was great!!! The food was plentiful, and although basic,
the quality was outstanding. They bring all the tortilla chips & salsa (mild
for my taste), salad, bread loaves, fried chicken, ribs, baked beans, corn on
the cob, strawberry shortcake, and beer (soda for the kids) that you want.
The fried chicken was particularly good fried chicken. I don't normally care
for baked beans at all, but at my wife's insistence, I tried some and - hey!
these are good!! The only appropriate comment I could make was "I DO like
Green Eggs and Ham, I do like them, Sam I Am!".
When the chicken was being served, one of the Pioneer Players (I forget the
name, the woman in the red dress) took the pewter bucket and SLAMMED it down
in front of my son Eric. The look of confusion on his face was priceless!
Later, he had taken his corn cob and stood it on end on his plate, and as
another Player came by, they stopped to comment at him "What is that, art?"
The kids couldn't stop giggling throughout the show, they loved it.
For all of you Massachusetts natives: During the opening "Hoop-De-Doo" Song,
the Players move around the room calling out the home state or country of many
of the audience, and then make a rhyming verse for that geography (such as
"There here with us from France, and tonight they're going to Dance"). When
they encountered someone from Massachusetts (other than our table), Sixbits
announced "He comes from good ol' Mass, and he's sitting on his Chair".
Yeah, this stuff was corny, so how come I'm still laughing...
After the show the kids were much too wound up to head back to the room, so
they played at the playground by the lake for a bit, then back to the CBR.
With everyone in bed, I drove to Goodings at the Crossroads of Lake Buena
Vista to buy our disposable refrigerator for the week (a $3.95 styrofoam
cooler) and things for breakfast, like fruit, cereal, milk, juice.
Saturday 5/11.
Awake at 7:00, today is EPCOT day, time to get the first stamp on those 5-day
Super Passes (which luckily we bought in December before the price increase).
Eric the 3-year old calls it "Apricot" Center, since EPCOT isn't in the
vocabulary quite yet. Despite my having painstakingly laid out a perfect
itinerary for the week, getting all of these people up and out in the allotted
time just isn't working this morning. I mean sure, I've built in a margin of
error of at least 16 seconds between stops on the touring plan, but if we
don't get to the park before opening, it will all be useless. It's useless.
We drive to EPCOT, and the tram gets us to the gate at 9:15, 15 minutes after
opening. There is already a line for Spaceship Earth, so we rent a stroller
for Eric, and head over to The Land. These EPCOT strollers are great, the
kind with an adjustable seat back (from upright to fully reclining), a basket
in the back, and a suncover. We walk right on to Listen To The Land with no
line, everybody likes it. Next, over to Kitchen Cabaret. There is no line,
but we have to wait 5 minutes for the previous show to finish. Cute. As we
head over to Journey Into Imagination, we notice that a small line is now
forming for Listen To The Land.
Again, we walk right on to the Journey Into Imagination ride, the kids love
it. for the rest of the week, we will be hearing little voices singing
"ImAAAAAAAGinAAAtion, ImAAAAAAAAAAGinAAAAAAAtion". Since I'm the only one who
remembers about the part where they snap your picture for projection later in
the ride, I time it perfectly to give it my best face with eyes crossed,
antlers up, tongue out, and it comes out perfect.
Captain EO next. I love this pre-show, with all of the Kodak photographs,
probably because I'm a dad now and can relate. Fifteen years ago I would have
been bored. Everybody likes Captain EO, the kids have a good time trying to
reach out and grab 3D images, especially when fuzzball is flying around.
Ahh the dancing fountains, the crowd outside watching them is almost larger
than the line to get into the building. After the fountains, over to World of
Motion. Oh no, what's this?!? A line!! There have got to be AT LEAST 30
people in front of us, we might have to wait a whole 1 1/2 minutes or so!!
Everybody enjoys this, but no time for the exhibits after, we've got to head
to Mexico for an early lunch reservation at the San Angel Inn Restaurant.
The atmosphere in here is wonderful, with the pyramid and the volcano in the
background. The kids want to know how they make it nighttime inside, when
it's daytime outside. The food was very good, and the portions generous. Not
as spicy as I would prefer, but tasty. The waiters and staff were
particularly nice to the kids, and I was able to speak and order in Spanish
with everyone. The waiter wanted to know where I had learned to speak Spanish
(high school and college), but I felt VERY rusty, as I only get so much
practice for it in Mass. The kids really liked the Disney character pop-up
menus. Oh, that Dos Equis dark does taste good with good Mexican food. Just
as we were finishing lunch, the Mariachi band started to play just adjacent to
the restaurant.
After lunch, we went on El Rio de Tiempo (no line), which was a nice way to
digest lunch, then over to Norway for The Maelstrom. What, another whole two
minute wait to board the Viking ship!?! This ride would be typical of things
to come for the differences in preference between the two twins (fraternal
twins, not identical). Tara liked it, Alana didn't. When asked why she
didn't like it, Alana commented that she thought that the three headed troll
was "mean to cast a spell on us like that". The film on Norway calmed her
down.
Next, a leisurely stroll through the countries (China, Germany, Italy) toward
the American Adventure. Perfect timing for this, as Eric promptly fell
asleep once in the theater, and slept through the show. How do they make Ben
Franklin walk, anyway?
We encountered Minnie Mouse in a kimono in Japan, time for the first autograph
in the kids' new autograph books, and a few pictures. This trend would
continue, with Eeyore in Morocco, and Pluto in France. Eva wanted to get some
pastry for dessert in France, but the room was too crowded to get in. In the
U.K., the twins each wanted to get pins for their new Figment hats. Tara
chose a Union Jack, Alana chose a Shamrock. Look out...
Back to the ever-popular dancing fountains, and into the Image Works. No
crowd at all to speak of, we could basically walk up to everything. Spent
lots of time in the room where you activate different sounds by where you
stand of jump. Other favorites of the kids were the multicolored bubble
maker, the lasers, the rainbow tunnel, and the light symphony. All three kids
got to act in the blue screen video show, the one where they start off as
giants, then become midgets (ala Gulliver's Travels). They giggled constantly
while looking at the TV monitors. We had to practically drag the kids out of
the image works, but they were getting tired and hungry.
Next a walk around to the other side of World Showcase for dinner at the
Biergarten in Germany. Our table was all the way over on the right by the
water wheel, so we had a less than ideal spot for both seeing the stage and
hearing the PA. While I took Eric to the bathroom, Eva ordered a round of
Beck's Dark, but wait, what's this? She ordered me a HALF-Liter instead of a
FULL-Liter! Oh no!! As Hans and Franz from Saturday Night Live would say,
"Hear me now und believe me later, only a girlie-man would order a
half-liter"). Maybe if I wear a disguise, no one will notice... Oh well, I
SUPPOSE that I can drink it...
The food was good, but not quite as good as the last time I was here. Those
items that were particularly good were the Gulyas soup, the Kalbschnitzel with
red cabbage and spaetzel, the black forest cake comes highly recommended by my
wife.
The show was fun, especially the bells and horns, but now what's this?? One
of the female dancers wants ME to come up and do the WALTZ with her?!? Hey,
in the immortal words of Tim Curry, "I Do The Rock", but I'll give it a try...
Somehow, it seems a little strange to be dancing a waltz in tennis shorts and
Nike Airs, especially when your dance partner is in a full native costume, but
hey, this is Disneyworld, lighten up, dude! At the encouragement of my wife,
my kids yell out some warning to her about making sure I don't stomp on her
feet or such, but somehow we both survive.
After dinner, back over to Future World, and Horizons. The kids loved this,
and out voted us to get the underwater show at the end. Wonders of life was
next, with Goofy about health, and then Cranium Command. This pavilion is new
since my wife and I had been to EPCOT last, and it's great. Cranium command
is amazingly clever, everybody liked it. Alana, Eric, and Grandma are not up
for Body Wars, but Tara is, so she joins my wife and I on Body Wars (1 minute
wait!) and loves it. The rest of them explore the sensory exploration area
while we ride. When we get off, The Making of Me show had just started, so we
decide not to wait around (we're spoiled!), and head instead to Spaceship
Earth.
No line at all, we walk right on, everybody liked it, and we have just enough
time to walk back to the lagoon for Illuminations.
The crowd was quite thick around the lagoon, we made the mistake of heading to
the right. Be forewarned, with all but a few spots as exceptions, the view
from Canada (where we wound up) is not that great. Yup, nice fireworks, nice
lasers, nice lights, nice music, great show. Time to head back and get the
kids and Grandma to sleep.
After they are all in bed, I suggest that Eva and I hit Pleasure Island, but
between us having had a long day, and not wanting to battle the Saturday Night
crowd, we opt instead for a stroll to Old Port Royale for a drink outside at
the Banana Cabana, and a swim. The tropical drinks at the CBR are weak, way
overpriced, but absolutely delicious. They also serve as excellent
preparation for sitting in the hottub by the main pool. OK, one trip down the
water slide, then some sleep.
Sunday 5/12
OK, everyone is awake on time, but here we go again, we'll never get out of
the room on time to make it to the Magic Kingdom before opening. Drive to the
TTC, monorail to the MK, and we arrived at the front gate at 9:05, five
minutes after opening. Since it was Mother's Day, they were handing out
complimentary carnations to all of the moms, so the two in our party took
them. There are new strollers here, the same style as those at EPCOT, but
where they print your name in BOLD letters that sit on a paper under a plastic
protector on top of the stroller (rather than the tags on strings), thus
making identification of your stroller much easier. Breakfast at Tony's,
outstanding! The kids all have Lady and The Tramp waffles (yes, they don't
serve Mickey waffles, they serve a large round Belgian Waffle with Lady and
The Tramp in the middle!). We three adults have the Frittata which is
tremendous, stuffed with broccoli, peppers, mushrooms, onions, and served with
a marinara sauce on the side. The milk and orange juice are "all you can
drink", and our excellent waiter keeps the glasses filled.
We're done and out by 10:00, but there goes another touring plan shot into
oblivion. We head over to fantasyland anyway. The line for Dumbo is 25
minutes, no way we're waiting in that. The line for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride is
only about 5 minutes, we can handle that, and go for it. The twins could take
it or leave it, Eric didn't like it. OK, I'll give in to peer pressure, next
is It's A Small World.
While I must admit that I like the idea of "Small World", and I like the
concept behind it, hey, when you've seen one doll in costume, you've seen them
all. Of course, I'm the only one in the family that feels this way, and this
is a favorite for everybody else. I think that Eva could probably ride on
this all day. Eric especially likes the jumping bird in "Mexico". OK "It's A
Small World" lovers, give me your hate mail, I can take it. Well, I suppose I
can tolerate this ride, since it is a noble concept... The scary part is, I
remember this ride from when I was a little unit at the '64 World's Fair in
New York, and I liked it then...
Over to Mickey's Starland by foot. Through dumb luck, we arrived at the
entrance to the theater just as the train was pulling up. Try to do this, for
several reasons: 1) The shows are planned to start after the train passengers
have been unloaded, so you don't wait long inside. 2) You can position
yourself to get a close seat, on the left side of the theater before the swarm
enters. 3) Your a rugged individualist, who doesn't need to ride with the
herd....(sorry).
The preshow presents highlights from the Disney Afternoon shows, and once
inside the theater, you're treated to the main characters form these shows,
live, specifically Gummi Bears, Chip & Dales Rescue Rangers, Tailspin, and
Mickey.
Take the advice that several people have stated in here previously, get all
the way to the left, even if it means getting in a row farther back in the
theater. This will allow you to beat the wild throng headed for Mickey's
dressing room after the show. Go out the doors, keep going through the
building, exit to the outside, take a right, and head for Mickey. We did
this, and were third in line for autographs and pictures with Mickey. Within
one minute of our arrival, the line behind us was out the door, for what I
would estimate to be at least a 1/2 hour wait, versus our wait of 1 minute to
see Mickey. Autographs and pictures secured, we headed toward the Haunted
Mansion, stopping for more autographs and pictures on the way in Mickey's
starland from Tigger, Goofy, and Louie (from Jungle Book, who couldn't write).
On the way to the Haunted Mansion, the carousel line had disappeared, so while
Grandma sat it out, Eva and I rode with the kids.
By now you're probably all sick of this, but yes, we walked right in to the
haunted mansion with no wait. Tara liked it, Alana and Eric didn't ("too
scary!").
Fine, only those who Really Really Really want to ride Big Thunder Mountain
will do so. Any volunteers? Tara and Eric (to ride with my Eva and myself,
of course) while Alana and Grandma wait outside. Eric just barely made the
height cutoff (40 inches). This was the longest line that we had yet waited
in, a whole 10 minutes. This has always been one of my favorite rides, so I
couldn't wait to see how the kids would take it. It was obviously rougher
than Tara had expected, but she liked it. Eric yelled, at the top of his 3
years old lungs, as loudly as he could, for the entire ride, "I HATE THIS!!!".
This would actually serve us well, as for the rest of the week, whenever we
need to keep Eric in line, like getting him to finish a meal or go to bed, or
whatever, we could threaten him with: "If you don't (whatever), you'll have to
ride Big Thunder Mountain again!". In three years we probably won't be able
to keep him off of it...
The Splash Mountain construction is adjacent to Big Thunder Mountain, and well
under way. There are a couple of huge cranes at the site, and the main
structural frame girders are in place, several stories high.
Over to Pirates of the Caribbean. To our surprise, this turned out to be the
longest wait of the entire week anywhere, about 15 minutes. Halfway through,
the boats backed up and stopped, so we had an opportunity to observe the scene
where the pirates are chasing the women around in circles for about 5 minutes
in the same spot. Eva noticed something that we hadn't seen before, which is
that to make the figures appear to actually be running as opposed to simply
standing in place on a rotating platform, the women "wiggle" (you know what)
as they move, and the pirate's outside leg moves forward and back, as if
running. This is a favorite for the adults, to my surprise the kids could
take it or leave it.
Lunch at the Mile Long Bar, very crowded, nothing special.
Next, the Country Bear Vacation Hoe-down, a quite different show from when we
had last seen the Country Bear Jamboree, but Big Al is still there, although
no longer singing "Blood On the Saddle". Only a five minute wait until the
previous show concluded, everyone liked it. The kids seemed most interested
in the animotronic Moose, Buffalo, and Deer on the side wall.
We decided to skip the 3:00 character parade, and take advantage of the
shorter lines during the parade (spoiled, spoiled) to take in more rides. At
2:45, we were able to walk right on to the Jungle Cruise, which everyone
liked.
The Swiss Family Robinson Tree House is closed for renovation, and is
surrounded by scaffolding.
OK, time to try some of that famous Dole Whip that I've heard so much about,
but wait, the line for Dole Whip is longer than the ride for the Jungle Cruise
(I'm serious!!!!), at least 25 people. No way, we'll try back another time,
over to Tomorrowland.
We walked on to Dreamflight, Alana absolutely loved it, they let us stay on
and ride it again. On to Carousel of Progress, no wait, popular with
everyone. Next the WEDway people mover, a nice break. Just as we got off,
Chip & Dale, along with Roger Rabbit, were between Dreamflight and Carousel of
Progress. Eva and I dumped the kids here with Grandma, and went to ride space
mountain.
Both tracks on Space Mountain were open, and the wait was 5 minutes at most.
Whoa!, check it out, they have new, re-designed "capsules". The old one used
to be two connected capsules, where each had two compartments, each
compartment seating up to two people (one behind the other). The new capsules
are the same size, and still have two linked capsules, but now have three
independent single seats in each capsule like this: (artists rendering)
Old Now
XX XX XX XX X X X X X X
<---|---_<---|---| <--|--|--|_<--|--|--|
Thus, the new Space Mountain only has 6 people per capsule pair versus 8 on
the old capsules, but they're MUCH more comfortable, and seem to head out more
frequently. The photograph in the "Official Guide" shows the old capsules,
now defunct. I got to ride in the nose of the front capsule, on the left side
track, with Eva screaming in my ear the whole ride behind me. She claims that
this vocal expression "enhances" the ride. Hmmmmmmmm. We loved it.
Time to head out of the park for a Mother's Day dinner at the Tangaroa Terrace
at the Polynesian Resort, which the kids and I had planned but not let the two
moms know about. The food and service at the Tangaroa Terrace were
outstanding. Of particular note was a Teriyaki skewer dinner with Shrimp,
Chicken, and Beef with fresh vegetables and rice, and the Cajun Blackened
Grouper, also with great fresh vegetables and rice. The dessert tray was
sublime, I had a Macadamia Nut Pie (like a Pecan pie, with Macadamia nuts) and
Eva had a Pineapple Upside Down cake, both excellent. The Coconut Cream Cake
also looked wonderful.
A short stroll back to the TTC, tram to the car, drive to CBR, and we put the
kids and Grandma to bed, so that my wife and I could head to Pleasure Island.
The "V" bus runs from the CBR to the Disney Village Marketplace and Pleasure
Island, also stopping at Typhoon Lagoon during the day. Unlike the busses for
EPCOT, Magic Kingdom, and MGM, the "V" bus doesn't stop at each "island" bus
stop, but only at the back entrance to Old Port Royale. Being in the middle
of Martinique, we only had a one minute walk to OPR, and the bus was there in
5 minutes. If you were staying in any of the other countries, and if you
didn't want to walk to OPR, there is an internal CBR only bus (no letters on
the orange flag) that stops at all of the island bus stops and the Custom
House in addition to OPR. It should be noted that when busses make their stop
at OPR it is NOT at the OPR bus shelter on the perimeter road (which does not
seem to be used!), but directly at the back entrance to OPR by the parking
lot.
We made it into the Adventurer's Club just in time for new member initiation
(Kangaloosh!), and as always, Club curator Fletcher Hodges had to first sucker
the crowd in with the traditional "Down the hall, third door on the left,
don't forget to turn on the fan". This is my favorite club at Pleasure
Island, and contrary to what most people perceive, and what all of the
"official" and "unofficial" guide books don't seem to understand, the program
is quite well planned, with unstructured improvisational interaction between
planned, scheduled events. One of the things that I love about this place is
that there is no gray area; either you love it or you hate. You'll probably
notice that all bartenders, regardless of gender, are named "Nash". It's
always fascinating to watch the "uninitiated" come in, try to figure out what
the place is about, and usually leave within 10 minutes with some sort of
comment like "Mabel, just what in Sam Hill is this weird place, anyway??".
The same schedule was in place as on each of my previous visits, and is:
7:40 PM Ms. Perkin's Lecture in Mask Room (For the uninitiated,
Pamelia Perkins is the club president)
8:00 Serial Thriller Radio Broadcast from Library (one of the best
shows, especially with the right audience participation.
Don't forget to "Jump Up For Jinkies") (We Love 'Em!)
8:15 Curator's Lecture in Treasure Room (Amusing, and I still
haven't figured out how Beezal the floating genie head moves
along the mirror)
8:40 New Member Induction Ceremony in Main Salon (Kangaloosh!)
9:00 Balderdash Cup Competition in Library (Hilarious!!)
9:40 Mr. Browne's Lecture in Mask Room (That's Hathaway Browne,
an arrogant preppy sort who gets the brunt of many a club
members jokes, and in this case, the masks)
9:50 Curator's New Discovery Unveiled in Library (I've not seen
this show, but heard that it was a riot)
10:20 Mandora's Cabaret in Library (Depending upon who is playing
the role of Mandora on a given evening, this can be great or
OK. Mandora is the club's most adventurous sleazette)
10:30 Curator's Lecture in Treasure Room (again)
10:40 New Member Induction Ceremony in Main Salon (again)
(Fri-Sat) 11:00 Serial Thriller Radio Broadcast from Library (again)
(Sun-Thu) 11:50 Serial Thriller Radio Broadcast from Library (again)
(The reason for the different times on different days is that
on Friday and Saturday, New years rings in at Midnight, and
on Sunday through Thursday, it is at 11:00 P.M. Thus, on any
night you can catch the street show for New Years and not miss
the Radio Broadcast)
12:40 Mr. Browne's LEcture in Mask Room (again)
12:50 Fingers Takes Requests in Library (Fingers is the "spirit" of
the late club organist, playing the pipe organ that has
crashed
through the second story ceiling of the library into the main
stage)
1:05 Maid's Sing-A-Long in Library (A good maid can make this
really silly...)
On different nights, different cast members trade roles among the more popular
roles. For example, I've seen one of the best cast members as Mandora one
night (fantastic!), the maid another night (great!) and Pamelia Perkins on a
third (OK, too serious a role for her). Conversely, another cast member was a
great Pamelia Perkins on one night, but an unconvincing Mandora on another.
There are basically five areas to the Adventurer's Club. First is the upper
balcony, upon which the club is entered. There is usually no significant
club activity here. Go down the stairs by the opposite wall from the
entrance, and you are in the Main Salon, which is sort of like mission control
for weirdness. With the stairs behind you, on your immediate left is the mask
room, where the masks will come to life during the shows there. On your
immediate right is the treasure room, with its own surprises (like Beezal the
Genie). Further along on the right is the entrance to the Library, the
largest room, and where the major shows are held. The "surprise" events all
happen in the main salon.
This night, after the initiation, we caught one of the show at the Comedy
Warehouse. But first, so that you uninitiated Adventurers will feel at home
on your first visit to the Adventurer's club, the club song:
Marching Along We're Adventurers
Singing the Song of Adventurers
Up or Down
North South East or West
An Adventurers Life is Best
And don't forget, sometimes you eat the bear, and sometime the bear eats you,
but always dress for the occasion...
OK, the Comedy Warehouse; They do an excellent job of improvisational comedy,
some shows are better than others. After the usual phone bit opening to get a
theme for the opening song, they did the usual Disney parking lot skit
("Honey, are you sure this is where we parked?" "Yes dear, look, I wrote it
down right here, Goofy four-thousand-nine-hundred-twenty-three.") This
particular show never got past the "Chinese Proverb" improvisational skit
(where one cast member has to figure out the phrase that the others are acting
out) due to the complexity of the chosen proverb, which was: "When Springtime
Comes in the Windmills of Your Mind, Groucho Marx Will Rise From the Grave".
Yup. Good Luck.
The key to getting in to the Comedy Warehouse is to find out when the
showtimes will be for that evening, and get into the corral outside the door
before it fills. They run set show times, where the doors open, the room is
filled to capacity, a show is run, the room is emptied, and they start over at
the next showtime (like Captain EO, for example, not like the other clubs
where you can enter or leave at will).
Back to the Adventurer's Club for the late shows (Curator's Lecture, Browne's
lecture, Finger's requests, and Maid's Sing-A-Long). Between shows are other
planned events which intentionally do not appear on any printed schedule.
You'll just have to be there! Club trivia: The Club is set in the year 1936.
After the street New Year's celebration, it is 1937. During the Maid's
sing-a-long she gets the whole crowd singing the Brady Bunch Theme, complete
with audience members on stage to act out the various Brady Bunch characters,
ala Rocky Horror Picture Show. Yes, and we are old enough to vote and drive
automobiles...
It's getting late, so a quick tour through Cage and Xfers. I'm hoping to
catch some Nine Inch Nails in Cage (since it bills itself as "alternative
music"), but no such luck, although its not a bad alternative dance oriented
club. Xfers brand of rock and roll is very mainstream, very commercial, and
the band tonight is no exception. This is a place where at 1:20 A.M. the
dance floor contains singles, couples, 8-year olds dancing with parents, and
grandparents doing their best to rock on. If there is a "family" rock and
roll club in the U.S., this is it. The house main stage sound system is
outstanding.
Time for some sleep, and just as we're crossing the bridge toward the bus
stop, the Orange V pulls up, so we don't have to wait at all.
Monday 5/13:
OK, today we're all going to make it MGM before the 9:00 opening, I just know
it, we can do it...
Close, no cigar, the tram drops us at the MGM turnstiles at 9:02, just after
they opened. Not a problem, at least we can finally execute one of my
perfectly constructed touring plans.
The strollers here are the fold-up umbrella variety. Very light,
maneuverable, and convenient, but you can't load them down with all of the
baggage and camera cases and such like the ones at EPCOT and MK. Actually you
can put straps over the handles, but as soon as the little unit in the
stroller steps out, it all falls backwards, as I learned the hard way...
First the Great Movie Ride. Although we entered on the right side (for the
Western scene) when we arrived at the preview room, a cast member lifted a
rope and directed us to the corral that was fed from the left entrance, due to
a smaller group in line there, and a car set about to depart. About a two
minute wait for the next car set, and we're on, for the Gangster scene.
Everyone liked it except for Alana and Eric, who didn't like the gangster
shoot-out or Alien, but tolerated it, yet liked the rest of the ride. Alana
was SO happy when the Gangster that had pirated our car was trashed and our
original tour guide reappeared.
Next was the Animation Building. No line, just a 3 minute wait for the next
show. This was a consensus favorite of everyone for the week, especially the
Robin Wiliams/Walter Cronkite clips and interaction, and the closing Disney
animation highlights.
On to the backstage tour trams. OK, I'll sit on the left, but not until I put
the stroller in the far left, so that there is some space between me and all
that water to come at Catastrophe Canyon. Again, everyone liked it except for
Alana and Eric who didn't care for Catastrophe Canyon. Also, as usual,
Alana's twin sister Tara loved it.
We got off the tram and over to the top of New York street just in time for
the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. We're talking mega-excited little units
here, and of course, each of my three kids wants a different Turtle's
autograph. Time to split up since they go to different spots for autographs,
I take Alana to see Michaelangelo, Eva takes Eric to see his bud, Donatello,
and Grandma takes Tara to see Leonardo. Miraculously, Michaelangelo is
signing the fastest today, so after pictures of him with Alana, I assess that
Tara will get to Leonardo in line before Eric gets to Donatello, so she gets
pictures next, then Eric. It works, and I manage to get photos of each of
them with their favorite turtle. Poor Raphael will have to wait for another
day...
Since we have late lunch reservations, we decided to stop for a snack at the
Studio Catering Co., adjacent to New York Street and the Honey I Shrunk the
Kids Adventure Zone. They make a nice snack tray there, with sticks of cheese
(muenster, swiss, and colby) and fresh fruit with a rasberry/lemon yogurt for
dipping.
We had hoped to go into Honey I Shrunk The Kids, but the quoted wait in line
is 25 minutes, and we're so spoiled that to us 25 minutes is greater than 4
eternities, so we decide to take the Backstage Special Effects walking tour
instead, and come back later.
There was a tour group getting ready to depart just as we arrived, so we
missed the Goldie Hawn pre-show, and jumped right in to the water effects.
There were no active productions underway this day, so the tour was nothing
great. Highlights from the kids' perspective: The Mel Gibson/Pee Wee Herman
segment on sound effects, and the Michael Eisner/Mickey Mouse intro trailer
for the upcoming Disney movies (seriously!).
Next, over to Superstar Television, and unbelievably, again we arrive about
two minutes before casting. We manage to get right down front on the right
side, and I manage to get the kids prominently in view, hoping to get at least
one of them cast. Meanwhile, while I'm looking away, who winds up getting
cast? Me. I wasn't even trying, really. I've been chosen by Eric, the
casting director, to play "Donald" on General Hospital. Now I've never seen a
soap opera, let alone General Hospital, but hey, regardless of the type of
show, soap opera or otherwise, I can sure overact like an idiot with the best
of 'em.
Hey this is fun! They take you to a room next to the control booth, get you
in costume, give you an overview of the events to come, and seat you in a
directors chair with your character's name on it. When it's time to get ready
for the show, they take you backstage, seat you in another directors chair
with a star behind it that bears your character's name, give you a script of
the scene (even though in my case, it's just a few lines), and let you know
that you don't need to memorize it, as there will be cue cards and
teleprompters on the stage, along with a stage director giving you cues.
While you wait for your scene, you get to watch the final product on monitors
backstage, but you don't get to see the actual videotaping as the audience
does. When it is time for my scene and I make my entrance, I notice that my
family has positioned themselves front and center in the audience, and are
cheering like crazy people. It's over before you know it, and you watch the
rest of the show from backstage until they bring all of us in the "cast"
around for a final shot as the credits roll. As soon as I catch up with the
rest of my family, the kids swarm me (obviously at their mom's suggestion)
asking for my autograph. Wow, I get to sign on the same pages as Mickey,
Goofy, et al.
We head next door to the Monster Sound Show, and this time...Eva gets chosen
to be one of the four Foley artists on stage to run the sound effects. She's
going to have all of the stuff on the far right of the stage. This show is
great, and of course, most of the sound effects timing isn't even close. Just
don't try and say this to Eva.... When the Director asks the sound engineer
what he thought of the job that these four Foley artists did on the sound
track before the final film is shown he comments, in a wonderfully deadpan
voice, "uhhh, that was, uh, GREAT(?)".
The show lets out with just enough time to make 2:00 lunch reservations at the
50's Prime Time Cafe, no time for the sound effects toys in the outer room on
the way out now, save it for later.
Ooops, it's pouring outside! Where did this storm come from? Now as part of
our planning for the trip, we had all purchased new compact cheepo ponchos for
just such a circumstance, but rather than wanting to carry all of them around
in the park with me, I had left all but one in the minivan, with the thinking
that if a storm came, I could use that one to go and get all of the others.
Great plan, except not when you have 30 seconds to make a lunch reservation.
After about 5 minutes, the rain slows from deluge to merely "cats&dogs", so we
make a dash of it to the other side of the pond and the 50's Prime Time Cafe.
Despite being a bit late, they've held our reservation for us, and we're
promptly seated.
You must eat here when you go to MGM.
We were seated at two adjacent tables, one for the kids, one for the adults,
and were told that this is of course how it was done in the 50's.
We were to be served by Brother Glen, who did an outstanding job of being
"family" to the adults, while keeping the kids in line. He promptly sat down
at our table with us to make small talk, offer lunch suggestions, talk us out
of some dishes, and take the order. Eva had the Caesar salad with smoked
chicken, which was excellent (and large). I got talked into the roast beef
sandwich (served with lettuce, tomato, onion, Russian dressing, on marble rye
bread, triple decker) which was also excellent, and my mother had the famous
veal meatloaf, also unusually good. The meatloaf was served with peas and
carrots, and while I like raw carrots, and like fresh peas, I HATE peas and
carrots, especially all those mushy ones I remember as a kid. The ones at the
50's Prime time cafe are crisp, fresh, and delicious. (Saaaay, I like green
eggs and ham, I do like them, Sam I Am) After I had finished my sandwich I
started stealing a few bites from Eva's salad (Mt. Caeser). When Brother Glen
caught sight of this he came over to comment to me "What a PIG, but at least
you cleaned your OWN plate". The highlight of lunch was (drum roll please):
Leinenkugel Beer!!!!! Yes, they have Leinenkugel, and this is the only place
in the area where you can get it. I know that most of you (anyone who doesn't
live in Minnesota or Wisconsin) are saying to yourselves "huh?,
Leinen-what??". A little diversionary background is in order - The small town
of Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, sits about an hour and a half drive to the East
and North of Minneapolis, in the middle of farm country, on the Chippewa
river. Clean air, clean water, no crime. There are two (and only two)
significant businesses in Chippewa Falls: Cray Computer (yup!) and the sole
brewery for the nation's best (per several national Beer taste tests) beer,
Leinenkugel, founded in the 1800s by Jacob Leinenkugel. It used to be that
you could only get this stuff in Minnesota or Wisconsin, since it is only one
small brewery, and they don't like to mess with perfection. Leinenkugel has
probably indirectly contributed to most of the significant technological
breakthroughs at Cray, is some manner or other. And here it is, at the 50's
Prime Time Cafe at Disneyworld. I suppose that I'd better have another one,
you never know when you might see it again...
When we finished lunch, it was still raining, but only lightly. Thus I was
sent on a mission to retrieve the other ponchos from the minivan in the MGM
parking lot, while everyone else headed to the Here Come The Muppets show.
Just after I got to the minivan, it started to pour again. By the time I
re-entered the park, my Nike Airs had become Nike Waters. At least I had some
shelter by the exit to the Muppet show to wait. Whoa, what's this, the show
ended halfway through. It seems that they had taken a lightning hit, and the
computer that controls the Muppet band crashed, and was in the process of
rebooting. DIGITAL DISNEY ACCOUNT TEAM TAKE NOTE: A cast member informed Eva
that "this happens all the time when a thunderstorm moves through". DISNEY
NEEDS VAXft's IN A BAD WAY!!!! Think of poor little Johnny, somewhere in the
audience, who will have to live with the trauma of Dr. Teeth's band not coming
in on cue, being sent out of the theater before the show was complete, and
having the shock of it all transform him into a future ax murderer, or worse,
an IBM Marketing Rep. All because they don't have VAXft's.
OK, it's raining, what else is indoors? Star Tours! On the way over, Eric
fell asleep in the stroller, Alana didn't want to try it, so the two of them
and Grandma sat it out in the shop at the exit (good shelter form the rain)
while Tara, Eva, and I rode. Yup, no line, the rain was sending everybody
home in droves. Tara loved it, so since there was no line and Eric was still
asleep, we went again.
As we came out, the rain was slowing to a drizzle. We headed for the Indiana
Jones Stunt Spectacular, and they announced that they would run the show, but
not all of it, due to the weather. The scenes that they went through were the
one with Indy going through all of the booby traps (with the giant ball at the
end), and the Cairo street scene. Due to the rain, no airplane, show over.
The kids didn't seem to mind, they weren't in to it.
One last try for Here Come The Muppets...Yes!, it's back on-line. To get the
front row seats, when you enter the staging area, stay all the way to the
right, as close to the entrance doors that you just came through as possible.
If you were to walk all the way into the room, toward the far wall, you'll be
in the last row. Everybody liked this, and due to being in the front row, the
kids got to exchange some handshakes, waves, and high-fives with various
Muppets.
Still raining, we call it a day, and head back to the CBR for the in-room
delivery for pizza, antipasto, and garlic bread. They advertise 45 minute
delivery, it took an hour. The pizza actually wasn't too bad, but skip the
antipasto and garlic bread. Also, the cost of a beer in the minibar ($1.95)
is less than the cost of having one delivered with the pizza.
Sooooo, can I talk the spouse into going to Pleasure Island after everyone
else is in bed? Nope, too tired and soggy. Everyone goes to bed except for
me, I head to OPR to try and get some water socks for the following day, since
I'm the only one who forgot to buy some before the trip. (note: by unanimous
agreement of everyone but me (since I didn't have them) water socks are great)
No watersocks at the OPR shop, but they do have some mega-cool neon
flip-flops, but at $18 a pair, I'll pass. Since I'm there, I pick up some
fresh raisin & bran muffins at the bakery for breakfast, and two Goombay
Smashes at the bar "to go". Yes, you can order anything to go at CBR,
including very weak, overpriced, but absolutely delicious tropical drinks.
Eva is pleasantly surprised by the drink, we watch the tube for a bit, and get
some ZZZZs.
Tuesday 5/14:
OK, Typhoon Lagoon doesn't open until 10:00, even though we're sleeping in
until a little after 8, we'll have a quick breakfast in the room, and there's
no way that we won't make it there before opening, right? Wrong, juuuuust
missed it again, by about 5 minutes. This place is incredible!!!!! We were
greeted inside the gate by a rather loud scarlet macaw. We quickly moved to
secure a spot for the day at Ketchakiddee creek, and were able to get a table
under one of the open thatched shelters, right by the simulated wood plastic
alligators and fountains at the end of the first bridge that leads to
Ketchakiddee creek. Parents note: This proved to be an excellent spot to
"set up camp". We took a quick tour of Ketchakiddee creek, (this place is
incredible!), LOTS for kids to do, ideal for pre-schoolers. The kids love it,
I can't overemphasize this. Everywhere there are fountains springing up from
the ground, plastic wood-look animals, caves, waterfalls, 3 wide padded water
slides, and a kids-size white water tube ride. The slides are a riot to
watch, because since they are padded, kids literally dive into them, sometimes
face first.
After we're finally able to convince the kids of the remote possibility that
there might actually be something else of interest on the planet beyond
Ketchakiddee creek, we all head to castaway creek. It took us a couple of
minutes to collect enough empty tubes for everyone. This is the life, sit
back in the cool water on a hot day and just float down the river in paradise.
The flowers, plants, and decor of this whole place are amazing. It took about
25 minutes to make the whole trip around once.
Oh yes, contrary to what is stated in the "official" guide, Miss Tilley does
not erupt every 5-10 minutes, she erupts exactly every 30 minutes, on the hour
and the half-hour. The primary purpose of this is to let all of the staff
know when to change shifts! (per a lifeguard)
After Castaway creek, Eva and I leave the kids with their Grandmother and head
out for the tube rides (heh heh). First was Keelhaul Falls, which uses the
yellow tubes, and then Mayday Falls, which uses the blue tubes. Whoever wrote
about these for the "official" guide probably never rode on them, they have it
reasonably wrong. The "unofficial" guide has it right. Keelhaul Falls
(yellow) is a very smooth, tame, easy ride with a big spiral in the middle.
Mayday Falls is wilder, bumpier, longer, and faster (yeah!). Great ride,
Mayday falls. We decided to collect the kids and see how they would do on
the "family" raft ride, Gangplank Falls. Note: unless there is no line for
this (it was the longest in the park when we went, about 15 minutes, versus
almost no line for everything else) DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME. It is a VERY short
ride, and not as much fun as either Keelhaul or Mayday. They seat 4 people
maximum, so since Tara, Alana, Eric, Eva, and I made 5 (Grandma sat it out),
they broke us up into 3 and 2, where the three went together, and the two were
joined by another couple on a separate raft. The kids got soaked, and didn't
like it.
Back to the table at Ketchakiddee Creek for lunch, which I picked up for
everyone at the Leaning Palms. Not bad for Disney fast food, particularly the
Cajun Chicken sandwich (mild seasoning, but tasty), and the tunafish on marble
rye. The kids meals here are a Disney version of a happy meal, complete
with Typhoon Lagoon themed glossy multi-color picture boxes, with either a hot
dog, hamburger, or PBJ, with chips, a cookie, and a multiple colored silly
straw in the shape of a mickey face with ears. Not only were these a hit,
they cost less than a kids meal at Burger King!
After lunch, Eva and I headed off for the slides, leaving the rest to frolic
at Ketchakiddee Creek for a while more. The kids were anything but bored with
it. A single climb leads to a choice of any of the three storm slides. The
"unofficial guide" complains about the dips in the route up, which accompany
the climb (three steps up, two steps down). What a wimp! Hey, if you can't
climb a few extra stairs, you shouldn't be going on things like this in the
first place. Besides, anybody that would write something like that certainly
needs the extra exercise! Once at the top, you can pre-wet yourself (watch
it) on a waterfall, and then choose any of the three slides. As you look down
the mountain, they are, from left to right, Rudder Buster, Stern Burner, and
Jib Jammer. Our favorite was the one in the middle, Stern Burner, which is
the only one to have a brief total darkness cave. Next favorite was Rudder
Buster, the one on the left, which has a partially lit cave. The easiest ride
is on the right, Jib Jammer, which does not have a cave. All three empty into
the same pool, about five feet apart from each other.
After several rides on each slide (which was easy since there were never more
than 10 or 15 people ahead of us in line at the top after the climb), I talked
Eva into trying Humunga Cowabunga. I had expected to find a long line for
this, but there were only four people ahead of us at the top. Just as we are
both in the "on-deck" position, waiting to sit down and go, a call comes to
the starter stating that there is lightning from a fast moving, incoming storm
in the area, and the park is closed until it passes. Well, the fastest way
down is to take the slide right? Nope, we've got to climb back down, but hey,
I can certainly understand, no one wants a crispy fried tourist.
As we are walking back toward Ketchakiddee Creek, it starts to rain, and
within a minute, it's pouring. Through dumb luck, it turns out that the
thatched hut we're under is especially designed for such occurrences, and this
is where all of the people in the open or under umbrellas are steered to by
the lifeguards. It seems that these huts have lightning rods on them , and
really provide excellent shelter from the rain. Some people stay, most leave
in the rain. We decide to stick it out, which turned out to be a good choice,
as Eric promptly fell asleep and slept through the storm, which only lasted
about 30 minutes. Ten minutes after the rain stopped, the park re-opened,
except now there were no lines for ANYTHING! Eva and I went straight back to
Humunga Cowabunga, and went right down. Hey, let's do that again. No line,
whoosh. It really is over before you know it. Her only complaint was that it
does give you an industrial strength wedgee.
Back to see if the kids are all still alive, yup, and we convince Tara to try
Keelhaul Falls with us. Her twin sister Alana prefers to stay on the kids
tube ride at the "Creek". Tara loves Keelhaul Falls, and the three of us ride
it twice more, simply turning around at the bottom , heading right back up,
and sliding right back down.
At about 4:30, we went to try the wave pool. Yes, they do make big waves
here, bigger than I've ever seen in either the North Atlantic or Southern
California. The twins preferred the calm bay inlets, Grandma got knocked
right over by the first wave she saw, and bailed out of there quickly, but
what is this... Eric, the three year old, loves it. I hold on to him while
the two of us ride the big ones, and he can't get enough of it. One wave
knocks both of us right over, he thinks that this is hysterical. The
announcement comes that it is closing time (5:00), so we pack up and head back
to the CBR to shower and change.
The only thing that wasn't open was the shark and snorkeling pool, which was
listed as "closed for the season".
Eva spoke to a lifeguard who told her that Typhoon Lagoon has been so much
more successful than they had planned, that they may possibly build another
wave pool, and a preteen ride section. I can relate to the need for the
latter, as Alana was at the high end of being amused by Ketchakiddee creek,
but not quite comfortable with the slides and tube rides by herself.
This was everyone's favorite day so far, and despite my best laid plans (my
perfect itinerary had called for us to spend only this one day at Typhoon
Lagoon, and to leave at 1:30 to go to Discovery Island) it was decided by
consensus that we would come here for another day during the week rather than
an extra day in the theme parks!
Dinner at the Portobello Yacht Club at Pleasure Island was the most expensive
of the week ($160 for 6 people) but one of the best. Their garlic bread alone
is almost worth it. They serve the bread plain, and then you scoop out whole
pieces of marinated garlic clove on to it. We had the chicken saltimbocca
(excellent), a veal medallion dish with a crab and tomato cream sauce
(excellent), and a seafood pasta with crab, shrimp, scallops, and mussels
(excellent). The side dishes, veggies (with red & yellow peppers, yum!), and
everything were fresh and tasty. After dinner, we had Cappucino Portobello,
which is Cappucino with Frangelico, Grand Marnier, whipped cream, nutmeg, and
an Italian cookie. Basically, Heaven in a glass mug.
This was to be our "family" night at Pleasure Island, but all three kids were
fading fast at dinner, after the long day at Typhoon Lagoon. They managed to
agree to stay awake just to take a quick look. The band in the street was the
one that Eva and I had seen in Xfer's two days prior, and we caught a song or
two, then into the Adventurer's Club. The cast members at the door almost
lost it when Eric (with some prior coaching from Dad) greeted them with the
Adventurer's salute and a hearty "Kangaloosh!". We arrived in time for the
8:40 new member induction ceremony, so the whole family was initiated. We
were able to get the front row center table for the Balderdash Cup
Competition, and the kids drew a lot of attention from the cast club members.
During the competition, when the supposed 500 pigeons were tap dancing on the
roof, Alana managed to make most of the room lose it in laughter by asking
"Daddy, are those REAL pigeons up there?". The pigeons did indeed seem to
form the state seal of the state of Ohio, and the kids drew quiet when
"Rodan", the 500 pound pigeon was introduced. OK these kids have had enough
for one day, time to head back to sleep.
Waaaaaait a minute, there's Superstar Studios, and the kids are semi-awake...
OK, it's only money, we decide to lip-synch a video of Love Shack by the
B52's. For those of you that aren't familiar with this attraction, you
basically either sing or lip-synch to some session-player recordings of a song
in front of a blue screen, and they edit in your basic wild MTVish effects for
the final videotape product. I don a long black wig that makes me look
exactly like Howard Stearn, we put a pink metallic wig on Grandma, and
everybody else can pass as they are. Grandma is confused, but we put her on
drums, Tara on keys, Eric on guitar, Alana will be our lead singer, Eva on
backups and tambourine, I take the bass. This turns out priceless!!!!!
You've got to try this when you are here. When we have finished, they
broadcast our video over the PI monitors, and people are dying, especially
when they zoom in on Eric (Clapton) making faces and then sticking his tongue
out at the camera in extreme close-up.
Eva and I get everybody else to bed, and take the bus back to Pleasure Island.
We visit the Neon Armadillo, it has a good country rock band, not a very large
crowd, a brief visit back to the Adventurer's Club, over to Cage, over to
Mannequin's (Say, do you realize how many Spandex's had to die to make that
outfit for you?), and lastly, Xfers. The band at Xfers is commercial, but
good, playing some Aerosmith, some B52s, some Bowie.
Enough already, back to CBR for some sleep.
Wednesday 5/15:
The plan (REVISED plan, my itinerary has been trashed) for today was to see
all the key attractions that we had missed on the first three days, and any
favorites.
Can it be, we've now got this early morning routine down to a science? Yes!,
we make it out on schedule, get to the TTC on schedule, and arrive at the end
of Mainstreet USA at 8:55, five minutes before opening. As I look around, I
notice that most of the crowd at the front of the line has the same idea;
Dumbo or Bust. Gentlemen, start your strollers! Indeed, as the barrier
drops, the Fantasyland 500 begins, and crazed parents disregard the carnage
around them as anyone in the path of a stroller is trampled into oblivion as
what were once semi-normal adults now MUST get little Nicole from Wichita on
to Dumbo before the line becomes a 40 year wait, which will certainly occur
within 2 minutes of the park opening. Look at that, we didn't make the first
running of Dumbo for the day, but Eva and the three kids are in line to make
the second running. I'll just take the pictures, thank you. As they are
loaded, Eva learns that they must be 7 years old or older to ride alone, so
I'm given immediate carte blanche by the cast member running the ride to jump
the fence and ride with Tara, while Alana and Eric ride with mom. I think
that I'm getting some dirty looks from the "back of the pack" from the
Fantasyland 500, but hey, this wasn't my idea.
Next is Peter Pan's flight, no line. The girls loved it, and they let us stay
on to ride it again. Over to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. About a 5 minute
wait, everybody liked it. Time to head to Magic Journeys, but en-route, the
line was short, so Eva and I take the kids on the carousel. Uh oh, don't look
now, oh no, it's too late, Eva has noticed that there isn't any line for It's
A Small World, so on we go...
The Magic Journeys pre-show is a 1950s cartoon staring Donald duck and Chip &
Dale, and the kids like it. Magic Journeys is wonderful, but I have to keep
reminding the kids not to whack the people in front of them while trying to
grab those 3D images.
Per Tara's request, we head to Big Thunder Mountain where she will ride with
Eva and me while the rest have a snack at the mile-long bar. Now that she
knows what to expect, this has become one of her favorite rides. About a 5
minute wait.
Per Alana's request, over to Dreamflight. Afterwards, Eva and I send them all
into Carousel of Progress, while we go to Space Mountain. We can't believe
it, no more than a two minute wait for Space Mountain. First we ride the
right side, then we get back in line (what little of it there is) on the left
side. Note: The left side seems to be darker than the right, possibly due to
the the WEDway people mover going by on the outside of the right side track.
When we come out we notice that the kids are busy with Chip & Dale and Goofy.
OK, so much for the guidebooks, today is Wednesday, and it is DEFINITELY less
crowded in the Magic Kingdom than it was in the Magic Kingdom on Sunday.
Maybe too many people are taking the guidebook advice...
Time to head to MGM. We ask if we can sit up front in the monorail to the TTC
and ....yes!, but there is only room for four, so Eva takes the kids. They're
all excited about the ride up front, if you have a chance, request it. When
you rent a stroller in any of the parks, they let you use your receipt to get
another stroller in any of the other parks, so we simply show the stub from
the MK and they cheerfully give us a stroller at MGM.
Over to the Honey I Shrunk The Kids Adventure Zone, but first a quick lunch at
the Studio Catering Co. The kids could probably spend several hours in Honey
I Shrunk the Kids if allowed. It is basically a playground, but a VERY unique
playground. Although the stated wait to get in was 20 minutes, it only took
about 10. Adults beware, unless you are a circus contortionist, you will find
the caves a bit low and small, even bent over at the waist, unless you truly
enjoy bumping your head and back on dark, jagged, Disney fake rock.
By Tara's request, we started back toward Star Tours the long way, and on the
way ran into Mickey, Goofy, and Pluto in their studio costumes for some more
pictures. (no autographs, since we already had those, of course)
Since this is about the hottest day of the week so far (low 90's, humid), we
stop for something frozen at Dinosaur Gertie's. Note: While at many ice
cream locations in the other parks the frozen lemonade and frozen strawberry
bars are imitation frozen unknown substance with imitation pulp-like
plastic-feel particles, at Dinosaur Gertie's you get the real thing! Real
Lemonade, frozen, real strawberry bars, frozen, and real yogurt bars, frozen.
Don't be fooled by the name being the same from different vendors in the
parks. (A frozen lemonade bar does not necessarily equal a frozen lemonade
bar)
Whoa, check it out, Chewbacca is outside of Star Tours, doing pictures (he
doesn't seem able to sign autographs, but hey, no one is about to argue with a
Wookie!)
this time, all of the kids decided to try Star Tours with Eva and myself (Tara
talked them into it) while Grandma waited by the exit. No line, unbelievable,
and this time it's mid-day, on a Wednesday. Here too, the park does not
appear to be as crowded as it was on Monday. Alana, like her sister, loved
it, but Eric screamed the now too familiar "I hate this!" throughout. I guess
it looks just a little too real for a three year old. OK, we drop Eric with
his grandmother, and Tara and Alana ride again with Eva and me (still no line,
we walk all the way through, right into the staging rows). Enough of MGM,
time to head to EPCOT. On the way out, a saxophone band was playing at the
beginning of Hollywood Blvd., complete with soprano, alto, tenor, baritone,
and bass saxes. My mother loved the music, so we stayed to catch their whole
set and dance around a bit with the kids. When they did Motown classic "My
Girl", I couldn't help but become their impromptu vocalist and sing it to my
twin daughters. Neither the band nor the crowd seemed to mind at all.
We drove to EPCOT, pick up another stroller with that MK stroller receipt, and
went to The Living Seas. Eric fell asleep during The Sea movie, so once
inside Sea Base Alpha he took a nap on a bench with me, while everyone else
explored. My mother soon relieved me of baby-sitting duty so I could rejoin
the rest.
Next to Horizon's, at Alana's request. This time the space scene was the
consensus choice at the end.
We went next door to Wonders of Life, and this time the wait for The Making of
Me wasn't too bad, so we took it in. Well done. Another visit to Cranium
Command, and then Body Wars with Tara, Eva, and myself, and we're ready to
head back to the CBR for dinner at Old Port Royale. On the tram ride from the
EPCOT entrance to the car, we FINALLY had a humorous tram announcer. I
remember from previous visits that almost all of them used to have a pretty
good spiel, but so far all during the week until now they had been cordial,
but SERIOUS. This was much better! ("This tram will be stopping at Energy,
Communication, etc., etc., and does not stop at the CBR, the Polynesian,
Typhoon Lagoon, Pleasure Island, or Sea World, and for those of you that think
that it stops at Universal Studios, get a clue...")
The food at Old Port Royale was fine, mostly stuff from Oriental Cargo, their
vegetables are excellent, and the ginger/soy dressing for the very
non-oriental salad is very good. We also tried the fajitas from the
Bridgetown Broiler, they were fine, but not exactly like you would get in an
El Torito, let alone in the Southwest. On special was a shrimp cocktail, the
shrimp were very good and fresh, the sauce was WAY to mild (can you spell
horseradish?), yet overpriced at $5.50 for four shrimp.
After dinner, everyone was beat from the marathon Three-Park Tour in one day,
so we all hit the hay early.
Thursday 5/16:
Hey, we've mastered this getting up and out on time stuff, finally!!!
By popular demand, we're off to Typhoon Lagoon again, and arrive just before
opening, at 9:55. We were able to stake out the same spot under the thatched
hut at Ketchakiddee Creek again, dropped our stuff, and hopped into Castaway
creek for the full ride around before the crowd.
Today did turn out to be quite a bit more crowded than Tuesday had been, but
still far from uncomfortable. Eva and I left Eric and Grandma at Ketchakiddee
Creek, and took the girls to ride the tube rides and storm slides. The twins
both loved Keelhaul Falls, so we figured that we'd try Mayday Falls with them.
They tolerated it, but it was juuuuuust a little wilder than they're ready
for, so they didn't want to take it again, but gladly went on Keelhaul Falls
again.
On the storm slides, Eva and I went down Stern Burner and Rudder Buster while
the twins went one behind the other down Jib Jammer, the first (Tara) starting
at the same time we did, so that we could catch them at the bottom . Alana
didn't like the final splash into the pool, although she liked the slide, and
didn't want to go again. Tara did want to ride again, so Alana waited in the
bottom grandstand while the three of us rode them once more, all pushing off
simultaneously.
Enough sliding and tubing, back to Ketchakiddee Creek to sit down and have
lunch. I had ordered hot dogs in the kids meal boxes, and upon returning to
the table found that they had packed hamburgers instead. I took the
hamburgers (wrapped) out of the boxes, and brought them back to exchange them
for hot dogs. They not only did this with a smile, they gave me entire new
boxes, complete with the extra chips, cookies, and Mickey silly straws. Yup,
customer service in action again.
After lunch we went to the wave pool. Contrary to what all of the guidebooks
say, they DO NOT just release big waves every 90 seconds. On alternate half
hours, they let the tubes ride on constant, medium height waves (maybe
two-footers), which come continuously without break, then when they go back to
the big waves, tubes are not allowed in the wave area. Ignore what the
guidebooks say about renting rafts or tubes for the big waves, it wasn't
allowed, at least while we were there! Tubes get their periods of small to
medium continuous waves instead.
We had decided to try to make it to Discovery Island in the afternoon, so we
left Typhoon Lagoon around 1:30, and went back to the CBR to shower and
change. The rooms were being made up, so since we were all still in bathing
suits, we hit the Martinique Pool for about 20 minutes.
Grandma decided to take a breather and stay in the room to write postcards, so
Eva and I took the kids to Discovery Island via Fort Wilderness. (And this
time, we took the EXPRESS bus...)
Discovery Island is beautiful, and as the books suggest, you can see all of it
in about an hour or so. It is worth the time, very lush, many rare birds,
lots of loose "wildlife". Just be sure to move away quickly when you come to
those spots on the trail where there is lots of white stuff on the ground,
because it came from the residents overhead, and will with all probability be
coming again, shortly, especially after feeding time. The parrot show was
interesting, and as they say, "educational". Eric started fading on the boat
ride back to Fort Wilderness, and as soon as he hit his car seat, he was fast
asleep.
When we got back to the CBR, all three kids were either asleep or semi-asleep,
so Eva went up to the room to collect my mother while I stayed in the car with
the kids. We then went to the Olive Garden just west of the Crossroads for
dinner, just as a major thunderstorm came through. The food was typical of
any Olive Garden, good, and the waitress was excellent and really nice to the
kids.
Uh oh, it's our final evening in Disney World, which means only one thing;
Over to Disney Village Marketplace to Mickey's Character Shop, so that we can
all be Spending Fools!! Suddenly, we must deal with trying to explain why
some given trinkets that one child suddenly views as essential to life itself
is really tomorrow's forgotten junk. We provide a little "guidance" so that
we don't wind up buying at least one of every item in the store, and
eventually make it out alive with some fun things, although I'll probably be
hiding from the American Express police as a delinquent account abuser for the
rest of my life. Isn't plastic wonderful !?! Hey, it could be worse, what if
I didn't have the trusty Magic Kingdom Club card for the 10% relief...
Back to the CBR to pack.
Eva and I put everyone to bed and head out by bus for one last night at
Pleasure Island. We make it just in time to get in line for the Comedy
Warehouse as New Year's is ushered in for the third time that we've seen it
this week. While we're waiting in line, the Comedy Warehouse "bouncer" tosses
a bunch of balloons tied together into the crowd in line, to be used for
"balloon volleyball". The crowd boos and hisses as some poor soul gags a hit
and allows the wind to carry the balloons over the nearby fence, but cheers
wildly as another had risked life and limb to save the balloons from falling
over the side rail into the lower depths adjacent to the Comedy Warehouse
inner wall.
We managed to get seats way up front this time, and one of the skits was
particularly hilarious, using a theme suggested by the audience, where in a
talk show motif the world's most renowned maker of Rubber Chickens was being
interviewed along with the proprietor of the store that does that largest
volume in Rubber Chicken sales. You had to be there, I suppose....
