Hello All!
Havent been around for a long time-Theres just been too much-and most of it not good-going on in my life, but I'm not here to share that.
What I am going to share are photos and info from our trip to WDW in August.
It wont be a trip report-too much time has passed for me to remember clearly what happened when.
So look out for the highlights and the low bits and maybe some tips of you are planning to spread your wings away from our beloved DLP
And comparisons will be made between WDW and DLP....
Looking forward to it, I'll be heading to WDW in a little over 2 months. :) Any extra info is most welcome.
OOH! Maybe I could be your personal guide :)
No? OK
Well, we stayed on site at the Art of Animation-so if you're on site or off site-I hope these tips will help
I will add photos later!
Hope you've booked your restaurants already! And one of them was "Be Our Guest" - hard ot get reservations for, but SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO worth it One restuarant I regret not booking-California Grill
Fast pass plus-Its marmite! We loved it-I know lots of people hate it - We made our reservations for later in the day as you can get on most rides within a decent time. Use your fastpasses for later on, when the parks fill up.
When you have booked your fastpasses take a note of them or take a screen shot of them-WIFI is PANTS!
Check out Garden Grocer website!
We ordered a load of groeries to be delivered to Art of Animation the night we arrived-It was FANTASTIC!
Car hire! When you ladn you will be exhausted- You then have to find your way to car hire-They know you are tired- So-The cheeky so and sos will convince you that your luggage will not fit in the car you have ordered. They tried to get my husband and get him to pay $700 more for an upgrade! I told them that I would put the luggage in the car with him and get a taxi to the hotel as the car would only be used for us to travel around in for short periods of time. Low and behold-when we got downstairs, we had to be upgraded free of charge to a people carrier cos they didnt have any of our cars anyway!
Clearwater! A great day away from the parks! Beautiful beaches and a chance to see dolphins in the wild.....
Sorry! I promise there will be pictures! But just thought I would pop these on whilst I am thinking of them....
A personal guide would be lovely, and I am travelling alone. ;)
But it's probably best not too, especially on such short notice. ;D
I'll be staying at Port Orleans : French Quarter
Restaurants are all booked, including dinner at among others: Cinderella's Royal Table, Be Our Guest, California Grill, Jiko - Flavors of Africa, Akershus and a fair few more (I'm on the Deluxe Dining Plan, and I intend to use it as best I can).
Fast Passes I should be able to book starting March 3rd. :)
As for travelling from the Airport to the hotel, arranged for a transfer for that. No shady car rental places to visit. :D
I have no plans for trips outside the Disney grounds on my first visit, though who knows what might happen. :)
Quote from: DisneyRon on February 22, 2015, 10:53:03 PM
A personal guide would be lovely, and I am travelling alone. ;)
But it's probably best not too, especially on such short notice. ;D
I'll be staying at Port Orleans : French Quarter
Restaurants are all booked, including dinner at among others: Cinderella's Royal Table, Be Our Guest, California Grill, Jiko - Flavors of Africa, Akershus and a fair few more (I'm on the Deluxe Dining Plan, and I intend to use it as best I can).
Fast Passes I should be able to book starting March 3rd. :)
As for travelling from the Airport to the hotel, arranged for a transfer for that. No shady car rental places to visit. :D
I have no plans for trips outside the Disney grounds on my first visit, though who knows what might happen. :)
Are you going to take Disneys Magical Express or something else?
Quote from: norhel on February 23, 2015, 10:10:36 AM
Quote from: DisneyRon on February 22, 2015, 10:53:03 PM
A personal guide would be lovely, and I am travelling alone. ;)
But it's probably best not too, especially on such short notice. ;D
I'll be staying at Port Orleans : French Quarter
Restaurants are all booked, including dinner at among others: Cinderella's Royal Table, Be Our Guest, California Grill, Jiko - Flavors of Africa, Akershus and a fair few more (I'm on the Deluxe Dining Plan, and I intend to use it as best I can).
