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Beachcomber posted:Wow, Thank You! I never would have guessed this was a thing. We will definitely be trying a Black Pearl and a Neverland Tea and a Pina Coolava and...!!! Ive had Neverland Tea, Black Pearl, Kungaloosh and Navy Grog. I liked all of them tbh. I remember the grog being especially good, but I was also quite drunk by then
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Jan 31, 2015 00:17
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Beachcomber posted:Next week we're going to Disneyland and California Adventure (and taking plenty of hand sanitizer). I've already made reservations at Blue Bayou, Big Thunder Ranch Barbecue, Cafe Orleans, and the Carnation Cafe, and we're for sure going to Trader Sam's more than once and probably getting Dole Whip at least daily. Everybody always forgets about the petting zoo. Go to the petting zoo for some away-from-the-"crowds" time.
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Jan 31, 2015 01:43
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Beachcomber posted:Next week we're going to Disneyland and California Adventure (and taking plenty of hand sanitizer). I've already made reservations at Blue Bayou, Big Thunder Ranch Barbecue, Cafe Orleans, and the Carnation Cafe, and we're for sure going to Trader Sam's more than once and probably getting Dole Whip at least daily. Not sure if it's open (because it's almost always down but sometimes reopens for limited times during the day) - do Matterhorn. It's my favorite Disney ride. Definitely do Pirates, it's way better in DL than WDW. Mr Toad's Wild Ride & Indiana Jones too. You can walk through the shops on the left side of the main street all way to the end if you don't want to walk on the street proper because of rain or whatever. Gumbo bread bowl at The Royal Street Veranda right by the Pirates entrance is super good but it can be impossible to get a seat there because it's so tiny so have one person wait in line while the other hunts for a table. You definitely don't want to sit too far away because they fill the bread bowl up to the brim with gumbo. Get one of the fritters for dessert too, I get the banana one but they're all good from what I hear. You can't go wrong with the Monte Cristo at one of the sit downs. DTD has decent options too. Remember that there's another exit/entrance in CA by the rapids that takes you through the Grand Californian hotel which is worth checking out because it's so pretty to Downtown Disney. They limit it to hotel guests in the morning but during the day as long you entered through the normal way, they tend to not care and let you in/out. Earl of Sandwich is a good place for a quickie meal in DTD. If bad-tasting water bothers you, LA water is even worse than Florida water so you might want to take some bottles with you to the parks. 31 days until WDW for me now!  Trying to decide if it's worth it to try for BOG lunch fastpasses since I've given up on getting a dinner ADR for BOG.Are there decent TS places at MK or should I just do quick serve all day there and save the TS credits for a signature meal later in the week? Any breakfast places that aren't buffets? I really don't like buffets and it seems like most breakfast options are buffets  Same with character dining.
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Jan 31, 2015 04:10
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Loucks posted:However I do want to find the guy responsible for the selfie stick and shove a few dozen up him. This is the straight up truth.
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Jan 31, 2015 04:27
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Tomato Soup posted:Not sure if it's open (because it's almost always down but sometimes reopens for limited times during the day) - do Matterhorn. It's my favorite Disney ride. Definitely do Pirates, it's way better in DL than WDW. Mr Toad's Wild Ride & Indiana Jones too. You can walk through the shops on the left side of the main street all way to the end if you don't want to walk on the street proper because of rain or whatever. Matterhorn is unfortunately under refurbishment, but we did it last time and will assuredly do it next time. Agreed on Pirates. In fact, the only ride I like more in Orlando is Haunted Mansion, because I feel like the progression between scenes makes a little more sense. Tomato Soup posted:Are there decent TS places at MK or should I just do quick serve all day there and save the TS credits for a signature meal later in the week? Any breakfast places that aren't buffets? I really don't like buffets and it seems like most breakfast options are buffets I think Be Our Guest counts as quick service during lunch, and the food was so good we ate there every single MK day last visit. As far as breakfast, I heartily recommend Sleepy Hollow in Liberty Square. Their Nutella and fresh fruit waffle sandwiches are incredible.