Once outside, we went on another "shop 'til you drop" spree in the Pleasure
Island shops, back to the Adventurer's Club for the Maid's Sing-A-Long, a
final stroll through Mannequin's to people watch, then back for the bus to the
CBR and some sleep.
Friday 5/17:
This was the earliest morning, up at 6:00, load the van, take a few final
pictures of the CBR, then over to the Polynesian for Minnie's Menehune
Character Breakfast at the Tangaroa Terrace. Just about everything that
anyone could imagine is on the buffet. Everything but...Banana Stuffed French
Toast! Per all of the comments in here, we figured that we had to try it, so
Eva and I ordered a serving to split between ourselves, in addition to the
buffet. The banana stuffed French toast is everything that everyone in this
conference has said it is - delicious! It indeed does not need syrup, and our
waiter had also suggested not using syrup. The kids liked the Mickey waffle
bar. Food very good, service excellent. The characters that were there were
Minnie (of course!), Chip, Dale, and Goofy. They all came around to our table
twice while we were there, and were very gracious about letting us take
pictures of everyone with them. At the end of the meal, the kids were excited
to get a "I had Breakfast with Minnie" pin.
After breakfast, we had time to take one more lap around on the monorail. We
made a stop at the Grand Floridian, just to take a quick look inside. Yup,
it's nice. We got off at the TTC walked to the Polynesian, piled into the
minivan, and went to the airport. The flights back were fine, just a little
delay due to weather in Boston.
Consensus Favorites (appealing to kids, adults, and the lone senior citizen):
Typhoon Lagoon
Hoop-De-Doo Review
Animation Building at MGM
Wonders of Life Pavilion at EPCOT
Magic Journeys at Magic Kingdom
Tara's (age 6) favorites:
Big Thunder Mountain
Star Tours
Body Wars
Jib Jammer
Keelhaul Falls
Alana's (age 6) favorites:
Dreamflight
Horizons
Peter Pan's Flight
Star Tours
Eric's (age 3) favorites:
Dumbo
Dreamflight
Ketchakiddee Creek
Eva's favorites:
Space Mountain
Big Thunder Mountain
Pleasure Island
Star Tours
Magic Journeys
Typhoon Lagoon
My Mother's favorites:
Pool at Martinique
Cranium Command
Animation Film (Robin Williams/Walter Cronkite)
My favorites:
The Adventurer's Club
Space Mountain
Big Thunder Mountain
Star Tours
Body Wars
Mayday Falls
Miscellaneous Notes:
- Kermit 3D was not open , but appears completed
- Splash Mountain construction is well underway
- Lines were almost nonexistent. Anything over 10 minutes we considered very
long
- MK was more crowded on Sunday than on Wednesday, EPCOT was more crowded on
Saturday than on Wednesday, MGM was about the same on Monday and Wednesday.
- Temperature was in the low 90's everyday
- We HIGHLY recommend the Caribbean Beach Resort. Nice rooms, great location,
great service, beautiful landscaping, food above average.
- Commercial Announcement: Johnson & Johnson sunscreen works perfectly. The
kids used SPF 15, the rest SPF 8, no one burned.
- Autographs were easy to come back, the kids were able to get Mickey, Minnie,
Chip, Dale, Eeyore, Pluto, Goofy, Tigger, Roger Rabbit, Leonardo,
Michaelangelo, Donatello, the Sheriff of Nottingham, and me (after Superstar
Television)
- Getting around in our own car rather than the Disney transportation was easy
and convenient. But it sure was nice having those busses for the late nights
at Pleasure Island...
- The 6 year olds and the 73 year old were able to walk and keep up with this
schedule with no problem, despite 90 degree temperatures. The stroller was
absolutely necessary for the 3 year old, even though it has been over a year
since he was in a stroller.
- We intentionally skipped Universe of Energy. From the last time that we
were here, for the 5 minutes that you get to see the dinosaurs, you must
endure 40 minutes of propaganda on such wonderful things as strip mining,
Alaskan oil (oops!) and how nukes enrich your life.
- We were never asked to show our transportation passes anywhere.
- There is substantial new construction at the Grand Floridian and the
Contemporary.
- The road signs are up for Port Orleans.
- Lots of new additional full-grown palm trees were being planted along the
roads daily.
- Although the Garden View from the Garden View rooms was very nice, if you're
like us and basically just used to rooms to sleep, go for the parking lot
view, which is a better view than the name implies, and the rooms are the
same.
- The official guide says that the CBR has two Queen beds. Wrong, the are
double beds (slightly smaller than Queen).
- No Electrical Parade or MK fireworks this week.
- One week is not enough time just for Disneyworld, let alone the other area
attractions, which we didn't get to this time.
Cheers,
Ken
|
| 237.15 | BEWARE -- LONG REPORT | TRUCKS::COOPER_N | | Tue Jun 18 1991 03:55 | 988 |
| COOPER FAMILY DISNEYWORLD TRIP REPORT - MAY 1991
ORIGIN: Dorset, UK
Departure Date: 9th May
Return Date: 30th May
Participants: Paul "Pluto" Cooper, age 10
Adam "Figment" Cooper, age 7
Sheila "Tinkerbell" Cooper, age over 21
Nick "Goofy" Cooper, age unspecified!
Introduction
I apologise in advance if this gets too lengthy. It was a three week trip
after all. I will try to contain it to just the Disney bits, but I think its
worth a few paragraphs of general introduction just to set the scene.
If it gets boring look for the "DISNEY VISITS" title a little further down.
Apologies also if I repeat anything already reported in the conference, I don't
get enough time to read everything, and it will take a while to write this,
during which time other contributions might pre-empt me.
Background
We used the same tour company, Thomson, for a two week visit to Florida in May
'89, had a great time, and vowed then that we would be back for a longer visit.
We got home so exhausted last time that we decided three weeks was necessary in
order to give us some rest days in between things. Rest!! Who am I trying to
kid? Since the last visit, there are not only plenty of new things at MK,
EPCOT and MGM, but also Typhoon Lagoon and many other Disney things which had
not occured to us last time (River Country, Disney resorts etc). Not to
mention Universal Studios etc.
Anyway, if you are travelling 4000+ miles you have to make the most of it
right? So, two years and plenty of hard saving later we were on our way ...
Cost
Tour package - Very close to 2000 pounds (about $3700 at the time we paid)
Included: Flights, three weeks accommodation and car with 1
level upgrade (excluding CDW, tax etc.)
More about these in a moment for those interested. If not,
please skip the next page or so.
Spending money - Approx $2500, excluding Disney passes, car extras and a couple
of meals paid by plastic. Altogether about another $900.
Note that this included a LOT of souvenir type shopping.
Flights
London Gatwick - Orlando direct, Britannia charter 767. Really excellent. We
were nervous about this, having used Virgin last time, but they were every bit
as good. Cabin staff very attentive, efficient and friendly; also a lot of
trouble taken to keep the kids happy - very welcome on a 9 hour flight! I even
got the kids a visit to the flight deck. Not just for a couple of minutes
either. The captain spent a good 10 minutes chatting to them and showing them
things. They came back enthralled and each clutching a picture postcard of the
aircraft!
Accommodation
I'm almost afraid to admit this with all the talk of Disney resorts in this
conference, but we are not as affluent as our transatlantic cousins :-), and
besides, the trip was already costing enough to mean living on bread and water
for the next 2 years. So, dare I say it, we stayed in a Days Lodge; not even
at Buena Vista, but way up on Orange Blossom Trail, near the Florida Mall.
We saw enough of the Disney resorts to really appreciate the advantages, and to
sigh enviously as we strolled about, but the budget just did not extend that
far.
The Days Lodge, although basic, has some good things going for it. Its right
on the Bee Line Expressway and the Florida turnpike, minutes from I-4 and
therefore only a 15 minute drive to WDW; also handy for most other attractions
in the area. We had a separate sitting room with TV, sofa, easy chairs, dining
table and chairs as well as a good size kitchen with a full range, refrigerator
and dishwasher. The bedroom was a good size, with 2 queens and its own
wash-basin. The bathroom had tub and shower and another basin - useful when a
family of four is trying to get going in the morning.
We had no intention of using the kitchen to a great extent, but it did mean
that we were able to buy in plenty at the start of our stay to keep us going
for breakfasts and odd snacks as well as lots of beer, wine and soda for those
hot evenings by the pool!
There is also a service restaurant where the kids eat free, though we did not
use it.
Oh, almost forgot, I got a tank of gas at half price as well!
Car
Our car was reserved as a part of the package and included an upgrade to
intermediate. Lindo's was the agency, now taken over by Dollar it would appear
from most of the bumper stickers. This is hardly an up-market outfit, but boy
were they handling some throughput. All in all, a pretty slick operation
considering the number of folk passing through. I signed up for all my
"extras" such as CDW, tax etc, handed the ticket to one of the "runners" and,
very quickly, a Plymouth Acclaim appeared from the depths of the lot and my
luggage was loaded for me.
Now its difficult to keep up with what's happening in US cars these days, but
this was a definite disappointment. Last time I reserved the same class of car
(also Lindo's) and got an Olds Cutlass with power everything. By contrast, the
Plymouth was very spartan, smaller and, to me anyway, had nothing inspiring in
its appearance at all. It looked more like a Japanese compact to me. Ah well!!
The only real annoyance was lack of central locking. It was a real pain having
to lock all 4 doors independently whenever we left the car. I haven't done
that for 7 or 8 years. Amazing how you get used to these modern conveniences.
THE DISNEY VISITS (At last I guess you are saying)
Disney Day 1 - Friday, 10th May
Well, it had been a pretty long day on Thursday starting at 5:30am UK time and
eventually getting to bed about 11pm EST, or 4:00am Friday UK time. Still we
had eaten well at the Food Hall in the Florida Mall on Thursday evening, and
stocked up with groceries at the local Goodings, so Friday bright and early we
were up and ready to go. About 07:30 we were starting to think about breakfast
when the neighbours called. I should explain that we had coordinated our visit
with some friends (two adults, 3 kids) from back home and they were
conveniently located in the apartment next door.
Now these folk had parents staying at the Beach Club that weekend, and it seems
we had all been invited over for breakfast. Before you could say Jiminy
Cricket (or spell it?) everybody was in the car and ready to go. We found our
way down to the World no problem and, several "short-cuts" later (such as back
on I-4 westbound!) we were there. First reaction on approach was an
overwhelming "Good Grief" to the Swan and Dolphin. Suffice to say, now I know
what all the fuss has been about in this conference. The Yacht Club looked
really nice on approach - we turned in there first by mistake. The Beach Club,
even better. We all agreed we prefer the external decor of the Beach, even
more so from the Lagoon side.
Anyway, we met our friends' parents at about 9:00 and all 11 of us made an
assault on the restaurant. We expected to be split for seating but, no
problem, we were quickly accommodated at two large adjoining tables on the far
side of the buffet from the entrance. Already it was getting hard to restrain
the kids from surrounding Goofy, lurking by the door in Admiral garb.
Breakfast was fine, fairly typical Disney resort style buffet as we came to
realise. Of course the kids were more interested in the characters than
eating, but a thoroughly good time was had by all. The waitress was very
attentive and volunteered to take a couple of pictures for us. It wasn't too
crowded by this time, so we had plenty of attention from the characters also.
I think Paul used a complete roll of film on Pluto (his favourite) alone!
Chip 'n Dale were also in evidence - but only Goofy was in nautical attire.
We made a quick tour of the club, with many comments about "how can we
possibly face the Days Lodge after this?". Unless you see them, it is very
difficult to describe just how impressive these Disney resorts are. There
seems to be no expense spared in getting the image or atmosphere for that
particular resort just right. This applies equally to the Swan and Dolphin;
whether you happen to like it or not is beside the point. I note that these
latter two are actually operated by Westin and Sheraton though (can't remember
which is which); perhaps common knowledge, but I hadn't realised.
We were surprised that reception gave the OK for us all, as visitors, to join
our hosts in the pool, but we certainly weren't going to argue! We went to the
friends' parents' room to change, and off we went. Nice room by the way,
though not too large. Separate basins outside the bathroom, queen bed, dresser
with TV, table and chairs, large paddle fan, and handy wallsafe in the closet.
This was 3rd floor, lagoon side but in the side of a wing, facing a similar
side across a small lawned area. The balcony was more of a shelf with
handrails! I could see how our hosts had got lost on their first night - there
are seemingly miles of identical looking corridors. They were woken at 2am one
morning by a guy hammering at the door and shouting "what are you doing in my
room?!"!!
The main pool complex is magnificent. A huge meandering affair, very pleasantly
landscaped with rocks, bridges, beach areas etc. Much to my surprise, there is
also sand on the bottom of the pool - must play havoc with the filtration
systems. The part on the Beach club side was more imaginative to my mind, but
then they are only yards apart anyway. The snorkeling pool, in between the
two, was empty at this point. I saw a comment somewhere in here about the
galleon wreck and "could this be a water-slide?" - well indeed it was. A very
respectable one at that. The galleon is at the edge of the lagoon and you climb
the spiral staircase around its' mast. From there the slide takes you back
across the beach and promenade, and into the main pool. This was a great hit
with everybody. There is also a small kiddies slide at the rear of the galleon
with its own capture pool, though this was closed. The beach area is really
nice too. There must be fifty or more loungers and swinging seats out there,
but not a single one was in use despite glorious weather.
As non-residents, we would have felt guilty enjoying this pool if it weren't
for the fact it was pretty well deserted anyway. After about 3 hours, we
decided that was enough sun for the day (each of us was wearing 4 layers of
factor 300 or so!), so we went back to change and complete the tour. The gym
was particularly impressive - loads and loads of what appeared (to my untrained
eyes) to be the most sophisticated equipment. Again, nobody using it.
A quick visit to the shop for souvenirs - we liked the Beach Club T-shirts
particularly and got the kids one each - then thought we would leave the
other family to themselves for a while.
We finished off the day's tour with a stroll round the Disney Village
Marketplace and Pleasure Island (before 6pm when admission charges start). I
always like this. It costs nothing (except perhaps ice-creams for all, and
more "we must buy that" souvenirs), but it has a lot of that unique Disney
atmosphere.
That was Disney done for the day. I will not include the "going home, going to
bed" stuff because I can already tell this is going to be far too long.
We all agreed that this had been a perfect first day, when we were still too
tired from the journey for any major excursions, but anxious to get into
Florida sunshine and Disney magic mode for the coming days.
Disney Day 2 - Sunday, 12th May
Off to buy the 5-day Super-passes. We did not get these earlier as we had no
intention of visiting the theme parks over the weekend, and we did not want the
7 day period for Typhoon Lagoon etc to start earlier than necessary. We did
determine, however that it did not matter. In fact the seven days does not
start until the first time the pass is used at MK, MGM or EPCOT. So you could
use the pass for nothing but Typhoon Lagoon, River Country etc as long as you
like before your first visit to the the other three. Maybe common knowledge,
but the cast member who told us this said it was a closely kept secret. It
made little difference to us as we were to visit EPCOT the next day, but we
proved the point by using the passes for Typhoon Lagoon this Sunday and again
for River Country the following Sunday, without additional charge. All the
same I would check to make sure before you make any plans around this.
As we did not plan to enter the parks, we avoided the parking charge by going
to the Beach Club and walking through to the EPCOT entrance there to buy them.
It really surprised me that you can buy passes and enter EPCOT here having
avoided the $4.00 parking fee.
It is a very pleasant stroll to the EPCOT entrance from the Beach club,
alongside the canal, nicely landscaped as ever, soft music issuing from the
flower-beds (where DO they get those musical plants? :-)), and very few people
around.
Passes secured, we set off to stroll back and do a tour of the Yacht Club, Swan
and Dolphin. Nothing really memorable, except for the stark contrast between
the quietly attractive Club resorts and the brash, ugly "high rises". The
latter two are not as bad inside, and well worth having a peek anyway.
Incidentally, we noticed that the main pool at the Beach Club had now been
closed, cordoned-off and completely drained since Friday. The galleon
also had scaffolding all over it, and the whole area looked a bit of a mess.
The snorkeling pool (if that is what it is intended to be) had since been
filled - but no fish, and a poor substitute for the remainder. Is this story
about putting the fish in true? I never found out for sure. As we were to
discover later, the pool was to remain closed for the remainder of our holiday
at least. I would have been a little upset to say the least if I were paying
to stay at the Beach Club during that period. We never found out for sure what
the reason was, but one cast member told us they were searching for a leak
which had been losing thirty thousand gallons of water a day! An exaggeration
I hope, otherwise I think the whole resort would have floated away after a
couple of weeks.
About 2pm we met up with our friends at Typhoon Lagoon and stayed on there
until closing. We really liked this. Sheila in particular preferred this to
Wet 'n Wild; not a great water person, she at least had more pleasant
surroundings to enjoy, and did not care that the rides are maybe not as
adventurous. Adam really surprised me by wanting to go on everything, so it
turned out to be a good family afternoon.
Per advice here, we headed straight for the lockers. No more quarters, just a
one-off rental charge, $2.00 for a small and plenty spare. There's a
refundable deposit ($3.00?), but make sure you don't lose the receipt. Once
changed it was off to Ketchakiddee Creek which looked a good spot to base
ourselves. (Hint: its quicker to take your sandals off and go across the beach
and edge of the lagoon rather than follow the paths). Although the parking lot
was not full, just about every chair and lounger in the place was taken, so the
wives based themselves on the sand until some folk left and they could secure a
table. Since the park was obviously not up to capacity (space for parking, and
short lines for the rides) this means that the seating areas must get VERY full
on a busy day.
The two men took the two oldest kids off to investigate for a while and the
others stayed at the Creek. We did the individual tubes first, then got in
line for the family tube (Gangplank falls?). While we had virtually walked on
to everything else, there was a good 20 minute wait for this one. On the verge
of being not worth waiting as far as I am concerned. However, its a good ride
and the community spirit in the raft adds to the enjoyment. The "catcher" at
the bottom end was having a great time soaking everybody in line by filling his
loud-hailing cone with water. The "dispatcher" at the top was good also,
building the thing up with scary warnings about what to do and what not, what
would happen if you did etc. Also asked if we liked getting wet and promptly
pushed the raft under a waterfall and held it there for a while before pushing
us on our way.
I'm not a great one for heights, but the Cowabunga looked pretty tame .. from
the bottom! I began to have second thoughts looking down from the top, but you
can't lose face in front of the kids right? So, eyes tightly closed, off I
went. To be honest, there's no time to be scared. Before I knew it, I was
back at the bottom trying to retain some sense of dignity while removing my
swim-shorts from you know where, and attempting to look blas� about the
whole thing. Had you been there, you may well have noticed me "flying the flag
" so to speak, since by this time I was wearing a very ancient Digital T-shirt
to supplement the factor 450.
We returned to find the ladies had stolen chairs from somewhere, so we had a
drink and all set off for Castaway Creek. It took a while to collect 9 tubes,
but we made it eventually and off we set. It wasn't long before we realised
that trying to stay together was impossible, so it was pretty much every man
(or person) to themselves. Sheila was delighted at getting stuck in a freak
whirlpool right under the first waterfall for about 2 hours (her version - mine
says 20 seconds) but she did look just a trifle wet afterwards! The Creek is
very lazy and beautifully landscaped as ever, but just a little slow for my
liking. At least the tubes are free - there was a $4.00 charge at Wet 'n Wild.
After the Creek our family headed for Gankplank Falls again, not such a bad
line this time. Fortunately we did not have the same guy at the top, and
Sheila escaped being pushed under another waterfall, and we all enjoyed the
ride. While Sheila headed for the chairs again, Paul went to find the others
and I took Adam for a look at the storm slides. Surprisingly, he was all for
giving it a try, so up we went. My theory is that these slides look less
daunting because they are "moulded" into the landscape, so you can't really see
where they go or what is going to happen to you, or maybe Adam is just growing
up! Anyway there was no line for these and we rode them all in quick
succession, enjoying every minute. These are just really good slides, not
scary, but fun enough to make you want to go back.
We had a brief try at the wave pool before closing, but it was just a little on
the wild side for all but the menfolk and the two oldest kids. The waves look
big from the edge of the lagoon, but from right underneath them they look
gigantic and the power behind them is phenomenal. The huge slapping sound as
the mechanism sets it going not only provides warning, but also adds to the
tension of the moment as the faint-hearted scatter for safer waters.
Well there was just enough time for a little shopping and it was time to head
for home once more.
Disney Day 3 - Monday, 13th May
EPCOT today. Despite best efforts, we did not make the parking lot until about
8:15, and hit the entrance at 8:30. I was dismayed to find everybody going in,
since the "arrive early" plan was designed to get us to Earth station promptly
to make reservations for lunch at the Coral Reef, in the Living Seas. However,
I hiked it up there to find only one person in front of me at the monitor line,
and 12:00 reservations were secured without problems.
We then waited at the nearest Communicore exit to Wonders of Life, assuming
this would be the most popular as it is the newest pavilion. The doors opened
at 9:00 promptly, and off we set. We were right in the first party for Body
Wars. This was for us the first of the new "simulator" type rides which are
beginning to proliferate and I found it a bit of a let down. The kids did not
really catch on to what was supposed to be happening and Adam wanted to know
what "those rocks and trees" were doing there. Things moved so fast, and the
environment seemed just strange rather than giving the feeling of being within
a human body. Anyway, just an opinion.
Next was Cranium Command. We really liked this. The cartoon pre-show was
clever, and the show itself very amusing. Generally all good entertainment.
Not wanting to waste too much time investigating all the new things here while
the park was still quiet, we next headed for Universe of Energy. Had to see the
Dinosaurs again. Shame there isn't an exit afterwards for those lacking a
sufficiently strong stomach for the Exxon commercials afterwards. I noticed
when we got on that someone had actually thrown-up in the next car along during
the previous show! Whether it was the commercials which did it we will never
know.
Still working on the principle that things were quiet, so get the popular
things done first, we then headed over to Imagination. Walked straight on to
the ride. Adam is definitely growing up. This time, he enjoyed the ride as
did we all, but last time he really loved it - there had been no doubt that
this was his favourite then. We remembered the photo at the end, and all made
suitably offensive faces at the camera.
Captain EO was just closing as we got to the theatre and we managed to squeeze
in with seconds to spare. Actually, the theatre was not even full, so we were
still counting ourselves very lucky crowd-wise. We all like this show, and
Adam appreciated the whole thing more than last time. Its a significant part
of the enjoyment of the trip for us to turn occassionally and see the kids with
mouths open, eyes agog (not easy through 3-D glasses!). Somehow, we had not
planned this too cleverly, since we next found ourselves legging it over to
Horizons on the other side again. We found a new game on the way called
"squish (or rather, avoid squishing)" the frog. The paths around Communicore
were crawling with tiny frogs, anything from half an inch to an inch in size.
Needless to say, this provided a new unsheduled show and we lost ten minutes
while the kids looked, tried to catch and rescue them. This was another high
for the kids, whose other memorable thing about the whole trip was the number
of lizards around the place!
Horizons is always fun - we did the land journey at the end, but I always find
this too fast and fuzzy to really appreciate it. We also managed to squeeze in
World of Motion, but no time for the subsequent exhibits as it was time to
start the quarter mile dash for lunch at Living Seas.
Made it on time and had a reasonable, if not memorable lunch. We were seated
on the second tier back, and had a reasonable view of the windows, but the kids
would have liked to be closer. Sheila had shrimp and scallop fettucine which
was "OK". I had one of the day's specials, seafood lasagne. Quite tasty, but
a little dry and heavy. The kids had chicken strips (not seafood lovers!) and
were not impressed. They reckoned they were better in the fast food outlets.
With dessert and a couple of beers, the total came to $70.00 without tip.
Service was fast and efficient, but the waiter was pretty straight-laced and we
felt that, overall, the whole thing was a little impersonal. Would not do it
again.
We went from the restaurant straight into the Living Seas exhibit. Personally,
I find all the intro and the short ride a waste of time. I would prefer you
were able to walk right into the viewing area. The kids, Adam especially,
loved this exhibit and were rushing around pointing at each new fish they
discovered.
When we left we were in for our first taste of what was to be fairly
commonplace for the next week or so - it was raining!; and it didn't just rain,
it rained and it rained and it rained. We thought this might be bad news for
the lines, since all those normally strolling about outside would be heading for
inside. However, it did not appear to have much impact. Either the crowds
never arrived that day, or they all went home.
We managed to get to the Land pavilion only half-drowned, and walked into the
Harvest Theatre by mistake, having confused it for the Kitchen Cabaret. Pretty
uninspiring I thought. We then did the ride (no lines still) and the real
Kitchen Cabaret, which the kids really enjoyed. We were plagued by their
rendering of "veggie veggie, fruit fruit" for the rest of the holiday.
Ham 'n Eggs were their favourite characters.
Spaceship Earth aside, we had now done the most significant rides, so we bought
some of the magic ponchos and braved the weather to make for World Showcase.
We had planned to do this earlier as the crowds arrived, but as that never
happened we were now faced with trudging the showcase in the rain. As it
happens, we went through Mexico and Norway, no lines for the rides. I agree
with most others that the start of the boat ride in Mexico is really nice. It
reminds me of the start of the Pirates of the Carribean at Disneyland, but I
think the latter is even better.
The character show at the showcase plaza was cancelled due to the weather and
we didn't fancy straying further round the lagoon in the rain. We like to
stroll around the lands as much as do the rides, and the weather just was not
conducive to that. We therefore went back to Motion and did the static
exhibits. Paul is really into cars now, and loves all the futuristic stuff.
They both loved climbing all over the latest GM offerings as well - some of my
own affection for US cars has rubbed off on them, and the opportunity to
experience them "in the flesh" was not to be missed!
After that it was back to Communicore to play with the video screens etc, and
we also took in the "behind the scenes" computer show (Backstage Magic). Wall
to wall Unisys of course, but was that a VAXstation display and a VT340 I
saw in the left-hand console?
I checked at Earth Station as to whether Illuminations was likely to be
cancelled, since we did not want to spend 2-3 more hours battling the elements
only to be let down. I was told they have only cancelled twice in three years,
due to storm force winds in both cases. While we were over there, we took in
Spaceship earth; hardly anybody around at that time.
We had a bite of something totally forgettable in the Stargate restaurant, then
did Cranium Command again by popular concensus. Back in Communicore, the kids
were fascinated watching the robots doing their tricks with spinning tops,
swords etc., and we then went over to the Image Works. I'd forgotten most of
that stuff, but we all enjoyed the variety of things to do and see here.
Sheila and I found it particularly amusing to watch all the adults jumping
around like demented crickets on the light spots which initiate weird musical
noises. We would never behave that way of course (well .. not while anybody
was watching! :-)).
By now it was time to seek a spot for Illuminations. Fortunately, it had
stopped raining, so we kept on round to the right until we found a good spot.
Amazingly, we bumped right into our friends (in the UK, appropriately) and we
all watched from the bridge between UK and France. Can't really describe our
feelings about illuminations; amazing, fantastic, awesome, and "how much does
that cost?" get close.
Afterwards? Well, back to the ranch to work on the next day's schedule.
Disney Day 4 - Tuesday, 14th May
Not a particularly planned day, it more sort of happened. We started late due
to the rigours of the previous day, and spent an hour or so at the pool while
we decided on the agenda. Eventually we (both families) set off for the
Contemporary and a boat to Discovery Island.
On the approach to the landing stage, all looked very attractive and we were
really looking forward to what, for us, was to be a completely new Disney
experience. But hold on, was this really Disney? Somehow, to us, it was all
an anti-climax. There did not seem to be any of the unique Disney magic about
the place. No real "flair" in its presentation. Maybe this is how a wildlife
exhibit should be - an attempt to avoid excessively obvious commercialisation?
Anyway, it was pleasant (apart from the revolting aroma emanating from the rest
rooms in the centre), just plain unremarkable. We probably stayed a couple of
hours, then headed back to the Contemporary. Incidentally, beware the towel
return bins here; they look very like trash cans, a fact supported by one of
the kids who deposited her empty Coke can in one!
Lunch was a rough and ready affair in the Contemporary snack bar, alongside the
video games room (not the most restful background for conversation - it must
drive the staff in the lobby mad).
Suitably restored, we set off for another afternoon at Typhoon Lagoon. The
park was quieter today, and there were empty loungers on the beach. Had to be
a catch right? Yup. Just got settled and ready for the slides when the
dreaded "everybody out of the water, and off the beaches" message was
broadcast. Now I'm not sure of this, and I don't know if you are reading this
Ken, but it sounds very like we sought shelter within yards of Ken Steinhardt
and company as reported in note 237.14. For sure we were sheltering from the
same storm, on the same day, at the same time and more or less in the same
place! Sorry we missed you Ken - I wasn't wearing the Digital T-shirt that
day, just factor 580 (oh, and shorts!)!
Things were even quieter after the storm, and we could more or less settle
ourselves wherever we liked. The mums and youngest girl stayed on the beach
while dads accompanied the other kids on another tour of all the rides. We all
went over for a look at the snorkelling pool, declared as "closed for the
season" at the gate. Indeed it was closed, but there was no obvious reason
why, no work in progress, and all the fish were in. Real pity this was closed
because it looks really wonderful. Every bit as good as you would expect from
Disney. There is even a wreck which you can enter from the edge of the pool
and go down to view everything from underwater.
Yet another surprise now from Adam who declared that he wanted to go on the
Cowabunga. He looked a little doubtful when he got to the top, but he decided
now or never. He came off smiling, more because he could now tell evrybody he
had done it than because he enjoyed it I think. However, as we left, I noticed
he had managed to remove a layer of skin about a half inch by three inches from
the middle of his back! Still don't know how he managed it, but the folk at
the first aid post did not seem surprised. It did not seem to bother him too
much, but meant that he had to stay out of the water for the next few days,
which was a bind. He was also disappointed that we could not find an "I
survived the Cowabunga" T-shirt in the shop.
After a brief visit to the wave pool, it was once more time to change and make
for home.
Disney Day 5 - Thursday, 16th May
Attempted to get everyone going early after a long day at Universal on
Wednesday, but still did not make the TTC until 8:30. We just about reached
the Kingdom main entrance by 9:00. Wished we had saved time by parking at the
Contemporary and taking the short walk direct to the gate, but found out later
from our friends, who tried it, that there is a hidden security post. They
were turned around and sent back by monorail.
We headed straight for Space Mountain, but in just the few moments the park had
been open, the line was already about 30 mins. Note , this was a "quiet" day
according to the guide books. As we didn't expect to hike back during the day,
we waited it out. Adam had second thoughts at the last minute, so just Paul
and I rode. Sheila was very quick to volunteer to take Adam out! Somehow, I
always get picked for the front on this one, despite the fact that I would be
more than happy for someone else to have a turn :-). The ride seemed smoother
this time than last, but every bit as exciting. Its been around a few years
now, but still does not seem dated. My first experience of it was 1978 at
Disneyland - sigh!!
From this point on, we did not have further problems with lines. Although there
were one or two things we avoided because of the wait, this did not apply to
anything we really wanted to do.
I next took the lads on the Grand Prix Raceway (no line), Paul driving himself,
me with Adam steering and my foot on the pedal. Fun for the kids, but I cannot
understand why lone adults will line up for ages for this ride, unless they are
all non-drivers I suppose. There was only a 5 minute or so wait for the
Captain Nemo ride, so that was next. Sheila and I both thought there were
things here which were new - a replica of one of the subs being attacked by a
giant squid for example? We kept going in an anti-clockwise direction, hitting
Small World and Haunted Mansion next. The guide book really did work here - at
Small World I found the left lane open, which nobody had apparently noticed,
walked straight past 50 or so people queued on the right, and on to the next
boat!
Looked across at Peter Pan, and Mr. Toad, but sizeable lines for both so did
not bother - we are not fond of these anyway. These are another two rides
which I don't understand lone adults queuing for. Even our kids find them
pretty boring!
We all really like the haunted mansion, and Adam again appreciated it to a much
greater extent than last trip. No line again. I was surprised that you walk
more or less straight onto the ride on leaving the elevator. I seemed to
remember a wander through a corridor with busts and pictures looking at you, or
is that Disneyland?
We were then going to head for Big Thunder, but there seemed to be a long line
in the distance, so we diverted to the Country Bear Jamboree which was starting
shortly. There was a good crowd in, and plenty of foot-stomping, hand-clapping
etc. It was nice to have the Camcorder with us this trip to record some of
these shows for posterity. It was time for an early lunch when we came out, so
we grabbed a few hot dogs at Pecos Bill Cafe. Big Thunder still looked busy,
so we next headed for Pirates of the Caribbean followed by the Jungle Cruise.
No great wait for either. Pirates was always our favourite at Disneyland, and
somehow this one doesn't quite match it. Is the music quieter? We always used
to come off humming the tune in Calif., but I hardly notice it in the WDW
version.
We had a great guide for the Jungle Cruise. He put everything into it, and
that makes all the difference. It was funny to see a boat full of trainee
guides going past, obviously getting their hands-on training. Our guide also
asked one of the kids (not ours) to steer the boat at one point - is this
routine now? I don't remember that before. The treehouse was still closed
(signs say open Spring 1991 whenever that is considered to be), so we trekked
back to Tomorrowland for Dreamflight which we had not seen before. We quite
enjoyed that, but nothing spectacular. Skyway was closed by the way.
By now it was time to get a spot for the 3pm parade, so we passed all the folk
sitting at the kerbside down Main Street and (per a hint in this conference)
found a good spot in Town Square, close to Tony's. This proved to be an
excellent viewing point, and less crowded than many others. Really good parade
too - much better than two years ago, when we were a bit disappointed with it.
At this point we realised we had skipped Mickey's Starland, for which we would
never be forgiven! We therefore followed the parade up Main Street and headed
that way. There was no line for the Tea Cups as we passed, so we did those en
route. I thought lunch was sufficiently well in the past, but I came close to
seeing it again here! That'll teach me to be clever and get the thing really
spinning. Adam began to look a little uncertain about the whole thing, so I
told him to shout and scream, which seemed to be more fun than the ride, and he
came off smiling.
We found the first significant presence of characters in Starland. Scrooge,
King Louie, some of the Gummi bears, Chip 'n Dale and others. Still no Mickey
though. We had quite a wait for the show, and Sheila and I thought it lacked
much of a story, but it was enjoyable anyway and we got to see Mickey at last!
The kids certainly liked it, despite being sat on by an obnoxious type who
seemed to think if there was no room where he wanted to sit he would just sit
on someone else! We advised him differently ...
We didn't bother with the dressing room visit, having done it last trip.
Adam would have liked to go on Dumbo, but the line was ridiculous, so we set
off for Big Thunder. The line looked long, but went straight past the stalls
inside, so it was probably less than 10 minutes. Adam was a little
apprehensive, especially as we were directed right to the front. He felt a
little better that we had the engine in front of us, and he soon found that
screaming really did make him feel better! In fact, the front is fairly tame
since you are halfway down the hills before the back is over the top and it
really start rolling. In the end, we all loved it. Maybe this is one of our
favourites now the whole family can enjoy it.
Its a pity about the Splash Mountain construction. It really seems to close up
this area of the park. The signs say opening fall 1992 by the way. We made a
quick excursion to Tom Sawyer's island, but did not stay too long as the storm
clouds were moving in and we did not want to get stuck. The barrel bridge was
closed which upset the kids a little. As we got back to the "mainland" the
rain started, and they were quickly getting all the boats off the "River". One
guy was in an awful mess trying to turn a keel boat around. Last seen
broadside across the river and going nowhere fast!
It was about 6pm and the rain had set in for the evening so we meandered back
to the entrance and took the ferry back to the parking lot and home.
Disney Day 6 - Friday, 17th May
We had a good laze in bed this morning, then an hour by the pool and (both
families) up to McDonalds playland for an early lunch. Had not made any plans,
but decided over lunch to go over to the Polynesian and have a look around.
We rented some sprites and took the kids out on the lake, which made a pleasant
diversion. $11:00 for 30 minutes by the way. On return, mine ran out of gas
about 5 yards from the landing stage! Glad it wasn't 500. After ice creams
and a nose about the shops, we went to investigate the Caribbean Resort. This
seems pretty nice - we strolled about with those envious glances again. My
only reservation about the resort was that it appeared to have no service
restaurant. The food hall is pretty good, but must be quite a hike if you are
on the other side of the resort. There must be days when you get back
exhausted and would like to be waited on though? Or did we miss something
somewhere? Anyway the ladies made a valiant effort to dent the souvenir budget
in the shops!
It had not been a particularly energetic day, and still relatively early so we
decided to stop by the Marketplace on our way home. While there we thought it
would do no harm to have a look at Pleasure Island coming alive for the
evening, and our passes were still good for free entry, so in we went. We
never did get to stay on really late for New Year's Eve, but the atmosphere was
fun even early in the evening. We had not really expected things to be very
suitable for the kids. However, by complete accident, we found ourselves
almost in the queue for the first show at the Comedy Warehouse so why not? It
was good fun. The kids didn't follow it all, but one or two pieces had them in
stitches. I was sitting by one of the 'phones and praying it wouldn't ring!
When we came out the band outside was in full swing, playing mostly Chicago
songs, very competently - great. The atmosphere was really great now that
night had fallen, and we just strolled and took it all in until the kids began
to flag and it was time to set course for home and (we just realised) something
to eat, having had nothing but ice cream since lunch.
Disney Day 7 - Sunday, 19th May
Impromptu decision this am to breakfast at the Contemporary and go on to River
Country, as it was our last free day on the passes. Both families went again.
We did not reach the Contemporary until about 10:00, but there was quite a line
for breakfast. However, it only took about 20 minutes and they accommodated
all 9 of us at a large round table. Characters in evidence were Pluto, Goofy,
Chip 'n Dale and the White Rabbit. It was the other Dad's birthday, and a
really good time was had by all. Pluto and Chip were terrific. They were
teasing each other the whole time, mock fighting, even rolling on the floor on
a couple of occasions.
When Goofy found out we had a birthday, he gestured "how old?" and when he got
an answer proceeded to hobble round the restaurant bent double, one paw
supporting his back and the other clutching his forehead. Paul took Pluto's
photograph using the flash, and Pluto immediately clutched his eyes as though
blinded and then staggered about arms outstretched, bumping into walls. At one
point, Pluto was kneeling by our table when Nicole (the youngest of our party)
rushed up and clutched him round the neck. There proceeded more hilarity while
he stood up and walked around with Nicole dangling on his back laughing fit to
bust! All in all a terrific breakfast, and a memorable birthday for Dad 2.
After breakfast, we made for the landing stage and River Country. We found
this a pleasant change from the larger water parks, and a pleasant change to
swim in the lake - albeit a cordoned off area which I am sure is treated
somehow. The chutes are fairly tame, but the other things made up for it. The
separate pool is a good size too, and its nice to find a pool deep enough that
you are actually ALLOWED to dive into. The chutes here drop you in from a
great height and its very difficult to see whether the previous rider has got
out of the way or not. We were all forced out of the water again for an hour
while a storm passed, and things were quieter afterwards. Around 4:30pm we
started to think of packing up. There were lots of rabbits and squirrels
around by then, so we took a short detour on the nature trail, before heading
for the landing stage for the return trip.
Disney Day 8 - Tuesday, 21st May
MGM day and we actually did make it early, or so we thought. Arrived 8:30, but
the gates opened at 8:35 rather than 9:00 as advertised. We made straight for
Star Tours, and were among the first on - no wait. Great ride, but too short!
I still preferred Back to the Future at Universal, but this came close. The
entrance and inside approach to the ride is really good too.
We had seen in the Sunday paper that a new restaurant had opened that week, the
Sci-Fi Diner (cafe?) and asked directions as it was not in the park guide. I
made a reservation for 12:30 and we set off for the rides again. We went first
to Animation; no wait, enjoyed the Cronkite/Williams movie. The kids liked how
Robin Williams followed us across the screens as we moved out of the first
room. We then took in the Great Movie Ride, without wait. We were right in
the front and Adam was not impressed when the gangster hi-jacked us and
snarled "what are you staring at kid?" to him. Never have seen the Western
version. We thought that the Production Tour would just about fit before
lunch, and over we went. Hit quite a line here, about 20 minutes or so.
Everybody certainly remembered Calamity Canyon, because Dad was firmly pushed
to the left side. All had a laugh when the guy announced "you on the right are
going to get wet", pause for groans and laughter from centre and left, then
"you on the left are going to get VERY wet" - cute!
Lunch at the Sci-Fi was great, seated in scaled down models of 50's cars, in a
mock drive-in theatre. We mostly had burgers, except with monster type names,
while old horror and sci-fi movies played constantly. These are real oldies,
and the atmosphere was helped along by the waiters yelling "look behind you"
etc, etc. The kids liked the free popcorn before the meal, though its not too
clever for taking the edge off your appetite. They also liked the waitresses on
roller-skates. Food and prices were reasonable, atmosphere great. Guy in the
next car expressed concern as to whether Paul (in the front) was old enough to
drive.
We now realised we had made a mistake in not doing the Stuntshow earlier. We
got there 30 minutes before the next show and the line was half way round the
lagoon, and we did not make it in. Repeated this for the next show, and
eventually got in to the last but one by sitting at the entrance for nearly an
hour.
In the meantime we had covered the 3-D Muppet Movie. This is really excellent.
I particularly like the interaction with the animatronic figures around the
theatre. There's a good song from Miss Piggy too, which goes
characteristically wrong. I won't say any more for fear of spoiling it for
others. After that we did the sound show, watched some of the live show at the
Theatre of the Stars, and then the Muppets Stage Show. This latter was
excellent too. Loved Animal. Too short, we were just beginning to really
enjoy it when it was suddenly all over. Incidentally, no real crowds for
these. The stunt show was the only real problem of the day.
We had skipped the "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" playground earlier, having seen a
long line. I was surprised to see any line for a playground, but I suppose
it's not just any playground! This time there was no real line, and the kids
had a ball. I would not recommend doing this early - you will never get the
kids out! It started to rain after that, so we happily sat eating an ice
cream, at least under partial cover, in the queuing area for Indiana Jones.
This is really worth the wait. We got an excellent seat right at the front.
We had not seen all of it before, as the first scenes had not been finalised
last time we were there. Has to be the best stunt show around.
The park was very quiet now, so we took in Star Tours once more and the Muppets
3-D, without any waiting, before heading home at about 7pm.
Disney Day 9 - Thursday, 23rd May
Still 2 days left on the passes, so set off towards MK about 8:15. It rained
so hard on the way that I-4 virtually came to a halt. As it showed no sign of
stopping, we diverted to the Polynesian for breakfast while we waited to see if
it would clear up. There were plenty of folk in line here, obviously doing the
same, but we were seated within 10 minutes. Great breakfast, but did not think
to ask for the banana stuffed French toast as it appeared to be buffet only.
Kids loved the Mickey waffles. Characters were Minnie, Goofy, Chip 'n Dale.
We were all chuffed with the unexpected "I had breakfast with Minnie" badges.
The rain had eased a little when we finished, so we caught the monorail to the
MK. We started touring in the opposite direction this time, doing the Pirates,
Big Thunder, Haunted Mansion all without significant lines. Had expected the
place to be empty due to the rain, but not the case. I suppose everybody else
expected the same thing. We went into Magic Journeys as we had not done it
before. Wished we had not wasted the time. We thought it was awful. I know
it is a few years old now, but I did not see any real thread to this at all,
just a poor excuse for some 3-D effects. After that we headed across for
Carousel of Progress, taking in the tea cups again on the way. Like the
Carousel of Progress and, better still, it was dry and comfortable!
After a drink stop, I took the boys on the Star Jets and then Adam plucked up
the courage for Space Mountain. There was only a 10 minute wait as they had
both sides running. Once more I was directed to the front, but Adam wanted me
behind him, and there was no way he was going in the front, so we asked to be
relocated towards the back. I am not sure Adam really enjoyed this, despite
saying he did. Suffice to say he did not want to ride again for a while. I
still love it!
Having done everything we really wanted to, we just strolled then and did
anything we fancied. This included Big Thunder and the Country Bears.
We then took the monorail over to EPCOT, but it was raining by the time we
arrived, so we headed straight for the Land for a bite in the food court.
Sheila and I had the hot beef "Handwich" and neither of us liked them at all.
We had to do the Kitchen Cabaret again for the kids to get another fix of
"veggie veggie, fruit fruit", then we did reruns on Imagination, Captain EO,
Horizons and World of Motion. No lines at all for anything.
There was also a new version of the frog-game involving much larger
representatives from the amphibian community. Either the babies we had seen a
few days earlier had grown up very quickly, or their mums and dads had come out
to play!
We set off for the Poly about 8:30, hoping to catch the water pageant, but
caught a glimpse of it just finishing as we got into the TTC, so it was time
for home once more.
Disney Day 10 - Sunday, 26th May
This was Memorial Day weekend, so we had planned to avoid any major
attractions, expecting things to be very crowded. However, we found that the
Main Street Electrical parade was running in the evening and decided the boys
just had to see this as they have not done so before. Did not want a whole day
at the MK again, so instead we made for EPCOT via the Beach Club, and a tour of
World Showcase which we had not really covered yet. Not planning to even
attempt the rides, we first went to the character breakfst at the Stargate.
Only Mickey and Pluto around, but this was one of the few occasions we saw
Mickey outside of Starland. Over to the showcase, and just caught the 10:00
character greeting at the plaza. Lots of characters here, many autographs, and
a fun song and dance as well. All fairly quiet - as per guide books for once
(world showcase on Sunday morning).
As we started to head for Canada, an empty bus pulled up, so we took the trip
right around on the upper deck while the sun was still shining. When we got
back, it was time for the 11:15 character show at the Odyssey which was well
worth seeing. A good cast of characters, and plenty of autographs again!
Eventually, we caught up with the plan and set out round the lagoon. Started
with Wonders of China, not risking lines for the rides in Mexico and Norway. A
good movie this, had not seen it before. Could not get over how obtrusive the
Dolphin is from over here. I hope they put something up on the far side to
hide it soon.
The canal bridge was up between China and Germany while they brought more ferry
boats out. The attendant quizzed us on the meaning of EPCOT. We had all got
it wrong by his interpretation "Experimental Polyester Costumes of Torture" -
it was very hot at this moment, and he did appear to be suffering. His other
translation was "Every Person Comes Out Tired".
We continued around the lagoon, taking in some shopping and generally admiring
the scenery. Tried for the American Adventure, but it was broken, so instead
watched the Song and Dance from around the World Show at the America Gardens
theatre outside. Good show, from a talented bunch of players. The Adventure
was running again now, so we did that. More window shopping until France where
we had planned to buy pastries for a late lunch, but the line was out the door,
so we gave it a miss. There was also a good wait until the next showing of
Impressions de France, so we decided to skip it and caught the boat back to the
other side "careful boarding, take young children firmly by the throat"!
For lunch, we hit the Land again. Noticed huge line for Imagination, no doubt
pretty similar for the other popular rides. Headed back for the Beach Club,
via Canada. Goofy, resplendent in kilt, was teaching a passer by to dance the
Gay Gordons outside. This is also a really good movie.
We picked up the car and headed back to the MK so that we would not have a long
journey back for the car after the Electrical Parade. We parked at the
Contemporary in order to minimise the return journey afterwards. It was
raining again by now, and the MK was crawling with people. Tried for the 6pm
show outside Cinderella's castle, but it was cancelled due to rain. Instead,
we had a snack at the Adventureland Veranda and crowd watched. Some folk had
made ingenious rain hats from "20 Magical Years" souvenir shopping bags!
As expected, the rides were pretty crowded, but it was fairly quiet at the Hall
of Presidents, so we went in there - another thing we had not seen before. I
thought this was really good. It just fascinated me to watch all the
Presidents together, all individually animated and moving very naturally even
when not under the spotlight. When we came out, people were already beginning
to find spots for the parade, and sitting on the kerbs in the rain! We went
back to our spot in Town square, and it was much quieter as before.
Saw a great spot, especially when raining, on the veranda above the entrance to
Main Street Station. Its under cover, there are seats, and nobody can get in
front of you to spoil the view. Catch is that I reckon the folk already up
there must have been there for at least 2 hours! The kids got really fed up
sitting on the kerb, although the rain had at least eased up a little.
However, they forgot all that when the parade started. This truly was magical.
They simply could not believe it. It has got to be the parade to end all
parades (except for the new one that is ....). It was a shame that some 300
pound neanderthal already at the front had to stand and move so far out that he
was almost in the parade, but it always seems to happen! Half the crowd were
yelling at him to get out of the way, but I don't think he had the brain power
to take in the message.
Tinkerbell's flight and Fantasy in the Sky fireworks were next, and we got a
good viewing spot over towards Tomorrowland. Disney sure know how to put on a
fireworks show - what more can you say?
Afterwards, Adam pointed out that we had not ridden the train yet, so we walked
over to Starland to catch it back. The attendant here verified that it is the
last season for the Electrical Parade (the main reason we had determined to see
it). He was a mine of (unverified) information this guy.
He said that the reason is that a new $3m fibre optic parade will start May 1
next year, and the Electrical Parade ("half a million lights") will move to
Paris (- so it was not our last chance after all). The same attendant informed
us that the railroad will eventually have a quarter mile extension around
Splash Mountain. The latter will be (his words) the longest, highest and
wetest water ride around, with rafts hitting the water after the final drop at
58mph!
Just as we left the park, the water pageant was heading back across the lagoon,
past the Floridian. A really magical end to a magical day.
Disney Day 11 - Monday, 27th May
Memorial Day, so crowd avoidance operations were put into effect today.
However, we could not miss our Disney fix completely, so we headed to the
Disney Village Marketplace for lunch after a lazy morning by the pool. We
managed to make another sizeable dent in the souvenir budget, but 10% less than
it would have been without the MKC card of course! Things were pretty hectic
even here, so I would not like to speculate as to how busy the parks were.
We met our friends here and decided we would see how the Port Orleans resort
was doing. Actually it was open, and guests had moved in. I suppose it is
just what I would expect for a New Orleans themed resort, but somehow lacking a
bit of the impact of some of the others. There is no lagoon as such, but
there is a very murky creek at the back. The pool complex is very OTT in my
opinion, with exaggerated sculptured bridges in sea shell shapes. The largest
is so big, we thought it had to be a slide or chute or something, but it was
just a plain bridge across the pool.
The buildings appear to be more or less rectangular blocks, although the
external decor breaks up the appearance a little. There did not seem to be
too much grass in the courtyards and so on, so it just did not seem spacious
somehow. Anyway, our opinion only, I'm sure others may love it. The food hall
is decorated in true mardi-gras spirit, and there is lots of appropriate
clothing on sale in the shop. There is also a Mickey jazzband centre-piece
in the shop which startled us by coming to life and striking up a tune!
After Orleans, we made another quick trip to the Caribbean Beach for ices, and
some shopping which we missed out on during the last visit.
Disney Day 12 - Thursday, 30th May
Going home day, and not really a Disney day at all.
However, Sheila had found a flaw in a Typhoon Lagoon T-shirt while packing, so
we made a hasty trip to get it replaced. It was a real downer to be at the
entrance as the crowds moved in for the day, knowing that we would be on a
'plane home before they left. Incidentally, I didn't see the sign about the
snorkeling pool being closed this time, but I don't know if it was really open.
Well, that was it really, except of course we just had to have a peek in the
character shop at Orlando International to use up those left over travellers
cheques ......
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS
I am beginning to get very intolerant of the crowds. Anything longer than a 10
minute wait, and I'm starting to say "let's not bother". I don't think I would
go if I could only visit at peak times. Are the crowds going to spoil the
magic?
Forget the guide book stuff about Thursdays through Sundays. We called Disney
and they said any day but weekends! This seemed to be nearer the truth in our
experience.
I found a number of not-so-smiling staff around this trip. Particularly in
shops and restaurants, we ran across a few positively surly ones. Quite a
surprise given the friendliness and cheerfulness of ALL the staff is something
we have always commented on in the past.
The prices for food, particularly "snacks" seems to be getting very high.
Souvenir shopping seems to be getting pricier too. Again, we have always
previously thought of the Disney outlets as offering very good value.
Generally, there seemed to be fewer characters around. Mickey was certainly
very scarce.
It rained - a LOT!!
I still liked "Back to the Future" at Universal best of all the rides.
I did not find a decent Camaro to buy and bring home (seriously - I was
looking). Too many Disney diversions and not enough time to look.
In case any of the above sounds negative, WE STILL HAD A FABULOUS TIME, WE
STILL LOVE DISNEY, AND WE WILL BE BACK.
Of course, in the meantime, there's always Paris .....
Nick
|
| 237.17 | Warning, (fairly) long note next .... | KERNEL::WHITAKER | | Fri Jul 05 1991 14:20 | 11 |
|
The following note is 348 lines long ... not sure if that length
affects you illustrious folk with workstations ... but I've seen
warning mails before and it feels trendy to write one, so I am.
It is also written in Brit-speak, and I waffle as much as usual,
so if you're an insomniac ... it might help.
Andy.
|
| 237.18 | Trip report June 22nd - 29th. | KERNEL::WHITAKER | | Fri Jul 05 1991 14:21 | 348 |
|
WHO: Me (Andy) & Wanda.
Wanda's sister Addie + Paul (her other-half).
Friends Joe & Lesley (first time visitors.
WHERE: House between Kissimmee & Orlando
WHEN: June 22nd - 29th.
REASON: It was as cheap to go for a week in Florida, as it was
to go to Europe - so no contest!
Only one day spent in WDW unfortunately owing to the fact that four or us are
going back in September/October for 3 weeks. Myself, Wanda Paul & Addie have
been before so this was just a quick break for us ... Joe & Lesley are first-
timers, and they had enough cash and holiday left to make it a two-week stay.
We bought 5-day passes, Joe & Lesley got 4-day ones.
DISNEY DAY - AND NIGHT
**********************
Just the one this time, but we were using it as an 'introductory' visit for
Joe & Lesley, as they were going to take their time to see the rest in their
second week (which is coming to an end as I write this - HAH!).
I've been very lucky in that each time I've gone back to WDW, we've been
with people who haven't seen it before, and I get almost as much pleasure out
of their impressions and reactions, as I do in seeing it all again for myself.
So, the plan of action was all wrong ..... even given that I am a reasonably
'experienced' Disney veteran of 6 visits. Because of other reasons too boring
to mention, the earliest day we could get to go was Wednesday 26th ... and yes,
it was crowded. Not the most crowded I'd ever seen it, that was when I went in
May 1989, but it was still well-full.
Got to the EPCOT Centre just before 8:30am, the drive in from our house has
been made MUCH easier and quicker by the opening of the extension to the bottom
end of I-Drive, which I think is the 536. We were able to cut along Central
Florida Parkway, turn left on I-Drive and go along the 536, crossing the 535
and into Disney - in less than 20 minutes door to door.
No queues at the ticket centre, pick a window and flash the cardboard (MKC
card). Got the discount, but on looking at the receipt when we got back, we
saw two sub-totals on there for around $9 & $7 for "TRAN" ... ???? does any-
one know what this is?
Plan A now clicked smoothly into operation .... run up the ramp and onto a
deserted monorail to the MK. Excitement heightened by that usual 'Welcome
to Walt Disney World Transportation System' spiel. Lesley thought this was
the first thrill ride of the day, as she doesn't like heights at all (quelle
wimpette n'est ce pas?)
Got to the TTC at around 9:45am and decided that, as it was such a gorgeous
morning, to take the ferry across the lake. Rewarded with that excellent view
of the Castle and of course Space Mountain ... but as I looked, fear and dread
fell upon this poor soul as I saw the outline of a crane over SM ...... now
this is my favourite ride in the MK, and the same for most of the rest of us
and this ominous crane-ial prescence did not engender optimism.
Off the ferry and a brisk walk to the turnstiles and IN at about 9:15am ....
I love the bustle, the colours, the way people hurry their step up to get
through the archways into the courtyard of Main Street USA ... then most stop
and have a good look around, I've become a people watcher now (not in the
perverted sense of the word you understand), and it's great to see all the
different reactions as what I presume are the first-timers, take it all in.
First stop is the inevitable one to the restrooms, as we appear to possess
the smallest capacity bladders in the entire cosmos. When you come from the
UK, it's a real luxury to visit an American loo ..... or at least most of them
anyway ... clean, fully stocked .. and they smell nice too, you guys have got
it sorted!
Into the City Hall Info Centre to get an armful of park guides, and the show
schedules of course .... then we stroll off down Main Street, stopping for a
picture taking session at the little benches with all the nice flowers around
which are found in the alcove half way up the Street.
A bit of browsing and general high-spirits, then we rush over to Space Mountain
to try and beat the queues (and to ride it before eating, just in case). Well
there was great relief when we got there as the crane IS working on the ride,
but it appears it's only external roof attention required, I'd love to see the
view from the crane-cab though .. but I couldn't find a way on.