Fast Passes I should be able to book starting March 3rd. :)
As for travelling from the Airport to the hotel, arranged for a transfer for that. No shady car rental places to visit. :D
I have no plans for trips outside the Disney grounds on my first visit, though who knows what might happen. :)
Are you going to take Disneys Magical Express or something else?
Something else, or more accurately, my travel agency did. They booked a mini-bus transfer, so it's for a small group of people. I don't have all the details, they arranged for it.
The Magical Express bus was an option, but this is probably quieter. Which, after a 9 hour flight, should be most welcome.
Quote from: tubbsy on February 22, 2015, 06:17:37 PM
Hello All!
Havent been around for a long time-Theres just been too much-and most of it not good-going on in my life, but I'm not here to share that.
What I am going to share are photos and info from our trip to WDW in August.
It wont be a trip report-too much time has passed for me to remember clearly what happened when.
So look out for the highlights and the low bits and maybe some tips of you are planning to spread your wings away from our beloved DLP
And comparisons will be made between WDW and DLP....
hi tubbsy
sorry to here things are not going good :(
hope things improve for you
really looking forward to your pictures and tips
still hoping to go next year , not certain but fingers crossed, so your comparisons should come in handy
take care.. :)
Hello! I will be visiting WDW for the 8th time with my partner and two children! I've stayed at port Orleans :) any help just ask!
Ps make sure you go to the boardwalk! Love it round there!
Oh and to the yaht and beach club "beaches and cream" parlour for a kitchen sink filled with ice cream! Lol xx
I like my ice cream, but a kitchen sink full... :o
That is a bit much for someone travelling by himself. ;)
I'll keep taking a walk along the boardwalk in mind though, it's not that far from Epcot, so I could possibly visit it when I'm at that park. :)
Quote from: Dollie2004 on February 27, 2015, 06:21:03 PM
Hello! I will be visiting WDW for the 8th time with my partner and two children! I've stayed at port Orleans :) any help just ask!
Ps make sure you go to the boardwalk! Love it round there!
Oh and to the yaht and beach club "beaches and cream" parlour for a kitchen sink filled with ice cream! Lol xx
we are looking at port orleans , fq as haveheard it is simmilar in size to dlp resorts ??? , what do you think??
It's lierslly next door to Epcot! There's a delicious bakery and some great magicians/comedy acts! We spent some evenings there!! When do you go? We are going 29/05 staying at Coronado springs!
POR is a very large resort but not the largest. The rooms are cosy for a family of four. There are usually two double beds and a drop down bed under the to. The toilet and shower are separate from the room, the sink area is large and separated behind a curtain. I think all the moderate resorts have the same lay out? Caribbean beach was the same last year!
I can't commemt if it's the same as DLP as its my first time to DLP on tues! Xx
Quote from: Dollie2004 on February 27, 2015, 08:06:40 PM
It's lierslly next door to Epcot! There's a delicious bakery and some great magicians/comedy acts! We spent some evenings there!! When do you go? We are going 29/05 staying at Coronado springs!
I'll be flying out on May 2nd, and staying until May 13th.
I'll try and pay it a visit, but there's soo much to see, I'm fairly sure I'll be somewhat overwhelmed at first.
Yes indeed there is!! You will have the most amazing time!!! Xx
Quote from: ilovemainstxxx on March 02, 2015, 10:25:37 PM
we are looking at port orleans , fq as haveheard it is simmilar in size to dlp resorts ??? , what do you think??
French Quarter is the smallest resort at WDW, and has very good connections to the parks.
It only shares it's bus lines with Riverside, and most parks are not that far off.
That's one of the reasons I picked it to be honest, as well as a nice price-tag. ;)
The only downside is that it is a little less well stocked on the amenities side, as it has no table service restaurant of its own, though Riverside is only a 5-10 minutes walk away. It only has 1 Quick Service restaurant as well.
In terms of surface area, it may well be similar in size to the DLP resorts, but I haven't visited yet, though I wouldn't mind reporting back when I go there in May. :)
Quote from: DisneyRon on February 28, 2015, 10:01:04 PM
Quote from: ilovemainstxxx on February 27, 2015, 06:39:20 PM
Quote from: Dollie2004 on February 27, 2015, 06:21:03 PM
we are looking at port orleans , fq as haveheard it is simmilar in size to dlp resorts ??? , what do you think??
