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[polar vixen]

Hi all, so for this years trip I was determined to make it a good one for2 reasons -  last year ds3 was really ill 3 of the 5 days we were away.  He spent 3 days on the bed in the hotel room covered in ice to bring his temperature down.  He hasn't stopped protesting that he missed tower of terror since last june!   On a daily basis lol and secondly it will probably be dd1 last time with us  as she now wants to go on holiday with friends instead.
so we'll be staying at sequoia lodge for the first time in a golden forest room (eek!)  We are myself, DH, DD1 (18) DS1, (13 has ASD) DS2 (9 has ASD) DS3 (7 has ASD and ADHD) DS4 (4) and DD2 (1 yr)
Day1 travel from north east England down to dover. It will be myself and daughter travelling with 5 kids, Hubby is going to work for the day then drive down to dover by himself and meet us at the Travelodge at dover (so glad they opened one here!)
Day 2 Hubby and 1 + 5 youngest will board the ferry, we're booked for 8:30 but i'm hoping we can catch the 7:30 instead. DD1 will be driving herself to ebbsfleet and catching the Eurostar. This seemed preferable to driving 2 cars in franc, but have been worrying since they announced strikes. I don't think her trains are affected.  I'm quite confident driving in England, but with screaming kids for 3 hours in france.....not so much.  Plan is that Eurostar should end up arriving round about the same time as us.  We'll have movies and comics for the drive and kids already have backpakcs packed with a few little treats. After checking in we'll avail ourselves of the g.f afternoon tea (will there be anything gluten free my kids can have other than the pre packed biscuits?  Also how do drinks work here?  Are they served in glasses? bottles?  and where actually is the g.f. lounge location?)
Then we'll head to the parks to get my boys green passes, hopefully catch the parade, do a few favourite rides, before heading for tea t 8pm at Billybobs
Day 2
easy morning, spending a day at the parks, before returning to the hotel for snacks, and a relax from the heat before tea at the parkside diner (never been here before, thoughts?  It is a plus level buffet right? Then back to the parks for illuminations. When we went last year I compared it to dreams and was really really disappointed so I;m hoping to view itwith fresh eyes this time.
Day 3 easy morning, then spending a day at the studios with tea at bistrot chez remy
Day 4 is our chill out day around hotel, use the pool etc.  although we are having a character breakfast....is the pueblo trading post still only open weekends?  and how fast do limited edition pin releases sell out?  (i'm quite tempted to sneak off for that)  We have dinner booked at the yacht club. Never eaten here either.  I wasn't sure what time to book for - we want to make the most of the g.f. snacks  but didn't want to eat too late with kids either...hmmmm any thoughts?
Also ds 3 and ds4 REALLY want to do pony rides, can you do these even if not staying at the Cheyenne? Does anyone know how or when they operate?  How much they cost?
Day 5 - spending the day at the studios, and have inventions brunch booked
Day 6 - parks / Buffalo Bill ( we love this and will be so sad to see it go)
Day 7 - studios Hunters Grill
Day 8 - chill out day again     Parkside Diner
Day 9 - favourites and billy bobs for tea
Day 10 - parks and plaza gardens before we see dd1 off at the station and then set off for the ferry. 
I;ve been following ed92on twitter, but alerts I get seem to be random, we really want to meet sully this trip, does anyone know how I can find out when hell be there?  Or fix twitter so i'm getting real time info. Also I've seen lots of chatacters in the Disneyland hotel.....are these in a particular location and time or do they wander?
And last thing, boys are huge Spider-Man fans, does anyone know how far before marvel summer of fun he'll be stopping meet n greets?  (I know once it starts he'll only be meeting the signature package holders)
Thanks in advance for any help you guys can give x

[tigger1974]

Hi polar vixen

I can answer a couple of your questions - the Golden Forest lounge is located at the far right hand side of the hotel (at the entrance where the airport shuttles pick up) on the ground floor level. The check in area for the GF is to the left of the main reception area in an (small) enclosed area.
The drinks on offer in the afternoons come in cans (usual suspects Coke, Fanta, Sprite etc), bottled water and hot drinks from machines. There were also canned fruit juices - apple or orange.
The food was mainly little cakes and tiny sandwiches so I doubt that anything would be gluten free but you could try mentioning this when you check in and see if they can offer any suggestions.
If you are having breakfast in the hotel you also have this in the GF lounge. On offer is a wide range of cereals, croissants, rolls, juices, fresh fruit, yoghurts etc. They also offer a full selection of hot food too - including eggs, sausages, bacon, tomatoes, baked beans, toast and - my personal favourite! - pancakes. Again I am sorry but I don't know how much of this would be gluten free.
Sorry I can't tell you much more but I hope this helps a bit. Enjoy the GF experience - it is really worth it in my opinion - and more importantly have a fabulous time at DLP!!

TTFN 

[polar vixen]

Tha ks tigger1974. Very helpful!