The sign said 45 mins wait, and it was just outside the entrance, Lesley saw
the warning sign and immediately decided that she wasn't going to ride. Now this
caused the first 'domestic' of the holiday as Joe proceed to try every sort of
persuasion and emotional blackmail he could to get her to have a go.
The queue moved swiftly on, surprisingly so ... as Lesley began to hear the
whistles and screams etc ... her resolve to miss this one hardened, Joe is
now in persuaion over-drive. We get as far as the place where the lines
split, in front of the control kiosk ... and the #$%^^@%#^-thing decides to
break down ... decision time as the attendants say they don't know how long
it will take to start again .... we stay.
Lesley is now trapped in front of the short mini-film they show just as you
reach this point ... she is NOT impressed with the faces of some of the riders,
OR the way the 'rockets' veer all over the place. Joe is depressed, Lesley is
adamant.
After several false starts ... we get moving again to warm applause, we'd
waitied around 20 minutes there. As we wend our way through the zig-zag lines
I tell Lesley she can hop over and take the exit and meet us outside .. but
apparently Joe has worked the miracle .. and at the last moment, she decides
to go for it.
Well the ride was as brilliant as ever ... tried the front seat this time, but
I still think the best effect is at the back .. you feel more! It was over all
too quickly ... and for some reason felt much faster than last time, are they
able to speed it up when the lines are long? Lesley spent the whole ride bent
forward with her hands over her eyes. The rest of us put on our macho-swagger
as we left feeling rightly pleased with ourselves.
Still the best ride in the place ... can't wait for Splash Mountain to compare
the two .. will I be disappointed I wonder?
Next stop is the Crystal Palace for breakfast ... now I don't like Disney's
outrageous food prices, but this place does reasonable and very tasty nosh
at breakfast time ... I had my usual scrambled eggs with pancakes and syrup,
and it was excellent value at around $9 for two of us. The strolling jazz band
were in there as usual, playing some great tunes ... the guy with the Satchmo
voice was in good fettle, but unfortunately they didn't make it to our table
in time .... as we had plenty still to see we left without waiting.
Out of Crystal Palace at about 11:30am ... and a stroll through Adventure Land
to get to the Pirates of the Caribbean. I like the sound of those jungle drums
that you pass just before the Swiss Family Treehouse, don't know why it's just
a very evocative noise .. I can hear them and feel the heat as I sit here in
(sunny for once) Basingstoke UK. A quick look at the Jungle Cruise is enough
to cross it off list ... the queue is verrrry long, and as I'm not that great
a fan ... we decided against it.
The Pirates queue was out to entrance, just under the talking parrot. It took
about 30 minutes to get in ... and guess what? ... problems with it just as we
got to the boats .. fixed in short-time though .. and we're off and in. This
is a great ride in my opinion .... I like the intial short drop (wish it was
longer and faster though), and the bit where the boat is being fired on, is
a superb scene.
All were impressed except Addie & Paul who don't like the ride at all .. not
fast enough for Addie so it is classed as boring ... sigh! ... no imagination
some people.
We veer towards Thunder Mountain Railroad for our next stop .. and then we
come across my first engagement with the famed tour groups ... now I'm not
skilfull enough at identification to tell you where they came from .. but they
all had the same colour T's on and each had their own guide with a little flag
the same design as the T's .... these characters are ruthless, worse than the
Tesco shopping-trolley maniacs on a Friday night.
Despite these impediments we successfully negotiate the obstacles and mount the
ramp to BTMR .... I am dissuaded from taking a photo of the construction of
Splash Mountain by Wanda who thinks it's a waste of flim ... truth to tell it
wouldn't have been the most riveting snap shot as there was little else but the
usual stuff you'd expect on a building site. The metal frame work was up, and
it looked much higher than I expected ..... if you can believe the painted
scenes of the ride they have around the blocking-wall ... it looks like we're
going to get plenty wet as we hurtle down from the heights ... again, I hope
I'm not building my hopes up too much.
The queue is only about 15-20 minutes, and keeps moving all the time, Lesley
now no longer trusts Joe or us and is nervous about this ride as well. On we
go ... and we just miss the front seat by one row. Paul tries to video this
ride again ... last attempt only produced a lengthy shot of my very attractive
left shoulder. This time he concentrates on Lesley, hoping for screeches of
terror ... he is rewarded ... and Lesley surprises herself by really enjoying
this ride ... as I suspect everone who's ever ridden it does. Don't be put
off you anti-roller-coaster-types, it's exhilarating (sp?) stuff. The video
shots this time are extremely successful and give a great impression of this
attraction.
A brief stop for water fountains and the shooting gallery in Frontier Land,
then we're off to the Haunted Mansion. This is my 3rd favourite ride, and the
relief of getting into the cool and out of the sun is immense. Great fun as
usual ... always something different to see ... Joe & Lesley are thrilled by
it. Joe nearly has an 'accident' as I lean over and tap him on the shoulder
shortly after the ride starts, and the cars are close together (childish I
know). They love the bit where the ghost hitches a lift ... Wanda says she
wanted to take the ghost and leave me .. as it's probably got more life in it!
This is to be our break in the day ... it's around 1pm-ish, and we want to
take the sensible step of leaving the heat and crowds .... returning to the
house for a cool swim, and also to get a good lunch somewhere. A few stops
to buy sweeties to bring back for the Digits at work, which have incidentally
been given the thumbs down! I bought loads of the little mouse lollipops, and
bags of fruit sours and a bag of fruit flavoured Runts - a name to conjure
with if ever I heard one. None of these have found favour and I have been
instructed to do better next time.
Exit from the MK is via the monorail, as I really enjoy when you get to EPCOT
and take a circuit around the park ... you can check to see what attractions
have the big queues, plus it's just a very pleasant view.
I noticed that the queue for Spaceship Earth was only down as far as the ramp
and as Joe & Lesley were so impressed with the look of the place, we decided to
go on. I'm a little bit disappointed with this ride as I don't feel it delivers
compared to its spectacular external appearance. Still worth a go each visit
though, and I particularly like the part where your 'time vehicle' turns around
and you 'float' into space.
Next stop was my favourite pavilion, Wonders of Life. The queue for Body Wars
was prohibitively long, so we veered - via the highly entertaining hands-on
exhibits - onto Cranium Command. I really enjoyed this the last time I went on
it, and seemed to enjoy it even more this time round. Great fun, with an
entertaining pre-show cartoon, where the 'commanding officer' is berating the
raw recruits for their lack of direction ..... and I quote:
"YOU COULDN'T FIND YOUR HEAD, WITH BOTH HANDS AND A FLASHLIGHT!"
... subtle & sophisticated it isn't, but neither am I so it fits nicely. The
co-ordination of the audio-animatronics, the film and the various characters,
is slick and funny. If I had to chose between the this and Body Wars, I'd
take this every time. All enjoyed this one, except Addie again, but her yard-
stick for a top-notch visit to Florida is directly related to the maximum
amount of time she can spend frying herself on Cocoa Beach - Disney visits
equal less beach time .... there's no hope for some people.
Now REALLY decided to leave Disney and head off for our afternoon siesta.
Went to TGI Friday's in the Crossroads Plaza, so we didn't escape Disney
entirely. I like TGI's, great choice of food, but this time, because we were
so early (around 4pm), the atmosphere wasn't up to much .. and my Cajun-style
Blackened Grouper wasn't quite as spicy as the last time I had it. Good, but
not as good as before.
Back to the house for my exhausting swimming-pool speciality, the death-
defying - stand-in-the-water-up-to-your-neck-with-a-cold-can-of-beer-for-
an-hour. It was tough, it was torrid, but I made it.
After a realxing couple of hours, we headed back to the MK to see the
Fantasy in the Sky fireworks, and the Electric Light Parade . Wanda, Addie &
Paul had never seen it, and I knew this was going to be their last chance
before its' demise later in the year.
We got into the MK, after another superb cool evening boat trip across the
lake, at around 9pm .... just as the 1st ELP was starting. It was packed
around the Square and we were unable to progress up Main Street, so we
waited for it to pass and then made our way down to the hub, the girls via
the shops, and the chaps into the Penny Arcade for a few go's on the police
car pinball machine which comes highly recommended, because I always get a
replay.
When we got to the hub it was nearly time for the Fantasy fireworks, there
were relatively few people around so we just stood in front, but slightly
to the right of the castle, near to where the path goes off to Tomorrow Land.
It was a great place to watch the fireworks, and also I got to see Tinkerbell
in all her glory, for the first time. I don't remember seeing her the only
other time I watched the fireworks .... and I was surprised to see she was a
real-live person ... I was expecting a fake! The fireworks were excellent as
usual and the atmosphere was great .. I always make a conscious effort to stop
and really think about where I am and to really savour the moment, so that on
days like these I can take an imaginary trip back.
There then followed a show on the stage in front of the castle which I found
instantly forgetable. I'm afraid any sort of singing & dancing show leaves me
totally cold, that's why I never bother to go to the famed Hoop-Dee-Doo.
We then strolled down to see if we could get on BTMR again as I wanted to ride
it in the dark, as recommended in this conference. It was packed, with yet more
of those voracious tour groups .... we beat a dignified retreat to the Mile Long
Bar in Frontier Land for drinks. As it was now 11pm, we decided to sit just
there and wait for the MLP to come around, which it duly did at around 11:20pm.
Just luck, but it was a great place to view, as you got a long shot as the
Parade came down the street towards you ..... and there were very few people
around. We were able to sit on the verandah of the bar and watch, and also to
go down to the ropes to take totally un-interrupted video and still shots.
This is now Andy's officially recommended 11:20pm ELP Viewing-Spot (big deal!)
The parade went past ... and we headed off for the short walk across to BTMR
for another attempt. Well I gotta hand it to the people who recommended it,
it really IS much better in the dark .... especially the bit where you go
through the cave and the boulders start to move .. excellent effect. I greatly
enjoyed this night-time ride ....... and I'll make sure we do it again next
time.
We are now officially knackered and decide to saunter out and go home to bed,
and are on our way through Frontier Land when we were wrenched out of our
lethargy by Addie's shriek that we might just have time to get another ride on
Space Mountain. Well we all break into an athletic, graceful sprint .... and
we tried, but we failed ....... JUST closed as we got there, and no amount of
pleading would do the trick.
A gentle stroll back towards the exit ... time around 12:20am .... temperature
in the high 70s ... lights, music, that indefinable atmosphere again. I can
think of few experiences like it.
It's nice to think that I shall be back in 12 weeks time, so I wasn't too
distressed to leave. I WAS distressed however, to get so sunburnt at Cocoa
Beach on the Thursday, that I felt too ill to go to Pleasure Island as planned
on the Thursday night! ... especially as we had the 5-day Super Passes to use.
I still haven't made it there yet, but I shall ensure that we make it some
time during our 3-week stint in September. I had promised a colleague from
Germany that I would bring him back a particular T-shirt he wanted, but to
my eternal shame I let him down ... next time Karl, I promise!
Impressions
***********
o It's great just sauntering around with no pressure to do every attraction,
perhaps I'll invest in an Annual Pass next time. Trouble is I can't rely
on the others we might go with in the future, wanting to spend too much
time in WDW. There must be a name for this affliction.
o It IS crowded in mid-week, based on that week's, and past experience. We
called Joe & Lesley up, they went back to EPCOT on Sunday, and it was
apparently much less crowded. By and large this must be the best day to go.
o Late June didn't feel too hot for me, about the same as most other times in
fact, perhaps I'm just getting used to it.
o The long lines are a pain .... I will avoid the peak periods if at all
possible in the future. I would say that timing it for either just the
beginning or end of the extended opening hours period would be favourite.
o Why do people on the ferry boat, when asked to descend the stairs and stay
off them whilst docking, immediately do exactly the opposite??
Looking forward to WDW in September/October .. hope those pesky
'love-bug' insects aren't around though.
Andy Whitaker - Disney Correspondant - Live from Basingstoke UK -
Handing you back to your desk!
|
| 237.19 | Trip Report June 19th-28th | ELWOOD::DUFORT | | Fri Jul 12 1991 08:36 | 63 |
|
DISNEY TRIP REPORT June 19th-28th
Who: The Duforts, David, Joan, Marsha (12) and Melissa (6)
Where: Wynfield Inn, Rte 192, Kissimmee
From: 6/19-6/28
How: Air, Delta
Rental: Hertz
We started our day by getting up at 5:30. The limo picked us up at 6:20.
The flight went very smooth. Picked up the rental car from Hertz. I got a
computer printout of how to find my hotel, a map and off we went. We arrived at
the Wynfield Inn at 1:15, unpacked a little, went to Denny's for some lunch and
off to the Magic Kingdom. I bought the Annual Passes for all of us. We wanted to
go in all 10 days and we did. By 3:00, we were on Main st.
The first three days, we got to do almost verything in the Magic Kingdom
except Dumbo, the Rocket ride and the Horseshoe Jamboree. We did get to see the
Horseshoe Jamboree on the last day we were there. My wife chickened out on
Space and Thunder mountains. Marsha and I went on them twice.
The next four days were spent in EPCOT. The Universe of Energy kept
breaking down. After the fifth time, we got to see this one. The Wonders of Life
was one of my favorites. The yogurt sundaes were great. We went back there for
one every day we were in EPCOT. On the last day, I was picked from the audience
to be in the skit for the Anacomical Players. That's what I get for sitting in
the front row. I also enjoyed The LAND.
We did the World Showcase having some French pastry one evening and
chinese food on one of the afternoon's. The laser light show was fantastic.
We saw the show at the UK. My wife was chosen to be in the show. I have it all
on tape (if she hasn't destroyed it yet).
One day was spent at MGM. I found the lines to be long in the morning
and afternoon. We called it quits around noon time and went back at 5:00. It was
less crowded, and we were able to walk right in most of the time. There was a 30
minute wait for Indiana Jones.
The remaining two days were spent trying to see what we missed at the
Magic Kingdom and Epcot.
Here is what we did for the meals portion of the trip. In the morning,
we had brekfast in our hotel room. This consisted of Hostess doughnuts or
Entermann's Raspberry danish. The kids and I had chocolate milk and my wife had
coffee, which I got free at the registration area. I also picked up fresh fruit
at the front desk. The apples and oranges we used for a snack during the day.
Around one or two o'clock, we headed for someplace to eat either in the park or
outside the park. This was our one big meal for the day. After a swim at the
hotel, we went back to the park for six o'clock. Later during the evening, we
would stop for a snack. By doing this, it kept our food expenses under $50 per
day.
On the 28th, we had a 5:55 P.M. flight back to Boston. We all came out
to the limo parking area in shorts to find a stretch limo with the driver in a
tuxedo waiting for us (unplanned). What a way to end a vacation.
|
| 237.20 | Kay family trip report | WOTVAX::KAYR | | Tue Jul 16 1991 09:40 | 498 |
| KAY FAMILY FLORIDA TRIP REPORT
24TH JUNE TO 8TH JULY 1991
First of all I must apologise to the Disney purists for the fact that this
is a total trip report and not dedicated just to Disney activities. Before
describing the trip I hope a little background as to how it happened may
interest you.
Regular readers may recall that we are a family of 5, myself, wife Linda
(over 21), Daughter Melissa (19) and sons Jonathan (18) and Matthew (3). We
had all previously visited Orlando in 1988 when Matthew was 3 months old and
last year we returned without the older kids. We had already decided that
due to the expense we would not have a regular holiday this year and had not
decided exactly what to do. However on the morning of May 28th my wife
pointed out to me a full page ad by British Airways offering holidays in
America two for the price of one. By 10.30 we were sitting in the travel
agents scouring the database. We really wanted to go to California but the
only holiday left with convenient dates was a flydrive to Miami so we took
it.
My oldest son had expressed a mild desire to go with us but as he was not
sure of his college exam dates we did not include him. Later on when he
found his exams did not clash we decided to try and incude him. The original
holiday was fully booked but by ringing up an airline bucket shop we found
him a cheap seat on a Virgin flight with virtually the exact same timings as
our flight but from Gatwick rather than Heathrow airport. (Gatwick is about
an hours drive south of Heathrow. As we live 200 miles north of Heathrow
this gave me a few logistical problems).
A few weeks later my daughter announced she would like to come too. By this
time all the cheap Virgin flights had gone. However the same bucket shop was
able to offer me a flight on the self same aircraft we were travelling on at
a reasonable price.
By now the ���'s were mounting but I consoled myself with the thought that
this was the last time I would have to bear the cost of such a holiday. (I
recollect thinking the same thing in 1988). At least the stock price staged
a small recovery by the July sell date so that helped a little.
Day 1 Monday.
Having travelled down from the north overnight I dropped Jonathan of at
Gatwick leaving him with a 4 hour wait for his flight and then drove back
north to Heathrow, parked the car and took the shuttle bus to the airport.
The flight took off on time. The movie was Sleeping With the Enemy produced
by Leonard Goldberg. I don't know how Len finds the time to moonlight.
The long queues through immigration at Miami were very frustrating,
especially with the high temperature and humidity. I had given my son clear
instructions to meet up with us at the Hertz desk. He wasn't there and after
half an hour my wife discovered him calmy sitting in the arrivals lounge
waiting to be found.
I upgraded the car, took the bus to the car pound and received the hire car.
It was at this point that we discovered we had not picked up the stroller
from the luggage carousel at the airport. This took an hour to go back and
retrieve it.
Our first hotel was an overnight stop in Miami only 4 miles from the
airport. After getting detailed instructions from Hertz we found the correct
road without much difficulty. However after travelling down it for a couple
of miles there was no sign of the hotel. By this time the area was looking
decidedly seedy but I stopped to ask directions nevertheless. I eventually
found someone who spoke English (after a fashion) and was directed back the
way we had come. I found the hotel on the opposite side of the last junction
we had turned off at. Our last instruction read right when it should have
read left. The hotel was a very good Howard Johnson Wellesley Inn and after
that long journey from the north of England I have never found a pool so
welcoming.
Day 2 Tuesday
After rising bright and early and breakfasting on free coffee, doughnuts and
orange juice we headed north to Orlando. Instead of taking the turnpike we
planned to drive up via the eastern shore of Lake Okeechobee. We duly
arrived at the south end of the lake and proceeded to drive round the
eastern side. My son was navigating and after a couple of hours driving I
remarked that I though we should have turned north by now. He assured me
everything was ok and I carried on driving. I still felt uncomfortable and
decided to stop at the next filling station and ask where we were. That is
where I discovered we were only about 15 miles off doing a complete
circumnavigation of Lake Okeechobee. We turned around and headed back north
to Orlando.
The motel was a Day's Inn located on Orange Blossom Drive and we drove
straight to it without any difficulty whatsoever. This was, and still is, a
unique experience for me.
The motel was only half a mile from the Florida Mall so after checking in
and unpacking we set out to do some serious shopping. After that we drove
back down Orange Blossom to the Ponderosa where we partook of their $5.99
all you can eat dinner buffet (less 10% with discount coupon). There are
three Ponderosas in Orlando/Kissimmee and they are excellent value for
money.
Day 3 Wednesday
In order to maximise the use of the 5 day superpasses we intended to buy,
this first "real" day was dedicated to Universal which I had long been
looking forward to visiting.
We arrived at 8.30 for 9.00 opening. It was a big disappointment to find
that the one ride I was really looking forward to, Kongfrontation, was
closed. By the time the ropes were dropped at 9.00 the crowds were very
large. We headed straight for the back of the park to "Earthquake" and
walked straight on to the ride. The ride did not really meet my
expectations. However a visit to "Back to the Future" more than made up.
This is a truly awesome simulator ride and far surpasses Star Tours or Body
Wars in Disney. (Sorry Folks).
By this time the queues were building up and the day promised to be long,
hot and sticky. I then joined a queue for what I though was the ET adventure
but found myself in the Animal Actors Stage. This did not do an awful lot
for me. By the time we reached ET there was quite a long queue but by now,
late morning, they were long everywhere. The blurb in the brochure says
"It's an adventure like none you remember with an ending you'll never
forget". Unfortunately as I write this report, two weeks and several theme
parks later, my memory of ET is poor. I can remember getting on a bicycle
but after that my mind is a blank.
Although we stayed in the park until closing time at 9.00 because of the
long queues we did not manage to see many more attractions. Things were not
helped by having to spend half an hour trapped in a shop by a severe
thunderstorm followed by a further hour in the American Graffiti Cafe. The
latter was relieved by the antics of a very amusing DJ.
We watched Ghostbusters which I did not find very impressive. I thought the
female lead was very poor. None of us could make out what she was saying.
We finished up by queuing for an hour to see the Funtastic world of
Hanna-Barbera. This was fantastic! It is an animated simulator ride but done
in a theatre with a full size screen. Each batch of seats move
independently. There was an embarrasing moment at the start of the ride when
it could not start because a guard rail would not lock into position. An
extremely large woman had to be escorted to a non moving seat on the front
row to enable the ride to start.
We left the park having seen only about half the attractions in 12 hours. We
had no plans to return and I hoped the crowds were not a foretaste of
Disney.
Driving back I got into a wrong lane and found myself on I4 instead of
International Drive. It would have been an easy matter to correct but we
decided to carry on to THE WORLD and buy our passes. We were directed to
park at no charge in the disabled drivers plot at the TTC. I bought the 5
day super passes using the MK club card. I must confess to not buying a pass
for my 3 year old. This was never queried at any of the parks. Even so I did
not get enough change for a decent meal out of $600.
We drove back via X-Roads to buy a pic-nic for the next day's visit to
Typhoon Lagoon.
Day 4 Thursday
We arrived at Typhoon Lagoon in time for opening at 9.00. Because the passes
had not yet been used I was curious to know what would happen. What they do
is to take the passes of you and stamp the date on the back. I never found
out what would happen if an attempt was made to use the pass after 7 days
had elapsed from this date but within 7 days of first use in a theme park.
However the wording on the ticket quite clearly states that it is valid for
Typhoon Lagoon etc for 7 days commencing on the date stamped in box 1.
Legally I do not think Disney have a leg to stand on. (The 7 day period on
my passes does however expire by Feb 92 regardless)
The park was fairly crowded but we had a very good day. I wasn't very
popular when it was discovered that I had forgotten to pack the rolls I had
so carefully made the night before. Still at least the problem of what to
have for dinner was solved. We left the park late afternoon simply because
we were getting too much sun. The temperature was around 95. The lowest
daily maximum temp for the 10 days we spent in Orlando was 92.
Following dinner in the room we went back to look in the other half of the
Florida Mall. I think it was at this time that my son bought 3 pairs of Levi
501's at about one third UK prices. Leaving the Mall in the dark I left from
a different exit and inadvertantly drove down Sandlake instead of Orange
Blossom. I hope my younger son grows up to be a good navigator.
Day 5 Friday.
The Magic Kingdom at last. We arrived at the TCC before 9.00 and headed with
the stroller for the boat. I was annoyed to find it had just gone and only
one was running so we turned back for the monorail. We turned left off
Mainstreet into Adventure Land. Quickly passing the Swiss Family Treehouse
we headed for the Jungle Cruise. As the queue was already building up we
decided to do Pirates which is a far faster loading ride. On the way we
passed the Enchanted Tikki Birds for which one visit in a lifetime is
sufficient punishment for anyone. Unfortunately Pirates was broken down so
we carried on to Frontierland and Thunder Mountain.
On the way we passed Splash Mountain (opening Fall 92) which is currently a
mass of girders with high rise cranes. I suppose it is necessary but it does
remove some of the magic.
Matthew passed the height restriction and so had his first ride on Thunder
Mountain. He refused to repeat the experience. Next was the Haunted Mansion
where there was no queue at all. On the way in I noticed Claude's grave. I'm
going to miss him.
We spent the next few hours in Fantasy Land, avoiding the longer queues
apart from a half hour wait for Matthew to go on Dumbo which we had never
previously managed to catch.
After lunch we decided to cool of with a trip to River Country where we
spent a very pleasant few hours before returning to the Magic Kingdom for
the 9.00 parade. Entering Main Street about 8.30 the crowds were 3 deep on
the pavement, sorry sidewalk. Eventually we found a perfect spot, right on
the pavement next to the Slepy Hollow Cafe on the edge of Liberty Square.
This spot was adjacent to the bridge leading to the "hub". As no one was
allowed to stand on the bridge we had a perfect view of the oncoming parade.
I last saw the parade in 1988 but it was even better than I remembered.
Unfortunately Matthew slept through it all.
By this time it was not long to wait for the fireworks so we stood on the
bridge to watch them. Throughout all this time there had been lots of
thunder and lightening but the threatened rain did not appear. It had been a
very long but satisfying day.
Day 6 Saturday
After the previous days exertions we allowed ourselves a lie in and left for
Epcot after lunch. By this time we had discovered the quickest way into
Disney. Left out of the hotel onto Orange Blossom, right at the Central
Florida Parkway and left again at International Drive. The new extension to
International Drive opened in December and leads directly into The World.
There is no longer any need to touch I4.
I was pleasantly surprised on entering Epcot to find the crowds very light.
We covered Spaceship Earth, Universe of Energy, Wonders of Life, Horizons
and World of Motion with no significant queues. I enjoyed the Dinosaurs as
much as ever, but Body Wars no longer seemed so wonderful after experiencing
the simulator in Universal. Cranium Command was wonderful but Horizons seems
rather dated now.
It was just outside Horizons that disaster struck. We sat down on a secluded
bench for an illegal snack (its amazing what you can carry on the back of a
stroller). Linda decided on a better spot about 20 feet away. Having sat
down for less than a minute I realised that I had put my camera down on the
wall behind the first bench (which was still in full view of us). The camera
was gone. I recall seeing 3 or 4 people coming towards us as we left the
first bench. They must have watched us get up and then calmy picked up the
camera as they passed. Even worse than the loss of an expensive camera I
lost all the photos I had taken in Universal, a place I may never return to.
Although I reported the loss and checked back a week later it was never
handed in.
We strolled round World Showcase without entering any of the pavilions and
headed for the Liberty Inn for Dinner.(I think I'm the only contributor to
this conference who has ever admitted eating there). Whilst in there there
was a terrific storm but it cleared in time for the illuminations. We
watched them from the rail opposite France. I suppose if I had really looked
I could have found a worse spot but it would have been difficult.
Day 7 Sunday
We got up in time to reach Typhoon Lagoon by 10.00. We had several glorious
hours there but at 3.00 there was a terrific thunderstorm and we had to
leave the water and the beaches so we decided to call it a day. By the time
we returned to the car we were completely drenched apart from Matthew who
was protected by his stroller canopy. We went back to the hotel to get
changed and then decided to do some more shopping at Belz. To us whenever we
are in Orlando a visit to Belz Factory Outlet Mall is as essential as a
visit to Disney. It is usually cheaper too but not on this occasion. I was
still mourning the loss of my camera and so was very susceptible to a bit of
high powered saleamanship. I ended up spending $330 on a zoom compact
automatic and am now praying that the insurance company will pay for it.
My second purchase will make you all very jealous. Whilst in Disney I had
been admiring a book called Disney Animation by Frank Thomas and Ollie
Johnson, two of Walt Disney's original team. This is an extremely large and
beautiful book and at $75 I seriously considered buying it. I found it on
sale in Belz for $19 yes nineteen dollars. Even after having read only the
first few chapters I can now appreciate cartoons on a different level, with
a much greater appreciation of the cartoonist's art.
We ate early that night at the Ponderosa before returning to the hotel for
an early night in preparation for an early start the next day for MGM. Back
at the hotel it was difficult choosing between playing with my new camera or
reading my book. Life can be tough at times.
Day 8 Monday
We were at MGM for 9.00. The crowds initially were moderate but got worse
later on. We stayed until about 6.00 and saw everything we wanted to see
without any undue queuing. The highlight of the day, indeed the holiday, was
the Muppet Movie. This is absolutely brilliant. The best thing in any theme
park. It is excrutiatingly funny, brilliantly executed, and appeals to all
ages.It will be a crime if this show ever leaves Disney. The live muppet
show is pretty good but not in the same league as the film. Best watch the
live show first.
We spent quite a bit of time watching the turtles do their thing at the end
of New York St. They are obviously very popular but do nothing for me.
After leaving MGM we went to X-Roads for dinner then spent some time at the
Disney Market Place before going into Pleasure Island. By this time it was
about 7.30 and the place had not really livened up. We split up and Jonathan
and I went into the Adventurer's Club to be entertained by a lecture from
two masks mounted on the wall. I thought it was a pre-recorded thing until
the masks started passing personal comments on the audience.
We set out to find the rest of the family but after half an hour of
searching what is really a very small island we drew a blank. I was a little
concerned because I could not think of a reason why they should leave the
island. What had happened is that the three of them, Linda, Mellisa and
Matthew had strolled off the south end of the island, towards the cinema, to
sit by the fountain. Mathew had promptly fallen in making it necessary to
return to the Marketplace for a new set of clothes.
Having previously visited Pleasure Island last year (on the very last free
night) I only went back because we had super passes. Although small children
with their parents are allowed on the island and in many of the clubs it is
not really a place that children can enjoy. Their presence also makes it
difficult for the adults with them so I would not recommend taking small
children there.
Day 9 Tuesday
After the previous long day we treated ourselves to a lie in before leaving
for Epcot around mid morning. Matthew had slept through our previous trip on
Spaceship Earth so insisted on going into the "big ball". Whilst the rest of
the family revisited Spaceship Earth Jonathan and I spent half an hour in
the Energy Exchange at Communicore East. This is the sort of exhibit I
usually ignore but I found it very interesting
.
Passing through Future World we took a leisurely anti-clockwise walk around
the lagoon. Jonathan bought a hand- carved-while-you-wait silver ring from
an artisan in Mexico for the very reasonable price of $25. There are
bargains to be had even in Disney.
I took the opportunity of going in to see The American Adventure. I'm sorry
to have to confess that I slept like a log through the whole performance.
Perhaps I'll catch it next time.
As part of the July 4th celebration there is a giant scale model of the
White House built entirely of Lego bricks. This is worth a look especially
if you are a Lego fan.
Carrying on around the lagoon we reached France where Johnathan, who has
aspirations to be an artist, sat to have his portrait done. After this we
left Epcot for the Magic Kingdom and picked up from where we had left of on
Saturday.
Taking the train to Mickey's Starland, Melissa, Johnathan and myself legged
it over to Space Mountain leaving Linda and Matthew behind. There was no
queue until right inside Space Mountain but even so it was a half hour wait.
The wait is a little more interesting because the new cars have a luminous
streak which makes them visible in the dark as they hurtle through space.
After reuniting with the others there was just time for a ride on the Wedway
People Mover before claiming our places at Sleepy Hollow for a repeat
veiwing of the Electrical Parade. This time Matthew was wide awake and
thoroughly enjoyed it although a few of the "creatures" did come a little
too close for his comfort. Already having seen the fireworks we did not wait
for a repeat showing.
Day 10 Wednesday
By this time we really needed an easy day so after a lie in we decided to
revisit River Country. Even this was too strenuous for Jonathan who elected
to stay at the hotel for the day. A very pleasant day was spent playing in
the water and lazing in the sun before returning to collect Jonathan and go
out for dinner. We returned to Denny's where we had another excellent meal.
and finished off with some more shopping in the Florida Mall.
It was here that I found my second book bargain. Browsing through the cheap
remaindered books I discovered one called "Storming the Magic Kingdom" by
John Taylor , priced at $3.98.This is a large hardbacked book which would
originally have been priced around $20 or more. It details the story of the
attempted take over of Disney in 1984 which resulted in the dismissal of Ron
Miller, Walt's son-in-law, and his replacement by Eisener and Wells. This is
fascinating stuff and should be prescribed reading for all Disneyholics,
although the picture it paints of Walt and the legacy he left is not always
complimentary.
Day 11 Thursday
Today was July 4th and our last day in Orlando. We had long debated the
wisdom of attending or otherwise on July 4th. We had been warned that the
crowds would be intense. However as we had been on almost all the rides we
wished and believing that Disney would be extra special on July 4th we
decided to risk it. We arrived at the Magic Kingdom just before 9.00. I
raced ahead to secure tickets for the Diamond Horseshoe. Two of the shows
were sold out but I managed to get balcony tickets for the mid morning
performance. As predicted the crowds were very large. However we got to the
Jungle Cruise ahead of the crowds and only queued for 15 minutes or so.
After this a gentle stroll round to Frontierland got us there in time for
the Diamond Horseshoe Review. We all enjoyed the show. A seat on the balcony
gives some very interesting views of the saloon girls sitting on the bar
below. After this we caught the show on the Castle terrace followed by one
in the Tomorrowland Theatre. The castle show was a special July 4th event
with Mickey appearing as Yankee Doodle Dandy. This I enjoyed but I was less
impressed with the Tomorrowland show.
As the crowds were very large we decided to stake an early place for a good
seat for the parade. At 2.00 we found six feet of empty kerb in front of the
wooden Indian on Main Street, getting there just in front of hordes of
Brazilians. I'm sure that individually they are charming people but when
they hunt in packs their manners are appalling. Mathew was fast asleep in
his stroller. By turning it sideways on it was very effective in reserving
the space. By 2.30 the noise of thunder was getting closer and the sky was
dark overhead. By 2.35 the rain was coming down in torrents and we feared
the parade would be cancelled. Matthew was completely covered by his
stroller canopy so we left him there asleep to reserve the space whilst with
the exception of Melissa we retired beneath a shop canopy. Melissa sat out
the storm in her poncho. At 2.50 the rain stopped and the sun reappeared.
The crowd surged back to the roadside and awaited the parade. I made myself
very unpopular by shaking the tree under which several people were standing.
I couldn't help it, something just came over me.
The parade itself was the same as always. This disappointed me as I expected
something extra for July 4th. After the parade the family elected to do some
final shopping on Main Street. As it was entirely likely that this would be
my last visit for many many years (Our next visit to USA will almost
certainly be the West Coast), I decided to take a last opportunity of seeing
the Walt Disney Story. Alas here again all my good intentions were lost in
slumber as once again I fell asleep. Perhaps another time.
We said a fond farewell to the Magic Kingdom and headed for Epcot for the
last time. We went by car and I hoped that I may have been able to drive
right to the front and find a vacated space. Unfortunately we were directed
to a space the furthest possible distance from the entrance and the furthest
possible distance from a pick up point.
Walking through Future World we took the boat to Germany and headed for the
much publicised show at the America Gardens Theatre. Unfortunately the
crowds were so great that it was impossible to get anything more than a
glimpse of the stage. We had a snack at the Liberty Inn Before strolling
back round into Future World. Here we visited the land and the Living Seas
before having dinner at the Odyssey. We were really only killing time before
the illuminations. With an hour to go the crowd was already 3 deep in most
places and no free rail space was available. We found a place near the boat
dock and eventually managed to get right on the rail. The view however was
not very good, especially when the launch stopped for the day and parked on
the boat landing in front of us.
The normal illuminations were followed by a spectular July 4th firework
display. The show seemed to last for ever. After about ten minutes we
decided to try and beat the crowds and leave. All the time we were walking
through the park, waiting for a trolley, riding the trolly and then walking
400 yards to the car, the display continued. Even as we were driving away
and saying our final goodbyes the display went on. It seemed a very fitting
way to leave.
Day 12,13,14
I won't bore you with details of the next 3 days. On the Friday we drove
down to Fort Lauderdale by way of Cocoa Beach and Ron John's Surf Shop. We
spent Saturday on the beach and Sunday in the Atlantis water park. On Monday
we drove down the A1A through Miami Beach and back to the airport for the
long flight home. We landed at Heathrow at 7.00am and had a 2 hour wait for
Jonathan to arrive at Heathrow from Gatwick before making the 4 hour drive
home.
I was back at my desk the next morning.
Conclusions
After 3 visits in 4 years I think I have reached saturation point. I enjoyed
the holiday immensely but cannot imagine a repeat visit for many years.
However if I do manage to get to the West Coast then I will certainly visit
Disneyland and I still would like to visit Disney Paris next year.
When I do make a repeat visit it will not be in Summer. It seems to me that
the best time to visit is in the Spring, avoiding the Easter break. The
weather is cooler and drier and the crowds are lighter.
I would not visit Disney again on July 4th. The few extras do not compensate
for the increased crowds.
Universal is great and in high season needs 2 days to see it all. MGM is
smaller but if I had to choose where to spend a single day then it would be
MGM. This opinion may change if the Muppets were to leave.
As an aside whilst in Epcot I discovered a facility that I have never heard
mentioned before which may be of interest to some of you. It is found in the
shop in Communicore West. The leaflet I picked up describes it best.
"A WORLD OF INFORMATION IS AT YOUR SERVICE"
Stop and take a few moments to ask about Epcot Outreach, the research
library for information regarding all of the Walt Disney Company, its
themeparks, nighttime attractions and more. We are a reference and research
library dedicated to answering your questions. Satisfy your curiousity by
asking questions such as; How many people does Walt Disnety World employ?;
Who designs the attractions seen in Disney theme parks?; Where can I receive
more information on Hydroponics?. Epcot Outreach provides brochures,
printed materials and information from online computers to answer your
questions on the Walt Disney World Resort.
|
| 237.21 | trip report July 2-12 | PHDVAX::RICCIO | Help me Mr. Wizard!! | Mon Jul 22 1991 14:57 | 46 |
|
The following is my trip report for July 2-12.
We got to Orlando on July second in the late afternoon. We (me
my wife, 6 year old son and 2 1/2 year old son) stayed at the
Marriott World Center, great place and close to everything.
Interesting thing happened the first day. We went down to the
marketplace area and they had one of the roads blocked off and
there were cops everywhere and helicopters (3 of them) flying
around and trucks with satellite dishes on them, we thought
they were filming a movie. It turned out some nut with a gun
that the cops were trying to arrest for credit card fraud locked
himself in a $600. a night suite at the Baunivista (sic) grand.
He ended up shooting himself.
Anyway, back to the trip. It was not as hot as I thought it
would be. In fact it's hotter here in PA. The crowds weren't that
bad, other then the evening of the 4th (which we expected), I've
never seen so many people, but there were some down sides to the
trip. The park was not as clean as I'd seen it. Maybe because we
always go in October and the crowds are smaller, but I was surprised
at the amount of litter, and some of the bathrooms we went into
were as bad as any McDonalds/BurgerKing I've ever been in. I guess
you just don't expect that at WDW. The other thing was there were a
couple of days, one in particular at EPCOT, that I think we were the
only people in the whole place that spoke English. Now before anyone
gets the wrong idea, my mother is 100% Portuguese, second generation,
which makes me 50%. But it was overwhelming, that one day at EPCOT
I counted 14 different tour groups, all from Brazil.
This was the first time we had been to Typhoon Lagoon, that was a lot
of fun, we went 3 times, including July 4th. It was also the first time
we'd gone to MGM. We liked that a lot as well. We were disappointed
with Universial (you can tell it's not part of WDW). The lines were
rediculous. We waited close to two hours for the E.T. ride, which
was 4 1/2 minutes long. We waited almost as long for King Kong, which
broke right before we got on it... a 20 minute delay. The thing that
really got me was when you finally got "into" the rides the lines
inside were just as long or longer, very deceiveing and disappointing.
All in all it was a real good trip with plenty of time to do every-
thing we wanted (we also did a day at Seaworld).
Phil...
|
| 237.22 | Safe Return!!! | WOTVAX::BATTY | Well, I wouldn't start from here! | Tue Jul 23 1991 11:50 | 146 |
| Hi Guys!
I'm safely back from my three weeks in Orlando, including
surviving the Majestic fire and being misquoted by the Orlando
Sentinel. I'll file my report soon, but work comes first!
I thought I'd just post a quick note to reassure anyone
booked on a Premier Cruise. Don't Worry, Be Happy! The cruise
itself was excellent, and the emergency, although serious, was
handled in an extremely professional way by all members of the
crew. At no time did we feel seriously threatened, just
inconvenienced, and by the end, extremely dirty and tired, but
nobody had a bad word to say for the ship, the crew or Premier
itself.
In detail, we bade farewell to the Abocos Islands at
17:00 on Saturday 13th, and set sail back to Port Canaveral.
During the evening, we had the Captain's Champagne Reception, and
at midnight, the award winning buffet with ice sculptures, carved
fruit and vegetables, fancy themed cakes like a 2 foot square
chessboard and pieces in chocolate. Yum!!
By 01:00, the activity had died down, and most people were
asleep (although the casino was doing good business!). My wife and
kids were asleep, so I was sitting in the bathroom (so I could
have a light on!) filling in the immigration forms when all the
lights went out. A few seconds later the main engines cut out! The
cabins were in total darkness, so I fumbled to the door, and let
in some light from the emergency lighting in the corridor. I woke
the family as casually as I could, and we got dressed (fortunately
we'd laid out clothes for the next day). Just as we finished
fastening our trainers, the alarms went off, so we put on our
life-vests and headed to our muster station. Fortunately, there
had been a comprehensive drill just after we set sail, so
everybody knew pretty much what to do and where to go. There was
no panic, everybody seemed polite and courteous, possibly because
in the main it was a family cruise and there was a high proportion
of kids. The only confusion was because most people were still
half asleep while trying to make the decision of clothing or life
vests first.
We all assembled in the ballroom or theatres, and the
announcement came that there was a fire in the engineroom, no
cause for concern, but we had been assembled to keep us away from
smoke.
There were regular announcements over the next half hour,
telling us that the crew were fighting the fire, and there was no
cause for alarm. It was very eerie, dim emergency lighting with
just a faint haze of smoke, no engine or machinery noises, just a
subdued murmur of conversation, which died out to total silence
whenever the gong sounded for an announcement. We could hear
nothing of the struggle that was going on five decks below us.
After half an hour, there came the fearful message " Crew
Announcement. Abandon Ship Procedure." There was then a flurry of
activity as crew members walked purposefully around, and the
bumping and banging as the lifeboats were swung out into position.
Shortly after there came another message " Load Lifeboats by
Station. This is a precaution only. There is no cause for alarm!"
We moved as orderly groups to our respective lifeboats, and
scrambled aboard. Our boat was rated at 110 people, we loaded 73
and it was cramped. Everybody had a place to sit, but if we had
tried to load 110, it would have been very squashed. In the heat
of the moment, it didn't matter, but we then sat there for 2
hours, with the boats swinging gently in the swell, lost in inward
contemplation. There was little conversation during that period,
just encouraging smiles, winks and nods.
During the two hours, the announcements became more
positive, as the fire was brought under control, and eventually
put out. The crew brought round drinks and fruit, accompanied
people to restrooms, assisted mothers with diaper changes, and as
things came more under control, allowed expectant mothers and
small children to sit on the decks rather than in the boats,
sorted out anyone who was on medication, and accompanied serious
cases down to their cabins to retrieve inhalers, pills etc. At
about 02:30, we had the reassuring presence of a US Coastguard
plane circling us with spotlights on, and at about 04:00 we were
allowed back on board, onto the sundecks to try and get some sleep
in the sunloungers. Sheets and blankets were provided, but the
cabins were still out of bounds because of smoke, low lighting and
the possibility of further problems, so you had the incongruous
sight of people in clothing ranging from underwear and towels
through to full evening gowns and tuxedos all stretched out trying
to sleep.
That was the exitement over, and the next 30 hours passed
as a squalid daze. One small electric generator was the only thing
able to run, and that was directed at essential navigation and
distress equipment, ice making machinery and emergency lights.
Therefore no lighting in cabins or bathrooms. No air conditioning.
No running water. No hot meals or drinks. At this point, there
came the only real annoyance of the whole period. The Cruise
Director and her team were bounding around with torches offering
free cocktails and trays of Danish, while the bathrooms were
suffering from no lighting and no running water. They became
extremely disgusting - use only in dire necessity, and I and many
others thought that energies would have been better directed at
maintaining basic standards of hygiene, perhaps with buckets of
seawater if necessary, and using the torches for lighting the
restrooms!
All soft drinks were free, with regular ice to start with,
but by the time we got to port, they had resorted to smashing up
the remains of the ice sculptures. Cold buffets were provided at
regular intervals, with choice and quality dropping off as the
freezers began to warm up. Irony again, inadequate bathrooms, and
the main portion of the meals was fruit!
We drifted until 16:00 on the Sunday, until a tug arrived
to tow us in, and reached Port Canaveral at 10:00 on Monday,
tired, dirty and relieved. Immigration Officials boarded, and also
representatives of Premier, who handed out checks to everybody
containing a full refund of the cruise costs. Arrangements were
made for alternative flights, costs of overnight accomodation, and
for those on the cruise package, an option to extend their
vacations to make up for the missed days at no extra cost. In our
case, we should have been checking in to Fort Wilderness on the
Sunday. Premier absorbed the cost of that night, and confirmed
that the reservation for the rest of the week was good. In the
case of the friends who were travelling with us, they should have
flown out on the Sunday evening on a charter. Premier flew them
out on Monday afternoon, Club Class on a BA scheduled flight.
Early check-in, Security etc. was waived. They arrived at the
airport 1 hour before take-off, sat in an executive lounge until 5
mins before, and were assisted aboard just in time to fasten seat
belts. Full price, their seats would have cost around �6000 for
the five of them. Premier is really taking a beating, I hope they
have good insurance.
This quick note has turned into a novel, I'll try and get
as much detail into the actual trip report. Just to finish off, we
were all interviewed by the Orlando Sentinel as we went to collect
our cars from the security compound. All the praise for the crew
etc. was glossed over, and I got quoted out of context as saying
"The crew were offering free drinks, free Danish pastries, when
all we wanted was clean loo's". (Loo is English slang for
Bathroom!). The article was actually quite well balanced, stressed
the professionalism of the crew and did praise Premier for their
generous reaction, but finished with a humerous quote from one of
the passengers saying "Asking us if we would take another cruise
at this moment is like asking a woman in labour if she'll have
another baby!".
Mike, back on dry land in Warrington, UK.
|
| 237.23 | Horrigan's Trip Report | USCTR2::MHORRIGAN | MIKE HORRIGAN @MRO 297-5185 | Thu Aug 08 1991 18:24 | 240 |
| TRIP REPORT FOR THE HORRIGANS
As many other trip reports have already provided valuable details on
accomodations and attractions, I haven't written many details about those
things. This report spends more time on planning suggestions and travel
advice that we found useful.
Who:
There were 4 of us, two adults and two children, ages 8 and 6.
When:
20-July through 29-July
Travel:
Went by car and took it easy; Did 3 short days and one long day.
This allowed us to avoid a lot of rush hours, have a relaxing swim
and leisurely supper, get to bed early, and have a relaxed breakfast
and morning swim. This padded the hotel expense a bit, but made for
a relaxed and enjoyable trip. Works well if time and the pocketbook
permit it.
Used my Holiday Inn "Priority Club" membership for hotels. (Whole
family stays for the same price of a Corporate-rate single.) There's
supposed to be a one-time $10 membership fee for this, but I signed
up by phone and never got a bill. Rates varied from $45 to $65,
depending on where we were.
Took NOTES file advice about stereo headphones for the kids, along
with back-up toys, and it worked out great. Some new tapes kept them
occupied for hours while the adults listened to the radio.
Also followed the NOTES travel suggestion to use the Harbor Tunnel
around Baltimore instead of staying on I-95. It worked. I-95 looked
clogged with construction delays, and we had no delay moving through
the tunnel.
Had no major delays the whole way down. Whether it was because we
avoided the rush hours or just got lucky, I don't know.
We arrived in Orlando in the morning, too early to check in, so we
went to Sea World and bought week-long passes for $5 more than a
one-day pass. This allowed us to see a few attractions at Sea World,
still get to DisneyWorld in the early afteroon, then come back another
day to finish up at Sea World. And you only pay for parking once
all week.
Where we stayed:
Fort Wilderness trailer. Great for families! The only drawback was
the comparative inconvenience for Disney transportation, but the
advantages of Fort Wilderness far outweigh this disadvantage.
We used our own car to get anywhere other than The Magic Kingdom. It
was faster, and because we were staying on-site, parking was free.
One of our days was spent just around Ft Wilderness and River
Country. For this day we rented a golf cart (available at the Bike
Barn for $28 a day or $34 for overnight - get there early) and this
made it very convenient to bounce around between the trailer, River
Country, the evening campfire/movie, and/or the Hoop-de-Doo review.
After the Hoop-de-Doo, it was nice to be able to hop into the cart
and get right back to the trailer instead of waiting in line for the
bus.
If you are to stay here in Ft Wilderness and plan to eat some of your
meals in the trailer, bring your own non-perishables if you can or
try to buy them outside of Orlando. Grocery prices are high.
Attractions:
We tried to follow the touring plans in "The Unofficial Guide", but
were only moderately successful. Children's schedules and temperments
are sometimes hard to fit into a pre-packaged plan. (A case of
chicken pox in the middle of the trip didn't help, either. See
"Medical Advice" later on.)
In general, the major attractions had to be seen before 10:30 or
late in the evening to avoid a long wait. (In a separate note I will
provide a summary of The Unofficial Guide's "Best Time to See"
recommendation for each attraction.)
My Ratings:
Best Ride:
3-way tie. Body Wars at EPCOT; Star Tours at MGM; Space Mtn at The
Magic Kingdom.
Worst Ride:
Grand-Prix Raceway. Shield your child's eyes from this in order
to avoid it, if you can. They all want to ride it, but you wait 30
minutes or more and you inevitably end up behind a child who can
barely reach the pedals or a slow car, and then its stop-go-stop-go-
stop-go. Boring.
Most Over-rated:
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. If the line is more than 20
minutes I would recommend passing on it and trying again later.
Same goes for Jungle Cruise. They are both enjoyable, but not
worth a long wait in the heat.
Most Under-rated:
The Disney Animation Tour in MGM. It's funny (a Robin Williams/Walter
Cronkite film where Robin Williams is tranformed into a cartoon
character) as well as educational, with almost no wait.
A great mid-day attraction.
Best Evening laser/fireworks show:
The adult vote goes to "Illuminations" at EPCOT.
Children's vote goes to the Electric Light Parade at The Magic
Kingdom.
Best "standard" Restaurant:
By "standard" I mean not including the stage shows. I vote for
the 50's Prime Time Cafe at MGM. Not for the food, but for combined
food, fun, and price. The waiters and waitresses (i.e., actors and
actresses) are great, and the decor puts you right back into a 1950's
kitchen. The TVs near each table showing clips from the old shows
tops it off. Book a table as soon as you enter the park.
Medical Advice:
As we had a case of chicken pox accompanied by a 3:00 a.m. scare of
104F (~39C) temperature and severe headache, we had the "opportunity"
to learn about Disney/Orlando medical services, at least at Ft
Wilderness. Key points:
There are medical personnel on-site during daytime hours. (Those
with children know, however, that daytime hours are the *least*
likely time for a child to get seriously ill.)
After-Hour options are:
1)There is a walk-in medical clinic and pharmacy, not affiliated with
Disney, open until 9:00 pm, located up the road that is across from
and perpendicular to The Marketplace. (Hotel Blvd??) I will not try
to give detailed directions from memory, but it is across from a
McDonalds, near "The Crossroads" shopping Center if you need to
ask directions.
The clinic is affiliated with Sand Lake Hospital, and although I'm
not crazy about walk-in clinics, this is where we took my son after
3 days of suffering, and I was satisfied with the staff and the
treatment.
2)Sand Lake Hospital. (scene of the 3:00 a.m. scare, in which of course
all symptoms disappeared by the time we reached the hospital.) It is
located about 20 - 30 minutes from DisneyWorld. Follow the "H" signs
to I-4 East. Again, I won't try to give directions, but I will note
there were missing "H" signs at some key points along the route. For
example, where the I-4 entry ramp splits into East and West, and
after you take the Sand Lake exit. If the Disney employee had not
told me to go East, and if there hadn't been an all-night gas
station at the exit so I could ask directions, we could have been
searching for it for an hour or more. It's on a side road that
looks like it leads to nowhere.
This is the major hospital in the area, and the Emergency Service
was handled well.
After my son passed the contagious stage but was still physically
weak, we rented wheelchairs for him. $6 a day, and it saved the
trip. He wouldn't have lasted more than a few hours without being
able to ride.
Miscellaneous:
o We found that Sea-World had an excellent evening light show. But don't
enter the park after 5:00 unless you buy the week-long pass and
plan to come back later. Oddly enough, all shows except the whale show
as well as most attractions stop at 7:00 pm, and the light show isn't
until 10:00.
o We were on the Vacation Plan, and found that the free meals
provided with the plan along with packing our own meals or eating
back at the trailer worked out well. We saved our meal coupons to
treat ourselves (i.e., used them for the Hoop-de-Doo, dinner in
"Japan" at EPCOT, and the character breakfast on the Epress Lilly.)
This saved us quite a bit of money, as our other meals were mostly
packed lunches, or eaten at the trailer.
o We packed juice boxes in a small nylon freezer-bag along with an
ice pack, and carried that in a backpack wherever we went. I'll
bet we saved $50-$75 in soft drink expense doing this. We saved
a lot more by packing lunches and snacks as well.
o Took NOTES file advice and tried to get out of the sun in the
afternoon. Usually we were back for a swim by 2:00 or 3:00, then
relaxed and had dinner in the trailer, then would head back to
the parks after dinner. Other options for the hot afternoons are to
visit one of the water parks or see one of the 6 Disney movies
playing at the cinema.
o Although concerned about crowds, we went to Typhoon Lagoon at the
peak time and still managed to squeeze into some open chairs. The
worst case is you might have to set a towel down between some chairs
in a shady spot and sit on the towel. It's funny that people scramble
to get these chairs, yet most of them spent only 10% of their time in
them. You spend most of your time using the attractions, so don't be
too concerned about getting a nice lounge chair unless tanning is a
priority for the day.
Don't miss the Shark Reef if you go to Typhoon Lagoon. Both my kids
loved it and are bragging to their friends about how they swam with
REAL sharks (i.e., harmless 2 foot nurse sharks) and stingrays. Use
caution if your child is not a fair-to-good swimmer. Even though you
float on the surface with mask and snorkel, the water is deep.
(8-10 feet?). It's well protected with lifeguards, however.
o Take care in the water parks. We saw two serious accidents, both
involving neck injuries.
Magic Moment:
Didn't even happen at DisneyWorld. It happened one evening at SeaWorld,
at the dolphin pool. My daughter, along with others, was trying
desparately to reach over and pet a dolphin as they swam by, and had
been trying for 45 minutes. But they (the dolphins) wouldn't let
anyone close enough. The evening fireworks show started and we tried to
pull her away, but she insisted on staying to keep trying. About 10
minutes after everyone else had left and she (along with my wife) was
there alone, one of the dolphins suddenly popped out, "stood" in front
of her, and let her pet it. It was as if it understood what my
daughter wanted and what she was going through to get it, then decided
to offer her this private priviledge. I've always been a believer in
the dolphin intelligence theories, and this offers credence in my book.
When we asked her what was her favorite part of the trip, it's this.
Wherever you go and whatever you do, you're sure to have fun. Enjoy.
|
| 237.24 | Report Part I - 30th June to 10th July | WOTVAX::BATTY | Well, I wouldn't start from here! | Fri Aug 09 1991 06:08 | 472 |
| Trip Report Part I - 30th June to 10th July 1991
(I've split my report into two, because it's taking so long to
create that any new info is becoming less current, and also
because I don't want to lock my terminal for hours while it gets
entered.)
The group consisted of myself, my wife Pat, son Martin (11),
daughter Elizabeth (7 - 8 on 11th July), our friends Mike and June
with their son Paul (11), daughter Nichola (15) and Nichola's
friend Sarah (15). We were going for three weeks, our friends
could only manage two weeks away from their business. We planned
to operate as complementary but free roaming groups, joining up
for some meals and visits, trading kids etc., but not forming a
British Tour Party following the flag!
All members of the group (except Sarah) were Disney Veterans,
having spent between 25 and 30 days in WDW over the past two
years.
Itinerary was to fly out together, spend 11 days in CBR, 3 nights
Abocos Cruise on the Majestic (!), and then our friends would fly
back leaving us with a week on our own in a FW Trailer (on AP
Special Rate). It looked good on paper, but we should have
realised that all together we create a critical mass of gremlins
(Last time we vacationed together was Christmas '89. Our family
had a week on our own with great weather, our friends joined us
and Florida promptly had the Big Freeze, we flew back and our
friends had another week of good weather!). The gremlins sure
worked overtime on the Majestic (See Safe Return in 237).
Day 0. Sunday 30th June.