French Quarter is the smallest resort at WDW, and has very good connections to the parks.
It only shares it's bus lines with Riverside, and most parks are not that far off.
That's one of the reasons I picked it to be honest, as well as a nice price-tag. ;)
The only downside is that it is a little less well stocked on the amenities side, as it has no table service restaurant of its own, though Riverside is only a 5-10 minutes walk away. It only has 1 Quick Service restaurant as well.
In terms of surface area, it may well be similar in size to the DLP resorts, but I haven't visited yet, though I wouldn't mind reporting back when I go there in May. :)
Hi DisneyRon
That would be fantastic if you could...
not long to go now for you , oohh im so jealous ;D
will you be doing a full trip report..??
Quote from: ilovemainstxxx on March 02, 2015, 10:25:37 PM
Quote from: DisneyRon on February 28, 2015, 10:01:04 PM
Quote from: ilovemainstxxx on February 27, 2015, 06:39:20 PM
we are looking at port orleans , fq as haveheard it is simmilar in size to dlp resorts ??? , what do you think??
French Quarter is the smallest resort at WDW, and has very good connections to the parks.
It only shares it's bus lines with Riverside, and most parks are not that far off.
That's one of the reasons I picked it to be honest, as well as a nice price-tag. ;)
The only downside is that it is a little less well stocked on the amenities side, as it has no table service restaurant of its own, though Riverside is only a 5-10 minutes walk away. It only has 1 Quick Service restaurant as well.
In terms of surface area, it may well be similar in size to the DLP resorts, but I haven't visited yet, though I wouldn't mind reporting back when I go there in May. :)
Hi DisneyRon
That would be fantastic if you could...
not long to go now for you , oohh im so jealous ;D
will you be doing a full trip report..??
I intend to do a full trip report, and if I can manage it, I'll be doing daily updates like I did during my last visit to DLP (which worked rather well in my opinion).
The main difference is the length of the stay, 11 days rather than 5, with park tickets for 10 days.
If I'm not too exhausted (here's hoping I avoid Jetlagging myself out), I should post an update of my day every evening, something which worked really well for my DLP visit. Both for the readers here, as well as for myself, giving me a record to look back on.
I may not add photos I take/have taken each day, but after returning I'll add those in manually if needed, especially the photopass+ pictures.
We are off to the Riverside in 3 weeks. Is there any thing I can look into for you whilst there?
DisneyRon I really can't wait to hear about your trip, we are going to WDW for the first time in August and I have felt overwhelmed by this since we booked last year!
I'm so jealous of you going i've only been once when i was 17 which was 25 years ago now :o half of it wasn't even built back then, i think i will go there next instead of paris but that will be at least another 5 years due to other commitments and the cost but at least my youngest will be old enough to appreciate it by then,hope you all have a great time
Quote from: grovesie on March 03, 2015, 03:32:53 PM
We are off to the Riverside in 3 weeks. Is there any thing I can look into for you whilst there?
Well, I'll be interested in how you liked Hollywood Studios park, it's pretty much the smallest park, and I'm curious to know if I need 2 full days there or not. ;)
Quote from: DisneyRon on March 03, 2015, 07:29:16 PM
Quote from: grovesie on March 03, 2015, 03:32:53 PM
We are off to the Riverside in 3 weeks. Is there any thing I can look into for you whilst there?
Well, I'll be interested in how you liked Hollywood Studios park, it's pretty much the smallest park, and I'm curious to know if I need 2 full days there or not. ;)
Disney Ron,
It all depends on how busy it is and what type of things you wish to do. We went a few years ago for 14 nights and only went twice, but it was spring break ands the parks were busy. I would plan 2 days, if you then complete it you could visit a different park or just spend half of the second day there and get the boat taxi to Epcot, this only a 10-15 minute trip.
