The family:
Me 27 AKA Mammy
DP37 AKA Daddy
DD18 months AKA Laylah, Boo, Little Princess and Little monster.
Were staying at the Santa Fe between the 2nd and 6th of Febuary. We're leaving about 3:30 am to catch our flight at 6:35 am on Wednesday the 2nd of Febuary.
Have fun, we will be there the same time! Hoping the weather will be nice and the park empty ;)
The park schedules are available on the disney website now if you wanted to have an idea of what shows etc are on.
Kelly xx
we'll be arriving the day you leave :-) just waiting for the parade schedule to go up as only goes till 4th Feb at the moment.
We took my daughter at 15mths and she loved it. I think she only remembers it via photos/videos etc but is looking forward to going back next weekend aged 3 !
Have a lovely time x
Thanks I can't believe we're leaving in 12 hours.
Have a fab time. You have planning for a while, I hope you have a blast!
Have a great time!!!
Quote from: "never2old"Have a great time!!!
Hope you had a fab time!
Hope your trip was as magical as you'd hoped, and all your planning paid off. =)
We were told by the travel agent to be at the air port 2 hours before we were due to fly so we set off at 3:20 am DP was very grumpy having had very little sleep and being terrified of flying, Laylah was quite chirpy in the car but she was very tired too and I'd had no sleep at all so even I wasn't full of excitement. We arrived at Newcastle airport at about 10 to 4 and we didn't know where to go the travel agent hadn't given us any info so we assumed the cue that was forming was for us but when we saw the board it was for sharm el sheikh not somewhere I'd choose to go to ATM. when we realised there were more check in desks behind the cafe.
We arrived at the desk and the lady asked us if we'd checked in I looked at her blankly it's been a while since I have flown and DP has never flown so I assumed it was her job. She pointed us to the touch screen computers and we tried to check in. All we had be given by the travel agents was an envelope with transfer tickets bus timetables and a letter I had rang to make sure this was the e-ticket and she said that there was nothing to worry about. However when we tried to check in the the reference number was not recognised we were getting a little worried then we tried using my passport and we were recognised. So we cheeked in and handed over our luggage. There was quite a long wait for our flight so we went to sit in the duty free Laylah quite enjoyed that bit she sat in the seats munching her way through a bag of fruit flakes and her Daddy bought her a new bear because I had left the one she sleeps with at home what I was putting her in the car.
We were finally called to the departure lounge, first I saw an easyjet plane and I was a little worried we were in the wrong place because we were flying air France then I spotted out plane. I'm not surprised I missed it it looked a bit like a ford fiesta with wings it was tiny. There was still more time to wait some people were still cheeking in I'm slightly annoyed at the travel agent for saying we needed to be up so early but hey! There was another family going to DLP with their little girl who was only a few months older than Laylah so they shyly told each other where they were going Laylah saying "Mmmmmmkey" and the other little girl trying her best to say Princess. We boarded the plane and the air hostesses were lovley they couldn't do enough for us and kept asking if Laylah needed anything. Layah was really good on the plane she had been teething quite badly so the threw a wobbler when I went to the toilets and I think she was frightened of the landing but other than that she coped really well and slept most of the way. DP coped really well too even though her was terrified.
We Landed at CDG and had to rush to get on the bus I hadn't realised I could take the buggy on to I had to struggle to hold Laylah while we were moving and there was a bag in the way of the bus in the road it wasn't ours but it didn't fill me with hope. I was right to be doubtful we were waiting about 45 minutes for our bags.
We made our way to the get on the express bus and we were told it would be 10-15 minutes it was more like an hour and 15 minutes Laylah was playing with the other little girl and another British toddler but were were exhausted. When the bus came we nearly didn't get on people seemed to come from nowhere to push past us not giving a monkeys that I was charring a baby and her Dad had 2 cases and a buggy to load as far as they were concerned we didn't matter as long as they got on the bus they'd quite happily push a mother and baby out of the way. This turned out to be an attitude that was shared by so many rude people during out trip the express bus back was even worse.
So far the trip had been long and stressful but we were on board the bus at least nothing else could go wrong.....
That sounds ominous - I will be watching for the next installment!
sounds pretty stressful and that ending didnt sound too hopeful either =/ will be looking out for more hopefully the rest of your trip went well =]
When we got to the Santa Fe the whole bus got off so there was quite a cue at the check in but it went down quickly enough there was a British woman ranting about it being a total rip off but it took me a while to work out what had got her goat. We cheeked in at about 12:45 and the lady said we couldn't use our room until 3pm I know this was standard but I was really hoping they could get us a room on arrival as I had rang and asked to be considered if there was one available and the travel agent had done the same but I don't think they had even made a note of it. We dropped off our cases and I got out a hat for Laylah because it was freezing much colder than it had been here.