We all travelled to Manchester Airport in a minibus,
collecting our friends first, then us. The gremlins had already
started, because by the time the 'bus arrived at our house, it had
a flat on one of the double back wheels. It wasn't safe to proceed
with 9 people and a full load of luggage, it was a solid puncture
because we couldn't re-inflate it at the pump, so a replacement
was ordered. This lost us 30-45mins which we had allowed in order
to get early check-in and good seats all together. Arrived at the
check-in desks to find the conveyor broken, so although they were
nominally open, no-body was being processed. Eventually got
checked-in, but were split into different sections of the plane.
Everything comes in three's, right! So we weren't too surprised to
find that the plane was delayed by 4 hrs, due apparently to
emergency flights ferrying people out of Yugoslavia. The airline
supplied us with vouchers for meals, which we spent on coffee and
danish and other pseudo food while we lounged around killing time.
Eventually took off, made up some time on the flight and
arrived at Orlando International at 8.20pm EST, instead of the
scheduled 5pm. Knowing the ropes, we winged it through Immigration
and Customs ahead of the bunch, caught the Alamo shuttle, joined
the inevitable line to collect the car, didn't get stung for too
many 'extras', drove down to WDW, checked in at CBR and were in
our room by 11pm. Our friends were renting through Hertz with a
counter at the airport, and beat us by about half an hour. We
unpacked a little, then fell into bed with our bodies telling us
it was 4am!
Day 1. Monday 1st July.
Woke about 7am. Unpacked a little more and drank coffee
from the mini-bar, then I went down to the Customs House to meet
up with my friend's wife to buy their Annual Passport vouchers
with my MKC card. We were both so shattered, incoherent and
slumped together for support, that we probably gave the impression
of being man and wife, so I didn't get a chance to test how far
the MKC umbrella stretched. Interesting point though, could I
legitimately have used my MKC card to get a discount for a
completely unrelated family, without buying anything myself?
Then went to OPR for much needed coffee and breakfast and
coffee, followed by coffee. (Free refills are the USA's greatest
contribution to mankind IMO!) Compared notes with our friends, and
found that we were in Martinique as requested, but that they were
in Trinidad I, to give them the interconnected rooms, not
Martinique as requested.
With the coffee coursing through our veins, we all felt
more alive, so split up to do our own thing. We drove to MGM to
trade in our AP renewal vouchers, were quickly processed at Guest
Relations, and were inside by about 09:30, just to get the feel of
things. Did the Muppetvision 3D. It was excellent, very amusing
and entertaining, and I'm glad that they didn't stoop to any 3D
trickery :-) The show was about to start when we arrived, so we
didn't see any of the pre-show on that visit, but I'd recommend
spending some time there. The area is stuffed full of little
amusing items and props, and the pre-show which runs across three
TV monitors at a time (occasionally across all 12!) is an
entertainment in it's own right. From the time you enter the
building and pick up your 3D glasses, (through an arch with a
chunk out of it, and a note stating that you must be less than
9'6" to enter!) until you exit past the signs warning of damage if
you don't remove the glasses (Illustrated by Dr Bunsen Honeydew
and Beaker!), it's a masterpiece of Muppet Idiocy. It begins even
before you enter, take a good look at the clockface under the
Muppet Balloon!
Next we went into the 'Honey, I Shrunk The Kids' play
area. Spent about 15mins in there, it was interesting but not
enthralling. Most of the fun was in identifying the props and
where they fitted into the film. Once we'd done that, caves,
slides and scramble nets were no better than most kiddies
playgrounds. The kids in our group never requested to go back, so
they seem to agree with my opinion. After that, we strolled round
the New York street scenes, which had been opened out since our
last visit. Saw the Turtles from a distance, but didn't make any
effort to get closer at that time. Left at about 11, to return to
CBR for some pool time.
We spent an hour in the Martinique pool, went up to OPR
for a look round and some lunch, then joined our friends round the
OPR pool. Spent a couple of hours round there, it's not bad for a
resort pool, interesting surroundings and a small water slide.
Left before our lily-white skins went too pink, got showered and
cleaned up and drove to Crossroads for food and shopping. Ate at
TGI Fridays, bought groceries at Goodings, then returned to MGM at
about 8pm.
At MGM we took in the Muppet Stage Show, which has
potential, but is too short. It never seemed to get anywhere. Did
the Monster Sound Show, Star Tours twice in succession, then
Indiana Jones. Yet again, that damned boulder failed to roll for
us! The first couple of times we saw the show in Summer '89, it
wasn't part of the scenery. At Christmas '89, it was included, but
due to the big freeze, it never seemed to run to completion, just
appearing in the doorway then stopping. This time, the doors never
even opened!
Feeling shattered, we headed for the exit, stopping by the
taxi on the Boulevard to watch Sorcery in the Sky. The view of the
fireworks was good, but we were too far away to really appreciate
the music, which focusses on the area in front of the Chinese
Theatre.
Back in the room, we finished unpacking, and sorted
breakfast. We brought with us some plastic breakfast bowls and
spoons and 'proper English' teabags, bought from Goodings large
packs of cereals, OJ, milk, coffee, and 12 packs of Coke. We'd
also brought a waterproof 'cool bag', which we filled with ice and
used to keep the half gallon milk cartons and OJ cold. The 'Mr.
Coffee' produced water hot enough for satisfactory tea brewing,
and the 'cool bag' worked fine on the milk, so we were all set.
We'd planned on buying a cheap kettle and a $3.99 cheapo
polystyrene cool box, but these proved to be unnecessary. We also
started a stock of sugar sachets, which we topped up whenever we
ate 'fast food'. (Later, we bought a stock of the Minute Maid
orange and apple juice cartons, which we substituted for the cool
ones in the mini-bar along with the Cokes whenever we wanted a
cold drink. We don't mind reasonable expense, but the 3-400%
markup on goods in the mini-bar is too much!). The objective of
the breakfasts in the room was speed not cheapness. We found that
we could interleave showering and dressing with eating, and be out
within half an hour of waking up, rather than the 1.5+ hrs if we
showered, dressed and went to OPR to eat.
Day 2. Tuesday 2nd July.
Woke at 8.15am. It was raining heavily. Got ready slowly,
letting the kids graze through the TV channels. By 9.15 it was dry
again, so drove to EPCOT. (Because of ease of access,
transportation etc. we'd decided to leave the MK until our FW
week, and concentrate on the other parks and attractions.) Crowds
seemed light, although the lines for Spaceship Earth were at
45mins. Went to the Land, did 'Listen To' and Kitchen Cabaret with
no lines, moved up to Imagination, did the ride and hands on, Liz
did another blue screen adventure, then moved on for Captain EO.
Just missed a show, so did some more hands on, and went into the
waiting area about 3 mins before. Only about 50 people in there,
so we all sat in the middle of our respective rows.
Moved on to World Showcase, took the ferry to Morocco, had
burgers in the American Pavilion (Yes, Robin. Other people eat
there too!), listened to the Voices of Liberty (Superb as usual,
although the usual leader, a 'comfortably padded' gentleman, had
been replaced by a younger guy.), did the American Adventure, then
strolled round to England, to let our kids get their fix of the
'Olde Globe Players'. Saw their version of King Arthur and the
Holy Grail. Sharp and witty as usual.
Strolled back to do Horizons, then Wonders of Life.
Cranium Command still entertaining, but I was actually dozing
through Body Wars. Back to CBR for rest and showers. OPR at 6.00pm
for food, then bus to MK. Busses supposed to be every 20mins, but
when we got to the bus stop we realised that we'd left the bag
with our poncho's in the food court. I jogged off to collect them,
and meanwhile a bus came. Thinking that we'd got 20 mins, I went
back to use the restrooms, and missed another. While I was getting
an 'ear bashing' from the missus about how it wouldn't be worth
going, yet another appeared. 3 in the space of 15 mins - This set
the pattern, we found the bus service fast and frequent for just
about everything, and mainly used the car for non-Disney stuff.
MK was pretty full, even at 8pm, so we just wandered round
Main Street soaking up the atmosphere, until time for the ELP. We
watched from the area just to the top right of the plaza, opposite
the gates where the parade enters. There is a service road that
runs past The Chapeau (hat shop), and people were already standing
on the sidewalk along there, but we'd spotted that the holes for
the posts ran across the entrance to the road, so we were standing
innocently in open space when the posts and ropes were set out,
and Oh! What a Surprise! There we were right on the front row.
Mean trick really, but we let some kids move in front, so honour
was satisfied. Left at 9.30 pm, took the bus which proved very
efficient, and were back in the room by 9.45. I made a coffee,
then had a stroll round to unwind a bit. Saw the glow and some of
the higher fireworks from Illuminations, and later, after I'd
just walked past OPR round the lake, I could see and hear the
majority of Sorcery in the Sky from MGM. Vincent Price's voice was
carrying quite clearly!
Day 3. Wednesday 3rd July.
Universal Studios for 9am. Bought 2 day passes with the
discount card from PSA, targetted some of the more famous rides
early on, then walked around taking in the atmosphere. I won't go
into detail, but general impression was that it was all less
subtle and detailed than Disney, only the ET ride came close in
overall quality, although as a demonstration of simulator effects,
Back to the Future blows away Star Tours or Body Wars. We left mid
afternoon, finding out as we went that BTTF and Kongfrontation had
both broken during the day.
After relaxing in the room for a while, we went to EPCOT,
did Wonders of Life including catching the Anacomical Players,
then did Spaceship Earth while the crowds were watching
Illuminations.
Day 4. Thursday 4th July.
Our daughter went to MK with some of the other family, and
we had a lazy session around Martinique pool while doing some
laundry. Later moved up to OPR for food and more pool time. Rented
a Toobie at OPR Boatyard and puttered up and down the lake, having
a look at some of the other 'islands'. Agreed that Martinique and
Trinidad I are the most convenient for OPR, with the others you
might need to drive down.
All 9 of us then went for dinner in The Olive Garden at
Crossroads, drove back, parked up and caught the bus to EPCOT for
4th of July Illuminations. We took the ferry over to Italy, rather
than fight our way through the masses, and found a clear stretch
of railing between Italy and America. It wasn't perfect, having a
tree just to the right, and other foliage preventing a clear view
of all the Countries, but at least it was vacant. Most other spots
were occupied, and this was at 8.30! We went to the restrooms or
to stretch our legs by rota, but by 10 we were having to push
through crowds about 5 or 6 deep to get back in, even in this
lousy viewing position. It was worth the effort though! The core
of Illuminations was standard, although we felt that everything
seemed a little louder and bigger than usual, and then the extra
session began. This was mainly focused on America, and a
spectacular display was set off from behind the America buildings.
We seemed to be right underneath it (At one stage we thought we'd
caught some fall out, but it was only a commerative cup being
dropped during a silent moment), and our necks were stiff the next
morning from gazing almost straight up.
Crowds were extremely heavy all the way to the exit, and
they'd even opened some gates, rather than getting everyone to
clock out through the turnstiles. By the bus stop for the CBR,
things had thinned out, and everyone waiting fitted onto one bus.
Day 5. Friday 5th July.
Slept late, and spent time by the pools. Ate at OPR,
showered, changed and went to Sea World for 2pm. We stayed until
the end, to watch their laser and fireworks display, which
suffered by comparison with Illuminations. Note - when I got my
new MKC card, I also got another HBJ discount card. They honoured
it on a one-off basis at the gate, then scribbled 'No Longer
Valid' on the back.
Day 6. Saturday 6th July.
Hit the MK at 9am. Went directly to Big Thunder and got on
the second train of the morning. On exit we went round again,
because there were still no lines, we almost jogged up, round and
down the ramp and straight onto a car. Got the rear seat.
Definitely more violent than at the front. When we got off the
second time, the lines were down the slope! Did Haunted Mansion
then Mickey's Starland. Preferred the Birthday show, although it
was nice to see newer characters like Baloo and Louie getting a
slot. Then did Carousel of Progress - still entertaining, Mission
to Mars - very 'old hat' now, browsed in Main street shops and
returned to CBR for lunch.
Drove to Y+BC for the afternoon. Very smart, perhaps a
little too formal for our tastes. Spent most of the time round
Stormalong Bay, the pool complex. It seemed very busy, and
although I rented a life-vest with my CBR ID, and got some towels
too, the girl behind the counter warned me that they were thinking
of making it Y+BC only. Enjoyed the pools and the slide from the
pirate ship, although I'd got the idea that you could swim all the
way round from pool to pool, and you can't. Nice layout though,
with deeper pools with a current, and shallow ones with sandy
beach for the younger ones. The hotels actually have a beach along
the lagoon, with a netted off swimming area. It looked nice, but
no-one was using it, and the row of sun-loungers looked as if they
hadn't been moved since they were put out in the morning. I never
found out why it was vacant, although the lagoon looked murky
compared to the pools.
Strolled through the hotel corridors, looking at
restaurants and facilities - the arcade games room was given the
thumbs up by the kids, and we had difficulty prizing the ladies
out of the shop!
My friend and I then dropped our families at church (Holy
Redeemer on I192), and did some shopping at a Publix further down.
Collected the families, ate at a Waffle House, returned to CBR and
crashed out.
Day 7. Sunday 7th July.
Went to MGM for about 9.30, and went directly to Back Lot
for the Turtles. They do a dance and fight routine, then split up
to four predefined areas for photo/autograph sessions. Got some
good shots of them with Donatello, and then went round to the
Disney Club Studios to check out TV Tryouts. Encountered Mickey,
Minnie, Goofy, Pluto and Roger Rabbit in their 'Film Star' dress.
Only one other family around, so we had a long photo and hugging
session. The characters seemed content to stay there, and not seek
out a bigger audience, perhaps because it was cool and shady!
Joined the 'Tryouts' audience, and Elizabeth 'wangled'
herself onto the show as noted elsewhere. Great test of character,
smiling for the cameras, when you really want to hide your head in
your hands and groan about your kid's performance.
Left MGM at lunchtime, took the ferry to the Dolphin, and
then shuttle tram to Y+BC, to have lunch in the Yacht Club Galley.
There was a shuttle in as the boat docked, so we didn't have much
time to look over the Dolphin, but close up it was even less
inspiring than from a distance.
Great meal, excellent and attentive service. Caught the
shuttle tram to EPCOT, and as we arrived, I realised that I'd left
my camera hung on the chairback in the restaurant. Stayed on the
shuttle, and returned via the back of the Dolphin. Had more time
to look at it, but my opinion didn't change. It's very tacky, the
fountains gave me the impression of plaster film props, and not
very good ones at that!
Reclaimed my camera from Guest Services at Y+BC, where
they refused any kind of 'finders fee' or tip, and returned to
EPCOT. Did some of the countries, spent some time in the
Communicores, and had snacks in WOL. Caught the bus back to MGM,
and did Muppetvision 3D again. Spent more time in the pre-show
area, and caught more of the detail. Saw even more clever detail
during the show! Did Star Tours 'cos there was no line, then
stopped at Dinosaur Gerties for ice-creams. Oh Misery!, they no
longer do the frozen, choc dipped bananas. Another old favorite is
now extinct!
Headed back for Sorcery in the Sky. This was one of the
nights that the Rocketeer was due to fly, so we wanted a good
view. Got settled in front of the Chinese Theatre at about 10pm,
at the back of the crowd, which was about 10 people deep around
the ropes. Fortunately (?) at that moment, the heavens opened!
After a couple of minutes of very heavy rain (you could feel each
drop as a heavy blow on the ponchos), most people decided that it
was set in for the rest of the evening, and left. We and a hundred
or so other hardy (or stupid?) souls stood around, with the rain
running in sheets off our ponchos, mostly sheltering under the
trees. It remained heavy for about 15 mins (By which time our
trainers were soaked and squelching. We were slow remembering the
technique of standing with arms braced in front of you so the rain
fell clear of your shoes, rather than falling straight onto the
lace holes!), and then slackened off to a light drizzle. The
crowds reformed along the ropes, but this time, we were in the
second row, with a reasonable view of the front of the theatre.
During the heavy rain, a piece of scenery had appeared,
like a large triangular stage 'flat', showing the traditional
picture of the Rocketeer zooming up into the sky. I estimated it
to be about 20ft high. The show started at about 10.35 (We noted
on various occasions that the MGM display is not as prompt as the
others. You can set your watch by Tinkerbell's flight, but we
saw 'Sorcery' starting as late as 10.40!), and despite the
continuing drizzle, it was great. You must be in front of the
theatre to get the full effects of the interweaving of the music
and fireworks, and despite some echoes, you could get a stereo
image too. We were gazing up at a display when a shout went up of
"There's the Rocketeer!". I grabbed my son, lifted him up for a
better view, and tried to peer around his head, so didn't see much
detail. Between us we reckon that the Rocketeer took off,
slowly spiralled upwards around the scenery until he was about
10ft above it, then spiralled back down and disappeared. It looked
like a genuine free flight, with authentic looking helmet and
rocket pack, although he seemed to have his forearms braced out in
front of him (controlling a military style rocket pack?) rather
than by his sides. The Fantasia section of the display then
continued, except that the huge Sorcerer's Apprentice figure did
not appear due to problems from the rain. We never got a chance to
see it close up. Is it an inflatable, or a rigid structure.
Whatever it is, it's huge!
Caught the bus back to CBR. There were no ropes to mark
out the lines, so a large mass of soggy people surged towards the
bus door, and there were some ill-tempered remarks as we boarded,
but all directed towards Disney for failing to put up ropes, not
towards people who took advantage of the confusion to jump lines?
Day 8. Monday 8th July.
Typhoon Lagoon day. Hot and sunny all day, great time as
usual.
Changes since our last visit :--
No two day passes available.
The rental rafts have been replaced by tubes, and when you
rent them, they attach a waterproof paper band to your wrist.
Supposedly, the deposit will not be returned unless the band is
still on your wrist. (I was dubious, but the bands remained intact
all through the day, and needed cutting off. Tough stuff!) The
only place where a tube is not supplied is in the wave pool, and
although you can use them on the slides, you still need to wait in
line, the cast members won't let you cut through. We also used
ours on Castaway Creek. By midday there weren't many tubes coming
free, people were drifting round 2 or 3 times.
The wave pool is different too. For 1 hour they have the
regular waves, with no tubes allowed, then for the next hour they
generate a choppy swell (by releasing each side alternately, I
think), and you can use tubes to just lie there pitching and
rocking.
TL is now on the Brazilian Tour itinerary, but they seemed
to spend more time in the shop than in the water.
Left at 6pm, got cleaned up and went to Crossroads for
dinner at the Olive Garden. Afterwards we went on the Marketplace
to do some shopping, and check on the times for the Rocketeer
movie. There is a puppet and mime show running there at the
moment, on the 'Just Say No!' theme, covering all drugs from
Nicotine and Alcohol through to Cocaine. The puppets they use are
skating dangerously close to infringing Muppet copyright!
Day 9. Tuesday 9th July.
Went back to Universal Studios. Arrived at 9am, and found
that it had been open for an hour already. This info wasn't
published anywhere, and the ticket clerks didn't know how long it
was going on for. Because it wasn't widely publicised, not many
people were in early, so we got the chance to do the Hanna-Barbera
ride, which we couldn't get near the first time. From about 11,
the lines were right round the building, an hour plus in the
baking sun! Also did 'Back to the Future' again, and looked around
more instead of watching the screen. There are three rows of
about six cars, all responding to an 'Imax' type screen. It's
quite impressive, looking back to see 18 DeLoreans, all in
formation, pitching and rolling at the same time. Did ET and some
of the other lesser attractions, did some souvenir shopping and
left late afternoon for food at OPR.
Went to the AMC in the Village and watched The Rocketeer.
It was good, but never having been exposed to him before, I don't
know how closely it matches expectations of what I believe is
already an established cult figure in the US. The Rocketeer
display in MGM made more sense now. Perhaps we should have done
things the other way round! (I though we might get a bit of
one-upmanship when the movie was released in the UK "Oh, We saw it
a year ago in the States!", but it went on general release over
here on 2nd August.)
Day 10. Wednesday 10th July.
Last day in the CBR. Got up early and went to EPCOT for
9am. Did Living Seas, Wonders of Life and more hands on in
Communicores. Returned for lunch in OPR, and then did some
packing. Spent some time in the pools, and then the kids and I
rented bikes and rode round the tracks for an hour (After we
tightened up my handlebars, so that when I turned the bars, the
front wheel did the same!).
After some time in the room, letting the rainstorm blow
over, we drove up to Port Orleans to check it out. Ate in the food
court (Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory!), then strolled
around. The interiors of the rooms look identical to CBR, but the
rooms are in three storey blocks, very regimented and regular. The
pool was fine, with a serpent slide, and alligators playing
various instruments, some just statues, and some some as
fountains. The shop was good, half regular Disney, and half Mardi
Gras articles. I was very taken with a sequinned bowler hat, until
I found the price ($55)! There is a an animated display in the
shop, with Mickey, Donald Goofy et al, playing Dixieland. Very
amusing and good music too!
In general, we felt that it was less appealing than the
CBR, there was less variety in the food hall, and the layout of
the buildings seemed less spacious and more regimented. We'd stay
there if we couldn't get in to the CBR, but prefer the more open
feel, given the choice.
Drove back to finish packing, and I did some taping of the
room and general surroundings, then early to bed.
To Be Continued!
|
| 237.25 | 91 Trip report | ICS::FAIRBANKS | | Sat Aug 10 1991 13:54 | 161 |
| WHO: Scott and Migdalia (Mickey) Fairbanks, Cassandra (6), Tiffany
(10 months) and meeting up with my parents Bob (60) and Jean (?)
Who were flying down a week earlier.
How: Rented a Caravan. Cassie took over the Back seat for her room.
I hooked up a little TV for her, she had new toys and colorng
books, reading books and the cooler right in front of her. The
baby went in a car seat in the middle seat so it would be easier
to take care of her.
When: last week in July, 1st week in Aug. 1st week on Sanibel Island
2nd week in Disney.
Where: Lighthouse resort on Captiva, I'd give them 4 out of 5
Resort world in Kissimee, I'd give them 2 out of 5
We left to pick up our Caravan at 8:45 got back to our place for 9:10
loaded the car and were on the road for 9:30. We packed a cooler with
lunch and snacks so we drove until about 6 where we stopped for about
an hour for supper. The only delay in driving was when we were coming
through Conn. Even that wasn't to bad we only lost about 15 mins. After
supper we were going to try to drive through the night if we could sleep
in intervals, but the baby wouldn't allow it so we stopped at around
11:00 about 1/4 of the way through NC.
We got under way about 8:30 the next morning, after a quick breakfast.
We drove till we got to South of the Border. Had Brunch there but didn't
do to much else as the temp. was around 110. We then drove till about
7:00 had supper and didn't stop till we got to Sanibel at around 2:00
the next morning.
Not allot to report about Sanibel Island and Captiva except the Beaches
were great, clean, uncrowded, the water was like bath water. My 6 yr old
had a great time there gathering shells and swimming and rafting. It
was great.
We left for Tampa Sat and stopped and visited her relatives for a few
hours which was a mistake, but I would have been nagged for 1200 miles
so...
We got to Kissimee Sat night and rested for Disney on Sunday.
We got up early and went straight to the Park, bought 4 day passes went
in and went to Tony's for breakfast. It was pretty good, and the price
wasn't bad.
After that there were some characters so we bought the girls each a auto.
book and got some autographs, and some video of the girls with the
characters. We then went all the way to Mickeys starland went through
that and went to the show there. The show was good but I felt that it
was more to push there TV shows than anything else. And it was also there
that we ran into a continual problem. Shops right outside the attractions
carrying things related to the show you just saw. With a 6 yr old this could
cause problems both money wise and not wanting to carry purchases around.
We then hit Mr Toads ride, small world, haunted mansion, took the boat ride
watched the parade, snow whites scary adv, got some more autographs. And
a couple of the other rides. Lines were really short, the only wait was in
the mansion and that was only about 20 mins.
We skipped lunch as none of us were hungry and had dinner at Cinderella's
castle. Meal was good, but highly overpriced, $25 for a prime rib was just
a bit much. And my daughter was looking forward to seeing Cinderella but
our waiter told us they didn't do that anymore, and the only place to
to see her was in the lobby, which we did while waiting for dinner to
come.
After dinner we pretty much just went into the Shops on Main St and waited
for the Elec parade. Which was enjoyed by everyone. We were gonna stay for
the fireworks but decided against it as the kids were getting tired. But
we did stick around for a while and took the fairy back to the Trans Ctr.
and when we got off the fairy the Fireworks started so we go to see them.
The next day we went to MGM.
Took in the backstage tour, the Roger rabbit place (name escapes me),
honey I shrunk the kids, TMNT stage show, muppetvision, the rocketeer
attraction, (and was disappointed to learn that he only flew fri-sun,
if we skipped the trip to the inlaws I could have caught it), Disney
animation, Indian Jones etc.
The only real problem we had was in the Star Wars ride. Since there
were 4 adults and 2 children, 1 only 10 months old, we had to do a
baby swap, (that's some of us go on the ride, wait for the rest to
come through take the baby out and let the rest go on the ride. The
problem I had was I went on the ride with my 6 yr old and my mother.
My daughter got so scared that I couldn't even see what was going on
on the screen, trying to calm a frantic 6yr on something like that is
next to impossible. And the last time I heard my mother yell like that
was when I was about 13, but that's another story.
We stopped for dinner at the Brown Derby where we had another problem.
The food was good and the prices so-so, but it took almost 1 1/2 hrs
for our meal to arrive, thus killing the rest of the night. But we did
see the fireworks which everyone liked.
Also at this time I was running low on video tape, so I went into the
camera store there. $19 for 1 8mm cassette, no way. I stopped at the
supermarket down from where we were staying and bought some at $6 a
tape.
We started out the next day with a character breakfast on the Empress
Lily. This 1 one of the thins my 6 yr old was really looking forward
to. She was a little disappointed that they didn't spend more time, she
thought they were gonna sit down and eat with her, we told her otherwise
but somewhere along the line she saw a picture of them doing that and
thought it would still happen. She loved it never the less.
That day we hit Epcot. The last time we were here we hit most of the
rides and none of the Pavilions, so we decided to go there 1st and
whatever time was left we would spend on the rides. My mother bought
each 1 of the girls those passport books to get stamped. We went though
the 1st couple of pavilions and the Rides on Mexico and Norway. We were
all having a pretty good time until we stopped at a little icecream
stand, I think it was called the outpost, for a quick snack. At this time
it started pouring. We were stuck there for about 1/2 hr until we decided
to stick our cameras in plastic bags and run to the next pavilion. When
we had about 2 pav. to go we were getting tired of it so my mother and
my wife just ran in to get the passports signed. We broke for supper then
hit the world of transportation, and a couple of other ones. We also hit
journey into the Imagination which was mine and my daughters favorite
from last time. About an hour before the laser/firework show people
were starting to line up so we decided to do the same. We got a really
good spot in front of the Canadian Pavilion, right on the rail. The
show was great. The only real problem we had was were they have the
fountains that jump (don't know the name) there was a bunch of kids
that were jumping around in them. My mother went and complained to
a security guard. He went over and told them to get off but they
pretended they didn't speak English and kept on doing it. He went over
to the parents and said something we couldn't hear but the kids were
dragged off the fountains, the parents cursed the guard and stormed
off.
The next day we had breakfast at the hotel and headed back to MGM to
catch the Muppet stage show, which everyone liked including the baby,
then back to the kingdom so we could go on our favorite rides again
and to hit some of the ones we missed our 1st day, and to pick up some
stuff. It was raining so I did something I thought I wouldn't do, I broke
down and bought a poncho. Lines were short on everything but they canceled
the parade and the show they put on. My mother went on Small World for the
3rd and 4th time. We hit pirates, a few more, took the tram across. Hit
some more rides, then headed over to the village for somemore souv shopping.
We reluctanlty headed out the next morning. Bringing lunch so we could
drive most of the day. We stopped at south of the Border for Supper and
since it was cooler we got to look around and by some more stuff. Love
the signs for that place, though I remember more from when I was little.
Part of the trip both ways was spent looking for them and taking pictures
of the better ones. We had supper loaded up on Fireworks for next 4th and
drove till about 11:30. We go home the following night at about 11:00.
The major driving problem we had was around DC - and beyond. We got
there around 4 in the afternoon.
We missed a few things, but we are already planning another trip for
early 93. I wanted to hit pleasure island and typhoon lagoon, but time
was short.
|
| 237.27 | my trip report | DPDMAI::MATTSON | It's always something! | Wed Sep 04 1991 13:19 | 133 |
| My trip report!
(This is the first time I've used the buffer like this, I hope I get it right!)
Who: Me, Becky Mattson and my 9 year old dosn, Keith, from Dallas, Texas. My
cousin flew down from Ohio with her 2 year old daughter and 6 year old son, and
met us in Orlando.
When: August 18-22. this turned out to be a great time to go, as it was the
beginning of hte off-season, rates were lower, and crowds were smaller. My son
missed the first three days of school, but it was worth it, just for the
smaller crowds alone.
Where: We stayed at the Caribbean Beach Hotel on Disney Property, in the
Jamaica section. It was absolutely wonderful! We shared a room with 2 double
beds, and crib for the 2 year old. We did not feel cramped or crowded, and it
was very nice. We tried to get close to Port Royale, as suggested here, but it
was still a little walk to get there. My luggage was lost en-route, but the
hotel gladly supplied me with toothpaste and toothbrushes to tide me over.
Travel: BIG MISTAKE! In my effort to keep costs down, I decided I couldn't
afford to fly, and I wasn't too keen on driving 2 days with just my son with
me. So, I decided to try taking the Greyhound bus. WRONG CHOICE!! I will
NEVER do that again! The busses were crowded, cramped, uncomfortable, cold and
miserable!! They are also unreliable! Our bus broke down somewhere in East
Texas and we waited on the side of the road for 5 hours waiting for another bus
to come get us. It was horrible! As soon as I got to Orlando, I immediately
made reservations on TWA to fly back. It ended up costing me an arm and a leg,
but worth it to stay off the bus!
Once we checked into our hotel, things got better. We got in around 1:00pm, my
cousin met us around 2:00pm. After we said our hellos, and got settled in, we
headed right out to MGM Studios, around 3:00. The first thing we saw, were the
Ninja Turtles, which thrilled our boys! They were able to get right up in
front for the show, and then got 2 of their autographs. They thought is was
wonderful!
We skipped the backstage tour, mainly because of time, but saw just about
everything else that we wanted to. We took in the Indiana Jones Stunt
Spectacular after dark, as recommended here, and it was great! I can definately
see how it would be better than the daytime! The Star Wars ride was very
enjoyable. It was kind of bumpy and jerky, but you really felt as though you
were flying thru space in a space ship! Especially when we hit warp speed! I
thought it was great, although my cousin said she was a little nauseous when
she got off. The two year old was too little to ride, and my son doesn't like
those kinds of rides, anyway, so he stayed off with her while the rest of us
rode.
We also saw the Muppetts 3-D show, and it was terrific! There is one part
where Fozzie Bear is wearing a flower pin that squirts water, and you really do
get wet! Then they have a part where they blow bubbles, and bubbles really do
come out of somewhere, and land on you. It was really a good show, we liked it
better than Captain EO at Epcot. The 2year old even wore the glasses, and
enjoyed reaching out for the things.
We stayed for the fireworks, and they were really impressive! They were
celebrating the 40th anniversary of Fantasia, and the music was really great.
We also got to see the Rocketeer fly, and got his autograph. My son especially
liked that, since we had just seen the Rocketeer movie! He thought it was
"Awesome!"
The next day, we went to Epcot. We didn't go back to the countries in the
back, but rather stayed in the front and took in (nearly) all of the exhibits
and rides in the various pavillions. The only ones we didn't get to were "the
Land" "The Living Seas" and the Sphere in the very front. Everything was very
futuristic and impressive. The crowds were very sparce, and most of the time,
we just walked right up and got on the rides with very little, if any waiting.
The kids did get a little bored in places, but enjoyed most of it.
We made dinner reservations at the German Pavillion, and it was wonderful! the
food was great, and the show was a lot of fun! They had a girl who yodeled, a
guy who played the bells, 3 guys who played a beautiful song on those long
alpine horns (I forget their names). There was lots of singing and
sing-alongs, dancing, and children and adults both enjoyed it. The price was a
little steep, though. I bought my entree, and a child's meal for my son, soft
drinks, no alcohol or desserts, and the bill was $25.00. But it was good food,
good atmosphere, good show, and I would recommend it anyway.
We stayed for the fireworks, and Laser show, which were really good. We had
spots on the "front" side of the pond, so we could look back over all the
countries as they were lit up. It was really good, but frankly, we enjoyed the
firworks at MGM, more. When the sparks from the fireworks, fell into the pond,
it caused a lot of smoke, which kind of hindered the effects.
The next day, we went to the Magic Kingdom. My cousin took her two kids to a
Character Breakfast and said it was real hectic. The older kids, pushed in
front of the little ones, so her two didn't get to see as much as they would
have liked. We met her afterwards, and did the first half of MK - Fantasy Land
and Tomorrow Land. The crowds here, were a little more larger than Epcot, but
the lines were still only about 15-20 minutes. (The last time I was there, In
July, we waited as long as 1-2 hours for some rides!) So, by 4:00pm, we had
done everything. My cousin decided to take her two back to the hotel for naps,
and my son and I went back and repeated some of our favorites. He really
enjoyed driving the race cars, so we did that one a couple of times. She met
us back up at 7:30 in front of the Magic Shop on Main Street, and we ended up
just sitting there on the curb until the parade at 9:00. One of us held our
spot, while the other one shopped. It worked out real well, and we had a great
front row seat for the Electric Light Parage, and fireworks!
The next day, we did the other half of the MK. Again, the lines were not too
bad, and we did everything by 5:00. We had made reservations on this day, for
lunch at the Diamond Horseshoe Cafe, and it was a lot of fun! The show was
rowdy, and funny, and again, both adults and children enjoyed the show. The
food was simple, but good. I had a ham and cheese sandwich with chips and a
soft drink, and my son had a turkey sandwich with chips and drink, and the
total came to $17.00. (We did have several refills on the drinks.) My cousin
had the turkey sandwich and two kids meals of peanut butter and jelly
sandwiches, with drinks, and her bill was $18.00. But the show was good, the
food was good, and the service was good, so I really can't complain.
Soft drinks around the parks, were $1.85 for 16 oz, and came in a souvenir
cups. All in all, prices were a little high, but not really as high as I had
expected. Plus, sandwiches and food servings, were very large, and we split a
lot of things, so that helped keep food costs down.
I finally got to try the Dole Pineapple Whip and it was heavenly! I'd sure
like to have that recipe if anyone has it. One moring, my son and I ate
breakfast at Port Royale, and we just had donuts and milk, but it only came to
$5.00.
The things we missed were some of the neat restaurants at MGM, and the
backstage tour, The Land and the Sphere at Epcot, and we didn't make it to
Typhoon Lagoon. Basically, we saw everything else. Not too bad, I would say.
We saw construction at MK for Splash Water Falls, right next to Big Thunder
Mountain Railroad, and Tom Sawyer Island. And we were told that there are plans
for a 4th theme park to be built in '94 or '95, kind of a Pleasure Island for
kids.
We had a great time, and can't wait to go back! Although next time, I'll
either drive or fly! Maybe 94 or 95, who knows? :-)
Beckyf
|
| 237.26 | Trip Report Part II | WOTVAX::BATTY | Well, I wouldn't start from here! | Wed Sep 04 1991 13:45 | 464 |
| Trip report Part II - July 11th to July 21st 1991
Day 11, 12, 13. Thursday, Friday, Saturday.
Had breakfast in the room, using up the remaining cereals,
supplemented by some extras from the mini-bar. Cleared the room,
and loaded the cases into the car. As we were doing that, I
spotted the guy who services the mini-bars, and asked him if he
could total it up and get the info down in time for our check-out.
No Problem! (Ha,Ha!) He scanned the room number off a barcode on
the A/C unit lid, then scanned the ID of the used items from his
master list and told us he would transmit it immediately from the
next room he visited. We drove to Trinidad to check that our
friends were OK and ready and then went to the Customs House to
check out.
The mini-bar items weren't on the bill, and when we
pointed this out, we were told "Oh! Don't worry, if they come in
later, we just zero them!"
The reason I'm going into so much detail is because when
we got home, there was a fresh invoice from the CBR, notifying me
that they had charged an extra $2.02 against the credit card
impression I gave when we checked in.
Point 1. The extra minibar charge was $4.34, but the original
invoice total was high by $2.32, so it pays to manually check it.
Don't trust computers!
Point 2. It cost $1.50 in postage charges to inform me that they
had deducted $2.02! Was it worth their while? Why didn't they just
scrub it, and win a little customer satisfaction?
Drove down to Port Canaveral, and easily found the
Starship Majestic. Off-loaded the luggage, which was promptly
wisked away, then booked the car into the secure compound. (It
cost me $10 for the three nights, because of an agreement with
some of the rental firms including Alamo, but cost my friend, who
rented through Hertz, $15! That took some of the sting out of him
beating me to the CBR, because of Hertz being on-site at the
airport.)
Got processed through Customs etc. - selected Late Sitting
for meals - selected a table and agreed the seating plan - ordered
the wine for the evening meal - went up the gangway - got
photographed (with good coverage of the Scandinavian Seaways
carrier bag I was using for odds and ends. This caused an aside
from one of the crewmembers "Now that's what I call a shipping
line". Was this an omen?) - got cabin numbers and loads of
bulletins from Reception - found the cabin complete with all
luggage - met the cabin steward...All within 15 mins of getting to
the front of the line at the check-in desk. This set the pace for
the rest of the cruise. To take advantage of everything that was
on offer, you needed to be in three places at once, as well as
needing three stomachs. The rest of the afternoon and evening
passed in a flurry of activity, reading all the bulletins (Two
pages of closely typed A4 just for adult activities for the
evening and the following day, with the same for each of the
children's groups.), rushing to various places to sign up kids
into various programs, signing us all up for snorkelling,
attending welcoming and briefing parties, eating, drinking,
eating, reading, eating, listening, eating, watching, eating and
eating. Get the picture?
Shortly after we set sail at 5pm, there was an emergency
procedures drill. It was taken very seriously, with a lot of
attention to detail, personal supervision of each person or family
about fitting and fastening lifevests, how to jump safely from a
sinking ship etc. At the time, it seemed OTT, but in hindsight,
I'm glad that it wasn't just glossed over the way airline safety
briefings seem to be.
The rest of the actual cruise continued at a fast pace,
eating, using on-board facilities like cinema, casino, cabaret,
gym?, pool, bars, sundecks, eating, visiting islands for
sight-seeing, swimming, eating, swimming with dolphins, eating,
shopping, eating, 'local flavour' cabaret and eating on one of the
local islands. There never seemed to be a time when excellent food
was not available somewhere on the ship. The evening meals all had
a theme - Italian, Bahamas and American - with the restaurant
staff all dressed accordingly, menus to suit, and a cabaret spot
with Disney characters leading all the staff in comic songs,
juggling, balancing, limbo dancing and so on.
It was our daughter's birthday on the first night. We'd
included that information when booking, and just as we were
waiting for dessert, out came a procession of waiters, busboys and
the Maitre'd, carrying a birthday cake with candles and singing
Happy Birthday! The detail and attentiveness of the staff was well
up to Disney standard. I realise that there is a more direct
financial motivation, because these people are very dependant on
the gratuities at the end of the trip, but everyone seemed to
genuinely want to deliver 'service excellence', without the
obsequiousness that usually goes with such a dependance.
The cruise was GREAT, and despite the fire and the ensuing
discomfort, we would all do another without hesitation.
I've covered the events following the fire at great length
in 237.22, so I'll just pick up from there on a more cheerful
note.
Day 15. Monday 15th July.
Checked into FW at about 16:30, Trailer 2110 on the Bobcat
Bend loop. The loop is directly opposite the junction of Fleetwood
Pass and Frontier Way, so you can use either the Brown or Silver
flagged buses. First impressions were how wet everything seemed,
standing pool of water next to the trailer, streams running high
etc. We found out that it had rained practically continuously
while we were on the cruise, so we put it down to that, but later
discussions (On the Hayride mentioned later) changed our minds.
Our memories of FW from '89 were of a pure pine forest, but this
trip it seemed more Everglade/Tropical, with creepers and ivy
predominating, and much Spanish Moss hanging around.
Showered and changed into the few remaining clean clothes
we had left (Due to the heat, no A/C and no showers on the boat,
we went through about 10 T-shirts apiece, trying to stay socially
acceptable!). Drove to Goodings at X-Roads to stock up for our
stay, then on with the vacation!
Ate at the Trails End Buffet (Hot food at last!) It
probably wasn't that great, but to us it tasted wonderful! We were
going to get the ferry over to the MK, but when we got down to the
dock, the Water Pageant had blocked the ferry's return trip from
the MK, so we took the launch to the Contemporary, and had our
first ride on the monorail. We only realised halfway round that
we were in one of the 'new' cars. They didn't seem too bad, but we
never got to try them when they were packed, so can't comment on
standing v sitting.
We watched Fantasy in the Sky from the veranda of the
train station. Comfortable viewing spot if you can get a seat on
the front row - we were standing, and you had to keep ducking down
to stop the roof cutting off the high bursts. The show seemed
subtly better than remembered, with more use of the types that
produce 'circles' rather than 'fountains'.
Went up to Adventureland, skipped the Jungle Cruise with
lines still at 30mins! and walked straight onto Pirates. Into
Frontierland, and did Country Bears, then Haunted Mansion, minimal
lines. Tiredness hit, so we set off back, watching the ELP while
walking down Main Street, then caught the ferry back to FW to
sleep at about 11.30.
Day 16. Tuesday 16th July.
Slept solidly 'til 9.30, then left the kids grazing on the
TV while we did some laundry to get rid of the smell of the
Majestic. I popped back to the trailer to make a cup of tea for
everyone, and while I was in, the kids were watching a
Bodybuilding show on ESPN. It showed an interview with the two
guys who play the heart muscles in Cranium Command. I was going to
say 'it's a small world', but that didn't apply to these two!
They're padded up for the part, but not as much as you'd expect.
Went up to River Country at 12, pretty full, but we got a
sunbed as a base, and then slowly gathered more as people left. At
about 4.30, the lifeguards came round getting everybody clear of
the water because of a thunderstorm warning. It wasn't taken too
seriously, because the skies were pretty clear, but they were
insistent, and just as they'd chased the last of the kids clear,
the clouds rolled over and we could see a solid sheet of rain
advancing over the pools. Then we had the mother and father of a
thunderstorm, directly overhead, no appreciable gap between
lightening and thunder. It makes you feel very vulnerable,
everybody standing there in shorts and towels, dripping wet from
the pools that are now being lashed by torrential rain, when only
10 mins before you were splashing around in brilliant sunshine.
I'm glad that Disney weather prediction is as good as the rest of
their organisation. I wonder how fast Wet'n'Wild could react?
It eased off and dried out after half an hour, so we went
back to the trailer for some dinner, then took the ferry to MK at
about 8.30. On our way up to the dock, we called at the Pioneer
Hall, just to check on bookings for the Hoop-de-doo. The guy on
the desk told us that they were getting a significant number of
'no-shows', and that small parties of 4-5 could be practically
guaranteed to get in if they turned up just before any of the
showtimes. We did plan to test this, but just never got round to
it.
In the MK at 8.45, did Pirates, then Haunted Mansion
(twice, because the first ride was spoiled by a group of
adolescents having a screaming contest all the way through!), no
lines, each ride on HM, there were only about 10 people in the
'Stretching Room'. Did Small World (well, you've got to do it once
per trip), then assembled at the stage in front of the castle for
the fireworks. Tinkerbell's flight seemed to be better lit than we
remembered, you could see flashing lights on her costume, and
Fantasy was even better close up. Unfortunately 'America the
Musical', the show which should have followed the fireworks, was
cancelled due to 'technical difficulties', and we never got a
chance to see it again. Did we miss much?
Caught the ferry back to FW, uneventful apart from a
conversation I overheard which made me cringe. We passed the
convoy of Water Pageant floats, heading back to their dock behind
the GF, and a very loud lady in the group sat in front of us, said
"Oh look! They're going over to EPCOT for their part in the
Illuminations. You can see the back of China over there, all lit
up ready" She was pointing to the GF at this time!!!!
Day 17. Wednesday 17th July.
Drove to MGM for 09:00, did Muppetvision, the four of us
doubled the number of people in the pre-show area, so we had
plenty of time to look at the props - plenty of subtle puns like
boxes of fish for Nicky Napoleon and the Emperor Penguins (the
orchestra that play 'front of house'). Saw even more clever
detail in the show (Watch out for the arrows that hit Waldorf and
Stadtler's box!). Did the Back Lot Tour (I think Catastrophe
Canyon still beats Universal's Earthquake for realism), then drove
to the Contemporary for a look round and lunch. Wasn't impressed
by the new additions (Conference and Banqueting facilities?),
they looked like surplus bunkers from the Space Centre!
Ate in the Concourse Grill, nice selection of food, hot
and huge quantities. As we paid the tab, they gave us a 20% off
voucher for PI. Other people who ate at any of the Contemporary's
restaurants or at the GF also got these. There were a pile of them
beside the Head Waiter's desk, so you could probably just pick
some up in passing if you were cheeky about it!
Monorail to MK, watched the 3pm Parade, then caught the
train to Starland, thinking that we might get a good view of the
Splash Mountain construction. The train doesn't go all the way
round any more, it runs anticlockwise round to Starland, then
reverses back to the main station.
From Starland we went up onto the Tea-Cups (Where I proved
to my son that if you get one spinning fast enough, it's no longer
a tame 'kids stuff' ride. His baseball cap flew off, and skimmed
well clear of the boundary rail!), then WEDway, Carousel of
Progress, watched the 'Best of Disney' show in Tomorrowland
Theatre, Dreamflight and back on the monorail to the Contemporary.
Drove back to FW for some tea.
After tea, we went up to the Meadow Trading Post for the
singalong and movie. It was 'The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again'
which didn't grab any of us, so we went up to Pioneer Hall and
went on the Hayride. The ride itself was fairly interesting, we
stopped by the lakeside, and got a good view of the Water Pageant
and Fantasy. More interesting was the castmember we had along. He
was locally born and bred, and had worked for Disney since he left
school, starting with Summer Vac. jobs shortly after it opened in
'71, then, after he qualified, working full time on animal care,
caring for the parade horses and animals in the petting farm in
MK.
We started by discussing the weather, and how soft and wet
the ground was. He felt that the weather was returning to the
Florida 'norm', after several dry years (This was later backed up
by an article in the Sentinel, showing many of the housing
developments in the area, where lakes had risen to cover people's
lawns, streams were much higher, and in one case, a rack of mail
boxes was half underwater.). He reckoned that the water table in
the area had probably dropped by 2 feet over the past 10 years,
and if it returned to the old level, a lot of newer developments
would be in trouble. He didn't think there would be any problems
with Disney stuff, since they knew about the water table, and were
built well above it. We kept him talking throughout most of the
trip, and it was amusing to hear him referring to Eisner and
Nunnis as 'the new boys'. He was very scathing about the new
architecture of the Swan and Dolphin, and especially the Team
Disney building.
Day 18. Thursday 18th July.
In the MK for 08:30, and at the ropes ready for the charge
to Space Mountain. We 'walked' at about 90mph along with the rest
of the crowd, and still had a 15 min wait for the ride! Worth the
effort as usual. Did 20,000 Leagues, Teacups, to Frontierland for
HM, missed out Big Thunder at 45 mins, missed out Pirates at 30
mins, watched a great Steel Band next to Pirates for 10 mins,
missed out Jungle Cruise at 45 mins, and in desperation did the
Tiki Birds with minimal lines. It's so corny that it's almost
good. It was obviously going to be a heavy day in the MK, so we
gave up and went back for an early lunch at the trailer, and then
went up to the FW marina for swimming and sunbathing. I rented a
watersprite, and took the kids for rides round the lake (Note,
keep your River Country tickets, and you get $2 off the rental. $9
instead of $11 per half hour.) After a while, the kids got bored
with just swimming, so we moved on to River Country, entering on a
Sundowner Pass ($3 off regular price after 3pm, plus MKC
discount). Played around til 6.30, then got cleaned up for a night
at PI.
Went into PI at 7.30, planning to eat at the Fireworks
Factory, but it was full! They couldn't guarantee to seat us for
30-45 mins, so we went out to the Portobello Yacht Club. This also
was full, and could offer us a table at 8.30! We carried on into
the Village, and tried Chef Mickey's - much the same, waiting time
30-40 mins. We eventually ate at the Lakeside Cafe. Avoid the
place, it's dire! Slow, miserable service, food greasy even by
fast food standards, and the whole table area seemed grimy, with
food trodden into the floor.
Went back into PI and things picked up. We all loved the
place. Did a couple of shows at the Explorers Club (Missed the New
Members Initiation, but I'll catch that next time), saw a show in
the Comedy Warehouse, then XZFR's, watched the New Year
Celebrations, then spent time in the Neon Armadillo.
Unfortunately, we had each picked a preferred club, and they were
all differerent! Could cause problems for future visits, but for
the moment, the consensus was that it was a great place, full of
life and energy, and we should have spent time there much earlier.
We saw no examples of drunken or rowdy behavior, and although I
wouldn't let my 12 and 8 yr olds loose on their own, there was
nothing that offended us as a family group. A nice touch on the
way out, from a stall by the ticket 'wagon' at the AMC Cinema
exit, we were all given small cups of fresh OJ as a refresher!
Day 19. Friday 19th July.
Slept in, then went to EPCOT for 11. Went straight to
World Showcase, and started working our way through from Mexico.
Watched the Mariachi Band being filmed outside the building. Very
hot and sunny, but the film crew still used lights and huge
reflector screens. The band was melting after 10 mins of filming,
but still carried on playing to the crowd that had gathered, even
after filming stopped and the lights were switched off. True
Professionals!
Carried on doing the countries until we reached America,
where we went in for the Voices of Liberty. They were excellent as
usual, and had quite a crowd sitting under the dome. They finished
on Star Spangled Banner. The Leader explained the background to
the song, and then they started singing. The audience to a man all
stood to attention, ex-servicemen saluting, the rest with hand on
heart, all singing. As the song swelled to a crescendo, new voices
joined in, and another 8 singers appeared in the gallery. Talk
about a moving experience! There were many openly tearful faces in
the audience, and even me, a true blue Brit, was swallowing hard!
The family went on to watch the show, while I went outside
for a closer look at the model of the White House built from Lego,
which is on display outside. I was just getting engrossed in the
detail, wondering if the kids could make one at home (I'm sure
they have enough bricks, from the state of the playroom!) when I
felt a tap on the shoulder. When I turned round, there was Mickey
in full colonial uniform, looking for someone to play with. The
area was deserted for some reason, so I had him to myself for a
few minutes, while we hugged, danced and generally fooled round
'til some more people gathered.
Watched 'Disney on Display' in the American Gardens
Theatre. I loved Donald in his tail-coat and flowing wig. He
really projected the impression of an eccentric conductor.
Had lunch at the 9 Dragons Restaurant in China. We hadn't
planned to, we just stopped to check out the menu on the way down
to the Land, but the maitre'd was outside touting for custom, and
practically shanghied (Sorry!) us inside the building. It was a
great meal, very attentive service, and detailed explanations of
what we were eating and how it was prepared. They even delivered
some of the sauces 'on the side' while my daughter decided whether
she liked them or not.
Moved down to Communicores and let the kids roam around
the exhibits for a couple of hours, had some waffles in WOL to
keep us going, did Cranium Command and Body Wars, moved on and did
Universe of Energy, World of Motion, more Communicores, Journey
into Imagination and finished on Spaceship Earth at about 8.30pm.
No significant lines anywhere.
Drove back to FW, where we saw our first and only
armadillo strolling along the road.
Day 20. Saturday 20th July.
Went to MK early, and were at the ropes at 09:00 to hit
the Jungle Cruise before the lines built up. Got onto the second
boat out, after watching the guides loading revolvers and doing a
test firing on their way in. Still as corny and enjoyable as ever!
Moved round and did Swiss Family Treehouse, Pirates of the
Caribbean, past Splash Mountain construction (It's well advanced,
in one corner they're putting the chickenwire shapes onto the
girders, and starting to plaster them with 'artificial rock'.),
and straight onto Big Thunder (the lines only reached to the top
of the ramp leading down to the rails!). Decided to do it again,
but when we got round, the lines were out of the building! (And
not a Brazilian TP in sight!) Went over to Tom Sawyer Island
instead (The kids have now read Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn,
so it means more to them than last visit.). Did the Hall of
Presidents, and then went down to the Disneyana Store (via the
accursed Ninja Turtle machine in the Arcade!).
It was now 11.30 and pretty packed, so we returned to the
trailer for lunch, rang the enquiry number for some info on Disney
timeshares, and then went to Meadow Trading Post for sun and swim.
Rained off at 4.30, so showered and changed, and went to Chef
Mickey's in the Village for dinner (The only time we used the
resort guest advanced booking privilege). Good but not exceptional
meal, nice atmosphere and it was fun having Mickey in his chef's
outfit, bowing and shaking hands with the men, kissing the ladies'
hands, and signing his autograph on the 'pop-out' Mickey models
supplied to the kids. Lasting memories too of the air conditioning
- it was COLD inside, and the single portion of chocolate fudge
cake which finished off the four of us - is Humongous an allowable
Disney word, or have the TMNT got to me too? The Reception area is
nice, a lounge showing the Disney Channel or cartoons on a large
screen, and a 'bubble blowing' machine near the reception desk,
which kept the kids amused, chasing and stamping on the bubbles.
Warning to the men - Keep the Ladies out of Country Address!
Lovely clothes, and probably good value, but you are talking
serious money for some of the outfits!
Went on to MGM, did the Great Movie Ride, last showing of
Muppetvision for the day (On leaving, we got hurried away from the
exit by a cast member, who was clearing the area because it's in
the firework 'fall-out' zone), rushed into Star Tours before their
barriers came down, and then back to the plaza for Sorcery. There
was a big crowd at the front, because the Rocketeer was flying
again, but I think I saw him just appear over their heads for a
second.
Back to the trailer for packing and bed.
Day 21. Sunday 21st July. Fly Back Day!!
Packed and checked out at 10am. When we checked in,
because of the cruise delay and so on, we paid for the remaining
nights in FW by credit card, so when we stopped at Reception
Outpost, we expected to pay some small change for phone calls.
When the girl pulled the account, she said "Oh! The account shows
a rebate of about $100 is due!" When I asked why that should be,
she muttered something about the last three nights being 'off
plan', recalculated and came up with a rebate of $250. We just
left it at that and said "Let the computer sort itself out!"
Needless to say, we haven't seen any rebate from them, but we
watched the mailbox closely for a few weeks afterwards.
After checking out, we went down to the Disney Village for
some souvenir shopping, went to watch 101 Dalmations, and then did
some more shopping in the PI shops. We bought about $30 worth of
bits and pieces in 'The Mouse House' and presented the MKC card
for the discount. When we looked at the receipt, we'd got a 25%
discount, so being honest (or something?) we pointed it out to the
lady at the till. She told us that they'd run out of keys on her
till, she really needed a 10% and a 25% discount key, so they'd
opted for 25% (Employee discount?) because they used that far more
than the 10% MKC. So it was all legit, but you might want to shop
at the Mouse House for a while, until they reprogram her till!!
The rest of the day was all uneventful, car returned with
no problems, check-in went smoothly, flight took off on time,
arrived a little early, but the shuttle was already waiting to
whisk us home. Must be some kind of Law of Nature, that you only
get delays going on holiday, not when you're returning and would
like to steal a few more hours!
General Comments.
Disney is really gearing up for the '20 Magical Years'.
There is a lot of merchandise around with the '20 in the Castle in
the Ears' logo, and all the bags and wrappings on purchases bear
the same logo.
Attendance seems to be significantly down from our last
summer visit in '89. I heard cast members estimating it at 10-20%,
but it's enough to make things a lot more comfortable in the
parks. The real 'favorites' like Jungle Cruise, Space Mountain and
20,000 Leagues still had long lines, but most others were
reasonable, even at mid-day.
The Trailers in FW are ready for replacement. Although
they're still clean and well looked after, they're showing signs
of wear, scratches and scrapes on wallpaper, closet doors not
sliding properly etc. All the little signs of heavy use. I notice
that the EuroDisney brochures are using the standard FW picture
(Family on front porch, with bike and barbeque) to advertise the
French Campground. I hope they're not going to ship the old ones
from FW to Paris!