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Jan 31, 2015 04:57
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Tomato Soup posted:Definitely do Pirates, it's way better in DL than WDW. Mr Toad's Wild Ride & Indiana Jones too. When we went to WDW I was excitedly telling my friend about it (we're from the UK) and then my Seattleite Disney-loving friend tells me that there is no Mr Toad in Florida. I was outraged. And yeah, Florida Pirates is a huge let down after California.
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Jan 31, 2015 10:03
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I have read the entire thread, but I can't remember if there has been discussion about Hong Kong Disneyland. My wife and I are in Beijing and we need to go to Hong Kong each 90 days in order to renew our visas. I'm thinking that it would be stupid not to use the next short trip there to visit HK Disneyland. From what I've read it seems to be much more low-key and not too big at all, and can be enjoyed fully as a day trip, or at the most 2 very leisurely days. I am also interested in staying at one of the two on site hotels, so if anyone has any info on those it would be great. This would need to be as much of a an "on a budget" trip as possible. Ticket prices seem very reasonable, at like $70/day. The hotels seem expensive, but hey, it's both Hong Kong and Disney so I expect it to be. I can have fun doing a bunch of research but I am also very interested in any first hand experiences! One thing in particular that is probably obvious to people who vacation a lot, but I can't figure it out: They have some deals for 2x2 day passes + 1 night stay at a resort hotel. So we would fly in/check in to the hotel/go to the park/stay at the hotel.... and then the next day we have park passes, right? but where do you keep your luggage that day, because you no longer have a hotel room? Braksgirl, do you do your travel agent things for Hong Kong Disneyland?
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Jan 31, 2015 13:45
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Tunga posted:This this this. Mr Toad was the most amazing experience of my life, I cannot believe that actually let children go on that thing, it is horrifying. WDW used to have Mr Toad and it had 2 different tracks. The new effects on indy and big thunder are really good. One of the best experiences I had at California Adventure was front row Screamin' at night. Mickey's Fun Wheel is terrifying.
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Jan 31, 2015 14:45
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devilmonk posted:I have read the entire thread, but I can't remember if there has been discussion about Hong Kong Disneyland. My wife and I are in Beijing and we need to go to Hong Kong each 90 days in order to renew our visas. I'm thinking that it would be stupid not to use the next short trip there to visit HK Disneyland. From what I've read it seems to be much more low-key and not too big at all, and can be enjoyed fully as a day trip, or at the most 2 very leisurely days. I am also interested in staying at one of the two on site hotels, so if anyone has any info on those it would be great. This would need to be as much of a an "on a budget" trip as possible. Ticket prices seem very reasonable, at like $70/day. The hotels seem expensive, but hey, it's both Hong Kong and Disney so I expect it to be. I visited Hong Kong Disneyland in November and it's well worth doing if you like the Disney theme parks. I didn't stay at the hotel but it's very likely that they'll have a storage room for your luggage so you can leave it there after you've checked out. We went to the park on a Monday schoolday and the park was very quiet at opening. I'm used to huge crowds waiting for the rope drop but at HK Disneyland there was only about 100 of us waiting to go in! I hear the park gets really busy at weekends, a lot of mainlanders come over - apparently they misbehave in the lines but that could just be grumpy HK residents complaining! Mystic Manor and Grizzly Gulch are absolute must-dos, the versions of Space Mountain and it's a small world are also very good. We had a good Indian style lunch at the Tahitian Terrace which is next door to the Lion King show. It is a small park and we did it comfortably in a day, if you spend a lot of time shopping and admiring the theming you could stretch it to two days. If you like theme parks though you may want to do one day at HK Disneyland and another day at Ocean Park. Anyway definitely stop by next time you're in Hong Kong, Mystic Manor is worth the price of admission alone, it's one of the best rides Disney have done in a long time. Plenty of cool special effects and the trackless ride vehicles are very nifty!