We got on the shuttle bus in to the park we were all very tired and DP was giving me the third degree just because there was no-one else to blame. All we wanted was something to eat and he expected me to know exactly where everything is. I decided to check out the Agraba Cafe so we headed to adventure land I looked everywhere and couldn't find it we stopped at Colonel Hathi's Pizza Outpost we didn't fancy the look of it. On the way out we bumped in to the Mouse himself I so desperately wanted to stop but tempers were starting to flare. We finally found the Agraba Café hidden by the entrance and it was closed!!!! I then opted for plan B Plaza Gardens I was looking at my map trying to get my bearings and captain hook came up and hit my map with his hook. He frightened the life out of me and everyone was laughing normally I'd have taken it in my stride but I was just so tired he must have sensed I wasn't game because he went off to harass someone else.
When we got to Plaza Gardens there was a little cue but it was only about 10 minuets until we were seated. I thought we'd feel so much better once we got sat down with some food. DP got Laylah some food and put it in front of her and she screamed!!!!!! She had been teething really badly and had obviously had a long day so I can't blame her but it's so unlike her I'm normally the smug Mam with the well behaved baby so her screaming her little lungs out isn't something I'm used to we were all very stressed. She settled down a little bit so I got up to get some food there were some lovely things on offer but all I cared about was getting something to eat and going to sleep. I got back and Laylah was screaming so we settled her again so Daddy got up and Laylah screamed. We got her out of the high chair and she was quite wet so I went in to my hand luggage to get out a nappy when I realised I'd used the last one when we were waiting for our luggage. What an idiot how could I get Laylah a hat out of the case and not more nappies?!!!!!!! DP was understandably full of hell he was already ranting at me about spending 60E on a meal he really wasn't happy when I told him it was one of the cheaper places. I asked the waitress where I could buy nappies and she said outside to the left. I didn't know where she meant but DP left and came back just a few minutes later with a carrier bag containing 4 nappies because he wasn't sure what size to get. Laylah's a 4.5 so he got 2 4s and 2 5s. He walked back through the door and I burst in to tears . I felt so bad about not having enough nappies and I'd had enough of DP having a go at me because I couldn't make things just the way he wanted them and I'd had enough of listening to poor Laylah scream when there was nothing I could do to help her. DP gave me a hug and apologised for blaming me for not getting a room and the price of the food.
I took Laylah to get changed she's perked up a bit since we'd stopped trying to get her to eat and given in to her demands of more apple juice and given her far more bongela than was recommended. We has some of the delicious deserts and headed back to the Santa Fe. We got a room and a map I didn't have a clue where I was going until someone directed us. The building had recently been re-painted but the old paint showed through in massive patches. TBH it looked a bit like a council estate near me. We got in to out room and it was clean and warm I was so glad the room looked comfortable, there was a cot for Laylah but no blankets. Fortunatly I had brought a lovely thick fleece blanket with us so I popped her in to bed had a quick bath then got in to bed myself.
Unfortunately the late nap and the fact she was in our room meant that Laylah didn't go to sleep until 12:30 am and spent most of the night trying o take her fingers off in the chest of draws. When I'd settled her and she woke up 15 minutes later screaming DP announced that he wanted to go home and TBH by this point I was thinking the same thing. I was wondering how long we'd be on stand by at the airport. I thought waking past Mickey was the closest to the magic we'd get and I cried myself to sleep.
PS: it does get better I promise.
Oh you poor thing what an awful way to start your trip. I'm glad it gets better.
Hmmm, yes, travelling with babies can be hard, this is why we used to often have a travel day where we planned to do nothing. I did sadly warn you it is rare the room is ready if you check in early (except at the DLH and Hotel New York). I hope the trip did get better. Waiting to hear how the rest went.
Oh, I'm sorry your first day at the park wasn't as magical as you expect it to be.
I remember feeling exactly the same when we went to Florida - and we didn't have a baby in tow then.
I hadn't had much sleep the night before, was at the airport for 6am, then a 9 hour flight, and eventually got to the hotel at 6pm, (Their time, it would have been 11pm UK time), after everyone we had met being actually quite horrible I walked into our 4* hotel room expecting luxury and got a glorified chalet. I burst into tears too, and cried myself to sleep, with my poor husband asking if we wanted to go home.Luckily,I said lets see what tomorrow brings and after a good nights sleep, felt ready to take on the world!! (and our room wasn't as bad as I first thought either)
Its amazing what effect tiredness can have on people.
Look forward to hearing how it got better for you.