I'm waiting for some factual information on Disney
Timeshares. I rang for info, and was put on the list for brochures
when they were printed. I've since received a letter informing me
that they can't legally send me anything at present, until the
scheme has been properly registered in the UK. This is a 'hot
potato' in the UK, 'cos so many people have been ripped off by
'cowboy' outfits selling timeshares in Spain - not completed on
time, not built at all, built on a garbage tip etc., that any
timeshare schemes need to be approved and certified. I don't think
Disney will have any problems, so I'll post the info when I get
it. If anyone gets anything definite before that, I'd like to know
about it. We're pretty much agreed on Disney as THE Vacation
Resort for the next few years, but don't want to be locked in by
buying a property, so timeshare could be the answer.
I haven't achieved my personal goal of finishing my report before
Jim Pappas got back, but the slow typing has kept the memories
fresh for six weeks or so. I'll have to live the magic vicariously
through other people's trip reports now until next year (Unless we
see a good flight deal at Christmas!!).
Mike B.
|
| 237.28 | Trip report 8/24/91 - 8/31/91 | 29939::SAMBERG | | Thu Sep 05 1991 11:34 | 97 |
| WDW trip report:
When: Saturday Aug 24, 1991 to Saturday Aug 31, 1991
Who: Eileen and Larry Samberg, Leah (10) and Matthew (7)
Flew: Delta from Boston to Orlando
Rented: Alamo (off airport grounds but husband has corporate account)
Stayed: At a timeshare on Rt 192 about two miles from the front gate
Hours:
MK: 9am - 10pm with ELP and fireworks
MGM: 9am - 9pm with Sorcery in the Sky fireworks
EPCOT: 9am - 9pm wth Illuminations
River Country: 10am - 5pm
Typhoon Lagoon: 9am - 6pm
This was our first trip to WDW, and I would like to thank everyone for the
helpful notes in this notes file. In addition, as suggested by a number of
people, this was a great week to go because a lot of schools are back in
session and the hours are still extended.
Saturday --
Got in 7pm. Beautiful airport. Took 'first ride' on the train
from the gate to the terminal. Pretty nifty. Got quick corporate service
at Alamo, while everyone else waited in a rather long (but fast moving) line.
Sunday --
We decided to start our trip easy and slept in. Then, on the
recommendation of a co-worker, went to Gatorland. Don't laugh, it was
fun. And they recently built a wood walkway and 3 story observation tower
through the waterways so you can really see 'gators lounging about in their
element. Kids liked the alligator wrestling.
We stopped home for lunch and headed for EPCOT around 3pm. We parked
close enough to walk in and all the attractions were walk on as well.
We did Spaceship Earth, Journey into the Imagination, the Land,
and Wonders of Life. Both kids enjoyed Image Works in Journey into the
Imagination, especially being on the video where they and other kids
are superimposed on a movie (cowboy, space, fantasy, etc). We ate in
the Land, buying this and that in the Courtyard area. Cranium Command
was an instant favorite of all of us, and both kids enjoyed Coach's Corner,
where they got their swings analyzed. Waiting in that line, incidently, was
just about the longest wait we had, about 15 minutes. Body Wars was great, too.
Monday --
We got up fairly early and hit MGM at about 9am. Walked in from the
parking lot right into The Great Movie Ride. My kind of place! Then did
the Backstage tour -- loved Catastrophe Canyon, played in Honey I Shrunk the
Kids playplace a few minutes, and headed into the Special Effects part of the
Backstage tour. Great -- loved 'The Lottery' movie. Ate at a new Italian
restaurant near the New York set. Very nice. Did the Animation Tour, Monster
Sound Show. Leah tried twice to get chosen for Super Star Television, to no
avail -- they mostly pick adults, older teens, and a couple of small boys
to be a baseball player and a cowboy on Bonanza. Didn't go in each time.
Did Indiana Jones Stunt Epic and headed back to Super Star Television for
a last try. Leah still didn't get picked. We went in and enjoyed the show,
and tired out, went home before the closing.
Tuesday --
Kennedy Space Flight Center -- take binoculars and a telephoto because
you get about 1-2 miles from the launch pad. Still loved it. Dinner along
192, and then some go-carting at Fun 'N Wheels.
Wednesay --
River Country. It *is* a long ride from the parking lot to River
Country. Had a picnic lunch. Changed and went to Epcot about 2pm. On
recommendations from a Norwegian friend, made dinner reservations at
Akershus, the Norwegian buffet. Did Energy and Motion pavillions and headed
to World Showcase. Did Mexico, United States, and went to Norway for dinner.
Exceptional buffet (especially if you like herring and salmon, but they also
had roast beef, meatballs, chicken, pork, etc.). Did the Norway Maelstrom ride,
headed over for the laser show, and went home exhausted.
Thursday --
Magic Kingdom finally. Parked close enough to walk, took the ferry in.
More crowds here, and we avoided anything with a wait. We toured
clockwise and just enjoyed wandering the park and taking
in the sights. We were a little disappointed about the train
not running the entire park (because of Splash Mountain) but no big deal.
We did Pirates of the Caribbean, Thunder Mountain (while
my husband and son went to Tom Sawyer's Island), Haunted Mansion, Peter Pan,
Mission to Mars, and the Wedway (so we could see Space Mountain). Headed home
early (taking the monorail) as we were tired.
Ate, rested, and headed off to MGM. Took the Great Movie Ride and
the Backstage Tour (the tram part) again. Did Monster Sound Show again,
went on Star Wars a few times and closed the evening watching the
Sorcery in the Sky fireworks.
Friday --
Typhoon Lagoon. Got there about 9am. Staked out 4 lounge chairs and
had a blast. Went everywhere except Humumga Kowabunga (sp?) falls. Picnic
lunch and home around 3pm. Rested, ate, and headed back to Magic Kingdom about
7pm. This time, we needed to take the tram to TTC. Took the ferry again.
The Park full of people but the rides weren't busy. Did Jungle Cruise and
Thunder Mountain (while husband and son did Pirates). Took in the ELP at 9
and the fireworks at 10 and headed home via ferry and tram.
Saturday --
Sadly packed up and headed for home. Great trip!
|
| 237.29 | | TECRUS::JIM | Jim Pappas | Sat Sep 07 1991 23:17 | 41 |
| We recently returned from WDW. There are five of us in my
family, with three children ages 5, 7, and 9. We flew down on
August 12th and returned on August 30th.
We spent the first 3 nights at the Summerfield Suites on
International Drive. We used this time to settle into the
area and do our "non-Disney" stuff such as Universal Studios.
We also did a lot of swimming, went to Typhoon Lagoon, bought
our Annual Passports, etc.
We decided to spend one night at the Contemporary. We had
never stayed there before and wanted to give it a try. We
were able to get a tower room under the special so we tried it
for one night. It was nice being so close to the MK, and to
be able to watch the fireworks from our room (12th floor, park
view). Still, the other WDW resorts that we have tried are
are more to our taste.
After the Contemporary, we checked into the Y&BC for 14 nights
using the $99/night annual passport special. My folks joined
us for the first week and had a connecting room. That was
nice as it allowed my wife and I to get out at night. We
thought the Beach Club was fantastic, our favorite hotel to
date.
As I said in the past, we enjoy having a lot of time down
there. With the annual passports, we can spend a few hours in
the parks during the least busy hours (usually early morning
and evening) and spend the busier times by the pool or
relaxing. We ended up going into the theme parks just about
every day. Plus we went to Typhoon Lagoon and Pleasure Island
4 times each. We also spend a lot of time at Stormalong Bay,
the pool complex at the Y&BC (note 228.25).
We were not originally planning to go this summer, but we
later decided to celebrate our 15th anniversary there. We had
dinner at Victoria and Albert's which was wonderful.
All in all we had a great time. I will enter a lot more data
in the various topics throughout this notesfile.
|
| 237.30 | Quick Trip | BROKE::LUND | | Mon Sep 09 1991 12:17 | 80 |
|
We returned on Sept 3rd from a trip to Florida; we Left Boston on 8/28;
For a change we were packed ahead of time; and so Tuesday Night 8/27
we wnet out to dinner and then to a movie; got home; slept; got up
got the limo down to Logan; arrived by 6am; and flight took off on
time. We had a stopover in NYC; so we got down to Orlando about 1pm.
Got rental car; with the $69 special from AAA/AVIS. This special
was for a Geo Metro; so you can't put four people and luggage in it.
The car sat during our stay at WDW; so we didn't need anything more.
With the $2/day surcharge and tax the total ended up being $85.
As we were approaching WDW; it started to POUR! First thing we did was
head for the TTC to get our annual passports. This may not work all
the time; but we drove over to the far right booth and told the
attendant that we needed to go to the TTC to pick up our annual
passports and then we werew heading for the YBC to checkin. Where
was the best place to park? He directed us up front to the Handicapped
area; where they allow people to park at the far side nearest the Poly
for short periods. We didn't have to pay the $4.00. (On the Annual
Passport it says that parking is free after issuance of the Passport;
so they expect you to pay the $4.00 the first time to get it). We walked
up to the service booth and it was empty with three windows open;
Got our annual passports walked around the corner and got our pictures
taken; back out to the car and over to the YBC.
We used the valet service to park the car; but took care of our luggage;
2 people 2 suitcases; didn't need help. One note about the valet service
which I wouldn't want to use again..... The place where they park the
cars has the gates across the entrances/exits. The entrance has two
and they are supposed to use a gadget like a garage opener to open
the gates before going thru. Well the entrance side has the two gates
and there is barely enough room to squek between then if you do it just
right and you don't have a big car. Well; we were waiting for the bus
and had the opportunity to watch them; they valets in parking the
cars would drive between them without raising them; we watched them
hit the gate with a camaro (or similar sporty vehicle) because they
were off alittle to one side. Most people give the car keys and head in
so they don't see what happens to their vehicle; I kept the
questionnaire from the room and intend to return it with comments
about the valet service in this area as I think it is not acceptable
handling of cars....
We checked in; our reservation had passholder special/garden view;
we asaid we were told that with this special it was whatever was
available on the special; so we got the view looking directly out
to the light house :^)..
Our goals on this trip ..... incentive to get the passport early
and see the things we always miss because we go off season. We'll
be back in March for a long visit :^)... So anything that was too hot
to do or required waiting was skipped..... We went to MGM and
saw Muppet Vision 3d; Here come the muppets; went into anything
that didn;t have any lines; like Star Tours; TGMR; ate in the
Sci Fi Restaurant; caught The fireworks; browsed in the shops.
At the Magic Kingdom; caught the 3pm parade; and also caught
the E.L.P.; I got a kiss from Dopey :^)...We used the photo
service through the Yacht club to develop the pictures on
E.L.P....that way if they didn't come out; we could take them
the next night. Also caught the fireworks.
Then we did a quick tour of the parks; going into things that were
not long waits; Ate in Norway ( lots of herring and salmon, if
you like it). and Morocco (that was really good). Stopped off
at the Grand Floridian for breakfast; walked through the Poly
(OAHU was being totally renovated ( the rooms were empty; looks
like they had just finished painting them; and there were rolls
of new carpet stacked in some of them.... Also looked like at
least the lower floor in PAGO_PAGO might be under renovation;
since there were no drapes on the windows.; and the parking
lot abutting PAGO_PAGO had several large 18 wheeled storage
trucks parked there; etc.) Also walked by the Dolphin; since
several of the first floor rooms had the drapes open; we were
able to look inside; and they appeared to be set up like
the Yacht club. Oh yes, it appears that WDW and it's employees
have heard alot about the dolphin looking like fish and not
like a dolpin, people would expect to see. They say it is modeled
after Greek Mythology and there is also a fish called a dolphin
that inhabits the waters down there....
Looking forward to March :^).... Annie
|
| 237.31 | 27-Aug through 3-Sep | HDLITE::SAVERY | | Mon Sep 09 1991 15:32 | 264 |
|
WHO: The Savery's, My wife Debbie, my son Nick (age 5) and myself.
WHEN: August 27th through September 3rd.
WHERE WE STAYED: Comfort Inn - Lake Buena Vista.
LAST TRIP: My wife and I spent our honeymoon there in May of 1984.
27-August - Got up bright and early (well early maybe) at 4:30 in the
morning. We had a 7:45 flight out of Providence. This is the first time
I have flown out of Providence and would definitely do it again. A much
easier time to get into there then Logan. We had a non-stop flight to
Orlando on Delta. We arrived in Orlando about 15 minutes early and had
no problem getting the AVIS rent-a-car or our luggage. We decided to do
the Space Center that day, so we drove straight there arriving about Lunch
time. We all enjoyed our time there and found it very worthwhile. We drove
back to Orlando and checked into our hotel at about 6:00 at night. The
hotel was clean and functional but nothing particularly special. Later on
we decided that when we go again, we may rent a condo or get into a suites
hotel so that we can cook some of our meals.
28-August - We got up about 6:30 and after breakfast headed straight for
the Magic Kingdom. Prior to the trip I went out and bought the Official and
Unofficial guides and had everything planned out, what parks to go to what
rides in what order etc. Well this plan lasted about 25 minutes when I
realized with my wife being pregnant and my son being afraid of some rides,
I would have to be somewhat flexible. We bought 5 day superpasses and got
into the park around 8:40. As soon as the ropes dropped we hit the Jungle
Cruise. Nick was a little afraid of the tunnel on that ride and so we
realized that maybe it would be better to hit some attractions that would
be more of his pace so that he could get used to the types of rides and
attractions that were there. We went from the Jungle Cruise to the Swiss
Family Treehouse, which Nick liked alot because he had seen the movie
recently and could identify with it. After that we hit Tiki Birds, Peter
Pan, Mr Toad and Small World in quick succession. Nick was really enjoying
himself by this point, so I figured it would be a good time to check out
the Haunted Mansion. I was really looking forward to this as it was
closed the last time we were down there and I hadn't ridden through it
since 1977 at Disneyland. Nick laughed all the way through it and I
though that we had the fear problem conquered. We then when to see the
Country Bear Jamboree and he also loved that. At this point it was
around noon time so we headed out of the park and got something to eat and
headed back to the hotel and the pool. After supper we went to Epcot. We
got there around 5:45 and walked right onto Spaceship Earth. We then
went to Energy because Nick really likes Dinosaurs. He became a little
frightened inside because of the realism so he told us that he liked it but
didn't want to go on it again which was fine with me, because I can only
take the movies in there once a trip. We then went on to the Transportation
ride and spent sometime in the Transcenter watching the Bird and Robot show.
We went over to the Wonders of Life pavilion and there was no wait at all
for Body Wars. I knew my wife couldn't go on it because of being pregnant,
plus she has had neck problems the last couple of years. I told Nick that
the ride may be scary and what it was about and said that if he didn't want
to go on it, he could wait with his Mother and I would go myself, but he
bravely went forward. He didn't say much on the ride but afterwards told
me that he never wanted to go on a ride like that again. Our last
attraction before heading over to Illuminations was Cranium Command. This
show was great, I laughed all of the way through it. We then went and
watched Illuminations which was also a great show. My son was sitting on
the ground in front of us and when I looked down he was sitting there with
his sunglasses on because of the brightness of the firecrackers.
29-August - Decided to go to MGM and got there at around 9:15. My
experience with lines the day before, convinced me that the parks were not
going to be too crowded, so we could take our time looking around. We
started out with the Great Movie Ride. This attraction was very well done
but the Alien was a little discomforting to Nick. We went on the Western
Side and wanted to try the Gangster side later on, but we couldn't talk
Nick into it. After the Movie Ride we went to see Here Come the Muppets. We
figured that it would be something Nick would like to get him in the mood
to try other things out. We all enjoyed this one. We then went on the
Animation tour. The movie with Robin Willians and Walter Cronkite was
excellent. We were a bit disappointed with the actual tour itself. I think
it would be better with the guides actually describing what is going on then
trying to follow the monitors. When we got out of the Animation tour, we
noticed that the BackStage tour line was empty so we went on that. I wanted
to make sure that we got on the side that wouldn't get wet, so I let an
unsuspecting british couple get on first. We all enjoyed the tram part,
particularly Castrophe Canyon. After the tram portion we arrived in the
backlot just as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were wrapping up their
show. Nick went and got Leonardo's autograph and we promised to go back
to the show later on to get some more. At this point we went on the walking
portion of the Tour. The first couple of parts of the walking portion,
the sea battle effects and the special effects with the giant bee from
Honey I shrunk the kids were interesting but we found a large portion of
the tour on the dull side. There wasn't any taping going on in the sound
stages so there wasn't much to see there other then the Christmas Set for
the Mickey Mouse Club Christmas special. We had a good laugh at the end
of the tour when we were sitting in the auditorium to watch the previews of
coming attractions. The tour guide told us, jokingly, to fasten our
seatbelts and Nick panicked big time because of his experience the night
before with Body Wars. His eyes grew as big as saucers as he scrambled
to find the seat belts.
After lunch, we headed over to Muppet Vision 3D which was the best
3D movie I have ever seen. Very nicely done. We then went down the New
York Street and caught the entire Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle show and Nick
was able to get autographs with 2 of the remaining 3 turtles. Then it
came time for Star Tours. Because of Nick's problem with Body Wars the night
before, I made the decision to try this ride myself. However Nick insisted
on going. There was no line to get on, so we made it through the RD2D and
C3PO part and into the section where they are repairing the driods. At this
point Nick panicked and shouted "get me out of here!!". Luckily there wasn't
any lines, so I could get him out and then go back in myself without any
wait. I thought that this was a much better ride then Body Wars but I
enjoyed both. We finished up the day with the Indiana Jones Stunt Show. I
managed to get some good video of this. We finished up around 4:00 in the
afternoon and decided to return at a later time to MGM as there were a
couple of things left to be seen and we were tired by that point.
Friday - 30-August. On Friday we went to Typhoon Lagoon and spent the
day. We had a great time there because Nick loves spending time in the
water. We didn't do any body surfing but spent time bobbing on the tube,
doing a couple of the slide rides and castaway creek twice. We started
getting ready to leave at around 4:00 in the afternoon and as we were
leaving they were shutting down because of lightening in the area. Friday
night we went to the Olive Garden and then to Disney Village for some
shopping.
Saturday - 31-August. We started the day at MGM. However Nick was not
real receptive to going into shows at that point. Since we gotten to bed
late the night before he was a bit tired. We did get to see the Monster
Sound Show, Superstar Television and Honey I shrunk the kids. We tried to
get him to go back into the MuppetVision 3d but he had a thing about 3-D
movies and was a little leary of them. We ended up seeing TMNT again because
he wanted to get the autograph of the last Turtle. After an early lunch we
completed our morning at Here Come the Muppets and I video-taped a large part
of it. (On Thursday morning my video camera was acting up because of dew
that I must have gotten the night before at illuminations). AFter that we
found Minnie and Dale in back of the Great Movie ride and got pictures and
autographs. We headed back to the hotel at around noon time and after a
brief dip in the pool headed up to the room to rest for the Magic Kingdom
that night. We had an early supper and got to the Magic Kingdom around
5:00 in the afternoon. We took the train to Mickey's Starland to see the
show but just missed it. No problem, we could look around and wait and
then we saw Goofy out so we tried to get Nick an autograph from him. Well
this began the sub-plot of trying catch Goofy for an autograph. Just as we
got near him, the skies opened up into a rainstorm. We headed for the
little shop where they have the mirrors and Mickey's walk of fame and we
waited out the storm there. It lasted about 20 minutes. We went in and
watched Mickey's show and then got his autograph. After that we walked
over to Tomorrowland did the Carosel of Progress, Dreamflight and the
Wedway People mover. I couldn't talk Nick into Space Mountain, so we took
a pass on that. We took the skyride over to fantasyland, which was the
first real line we ran into but we got some nice pictures of the Castle
with the lights on. We found a nice place to watch the electrical parade
and watched that. I had seen it before in Disneyland in 1977 but it was
the first time for my wife. We had an interesting experience during the
parade. My son usually has a bladder about the size of Vermont and has
great control of his bodily functions. However while I was holding him so
that he could get a better view of the parade, he informed me that he had
to go to the bathroom. I told him to hold it but was willing to sacrifice
my shirt to see the parade without interruption. He was able to hold it and
right after the parade headed straight for the little boy's room. AFter
the fireworks we headed out of the park. Well I don't know what caused it
but my memory failed and I couldn't remember what row I parked the car in.
I know I should have written it down. Luckily I remembered that we were in
Pluto. Well by the time we got the car it was almost midnight and it
pretty much canceled my plans to get to the Magic Kingdom early on Sunday.
Sunday - 1-Sep. We slept in and decided to go to Sea World. When I found
my place to park, Nick handed me a pencil and told me to write down where we
were parked. I guess he didn't want a repeat of the night before. We all
loved Sea World and saw just about all of the shows. What I like about
Sea World is that they handed you a map with all of the show times and
a suggested schedule on it. I also liked the free beer at the Anheiser-
Busch hospitality tent. AFter a long hot day, the cold beer went down
nicely.
Monday - 2-Sep. Got up early and headed for the Magic Kingdom. Got in
there around 9:00 a.m. and made reservations for the 1;45 show of the
Diamond Horseshoe Review. My wife had to hit the restroom so Nick and I
headed for the penny arcade. Debbie found us and told us that she saw
Goofy giving out autographs. We headed back but alas Goofy was gone again.
We headed for Dumbo and Nick and I rode that while my wife took videos. We
then went on the Scary Adventures of Snow White. This ride got my wife's and
my vote as probably the least interesting one in there. We tried getting
Nick to go on 20000 Leagues under the Sea but he wasn't interested. After
looking at the line and remembering what the ride was like, we were probably
better off. We then headed over to Frontierland and rode on Thunder Mountain
RR. My wife couldn't go because of problems with her neck but Nick and I
went on it. He liked it but it made him a bit nervous. We then headed over
to Tom Sawyer's island. Nick liked shooting the guns at the fort. We hit
the Pirates of the Caribean and then took the skyride to tomorrowland because
Nick told us that he wanted to ride the Starjets. After lunch Nick and I
hit the Starjets. There was a very small line there but it still too 20
minutes to get on. Generally I wouldn't have gone but since he asked to
ride on something we decided to try it. At this point we had about 35-40
minutes until the Diamond Horseshow Review. We took a casual stroll over
to Frontierland and spotted Goofy in Fantasyland. Well his time on-stage
was just about up so he headed in, we had missed him again. We thoroughly
enjoyed the Review. We sat right in front in the middle and became part of
the show. During the part that they clean up for when Miss Lilly is coming,
they wiped off my wife's glasses and feather dusted Nick's head. After the
show we hit it just right. The character parade was about to start and there
was an open place right by the ropes. Nick snuck in there and I was able to
get some good video of the whole parade. AFter the parade we all went for
Pineapple Dole Whip and we asked Nick if there were any other attractions he
wanted to see. We caught the Country Bears again as well as the Haunted
Mansion. We had decided to head for Mickey's Starland one more time to see
if we could get any autographs and on the way over there stopped at Magic
Journeys as well as the Mad Hatter's Teacups (Nick is a big teacup ride fan).
Finally at the Starland we managed to get Goofy's autograph as well as
Pluto's and the White Rabbit's. We took the train back to Main Street and
called it a day.
Tuesday - 3-Sep. Our last day of Vacation. We headed out early to
Epcot and made reservations for Germany for lunch. There were not any lines
at all that day. We started out the day at the Living Seas. We figured
that Nick would like that since he liked Sea World so much. Well I guess
his imagination is too active. He was convinced that he was at the bottom
of the ocean and wasn't too happy about being there. We then went to the
land pavilion and rode on Listen to the Land which we all liked. Nick spends
alot of time with he gardening on weekends and is very interested in how
vegetables grow. We saw the Kitchen Kaberet and then stopped for a snack
at the Farmer's Market. We headed over to Imagination and rode Journey
into Imagination and played around at the Image Works. We went and saw
Captain EO which was good despite the fact that I don't care much for
Michael Jackson. Nick wasn't too thrilled with Captain EO because he
doesn't like things coming at him. I tried to explain for days about 3-D
movies but never did get through to him that there really wasn't anything
coming out of the screen. They did have a warning that small children
may be frightened. After Captain EO we headed over to Germany for lunch.
After lunch we spent some time in the World Showcase. We went through some
of the shops in Germany and China. We went on the Maelstrom which we
all seemed to like. Finally we went on the River of Time in Mexico. Our
last attraction that we hit was Horizons. After that it was around 3:00 in
the afternoon and we were pretty much Disneyed-out. We spent some time
playing with the things in Communicore and headed out of the park around
5:00 after having an ice-cream at the Land. We made it to the airport at
around 5:45 after stopping for gas. Had a nice flight back to end the
trip.
Overall impressions. We liked MGM alot. We also felt that Nick was
a bit young to understand/enjoy Epcot but he loved the Magic Kingdom.
We figure that the next time we go he should get more out of it. We
probably will wait another 7-8 years to go again as the baby my wife is
expecting should be at a good age to enjoy it then. A few things we didn't
do. We decided against the Hall of Presidents as we figured Nick wouldn't
get much out of it. We had seen it the last time we were there and enjoyed
it, but figured a 5 year old would get restless. We also stayed clear of
the show in the American pavilion (the name escapes me at this time) in
Epcot. My wife and I saw it last time and she fell asleep in it and
although it was somewhat interesting and had some nice technical work in it,
we felt it wouldn't mean much to a 5 year old who didn't really doesn't
have a grasp of History. We also didn't spend a large amount of time in
the World Showcase as we did the last time we were there.
We all enjoyed the trip very much but it has taken us a few days to
rest up and now feel we need a vacation to recover from our vacation. I
would like to thank those who make entries in this notes file as I was able
to find out some very useful information which helped make the trip more
enjoyable.
|
| 237.32 | Trip Report | FDCV06::CAMPBELL | | Mon Sep 16 1991 16:03 | 241 |
|
TRIP REPORT OF THE CAMPBELL FAMILY
AUGUST 16 - SEPTEMBER 3, 1991
WHO: Scott, Pat, Ryan (10)
Left Logan airport on a United Flight at 8:50 via Dulles Airport
then onto Orlando. No problems, landed on time 1:30. Got our rental
car with Avis no line, no problems. Started out of the airport at 2:00
for Ocala to visit the folks for the weekend.
Monday, August 19: Left Ocala at 10:30 for the Marriott Orlando World.
This would be three free nights, thanks to our Marriott points. I
can't say enough about this hotel. Absolutely a gorgeous hotel. It
is located right on Route 535, you can see if on your way out of The
World. I would stay here in a minutes, but I hear its pretty expensive.
The little slip on the back of the bathroom door said maximum room rate
was $320.00. I don't know how much they really are. We checked in
with no problems. They let you valet park for 20 minutes for free while
you check into your room, then you either move your car or pay $7.50
a day to park valet. We were in the West wing on the 7th floor. We
had a balcony that overlooked the 2 acre pool. This pool was something,
if you ever get a chance to stop in a just look at it, do so, I've never
seen anything like it anywhere, and can see why it was rated the third
best pool in the United States. My son loved the waterslide and spent
a lot of time on it. After checking into our room we really wanted to
have lunch so we decided since we had to move our car anyway to take
a short drive over to the Firecracker Factory at Pleasure Island. No
wait, sat right down and had a pretty good meal. They were playing
Four Tops music alot we thought, then after listening more closely
we all noticed that the same record was playing over and over again.
We counted 12 times in a row. I mentioned it to the waiter and he said
oh, you notice that huh! It must be the last record on the tape, it will
keep doing that until they change it. We'll it never changed while we
were there, it ended up pretty funny after that.
We then decided to check out the stores in the Disney Village since we
had plenty of time and were not going into the parks until the following
day. This is where I discovered that I left my Magic Kingdom Club
Card HOME in my other wallet. When I switched to a lighter wallet I
never switched my card. I couldn't believe I did this.
We then went back to the Marriott to swim for a while. It was very
hot, in the mid to high 90's every day. But we all love the heat so
it didn't bother us a bit.
After a swim we decided to go to the Contemporary to the Character
Buffet. It was Ryan's 10th birthday and he wanted to go there. Well
we got there and they did have the buffet but no longer did the characters.
We decided to stay and eat anyway after much persuasion on our parts to
Ryan that we would try and go to a Character Breakfast instead. The
dinner was very good.
Went back to our hotel after dinner and sat on the balcony and
watched ALL the fireworks from our room. First the MGM one's went
off, then Epcot, then Magic Kingdom. It was a great view.
Tuesday, August 20: This was to be MGM day. We got over to MGM around
9:30 after eating breakfast stuff in our room that we had brought. It
was a awfully rainy day. I ended up buying a poncho but everyone else
decided to tough it out. I was glad I bought that, since I wore it
quite often the entire time we were down south.
We headed straight for Star Tour, 0 wait, Scott and Ryan rode it
twice in a row. Then on to Muppet 3-D, 10 minute wait in the
room with the TV screen and all the props. Great movie, can recommend
it highly enough. Then on to the Great Movie Ride, 10 minute wait,
did the cowboy side this time for a change (still like the gangster
side better), then on to the animation tour, 10-15 minute wait.
Decided that we would go over the Epcot now since it was getting
crowded and we wanted to eat in England. Drove over to Epcot, got a
front parking spot, it was still raining. Went right for England to
make dinner reservations, no problems. Went to the ride at Mexico
with no wait. Tried to do Norway, but the line was 45 minutes, so we
went into Norway and got pastries and ate on the patio to try and
get a little dry. Then onto the World of Motion, 25 minute wait. Tried
to do Wonders of Life, but the line was out the front door. Probably
because of all the rain, everyone decided to do indoor activities.
Went to England for dinner, Scott had Fish and Chips, I had Cottage
Pie (I love their Cottage Pie) and Ryan had Prime Rib. It was very
good, but would only go for lunch the next time. We have always eaten
there for lunch and its cheaper and a bigger menu. Then onto Spaceship
Earth, no wait, then back to the room and change clothes.
Wednesday, August 21: This was to be the Magic Kingdom day. It was
cloudy as we boarded the monorail. As we entered the park gate, sure
enough the rain was back. We headed straight over to make reservations
for the Diamond Horseshoe, Ryan had never seen this before. We got
reservations for the 3:30 show.
Next was onto Pirates of the Caribbean, no wait. Stop to see the
work on Splash Mountain. They are starting to put the rocks on the
steel. Will be great looking when its done. The onto Thunder Mountain,
5 minute wait. Ryan and I have never done this one before, but decided
we would try it this time. Mom didn't like it, but Ryan loved it. He
went back on with Scott lots of times this trip. Next over to Tom Sawyer
Island, again no wait. We had to take a picture of the street, looking
down from Liberty Square towards Thunder Mountain, it was unbelievable
the street was empty not one person, I thought I would never see that.
The we decided to do the Keel boats, we had never done that before, that had
about a 10 minute wait. Went into the Columbia harbor House for lunch,
we always thought that was a sit down restaurant, boy were we surprised,
what a nice place, and different menu, I had a smoked turkey sandwich that
was excellent. will definitely do this place more often. Then on to the
Haunted House, 15 minute wait, Dreamflight, 5 minute wait, Wedway, no
line, Mad Hatter Tea Party Cup, Ryan wanted to do so that was a 15 minute
wait. Did our one time per trip of Small World, 10 minute wait. Then
onto the Diamond Horseshoe. We really enjoyed the show. Walked around
in the shops a little, then left to have dinner at the Crossroads Plaza
at Fridays. Back to the room, and saw the fireworks again.
Thursday, August 22: Checked out of the Marriott and checked into the
Caribbean Beach Resort. The room was in Aruba, Lake View, we looked
at the Port Royale. Then quickly over to the Poly to meet my parents
who were coming over for the day. We rented a float boat. Was a nice
relaxing ride around the lake. Had lunch at the Corale Island Cafe,
then drove over to MGM. Parked right in the front again. We
went right to Star Tours 10 minute wait, then we had to take them to
see the Muppet 3-D, they really loved it. Then into the Rocketeer Museum,
my son found it interesting, since he loved the movie. The we decided
to do the backstage tour, there was no line and it was starting to
drizzle. We thought this would be a great place to be in the rain.
WRONG!!!!! We were in the third car first seat. Ryan all the way on the
left, then mom, dad, me and Scott on the end on the right. We'll let me
tell you I was not a happy camper with the Disney tour director at this
time. We got part way out towards the homes and it started pouring like
you would not believe, then the distant thunder and lightning. We'll they
were filming a commercial so we had to sit in the middle of the road while
they were trying to quickly (20 minutes) to break up the set because of
the rain. We couldn't get around them. The trams have no lips on the
roofs so the rain was pouring in like gutters all over us. After everyone
is yelling and trying to empty there shoes of water, begging to turn around
and go back, this tour director is talking like nothing is happening, going
on with her tour talk. We get to Catastrophe Canyon and getting
wet was nothing. On she goes with the tour and were soaking. Every time
the tram started or stopped the people on the ends just got dumped with
buckets of water from the roof. People were standing up trying to get
out of the way of the water, and the tour guide kept yelling at people
to sit down. It was just ridiculous, we were very annoyed. By this
time its 5:10 and we had 5:30 reservations and the Sci_fi for dinner.
Now we have to figure out how to dry off as much as possible so that we
can go to dinner and hope that the air conditioning isn't on full blast
to give us pneumonia. We went into the bathrooms and used up tons of
paper towels trying to blot our clothes drier. I took off my sneakers
and actually empty out an inch of water. Well enough of that, I'm sure
you get the picture. On to the Sci-Fri we go. What a wonder place.
We really enjoyed, don't miss this one. After dinner we left to go
back to the CBR to shower and change. My poor parents had to drive home
1 1/4 hours soaked. We decided to stay in and stay dry and retire early.
Friday, August 23: This was to be Universal Day. We went over to Port
Royale to try and get something to eat, too crowded, the lines were 15-20
people deep. We decided not to wait. Over Universal we went. Another
gray day, and I decided to bring my poncho again (this thing was becoming
a part of me now). Was glad I bought my tickets at AAA, the lines to
by tickets was unbelievable. Went straight for Back to the Future. I
knew I was not going on this, so Ryan and Scott headed up the ramp,
the line was about 15 minutes long. They really enjoyed this alot.
The on to ET. We waited on that line 45 minutes, this was only to be
the beginning of the lines. There were tons of foreign tour groups
so we tried to go in the opposite direction of them. After ET we headed
to Ghostbusters, waited about 15 minutes. Then had some lunch at Mel's
drive in. Then it was on to Earthquake, we waited 45 minutes in the
rain for that one, then 45 minutes for Kongfrontation, then 45 minutes
for Hanna Barbera. The we did the Wild Wild Wild West Stunt Show, my
son enjoyed it, I thought it was just OK. Then we stopped at the American
Tail Theatre and watched the Fievel show, it was cute for little ones.
The we decided to eat something, and went over to Louies Italian Restaurant
for pizza. It was started to pour again, so we went and sat in the Irish
bar, Finnegan's and had a beer and listened to the singer, who was very
good. By this time it was still raining so we decided to leave, soaked
again!!!! I was sure getting tired of rain. We've been going to
Florida for many years and have never had weather like this before, I
guess we were spoiled.
Saturday, August 24 - Saturday August 31 we were going to a condo we
rented in Hilton Head for some R and R and a little golf. On the
way up we stopped at St. Augustine to look around and again it poured.
We loved Hilton Head but again had a lot of rain.
Saturday, August 31: We left Hilton Head at 7:00 am and headed for
Orlando. We arrived at Port Orleans at 2:00. What a great place.
See my report on Port Orleans in the Port Orleans section of the
notes file. All the computers were down so check in was a real
nightmare for these poor people. I asked if they had Digital
equipment and they said no IBM!!! I told them, see, that's why your
down. After check in we decided to find the room and go for a much
needed swim to unwind. We really loved the pool. We then decided
to go to MGM and see the fireworks and try to eat at Prime Time Cafe.
My parents had gotten two free childrens admission tickets to MGM
with their 4 seasons salute pass for Florida residents. So we only
had to buy Scott and I tickets. We headed straight for Prime Time
Cafe (it was now 5:00) and they seated us immediately without a
reservation, I was pleasantly surprised. After dinner we decided
to try Star Tours again, Great Movie Ride, Indiana Jones, Honey
I shrunk the kids playground, Saw the Ninja Turtles and got some
autographs. Then decided to stand and wait for the fireworks and
the flight of the Rocketeer. Well, don't make any special arrangements
or wait long periods of time to see the Rocketeer. That was the biggest
waste of time. The Fireworks were just a great as ever. Then back
to the room.
Sunday, September 1: This was to be our last day so we decided to
split time between Epcot and Magic Kingdom. My parents came in and
joined us again. This time the day was beautiful. We spent about
2 hours in the wonder's of Life Building. Ryan and Scott did the
Body Wars ride. It kept breaking down, so they were on line for an
hour. We then took Ryan to see the Making of Me. Being 10 we thought
he might like this. Well it was uneventful for him. Then on to
Cranium Command. He also did coaches corner twice, once for golf
and once for Tennis. Then he also rode one of the life cycles. It
was fun, we never got to do it all before. Then onto Horizon's. Saw
the American Adventure, then decided to go to Magic Kingdom. Ryan got
up the nerve and decided he wanted to do Space Mountain with his father.
We all took bets he'd chicken out, but he didn't. Came off a little
shaky but said he liked it. I think it was to intense for him because
he woke up with nightmares twice that night. He did Thunder Mountain
again, Peter Pan Flight, Wedway, Pirates, Haunted House, Mr. Toads.
Stayed and watched Peter Pan's flight and the fireworks. Then back
to the hotel to pack for our early flight home the next morning.
Monday, September 2: Had express checkout, so packed up the car,
and off to the airport we went for our 9:30 flight. Drove the
rental car to the Avis area, tried to get a skycab to help us with
our bag, since we also had three sets of golf clubs, they were on
strike or something and had to carry everything ourselves. That was
an adventure. flight left on time, again stop over and changed
planes in Dulles and landed in Boston at 2:00. It was a wonderful
vacation and now have to wait another few years to go back. I know
I said that last year, but I think my husband means it this time. I
know I'll relive it every time I read everyone else's trip reports.
Keep them coming.
|
| 237.33 | TRAVERS TRIP REPORT | USCTR1::JTRAVERS | | Mon Sep 23 1991 18:49 | 121 |
| TRIP REPORT OF THE TRAVERS FAMILY
September 15-22, 1991
Fort Wilderness Campground
This was the 4th trip for John and me, the second for Kate our 3 year
old. We chose to go at this time because of a package through the
Disney channel. I had also accumulated enough mileage to get the three
of us there. We got a few very pleasant surprises at the beginning of
our trip.
First, John won $200 in the lottery the night before our departure!
Extra spending money YEAH!
Second, when we arrived at the registration desk of the campground
(7:15 p.m. Sunday), we had THREE 6-day super passes waiting for us
(I thought we were going to get two and have to buy the third one).
When checking in, Marc at registration was explaining to me that the
super passes were good from 9/15 (Sunday) through 9/20 (Friday). I
told Marc that I didn't think it was fair - the superpasses were
already one day old and we had just arrived. We could not use the
passes today and we wasted a whole day. He excused himself and went
into the back office. It was then that I cursed myself for saying
anything... thinking now he's going to come out and extend the passes
but only give us two..
He came back with three new superpasses all good until 9/21! So now we
had free admission for our entire stay.
A must for us is renting a golf cart. We hired one for the entire week
and it was truly a life saver. There is nothing worse than waiting for
a bus with a grumpy kid.
After our arrival and unpacking we had a quick dinner at the
buffeteria. I am impressed with the portions that they serve there,
however, I find that most of the food is lukewarm. As with our last
trip we ended each day by going to the horse barn to say goodnight to
the horses. This is becoming a tradition for us.
Because we were travelling with a young child we knew that we would
have to pace ourselves and because we had the superpasses we knew that
we were under no time restraints to see everything in one day. We
elected to spend half of each day at an attraction (Magic Kingdom
mostly) and the second half of the day resting and swimming.
Our first day was spent at Magic Kingdom. The place was deserted. We
rarely had to wait for more than 10 minutes to get on any ride. We
walked right on several. It was truly a wonderful time to be there.
We decided to spend a portion of each day at the Magic Kingdom, because
our three year old would be most happy there and she would enjoy going
on some of the rides more than once (little did I know that I would
ride It's A Small World 8 times...)
On Monday we spent the morning at MK, the afternoon at the trailer and
an early reservation for Hoop de do. It was a lot of fun.
On Tuesday we spent the morning at MK.
We had lunch at King Stefan's in Cinderella's castle and Cinderella was
there to greet us. This was certainly a highlight of Kate's trip, as
she is in awe of her.
Another big hit was Mickey's starland. Having a chance to meet Mickey
Mouse was very special. I hope that our photos came out!
Each day that we spent the morning at Magic Kingdom we took the ferry
back to the campground for the afternoon. This worked out well for us
as Kate was exhausted and would take a good long nap. Most of our late
afternoon/evenings were spent at the campground pool, or having dinner
and catching the Chip N Dale campfire program.
On Wednesday we went to Typhoon Lagoon. This was fun, especially since
they have a large area for little kids. Thunder and lightening
theatened at noonnd the lagoon was closed. This was okay with us as we
had to head back to the campground anyway.
On Thursday we got to Epcot. We visited Journey into Imagination.
The ride with Figment was good. I was disappointed that Image Works
was closed for refurbishing. We spent a very long time at the Living
Seas and had lunch in Japan. John and I had been to Epcot before and
knew that most of it would not interest Kate. We did go through
Norway, though,as that was a new attaction for us. It was a little
scary for Kate. There's a few monsters and it's rather dark, but we
liked it.
After a nap at the trailer we spent the afternoon at River Country.
This was fun and John and I took turns watching Kate and going on some
of the attractions by ourselves.
Thursday was a MK day again.
Our only other diversion from Magic Kingdom was one morning at MGM. We
were not sure that Kate would cooperate through some of the longer
rides, so we opted not to do the movie ride or the backlot tour. We
did do a "baby pass" at Star Tours. I went on first and then John
went. Star Tours was GREAT! We then caught Muppets 3D, but Kate
wouldn't wear her glasses.. the big hit for her was the Honey, I
Shrunk the Kids play area. Especially since the movie had been on the
Disney Channel the evening before so it was real fresh in her mind. We
could not get her off the ant!
We had lunch at the Prime Time Cafe. What a blast. The
waiters/waitresses all call themselves "your brother, Brad" or "sister,
Sue" and they treat you as if you were in your mother's kitchen. I
swear they chose the decor for this place from my grandmother's house!
This was our longest day and we left MGM and went to the campground.
Kate wouldn't nap so we went for a swim and then took the ferry to MK.
Kate fell asleep on the ride over and slept in the carriage for a
while. This was nice, as I wanted to do some shopping (with two hands)
and John wanted to experience Space Mountain. We stayed at MK till
closing! And had dinner at Tony's Restaurant. The meal was terrific,
albeit expensive. I had seafood linguini and it had lobster, scallops,
shrimp, fish and mussels. (The only disappointment was such a fine
meal and no good wine to go with it.)
All in all I think that we picked the BEST week of the year to visit
DisneyWorld. I was told that this coming week Pres. Bush is going to
be there (therefore, lots of security) and the beginning of the 20th
Celebration will bring many more people.
|
| 237.34 | Hare trip | CGVAX2::HARE | | Mon Oct 07 1991 18:28 | 58 |
| Hare Trip report
Sept. 7th thru Sept. 14th
Flew out Delta from Logan Airport Great flight no problems
Rental car by American International checked into Lakeside Sheraton
by 2:00 unpacked lounged by the pool and had dinner at the Olive Garden
Sunday Spent a full day at Sea World weather was fine what a super
show.
Monday Arrived at the Magic Kingdom for 8:30 Headed straight for
Fantasy land as my 2 1/2 year old wanted to ride Dumbo. We went on the
Merry Go Round twice Dumbo twice then on to It's a small world (my
daughter loved this) 5 times in one day is a little bit much. Peter
Pan's flight, She hated Snow Whites ride and Mr. Toads ride.
On to the tea cups another big hit and then off to the Grand Prix twice
through no problems. Over to Mickey's Star land to visit with all of
the characters. Lunch time and off to the Hall of Presidents. Took in
the Haunted Mansion, the Country Bear Jamboree watched the parade from
there which worked out perfectly. Climbed the Swiss Family Robinson
tree had a Dole whip (mmmmm) went to Space Mountain and rode Wedway
people movers. Longest line 8 minutes at Space Mountain most rides we
walked right on. Headed to Disny Village for supper and shopping a
long but extremely enjoyable day. Swam at the pool then to bed.
Tuesday Back to the Magic Kingdom rode the jungle cruise, thunder
mountain(2), It's a small world (2), merry go round, carousel of
progress, Americana, Mission to Mars, Dream Flight. Ate lunch at the
Columbia Harbour House a fabulous place then headed off to place golf
at Magnolia...
Wednesday Character Breakfast at the Empress Lilly Great time and
decent food.
Epcot Living Seas, The Land, Imagination which was a big hit with my
daughter. World of Motion, Horizons, Universe of Energy then saw
Mexico, Norway, Germany. Ate in Italy and saw the Illu,inations show.
Thursday MGM in the morning Back stage tour, Ninja Turtles, Muppets
3-D, Great Movie Ride, Indiana Jones Stunt spectacular, Star Tours,
Honey I shrunk the kids, Animation, Super Star television. Late
afternoon 2:30ish Typhoon Lagoon
Friday Epcot Canada, United Kingdom, Japan, Moroco, American Adventure
(my favorite) we ate lunch there, China, took the boat ride.
Imagination (2) the Met Life Building off to the Magic Kingdom for the
next to the last night of the Electric Light parade. What a great show
and the Fire Works were awesome.
Saturday some last minute shopping and the flight home.
Hilites the Character Breakfast, Mickey Avenue at MGM we had a great
time as there were only 4 children on the street when we were there and
my daughter played at least 15 minutes with Goofy. All of Epcot
including their show Hot Hot Hot.
Can't wait to go back....
Mike
|
| 237.35 | Mid Oct - good time | MTHOOD::GREGORYDA | Dave Gregory | Fri Oct 25 1991 18:38 | 198 |
| Haven't got all the bills yet, and it still seems like it was weeks ago...
This is as I recall it.... Had a great time!
-Dave, (temporarily in Nashua, for 6 weeks - or is that semi-perment??)
-----------------------------
WHEN: October 9th through October 15th, 1991 (Wed - Tue)
WHO: Myself & my wife, Lori
Package: MKC vacation plan
5 nights/6 days, 2 Dinners, 1 lunch/breakfast, 1 Early Bird Breakfast,
5 Disney bucks, one Birnbaum book (MKC Vacation)
Wednesday
Got the kids off to friends and grandparents and arrive at airport by 10:00 AM
for our vacation together. Arrived in Orlando, from Portland, OR as scheduled
at about 8:30, PM. Decided to stay off site that night and start the MKC plan
the following day. Stayed at the Howard Johnsons on SR 536 (?) on an advertised
special of $39.00. It was adequate. Nothing special. Had appetizers that night
at the Fort Liberty complex, in some adjacent restaurant - kind of a TGI
Fridays atmosphere.
Thursday
The first day of our vacation at the Caribbean Beach Resort. Checked in about
11:00 AM and got our room. On an oversight, and against the advice of this
conference, I failed to request Martinique - we did get a king size bed, in
Jamaica. It was on the lower level, on a corner overlooking the pond/lake. We
think the upper level would have been much better and if the rooms had sheer
curtains as well as solid curtains it would have been better yet. (Martinique
had some rooms with curtains like this. Lori specifically noted that
Martinique room 2256 was about the best to request - corner, upper level, sheer
curtains... didn't check on the bed!)
Checked in and headed off to MGM. Initially started off using bus service,
however decided to use the rental car later in the week, finding it to be much
faster, especially traveling to Epcot, but also to MK and FW/RC. Caught
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular - a good show. Couldn't view it a night,
since MGM is closing at 7:00PM these days. Did TGMR (western edition),
Catastrophe Canyon ride, Monster Sound Studio, Stars Wars, Honey I Shrunk the
Kids playground, ate at the Studio Catering Company - typical fast food.
Returned to CBR, took a short swim and headed off to EPCOT for wonders of Life.
Rode Body Wars and saw Cranium Command - BW was good, but CC was a boring...
But they were quick - no lines. Took the monorail to TTC and walked to Poly.
For the evening, we had reservations at the Polynesian Revue, at 10:00 PM. The
show was good, the food was OK, however the soup - (served cold) was especially
good - it was a strawberry-papaya combination. (Along the lines of things I
would not do again is this: Upon checking, the Guest Services receptionist
"offered" to confirm our reservations for Hoop-De-DO and Poly-Revue, but this
person could ONLY help us if we used the coupons from the MKC package as
payment - as opposed to cash/check/charge. Therefore, we ended up trading two
coupon dinners for these two dinner shows, or about a $30-$35 value, each. That
is a VERY inexpensive dinner at WDW, so I conclude it would be better to pay
real dollars for the dinner shows and use the coupons for a real dinner!)
Friday
Up and to Ole Port Royale for a quick breakfast, then off to Typhoon Lagoon.
This turned out to be a disappointment for us. In particular, the lines (by
comparison to summer were probably quite short) seemed to be long, for a 10
second ride - body slides and various falls rides. Didn't attempt Humunga
Kowabunga. Castaway Creek was quite slow but good for relaxation and great if
you wanted some sun... The wave pool was quite difficult to catch a wave on and
few if any, actually caught a wave to body surf on. If you did, it was certain
to be a collision course. We did stay for a couple of hours, and my wife
happened to run into an acquaintance from high school - things like that always
amaze me! (for me it would be enough of a thrill just to be recognized after
twenty years :-) !). After this we went to Rivercountry - this was actually
more fun for us than TL... I made the mistake of not reading the sign, -or-
listening to the warnings when riding the waterslides the first time and
decided to lean back and fly - well, there must be a foot of water traveling
down that thing - I nearly drowned before I figured out that sitting up can
slow you down... It was fun. Did that several times, as well as the tube ride,
Raft Rider Ridge. This was fun too, until it was closed when someone injured
themselves, apparently on the first "fall" after leaving the starting pool.
The Castmembers closed off the ride and victim was removed out the back side of
River Country - probably in true Disney fashion to avoid as much publicity as
possible.
So now we meandered over to the boat rental at RC to get a pair of water
sprites. If one has used RC that day, a $2/half hour discount is available,
although it is a $4/half discount this day. So we take a pair of water sprites
for one hour, normally $11/half hour, each and return them. We are charged $14
- total. I ask if this is correct and the castmember says - 'YES'. What I
deal! I quit arguing! These were also a blast although I figured the weight in
my sprite caused mine to to go appear slower than my wifes, however - this
theory was disproved two days later when hers quite slow, and I could get mine
to plane through the water - some boats must just have more power. She even
exchanged hers for another, with similar speed -:) !
Returned to CBR and then to MK for SpecroMagic parade. Maybe it is just me, but
I sure missed/liked the old ELP - maybe not better then SM, but I did like it.
I suppose it could be that I am not a familiar with many of the newer Disney
sound tracks or films (as my wife and kids are)!. After this it was off to the
Hoop-De-Do Revue. Our first time for this, too. Had seats right up front, and
center stage - boy was I scared that they would call on me! Fortunately, they
just pointed at us, and made comments! Anyway, they just about scared the
daylights out of this little girl, when serving the dinner, on that first
serving... Great show - can't wait to take the kids someday! It does seem to
hold that the larger the crowd that you came with, the greater the chances of
being selected to participate... A good time was had by both of us, here.
Saturday
Up and off to the Poly to try the infamous banana stuffed french toast, in the
late morning. Found that Tangora Terrace is closed for remodeling, however
Guest Svcs directed us upstairs to the Coral Isle (I think) cafe, where this
delicacy can be found. It was quite good, however I think that I could have
done well splitting one of these. After breakfast we were off to Epcot. Visited
World of Motion, Energy, The Land and Mexico. Found a long line for Norway so
decided to return later - never made it though! For a very late lunch we went
to the Y&BC and finally wandered into Beaches & Cream - a burger and a frappe -
it was a challenge to put those away! Was a cute restaurant though especially
having grown up on the south coast in Rhode Island. Good food and atmosphere.
Waddled off and we returned to CBR to swim and head out to MK in early evening.
In the MK we hit BTMRailroad and several things in Tomorrowland - forgot how
bad Mission to Mars really was/is! Left MK early, about 9:00PM (it was open
until midnight), due to the fact that we were scheduled for the Early Bird rip
off, oops - breakfast - on Sunday at 7:00AM... So, made it back to OPR for
pizza and left OPR about 11:00PM - so much for early...
Sunday
We were scheduled for the Early Bird feature this day (along with every other
living breathing soul in CBR...). Up before dawn, at the bus stop by 6:45, only
to wait until 7:25-7:30 for a bus that could hold all of us. Very poor planning
by WDW here. But things only went from bad to much worse, so far as the EB
feature was concerned. The park was NOT open early - just the Tomorrowland
cafeteria and several kiddy rides in Fantasyland ONLY. This is clearly
misrepresentation on the part of Disney in that the stated early admission to
the park (implied meaning, ALL of the MK). To top it off, the food was
absolutely "nothing to write home about". It was edible.
We did do Space Mountain at 9:01 AM... Did a few more things at the MK that
morning, including BTMRR and took in the Liberty Tree - not exactly a thrill
ride, but very interesting! Left MK for CBR and then onto River Country. Played
around there on the slides. Hopped on over to the Water Sprite rental, hoping
for the same good deal as before - only got the first half-hour for $7 and then
$11 for the second half hour, times two sprites, also. I made a weak case for
$7/half hour for each half hour, but the cast member stood firm...
Can't recall what we did Sunday evening - I was getting to feel pretty tired by
this time - like I needed a vacation! Probably crashed early...
Monday:
Off to MGM. Hit TGMR, gangster scene. Like this better, although both were
good! Left TGMR at 11:29, and ran to the Prime Time Cafe for our 11:30
reservation. What a place! 'Mom" caught me looking at something under the menu
(I was checking to see if the lunch voucher was good at the PTC, when I
realized that the vouchers were only good at resort restaurants outside the
theme parks...). Mom promptly asked me to reveal what I was hiding and did
suggest that we use it somewhere like the Village Marketplace or the Grand
Floridian - we went on Tuesday to the GF - a MOST excellent choice, and good
advice from 'mom'. We managed to avoid getting marched off to wash our hands,
and I did get the treatment for eating my 'sisters' lunch. Lori suggested that
I took her sandwhich, however, mom believed me when I suggested that she gave
me her sandwich. I guess mom always did like me best.. :-) ! The decor was out
of sight, too - quite authentic - and similar to what we can recall of that
era. We laughed to think that our kids will think of our furnishings as so
dated when they are gown up...
After lunch, we did the Superstar TV, Muppetvision 3-D (great show), backstage
studio tour and Magic of Disney animation. All very interesting. Under refurb
was Lets Make a Deal and Here come the Muppets - which is probably becoming The
Little Mermaid, scheduled to open in Jan '92. Also under construction is
Twilight Zone, just to the right of the front gate. (Does anyone know what is
being constructed between MGM and CBR? Is this part of Disney's Boardwalk??)
To enter Epcot tonight, we drove to Y&BC, parked there and were into the park
in under 13 minutes! There are only a few parking spaces available there for
those not staying at YBC, however it never seemed to be full around the
perimeter, where they are unmarked. It sure is a very quick entrance into Epcot
this way. In EPCOT we caught the 'making of me' and Journey into Imagination
and Canada exhibit. The second floor of JIImagination where the 'hands on
displays' are located, is under reconstruction, also. The Canada 360 degree film
is awesome, as is Illuminations.
Tuesday
Serious depression starting to set in - our last day here. Flight leaves at
5:55 PM. Packed and checked out at 11:00AM and over to GF for lunch, at
Narcoosees. There is little or no visitor parking at the GF, so drove to TTC
and caught the monorail to GF - took over 45 minutes to do this! Narcoosees was
not busy at all - only about 6 other tables in use, and we got to sit on the
outer row, overlooking the Seven Seas lagoon and Cinderella's Castle - a
fitting view for our last few hours at the world!
Had an excellent meal and will follow up in another note on how to get lobster
with the lunch coupon! Our waitress was great!
After an excellent meal, we went to village marketplace for some presents for
the kids, then off to the airport. On the way to the airport, it started to
rain. Hadn't seen rain all week, but this was a good time for it, from our
perspective.
|
| 237.36 | Long trip report warning. | KERNEL::WHITAKER | | Wed Nov 27 1991 10:13 | 14 |
|
Be warned windows users ... the next reply contains my very late,
very long, therefore potentially very boring trip report.
It's around 500 lines long, so treat it as a sure-fire cure for
insomnia if nothing else!