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Jan 31, 2015 15:56
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Braksgirl, is there any difference between the "Return to the Magic" and "Spring Stay" promotions, aside from the dates? I probably got the names wrong, but you know what I'm talking about. The "Return" window closed yesterday, so we'll probably be taking advantage of the "Spring" promo in mid-April. I've been trying to get room rates on the WDW website, but it's all jacked up.
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Jan 31, 2015 18:02
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Welp MK is packed. It's not even swarms of Brazilian tour groups either
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Jan 31, 2015 19:06
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demonR6 posted:Welp MK is packed. It's not even swarms of Brazilian tour groups either Bus driver on the way back to the resort last night was telling everyone to avoid MK like the plague. Guess it's open until 2am?
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Jan 31, 2015 21:25
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Yep open until 2. It's a mad house. Standing in line now for a Nutella fruit waffle sandwich then it's Dole Whip time. screech on the beach fucked around with this message at 22:57 on Jan 31, 2015 |
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Jan 31, 2015 22:54
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Tomato Soup posted:31 days until WDW for me now! I'm not even close to being an expert, but we just showed up at 10:20 right before they opened, stood in line for fifteen minutes, and were seated by 10:40. Unless you have a real need to eat at noon that seems to be a simpler solution.
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Jan 31, 2015 23:15
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A couple of quick questions if y'all can indulge me. 1: We're booked in a Nemo family suite at the AoA resort, does anyone know if there is internet there? Additional charge? Wifi? Ethernet? Both? I'm an IT guy so I may need to connect up to work if something blows up that my team mates can't handle. It's not likely but it's something I need to think about. I have a Verizon LTE hotspot for emergencies if needed. 2: Can anyone recommend a light jacket? We're going from Feb 26th to Mar 6th and I'd like something light that can handle a brief bit of rain and any nights that dip into the low 50's or lower. I'm pretty cold tolerant, but being outside for hours in the 50's can even be a bit much for me. Here in San Antonio the only 'jacket' I own is a light fleece zip up, but that won't repel any rain. Thanks!
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Jan 31, 2015 23:30
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Dole Whip mews, the Orange Tree location at MK also sells the pineapple Dole Whip float minus the long lines. Score! Park is still busy, bought the wife the Tinkerbell magic band that was just released yesterday. Also an outrageously expensive Haunted Mansion purse she has been eyeing but shhhh she does not know it. skipdogg posted:A couple of quick questions if y'all can indulge me. I was told the resorts have guest in room complimentary WiFi. Light jacket, I use a Columbia fleece. demonR6 fucked around with this message at 23:39 on Jan 31, 2015 |
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Jan 31, 2015 23:33
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demonR6 posted:I was told the resorts have guest in room complimentary WiFi. The All Star ones do for sure. Lucky too, since Sprint coverage was garbage. Didn't do any speed tests though. I took a Columbia fleece too because they're routinely $20 on Amazon so if it gets lost it's no tragedy. Not great in the rain, but disposable ponchos are like $2.
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Jan 31, 2015 23:45
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Yes for the love of God buy cheap ponchos before you get here. You do not want to pay $20 for a poncho at Disney.
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Jan 31, 2015 23:55
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^^^ I saw something about how if you tear a Disney poncho or something, they'll replace it and that was making me seriously consider getting Disney ones. If the price stays 8.50, it's cheaper than most of the reusable ponchos I'm finding online and we live in California so no real need for one after Disney. The Disney Store has a 2 for $5 per deal but with shipping, it'll cost the same as buying them in park. Loucks posted:I'm not even close to being an expert, but we just showed up at 10:20 right before they opened, stood in line for fifteen minutes, and were seated by 10:40. Unless you have a real need to eat at noon that seems to be a simpler solution. I'm deaf so I have to work around the ASL interpreter schedule and ugh, it leaves me with like no real time for lunch on the MK day so I guess BOG is out Barring any changes between now and March - they said it typically doesn't change much.How long is Monsters Inc Laugh floor? That's 1 PM and maybe we might be able to rush to BOG afterwards if fastpasses are at the right time. And looking at the rest of the schedule, is there anything super amazing about the Frozen singalong or is it a safe skip for adults who like Frozen but aren't fanatics? The other stuff look pretty fun. And just got the first batch of Disney mail yesterday!!!! Didn't realize I qualified for a discount on Divequest since I booked a package, I need to call back and get them to apply it, oops. Magicbands and the rest should be coming soon, ahh! 