Quote from: grovesie on March 05, 2015, 09:06:16 AM
Quote from: DisneyRon on March 03, 2015, 07:29:16 PM
Quote from: grovesie on March 03, 2015, 03:32:53 PM
We are off to the Riverside in 3 weeks. Is there any thing I can look into for you whilst there?
Well, I'll be interested in how you liked Hollywood Studios park, it's pretty much the smallest park, and I'm curious to know if I need 2 full days there or not. ;)
Disney Ron,
It all depends on how busy it is and what type of things you wish to do. We went a few years ago for 14 nights and only went twice, but it was spring break ands the parks were busy. I would plan 2 days, if you then complete it you could visit a different park or just spend half of the second day there and get the boat taxi to Epcot, this only a 10-15 minute trip.
Good to know. :) I've scheduled (and made restaurant reservations) two days for it, but I'll indeed keep my options open to see if I actually need it or not. With a little luck the parks shouldn't be too busy (predictions are around 5/10 in terms of crowds), so I'll keep my options open.
Quote from: grovesie on March 03, 2015, 03:32:53 PM
We are off to the Riverside in 3 weeks. Is there any thing I can look into for you whilst there?
hi there...
i know it might sound silly but if you could give us some info on the size of rooms and area compared to dlp that would be good...
we have stayed at Cheyenne, SF ,SL, and DLH just to compare ,think they look like they would be like SL, dont know if 4 of us in a room for two weeks would be to much , but would probably not be in them for that long anyway...??
i really like the look of POFQ, for size , but all the big heads and jesters are putting me off as i am scared of clowns and they all remind me of them and i honastly dont know if i could stay there, and riverside looks great but alot bigger ...???
Quote from: ilovemainstxxx on March 07, 2015, 11:11:27 AM
Quote from: grovesie on March 03, 2015, 03:32:53 PM
We are off to the Riverside in 3 weeks. Is there any thing I can look into for you whilst there?
hi there...
i know it might sound silly but if you could give us some info on the size of rooms and area compared to dlp that would be good...
we have stayed at Cheyenne, SF ,SL, and DLH just to compare ,think they look like they would be like SL, dont know if 4 of us in a room for two weeks would be to much , but would probably not be in them for that long anyway...??
i really like the look of POFQ, for size , but all the big heads and jesters are putting me off as i am scared of clowns and they all remind me of them and i honastly dont know if i could stay there, and riverside looks great but alot bigger ...???
yes no problem, I will send a few pics too. hope the rooms are big enough for 4 .... We are a party of 5, the 5th folds out of the wall. We only use the room for sleeeping in so do not spend alot of time in there,
The rooms at riverside are 314 square feet (approximately 29.6 m2).
Standard Rooms at the Disneyland Hotel are 34m2.
Standard Rooms at the Sequoia Lodge are 22m2.
Standard Rooms at the Cheyenne are 21m2.
Standard Rooms at the Santa Fé are 21m2.
So they're between the DLH and SL in terms of size. :)
Blimey! I go away for a few days and it goes a bit crazy on here!
I have 400 and something photos to still sort! (And I didnt think I had taken that many!)
OK-Hollywood Studios-Its maybe.... MAYBE.... a days worth of visits-or two half days as shows over lap.
We couldnt do Indiana and Motors Action the same day when we were there, so saw Motors Action one day and then Indiana another
Backlot has closed
But it was great to see Motors Action in its entirity-something we havent seen since Studios opened in DLP in 2002 (?)
Right! Back to Photobucket! Get these photos sorted!