Cheers,
Andy Whitaker (Basingstoke, UK).
|
| 237.37 | Late & long report - Sep/Oct 1991 | KERNEL::WHITAKER | | Wed Nov 27 1991 10:17 | 494 |
|
WHO: Me (Andy) & Wanda
Wanda's sister Addie + Paul (other-half)
Wanda's sister Marina + Andy (other-half)
The girls' Italiano mother, Rosa
The girls' nephew Robert
Plus two friends Dean & Julie - who stayed at
the Holiday Inn, Maingate West.
WHERE: House between Kissimmee & Orlando
WHEN: September 27th - October 18th
LAST TRIP: June/July 1991
REASON: The big Annual Holiday - no better value, or more
fun than Florida, so we keep coming back.
APOLOGY: So fed-up at being back, I coudn't bring myself to write
a report before now ... also work is what pays for me to
go, so it takes priority.
This was a long and enjoyable holiday, of which 3 days were spent in WDW, 1
day at Sea-World, 1 day at Universal ... and 1 day at Busch Gardens. I shall
just concentrate on Disney stuff here ... I'll post news of the other venues
in the Orlando Side Trips note.
The basic plan was to escort Julie & Dean around as they were Florida 'virgins'
whereas we have been several times before. They were only over there for two
weeks, and we planned to blitz the sights for those weeks (with a few days
playing golf and on the beach), and then we were going to 'veg-out' for the
last week after J&D had gone.
So then! ... down to business ...
WEDNESDAY 2ND OCTOBER - EPCOT CENTRE
First impressions as always, were promising, apart from the weather which
was decidedly dodgy. No queue for the ticket counter, as we needed passes
for those that hadn't been before (we still had tickets from last time).
In very quickly, and as usual I always like watching the expression of people
who haven't seen the place before ... J&D looked suitably impressed and I
almost envied them the fact that it was their first time.
Off to get a stroller for the 4 year-old demon-child we brought with us (I
am ashamed to say that I foster no paternal thoughts whatsoever, and it's
my firm belief that WDW is NO place for children).
As all us frightfully experienced Disney-vets know, you must ignore Spaceship
Earth as you go in ... it was already swarming and a line snaked around the
front. We ventured through Communicore Left (can't remember it it's East or
West), and proceeded onto our first ride which was the Wheels of Motion exhibit.
I really enjoy this one, particularly the street scene where chaos is caused
by a 'horseless carriage' ... and I always think that the bloke who's trying
to start his car in the workshop is going to finally get it going one day when
I'm there .. he must be sick of trying by now.
I also like the tunnel section of the ride where the comparatively simple effect
of films projected on the screen surrounding you, makes for a nauseous feeling
if you catch it in the right place.
Next stop was Horizons, where the familiar smell of oranges was commented on
by J&D ... it's a great, smug feeling to know what's going to happen, but I
again envied them their first-time impression. Their verdict was amazement
at the audio-animo-wotsit-thingys, which they thought were 'brilliant'.
As Robert (aged 4 by the way) had already met M&M Mice when we walked through
Orlando Airport on arrival, he already felt that they were just dying to meet
him again so we went to the Odyssey restaurant for some nosh, and the 11:30
character show. The food isn't bad value here either, and I adhered to my
usual strict diet of apple pie and ice-cream.
The restaurant was not crowded and we sat on an aisle table, two back from the
front. The music blared out right on time, as did the 30'ish looking gent on
the table adjacent to ours ... he had a remarkably powerful voice easily heard
over the loudspeakers, and I must admit to having initial cynical thoughts
until I realised that he evidently had a younger mental-age than his physical
one ... then after telling myself off for being such a prat, I must again
admit to feeling really buoyed-up and touched at his outrageous enjoyment of
the show. This fella was giving it everything, he knew every word and was
obviously a regular. He had all the Disney gear on from socks to shirt and
it was nice to see Goofy spending plenty of time with him, and also M. Mouse
greeted him like he was an old pal. Nice moment, which took my attention
away from how Robert got on with the characters although I was informed that
he had a long, secret conversation with either Chip or Dale (don't know how
to tell them apart), and has since steadfastly refused to reveal the content
of his discussions must've been deep, meaningful stuff! Even for a non-kid-
type person like me, it was good to see him enjoy it ... he really believes
they're real and is impressed by Mickey's ability to get about so quickly.
The next hour or so was spent in the World Showcase, starting at Mexico on the
Rio Del Tiempo ride. Pretty lame stuff this one, but the atmosphere inside
the pavilion itself is good.
When we came out, it was a short hop into Norway and onto the Maelstrom ride.
I really like this one, but of course the soaking is minimal, guess we'll have
to wait until Splash Mountain is finished for a real 'wet'.
Next stop was the American Adventure, some of us that had seen it before went
on to Japan to do some shopping, I chose the show and enjoyed the quality of
the singers, it seems that the shape of the building lends itself to very good
accoustics. I have to admit that the show was spoilt by a VERY vocal child
on the seat in front of me. The parents were just letting her/him (not sure
what flavour it was), screech away without intervention ... much muttering and
gnashing of teeth, but every one was far too polite to complain. I still
managed to miss the audio-animatronic figure climbing the stairs, I was dead-
tired and I have to admit to snoozing a bit in the very comfortable chairs (and
DESPITE the child's lament).
We came out and found that one of the numerous rain showers had just passed,
I have to say that a previous noter's trip report for roughly the same period
mentioned good weather, well we must have been spectacularly unlucky because
it was the least sunny weather I've ever experienced in Florida, regularly
overcast and frequently raining.
On to China for some food for Wanda who is a vegetarian and could not find
anything to eat in the Odyssey restaurant. Fast-food-style Vegetable Lo Mein
was passable and reasonably priced. I indulged in the entirely enjoyable
past-time of sitting and watching people walk by, I ALWAYS make sure to sit
and savour the atmosphere inside WDW. I've been a few times now, and some if
not all of the novelty of the rides (with a few exceptions), has worn off -
but I still really enjoy just being in there - daft or what?
The rest of the countries followed in reasonably brisk fashion, usual comments
passed about the hideous Swan/Dolphin hotels ... looks like a real own-goal by
Eisner for once.
We were just past the UK, when the announcements began about the daytime sky-
show who's name escapes me at time of writing. Well it made me comprehensively
ill as I volunteered to video the event and found myself focussing and panning-
in & out on the many micro-light craft flying around World Showcase Lagoon.
As a spectacle I can't really say it was inspiring, but full marks for Disney
for trying to do something different, and some of the more explosive fireworks
were well worth seeing. Robert was also impressed that Mickey was now flying
in the sky so soon after seeing him prancing around the Odyssey restaurant.
The show is not a patch on Illuminations, but that's probably an unfair match-
up. I'm sure that it will be improved and refined as time passes
Now back into the good stuff as far as I'm concerned ... my pace quickened as
we approached Journey into Imagination, we decided to veer off to Cap'n EO
first and were well rewarded by arriving 2 minutes before showtime, thus missing
the apalling (my personal opinion of course) pre-show film. We managed to slide
ourselves into a rear row, roughly in the centre, which I find to be the best
vantage point for all the splendid effects. Strangely enough this is one of
the attractions that we seem to enjoy more each time we see it. Robert the 4
year-old was a little disconcerted by the effects but stood his ground bravely.
Out of EO and into Figment's ride ... another enjoyable one for me, I find this
a very 'escapist' type ride (!) ... and it's a fiendishly catchy tune to which
I'm slowly learning the words. Robert gave this the thumbs-up although others
yawned through it.
The Land was next, drifting through the hanging vegetable garden and hydroponics
diplays brought my mind back to the fact that I hadn't had any food for several
minutes, and we adjourned to what I think is the best selection of food in one
place within EPCOT, the Farmer's Market. So much to chose from, but I defaulted
back to the seafood handwich, followed by a huge slice of their carrot cake,
tasty stuff indeed. A mild tantrum from Robert was dealt with convincingly by
Addie and Rosa, negating my pre-emptive strike with the frosting from my
carrot cake.
From the Land, we went to the Sea ... the Living Seas pavilion of course. This
is such a restful place to visit once you get through to the actual 'Sea-Base',
and I was delighted to see the baby Mannatee there, still wrestling with my
conscience about whether or not these creatures should be kept in tanks, but
after hearing the problems they're having in the Florida waterways, perhaps
they are better off there after all.
From the Living Seas onto Spaceship Earth, I decided to indulge my passion for
sitting and gawking at the passers-by, whilst all the others went in. I've
never been keen on Spaceship Earth, I remember thinking the first time I went
on it that the interior didn't match the expectations I had after looking at
the marvellous exterior. I now prefer to sit and gaze at it from the outside.
As it was now around 6pm, we decided to try our luck in the Wonders of Life
pavilion. It was almost empty by this time, with no wait for Body Wars apart
from waiting for the previous riders to finish.
I really enjoyed Cranium Command again, and got a front row seat this time
which enabled us to catch more of the 'jokes' happening on the various
screens. Still a good show this one.
We left WOL with about 40 minutes to go before Illuminations started, there
was just one pavilion left, which was the Universe of Energy. Julie & Dean,
being 1st-timers were keen to see it, and 5 of us went in while the others
went to stake-out a good viewing place for the fireworks.
We were lucky in getting into UOE just as the pre-show finished, but I under-
estimated the length of the (extremely boring if you've seen them before) films
at the end of the ride.
We got out at 6 minutes to 9pm, and raced up to watch the display. Despite
having the what felt like the heaviest 4-year-old in the World on my shoulders
for the duration ... I still marvelled at the display. This is definately one
event that I would make the effort to see every time.
We trudged out with the rest of the mob with that great view of a greeny-pinky
Spaceship Earth, being 'lasered'. Always an abiding memory of WDW, and one I
can visualise and feel easily.
SATURDAY 5th OCTOBER - MAGIC KINGDOM
An early-ish start to get to the MK at around 9:30am. Very busy as we parked,
leaving us further away from the TTC than normal. Some of the party took
the tram, 4 of us walked ... and we arrived at the TTC just ahead of them.
Decided on the mono-rail as Julie & Dean wanted to see where it went through
the lobby of the Contemporary.
Into the MK, a stop underneath Main St. Station to get a stroller (one good
thing about taking kids is that you get to sling all your hand-baggage onto
the back of the stroller), and off into Main St. USA. It's a great feeling
when you first walk into that Street and see the castle up ahead, and you can
see everyone firing off photos left, right & centre ... we've all done it I
imagine, when you get home and find 20 pictures of Cinderella's Castle taken
from every conceivable angle ... and you never remember taking them at all.
First stop (as always) was for food ... a gentle stroll up Main Street, with
a brief excursion for a photo session in the alcove half-way up where they
have the benches surrounded by flowers, and then into the snack bar which is
just over the bridge from the hub ... on the right before you go into
Adventureland, can't remember the name. This is where I took my one really
good picture of the castle which I shall pause from writing to look at now!
... pause over ...
We walked through Adventureland, we thought about going into the Tiki Birds
exhibit, but decided to give it a miss ... I noted with disappointment that
the Pirates ride was closed - this is a real favourite of mine so I was peeved
that it was shut. We carried on to the end and walked through into Frontierland
... made an initial foray towards Big Thunder Mountain Railway, but the queues
were prohibitively long. Decided to test our unerring accuracy in the
Shootin' Gallery (why do they always leave the 'g' off of words in WDW?),
which is a fun way to pass a few minutes, particularly if you can hit the
vultures!
The rain had held-off so far ... and the heat was familiarly taxing, so it
was time for some a/c ... found thankfully in the Haunted Mansion. Robert
was NOT impressed with the shriek of laughter in the 'stretching' room, but
kept a quietly determined front throughout.
As we entered the moving 'cars', Wanda turned and leaned out to see if her
mum had safely negotiated her way into the car behind ... she did not see the
attendant at the end of the passage, just before the car enters the ride. He
tapped her on the shoulder to tell her to sit back in the vehicle, which she
was most certainly not expecting ... this was the first time I have heard
Wanda utter a scream of shocked terror, and I can only say that I am not in
a raging hurry to repeat the experience. I guess the atmosphere of the place
had gotten to her ... and the rest of the world knew about it!
From the HM, we had to venture into Fantasyland to cater for the requirements
of Robert ... I was feeling sadistic, so I recommended It's A Small World to
Julie & Dean ... 15 minutes later I was told in graphic detail what would
happen if I did it again. Even Robert was not impressed.
The queues in Fantasyland were gi-normous and we were not disposed to waiting
for them just yet ... some of the others were keen on waiting to go on n000
Leagues Under The Sea ... I decided to sit it out to engage in yet more fellow-
tourist voyeurism, and waitied patiently for the 55 minutes it took them to
queue and ride. Their opinions were that this is an amteurish ride, out of
place with the rest of the MK. The fish on sticks do tend to give the game
away.
Over to the Mad Hatter's Teapots ... I was able to use Robert as an excuse NOT
to make these pots-from-hell go around too fast, as I remember making myself
feel violently ill the last time I rode them. I of course made the appropriate
macho moans at not being able to really get them spinning ... and had my bluff
called by Paul who offered to go on again with me ... luckily Robert started
crying, so I escaped.
The next part of the day was very tricky as we all wanted to ride the single
most marvellous ride in Orlando, aka Space Mountain. Trouble was that Robert
couldn't ride it because of the height restrictions ... and he was not happy
at having to wait outside with Rosa. We left the screaming brat behind anyway
and were delighted to find that the lines were comparatively short, we walked
right through to the loading area, and had about a 20 minute wait there. No
matter how many times I ride this ride (grammar!), I still get butterflies in
the tum when I hear all the screams from 'space'.
We actually went through twice, trying either side ... I think the right-hand
side is definately superior, it seems more violent, and it also appears to have
an extra bit in it, where you go through the flashing lights tunnel, I may be
wrong, but I don't think you go through that if you go in the left-hand side
of the loading area.
The is THE best ride in WDW ... I would urge anyone who doesn't fancy it to try
it at least once ... it's too good to miss, it really is ... honest!!
Out of SM to sooth the Robert, who had decided to punish us by not talking.
We bribed him with a shop visit for a sticker and some space sweets.
Next attraction was the Carousel of Progress ... I lost the bet with the other
Andy as to the names of the dog(s) in each scene. This is another favourite
and Robert was visibly lifted after it, he decided to bestow upon us the
honour of communicating with us once more .... I defy anyone to stay miserable
in the MK for long.
The rain was persistent now and we escaped it by taking a Dreamflight ... this
is very disappointing as it's such a recent ride (last year?). Tame to say
the least.
Out into what was now torrential rain ... and a HUGE t-storm ... Carl Lewis
impressions were the order of the day to get to the Tomorrowland Terrace
without getting totally drenched. A piece of plasticene-pizza, followed by
an equally droopy giant cookie served to fill the capacious Whitaker-stomach
and we were all well entertained by the spectacular thunder & lightning. It's
an event I always look forward to in Florida, I enjoy a good storm.
Somehow we contrived to miss the new all-singing-all-dancing daytime parade,
I think I just clean forgot about it whilst riding Space Mountain ... BUT, I
wanted to make sure that we got a good spot for the new night-time show, so
I steered our knackered party along to my favourite spot for watching, which
is outside Pecos Bill Caf� in Frontierland ... we went via a ride on the paddle
steamer just to make doubly sure that we got every exposed inch of skin bitten
by the pervasive mosquitos.
We arrived outside the PBC about 45 minutes before the show was due to start,
and the area was already crowded. I staked a spot opposite the caf�, just
where the walkway goes off to BTMR and adjacent to the 'Pardon Our Mess' signs
around Splash Mountain.
Five of the group were determined to try BTMR, so they went off to ride it
whilst the rest of use stayed with the now comatose Robert to fight-off the
maraudering hordes and keep our grandstand spot.
Then it pi**ed-down!
... and I was the bright spark who advised leaving our ponchos in the van
because 'there are loads of places to take shelter in the MK' ... well there
is, but NOT if you are trying to save a spot for the parade of course.
We stuck it out bravely for a few minutes ... trying to look nonchalant (sp?)
and manly .. but then we finally broke ranks and were routed by the slashing,
almost painful rain.
ANYWAY ... the rest of our crew arrived back totally drenched .. apparently
the heavens had opened just as they exited one of the cave sections of BTMR,
at first they just thought they'd been splashed by the water ... but then they
got wiped-out! It was described as many things by them .. the only one I can
enter in this conference is 'an exhilarating (sp again) experience'.
The parade arrived at about 9:25pm ... the rain had desisted, and I stood on
a table (plenty of castmembers around, but they didn't seem to care), just
at the front, and to the left of the PBC. It was a great spot as this was
on a small incline, which many of the floats couldn't manage ... therefore I
got plenty of time to film and take photos while they towed the floats up
the hill. I must say that for Disney ... which of course is known for its'
wholesome family image ... Ariel the mermaid was VERY Scantily clad, it was
noticable that plenty of Dad's were taking rather a few photos of her float
when it gorund to a halt. Being a non-sexist type of chap, I called it a
day after about 10 'tasteful' shots.
The parade is good, but not as good as the old one in my opinion, and indeed
of the others who have seen both. For the 1st timers though, it was very
impressive.
We wended our way out slowly, after stopping for hot-chocolate to warm us up.
It was packed on the way out, and we got as far as the Crystal Palace
restaurant when the fireworks started ... we stayed there to watch them .. the
young Robert awaoke from his slumbers, demanded to use my shoulders as a
vantage point .. and then went straight back in the stroller and off to sleep
in an instant, it's must be so tough being a kid sometimes.
Main Street was just too packed for us to fight our way down, so we adjourned
(much to my delight) to the 'penny' arcade. I love pinball machines, and
expecially the police-car one they have in there ... it needs the brain of
a nuclear physicist and the skill of a surgeon to play it ... so naturally I
felt completely at home. Little Robot again awoke and demanded quarters from
all & sundry and showed every child's natural talent at these screen-based
games, I retired hurt after my third defeat 'well you've got to let the kid
win, he'll only cry otherwise' etc etc I would extract my revenge when no-
one else was around!
We departed the MK via ferry at around 10:50pm, absolutely cream-crackered,
but well satisfied as usual. The night was chilly, and we were still damp
from our un-sceduled shower .. but spirits were high, I wish I could bottle
that feeling!
THURSDAY 10th NOVEMBER - MGM STUDIOS
By this time (nearly two weeks into the holiday), we were all getting a little
jaded by theme-park overkill, apart from Disney we'd 'done' Universal, Busch
Gardens (which also now has a simulator ride called Questor, similar to
BodyStar WarsTours, but much more nauseating) etc etc.
We took our time getting into MGM, as it is much smaller than the other parks
and we were just too lazy to get out of bed.
1st stop was the Great Movie Ride, quite a large queue but we were in and on
after about 30 minutes. Took the right-hand line as I prefer the western
scene to the gangster one. I was sitting about half-way up the car, on the
right-hand side ... this proved to be a good spot when we got the the Alien
scene (which totally blew Robert's cool!) ... I was right under the place where
our alien chum makes his/her? appearance. Very impressive I must say, it's
the first time I'd ever got a good look at his Alien-ness, and I can't say I'd
ever invite it around to tea with my mother.
Exit hurriedly out of TGMR, and out to the Backstage Tour ... this was light
on lines and we walked right-in and straight-on. They were filming an open
air game show whose name was something to do with dogs, which according to
our guide is 'massive in the UK' ???????? ... I am unaware of ANY type of
canine show on this side of the big-lake, and I'm a TV-aholic, perhaps it's
on the dreaded Satellite TV which I am too poor to subscribe to.
We declined the walking part of the tour in search of the Ninja Turtles as
they are Robert's all-time heroes ... this was another loooong delay as
they were somewhat mobbed by similar-minded turtle-phobes.
After Robert had received benediction from Raphael we continued our walk
up the New York street .. this was the first time I'd ever actually walked up
there, and even though it was good, it's nowhere near as good as the street
scenes in Universal Studios .. BUT! ... MGM does have the Muppets. Some of
the group including myself, were not too keen on viewing this, but I'm really
glad we did because it was brilliant! What a laugh! The pre-show is funny
and one of the few that I wouldn't mind waiting through again. The theatre
itself is impressive inside .. and the actual show with its' 'special' effects
is marvellously enjoyable.
It's a little tucked-away in location .. but make sure you make the effort to
seek it out, everyone enjoyed it immensely and it was unanimously voted second
best attraction after Space Mountain.
Food next ... just past the new Sci-Fi restaurant, and behind the painted
street-scene is another restaurant whose name escapes me (I haven't got a guide
to hand as I write this). This was great for us as it had a nice vegetarian
chilli pie (with grapes!), and some lovely egg-drop soup. The best value and
tastiest grub we tried in WDW.
We continued on through to watch the Indiana Jones Stunt Show. Julie and Dean
suitably impressed, but I wouldn't bother seeing it again after the three times
I've seen it now. It's a bit too corny for me, and as there are no longer any
surprises, I think I'll give it a miss. I'm not sure if my memory is playing-
up, but I seem to remember a gory bit the last time I saw it, when the bady got
chopped up in the propellor of the aeroplane ... well he stayed in one piece
this time (apart from being shot of course!) .. has this been taken out?
Into Star Wars next, which now suffers greatly when compared to the brilliant
Back To The Future ride in Universal - a challenge (as far as simulator rides
go) has been thrown down to Disney by this ride, I wonder if they can top it?
I hope this sort of competition can only benefit us consumers.
Superstar TV was the last stop of the day ... luckily we got there late enough
to avoid the danger of being picked as a 'vicitm'. It is a great show, and even
though the significance of waving your hands in the air and singing 'howdy-doody
time' is lost on a Brit, I'm sure it must be almost a religion to the Americans
judging by the energy the audience put into singing and waving. The Lucy scetch
vie swith Cheers as my favourite, excellent performances by all participants.
It was a wonderfully warm evening as we walked out around closing time, the
others went off to shop .. I yet again stood and absorbed yet more of that
indefinable atmosphere. It was my last day in Disney until early June '93,
so the usual last minute blues struck.
On the whole I enjoyed this visit as much as previous ones, but in a different
way. I'm lucky in being able to just about afford a trip every year, and it
will remain my choice of holiday destination for the foreseeable future (which
some friends & colleagues find mystifying). I just felt no pressure to see
everything, and it is a lovely relaxed feeling to just pick whatever ride took
our/my fancy. I think I definately prefer going in a small party (there were
10 of us) ... and I wouldn't want to take a child again (miserable devil huh?).
I will be going to Euro-Disney in May '92 ... as I haven't been able to get to
Disneyland yet, this will be my first non-Florida Disney experience, and I am
curious to see if it matches-up.
Still without doubt the best (man-made) place I've ever been to.
TTFN peeps,
Andy.
|
| 237.38 | | KERNEL::MOUNTFORD | | Thu Nov 28 1991 09:44 | 68 |
| My 1991 belated trip report.
My wife 2 kids and myself flew into Atlanta GA on 17 August. The next
16 days were spent travelling through 6 states, only to arrive
in Orlando on Friday 2nd August.
We had spent the night in Gainsville FLA and I heard that the shuttle
was going up the next morning, so we raced the 150 miles down to
within 12 miles of the cape, in time to see the launch.
We stayed the Friday night at the Hilton Cocoa beach, very nice hotel
and cheap!
Onto Andy Whitacker's bungalow on the Staurday and straight off to
Disney on the Sunday. We decided to buy 5 day passes but on reflection
it was to much forthe 7 days we had to use them in.
Highlights for us were:
Epcot:
------
Meal in Mexico, very authentic food and setting, the best meal we had.
Energy, my lad had been studying all about the dinasaurs at
school, so his eyes really lit up in this show, one of the best
rides in our opinion.
Norway, still waiting for the photos, but my whole family danced with
the troup outside and several guests were taking photos of our family!
USA, very moving, the choir were brilliant and the audio animatronics
were unbelievable. We had previously visited Chicamauga, Lookout
mountain and Vicksburg military parks, along with Huntsville Space
and Rocket centre, so this encapsulated the whole American spirit
very well.
MGM studios
-----------
The turtles....it had been worth the wait for my son to have seen
them dance. We captured it all on video along with their van.
We have since tried in vain to purchase a van for my son, and
eventually have got him one for Christmas.
The Indiana stunt spectacular. I've never seen my kids sit so still
than through this..
The Magic Kingdom
-----------------
Ironically we didn't spend much time here, possibly because we'd been
to Disneyland, where there is only the Magic Kingdom.
Highlight the big thunder mountain railway.
Aside from the parks, we visited the Polynesian resort for the
dinner show. Excellent, loads of food and plenty of pics of the
characters with the kids and autographs, along with the souvenir
leys (sp) made of shells they give each visitor.
We also visitedthe Hoop de Doo musical revue, but not as good as
the Polynesian.
Typhoon Lagoon gave a nice relaxing break to cool off.
Richard.
|
| 237.39 | The Greens 1991 11/11-21 | GUIDUK::GREEN | | Tue Dec 17 1991 17:06 | 320 |
| Hello,
I'm within the first month post trip, I consider that pretty good.
Forgive my sloppiness and/or inaccuracy where occurring. I probably am
overkilling some things and skirting others. Hope you enjoy it if you
read it. It's 300+ lines.
Regards,
Tim Green
Who:
We (my family: wife, daughter 5.5, son 3.5, and I) went to Orlando for
the first time in November from the 11th to the 21st. We also spent a
day and a half of that time away from the area on the Gulf coast. The
trip was WONDERFUL! Ideal weather (70's- low 80's) with almost no
precipitation, no crowds, and good prices (off-season rates).
Most tips that I would give have already been provided elsewhere in this
notesfile, but I do have a few comments before I do the real trip
report:
1. When we were there we found that if one thing that we wanted to
see/ride/whatever was busy with a line, that something else was not. I
think it is important to stick to an itinerary (Unofficial Guide Book is
a good source) for the most part, but we stood in two lines (the only
two just about) that we need not have. When we went by the same
attractions at a different time, neither had lines. So, have a plan but
be flexible.
2. Everything people said about your feet, LISTEN!!! I cannot imagine
how we would have done on HOT summer days. Fortunately, I was the only
one that ended up with a blister (of course I was the only one carrying
an extra 35-40 lbs of child on me for parts of days) and it came late on the
last day of real walking. Something that might be effective for others
is to stagger your heavy walking days with other less foot-pounding
activity days (i.e. MK then TL then EC then RC then MGM -- you get the
idea) deliberately to avoid the foot stress! A stroller is a good option
(we rented) -- even our almost 6 year old took a stint or two in them.
3. For those of you contemplating a trip with young children, realize
your mileage may vary BUT OUR KIDS DID GREAT! I am proud of them. I do
believe, however, that if we had had to stand (still) in lines for much
of the time I would NOT be saying the same thing. Also, you may give up
a bit in terms of direct enjoyment, but it is replaced with vicarious
enjoyment (through the eyes of your children). Go off-season!
4. I had never used a fanny pack before this , but on suggestions from
here and elsewhere went out and bought a fairly large one (We filled it
with snacks, and especially juice -- we bought them at Publix for about
1/3 the price in the park). I don't think I would consider going to WDW
without bringing a fanny pack based on this experience.
5. We took our car just about everywhere everytime (except within FW). I
wouldn't go down without a car/rental. We liked the convenience and
freedom this afforded.
Now, on to the show...
November 11th: We finalized our packing (ends up we packed too many
long-sleeved/legged things), head for the airport with our friend (taking
us in our car), arrive and check-in. From Seattle it is an ALL day trip.
Our plane departs at 10:30 local time and we are scheduled to arrive at
8:30 p.m. in Orlando (local). When we get to the counter the extremely
helpful and courteous United ticket agent says that we might miss our
connection in Denver (Seattle flight will be late leaving, the
connection was originally tight and the flight out of Denver is the last one
of the day to Orlando), so she offers us the choice of changing our routing
to go through Chicago, but we wouldn't arrive until 1:00 a.m. EST.
We take our chances and it ends up okay. Three minutes to spare before
they closed the doors behind us. Luckily the outbound gate was literally
the gate adjacent to our inbound.
Note: Absolutely do bring snacks, juice, amusements for your children in
route. Something new is a good idea too (which I got and used from elsewhere
in this file).
We do an afterhours checkin through Condotels (I will never use them
again) and make our way to Chelsea Square Condominiums for the night.
November 12 - Tues. Up at 7:45. Hard to restrain ourselves but we go to
SeaWorld the first day. Arrive at the park at 9:00 a.m. (opening time)
pop in the gate and there is baby Shamu (person) just waiting for my
kids to have their picture taken with him (her?). The daughter, Hillary,
is enthusiastic, but son Zachary respectfully declines (eventually he
would come around for later photo opportunities with characters at WDW,
but not here).
I won't give a play by play but we stayed ALL DAY until 6:00 p.m. (this
was late dusk). Highlights: Shamu, Whale and Dolphin, Clyde &
Seymore - 10,000 B.C.(? My son wanted to be Mr. Mean the rest of the day),
and Dancing Fountains shows. Zachary also ABSOLUTELY loved the Stingray
petting pond (stayed for 45 minutes touching everything that moved as it
swam by - but they, and we were wet and smelled funny after all of this)
and both children liked feeding and petting the dolphins and
playing in the childrens playground area, especially on the boat and in
the balls.) Two disappointments -- we sat in "get wet" seats because the
kids wanted to but they were sad when we didn't "get wet". Second, the
kids really, really had wanted to see the Beluga whales (Baby Beluga),
but they had JUST BEEN MOVED (two days before we arrived) to San Antonio
for cross breeding (a real BOO HOO!). We saw every attraction at
the park, though. Light crowds, good weather and a great, exhausting day!
November 13 - Wed. Up later and checked out (remember I said I wouldn't
go to Condotels again. We planned a week but out we go.). Heading for
the Gulf Beach at Siesta Key (near/south of Sarasota) for the day. Great
beach and great sand for sculpting. Was disappointed that the water
wasn't warmer (seemed fairly cold versus what we were expecting), though
we still went in (up to necks). Left a bit before dusk, grabbed a quick
meal on our way to Sanibel.
November 14 - Thu. Up and checked out by 9:00. Off to Sanibel Island to get
some shells and play at the beach for the a.m. Ended up leaving at about
2:00. The kids fell asleep in the car on our way back to Orlando.
Checked in for the next three nights at Quality Suites on 192 nearest
WDW. Did a little off-world souvenier shopping and dinner. To the pool
before bed.
November 15 - Fri. HOORAY!!! Up at 7:00. Break-FAST and off to the park.
Arrived at the turnstiles at 8:40. Wandered around Main Street til a few
minutes before they dropped the rope at 9:00. WE WERE THE FIRST ONES
PAST THE ROPE! YAHOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooo! (By sheer accident. We didn't
know if they opened the left or the right side of the rope first. It was
neither! They disconnected them in the middle, where we were standing,
and off we went to 20,000 leagues. Made the first voyage of the day,
even without a full sprint. The crowds were real light!
Through Fantasyland (Dumbo, Pan, Mad Hatter (2), Small World, Mr. Toad,
Snow White, etc.). I don't remember ride orders or exact sequences so
don't take this literally. Off to Adventure and Frontierland. If not the
favorite ride then certainly among the top rides was BTMR (3 times this
day). Jungle Cruise was closed through today so we would catch it on
return. Also, not covered anywhere (CRO, books or in this file) that I can
remember seeing was the closure of the train station in Frontierland
while construction of Splash Mountain is going on. This messed up our
plan (acc'dg to Unofficial Guide) to catch train here and go to
Starland.
We floundered for about an hour because of this, but ALOT of characters
happened through at about this time so we got LOTS of photos of the
older one with Eeyore, Chip, Dale, DD, Pinocchio, a Cindermouse, etc.
This was great, but we ended up after that
standing in line at Pirates for about 18 minutes (our only real line of
the day besides Starjets). On to Haunted Mansion (Zachary still asks if
we can go back to see this at night). We finally recover by going off
to Tom Sawyer's island for lunch, frolic and regrouping. Once done, we
go off the island, back to
Main Street to catch the train to Starland. Arrive at Starland and the
attendant suggests we come back to Starland later and instead catch the
Afternoon Surprise parade. We take the train back to Main Street,
position for the parade (right in front of the train station) and get a
snack and juice while we wait.
The parade starts (the kids loved the
balloons and floats) and as soon as it is over (we see the end first by
being close to the start) we dart for the train to Starland. Back to
Starland to see Mickey's show on stage. Good show. Then, per
suggestions, we dash out at the end, get in line (we're probably first
from our show but there are about 5 families in front of us) to see MM
in his dressing room. It was great having him to ourselves!!! Our camera
batteries were dying now and we had to wait for a recharge a couple of
times. Mickey and those in the line were very patient. It was GREAT!!!
Back into the tent for pictures (new batteries) with the 2-Dimensional
cartoon character setups of our favorites. Over to the noisemaking area
of the tent and out to Tomorrowland for a ride in the cars.
The older one and I (she just cleared the height requirement) go off to
Space Mountain while the wife and younger go back to the cars. When we
reconvene, it's a snack dinner in Tomorrowland, catch Dreamflight,
Mission to Mars *yuck!*, Skyway (back and forth) then over to the center
of the park for the Fireworks show (great but we had a slightly
obstructed view).
On our way to Frontierland we make a side stop at the Carousel (sp), the
kids and wife ride twice (I take pictures) and then on to the shootin
arcade and to catch a seat for EMP. This was WONDERFUL!!!! I thought it
started out so-so, but got better and better. The changing lights was
great (we especially liked the all-white transitions). Hillary got
touched by a fairy (butterfly/whatever) and Mr. Schmie (sp?) and Zachary
got the Wolf (3 pigs) and a wave from Ursula! Zachary also was
transfixed by the Chernobok (from Fantasia).
It's now closing time but we try (and just miss) Country Bear
Vacation Hoedown. Last stop before main street is Fantasyland. We catch
Mr. Toads (last one on) and then the Carousel for one more ride (barely
made it on that too for the last ride). Back to Main street for a tad of
ambience before departure. It's about 7:30 now (closing was 7:00!).
Whew, what another great and wonderfully exhausting day. Back to Quality
Suites to recuperate for the night.
Nov 16, Sat - Up at 7:45-ish. A quick breakfast and off to MGM. Arrive
at 8:47 (open at 9:00) -- we go right in! Hustle off to Star Tours (no
line) then TGMR (no line and get the front of vehicle which seats just
us four! - western side). Tram portion of tour - then animation. This
was GREATTTTTT!!!! You just can't appreciate how wonderful this is by
hearing a reference to the Cronkite/Williams repartee. Just GO SEE IT! I
have an entirely new and deeper appreciation for high-quality animation
now (wouldn't mind if my artistically inclined daughter became an
animator for Disney!).
Next it's off for some lunch and a visit to HISTK (shrunk kids - have I
seen this acronym yet?) We can't peel the kids away from here without a
bribe (we'll come back, how about a "special treat" right now?) On to
the wonderful Muppet 3-D movie and over to IJSS (indiana jones stunt
spectacular -- another new acronym?). Another good show! Back to the
HISTK area -- it's about 2:45 and the kids won't leave without a fight
this time. We leave the park (only nap day at a park). By the time we
are ready for more after the hotel, sleep, wake, dress, eat its 6:15
p.m. We rush back to MGM to see the Sorcery Fireworks at closing time
for the park, which is 7:00 p.m. - Great (better
IMHO than MK fireworks). We blitz the crowds with our refreshed kids and
rush to car. Are we having fun yet? YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! Off to MK
which doesn't close until MIDNIGHT this day.
We're in by 8:00. We have a little character visit time on Main St. then
off to BTMR (in the dark, can we please, Daddy?), Jungle Cruise, Country
Bear Vacation Hoedown, a stage show and a second dose of the Spectromagic
Parade. I'm sure we did more before we went into Fantasyland for rides
on Peter Pan , Snow White, Carousel, and everything else we went on.
Anyway, we end up leaving the park at about 12:30 a.m. (can you believe
someone would keep their preschoolers up that late?) The kids did superbly
the whole time, but konked in the car.
***
I can't believe how long this is getting!
***
Nov 17, Sun - We need a rest today. Up late and leisure. Check out of
Quality Suites and over to FW (hooray). Check in to 2859 (we liked it!)
and change clothes for River Country. At the bus drop off (Pioneer Hall?
I stop at the ticket info center and ask about Hoop-De-Doo. It's
available that day (& others) at 5:00 p.m. Off to RC (we stayed out of
the c-c-c-cold lake for the most part and stuck to the pool) until we
had to leave to get ready for H-D-D. Back for H-D-D ($106.00 for the
four of us). My wife and I enjoyed it -- okay -- the food was very ample
and good, but if I had it to do again I WOULD NOT! Perhaps our
expectations were too high from the hype in this notesfile, but the
Diamond Horseshoe Jamboree is head-and-shoulders above it for price
performance. The kids were only entertained for about 1/3 of the
entertainment time.
After a disappointing HDD (leave your kids w/ Grandma), off to Disney
Village for souvenier shopping and a brief visit (1 hour) at Pleasure
Island. Back to the trailer for the night.
Nov 18, Mon - Up at 7:30 ... food and off to EC at 9:00. This is the park
where the Unofficial Guide helped us the most. Seemed like more people
here than at other attractions, but we knew to skip the Spaceship Earth
and rushed over to Body Wars first. Was fun, but not the be-all end-all
for us. I really don't remember the order of this day, but I can tell
you we spent 80% of our time in Future World and the other 20% was in
Mexico, Norway, Germany and World Showcase Pavilion (for an afternoon
character show, Surprise in the Skies [great daytime show], and
Illuminations. This was a GREAT DAY TOO! The kids favorite ride was
Journey Into Imagination (Figment is now a creature in our house!) and
those jumping fountains (whatever you call them) and meeting the
professor and Figment outside. The upstairs was closed BOO HOO! It had
shut down just 3 days before.
I think my favorite thing was Cranium Command. Great, creative,
wholesome fun!!! Don't miss any of those shows. We saw pretty much
everything there was in Future World (is that the right name for it?),
but didn't get to spend as much time as we would have liked in the
Living Seas Pavilion, and we all would have liked to see Figment one
more time. Unfortunately Illuminations was shown right at closing time
and they really shut down, so you can either loiter in a shop or join
the throngs and exodus the park. Closing time/show time was 9:00 p.m.
and we were out by 9:45. Off to bed (Oh, my aching feet).
Nov 19, Tue - another off day. To the lesser theme park, Typhoon Lagoon
at about 10:15. We stayed until 3:30. Great fun, slides, tubes, sand,
waves, fountains, etc. No crowds and great fun. Please heat up that big
pool a little more next time though (we were told it's 68 vs. all the
other water is in the high 70's to 80). Off to see other hotels and
facilities of WDW (Grand Floridian, CBR, Disney Vacation Club, PO, etc.)
We ate at the CBR smorgasbord. Back to FW for campfire, then shopping at
the Village. Christmas decorations were popping up everywhere by now and
we were wishing we'd be there at Christmas time (except for not wanting
the crowds). Sigh...
We went in to Kissimmee (sp) for dessert and a few last groceries/snacks
for the last couple of days then back to FW for the night.
Nov 20, Wed - What do we do? Do we make this a multi-park close-out bash
to see and do the favorites and leftovers? The spirit was willing, but
the flesh was weak. If we were going to use a day of our 5-day passes I
wanted to get my money's worth, and we didn't have the energy to get my
money's worth (we debated this until about 1:30 p.m.). Instead we went
down to the petting farm (baby goats born the day before) to see the few
animals (pigs, ponies, goats, whatever) and ride the ponies ($1/child).
Then off to DL (Discovery Island) for a tour. We debated whether to get
on the boat to MK since it arrived first, but we didn't. DL was fun, but
the children lost their interest after an hour (so did I). We took the boat
back to FW and had late lunch in the trailer (are we sure we don't want to go
over to MK? Naa'aahhhh!)
Naptime for the kids and rest for the weary (but happy) parents. It all
gets foggy from here on out because we had packing to do, dinner to eat,
final souvenier shopping, etc. etc. I went to the Info Booth sometime
during this (at Pioneer Hall) and since we had 2 days left on the passes
I knew that was too much for this trip and not enough for another trip
so I upgraded them to 6-day passes (3 days left). Now we have to go back
... someday.
Nov 21 - Thu. Up leisure breakfast, final packing. A trip down to
Pioneer Hall and the lake one last time. We went to rent a water sprite
(10:15 a.m.) but they were closed until 11:00 a.m. (we had been incorrectly
told 10:00). Bad ending not to be able to do this. boo hoo. Last stop
the petting farm for a few minutes then off to the airport. Outta here
at 11:07. Good-bye WDW!
Summary...The best family vacation ever [so far 8-)] I would do it again
in a minute (and $$$$ from Seattle), but I would have gone back for a
multi-park last day to say our final farewell (until next time) a little
better.
.end Tim
|
| 237.41 | Gibson WDW December trip | TYGER::GIBSON | | Fri Jan 03 1992 17:05 | 303 |
| Following is the trip report for the Gibson's Christmas at WDW. We were in
Florida for nine days. For the first three days and the last two days the
party consisted of myself and my husband, Peter. The four days in the middle
we were joined by his parents who live in Naples, Florida.
Day 1, Saturday, December 21, 1991
----------------------------------
I couldn't sleep, so got up at 3:30 AM to shower, dress, and do last minute
packing. I was finished and chomping at the bit by the time Peter woke up
at 4:30 AM. We left the house at 5:30 AM, dropped the car at Park and Fly,
and got to the Northwest terminal about 6:15 for our 7:15 flight.
We boarded the flight on time, then sat at the gate, then on the runway, for
about 1.5 hours. Finally in the air, with a tailwind, we landed in Orlando
just before 11:00 AM.
Had a small problem with the rental car, but hit the road about 12:30. Port
Orleans, here we come!
We checked in about 1:00 PM and our room was ready! Great news! Unpacked,
changed, and went exploring the hotel. At first we were concerned about
noise, since our room faced the central area of the hotel where the pool,
pool bar, and spa were located. The desk pointed out that we were across
from the spa rather than the pool, the building containing the laundry and
the pool bar was in between the two, and people don't make much noise just
soaking in the spa. Since we were on the third floor, the little noise there
was would be muffled anyway. It turned out she was right, and we loved our
location. Very short walks to everything, except the parking lot and the
rental car. We only took the car out a total of four times during the week,
so that really didn't matter.
About 4:00 we took the bus over to MGM to have our pictures taken for our
Annual Passports. These tickets were one of the things we did right. The
price was approx. $184 including tax and the MKC discount. We never had to
hesitate about using a day's admission to just go on one or two things or see
fireworks. We also didn't have to worry about getting our hands stamped, etc.
Some of the literature in the room mentioned that 6, 7, and 8 day passes were
now available, but there were no prices mentioned. For that length of time, I
think an Annual Passport makes sense.
After having our picture taken we went into the studio and saw Muppets 3-D.
The show was starting immediately, so we didn't get to see any of the things
in the waiting area. The movie was great! One of the highlights of the trip.
Piggy was her usual self, and the little 3-D character was adorable.
We were pretty tired by this time, so went back to the hotel. We tried some of
the New Orleans beers in the bar outside the restaurants. I had a Dixie Black
Voodoo Beer along with some Kings Wings (hot chicken wings). It was a good
thing the beer was heavy, because those wings were HOT! Later in the week I
had a stuffy nose when we had some more wings, and the smell cleared the old
sinuses right out.
After the appetizers we had some good pizza in the food court, then early to
bed. It had been a long day.
Day 2, Sunday, December 22, 1991
--------------------------------
Up at 7:00. Sunday was spent at the Kennedy Space Center. On the way back to
the hotel we stopped at Gooding's at the Crossroad Shopping Center to pick up
some snacks, soft drinks, juices, and breakfast foods. Each morning and night
I filled one of the sinks with ice from the machine (3 ice buckets did it) so
we would have cold drinks in the room. They were colder and cheaper than the
ones from the vending machine.
We got back to the hotel about 4:00, then ate at the Fireworks Factory at
Pleasure Island. The food was good, and there were some blander items and a
children's menu for those who don't like spicier fare. Peter particularly
liked their version of baked beans offered in place of french fries or baked
potato.
We bought a ticket to Pleasure Island and went to the first show at the Comedy
Warehouse. It was a cute show, but kinda short. There was a short improvisation
portion with a person from the audience, but most of it would be the same from
show to show. Once per trip would be enough.
We were too tired to do anything else, so we went back to the hotel.
Day 3, Monday, December 23, 1991
--------------------------------
Up early, had breakfast in the room, then were at the gate of Universal
Studios as they opened for the day. Will post more details about them in
the Universal note. As mentioned by others, they don't handle the crowds
as well as Disney does. One particular ride was continuous loading and
could hold 11 people per vehicle. The employees supervising the loading
were not getting guests into position fast enough, so the vehicles were
leaving with only 3 to 4 people on them! This was when the line for the
ride was 1 hour long!
We went back to the hotel for a rest, then went to the Hoop Dee Doo Review
for the first time. Our table was very close to the stage, behind the piano,
so we didn't miss anything. The show was good, although it was obviously
modified to include some holiday numbers. The best part was the audience
participation. I was trying to guess which parts other noters had had when
picked for their stage debuts.
The food was good and plentiful. Peter's favorite was the Strawberry Shortcake.
He said it was the best he had ever tasted. I liked the fried chicken.
After the show we went back to the hotel and early to bed.
Day 4, Tuesday, December 24, 1991
---------------------------------
Peter's parents arrived at 8:00, so we preregistered them, got them bus passes,
and headed off to the Magic Kingdom.
When we travel we only eat two meals per day: a good-sized breakfast and a
heavy dinner, with a couple light snacks on the run in the middle. We see and
do more that way. Peter's parents have to have three sit down meals per day,
so we were greatly slowed down in how much we could do. The parks were crowded
so service was slow everywhere. Each meal took anywhere from 1 to 2 hours.
Most places seem to be catering to today's health consciousness, offering
eggbeaters and turkey bacon instead of just the traditional fare.
We had breakfast at Tony's Town Square Restaurant, then went into the park. We
did Pirates of the Caribbean and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. We had lunch
at the Crystal Palace (unbelievably slow), then grabbed the train at the new
Frontierland Station to go to Mickey's Starland. Splash Mountain is looking
great. Initially I mistook it for repair work on BTMR, right next door. You
can see where the last drop comes out of the mountain, and how high and steep
it will be. Looks like a fun ride.
In Mickey's Starland we went into the show. Most of the characters were foreign
to us since we don't have young children, but it was fun watching the kids
singing, dancing, and jumping up and down with excitement when they saw their
TV friends "in person". We didn't go into Mickey's dressing room, but back out
to the street. We watched the characters for a while: Captain Hook, Smee, and
some I can't remember. We stopped to see Minnie Moo and her baby, then went to
stake out a spot for the parade.
We found a bench in front of Tony's Town Square Restaurant. There were some
characters I didn't recognize signing autographs on the sidewalk. I asked one
of the mothers who one of them was. We both had to look at her daughter's
autograph book to find out it was Friar Tuck from Robin Hood. He overheard
me, and was indignant that I didn't know him. I apologized and walked back to
our bench. When I turned around, he had followed me and was still scolding me
with his finger. I took his picture and he was satisfied.
The parade was great! The theme is definitely Mardi Gras, with jester type
costumes and stilts. I recognized the girl who played the blond in HDD as
another character in a brown wig and red bathrobe, wishing Merry Christmas
to the audience. Her voice rather than her face caught my attention.
We went back to the hotel for a rest. Then Peter's mother and I took a walk
along the river, and the path continued into Dixie Landings. We just walked
around the sign saying "No Guests Allowed" to check the place out. We could
see a lot of the unfinished plantation buildings on the other side of the
river and I took a lot of pictures. As we reached the main building there
were people leaving, so we turned around before we were caught. Later in the
week Peter and I returned and we saw more. Comments are in the Dixie Landings
note.
We had dinner in the sit down restaurant at Port Orleans. The food was good, but
the prices looked high. The bill was lower than expected. Since we were seated
before 7:00, we received a 15% discount on the bill. Not a bad deal.
The parks had closed at 6:00 for Christmas Eve, so Port Orleans had activities
for the guests. Chestnuts were roasted and passed out, along with cookies and
warm cider. Carollers and a four piece Dixieland combo entertained. There were
visits from Roger Rabbit, Goofy, Santa, and (most important) Mickey Mouse!
Everyone could have a picture taken with the characters.
We adjourned to our room to open gifts, then went to bed fairly early.
Day 5, Wednesday, December 25, 1991
-----------------------------------
We woke early and had breakfast in the food court. The arrangement was
confusing. The only place to order appeared to be in the bakery, but food
was offered elsewhere. We ended up just having pastry.
Off to MGM! We arrived just after the gates opened. We headed straight for
Muppets 3-D, but it was down due to technical difficulties. It was expected
to be back up in 1 hour. We went to Superstar Television, then the Monster
Sound Show and the Animation Tour. Then we tried Muppets 3-D again, and it
was running. We had to wait about 30 minutes, not bad, and we got to see some
of the attractions in the waiting area. Peter's parents didn't want to repeat
anything they had done before, so no Indiana Jones, Star Tours, or Great Movie
Ride. We went to Epcot and had lunch in the Chinese restaurant, then staked
out a spot for Surprise in the Skies. We all enjoyed the show. Then we headed
back to the hotel for a rest.
We ate at the sit down restaurant at Port Orleans again. They were offering
a turkey dinner for Christmas, so that's what everyone ordered. It was probably
the worst meal we had the entire trip. The meat was dried out; just not as good
as other things we had had there.
After dinner we decided to go to the Magic Kingdom to see the Spectramagic
Parade at 9:00. This was a major strategical error. I thought the crowd would
have thinned by that time. The park was packed! We could barely walk down the
middle of the street. We finally found a place to stand, about 7 deep, where
the parade turns the corner in Frontierland. We had never seen the other
Electrical Parade, but we loved this one!
After the parade, rather than fight the crowd down Main Street, we walked
through Fantasyland to the Starland train station, got off at the Main
Street station, cut through underneath, and out to the bus stop. We watched
the fireworks from outside the park. Then back to the hotel and, wearily,
to bed.
Day 6, Thursday, December 26, 1991
----------------------------------
I had to do some laundry, so I went to the laundromat early Thursday morning.
The laundry wasn't finished when it was time to meet for a late breakfast,
so Peter and his parents ate at the sit down restaurant in Port Orleans, while
I had some pastry from the food court.
After breakfast we took the bus to the Disney Village Marketplace to do some
shopping. Peter's parents went back to the hotel before we did. We met later
and had dinner at the Portobello Yacht Club at Pleasure Island. The food was
delicious! We especially enjoyed the appetizer pizzas on the paper thin crust.
It was the most expensive dinner we had for the entire trip, though.
After dinner Peter's parents wanted to ride the train all the way around the
Magic Kingdom. We rode the bus with them to MK, then they rode the train while
we went to MGM to see Sorcery in the Skies. We had been seeing those fireworks
over the adjacent building every night all week, so it was nice to see every-
thing else that went along with the fireworks. Then everyone went back to the
hotel and to bed.
Day 7, Friday, December 27, 1991
--------------------------------
We got up, got Peter's parents' bags loaded into their car and got them
checked out, then rode the bus to the Magic Kingdom, the boat to the TTC, and
walked to the Poly for breakfast. Peter was dying to try banana stuffed French
toast! He said it was very good, but he wouldn't want to have it more than
once per week! The rest of us had pancakes or an omelet.
After breakfast we rode the Monorail back to the MK, than the bus back to
Port Orleans. My in-laws were on the road before noon.
We just loafed around the hotel for the rest of the day, reading by the pool.
We needed a few more things from Gooding's so we went to the market. Having
had so many heavy meals for the past three days, we found McDonald's for
dinner to be a treat! We spent the evening hanging around watching TV.
Day 8, Saturday, December 8, 1991
---------------------------------
We got up early and had breakfast in the room. We went to the Magic Kingdom
and rode the train into Starland. I had to try one of the highly-recommended
cupcakes on the cart opposite Mickey's house and I have to agree they are
the best I've ever had! We even made a special trip back there to have another
later in the day.
Most of the rides we hadn't done yet had lines that were too long. We went into
the Haunted Mansion, walked back into Frontierland and Adventureland, back
through Cinderella's Castle into Fantasyland and back to the train again.
We took the monorail to Epcot and were able to ride in the front! The lines in
Epcot were very long. We went to the American Pavilion to see the show there.
One teenage girl in the audience was having a birthday. As we were being
seated a companion announced it to the audience, so we all sang Happy Birthday
to her. She was very embarassed.
After the show we walked through the Yacht and Beach Club and took the water
taxi over to MGM. We picked up the bus back to Port Orleans for a rest.
For dinner we had a beer and appetizers in the bar at Port Orleans, then
went to dinner at the Fireworks Factory at Pleasure Island again. After
dinner we returned to the room to pack.
Day 9, Sunday, December 29, 1991
--------------------------------
We got up early, finished packing, checked out and loaded the car. Then we took
the bus for a last time at MGM. We had breakfast at the Hollywood and Vine
cafeteria. Then we rode Star Tours. We wanted to see Indiana Jones again, but
the line was too long. We watched the Streetmosphere, then sadly left for the
last time this trip. We went back to the hotel to pick up the car and headed
off to the airport.
Our return flight was scheduled to leave at 3:45 PM. It was 1.5 hours late
because we couldn't get clearance into Boston. We finally left and made good
time, scheduled to land about 8:00. This was the first time I have been on a
plane that had to abort a landing, and we were almost down when it happened.
It was the most frightened I've ever been on a plane since my first flight.
The pilot's comment? "Well, we didn't land." Then he went on to explain that
the plane ahead of us didn't get off the runway, so we had to go back up and
come around again. As we went by him on the way off the plane he told us to
come back again, he wouldn't scare us next time!
It was a wonderful vacation, and it's terrible to be back. Because of comments
in this file we were able to ride in the front of the monorail, see the HDD
review, and know some ins and outs about getting around. I don't think we will
go back again at Christmas, the most crowded time of the year. If we do go again
in December it will be earlier when the parks are less crowded and there are
specials available at some of the better hotels.
|
| 237.40 | Updated report 12/13-12/15 '91 | CSTEAM::STEINHARDT | | Mon Jan 06 1992 10:19 | 461 |
| Updated Trip Report for Ken and Eva Steinhardt, 12/13/91 - 12/15/91:
OK, so we feel guilty about going for the weekend without the kids, but hey,
that just means that they'll enjoy being able to get away with things at home
that they could never do if we were there. Plus they know that mom and dad
won't be allowed back into the house without bringing back Disney
paraphanalia for them.
Our flight left from Logan airport right on time. United must still be
struggling to break into the Boston-Orlando route, as our 727 had only 18
people on it. With four flight attendants on board, it was like having your
own private jet. Despite my being a VERY frequent flier, I don't think that
I've ever enjoyed a flight segment more. Maybe it was because of the
particularly friendly and cheerful United flight crew. Maybe it was the fact
that they decided to provide free drinks for the duration of the flight.
Maybe it was the candy canes that they included on the lunch tray. Maybe it
was because when my wife asked if we could get an extra candy cane to bring
back for our third child (having already donated our two to the post-trip
booty) the flight attendant not only brought us another candy cane, but also
three of the Happy Meal toys from the new McDonalds/United Airlines kid meals
that they offer on their service to and from Orlando. Maybe it was that they
served us "real" wine in "real" glasses, intended for first class, rather than
the "bottle cap" variety that is normally indigenous to coach (free, of
course), since there were no takers for it in first class. Maybe it was that
the flight arrived early. But probably it was the full, unopened bottle of
Champagne that they gave us to take away for after the flight, since our
flight attendant had learned that this was our first time away without the
kids in quite a while, and no one in first class had wanted any. Suffice it
to say that on our next trip to Disneyworld, we will be flying on United
Airlines!!!!!
Our rental car was from Dollar, who are now right in the terminal complex,
making them as convenient as any of the other major rental firms. We had a
brand new Dodge Spirit with hardly any miles on it. Dollar seems to be
getting more aggressive in the Orlando market, we saw Dollar cars everywhere,
virtually all of them also brand new Chrysler products of some sort.
We stayed at the Orlando Marriot on International Drive at Sand Lake Road,
which has rooms that are typical of any
Marriot/Hilton/Hyatt/Insert_your_favorite_hotel_name_here. The grounds
however have a very aesthetically pleasing layout. There are many tropical
plants, flowers, lagoons, fountains, gazebos, and pools around which several
two story buildings are located, on a fairly large property. There are four
great tennis courts in the center of the grounds with full lighting, and I
thought it a crime that they weren't being used by anyone.
After a quick to change to more tropical clothes, we went to dinner at Jose
O'Days in the Mercado complex (which was about 1/2 mile away). The food was
good, with a more southwestern flavor than traditional Mexican fare. The
carnitas were particularly tasty, with large portions, and lots of fresh
cilantro. We also split the shrimp fajitas, which were fine. A coupon from
one of the local free tourist books had a coupon that got us each a free
Margarita.