Day 2 Thursday 3rd of February
We had breakfast reservations for 7:45 but Laylah was still sleeping after a bad night (poor little mite didn't get a moments rest from her teeth pushing through) so we had gave her another 10 minutes before we woke her. We arrived for breakfast at around 8am we didn't have to wait for long but it was quite busy. We were all still feeling really tired and grumpy from the day before and Laylah's gums were very sore despite lots of teething gel and a dose of children's nurofen. The breakfast although limited in choice was quite nice. The croissants and pan choc were fresh and was apple juice for Laylah the only thing that disappointed us was the lack of yoghurt or fromage frais pots, there was natural yoghurt but it wasn't very nice.
After breakfast we headed towards the park there was the usual scrum to board the bus but shortly after swearing at a few rude people we were outside the park. We were coming out of bag check and this young girl was saying to her friends "Look as that little girl dresses as Minnie Mouse,. How cute is she?" I turned round to look and realised they were talking about Laylah. I guess she kinda was dressed like Minnie Mouse she had she Minnie Mouse spotty snow suit on with the matching hat and her Minnie Mouse ears hat on over the top. I know my little Princess is beautiful but it's nice to hear people agree. We headed off to take some Pics outside the DLH and as we were taking some pics I over heard more comments about Laylah and I turned round to find a British man taking pictures of her!!! I wasn't sure how to feel about it I mean it's a nice complement and I'm sure he didn't mean any harm but taking photographs of other people's children without permission is a pretty irresponsible thing to do.
As we entered Main street standing right next to emporium in his special spot was Mickey Mouse himself there was a bit of a cue but we decided it would be a nice was to introduce Laylah to her second favourite mouse (Minnie comes first in Laylah's eyes) so we waited about 20 minutes when it was our turn I wasn't sure how Laylah would react so I cautiously carried her over and a smile spread from ear to ear she was so happy. Mickey waved, Laylah waved back and said "Hiya!" Then she did the cutest thing ever she puckered up her lips and planted a massive kiss on Mickey's nose. It was so sweet I must admit there was a little tear in my eye and it made everything the day before worth it. We posed for a few pics and Layah gave Mickey a few more Kisses before we went I had to say a big thank you to Mickey he was so kind to my little girl he really made her (and me) feel special.
Then we went to Fantasy Land and rode IASW there was no cue at all and we all really enjoyed the ride. Laylah and I then rode the teacups while Daddy tome photos before the excitement got a bit too much for Laylah and she took a nice nap. DP and I relaxed while she was asleep we went to the cable car bakery we both had the tea time menue with the hot drink in a souvenir cup and the Mickey brioche I had a hot chocolate and even though I got 100,000,000 tiny blisters in my tongue it was worth it yummy!!!!
Quote from: "gothprincess"The breakfast although limited in choice was quite nice. The croissants and pan choc were fresh and was apple juice for Laylah the only thing that disappointed us was the lack of yoghurt or fromage frais pots, there was natural yoghurt but it wasn't very nice.
I am afraid that is the difference between the hotels. The economy get the spread you got. The Moderates get flavoured yogurt, apple puree and fruit salad, and the DLH and HNY get eggs, veal sausages, bacon, pancakes, yogurt with fruit compote, donuts etc.
Quote from: "gothprincess"I wasn't sure how to feel about it I mean it's a nice complement and I'm sure he didn't mean any harm but taking photographs of other people's children without permission is a pretty irresponsible thing to do.
There is a sign warning people in the parks this is likely to happen. Personally I don't mind, I know others do.
Glad it sounds like things started to improve for you.
Quote from: "davewasbaloo"Quote from: "gothprincess"The breakfast although limited in choice was quite nice. The croissants and pan choc were fresh and was apple juice for Laylah the only thing that disappointed us was the lack of yoghurt or fromage frais pots, there was natural yoghurt but it wasn't very nice.
Quote from: "davewasbaloo"[I am afraid that is the difference between the hotels. The economy get the spread you got. The Moderates get flavoured yogurt, apple puree and fruit salad, and the DLH and HNY get eggs, veal sausages, bacon, pancakes, yogurt with fruit compote, donuts etc.
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There was apple puree and some tinned fruit which came un useful when Laylah was feeling more like eating the apple juice despensers and hot full fat milk were a life saver. All Laylah wanted was apple juice and it was prooving expensive so we filled up her cup and a spare at breakfast and the hot milk was the only place we could find full fat milk we'd cool it a little at breakfast with semi skimmes milk and take a full cup in to the park by the time we were off the bus it would be cool enough fo her to drink.
Quote from: "gothprincess"I wasn't sure how to feel about it I mean it's a nice complement and I'm sure he didn't mean any harm but taking photographs of other people's children without permission is a pretty irresponsible thing to do.