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Feb 1, 2015 00:22
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You should be able to buy ponchos pretty cheap at CVS or Walgreens if you have one around, that's where we buy ours. I think M Inc. was ten to fifteen minutes if I recall. If you can haul butt it's not too far to BOG. No comment on Frozen.
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Feb 1, 2015 01:20
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Disney Ponchos in 2025: $150.
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Feb 1, 2015 01:23
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Short trip report now that I'm back home. French Quarter was great. Very quiet and small. The rooms were recently redone so they looked good, but you can definitely tell that most of the furniture is pretty aged. In room Wifi was good enough to stream stuff when we came back from the park. The only complaints I had was the food court was lacking compared to the handful of other resorts I've stayed at and the buses seemed stretched thin so you ended up waiting longer than I feel we should of. The new fantasy land looks really nice. I felt the lunch at Be Our Guest was very much worth it. Only a few bucks more than quick service and it felt like you were eating real food. The lemon cupcake was superb. Dole Whips were good, but the Coconut Lychee Lemonade at Animal Kingdom was much better. The Drinkwalla where they serve them is not on the map so I almost missed it. If you are heading towards the Lion King show from Expedition Everest it is a small shack along the river. The only complaint I have about the trip was all the construction going on. We went to MK 3 different days and couldn't get a shot of the castle without the crane along with the whole entrance being messed up.. AK felt like it had barriers up around most of the park and there was a bunch of stuff going on at HS as well. I understand they need to get this stuff done, but all at once really was a bummer.
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Feb 1, 2015 01:27
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Tomato Soup posted:How long is Monsters Inc Laugh floor? That's 1 PM and maybe we might be able to rush to BOG afterwards if fastpasses are at the right time. And looking at the rest of the schedule, is there anything super amazing about the Frozen singalong or is it a safe skip for adults who like Frozen but aren't fanatics? The other stuff look pretty fun. Skip it. My kid enjoyed it, but there's nothing for adults other than a few jokes from the Historians. I smiled, but then Frozen doesn't turn me into an angry ball of hatred the way it does some people. It's just not worth your time unless you really, really love Frozen. Also Laugh Floor isn't very long. About fifteen minutes I think? I ended up on camera as Sully. That'll teach me to leave the razor at home. Probably would've gotten me anyway because I look like a hippie even on my most well-groomed days. Loucks fucked around with this message at 02:07 on Feb 1, 2015 |
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Feb 1, 2015 02:03
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Tomato Soup posted:^^^ I don't remember that being the case when I worked there but I'd imagine we could bend the rules enough if you had a receipt or something. Out of all the "retail" (and I say that loosely because it never felt like straight retail) jobs I've had I've been able to bend the rules a lot like that.
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Feb 1, 2015 02:15
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I am officially trained at Enchanted Tales with Belle, some come see me converse with a piece of furniture.
TheBigBudgetSequel fucked around with this message at 02:44 on Feb 1, 2015 |
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Feb 1, 2015 02:39
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TheBigBudgetSequel posted:I am officially trained at Enchanted Tales with Belle, some come see me converse with a piece of furniture. I enjoyed that attraction a lot when I went, but it seems like working there could get old. How many Belles do they have back there anyways?
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Feb 1, 2015 03:27
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It's such a good attraction and the animatronics super-impressed me. I'm glad I successfully shed my timidity, because being a guard in the play was one of the highlights of my trip, as was hearing my fiancee attempt the Wardrobe voice. I think that's true for a lot of Disney, actually. Enjoyment goes up directly proportionally to how much you can put yourself out there.