Quote from: grovesie on March 07, 2015, 01:41:44 PM
Quote from: ilovemainstxxx on March 07, 2015, 11:11:27 AM
Quote from: grovesie on March 03, 2015, 03:32:53 PM
We are off to the Riverside in 3 weeks. Is there any thing I can look into for you whilst there?
hi there...
i know it might sound silly but if you could give us some info on the size of rooms and area compared to dlp that would be good...
we have stayed at Cheyenne, SF ,SL, and DLH just to compare ,think they look like they would be like SL, dont know if 4 of us in a room for two weeks would be to much , but would probably not be in them for that long anyway...??
i really like the look of POFQ, for size , but all the big heads and jesters are putting me off as i am scared of clowns and they all remind me of them and i honastly dont know if i could stay there, and riverside looks great but alot bigger ...???
yes no problem, I will send a few pics too. hope the rooms are big enough for 4 .... We are a party of 5, the 5th folds out of the wall. We only use the room for sleeeping in so do not spend alot of time in there,
ohh great , i love your pics.. ;D
im sure they will be, just sometimes like my own space , and if we do go next year it will be with my then very grumpy 18 year old daughter and 12 year old son who just loves to wind her up ...haha, like you say we probably wont spend that much time there...
Quote from: DisneyRon on March 07, 2015, 01:56:03 PM
The rooms at riverside are 314 square feet (approximately 29.6 m2).
Standard Rooms at the Disneyland Hotel are 34m2.
Standard Rooms at the Sequoia Lodge are 22m2.
Standard Rooms at the Cheyenne are 21m2.
Standard Rooms at the Santa Fé are 21m2.
So they're between the DLH and SL in terms of size. :)
thanks for that info , bigger than i thought , and i guess we wouldnt be in them that long...
Quote from: tubbsy on March 08, 2015, 06:20:06 PM
Blimey! I go away for a few days and it goes a bit crazy on here!
I have 400 and something photos to still sort! (And I didnt think I had taken that many!)
OK-Hollywood Studios-Its maybe.... MAYBE.... a days worth of visits-or two half days as shows over lap.
We couldnt do Indiana and Motors Action the same day when we were there, so saw Motors Action one day and then Indiana another
Backlot has closed
But it was great to see Motors Action in its entirity-something we havent seen since Studios opened in DLP in 2002 (?)
Right! Back to Photobucket! Get these photos sorted!
really looking forward to seeing your pics..x
what were the rooms like at AOA , love the look of them and the whole place looks great..
right now I also have Indiana Jones' and Motors Action on two separate days, but I'll see if I can't snag a FP on the day for the Motors show, as I have an Indiana Jones' show in the morning, rather than the afternoon. :)
WOOHOO! Photos sorted!!!
OK-Kitchen sink! we were warned off it by my nephew-who said you ended up with one mushy mint chocolate strawberry yuk! Lol!
So where shall we start?
The resort we chose....
We stayed at the Art of Animation....
OK, why?
Well, there was myself and Mark, our 20 year old daughter and 12 year old son.... sleeping arrangements would not have been simple. So we chose to go for an AoA suite.
They have one double room with en suite, then there is a sofa bed and the dining table turns into a bed. (sounds odd I know but....)
Youtube Lion King suites at Art of Animation-It will give you a better idea.
But we loved it.
Only downside was the buses as we were in a value resort and furthest out. They were a bit of a pain but we got used to their timings :)
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I havent given much background have I?
We booked with Thomson (but will book through Virgin for flights and WDW direct and Universal direct if and when we go again)
As I said, we flew with Virgin-Got bubble seats (There are economy seats to be had upstairs in the Bubble-some people feel its clostraphobicbut we loved it)
Because we were in the Bubble, only first class got off the plane first.
Hire car-Anyone else have this?
we got to the car hire place where they said the car we had chosed wouldnt fit our luggage.
We were told we would have to upgrade for $700!
I said no and said I would get a taxi to the hotel and the family could go in the car......
The woman behind the desk wasnt impressed! She handed over our paperwork....
When we got to the garage we found that they were all out of our size car and we had to have a chevvy caravan-which is what they wanted to pay an extra $700 for the two weeks.
It was Marks pride and joy for the week!
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Ah, the USA, where consumer protection is a bit of a myth...
The front desk probably knew you'd be getting the larger car because the other was not in stock, getting you to pay for the upgrade would have been pure profit on their part. Rather devious to be honest.
Very glad I don't have to deal with that on my upcoming trip. :)
Lovely photos by the way.
thanks-will get some more up later-
Bogged down with boring paperwork for work!
Flippin liberty! work getting in the way of Disney ;)