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Quote from: "davewasbaloo"[There is a sign warning people in the parks this is likely to happen. Personally I don't mind, I know others do.
TBH it's not that I minded I just thought maybe it wasn't the most sensible thing to do if I had taken offence he could have been accused of horrible things when that wasn't the case at all.
PS: How can I post photos?
Hmmm, if you have a photobucket address and then put them in there. They then will have web tag addresses you can put in your post and they will appear. Personally, I don't like photos coming up in posts as they make it difficult when using mobile tech on the move as I do, so I put them on Facebook and then create a public link on my trip reports on the web. If I recall though, there is a step by step guide on this board of posting photos.
In the unfortunate world we live in, I feel the sign in Disneyland that warns about people taking photos, could perhaps be changed to, photographers need to ask permission from parents before photographing their children.
I can see how sometimes, your photograph may capture other people in the background, but to be blatantly photographing children I think is definitely a bit risky.
Its a shame we have to think like that, especially somewhere like Disney, like gothprincess says, some people could take alot of offence, and accuse them of anything.
Looking forward to the rest of the report. =)
Hi just wanted to let you know I am reading your report with great interest - almost feels like we are there with you. We are going on our first trip to DLP 1st April and looking for as much feedback as I can get before we go.
Trish
x :)
Aw thanks Trish I guess I better post some more info today :-)
Day 2 part 2
Right where were we?
Oh yeah Laylah was asleep and we'd had a nice drink we watched some of the showtime spectacular but I felt really guilty watching that when Laylah was asleep so we had a nose round the shops then walked into frontier land for a look see.
We had a look at the Mark twain I'd really like to ride that one day but we don't like crowds and I think it's generally closed ar less busy times. Then we had a walk around the grounds of Phantom Manor it was really well thought out with new little details everywhere you looked Laylah had been asleep for a while so I woke her up hoping the promise of being able to walk outside would prevent any grumpieness. She was actually in a very good mood so I made double sure it was OK for her to ride and we headed inside. It gets cramped in that little room inside but thankfully we weren't in there for too long DP thought it was a walk through by all the spooky details on the walls etc. we got to the carriages and getting on was an experience to say the least I nearly missed the ride! There is a travelator like rhe ones at the airport that you stand on which travels at the same speed as the carriages now most people seemed to find it quite easy to get on the ride but I was trying to let DP get on and get Laylah seated with him before getting on myself and I nearly hit the post at the end LOL. I won't go in to too many details so as not to spoil it for those who have never been before but the ride was awesome!!!! We loved it Laylah was particularly impressed with the laughing skeleton. We had a bit of a struggle getting off too getting yourself and your bag from one moving platform to another is difficult but add in a toddler and changing bad and it's like mission impossible but I think it kind of added to the fun.
It was time for lunch and thanks to you lovely people I knew you could get a decent meal at the cowboy cookout BBQ so that's where we landed next and to my surprise there was Goofy, Jessie and Woody we posed for pics with Goofy who was looking a bit lonely all by himself Laylah gave him a big kiss and we decided to give Jessie a visit but she was obviously late for something important because she disappeared. In side was nice and warm and Laylah was sitting nicely in a highchair so we ordered Laylah had the chicken and veal sausage with cherry tomatoes and orange juice DP had the "smoked" chicken, carrot sticks and water which to took with us and I was put off the chicken by the word "Smoked" so I ordered the double burger, potato wedges and coke which we shared. You know your a parent when you order carrot sticks and potato wedges so the little one can pick at them. The chicken was really nice I was gutted I hadn't ordered it too and the kiddies sausage was nice too but quite spicy all Laylah wanted was the tomatoes, a pick of our sides ant to guzzle juice anyway. I wasn't as impressed with my burger it was quite dry in fact it tasted like a double whopper but without the flavour.
Then just as we were coming out it was everyone was heading down the road and we realised it was exactly tome for Mickey's winter wonderland so we had a lovely time watching the show even my grumpy pants DP enjoyed it! I knew it would be good but I didn't expect ice skating and a real horse and carriage it was fantastic! Once that was over it was time to cue for the parade so off to Main ST. we go. By this time Laylah was getting tired and a bit grumpy no toddler enjoys waiting but as soon as the parade came she was in awe Tigger came over to tickle her chin and lots of the characters waved at her I kept trying to crack the faces of the grumpy "flames" with waving poi before the "bad guy's", float. That was the end of our wonderful day in Disneyland we got some snacks from the station and headed for the cue (scrum) for the bus.
I know you have been planning for a long time, so I was really gutted for you when I read about the rocky start to your trip :(
However, it sounds as if day two was a lovely day, and that Laylah had an amazing time with the characters! Phew! I really hope it continues in the same positive vein, I look forward to reading the rest :)