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Feb 1, 2015 03:53
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skipdogg posted:A couple of quick questions if y'all can indulge me. Just left AoA today (Cars). Wifi is complimentary and the signal strength is decent. I wore a water-proof wind breaker every day that could easily be wadded up into a little ball and stuffed into my backpack when the temps got too warm. Granted, we had really good luck with the weather this year so, YMMV.
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Feb 1, 2015 04:14
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Lincoln posted:Braksgirl, is there any difference between the "Return to the Magic" and "Spring Stay" promotions, aside from the dates? I probably got the names wrong, but you know what I'm talking about. The "Return" window closed yesterday, so we'll probably be taking advantage of the "Spring" promo in mid-April. The only promos I know about at this moment are the kid size offer for packages and the room only offer. They're basically the same discount, up to 30% off on the room Both cover spring and early summer. Both must be booked by mid Feb. As for Hong Kong DL, I'm almost positive I can book it but I'll have to check. I just stepped off a cruise ship but I'll look into it when I get home. EDIT: I CAN book Hong Kong Disneyland. Also Paris and Tokyo, in case anyone is interested in those as well. Braksgirl fucked around with this message at 17:27 on Feb 3, 2015 |
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Feb 2, 2015 18:08
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BlueBayou posted:Order off menu at Trader Sams I just wanted to say thank you. I've been going to Sam's since it opened and you just made it fresh and new for me! Now I can't wait to go back!
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Feb 3, 2015 17:11
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When does the new Trader Sams open at the Poly? And what sort of condition is the lobby in right now? For that matter, what's the overall state of the Poly? Wife & I are about to finally(!) sit down & plan a trip for mid-April & we don't know where we're staying yet.
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Feb 4, 2015 12:56
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I'm still working on my ADRs and I know I definitely want a signature dinner or two but I can't decide which one. I really like Jiko but it's just so far away and I honestly don't want to make the trek to AKL. Only if we had the time to go to AK twice, I've already reserved Sanaa for when we're going to AK and to be honest, I'm more excited about Sanaa and the chance to see animals during the early dinner than Jiko. Cabbing it isn't too appealing when we could just go somewhere easier to get to. Everybody seems to love California Grill but the menu didn't really seem to appeal to me very much. Narcoossee's looks really good but I haven't heard much about it. Flying Fish looks good and it's close to our hotel but I just think we'd like Narcoossee's better. Monsieur Paul prix-fixe sounds good too but again, haven't heard too much about it. A week seemed so long but I'm having trouble fitting in what I want to do especially that we're going to Universal for a day. This is stressing me out, I'm not used to planning everything in detail for vacations since I tend to just wing it but it's WDW and I really want to utilize the ASL interpreters so  The concussion I picked up last week isn't helping either. Sorry for venting but ugh.And I just remembered another Disneyland tip that I forgot about - get the monte cristo sandwich at Blue Bayou or Cafe Orleans, it's awesome and it's not available anywhere in WDW 
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Feb 4, 2015 13:43
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Edna Mode posted:I enjoyed that attraction a lot when I went, but it seems like working there could get old. How many Belles do they have back there anyways? It gets repetitive, I have been warned, and it's easy to see why. It doesn't have the variables of change that Jungle Cruise has, in terms of what you get to spiel. The room with the mirror is pretty laid out in our scripts, with only a little wiggle room for variation. The casting room is fun though because you kind of have to make it up as you go, especially if you have to stall for time. There is no script, just things they suggest. As for Belle, there is only one Princess Belle of course, but she has lots of friends. Usually four friends on hand at any time, I believe. Lincoln posted:When does the new Trader Sams open at the Poly? And what sort of condition is the lobby in right now? For that matter, what's the overall state of the Poly? Wife & I are about to finally(!) sit down & plan a trip for mid-April & we don't know where we're staying yet. The lobby is finished now, as is most of the construction around the Great Ceremonial Hall. The majority of construction is still on finishing up the DVC and the redesign of the pool. Trader Sam's should open sometime in March or April, hopefully. They've already begun hiring and are testing drinks with people in Imagineering and such. TheBigBudgetSequel fucked around with this message at 14:35 on Feb 4, 2015 |
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Feb 4, 2015 14:32
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Tomato Soup posted:I'm still working on my ADRs and I know I definitely want a signature dinner or two but I can't decide which one. I really like Jiko but it's just so far away and I honestly don't want to make the trek to AKL. Only if we had the time to go to AK twice, I've already reserved Sanaa for when we're going to AK and to be honest, I'm more excited about Sanaa and the chance to see animals during the early dinner than Jiko. Cabbing it isn't too appealing when we could just go somewhere easier to get to. According to my TA friend, Narcoossee's is awesome. She wrote a blog post about it.
