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[davewasbaloo]

Lol. Well I just did my survey, and I let Disney know what I thought of the good and the not so good.

Hopefully though, you will find the merchandise has improved. We spent about £300 on souvenirs this year whereas last year I think it was closer to £40. Why? Because there were things worth buying. So there is an improvement at least. Can't wait to hear your views after you go again.

[seanmartina]

Thats great news on the merchindise, at least ill play my small part in improving the finances... 500 pounds on some quality  

i hope this year is good, as i am introducing another family to the resort, the fourth we have introduced.. as our teenage daughter is getting older, so we have to hijack other peoples kids lol.. i love seeing there faces as they walk through the gates, even the wow factor of the disney hotel.. i hope i can keep on being proud of our park and see it fulfil its potential..

[never2old]

Finally caught up on reading your report and seeing all your pictures. As usual, a brilliant read, thank you for that!! I really appreciate your views on the state of the parks (both positive and negative). I don't think I'll say you're objective, because you obvisouly love the place very much, but you don't let that stop you from seeing that all is not well. You know what I mean, right?

The POTC without any effects and the lights on, that was weird! We had something similar in Phantom Manor (lights stayed off, but no sound effects or music, it was very strange).

And I'm very jealous of your backstage tour in the riverboat!! Oh, and your lunch at the Auberge, we almost went for it on our last trip (for my birthday) but our friends did not want to book anything for lunch because they wanted to go back to the room for their kids to sleep a bit. So very jealous of that, the food and the experience sound brilliant!

I'm already looking forward to your next trip!!

[davewasbaloo]

Thanks never2old. I take a lot of criticism on-line from the fans because of my strong views, but that is because I do love the place and want what is best for it.

Many on line do not know what Disney is truly capable of or see how the rest of the world is catching Disney up. I just hope we continue to see improvements.

[kelly.dylan]

What a lovely trip report and photos, even i found myself welling up when you talked about the surprise cake in Auberge!

[davewasbaloo]

Glad I could help to work a little magic on-line too!  Thanks.

[toritinker]

Just finished reading your trip report, thanks!!
we were thinking of trying King Ludwigs, but I think now we will re-think that!!!
thanks for a really informative report x

[dagobert]

Just finished reading your trip report, thanks!!
we were thinking of trying King Ludwigs, but I think now we will re-think that!!!
thanks for a really informative report x

The menu of King Ludwigs isn't really great. In 2008 they offered a lot of "German, mainly Bavarian" food, but in February the selection was really bad. Although I'm vegeterian, they offered some delicious veggie meals, but not this time anymore. As an Austrian I really liked the Bavarian food. The only reason for us to go there is the happy hour.

[davewasbaloo]

Agreed. When King Ludwigs first opened, it had some wonderful German offerings that are hard to come by in the Uk - Weiss Wurst, Schnitzel, Spaetzle (sp/), Black Forest Gateau or Apple Strudle. Mix that in with great German beers and wine, and it was always a must for us. The decor is great too.

But sadly, when we looked this year, it was normal boring stuff you could get anywhere in any country, like roast chicken and potatoes. There was virtually nothing traditional German (or rather quite unique to Germany) on the menu, not even the desserts. You can still get a good beer there, but it is not worth it with the food being so dull. I am really sorry to say. I hope they rethink this restaurant again.

[dagobert]

The King Ludwig's in DLRP should take a look on the menu of the new King Ludwig's restaurant in Munich. There they serve "real" German food. So hopefully the menu will be change in Paris, too. Until then we will just drink some beers there.

http://www.koenig-ludwig-an-der-messe.de/

[davewasbaloo]

Viel Dank Dagobert.

That looks much better. I do wish DLP would do likewise and offer the same menu like they used to. I was shocked to see so many of the stand bys off of the menu.

[Dorsetcandy]

Glad you had a great trip, seems like a relaxing disney time.. photos top class as usuall.. when you say the food has been dumbed down, was wondering in what ways, how much has the food changed this year..  many thanks

It is a real mixed bag. I am referring more to the counter service and village. The bad:

Victoria's used to offer different food items, now all they do is pizza (as it Belle Notte and Col Hathi's were not enough).

Most counter service places only offer a couple of choices now - mostly burgers, pizza or hotdogs.

Cowboycookout seems to offer half the variety as they used to.

Most of the unique desserts seem to be gone, opting for generic ice cream now.

At Fuente Del Oro - you have to ask for gaucamole and salsa and they no longer do the mixed platter (no replacement, just no longer on the menu).

No trimmings carts any longer at Videopolis

Not food items available from the carts after 2pm (yet the carts are open)

King Ludwigs no longer does German food, it is the same sort of stuff that can be found elsewhere in the resort (this used to be one of my favorite places).

Even the table service restaurants seem to offer more french food that suitably themed foods. It tastes good, but slightly disappointing at places like the Silver Spur and the Steakhouse when I expect them to be more American as they have been for the last 17 years.

The good:

They now sell Churros in carts in Main Street

The Last Chance Cafe actually has an interesting menu

I was mostly impressed with the food we had in Disney Village and the Parks but of course this being our first trip we had nothing to compare it with and we really loved Kind Ludwig's although more German food sounds good as a family on a whole we like variety in our meals and although we do like burgers we have eaten many different sort of meals with the children and thier favourite at the moment is Thai....i think Disney should keep trying to offer a variety of food to thier guests or they may loose out on people dining there for main meals as it's easy to grab snacks throughout the day and those staying offsite may find it a more attractive option to eat elsewhere if the choice continues to diminish

[davewasbaloo]

Agreed. I sometimes wish I wasn't a Disney park veteran of 35 years. I grew up going to the original in California every 4-6 weeks or so, have been to Walt Disney World in Orlando a few times, and DLP since before they struck ground. And I can empahtically tell you that although there may be more attractions in Paris than opening day, the soul of the resort is a shadow of it's former self. The food, merchandise and entertainment are all watered down compared to what it used to offer. It is of course still a great experience, and better than not having it at all, as a new guest, you do not have anything to regret the loss of (I envy you ;-).  But it is not as diverse as it once was sadly.

But there are still some very good food experiences to had at places like Walt's, the Silver Spur, Auberge de Cindrillon, California Grill, the Steakhouse, Annette's and Buffalo Bills (sadly the list is shorter than it used to be). And for counter service uniquities, there is still Fuente del Oro and the Last Chance Cafe (which has vastly improved their menu).

[ed-uk]

How can you have been to DLP since before they struck ground, it was just a field back then ? And for what it's worth I don't think the soul of the resort is a shadow of it's former self.

[davewasbaloo]

Yes, I was given a walkthrough before they struck ground by imagineering (we had the plans as we walked the beet fields). Also was a part of the focus group blue skying Adventure Isle back in the early 80's in California.

Then went through a walk through with hard hats 6 months before opening. And I was there opening day!