There are some interesting shops in Mercado, but business seemed quite slow,
especially for it being the holiday shopping frenzy season.
Saturday morning we were up early with the objective of making it to the gate
of MGM by opening, which was officially listed as being at 9:00. On the way
we stopped at the drive through of the McDonalds on Sand Lake Road, just west
of International Drive. Evidently, this McDonalds is open 24 hours, and has
what they claim to be the largest McDonald's playground anywhere (maybe they
should call it "RonaldWorld"...). Without the kids, we weren't about to find
out.
We entered the parking area at MGM at 8:35, and were at the gate by 8:40. The
park had opened at 8:30, and was practically empty. On the right side of just
outside the MGM entrance gate is a billboard announcing that the Twilight Zone
Tower of Terror will be completed in 1994. It sure looks like fun...
First stop: Lunch reservations for the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater. As the hostess
opens the book to record our reservation, I notice we are the first name to
entered on the ledger for the day. Whew, business must be slow, the parks
been open for 15 minutes!
On to see Muppet Vision 3D. The Muppet fountain outside of the building is
worth taking a look at, quite impressive, with Miss Piggy as the statue of
Liberty (taken as we were to learn from a scene in the 3D movie) floating in
the center, and various subtle activities in the fountain around her. The
first show of the day had started just prior to our arrival, so we'll get to
see the whole pre-show in the staging area. If you haven't seen this before,
like we hadn't, I'd suggest taking the time to examine all of the "stuff" that
has been assembled in the pre-show area, in addition to the pre-show on the TV
monitors. There are various travel trunks for different Muppet characters,
such as Miss Piggy's which included "satin dresses" in one, "more satin
dresses" in another, and "the rest of the satin dresses" in a third. The
pre-show runs on four sets of three video monitors, where each set of three
has been synched together to show more than one monitor possibly could without
making the characters too small. There were at most 15 other people waiting
for the show. When the doors to the theater opened, the cast member running
things stated "take any seat that you'd like!, where any other comment really
wouldn't have been appropriate. We could have each had our own rows. Upon
entering the theater, my wife noticed almost immediately that the patterns on
the side walls were projections, and not real, physical decoration. For those
of you that haven't seen the show, I'll give away no more... I enjoyed the
show, but much more for the "effects" than anything else, which make it more
than worth seeing (and feeling...)
Next, we went over to Star Tours, with no line at all, and we walked straight
into the waiting rows by the shuttle entrance door. There were two minutes
until the previous "flight" ends, and we could choose whatever row we want.
We choose the back row, and after the ride is finished, since there are still
no lines, we ride it again, this time from the front row. There are new seat
belts on Star Tours, now much wider, and of more sturdy construction. I guess
they must have had some problems with the previous belts, I remember them
sometimes getting twisted when releasing them from our previous trip. We
probably could have stayed and kept riding for an hour or so without a crowd,
but left for The Great Movie Ride.
Again, no line at all, we were ushered right into a car ready to depart, for
the western side.
As we left TGMR, they had just started seating for the Indiana Jones Stunt
Spectacular, so we were able to get seats in the second row, just right of
center. On our previous trip with the kids last May, they had not gone
through the entire show due to rain, so we were looking forward to seeing what
we had missed. What we had missed back then was probably about 3/4 of the
show! OK, but not one of my favorites.
We had plenty of time to get over to the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater after the show
for our lunch reservations at 11:30. There must have been plenty of
reservations to follow ours from earlier that morning, because the place was
packed! Curiously enough, by 12:30 when we left, there were plenty of seats,
er, tables, er, CARS. This place is great!! Eva and I agreed that our two
favorite places to eat ANYWHERE in DisneyWorld are now the Sci-Fi and the 50's
Prime Time Cafe. The room simulates night at a California-style drive-in
theater, where you sit in a convertible car, each one different in both style
and color. Each car has three bench seats, with a dimly lit counter in front
of each. Our "car-hop" told us not to drive over 5mph, and to "watch it"
since we were being seated in the back seat. Hearing that, we couldn't resist
hamming it up in the back seat, (but hey, we can't get TOO wild, this is
Disneyworld after all!) and the group in the two bench seats in front of us
offered to take a picture of us to be used for "blackmail". The service was
outstanding, as multiple people assisted in bringing food and cleaning up,
including our "car-hop" who entered our order car-side with a hand-held
wireless terminal, and someone on roller skates who brought us popcorn. We
shared the Reuben sandwich (excellent!) and the Veggie sandwich (OK), with
which we chose the fresh fruit and pasta salad as the included side dishes
(both very good). We were able to wash it down with....Yes, Leinenkugel Beer!
(For the truly bored, see my trip report from May '91 for a description of the
significance of Leinenkugel beer) The desserts were exceptional, Eva had some
NY-style cheesecake which is offered with a choice of toppings (she took
strawberries), and I had some banana creme pie. The menu included mostly
sandwiches and salads, but also had some full-meal entrees, such as today's
special, The Alien Platter, which included Veal Parmigiana.
The main attraction of the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater is, of course, the theater
itself, and what is constantly being projected on the full-size drive-in movie
screen in front of you. They have collected an amazing set of movie trailers,
intermission trailers, and humorous stuff that has been chosen for incredible
campiness, silliness, and in general does a good job of recreating the kind of
stuff that was at drive-ins in the late 50's and early 60's. In this case,
they have specifically gone after "bad" Sci-Fi. Some of the movie trailers
included: Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster, The Amazing Colossal Man,
Attack of the Fifty-Foot Woman, Space Cadet, Robot Monster, and most
importantly, Plan 9 From Outer Space, which is generally regarded by film
critics and historians as the WORST movie EVER made. Spaced (no pun
intended!) between the trailers are some old intermission clips, you know the
kind, dancing hot dogs, singing popcorn, and such. As we looked around at
some of the other cars, we noticed that kids were just absolutely and totally
engrossed in what was showing on the screen. The film loop ran for 45 minutes
before repeating.
Stomachs full, we went to the animation building, just to see the Walter
Cronkite/Robin Williams film, one of our favorites. As usual, there was no
wait, and by now we had come to call MGM "our own private Disneyworld" for the
day. After the film, we had no problem in walking straight through the
animation studio section, and through the final animation theater to the
exits without stopping.
The reason for our haste in getting through and back out was that at 1:00 the
Dinosaurs were going to be coming down Hollywood Boulevard to the front of the
Chinese Theater for their show, and on this particular day, they were filming
the show to be used in the upcoming Christmas morning special. We were able
to get right up front along the right side of the theater, and through dumb
luck, it appears likely that we will be in the background during the broadcast
Christmas morning, as the camera crew was positioned as such:
Chinese Theater
X
Dinosaurs
X
X--Us!
Camera Crew on truck
X
Just look for the tall guy with the white baseball cap with a Minnesota Twins
"M" logo on it, shades with an orange Day-Glo (oops, NEON) cord, a white
Mexican skeleton shirt, and a stupid look on his face, next to the fabulously
beautiful brunette with shades and a black & white pattern shirt that looks
like something Salvador Dali dreamed up. It's just amazing that this woman
was wearing the same things as my wife. JUST KIDDING!!!!!!!!!!!!
Amazing how they shoot these things, they even held all of us in the crowd
back from the area with a rope fence until the camera truck came into view,
then removed the rope so that it wouldn't show during filming.
We then had planned to go on the backstage tour, but at the entrance saw a
sign stating that the Catastrophe Canyon portion was closed, which was the
only part that Eva had wanted to see anyway, so we skipped the tram and walked
down to where Inside The Magic: Special Effects and Production Tour begins.
For the second time, as had happened last May, we arrived about 30 seconds
before the tour was about to begin, and missed the pre-show. This time
however, there were only maybe thirty people in the multiple lines, so we
walked right up to near the front of a line. Just as we were about there, the
woman who would be our "tour guide" told the group "I need a star", then
promptly grabbed my arm as I reached the line and said "and here he is!".
Yes, I was about to become Captain Duck, the submarine commander for the water
effects show.
While the rest of the crowd moves along to watch, I'm escorted along with
another guy that was going to be the first "victim" at the helm of the boat,
to a shed where they get you into some yellow waders, a yellow rain suit with
a hood, and ask for your shoe size to fit you with the most heavy duty boots
I've ever seen. You are really quite waterproof, with the only possible
exposure being the your face. I'm told that my cue will be when they say
"dump it!", where "it" is 800 gallons of water being poured over the other
guy, and I'm then to head out to my submarine command position, where I'll be
looking for enemy fire with binoculars. They set you up nicely with the
simulated machine gun fire into the water, and then blast you with a submarine
hit that pours an awful lot of water over your head. I didn't get wet at
all, as when I saw that water coming up from the ground, I just looked down
and true to my role as Captain Duck, it all rolls off your back. The effects
look very different from out there rather than in the audience!
They were filming for a new Disney channel show coming next year called
"Adventures in Wonderland" as well as for "Body By Jake" that day. The "Body
By Jake" shoot had completed, but we were able to watch the live production of
"Adventures in Wonderland" across the first two studios. Note - when you get
to the sound dubbing station on the tour, they ARE NOT showing the Pee Wee
Herman/Mel Gibson video that we had seen last time, but simply have the tour
guide discuss what goes on there while blank video screens hang overhead, then
move you on to the preview trailer theater. I guess that Pee Wee is still
considered just a little too controversial for Disney. However it was
absolutely still his voice on Star Tours.
As you leave the studio area, there is a sign on the wall on the right side
that announces a new Little Mermaid ride, to be completed in 1992. On the
left, was a sign simply stating "Beauty and The Beast" outside the Soundstage
restaurant. We decided to have a look, and sure enough, just inside the
entrance way were a woman dressed as "Beauty" (no exaggeration!), and the most
amazing costume that I've ever seen on a character in the parks for "The
Beast". They were posing for pictures with guests, and drawing quite a crowd.
We decided to leave MGM for now, and drive over to the Magic Kingdom to ride
our favorites there. I must have been excited, because I missed the entrance
to the main parking lot completely, and next thing I knew we were at the
Contemporary Hotel. Hey, why not park here and take the monorail? No problem
finding a space, up the elevator, and hey, what's this?, for the first time
ever that we've been to Disneyworld, they ask to see our passes at the
turnstile to the monorail. No problem, we flash the trusty super passes, he
even checks the date, and we're up the escalator to the platform. I can see
that a monorail is just about to leave, so we run to catch it, without
realizing just as the door closes that I've now landed us heading back to the
transportation center. Oh well, so we'll take the scenic route around to the
Magic Kingdom. At the TTC a ferry has just landed, so hey, why not, let's
take the boat over. We exit the monorail, and take the ferry, which we have
practically all to ourselves.
As we enter the park, there is a huge crowd around Mainstreet USA. Evidently
we have just arrived in time for the 3:00 Surprise! Parade. Not wanting to be
late for Space Mountain, we position ourselves right at the end of mainstreet,
just at the walkway leading over to Tomorrowland to watch the parade. Great
parade, we haven't seen this one before, it reminds me very much of Festival
in Nice, France, great costumes, lots of stilts, almost some Mocko Jumbie
moves out there.
OK parade over, on to Space Mountain. Boy are we getting spoiled, it's the
first line for ANYTHING that we've encountered all day, and we are forced to
wait almost an eternity, FOUR WHOLE MINUTES (I had to time it) to ride Space
Mountain (left side, both were operating). This ride has always been a
favorite for both of us, and Eva STILL insists that it's better if you
scream...
A brisk walk over to the Haunted Mansion, and we walk right in without a wait.
By now we've both realized that you can see about 98% more without having to
keep an eye on the kids, but I still think that it's more fun to watch the
kids.
Next over to Big Thunder Mountain, and WOW, the construction for Splash
Mountain has been unbelievable since May, the structure looks basically
complete on the outside, and does it ever look great! I've been on the one in
California, and this is currently my favorite Disney ride. The only downside
to when I rode it in California, was that I made the mistake of sitting in the
very front seat of the log, and to say that I got wet would be a gross
understatement. After I got off, the Japanese family that had been sitting
behind me in the log all shook my hand, and thanked me profusely for my act of
kindness in shielding them from the deluge with my body. It took a couple of
hours to dry out...
Anyway, I can't wait for it to open in Florida.
The line for Big Thunder Mountain was all the way out to the beginning of the
corral, but being somewhat Disney veterans we knew that this didn't
necessarily mean anything, as possibly the number of back and forth turns
within might be minimal. Indeed this was the case, as despite the appearance,
we waited only ten minutes, which would be our only wait even close to that
length of time all day. Maybe we've been on this too many times, or maybe
it's because we had just been on Space Mountain a half hour prior, but the
ride seemed unusually mild. Still a favorite, though.
Pirates of the Caribbean next, about a 3 minute wait, Yo Ho Yo Ho a Pirates
life for me...
OK, time to get that famous Dole Whip which we didn't wait on line for last
trip because the line was too long. This time there are only two people in
front of us, not bad. OK, get ready to pelt me with written projectiles,
maybe it was just this batch, but we weren't impressed. The fresh pineapple
piece that they stick in it was delicious, but the famous Dole Whip had more
ice and air than pineapple to it, it even had a huge air pocket in the middle,
rather than being filled solid, making the actual volume of 'Whip even less
than it appeared. Given the fact that I wasn't overwhelmed by this stuff
anyway, I viewed this as a selling benefit. OK, hate me, I even threw away
the last quarter or so, as it was basically cold inflated ice with a subtle
hint of something that might be possibly related to pineapple. Please tell me
that it was probably just a bad batch made by a rookie cast member who had a
bad experience with pineapples as a child...but if not, I won't buy the stuff
again, unless maybe it was 103 degrees and there wasn't a line.
We take the monorail back to the contemporary, and drive back to MGM to catch
some of what we hadn't earlier, and since it's Saturday night, see Sorcery In
The Sky, which we hadn't seen before.
As we walk by Superstar Television, we see that they've just started a show,
so we keep going to the Monster Sound show, where a show is about to start in
3 minutes. This particular group of "Foley Artists" actually isn't too bad.
We move next to Super Star Television, where we've timed it just right to
enter as a new show is about to begin. We've arrived too late for casting, so
we can just sit back and enjoy the show. Whew, who cast this, half these
people can't read, and most have the theatric expression of zucchini. Not one
of the better broadcasts.
On to Sorcery in the sky, we made the MISTAKE of being up close, along the
left side, where although you may be close, there are several obstacles, like
trees. It would appear that an EXCELLENT spot to watch from would be right in
the middle of Hollywood Blvd., at the spot where the stores end, across from
the Theater of the Stars. Great fireworks though, of what we could see, and
that's one big mouse at the end....
OK, that's two parks that we've closed down today, on to the third, EPCOT
center, for whatever we can fit in before Illuminations starts at 9:00.
Since there isn't much time, I figured that we'd try a shortcut to beat the
crowd now headed from MGM to the EPCOT parking lot with the same idea.
Instead of driving to EPCOT, we drive to the Dolphin, park in their parking
lot, and take the Dolphin/Swan tram to the International Gateway entrance to
EPCOT. Hey, no problem, we're in the park in time to see O Canada (no line)
and Maelstrom (no line) before settling in for a near-perfect viewing spot for
Illuminations, which is right between Mexico and Norway along the rail.
Illuminations was incredible now that we could see it, which is more than I
would have been able to say about the viewing spot we had on our last trip, by
Canada, where at least we could hear the music...
With the three parks now closed, thus ended the day at Disneyworld.
We walked clockwise, against the traffic, back to the International Gateway,
boarded a tram back to the Swan/Dolphin, and headed back to the hotel to
change before dinner. It was now about 60 degrees outside, and it was getting
just a tad cold in our shorts...
Since Eva had been badgering me to have sushi for what seemed like centuries,
we went to Rengatsu on International Drive, across the street from Mercado.
We evidently just made it in time, as they were hosting a private holiday
party that evening, and at 10:30 P.M. we were about the last regular patrons
that they let in the door. What appeared to be one sure good sign immediately
was that we were the only non-Japanese in the place! The sushi and makisushi
were outstanding, and clearly their specialty. While we also had full dinner
fare, it was merely OK by comparison to the sushi. Their sushi bar is
enormous, and there were several sushi chefs. I tried one of their special
maki's, "Florida Roll", which was very similar to California Roll, except that
the crab was more of a crab salad. I loved it, Eva didn't really care for it,
but she devoured the rest of the sushi with some help from me, including
salmon, octopus, tekka maki, yum.
Since by now it was approaching 11:30, it didn't make any sense to head back
down to WDW and Pleasure Island as we had originally planned, so we went to
Mercado to The Cricketeer's Arms, which is an Americanized version of what
someone perceives to be an English Pub. While not quite authentic, at least
by contrast to pubs that I've been to in the UK, it was quite nice and
comfortable. There was a "balladeer" playing acoustic guitar and singing, and
yes, they do serve hand-drawn ales. Seeing that Fuller's London Pride was on
the menu (which I had imbibed during my last trip to Reading in the UK), I
ordered two, to which I got two very interesting responses. First, that they
were out of London Pride, but could still offer Fuller's Extra Special
Bitters, and second, the bartender wanted to see my ID. I wasn't sure whether
to be flattered or insulted. After seeing my birthdate, the bartender
exclaimed: "I've been off before, but never THAT off!.." The bitters were
served a lot colder than I remember ever having in the UK, but tasty
nonetheless. A pint or two, then back to sleep.
Sunday, 12/15/91:
We decided to spend the day at a more leisurely pace after the previous days
marathon, and slept until about 9 or so, then had a nice buffet breakfast at
the hotel, including made to order pancakes with fruit and nuts. Since we
would never be allowed back home without bringing some Disney merchandise for
the kids, we went to the Walt Disney World Shopping Village to be spending
fools.
It was really quite crowded, but then I suppose that it was just ten days
before Christmas, and more than just the normal tourist traffic was there.
After spending the bulk of our money (what little there was) in Mickey's
Character shop, we took a stroll to Pleasure Island to shop a little (very
little) for ourselves.
Pleasure Island had some particularly interesting wreath decorations, with
multicolored Day-Glo (NEON, neon, I keep forgetting...) patterns, just a tad
more rad than the rest of the property, dude. The place was pretty empty, and
most of the shops were quiet, with a notable exception of Superstar Studios,
which was hopping, with several customers queued to perform. Despite my best
efforts to persuade her, I couldn't talk Eva into doing a video without the
kids there to be the stars.
Portobello Yacht Club was also basically empty as we went in for lunch, at
most there were 6 other people in the place. As was the case on our last
trip, the food and service were excellent. Eva had a huge portion of mussels
in a delicious tomato base sauce, I had the Pizza Isabella, which included
prosciuto, plum tomatoes, mushrooms, fresh basil, mozzarella, and fresh dill.
One can't travel this far without having the Capuccino Portobello for dessert,
which is capuccino with Frangelico and Grand Marnier, topped with fresh
whipped cream.
Sufficiently fed, we decided to scout out Port Orleans and Dixie Landings. As
has been described by many in this conference, Port Orleans is quite nice.
Although there is only the one main pool, I'd have to say that it looks to be
one of the nicest in WDW, and that giant alligator slide on the far end of the
pool looks like something kids could spend hours on. We bought some black
bean turtle soup mix in the shop at Port Orleans which we've since cooked up
at home (without the turtle), and was quite good, especially with some added
Chef Hans hot sauce. The food court at Port Orleans is indeed much smaller
than the food court at the Caribbean Beach Resort, but the sit-down restaurant
looked nice.
Dixie Landings sure looks as if it is pretty close to completion. It appears
to span both sides of the Sassagoula River, much larger than Port Orleans, but
not as sprawling as the CBR.
The flight back on United was not quite like the flight down, merely normal
and efficient, as it left and arrived close to schedule, and was almost full.
Miscellaneous Comments:
The holiday decorations are spectacular, all throughout the parks. I believe
that Disney must have cornered the market on poinsettias, they are EVERYWHERE,
including many flower beds that had previously had seasonal flowers.
The Christmas trees in each of the three parks are incredible, two of them
around 80 ft. tall, the "little" one being 70 ft. tall, with wonderful
decoration.
The crowds were the smallest that I have ever seen in all three parks, it
almost felt private.
Cheers,
Ken
|
| 237.42 | Conliffe Family 13-Dec -> 27-Dec | SNOBRD::CONLIFFE | out-of-the-closet Thespian | Wed Jan 08 1992 14:55 | 131 |
| Well, this is sort-of a summary of a trip report; it covers the highs and lows
of our journey and stay in WDW. I'm leaving a lot of stuff out, but what the
heck.
Thursday Night 12 Dec 1991
Packed the camper, and hitched it up to the van. Loaded the van. Seriously
considered setting off at midnight "just to get a start on the journey", but
Alison talked me out of it!!
Friday 13 Dec.
Set off at the crack of dawn (about 06:30) and had an univentful trip thru the
pouring rain down to Washington DC. The monotony of the trip was only broken by
a toll-booth attendant saying to me "do you know you have flames coming out from
under your van?" as we pulled off the NJ Turnpike. Well, after a hasty exit
from the van and much looking underneath it, there was no sign of any fire (or
damage) anywhere around it. Still, it _did_ get us all woken up and ready for
the next hundred miles!
Arrived at Cherry Park Campground, which is near the junction of I95 and the
Beltway to the North. It's a nice campground, the sites were clean and
well-spaced, looks like a nice place (given we arrived after and left early in
the morning!). At about 8:00pm, I answered a knock at the door to find a
police detective (complete with badge!) who asked when we'd arrived. I told him;
he left -- never did find out what happened!!!
Saturday 14 Dec.
Uneventful day. Spent the night at Camp Pedro, "South of The Border"!!!
Excellent place!
Sunday 15 Dec.
Uneventful daya again. Spent the night at the KOA-Savannah South campground.
Another nice place, quiet and peaceful. A very pleasant break.
Sunday 16 Dec.
Arrived at Fort Wilderness (cheers, whistles). We had a nice surprise at the
reception outpost. I thought we were leaving on the morning of the 26th, but
Rusty (our friendly cast member) insisted that we were booked through to the
morning of the 27th. Yay! An unexpected extra day at Disney [turned out to be
_my_ inability to count, rather than any great gift from the Ghost of Walt!].
Got all set up, went and bought our super-passes (ouch) and picked up tickets
for the varuious shows.
Bad Point: We'd made and confirmed reservations for the "Top of The World" show
but when we came to pick up the tickets, Wayne (another friendly cast member in
Fort Wilderness) told us that the show had been cancelled because all the cast
were in the "Mickey's Joyous Holiday Celebration" show (which we also had
tickets for, by the way). Rats. We managed to make reservations for the "Top Of
The World" while we were there, but it was still a bummer.
OK, for the rest of this, let me just list a few high spots and low spots,
seeing as most of us are familiar with the "World".
1. Disney MGM Studios: We spent more time here than in either of the other two
parks this visit. Alison, Iain (9�) and I loved "Star Tours" -- we went on it
several times on our first morning at the park. As an aside, the lines were so
short on our first day (17 Dec) that I deliberately went back and watched the
pre-show even though there was no-one in front of me.
Muppet*vision is _great_, _excellent_, _fantastic_... From some of the neat
signs and fixed props in the line and pre-show areas (I _loved_ "You must be
shorter that this to enter" and Rizzo in the preshow) to the theatre itself; I
think this is the best "ride" in the park.
We had lunch at the 50's Prime-Time cafe; it was OK. Our waiter seemed
introverted and quiet, compared to those at surrounding tables --I don't think
it was just us, because he was like that at his other tables too. But we got to
watch other people being hassled by the staff, so it was OK.
On Christmas Day, we had supper at the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theatre. This was
EXCELLENT. The surroundings are just amazing; you sit in a mock-up car in a
drive-in; you're watching clips from some wonderful movies ("Attack of the 50'
Woman", "It", "Attack of the ...") and cartoons on what looks like an outdoor
screen, the sound comes from a little box beside you, you can see the lights of
Hollywood off in the distance... This was our best dining/theatre experience of
the trip.
2. EPCOT: Our first day at EPCOT was cut short, because my wife missed a step
in the "Living Seas" exhibit and sprained her ankle early one morning! So, we
saw a little of the backstage life of the Disney operation. From behind, the
EPCOT centre looks like a big industrial park with various strangely-labelled
warehouses! Still, at least it settled the argument over whether the
"hydrolators" actually go anywhere.
We saw the "Surprise in the Sky" show and it was neat; a little different and
quite exciting. We visited a few old favorites in EPCOT (including Body Wars
and Spaceship Earth) and had our picture taken at the Kodak "Image Magic" stand.
This was neat; we stood in front of a blue-screen and had our picture grabebd by
a video camera. Then a computer merged our picture with that of the selected
backdrop; we watched as the operator moved our image around, trimmed it and
merged 'em. I've got a photo in my office and it looks as though we were out
under the monorail!!
3. Magic Kingdom: Always a favorite! Again, we visited some of our favorite
rides (Haunted House, Small World, Peter Pan, 20,000 Leagues, Big Thunder
Mountain) and tried a couple of new ones (the keelboats [neat patter] and the
Hall of Presidents [very stirring, even to a non-american]).
Watched the Spectro-Magic parade, and was quite impressed. I never saw the ELP,
so can't reallly compare it, but it captured my attention!
Saw Splash Mountain; its coming along right nicely. I like the way that Spash
Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain and the new "Frontierland" RR Station fit in with
each other.
We avoided the MK on Christmas Day, but insteand spent our time at the MGM
Studios. I heard from people who went over to the MK that it was literally
"wall-to-wall" with people, to quote some woman that we met "there wasn't room
to fall over!!"
4. Shows: We saw the Hoop-Dee-Doo review and _loved_ it. They're now doing
THREE shows nightly, and still you need to book well in advance to get in! We
were in the second row of tables in the middle, right in front of the stage.
None of us got picked to be in the play (thank goodness). We were repeatly told
that the Review is the most popular show on the property (WDW!) and it's still
got it! As an aside, the day we went was the day that my wife sprained her
ankle (see earlier) and we'd spent all day at the Orlando Medical Centre. We
were hassled, frazzled, tired and (Alison at least) was in pain when we arrived
at the show. We left singing, happy, and in a great mood.
We saw the "Joyous Holiday" celebration in the new convention center at the
Contemporary. It was good, but we were struck by the similarities to some of the
"Walt Disney on Ice" shows that we have seen. However, wehen the deep voice of
the announcer came on with "Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls...", I
literally got shivers down my spine. I'd been expecting something intimate
(perhaps on the scale of the Hoop-dee-doo or the Luau; instead, the ballroom at
the convention centre must have had table space for 2000 people (yes, two
thousand) based on the number of tables and seats per table. Food was good,
service was friendly, show was entertaining.
Alison and I finally saw the Top of The World show. Still a good show, and a
good meal, although you could tell that the performers were still getting back
into the swing of things after the Holiday show. Alison was surprised that they
sang a song ("I Want It All", from Baby) which she had performed in our local
community theatre... the look on her face was marvellous.
So we're saving up now for when we go back in a couple of years...
Nigel
|
| 237.43 | our 91-92 trip report | SASE::FAVORS::BADGER | One Happy camper ;-) | Wed Jan 15 1992 13:03 | 85 |
|
This is kinda a downer review, so feel free to do a next/unseen.
20-dec 3:30 PM all packed, kids on board, ready to go.
5:30 PM mechanical problems on the motorhome. just before
hartford, CON. We limp to Farmingham, Con, to a garage and
Bed down for the night they were to look at it at 7:30AM.
wait until 11AM. they can't find problem, suggest we stay
until monday [this was saterday] when they can give more
time. Family votes to limp down highway.
it become unbearable, 5-10 mph on 84, i go from exit to
exit looking for a mechanic or lead. can't find any.
In New York off 84 I find an RV garage at 5 PM and they
find a simple $5 part causing problem [in-lin fuel filter]
We are on our way again.
We did the Penn route south, taking rt 84 to 209 to 33 to
78, stopping in Hershey to take the tour. But stopped on
209 to camp for the night. on Sunday we reached SOB.
on Monday reached Edgewater, FLA. I was sick for next 3
days.
26-dec toured KSC, then onto Fort Wilderness. We paid for a
perferred site and got one of the most unperferred sites
available. news here is they got cable installed at all
perferred sites. Majic Kingdom discount did not apply
due to time of season, In fact I got no discounts from this
useless card all the time we were there [except shopping
villa].
27-dec MGM day. muppets thing was cute, except I never see 3-D
due to eye problems. ate at prime time cafe, not worth the
money or time. waitress never interacted with us.
28-dec EPCOT ate again at German restraunt. Food still great.
one comment here as two of us in the family are alergic to
smoke. We always request non-smoking. Disney [and a lot
of other restraunts] assumes some magical curtain contains
the smoke generated at a next door table. We spent $200 at
the German restraunt [6 people] and could bearly breath
through meal and had reactions after.
29-dec TL our first time here. Ispent the day in the creek.
It was warm. all other bodies of water were very cold.
family liked it.
30-dec MK day. took train to fronter land. New station open.
nice, but not as good as the old one. its a people/line
hider. takes you 5 minutes to go from landing to exit.
crowds huge. Haven't seen lines like this since MK opened.
oh, before the train ride, at 8:30, went to get horseshoe
review reservations, and they were sold out.
we waited an hour for the 3pm parade. the crowds were so
packed, there was no room to move a foot. vertually
standing in position for the 11/2 hours. I was ready to
faint just to move. I was in misery during the parade and
was happy when it was over and I could move again. Every
muscle hurt. we did not stay for the night parade!
31-dec rest day. rented a gof cart and toured the place.
also HDD day. although we had reservations a year in
advance, we were seated at the back of the place. This did
not make me happy. Since we had eight days to pick from,
there should be some mechanisiam to tell people where the
seats would be for the particular day/show they chose!
other times a year in advance got me front row seats.
1-jan back to EPCOT/ without wife whos back was in spasms.
again bad lines.
2-jan rest day. oldest daughter [French exchange student]
becomes sick.
3-jan Universal day. wife bad back, oldest daughter very sick.
myself and other three kids tour universal. I find park
not as good as one in California. Back to future just
throws you around for no good reason. I was able to see
other seven cars taking same adventure as mine. Definately
not as good as Star Tours! I was not impressed with this
park. I doubt that I'd go back again. Kids were ready to
leave at 12 so we left and started heading North [home].
6-Jan arrive home. daughter really bad. take to hospital.
diagnosed as flue.
7-Jan daughter really really bad. ruptured appendix. quick
into operation.
also, I break my leg, will be in cast for 6-8 weeks.
now to recover from the vacation!
ed
|
| 237.44 | Long trip report warning | NEWVAX::DOYLE | Endor Frequent Traveler | Thu Feb 13 1992 17:26 | 2 |
| Warning...what follows is a 675-line trip report, much overdue, but
I finally finished it. If you need a good fix, read on.
|
| 237.45 | WDW trip report from the Doyles | NEWVAX::DOYLE | Endor Frequent Traveler | Thu Feb 13 1992 17:28 | 697 |
| So it's a little late (okay, it's a LOT late).....but at least it's
thorough and comprehensive (okay, it's really long)...but it's FINISHED.
WALT DISNEY WORLD TRIP REPORT
WHO: Ellen and Ted Doyle
WHEN: September 7 - 14, 1991
Day 1 - Saturday, September 7
Woke up bright (actually, it was pretty dark...) and early at 4:30 AM to
load the car and make it to the airport for a 6:55 AM flight from Baltimore to
Orlando. Arrived in the sunshine state on time and so did our luggage! Had a
bit of trouble getting to the rental car counters as the elevators near the
baggage claim were all out of order. After struggling down the escalators,
proceeded to pick up our Hertz rental car without further incident. Rate was
$126.00 for eight days including USAir Frequent Traveler discount and all other
extra charges, taxes, etc. On the road to the World by 9:30.
On arrival at the property, we proceeded immediately to EPCOT to purchase
our annual passports. We were allowed to park in the handicapped area very
near the entrance when we said we only intended to purchase passes. No wait at
the guest services window, and we were able to purchase our Pleasure Island
adders and get everything laminated at the same time.
The next stop was the Yacht Club, our residence for the week. Talk about
service! The bellhops emptied the car in a flash, and whisked it off to be
parked (the free valet parking was a big plus, in our estimation). Check
in took a little while, as the old "preferences game" had to be played.
We wound up with a smoking room, although we couldn't tell (and I am
VERY allergic; I was really surprised). The lobby was beautiful, and
our room was also lovely; I want a ceiling fan for the house now because
it was so nice to have it in the room. Everything was immaculate and
we loved the decor. The only problem was the refrigerator. We had
asked the desk for one; they said ask Housekeeping to get the mini-bar
emptied; Housekeeping pitched a fit at this; finally on Sunday Housekeeping
sent up a fridge. Well, it was worth it in the end, but a long tedious
exercise in the meanwhile.
By this time we were hungry (for both food and our first sighting of
the World). We walked off to EPCOT, crossed the International Gateway, and
worked our way over to Canada by 2:00. Canada's Le Cellier was the perfect
choice for hungry people; the Cheddar soup was a meal in itself. We each
had a sandwich and drinks, mine was something called Pemeal Bacon, which
was pork in cornbread coating. Yum! And not too bad, $18.00 for soup or
salad, sandwich, and unlimited refill beverage (for two).
Upon coming out, we saw it had rained (hard), but was now dry. Went
into O Canada, and loved it. Came out, and it had again rained, but
we missed it (the story of our week!). We hopped a bus, and scrambled
off because my husband the Pooh fan spotted his idol near Morocco. After
pictures, we headed to Morocco, and got a tour from a lovely young lady
from Marrakesh named Raja. Next stop was Japan, and the Women's Arts
exhibit. A sculpture of bare branches transformed into a musical instrument
with dripping water was our favorite. We skipped the department store.
After a stop back at the room, we took the boat launch to MGM.
Here we had our first of many run-ins with cast members manning the turnstiles.
Having been informed from the notesfile that annual passport holders did
not need the re-entry handstamps, we did not get them when we left EPCOT.
At MGM, we were informed that it didn't matter what kind of pass you had,
you still needed a handstamp. After a bit of wrangling, we got in anyway.
I persuaded my husband to "just go for a look" at Star Tours, as we
still had 15 minutes before our Brown Derby reservation. Lo and behold,
NO LINE!! I have done Star Tours 4 times in Disneyland, but he had never
done it. I think it's fair to say that we consider it our mutual
favorite. After rockin' and rollin' it was time (and a little past) for
dinner at the Brown Derby. We discovered that meals at Disney tend to
include extras! Our Derby entrees included soups, and the servings
were quite substantial. After a glass of wine each, and Fettucine Derby
for me and Shrimp Mousse-stuffed chicken for my husband, the damage
(with tip) was $55.00. With a few minutes to spare, we staked a claim
on the pavement in front of the Chinese Theatre for Sorcery in the
Sky. We heard and saw it all. One day at the World and I was hooked
for life...
We ended the first day at Pleasure Island, with the kooky show
in the Mask Room at the Adventurer's Club. What a pleasantly odd
place!
Day 2 - Sunday, September 8
We started the day with church at the Luau Cove in the Polynesian.
Then, we monorailed off to the Contemporary for Brunch at the Top of the
World. The food (especially the seafood) was excellent, and they
must have had special drinking glasses there because the level of our
Mimosas never seemed to go down very far...(hmmm, wonder if I can
find a set of THOSE at the Disney store..). The total was $58.00 for
two (keep in mind that all prices I give include healthy tips; the
service was too good to do anything else). After some photos from
the observation decks, we walked over to the Magic Kingdom. On the way
we stopped to chat with a cast member "watering the elephants"; there
are several elephant topiaries along the walkway from the Contemporary
to the MK and the bushes were getting their daily soakings.
On to the Magic Kingdom and our first view of the Castle. Something
about it just takes your breath away and makes you feel like a little kid
again. We goggled and pointed all the way up Main Street, whereupon my
husband took the lead and led us over to Adventureland. Here we encountered
one of the longest waits we had all week, all of 20 minutes for the
Jungle Cruise. Now, I love a bad pun, and we had our fill from Phil,
our guide. The highlight of the trip (for me, I don't know about the
rest of the passengers..) was as we were passing the remains of
"his former crew, who succumbed to cannibals." I couldn't resist adding
"I bet they had a bone to pick with you." My comment evoked a look from
the guide and fellow passengers both that indicated I might be next
if I contributed further... BTW, we shared the boat with a group of
the Dreaded Brazilian Tourists, and believe it or not, they actually behaved
themselves.
Off to "The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room." What a hoot (literally
and figuratively). Continuing along, our hopes that Pirates of the Caribbean
would be operating (despite the fact that we had been told it would be closed
until October) were dashed as we saw the ubiquitous Disney construction walls
in front of the entrance. Heading into Frontierland, we saw that the
construction for Splash Mountain was well underway. The ride building seems
to be finished, the steel looks like it's all in place, and they were starting
to sculpt the rocks at the lower part of the mountain. You could also see the
well publicized drop at the end of the ride. Looks like a lot of fun!!
[P.S. I have since done Splash Mountain at Disneyland, and it was...an
experience. They lull you into a false sense of security with the
"Zip-a-dee-doo-dahs" and then DUMP you down the looooong, steeeeep chute!
Your vocal cords may not survive the experience...]
Against my better judgment, my husband talked me into Big Thunder.
Me, the original Roller Coaster Coward. (There wasn't enough of a wait on
it for me to change my mind.) I shrieked bloody murder for the first
30 seconds; and then it came out as a laugh, and I loved every minute onward.
Ted said watching me was as much fun as the ride. I needed tamer entertainment
after that, and the Country Bear Vacation Hoedown was just right. Now, I never
saw the Country Bear Jamboree, but my husband has, and thought that it was
better than the CBVH. I just know I loved it (especially Big Al). The
Hall of Presidents was next, and we both enjoyed that very much; I'm
glad we saw it before we saw the American Adventure, though; I think I would
have been a little disappointed had we seen them in reverse order. The
Haunted Mansion had no wait either, and we got aboard for the swinging wake.
By now we were wearing down, and stayed long enough for the Hit Parade
before going back on the Monorail to retrieve the car at the Poly. As
we boarded the Monorail, it started to rain (again). At this point, we were
beginning to wonder just how long our luck would keep us dry... We made
a trip to Goodings for breakfast and snack food for the rest of the week,
and went back to the Yacht Club to drop off the booty and nap.
Decided to tram rather than walk over to EPCOT. At the International
Gateway, we had Part II of the Great Handstamp Saga. A pattern seemed to
be developing. All the cast members manning the gates when you exit the
park say "Of course you don't need a stamp! You are annual passport holders."
All the ones manning the re-entry gates say "Shame on you, you bad little
mouseketeer, for not following the sacred decrees of The Mouse."
My husband decided he had had enough at this point and proceeded to get
stamped for the rest of the week. I, on the other hand (ooo, did I really
say that???), decided to stand my ground.
We had dinner reservations at Mexico, where I had the Mole Poblano
(my idea of heaven, chocolate for dinner). The dish is chicken in cocoa
sauce, and it tastes as interesting as it sounds. It was very odd but
delicious. Everything there was at least good. Dinner ran $50.00 for two,
including a Margarita each. The atmosphere in Mexico was just wonderful, and
we enjoyed El Rio del Tiempo and the surrounding marketplace. We had
just enough time before Illuminations to hit Norway and ride the Maelstrom,
which we both wish was longer, as it was a lot of fun. Beware the Trolls!
We saw Illuminations from World Showcase Plaza, across the lagoon
from the American Adventure. What a show! The only minor quibble were
the folks who just HAD to stand (the area was for sitting only) with
their video cameras, but the crowd embarrassed them sufficiently to
return them to sitting postures. My husband is a theatrical lighting
designer and was very impressed with all aspects of the show. He noted,
however, that he would not want the job of replacing the miniature bulbs
that line the exteriors of most of the buildings in World Showcase.
By the way, does anybody know why Morocco and Norway are not included in
the show? We speculated that it was because they are the newest pavilions.
Anyway, it was an outstanding show, and we followed it with a walk back
to International Gateway, a brief tram ride to the Yacht Club, a quick dip
in the hot tub at the hotel's quiet pool, and then to bed.
Day 3 - Monday, September 9
Up early for a quick breakfast in room and the short (10 mins or so)
boat ride to MGM. Arrived just before 9:00 and headed straight up Hollywood
Boulevard to the Chinese Theatre for the Great Movie Ride. Went straight
through the entire queue area to a waiting ride vehicle. This is without
a doubt the best attraction of its kind at any of the parks. We couldn't
believe that 20 minutes had passed when we got to the end. We saw the
Western scene on this ride and loved every minute of it. Immediately
after we made tracks to the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular. Boy,
does this one live up to its name! My husband was as impressed with the
fact that they can do this show over and over all day as he was with the
show itself.
Over to Star Tours for trip to Endor #2 and the longest wait of the
day (all of 10 minutes!!) Actually, a short wait on this ride is kind of
nice as the waiting area is almost as entertaining as the ride itself!
We like the wise cracking droid in the repair area (gee, I hope DEC
never shuts me off for non-production...). On to one of the highlights
of the trip: Muppet Vision 3-D. All I can say is that there should be
a picture of this attraction next to the definition of 'Must See' in
the guide books. A great time and a wonderful tribute to Jim Henson.
The only downside: the lines were so short that we never got to see the
pre-show all the way through!
Off to the right as we exited Muppet Vision we could see the
final stages of construction on the Muppet Meet-And-Greet area. It
would appear that the area is meant to be a Muppet version of a studio
back lot. There are a lot of new shops and restaurants in the backlot area
that are not on any of the currently available maps. These include a
Muppet merchandise shop and the Studio Pizzeria (more on this later) at
the exit to Muppet Vision as well as a shop dedicated to Disney's villains,
the Sci-Fi Restaurant, and a snack stop called the Commissary along the path
that leads from the Chinese Theatre to the Backlot area. We stopped at the
Commissary for a quick soda. You can play "guess the TV show theme songs
played over the sound system" as you relax here.
Continuing on to the other side of the park, we headed for the
Tram section of the Studio Tour, where we only waited for one tram to
load ahead of us before it was our turn. Some people in front of us
got suckered by the guide's comment that "the people on the right side
of the tram are going to get wet....[they get up and change places]....but
the people on the left side are going to get REALLY wet!!...[and now
it's too late to switch back!]" Catastrophe Canyon was really wild,
and we gave our Oscar winning performances waving to the unsuspecting
group coming in to the Canyon as we left.
After the tram tour, we decided it was time for lunch, and after a
bit of indecisive wandering decided to try the Studio Pizzeria. This
is a great place if you want a big lunch or a moderate dinner. They
serve a single serving pizza for each person. You get a choice of
several different styles of crust, and while they do not have the typical
choose your own toppings set up, there are a large variety of pizzas
to choose from, all of which looked great. I had a sausage with garlic
crust, and my husband chose a Caribbean (which has various kinds of
tropical fruits and cheese); the damage for two with wine was $29.00.
The decor is eclectic Italian-American, with miniature lights and
mismatched flatware and plates. Don't come here if you're in a big
hurry, but if you want to spend a little time and relax away from the
hustle and bustle of the park, this is the place. It was almost empty
on our visit, no doubt because nobody knows that it exists yet!
Now fully refueled, we headed over to the walking section of the
studio tour. The pre-staged sections of the tour, such as the water
tank and the miniature workshop, were very interesting. There was
nothing going on in any of the soundstages, however, so the latter
part of the tour was a bit slow. The previews of coming attractions
were nice; we got to see the trailer for 'Beauty and the Beast' which
looks like it will be fantastic [and as we all know by now, it is!].
Now if only someone can tell me where I can get a Michael Eisner watch?
The Animation Tour was next, something that we were both really
looking forward to. The film with Walter Cronkite and Robin Williams
is absolutely wonderful. The pace and presentation of the actual
tour itself seemed a bit rushed. If you tried to keep up with the
video, you couldn't see what the animators were doing. If you stayed
in one area to look while the rest of the group went on, you missed
the explanation of the areas ahead of you. All in all, though, a
very enjoyable tour.
Back across the park for Superstar TV and the Monster Sound Show.
Although we vigorously volunteered for several parts, we didn't get
picked. Both of these shows are great, especially the Sound show,
which is nearly impossible for the poor volunteers to do correctly
(my husband commented that he couldn't have done it, even though
he has run sound systems professionally!). We ended our day with another
ride on Star Tours before our boat trip back to the hotel.
The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing on Stormalong Bay,
the pool at the Yacht and Beach Club that is really a miniature water
park. While my husband enjoyed the water slide, I was content to
relax among the bubbling sands and the whirlpool. By the way, no one
was checking to see if you were a hotel guest to use the pool, but
you couldn't get towels without a Yacht or Beach Club Resort ID.
For dinner we decided to take it easy and eat at the Yacht Club
Galley, which is the most casual and least expensive restaurant at the
resort. This is the kind of place to go if you are looking for a good
meal at reasonable (for Disney) prices. I had a prime rib with Boursin
cheese sandwich called the Navigator and my husband had a clam roll.
With a couple of beers each and an excellent basket of assorted breads
that comes with the meal (the brown bread is great!) the total was
just $28.00. Add to that our excellent waitress who was originally
from New England, and it made for an terrific light meal.
Back to Pleasure Island for the rest of the evening. We hung around
in the Main Salon at the Adventurers Club so that I could be inducted
(or is that induced??) as a member (my husband had already joined on a
previous visit). Following this strange little ceremony, we headed
over to Mannequins so that we could goggle at all the high-tech
lighting equipment. We danced some, but after a first-hand physics
demonstration (rapidly turning dance floor meets previously stationary
people, chaos results), we took to watching, as this club can be a show
in itself. It had been a very long day, so we just headed back to the
hotel on our bus. Partway home we were joined by a group of Aussies and
Scots who were on their way to Pleasure Island and livened up the trip
considerably with their comments (or were those insults...it was kind of
hard to tell) back and forth across the bus.
Day 4 - Tuesday, September 10
Slept late this morning and spent the time relaxing around the pool.
Headed off around noon for Future World at EPCOT. Since we entered through
the International Gateway, we had to walk through World Showcase to get
to the other side of the park. We managed to catch the 'Character
Carnivale' at Showcase Plaza and get pictures with Roger Rabbit and Goofy.
If you've never seen this, it's kind of cute. The characters arrive
on one of the double decker buses that you see around World Showcase,
except this one is decorated Mardi Gras style. There are about 20 characters
on the bus, and they do a short dance routine before going out into the
audience for pictures. Mickey and Minnie stay up front and people line
up for them, but everybody else just circulates through the crowd. It is
a great opportunity to get a lot of photos and autographs in a short period
of time.
We headed off to the main entrance of EPCOT and started with a ride
on Spaceship Earth. As usual, there was no wait, and we both enjoyed this
one immensely. A very informative, but at the same time time entertaining,
attraction and it serves as an excellent introduction to EPCOT in general.
After wandering through Communicore West for a bit, we decided to visit
the Land for lunch. At the food court I got a no better than average
meatball sub, but my husband had a club sandwich on cheese bread that he
enjoyed very much. The damage was $13.00.
Kitchen Kabaret was very amusing (Veggie-Veggie, Fruit-Fruit is still
often heard around the house) and Listen to the Land very interesting.
When we get back again I intend to take the Harvest Tour which gives you
much more information about the futuristic greenhouses. We opted to skip
Symbiosis in favor of covering more ground, but upon our exit we discovered
that for the first time it was raining when we wanted to do something.
Rather than wait it out, we made a mad dash for the Living Seas, and
appropriately enough, were soaked upon our arrival.
My husband and I agree that while the presentation of Living Seas as
an underwater research facility is interesting and well done, the content
of the exhibit does not quite measure up. We have visited the aquariums
in Boston and Baltimore, and both do a far better job in presenting a
wide variety of sea life. Still, it is definitely worth spending some
time at. By this time, the rain had stopped and we headed over to Journey
into Imagination. The ride is one of EPCOT's best and I just adore Figment!
The Image Works, however, was closed for "improvement", and so we got in
line for Captain Eo. I had seen this at Disneyland, but it is definitely
worth a second look.
After the obligatory visit to the 'jumping fountains', we went over
to Horizons. While this ride is already getting a bit out of date, it
is well done and worth experiencing. We had just enough time after this
to ride World of Motion, which is very funny and not quite what either
of us expected. We had to skip the Transcenter as it was time to head over
to Fort Wilderness for the Hoop-De-Doo. We took the monorail to the TTC
followed by the bus to Pioneer Hall and arrived with plenty of time to
spare.
Considering that we had made our reservations in the spring, and
given the relatively low attendance that we had seen so far, we were a
bit surprised to find our seats near the back of the balcony. Does anybody
know if most of the tables for two are on the second floor (there seemed
to be a lot of couples up there with us)? Despite the post that blocked
some of my husband's view of things, we had a fantastic time. The beer
was cold, the food was abundant, and the jokes were really bad! We
would do this again in a heartbeat, and to think that when we made our
initial plans, we had planned to pass on this one.... Following the show,
we headed back to the Yacht Club for a quiet evening in our room.
Day 5 - Wednesday, September 11
Up early again for another visit to MGM. We spent most of the morning
shopping on Hollywood Boulevard, and I picked out a Sorcerer's Apprentice
tour jacket that was only $200.00 :-). Had to pass on that one, unfortunately.
After shopping, we rode the Gangster side of the Great Movie Ride, which we
think is a little bit better than the Western side, but maybe it was just
the ability of the actors that we saw. We took in another showing of
Muppet Vision next, and then my husband had to drag me over for another
ride on Star Tours (ok, maybe I didn't struggle THAT hard.... :-) ).
We headed back to the Yacht Club and decided on lunch in the Crew's
Cup Lounge, which is the bar connected to the Yacht Club Galley. We
happily discovered a chili that will knock your socks off (and we are
true chili aficionados) made with big chunks of beef and topped with
slices of jalepeno peppers. Several bowls, an order of chicken tenders,
and several good beers made for a very filling meal at $35.00. This primed
us for a good brisk nap and an afternoon of lounging at the pool.
Our evening meal was scheduled for the Biergarten in Germany at EPCOT.
As usual, we were not disappointed. I speak just enough German to make
our waiter think that I could converse with him, which I could not, but
he was very charming and happily switched back to English. We started
with an appetizer of potato pancakes with apples, followed by schnitzel
and dumplings for me and a combination platter of sauerbraten, bratwurst,
and pork loin for my husband. Add to that a few half liters of Becks
and we had an excellent and authentic meal for $60.00. Our only complaint
was that we managed to spend most of our meal in the gap between two shows.
Next time, we'll ask what time the shows are at before we make reservations.
After dinner, we did a little shopping in Germany, and decided to
stay and see Illuminations again. We watched from a spot between Italy
and Germany and were able to see the countries that we had missed while
watching from the Future World side of the lagoon. After the show, we
headed back to the Yacht Club and had some desert at Beaches and Cream,
the soda fountain located between the Yacht and Beach Clubs. The
atmosphere is wonderful and the ice cream ain't bad either! It has a
burger and sandwich menu as well, and is well worth visiting.
Day 6 - Thursday, September 12
Another early start, as we headed over to Conference Center at the
Village for the beginning of the Innovations in Action tour, the behind
the scenes look at Walt Disney World. As there is another note in this
file which describes the tour in detail, I won't run down the entire
morning here. I would recommend that anyone who is visiting the World
in September to look into taking this tour, as the woman in charge of
the program told us that they conduct these 'dress rehearsals' for new
guides every year at this time. It is a wonderful time, it does nothing
to destroy the magic of the place (in fact, it enhances it), and its
FREE at this time of year. Our guide was a very interesting young man
who would do us Disneyholics credit; he has worked all over the parks
and at the time of our tour was rehearsing for his role as one of the
stiltwalkers in the 20th Anniversary parade in the MK.
As we ended the tour at the Village, we decided to stay for lunch
and some more shopping. Lunch was at Chef Mickey's, which came as
a pleasant surprise and I highly recommend it. The place is decorated
with autographed photos of many Disney characters congratulating Mickey
on the opening of his 'place'. I had a grilled chicken breast on seven
grain bread and my husband had a 'California Club' which consisted of
turkey, vegetables, and guacamole on a tortilla. With soup beforehand,
and several glasses of wine and tip the bill was only $26.00. All
in all a nice place to cure the hungries out of the hustle and bustle.
After a stop at the Yacht Club for an afternoon swim, we headed
back to EPCOT to hit a few more attractions. We came upon the Olde
Globe Players in the UK as we headed for Future World and stayed for
a performance of 'King Lure' as aided by various audience members.
These players are hysterically funny (especially if you like bad
puns) and are definitely worth catching if you get the chance. We
stopped to vote at the Person of the Century poll, and finally reached
our main destination, Wonders of Life. We headed immediately for Body
Wars, and rode with no wait. While the ride was good, it does not even
come close to Star Tours as far as overall ride experience goes. My
husband says that it is because they do a much better job at Star Tours
of getting you into the frame of reference and creating a believable
scenario for the ride. Whatever the reason, I wouldn't wait in line
for it if it came to that.
We played in the Sensory Funhouse for a while, and then headed
outside the pavilion. The space shuttle was scheduled to go up early
that evening and we hoped to catch a glimpse of it. After waiting for
about half an hour, we finally saw the fire and vapor trail go up right
over the Wonders of Life pavilion. My husband wasn't particularly
enthralled (he said it was more impressive on the IMAX movie screen at
the Air and Space Museum in Washington) but I thought it was a really
neat thing to have witnessed. Heading back inside, we caught a showing
of the Making of Me, which we thought was very enjoyable and quite
tastefully done. Finally, we headed over to Cranium Command, which we
thought was by far the best attraction in the pavilion. The combination of
animation, live actors, and audio-animatronics was one of the most creative
efforts we saw at EPCOT. It was a lot of fun, too!
Next came a bus ride to Pleasure Island, and one of the low points
of the trip. We decided to eat at the Fireworks Factory, and we quickly
came to regret this decision. First of all, although we requested
non-smoking, a large group of people next to us were smoking quite heavily.
My husband complained, and rather than ask the people to stop (it turned
out that they were in the non-smoking section and chose to ignore it),
they moved the two of us to a table for six in the back corner. While
we didn't really mind, they were very busy, and it seemed like we were
taking up valuable customer space. Drinks and appetizers soon followed,
which were very good, but then our main courses arrived. I don't know
where these people got their ideas from on how to make barbeque, but it
certainly didn't resemble any that I have had before. Worst of all
was their excuse for a crab cake (I live in Maryland, HOME of the
crab cake), which appeared to be liberal amounts of mayonnaise and
bread with occasional atoms of crab-like substance. Yecch! Adding
insult (and indigestion) to injury, the evening cost us $70.00, so you
can see why I would have a hard time recommending this place to anyone.
Following this less than ideal experience, we headed up the hill
to the outdoor stage at Pleasure Island and got in line for the show
at the Comedy Warehouse. We celebrated New Year's Eve for the second
time that week while we waited in line. We were in the mood for some
silliness and the improv troupe at the Warehouse provided it. I don't
know how these people can do four to five shows a night and still be
original and amusing, but they do. The decorations in this place are
totally insane and lend to the wacky atmosphere. Definitely visit
this club if you find yourself on Pleasure Island, but whatever you
do, please don't say anything that might make Mickey throw up! :-)
Day 7 - Friday, September 13 - Ellen and Ted's 5th Anniversary
I know, I know, Friday the 13th for an anniversary!! Hey, our first
date was on a Friday the 13th and we've made it to 5 years, so there!
Anyway, we decided to make this a Magic Kingdom day, and we started it
off with breakfast at Tony's Town Square Restaurant. A very romantic
way to start the day. I had eggs, sausage and potatoes, while Ted had
the famous Lady and the Tramp waffles. $22.00 for the whole thing
including juice and tea.
Following breakfast, we headed up Main Street and through the Castle
to Fantasyland, where we promptly took a ride on Cinderella's Carousel.
We followed this in quick succession with Peter Pan's Flight, It's A Small
World, the Mad Tea Party, and Mr. Toad's Less-Than-Wild Stroll. After all
this excitement, we relaxed at a showing of Magic Journeys, which, although
it doesn't really seem to quite fit the Fantasyland motif, was still a very
enjoyable film. We followed this with a return visit to the Haunted Mansion
and a second ride on Big Thunder Mountain. Next, we headed around into
Adventureland to see if by some great stroke of luck Pirates was operating
again. It wasn't, and so to make up for it, we decided to try a dish
of the much touted Dole Whip. To be honest, I wasn't all that fond of it,
but Ted snarfed it right up and proclaimed it an excellent taste treat.