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Feb 4, 2015 15:48
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Feb 4, 2015 15:54
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Braksgirl posted:According to my TA friend, Narcoossee's is awesome. She wrote a blog post about it. Artist's Point.. 
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Feb 4, 2015 16:19
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Hallelujah. Finally booked our first trip in three years. I WROTE THE FREAKING OP AND WE HAVEN'T BEEN IN THREE YEARS. Sorry, Braksgirl, wife booked the vacation from work today without telling me. If I had known, I would have told her to call you. I'm usually the one that does that. We're going April 12-17. Talked my wife into the Polynesian, even though her favorite is the Grand Flo. It's like a C-note less a night to stay at the Poly, and it's my favorite, anyway. Interested to see the new lobby. The waterfall was like the defining feature of that hotel...still amazed they got rid of it.  • Do tables at Spice Road table come with a view of Illuminations? • Is there the remotest chance we can get reservations to the Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert Party or Be Our Guest? We're hosed on both aren't we? Remember: mid-April. • Will we need to/can we make reservations for Trader Sam's? • We won't have our Magic Bands for a while. Can we start booking Fast Passes now? • Can you still use Fast Passes to reserve seats for parades/fireworks? Did not do DDP for the first time in like our last 3 or 4 stays. Because it wasn't free. We did get 30% off our room, though, which is worth more than the DDP. And we don't eat that much unless we have the DDP. Shockingly, my wife tried to talk me into it. She eats like a bird and constantly bitches about how much we eat when we have the dining plan. Oh, and AND...we got an inbound flight that lands at MCO at 10:30 in the morning. That's insane. Usually the earliest we can get in is like 11:40. And our outbound flight take off at like 5:35 PM, so we get 2/3 of our departure day to have fun. I WAS NOT loving AROUND WHEN I WROTE THE OP. I put my money where my mouth is, even if it costs extra. Eagerly counting down the days.
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Feb 5, 2015 23:15
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Lincoln posted:• We won't have our Magic Bands for a while. Can we start booking Fast Passes now? I think you sign in to My Disney Experience and attach your reservation number under "My Itinerary" and it will let you book everything. You also get to customize the colour and name on your magic band.
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Feb 5, 2015 23:55
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TheBigBudgetSequel posted:As for Belle, there is only one Princess Belle of course, but she has lots of friends. Usually four friends on hand at any time, I believe. Nice save.
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Feb 6, 2015 00:15
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Lincoln posted:• Do tables at Spice Road table come with a view of Illuminations? 1. No idea on that one. 2. Be our guest for dinner? No, do lunch walkup. TTFDP you MIGHT get if you call the dining line. I've seen a couple openings in march recently, even. 3. Trader Sam's isn't listed anywhere on the actual disney site except for a quick note a couple days ago about new drinks. Is it in refurbing right now? 4. Yeah you can. Somebody else already covered that. 5. For Wishes and Illuminations you can, but I know the Wishes ones are weird/hard to get and Illuminations isn't in the best viewing area in the world from what I've been told. Magic Kingdom parades yes, I dunno about the others.
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Feb 6, 2015 00:52
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