Lines were starting to get somewhat longer at this point, so we decided
to press on to Tommorowland.
We began with an overview of the land on the WEDWay People Mover, then
took in Dreamflight and the Carousel of Progress. Despite the lack of
sophistication of the audio-animatronic figures in the Carousel, it is
still an effective look at how technology has changed the way we live over
the last hundred years or so. Now it was time for the moment of truth.
As expected, my husband would not leave without a ride on Space Mountain.
I gathered up my courage and got in line with him, and from that point on
there was no turning back. Somehow, I survived my voyage into space, but
I have to tell you that the Space Mountain in Disneyland is a kiddie ride
compared to this one! I'll take Big Thunder (or better yet, Star Tours!)
if I have a choice.
The afternoon was getting on, so we decided on a little more shopping
before heading back to the Yacht Club. My husband discovered what has
become the pride of his voluminous tee shirt collection, a limited edition
shirt commemorating the final runnings of the Electric Light Parade, which
were taking place this weekend. We spent the rest of the afternoon napping
and lounging at Stormalong Bay in preparation for the big evening we had
planned.
Our reservations at Victoria and Albert's were for 6:15, and we had
originally planned to drive our rental car to the Grand Floridian. My
husband, however, had something else in mind. He decided that as we were
both dressed for a formal occasion (he in his tuxedo, myself in a new dress),
our efficient but tiny rental car simply would not do. In place of it, he
hired a Lincoln Town Car with chauffeur from Mears, arranged through the
always helpful and courteous Guest Services staff at the Yacht Club. It
took me completely by surprise, and was the start of a perfect evening.
We had also ordered flowers (boutonniere and corsage) from the on-premises
florist, and were delighted with both the quality and price of what was
delivered to our room.
We arrived right on time, and proceeded on to a meal that I for one
will not soon forget. I'll enter the complete menu in the V&A note so
as not to bore those who are not interested, but in brief, everything
was perfectly prepared, elegant to look at, and incredible to taste. If
you have had any doubts about visiting this restaurant while at WDW, put
them aside. The atmosphere and staff attentiveness alone are worth
taking an evening out of your busy schedule. I will admit, the tab is
quite steep ($240.00 including a modest bottle of wine, tax, and a
generous tip), but it was worth every penny and the full 2 and 1/2 hours
that it takes to experience.
After our wonderful dinner, we changed clothes at the GF and took
the monorail over to the Magic Kingdom for the finale of our anniversary
day. As I mentioned earlier, we had managed to be at WDW for the final
runnings of the Main Street Electrical Parade. We disembarked from the
monorail at about 9:30 and ran smack dab into all the people leaving
after the 9:00 running of the parade. We picked up our special souvenir
posters at the entrance plaza, checked them in a locker, and headed on
to Main Street. There we ran into the largest mass of humanity that either
of us had ever seen before. It was wall to wall people as far as the eye
could see. Slowly but surely, (and with the assistance of a gentleman
in a wheelchair whom we followed closely) we made our way up Main Street,
around the hub, and into the gateway to Frontierland. Just across the
bridge the crowd ebbed some, and here we decided to stay.
It turned out not to be the best place to view the fireworks from,
as they are really meant to be viewed from in front of the Castle. We
enjoyed them nonetheless, and it turned out to be an incredible spot
to view the parade from. As the fireworks ended and the throngs who
had seen the first running of the parade headed for the exit, we shifted
off to the side and attempted to hold our ground. We found ourselves
directly in front of the Sleepy Hollow refreshment stand, and my husband
decided that this would be a good time to procure a couple of Cokes, for
although it was after 10:00 at this point, it was still extremely hot
due to all the people in the park. I waited at the curb while he waited
in line. As he came out to greet me, a cast member came along carrying
a stanchion with some string attached to it. We walked to the curb to
ask her what she was doing, and found ourselves in the front row, as it
was her job to mark off the parade route!
The ELP was wonderful; everything that we had been told it would be!
All the Disney parades are well done, but this one seemed positively
enchanted. We were happy and privileged to be among the last group of
people to see it. Afterwards, we followed the tail end of the parade
through Frontierland and made quick tracks to Big Thunder for a highly
recommended nighttime ride on it. Following this, it was after midnight,
and we expected all the rides to be closing. Given the incredible numbers
of guests still in the park, however, some attractions were kept open late
to stem the tides heading for the gates. We took advantage of this to
take a late night cruise on the Rivers of America via the riverboat.
This is a very relaxing ride, and a nice way to wind down, Disney style,
after a very busy day.
Ah, but the evening was not over yet. We had left our dress clothes
with the bell captain at the Grand Floridian, and had to go back to retrieve
them. Here we discovered that at this time of night, there is no easy way
to get from one hotel to another. We ended up taking the monorail back
to the MK (where we were promptly informed by ever alert cast members that
the park had already closed!) in order to catch a bus back to the Yacht
Club. In retrospect, the smart move would have been to bring our clothes
to the MK and put them in a locker, but we didn't want to get them all
wrinkled! Finally, at about 2:00 AM, we found ourselves back in our
room, tired but agreeing that had been the best anniversary ever.
Day 8 - Saturday, September 14th
Our final day, and boy was it tough packing those suitcases and giving
the room that final once over before turning the bags over to the bellhop.
We followed check out with the breakfast buffet at the Yacht Club Galley;
with a great number of choices available was is a very good deal at $21.00
for the two of us. As our flight did not leave until early in the evening,
we decided to head back to EPCOT for a few attractions that we had missed.
First stop was the American Adventure, which is by far the most
inspiring and impressive attraction in all of EPCOT. The scope of the
presentation is immense, yet the technology used to implement the story
makes it look absolutely effortless. We opted to leave the films in
France and China for our next visit (and there WILL be a next visit!)
and headed over to Future World for Universe of Energy. This attraction left
us with mixed feelings. The pre-show is outstanding; unfortunately what
follows is rather a let down. I don't mind the largely educational component
of most EPCOT attractions, but this one doesn't teach anything that most of
us didn't learn in grammar school. Add to this the relatively boring
nature of the presentation, and you have an attraction that we will
probably skip next time around.
On to our last Disney bus and a final visit to MGM. We were hoping
that the Muppet Meet-and-Greet area would be open today, but alas, the
construction walls were still in place. We consoled ourselves with two
more rides on Star Tours, making a grand total of six for my husband
and ten for me [actually, by the time this finally got entered, I added
one more ride while at DECUS in December]. This is my husband's favorite
park, as he is in the entertainment business. He said he loved just
sitting in front of the Chinese Theatre and listening to the great movie
themes play over the speakers. Reluctantly, we headed back up Hollywood
Boulevard, out of the park, and down to the boat launch for our final
trip back to the Yacht Club.
The rest of the day passed uneventfully. We picked up our rental
car, loaded up, and drove wistfully to the airport. After a less than
outstanding meal on the flight back, we ended the day at home trying
to figure out when we can go back again.
SUMMARY
Without a doubt, it was the best vacation experience either of have
ever had. I know it has been said many times before in this conference,
but it needs saying again: the service is what ultimately makes Walt
Disney World so special. This is not to take anything away from the
fun, spectacle, fantasy, technology, food, lodgings, or any other aspects
of the place. It is just to state that the cast members are what ties
the whole place together, and without them, it just wouldn't be the same.
Picking favorite attractions or events would be pointless for us.
My husband and I have discussed the trip endlessly since our return,
and the consensus is that we loved it all. I must say, though, that
we were extremely fortunate in that we managed to see all of the fireworks
shows, the third-to-last running of the ELP, and take the backstage
tour, all on a slow week in the off season. If you are going in the
off season, try to make it over a weekend. Many of the special events
(especially Sorcery in the Sky at MGM) are only held on weekends when
things are slow. Despite this, the lack of lines at attractions and
the lower prices on rooms, rental cars, etc., would make the off season
our first choice for a return visit.
Cost of the trip was not what I would call typical based on other
reports I have read (especially since we don't have kids!), but nevertheless
went roughly as follows:
LENGTH OF STAY: 8 Days / 7 Nights
AIRFARE: Free (Frequent Flyer Awards)
HOTEL: $762 (Yacht Club - $99/night Annual Passholder Special)
RENTAL CAR: $125 (Hertz Compact - Special Weekly rate + 1 Day rate,
with 10% additional USAir Frequent Flyer discount)
PARK ADMISSION: $412 (Annual Passports w/ Pleasure Island Adder)
FOOD: $1,000 (This is something of a guess - the formal meals we
kept track of came to about $800 including the dinner
at V&A's - but that didn't include breakfast food in
the room, snacks, drinks at Pleasure Island, etc.
I doubt we would "do it up" like this on a future trip,
but this was something special)
SOUVENIRS/GIFTS: $200 (Again, somewhat of a guess)
MISCELLANEOUS: $100 (Including parking at our home airport, tips, etc.)
TOTAL: Approximately $2,400
Finally, I cannot end this report without thanking each and every
one of you who contributes to this conference, and especially Jim Pappas,
the guru of the Annual Passport and our personal mentor on our first
trip to the World. I know that our trip would not have been as enjoyable
or run as smoothly as it did without the help of you and this conference.
Now it's back to savoring other trip reports while my husband tries to
convince me that we really should use our annual passports one more time
before they expire!
|
| 237.46 | Another overdue 1991 trip report | PHONE::RAYMOND | Jean - MKO2-1/E10 | Tue Mar 17 1992 14:02 | 191 |
|
Having just gotten into this file after a few weeks' abstinence
I met with note 1.2 and feel guilty and properly scolded ;^). Actually
I wrote this report back in January, wanted to check and see that
I got everything in and...well, so much for perfectionism - here it
is, as is (better late than never, I always say!) - FWIW:
Sorry for the long delay in making my report - due to being sick
before during and after I went, catching up at work when I got
back, and just plain laziness for the last week or so...also some
apprehension about how much I can remember!
So for what it's worth, here goes -
Tuesday, Nov. 26, 1991:
I drove to the Sheraton Tara in So. Nashua early Tuesday a.m.,
left my car and took Hudson Limo to Logan - of course, we stopped
several times along the way - but got to the airport okay.
Flew to Orlando with a change in Atlanta. Got to Orlando, picked
up my AVIS rental, asked the guy at the counter for the quickest route
to Naples (AAA had mapped out the "scenic or tourist route") and
headed for Naples to surprise my father for his 70th birthday.
Saturday, Nov. 30, 1991:
After a reasonably successful Thanksgiving, 70th birthday party for
my father, and getting acquainted with my 3-yr-old TWIN nieces (they
were alot of fun), I left Naples for Orlando in my rental
at a little before noon on Saturday. I had lunch with friends
in Sarasota (with fresh squeezed orange juice from oranges picked
from the tree in the back yard - yum!) and arrived at WDW late that
afternoon. Got checked into the Caribbean Beach, bought a 4-day
pass (so I could get in & out of all the parks on any day) and took a few hours
to rest up (I kept falling asleep on the drive up - ~4 hours
from Naples to WDW not including the lunch stop).
Eventually I got in my car and took off for MGM - I timed this
trip so I could see some fireworks - I hadn't seen any in my previous
trip. This was the last night for them until the following weekend
so I was determined to see both the MGM show and the Magic Kingdom
show in one night - pretty ambitious since the MGM show was at 8:55
and MK's at 10:00! I did the Animation Tour while I waited for the
fireworks - VERY good, but since it was a holiday weekend, there was
only one poor intern working in the offices. They're working on
Alladin...more on this later.
After the tour it was about 8:20 and Muppets in 3D was about to
start so I went over. The people at the gate said if I went in I
would miss part of the fireworks show. I said I definitely didn't
want to do that, explained my goal and asked if they thought I could
do it. They looked skeptical until I said I had a car - "Oh, no
problem!" they said. They told me to park at the Contemporary and
walk on into MK which is adjacent (as opposed to the MK lot which is
apparently quite a ways from the actual entrance). I caught the end
of the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular while I waited, then for the
fireworks.
The MGM fireworks were GREAT! The gatekeepers I had talked to said
it a year to choreograph them to Fantasia - they did a fantastic
job! I even got some pictures.
As soon as they were over I took off for the gate, managed to ram the
turnstyle into my thigh (did some major bruising to my quads), got
in my car and started following signs to MK. I beat the crowd and had
no trouble getting out of the parking lot, but there was some road
construction and I missed the turn-off for MK and ended up outside of
WDW! I finally got turned around, found the Contemp., aimed for
Space Mountain, which was the only landmark I could see, and started
looking for a parking space. Luck seemed to be with me, because
someone pulled out of spot near the corner of the lot that appeared to
be (and was!) closest to the MK entrance. It was a short walk in and
I still had 20-25 minutes before the fireworks! I wandered around and
looked for a spot to watch the show - the place was pretty crowded.
The fireworks were good, but I liked MGM's much better.
My major goal for the trip accomplished, I could now relax. I did
It's a Small World, got some coffee and wandered around till the
SpectroMagic Parade. I had been to Disneyland once and WDW MK once
before and done most of the rides so wasn't interested in those.
The parade was good - I had a pretty good spot, I think I was near
Liberty Corner - where the parade turns and goes over a bridge (?). I
liked the Peacock best and got a picture of it before I ran out of
film. Then home to bed.
Sunday, Dec. 1, 1991:
I caught the bus (by the way, this was very convenient - I never
had to wait more than a few minutes and the bus stop was very convenient
to my room) to Epcot and spent the day. I had borrowed guidebooks and
I think it was the "Unofficial Guide" that gave popularity of
the different parks for days of the week. Based on that it looked best
to do Epcot Sunday and MGM Monday. Crowds were very low anyway. I
didn't encounter any lines to speak of - only waits between shows.
I kind of ricocheted around Epcot - trying to catch things I had
missed back in 1984 or things that weren't there then. I found it
cheapest and easiest to snack during the day - pastry and coffee
(from Norway - mmmmmm!) for brunch, a Smoothie from the Wonders of
Life in the early afternoon and then popcorn midafternoon.
(That way I had room for a big dinner at night!). By 1:30 I was beat
so I went to The American Adventure and, meaning no disrespect, took
a nap - I'm not much into history. Then I went out to watch the air show.
The Surprise in the Skies air show was GREAT! And me without my
camera! I went back to my room after that to catch some sun but
by the time I got there so had the clouds - ugh! Went back to Epcot for
dinner at Mexico - I had gotten the times mixed up and thought
the IllumiNations show was at 9:00 - WRONG! That was Sat. - on
Sunday it was at 8:00 - and I had a 7:00 dinner reservation! But
I got my dinner (very good and very reasonable) and was out looking
for a spot by about 7:45!
The guide books had recommended Mexico as a good spot (hence the dinner
reservation) to watch from and it was crowded. I found a good
vantage point for watching but not for picture-taking - a lamppost
on one side and an umbrella on the other. Oh well, I could always try
again Monday night.
Did a little shopping on the way out but things were closing up.
Monday, Dec. 2, 1991
I went to MGM - couldn't find anything for breakfast, so I did the
Star Tours show - great souveniers for kids in the shop after. Then
Muppets in 3D - cute, especially with Statler and Waldorf in the box.
I did notice a big difference in crowd 'behavior' between Epcot and
MGM. Epcot flows pretty well - people seem to know where their headed
and what they want to see and are walking with some sense of purpose.
MGM is not so easy to find your way in - their are several streets and
alleys and it's harder to figure out where you are or where you're
going and you always seem to be walking into someone or trying to get
by them. Fortunately, it wasn't crowded so it was not a problem, just
an observation.
I did the Great Movie ride - fun - and the Backstage Studio Tour -
which was neat but long and not much fun for kids under 12 or so -
there were a few on our tour and they were pretty bored. Then I went
back to the Animation Tour - to see some animators at work since there
hadn't been any there on Saturday night. I watched the Walter Cronkite-
Robin Williams movie (1/2 hour) again, and got to the glassed area and -
nobody there! I looked at my watch - 12:30 - lunchtime! I hung around
for awhile and gave up - I was getting hungry, too!
When I came out there were a few castmembers trying to persuade people
to be part of a studio audience at one of the actual working studios.
They said it would take an hour or more so I had my popcorn first.
They still needed people after so I went in. It was lots of fun - a fitness
show called Body by Jake, whose last name I can't remember but who has
trained a lot of the stars - Harrison Ford for the Indiana Jones movies
for one. There was a Disney liaison who coached us and told us a few
'inside' jokes. The only one I can remember is,
Question: "What does EPCOT stand for?"
Answer: "Every Person Comes Out Tired!"
He also notices each time a Backstage Tour goes by the windows in
the back of the studio and gets the whole audience to do something
ridiculous in concert at them if the show is between takes. It was
alot of fun and very interesting to watch the process. The show is
supposed to be televised on ESPN this month, I think. I don't get
cable so if anybody catches it, let me know. The one I saw had
The Juiceman and a massage therapist on after the exercising...
I went to Epcot for the evening and did a few more rides and then
thought I'd try to get a spot at the Hoopdeedoo (sp?) Revue. They
had room at the 10 pm show so I made the reservation, but as soon as
I hung up the phone I knew I couldn't last till then. I ate at
Norway instead. I got there just before 8 so things were pretty quiet.
Then home to bed.
Tuesday, Dec. 3, 1991
Finished my packing and spent a few hours at the Marketplace before
heading to the airport. The trip home is a whole story in itself, I'll
spare you the gory details...suffice it to say there was an ice storm
in Boston & So. New Hampshire that morning. I did make it home okay.
I can't believe I was there < 3 days and I had all this to say!
I did cram alot in, which was possible thanks to the lack of crowds.
The borrowed guide books (Thanks, Suzanne!) and this notesfile were
invaluable! The whole trip (airfare, trans. to airport, car (1 wk),
lodging (3 nights), 4-day pass, meals) ended up costing me about
$933.
Respectfully (and sheepishly) submitted,
Jean
|
| 237.47 | | EDWIN::THIBAULT | Land of Confusion | Wed Mar 18 1992 18:48 | 79 |
| Well, I guess I better do this before I forget everything. Our trip ended
up being somewhat aborted because my husband had to start his new job
in ALF (Alpharetta, GA where I'm at right now) earlier than expected and
we wanted to arrive in Atlanta a couple days early to get settled.
Saturday March, 7
We left Goffstown, NH at 4:50 AM as planned. No mishaps or bad traffic
anywhere except the southern part of DC where all those interstates
merge. Spent the night in Stafford, VA as usual. Next day was uneventful,
spent the night in Savannah, GA.
Monday March 9
Arrived in Florida to about 85 degree weather. I burned my right arm
from hanging it out the window of the car. We took a side trip down
Daytona Beach just so we could say we'd been there. Lots of folks
soaking up the sun. Checked into Hideaway Bay Club later that day.
Real nice place about 8 miles or so from Disney.
Tuesday March 10
Did Sea World starting when the gates opened at 9. We saw the Shamu
show, dolphin and whale show and also took the Behind-the-Scenes Tour
and the "Let's Talk Training" tour. They were both pretty interesting
but I really enjoyed the training thing. Didn't leave that place until
after 5.
Wednesday March 11
Got to EPCOT when the gates opened at 9. We headed straight to the back
of the park (thanx for that suggestion Mike!). There was nobody there
until after 11 and we were able to see almost all the countries without
bashing in to anyone. We headed down to that ride in the golf ball thing
(I've already forgotten the names of everything). From there we thru
most of the buildings and did most of the rides. Lines were not bad at
all, maybe a 20 minute wait maximum. The "Body Wars" ride was my favorite
I think but I really enjoyed them all. At some point we went to the Mexico
building and had lunch. I got into the marguerita's in there :-). But
besides that, it was my favorite place. Sitting in the restaurant with
the volcano in the background was awesome. It was hard to believe we were
in a building the whole time. After lunch we took the boat cruise behind
the restaurant. We didn't leave EPCOT until after 6 and I was real happy
that I bought new sneakers.
Thursday March 12
Went to Winter Haven to see the Red Sox play. They lost but we had fun
anyway. The are hundreds of retired folks there and they all seem to
know each other, they wander back and forth and wave at everyone. We
started to wave back for yucks. There was an old lady (she claims she
was 100) and her husband behind us from Henniker, NH. She was a riot
ragging on the refs and Mo Vaughn.
Friday March 13
Our last day. I woke up feeling sick (my husband was sick the night before
so we reckon it was something we ate or the water). We had business to
attend to in the morning so didn't get to MGM until after 11. I was still
feeling yucky but we went anyway. Managed to get thru the Great Movie Ride
which was fun (my husband got slimed by the "alien"). We waited in line
about 30 minutes which I thought wasn't too bad. Then we decided to get
lunch. While waiting in line I broke into a sweat and almost passed out.
We sat around until I got over it and tried to walk around some more. I
was pretty sure I couldn't handle standing in line and didn't want to
risk passing out someplace where I wouldn't be able to get out. By this
time I was bumming because I really wanted to see Indiana Jones. We
wandered around for a while and bought some stuff and then decided to
leave and come back later if I felt better. I never felt better so that
was the end of that. I was pretty disappointed that we didn't get to
see much but the good news is that we'll be living less than 10 hours
away so we'll probably go down again in the fall or next year.
The crowds and parking weren't bad at all but I don't know if I could
handle it during the busy season. I could just imagine how bad it must
get waiting in lines especially in summer.
Jenna
|
| 237.48 | Gulliksen's report - at long last | IMTDEV::GULLIKSEN | Longing to be at WDW | Mon Mar 23 1992 22:01 | 814 |
| Yes, this is late. But I finally got it done. I hope you enjoy it because
it's long. My husband added some comments. If I tried to get some from
my parents, it would take another year.
Who: Marilyn & Greg Gulliksen, her parents, Josh & Virginia
Where: Port Orleans
When: Sept. 21 thru Oct. 5, 1991
How: United
Intro: I really needed this vacation. It would have been better if Greg
and I were alone. But I got along okay with my parents. I really tried to
get mom and dad to do things alone, but my mom was real reluctant to do so.
Greg and I really enjoyed the days we were alone.
I took my niece and nephew to WDW the summer of 89. I'm talking about them
when I talk about the kids.
We walked onto most of the rides. If there was a wait for any shows it was
only until the current one finished. The press weekend didn't adversely effect
our plans. We just hit the rides early and the shows when it was busier.
We also used part of that time to go elsewhere. (I really wish there was a
way to stake out good viewing spots for the parades and fireworks without
having to sit on the curb for two hours.)
The weather was the pits. It rained just about every day we were there. The
first week wasn't too bad because we were usually inside when it was raining.
However, the second week we had several days of rain all day long. On Oct.
1, (yep, the big day) there was record breaking rainfall (.4 inches). On Oct.
3, the bushes were standing in water at the Port Orleans resort. One night my
husband got ready to go out and take night pictures. When he opened the door
it was pouring rain. Just minutes before, we had finished a nice walk.
Everyone had a really great time. I haven't seen my dad laugh so hard and so
much in years. He actually had tears in his eyes.
Now the details.
Arrived in Orlando 5 minutes late. I usually fly United. But after this trip
I may change airlines. The flight was either full or overbooked. My parents
could not get advance seat assignments. I had no trouble making mine and
I did everything at the same time. Unfortunately, they weren't able to seat
my parents together but they were in the same row. Part way thru the flight,
the person next to my mom volunteered to move, so they sat together afterall.
When I requested seats, the ones for the return flight were low numbers. I
asked if they were the bulkhead. The response was no but they really were.
Then for some unknown reason, we couldn't get boarding passes all of the way
thru. So we made a mad dash through the concourse to check in at the desk in
Chicago.
So much for grumbling. The flight was uneventful and did arrive close to the
scheduled time. It was a direct flight to Orlando from Colorado Springs with
one stop in Denver.
Rented a car from National. There were only two people working the counter
so it took awhile even though the line wasn't too long. We got a mid-sized
car. It was a little tight for the luggage. BTW, I didn't do any laundry
while I was there; we took two weeks worth of clothes. My parents and Greg
had gone after the luggage while I got the car. Greg says that they hadn't
waited very long when I pulled up in the car.
Check-in was a breeze, no wait again. We had separate rooms in different
buildings. This was intentional. Our no smoking, parking lot view rooms were
in buildings 1 and 3. Mom and dad's room was on the ground floor which they
liked. Ours was on the third floor which we didn't mind since there are
elevators.
Went to the studio to get annual passes and catch the fireworks. There were
several people in the waiting room. Disney was doing a big promotion for
the 4-season salute passes. No mention of advance dinner reservations was made
in any of the literature I received.
We had a fast food dinner and then staked out spots for the fireworks. We
weren't in the front but we were close to it. Mom, dad, and Greg were
expecting alot more fireworks. (Colorado Springs does alot of fireworks on the
4th of July.) They did, however, like the music everything was set too. Greg
thought the music was awesome. The Fantasia piece was generally the favorite.
I enjoyed them and am glad we got to see them. I had planned on spending the
first evening at EPCOT but changed the plans when I discovered that this was
the only chance to see the fireworks at MGM. (Now, I'll just have to learn
how to appropriately set expectations.)
Everyone did a little shopping and then we returned to our hotel. I can't
remember which nights Greg & I hit the pool. We didn't go as much as we had
planned. I was usually tired at the end of the day and Greg didn't want to go
alone. One night while we were in the hot tub, Greg realized he had lost his
card key to the room. We looked through our things and by the pool. We
finally went to the front desk to get another key. We explained to them that
we had lost the key and the other key was in our room. We were asked if we had
any identification but it was locked in our room. Then the key was replaced.
The staff at PO were very nice and personable. BTW, after losing the key we
took both keys with us for the rest of the trip.
(It is now the middle of February and I haven't had a chance to work on this
for quite awhile. I've got loads of excuses including being pregnant. I
think I've been motivated by all the trip reports I've been catching up on.
Some were posted last October. I have notes on the attractions, and meals.
But I don't know where in the day's schedule we chose to have lunch, dinner,
or snacks. I'll post the eating establishments by day including prices at the
end of this report.)
9/22 - Started with the Magic Kingdom. Had breakfast at the Crystal Palace.
This has always been my favorite - I love the French toast. However, my
parents like being waited on. We must have been running behind schedule
because there was a line for Dumbo by the time we arrived in Fantasyland.
Attractions:
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea - great as always (Greg's opinion)
Mad Tea Party - Greg and Marilyn only. Mom didn't want to get spun around
this early in the day (really she wouldn't have done it any
time during the day). Greg discovered that the cups spin
faster in a clockwise direction.
Mr. Toad's Wild Ride - my dad got a big chuckle out of this one
Cinderella's Golden Carousel - mom 's favorite so far
It's a Small World - better with the kids along
Snow White's Scary Adventures
Walt Disney Story - great story about Walt Disney and his dream!
(Are Beauty and the Beast on the wall outside the theater yet?)
Now, my mom has a cousin who lives east of Orlando. Floyd tried to get us to
stay with him. We managed to get out of doing that. Then he wanted us to
use one of his cars. We left the Magic Kingdom and drove to his house,
picked up the car, went to lunch at the Olive Garden (a late lunch) and
returned to the World to check-in the rental car. (I would have preferred
to not even tell Floyd we were in Florida but then maybe I'm being
heartless and selfish.)
The evening was spent at EPCOT Center. We found that spending the evening at
EPCOT was a good way to wind down after the day's activities. It wasn't as
crowded and hectic as the other parks plus it's open later.
Dinner was at the Land Grille. Greg and dad had steak. Dad's medium was done
less than Greg's rare.
Attractions:
Spaceship Earth - the kids didn't like this one. But everyone felt they were
wrong. "Let's do it again" but we didn't.
Listen to the Land - Interesting vertical plant growth
Kitchen Kabaret - eggcredible.
Harvest Theatre - Greg liked the intro with animals and sound.
9/23 - Magic Kingdom. Breakfast was at Tony's Town Cafe. This turned
out to be my parents favorite breakfast spot. I thought the service was
too slow. I guess I prefer fast food so I can start seeing the attractions.
Attractions:
Dumbo, the Flying Elephant - Mom laughed (at the silliness of adults doing
this one). Dad's look was "do I have to." I worked the up and down
button. I didn't need Greg to find a way of making the elephant move
faster - remember the tea cups.
Peter Pan
Big Thunder Mountain - Mom hates rides. She'll do the Ferris wheel and
that's it. I am proud that she rode on this one. She'll never do it again.
Everyone else loved it. Since there wasn't much of a line, we left mom
with all the camera equipment sitting on a bench and rode it again. Dad
thought it was great and wished the kids were along.
Tom Sawyer Island - Everyone loved the barrel bridge except mom. Maybe her
stomach hadn't settled down from the BTMR.
Country Bear Vacation Hoedown
Diamond Horseshoe Jamboree - Lily sat on my husband's lap and he pinched her.
My dad received a kiss on his bald spot. Greg had a Goofy hat and wore
it every day. He was sure picked alot - maybe it's the hat.
Surprise Celebration Parade - Greg loved Donald Duck - his hero
Swimming at the Grand Floridian. Then off to the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue via
water shuttle. It took us approximately 45 minutes to get to Fort
Wilderness from the Grand Floridian. We were not selected to be any of the
players in the show but were picked on. It really pays to make reservations
early! We had front row seats, one away from the center. I was accused of
making goo-goo eyes at one of the guys. They found out who Greg was and used
his name thru out the show. Greg remembers at the end where one of the girls
wanted to kiss him instead of the person on stage. My mom was told to not fall
asleep. My dad laughed so hard he was crying.
9/24 - Breakfast was with Minnie at the Polynesian. We were able to walk right
in without reservations. Goofy was great. He found out we were from Colorado
and wanted to know if we ski. It was great trying to figure out what he was
talking about. We were also visited by Chip and Dale, Minnie Mouse, and Pluto.
The characters made a good effort to visit each table before the people
finished their meals. Since this is a buffet, breakfast went faster than at
Tony's. Off to the Magic Kingdom.
Attractions:
Jungle Cruise
Tiki Birds - My parents thought the music was too loud. The singing flowers
and totem poles were the favorites.
Swiss Family Tree House - My dad wants one in Hawaii to live in.
Haunted Mansion - How's it done? Take time to read the gravestones at the
front and rear entrances.
Hall of Presidents - Greg is a patriot so this was a tearjerker for him. My
mom was tired so she wanted to fall asleep. The film is excellent.
Off to Innovations in Action. Len gave a good report of the tour. We started
our tour from the Contemporary. Another couple was there from DEC. (This
person, who shall remain nameless because I can't remember her name, reads the
notes file and doesn't write to it. I wonder how many others out there are
doing the same thing. I guess not publishing trip reports must have a high
penalty. ha! ha!)
The afternoon parade was being set up when we were behind Main Street. We got
to see the SpectroMagic floats. A cast member explained how the sound system
works. At the topiary farm we saw a cast member working on two new topiaries
for the 20th anniversary. These are the first ones with moving parts. Mickey
and Minnie now wave at you. They are located in the center of the hub.
(Also on October 1, Minnie and Mickey had red and white carnations for the
appropriate parts of their costumes.)
Our tour also took us by the wig room. We were peeking thru the window and
a cast member waved for us to come in. This room is fairly small and I
think it would be cramped trying to fit 15 people in it. But we had a small
group. The hairdresser was really glad we came in. She doesn't get many
tours in the room and enjoyed the opportunity of telling us about her job.
When WDW first opened all of the wigs were natural hair (just like at
Disneyland). However, the Florida humidity doesn't allow the wigs to keep
their set for long. Now the wigs which are used outside are synthetic fibers.
The wigs for the audio-animatronics are stored close to where they are used.
I believe that some of the ones for the presidents may even be stored
in compartments that are on stage.
After the tour I met Len and his wife at the Beach Club. We compared notes
and had a good time discussing WDW. I had noticed that filming was scheduled
for a Sebastian special at the Grand Floridian. Unfortunately it was the
day Len was leaving. Besides I think their kids would have killed their
parents if they had seen the special being filmed.
Off to EPCOT for the evening. We found my parents and tried our luck at
getting into an EPCOT restaurant. Morocco had immediate seating. The food and
atmosphere were good. This is the only restaurant in EPCOT that served drinks
in souvenir glasses. Naturally, the entertainment was belly dancing.
It was getting late. We hit the movie at France before heading back for the
evening. The movie has excellent music. The feeling of flight was
sensational. Greg counted the same coastal rocks four times. (How many
times can you count? Have fun!)
9/25 - I woke up with a sore throat. It was the beginning of a cold that
lasted until after I got home. Breakfast was at Bonfamille's. We were early
enough to receive a 15% discount on breakfast. Then it was off to Sea World.
Sea World has changed alot over the years. When I first went, the show times
seemed to be spaced so that you were walking from end of the park to the
other. If you didn't plan appropriately, it would be easy to not see
everything. Now they print out the map at the window when pay for your
tickets. It's really nifty because they give you a specialized schedule based
on your arrival time. Show times are highlighted based on your arrival time.
It gives you the flexibility of seeing whatever show but also aids in planning
your day.
Attractions:
Window to the Sea - informative but the best part was the dancing fountains.
Whale & Dolphin Show - Nobody got too excited over this show.
Sea Lion & Otter Show - Greg's favorite. Arrive early and watch the mime.
The otter was cute and watch for the Coke commercial.
Shamu: New Visions - What can you say, Shamu is Shamu. Take the splash zone
seriously.
Gold Rush Ski Show - well half of it. About half way into the show it started
thundering. Now they ski in the rain but not in thunderstorms. The show
has a Western theme this year.
We had lunch at Sea World. My mom fed the seals. I would have loved having
a video of it. She had such a squeamish expression on her face. We looked
at the walkthru exhibits and aquariums. The rain didn't let up so we went
to the Disney Village.
Greg and I went off on our own to do some shopping. Later we met my parents
and went to the Fireworks Factory for dinner. We were a little surprised
because it wasn't very busy. But that changed while we were dining. Greg
liked the drinks, especially his which came with a sparkler in it. My dad's
drink had an American flag in it. He wore it in his hat for the rest of the
trip.
Then it was into Pleasure Island. We wondered around scoping everything out.
First stop was the Adventurer's Club. We caught the show in the library
which didn't overly excite my parents or Greg. After that my parents decided
to go back to PO. Greg and I headed to the mask room. It was really great.
(I would have loved to spend more time at the Adventurer's Club.) Then off to
the Neon Armadillo. We didn't stay long. The smoke was starting to get to me.
(I need to hit these places early and we didn't start until almost 9 p.m.)
Greg and I checked the shops, absorbed the atmosphere on the streets, and
celebrated New Years.
We purchased adders for our annual passes but didn't get back to Pleasure
Island. I'm not a late night person. Plus having a cold was a drag. I
generally had enough energy for the day but by evening I was ready to go to
bed.
9/26 - Breakfast was beignets at PO. My parents went to see Floyd. Finally a
day alone with Greg. Greg and I had planned a swim day at River Country.
However, my cold was just getting going. It was really overcast so we decided
to hit the parks alone. I purposely took Greg on "rides" I thought he would
enjoy repeating. So off to the Studio.
Attractions:
Star Tours - 20 min. wait. Greg liked the ride and the preshow area. I liked
seeing the trees as part of a stage set.
Muppet 3-D Movie - Liked the 3-D especially Waldo. Greg says Fozzie Bear is
vintage Fozzie. (I didn't grow up with the Muppets so I'll have to take
his word for it.) Great use of the whole theater. Make sure you watch
the entire preshow.
Studio Tour - Rode on the left hand side. (You know what that means - "Surf's
Up".")
Great Movie Ride - gangster/left side. Like the different types of movies
portrayed. The audio-animatronics are very well done.
Star Tours - walked on. Sat in front row. Not as jerky. Effects are better.
Off to EPCOT via the ferry. This is a great way to get between the two parks
especially if you don't have to drive a car. The ferry was not very crowded
and is there to pick you up within 15 minutes.
Attractions:
American Adventure - Greg liked the Voices of Liberty and got teary-eyed at the
show. He liked the different stages of how this country developed and how
our quest for freedom has effected everyone.
Maelstrom - Too short. Liked the trolls and riding backwards. I just realized
this trip that there is an opening to the outside world when the boat turns
back around to head forward again. Can you see the Viking wearing mouse
ears in the painting at the staging area?
World of Motion - We had a flash photographer close by for this one. What a
bummer. The ride was good and the display area had things to look at
and do for young and old alike.
Horizons - Least favorite so far. Greg liked the space shuttle taking off.
Body Wars - Liked Star Tours better. Lots of back and forth motion. They
don't take you to many parts of the body. Star Tours had better start &
finish. Not much to see or do while waiting for this one.
Dinner was at Norway. Greg comes from a Norwegian background. The hostess's
face lit up when she saw our last name. It was great hearing her pronounce
our last name the Norwegian way. Greg enjoyed dinner. I got by. I haven't
gotten into much of the food. The foods in the cold buffet weren't much to
my liking. Greg thought it was interesting that they had prepared herring
(pickled of course) in six different ways with only one other type of food
for the salads (cold buffet). Of course, he tried a little of each but I
was at the hot buffet and getting ready for dessert. The warm foods were
pretty good. Unfortunately, the buffet doesn't include dessert - my favorite
course. I would have been quite happy sampling the desserts but I had to
settle for ordering just one.
9/27 - Mom and dad are with us again. Breakfast was at Bonfamille's. We
discovered that beignets can be ordered even though they aren't an item on
the menu. Then it was off to the studio.
Attractions:
Great Movie Ride - Western side. Mom liked John Wayne and Robert Redford.
Dad liked the Wizard of Oz. Alien was the least favorite. The ride
brought back lots of memories. Western side was preferred.
Indiana Jones - Good stunts and explanations. My mom liked this one. The
last time I was there (1988) this one was still in dress rehearsals. Alot
has been added to the beginning of the show.
Muppets - Excellent. Dad tried to hit the flying rock. Makes Captain EO
boring and look like a toy soldier.
Star Tours - Mom sat this one out. She isn't into these kinds of rides and
doesn't like science fiction. Dad liked the maintenance department.
Muppets Meet N Greet - Greg got Fozzie's (his favorite) and Gonzo's autographs.
I got a great picture of Greg with Fozzie. Time was up before he got to
Kermit.
Turtles - Got Donetello's autograph. Lots of kids especially little ones.
They have queuing areas for each turtle to sign autographs at. People
start queuing before the show starts. Greg said that you can see the
show okay from where he stood in line.
Studio Tour - My parents were on the left side (aren't we mean). Liked
Castrophe Canyon. Boneyard was great.
Special Effects Tour - Great. Liked the people getting wet especially the
Naval captain. They were filming Wheel of Fortune. Vanna White had to
turn the letters again because they didn't like her wrist movement.
They were setting up to film a commercial for Beauty and the Beast and
Colgate. Liked the Lottery movie with Bette Midler.
Animation Tour - Liked movie. I'm sure my mom liked Walter Cronkite and
Greg liked Robin Williams. It was fun watching the animators. The
attraction had another good preshow area.
Superstar TV - I'd been here in 1988 so I knew a little bit about what was
going to happen. There weren't many people in the area when "auditions"
started. The second role was for Ethel Mertz. I jumped up and down
and waved my hands. Bingo - I was selected. Now I hadn't informed anyone
else about what happens here so I left my tour group and went backstage.
While I was waiting in walks my husband. He was volunteered (that Goofy
hat again). Greg didn't really want to be selected because he was hoping
to get a picture of me (he didn't know photography was prohibited). Greg
was selected for Thurston Howell III from Gilligan's Island.
I didn't do very well but I sure had fun. My parents ignored the "move
all the way to the end of the row" request. It wasn't very crowded.
(They were sure a sight with all of the cameras and hats and fanny packs.)
My dad laughed so hard (yep, tears in his eyes again). He talked about
seeing me with Lucille Ball for days afterwards. (I bet he would have
shelled out a few bucks to have a video of it. Disney could really make
out big if they could sell tapes.) Greg's part wasn't very big but he did
a good job. My parents also enjoyed seeing how the stage and the finished
product on the monitors. (I was talking to my dad this past weekend. He'd
love to see me playing Ethel again.)
Monster Sound Show - Fun to watch. The people were so far behind. Greg was
a little disappointed. I'd recommend doing this before Superstar TV.
Dinner was the Polynesian Revue. Everyone enjoyed it. My parents didn't
complain about the dancers. We lived in Hawaii in the 50's. They saw several
shows then and have recently been back. I think mom's least favorite part
was the fashion show. Greg was picked to hulu with one of the girls. He
wasn't even wearing the Goofy hat this time.
9/28 - Breakfast was at PO. Then off to EPCOT.
Attractions:
Captain EO - No one really liked it. We just aren't Michael Jackson fans.
Music was too loud. Kept waiting for the Coke commercial. The new preshow
was okay but I missed the music from the old show.
Journey into Imagination - Enjoyed by all. The flying contraption was a
favorite scene.
O Canada - Great, greeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaat. My dad really liked it. Greg didn't
sing along (I had been playing the records prior to going and Greg had
started singing along - in a loud, off-key, screechy manner).
American Adventure - My mom wondered why we didn't do a travel film like the
other pavilions. She liked the show but thought it was "too much" when
compared to other countries. Dad also would have liked to have seen more
of the US and its parks. Both parents liked the show, it just seems out
of place when compared with the other attractions. Greg was teary-eyed
again.
China - Interesting and good. Nice seeing various parts of the country and
its culture.
I'm sure that we did more than this. But that's all that's in my notes.
We probably spent alot of time shopping and looking at all of the countries.
Dinner was at the Biergarten. I think this is the night that everyone
except me stayed for Illuminations. The cold was really getting to me.
9/29 - Breakfast was at Perkins. My parents enjoyed this because breakfast
is more to their liking. Off to the Space Center. It rained all day or
at least most of it. We did the bus tour and IMAX. Unfortunately it poured
during a good portion of the bus tour. If the weather had been better, we
would have stayed longer. We had dinner reservations at the Prime Time Cafe.
After hearing so much about it, Greg & I were a little disappointed. (Having
an annual pass was really great. I don't think we did anything else but eat
at the studio. I sure wouldn't do that if I had to use a day's admission.)
9/30 - Another day to ourselves. Mom and dad went to visit Floyd. Greg and
went to Typhoon Lagoon after a quick and light breakfast at PO. Today was
overcast. It sprinkled and rained lightly most of the day. Now my husband
loves water and since this was the last planned day to ourselves we decided
to go ahead and go to Typhoon Lagoon. (This is a good example of needing to
be flexible with plans. Greg and I could have easily gone another day but
my parents had made other arrangements that couldn't easily be changed at the
last minute.)
We really made a good choice. Because of the weather Typhoon Lagoon was
almost empty. It was warm enough to enjoy the water (I'm sure Florida
residents would have thought us foolish). Luckily it didn't lightning so the
park was open the entire time we were there. We did just about everything.
We started with the raft rides. One of the cast members rode with us on the
raft ride that requires three or more people. When we got to the bottom another
couple had come. So we climbed over the rocks and rode with them. And then
we did it again with them. We rode the slides and Humunga Cowabunga. (I
won't be doing that one any time soon but Greg liked it.) To make a long
story short, within two hours after we left our hotel room, we had traveled
to the park, purchased tickets and had ridden on everything.) We skipped
Ketch-a-Kiddie Creek - just figured that without small children it wasn't
appropriate. I skipped the wave pool but Greg had lots of fun in it.
All day long helicopters were flying around. They were either transporting
dignitaries from the airport or were secret service patrolling the area.
We left Typhoon Lagoon in the early afternoon and spent the evening at EPCOT.
We may have gone shopping at the Disney Village in the afternoon. Dinner was
at the Coral Reef. Then Greg and I staked out a spot for Illuminations.
The area that is set aside for viewers to sit down was blocked off. So Greg
and I stood behind the ropes. The show was great as usual.
10/1 - Breakfast was at PO. Then off to the Magic Kingdom. We arrived
early and got behind the ropes to head for Space Mountain. There were several
places (at least three if not more) where the media was broadcasting from.
We could have obtained spots for the re-dedication but weren't in the mood.
Later in the morning we were getting drinks at the Space Bar when the jets
flew overhead. Maybe if it hadn't been raining we would spent the morning
watching the re-dedication and parade.
Attractions:
Space Mountain - Right side. This side didn't seem as bad as I remembered.
Maybe one side is worse than the other. (I'll have to investigate another
trip.)
Star Jets - Tight fit for two adults. It's fun but worse on my neck than
Space Mountain.
Grand Prix - Greg and I rode in separate cars and were in separate rows. I
won the race. Greg got behind some kids who were more interested in
hitting the metal guide.
WEDway - I like this ride because it's relaxing but not everyone enjoyed it.
Carousel of Progress - My dad liked seeing all of the old stuff. One of the
refrigerators was similar to one my grandmother had.
Dreamflight - Disappointed with cutouts. Belongs in Fantasyland.
Mission to Mars - Needs updated badly. Looking forward to new attractions.
American Journeys - Nice overview of travel places from different parts of the
country.
Starland Show - Good but I miss seeing the older, traditional characters.
Petting Zoo
Magic Journey - Not too impressed but good. Maybe should be at EPCOT. (It
use to be there. It probably wasn't good planning on my part to hit the
3-D movies with the newest first and the oldest last. Oh well!)
Keelboats - It was raining and dad sat on top. Fun with lots of corny jokes.
We staked out spots for the afternoon and night parades. As usual I get there
about two hours early so that I can get a curbside seat. My pictures come out
lots better without heads in them. My favorite spot is the center of the HUB
at the end of Main Street. After standing there for an hour, a cast member
came by and informed us the parade was running backwards. So we moved across
the street. Then other members went to find a better spot. A spot on the
other side of the HUB, where the road to Liberty Square was open. Off we went
again. (We had several other tourists moving with us. It was kind of fun.)
At this side we heard different cast members telling people conflicting parade
routes. Finally two women walked down the street carrying cellular phones.
They were wearing suits not uniforms from the different lands. Since they
looked official my dad asked them which way the parade was running - backwards.
And backwards it ran. (Note: they run backwards when they are filming the
parade.)
That evening we watched the first public appearance of SpectroMagic. I asked
at City Hall whether it was running forwards or backwards. They didn't know
for sure. We gambled with backwards and were correct. Staked out the same
spots. This spot can be good for photographs. Greg got a couple of shots
of the floats with Cinderella's Castle in the background. (I'd like to try by
the end of Frontierland next time.) We got to meet some really interesting
people waiting for the parades. As usual there are people who try to sit in
front at the last minute. Luckily, the crowd or cast members banish them to the
back.
My comments about SpectroMagic have already been posted. My expectations were
set a little too high. The theme music isn't as catchy as the Electric
Light Parade. (I hope I can get to California before the ELP isn't there
anymore.) Some of the characters I can't identify with. SM is good but I
miss ELP. I don't have enough of an appreciation for some of the advanced
lighting techniques.
10/2 - Breakfast at PO. Then off to EPCOT.
Attractions:
Living Seas
Horizons - liked movies best
World of Motion - My dad really enjoyed this. Animatronics great.
Energy - I tried to fall asleep. Liked the dinosaurs. Not very impressed
overall.
Body Wars - Took my mom so she would keep her mouth shut. (She had been asking
people if they thought she would like it. I had told her she wouldn't like
it. The motion didn't bother her much but she was bored by the subject.
I was right after all - but for the wrong reason.)
Cranium Command - Everyone liked this. Make sure to catch the preshow.
Mexico - Pretty good. Liked seeing the tourist areas but didn't know where
they were. This is the least favorite world showcase attraction.
Norway - Everyone liked this. Mom even liked the little water slide. Now if
they'd make the ride longer.
Surprise in the Sky - We viewed this from Italy. Everything that flys circles
the lagoon so they should be visible from everywhere. The fireworks are not too
impressive and are in the center. The giant balloons are the only reason
to pick viewing spot. They stay up for a few minutes (5 to 10) after the
show so you are able to move a little after the show to see any you missed.
Dinner was in Japan.
10/3 - Breakfast was at Perkins - my parents request. It was a non-Disney day.
We were off to Universal Studios. We met Floyd for this one because he had
not yet been there. No one had been to US. I'm tired of playing tour guide
so my attitude was not very good. I made sure I went on the things I wanted
and if no one else wanted to go on the other stuff then we skipped it.
Attractions:
Back to the Future - Jerky, good, hard on the neck. Neat ride. Star Tours
was smoother. Greg went several more times. My neck couldn't handle
any more.
E.T. - Cute, slow ride back at E.T.'s home planet. Greg didn't care much for
it. Listen for your name at the end.
Kongfrontation - Good. Liked models of King Kong. Gets you into the
attraction well.
Ghostbusters - Special effects were pretty good except for the rays from
the machines.
Production tour - MGM was much better.
Hanna Barbera - Okay but I was getting tired of being jerked around. My neck
isn't the best and can't handle several of these in a day.
Wild West Show - Groucho and Harpo were doing preshow entertainment. They
were great. Some innocent couple came in and the Marx brothers decided
assist these people in finding a seat. They ended up clearing the entire
row in front of us. Then they seated the couple elsewhere. It was great.
The stunt show itself was pretty good.
We went to the Hard Rock Cafe. It was interesting. Floyd left when we
finished here. We went back thru the park. Greg and I rode on Back to the
Future again. He liked the front seat better.
We were ready to leave and it was pouring. We were suppose to meet my parents
close to the entrance. Well, part way there we found them waiting. It had
started pouring (accompanied with lots of lightning - the worse during our
trip). We waited at least 30 minutes - the lightning and thunder let up but
not the rain. Dad purchased another poncho because he didn't have his with
him. We decided to walk in the rain. I gave up trying to walk in my sandals
and took them off. It was great walking in the street next to the curb. I
got to splash alot water. I was already wet so I couldn't have gotten much
wetter.
I did notice some screaming kids while we were waiting. They were so afraid
of the thunderstorms. Alot of kids did fine but there were a few who were
panic-stricken. I wonder if thunderstorms were new experience for them.
Neither Greg or I were very impressed with Universal. It'll be awhile before
we go back there. There didn't seem much for small children.
10/4 - We have done almost everything so today was a free day. My parents
met another friend for lunch. They had breakfast at Tony's Town Cafe (my dad's
favorite) at the MK. Greg and I had breakfast at Starring Rolls at the studio.
Attractions:
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids - Great playground. Alot to do. I understand why
there is a line for this one.
Star Tours - Greg only because my neck was still sore from Universal. I got
to watch the Ewok while I waited.
Muppet 3-D Movie
Pretty Woman - New stage show. The one I saw two years ago had more of the
Disney characters in it.
Dinosaurs - We waited for them. Unfortunately they were having technical
difficulties so they arrived about the time we had to leave for our
lunch reservations.
Lunch was at the Sci-Fi. Our favorite at MGM. Then we went and picked up
a rental car. Lucked out here because we ended up with a mini-van. We
returned Floyd's car. Then Greg and I went the Magic Kingdom. Greg rode
Space Mountain again - left side - he thinks it was worse. Then we watched
SpectroMagic again. We had said good-bye to the studio and MK.
10/5 - Our last day. Breakfast at PO bakery. Loaded up the van with
everyone's stuff. Then off to EPCOT.
Attractions:
Making of Me - Greg's been telling everyone that we learned how to make
babies at this exhibit. Very well done.
Goofy About Health - well part of it. Alot of it is from cartoons that we
have taped from the Goofy specials on the Disney channel.
Lunch was at my favorite ice cream spot - Beaches N Cream. I keep telling
Greg that I want to "crave" their ice cream. But alas, that's one craving
which won't be satisfied.
We said good-bye to EPCOT and returned to the hotel. Everyone slipped into
travel clothes and we headed to the airport.
Greg and I won't be back for another five or six years. We just bought a
house and are starting a family. I'd like to go again before our child
starts school. (Maybe I can get a fix at Disneyland before then.)
Highlights:
-----------
Greg and I seemed to catch characters at World Showcase. One day we were
at Morocco. The band was playing and Tigger was dancing with a belly dancer.
Another lady went up to him and got her picture taken. All it takes is one
so I went next only I danced with Tigger. I danced for quite awhile. It was
great. Greg got lots of pictures.
I think my dad's highlight was seeing me on TV with Lucy.
I asked my mom what her favorite ride was. Her reply was the parades and
fireworks. She told me she kept saying "This better be good, this better be
good. And each time it was."
Greg's highlight was seeing Donald Duck. We didn't see him for autographs
and pictures until we went to Mickey's Starland. The autograph was "Keep
on dreaming and believing. Your pal, Donald." Greg also enjoyed the attention
he received from Miss Lilly at the Diamond Horseshoe Revue and from the cast
members at the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue.
I'm glad we went with my parents. It was enjoyable most of the time. The
things that were really frustrating for me I knew about before we left. My
dad laughed so much. Someday I'd like to go back with them and my children
but not the next trip. Now that they've seen it, I might not have to play
tour guide and planner so much. If my parents ever go back, it'll be with
kids.
Five mornings everyone had Orlando newspapers outside their doors. The paper
had articles - front page - on Disney World. I finally finished reading them
the middle of February.
We shot 26 rolls of prints and 28 rolls of slides. I told you I liked taking
pictures and so does my husband.
Next time:
----------
We are planning to go the spring before our child enters kindergarten.
We will probably go for two weeks. We are planning on staying on Disney
property again. Transportation between the airport and hotel will NOT be
a rental car. If I don't have a car, I can't go visit relatives.
We are planning to spend the entire two weeks at Disney. This will give us
the opportunity to go swimming at the different hotels every day. We can
go at the pace of a child and take rest breaks in the afternoon. It'll
also allow us plenty of time to see favorite rides again. My past two trips
I've done alot but been tired trying to get everything done. Maybe by
cutting offsite days out, I'll get to relax more.
The next time we won't be eating at as many sit-down restaurants. But I
believe that we'll go to more character breakfasts.
Hopefully I'll take better notes.
Food by day:
------------
I didn't get all of the snacks but tried to get most of them. If someone else
paid for the meal, it may be omitted from the list. My mom and I split several
dinners so the price may be lower than normal for two adults. BTW, Disney is
very good at allowing dinners to be split. Prices include taxes and tips.
9/21
Commissary Restaurant (studio) - dinner $11.88
P.O. bakery - snack 4.35
9/22
Crystal Palace (MK) - breakfast $14.37
Stargate (EC) - drinks 2.89
Land Grille (EC) - dinner 51.24 - includes wine and dessert
9/23
Tony's Town Square Rest. (MK) - breakfast $15.48
Diamond Horseshoe Revue (MK) - snacks 3.56
Snack wagons (MK) - snacks 7.60
Aloha Isle (MK) - Dole whip ?
Main Street Bakery (MK) - snack .95
Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue - dinner 67.84
9/24
Minnie character breakfast - breakfast $24.09
Sleepy Hollow (MK) - snacks 3.15
Beaches N Cream (Beach Resort) - ice cream 11.03
Morocco (EC) - dinner 41.87
9/25
Bonfamille's (PO) - breakfast $18.28 (includes 15% discount)
Fireworks Factory - dinner 48.67
9/26
Port Orleans - breakfast $ 9.23
Beach Club - snack 3.13
Studio Catering - snack 3.15
Yakitori House (EC) - snack 4.19
Akershus (EC - Norway) - dinner 46.22
9/27
Bonfamille's - breakfast $13.77
Studio Catering - drinks 3.15
Soundstage - lunch 11.30
Sweet Success - candy .64
Polynesian ice cream shop - milkshake 2.85
Polynesian Revue - dinner 65.72
9/28
Port Orleans - breakfast $14.21
France - snack 8.80
Liberty Inn - lunch 8.75
Pretzel wagon - snack .65
Biergarten - dinner 47.56
9/29
Perkins - breakfast $14.21
Space Center - lunch 9.70
Prime Time Cafe - dinner 33.55
9/30
Port Orleans - breakfast $ 6.69
Leaning Palms - lunch 4.41 (one person)
Coral Reef - dinner 71.28
Port Orleans - ? snack 9.67
10/1
Port Orleans - breakfast $10.61
Space Bar - lunch 7.75
Plaza Pavilion - dinner 12.61
10/2
Port Orleans - breakfast $17.25
Mexico fast food - lunch 9.86
Japan - dinner 49.73
United Kingdom cart - dessert 4.00
10/3
Perkins - breakfast $13.63
Mel's Dinner - lunch 13.57
Universal soda fountain - milkshake 4.77
Port Orleans - dinner 17.91
10/4
Starring Rolls - breakfast $ 5.73
ice cream cart - snack 3.00
Coke cart - drinks 1.73
Sci-Fi Drive-In - lunch 24.15
Beaches N Cream - snack 11.26
Adventureland Veranda - dinner 11.88
10/5
Port Orleans - breakfast $ 9.69
Beaches N Cream - lunch 21.00
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