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Lincoln posted:Where exactly in the hotel is Trader Sam's? We check into the Poly on the 12th. That was my reaction too. Arcade? Who knew. (not me) The bar is rad. I didn't have any of the boozy drinks because I also worked a shift tonight, but I got in after about an hour of waiting (later on, it was a 3 hour wait to get in. Hooray for announcing soft opens on the parks blog) and I tried the wonderful Pork Tacos and the Schwitzer Falls non-alcoholic drink (it's basically the POG juice from Kona/Ohana as a soda with mint. Good poo poo)
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Mar 29, 2015 08:54
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Is there a website that shows when tables are available at Be our Guest? Or do I just need to check the main website every day to see if any are available the dates I will be there.
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Mar 29, 2015 23:15
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Your best bet is the main website. If I hear about anything I'll update y'all too.
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Mar 30, 2015 00:29
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There are some services that you can pay to get notified ASAP when a table opens up for your preferred dates if you just really have to do BoG or some other super popular restaurant. They don't book it for you, tho. You just get a message and you have to rush to get the reservation. On phone atm but they shouldn't be too hard to find.
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Mar 30, 2015 11:13
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WDWTools is paid notifier. They send you a text if a reservation is open for the dates you input.
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Mar 30, 2015 15:49
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Booked my ADRs for my September trip. Managed to nab BOG lunch since you're just there for the atmosphere anyways. Loved it last year. I have an extra table credit but since I'm going at a dead time, I figure we'll just walk into something. Bongo's, Spice Road Table, Yak & Yeti (my fav restaurant), Ohana, Sci-Fi, Beaches & Cream, Tusker House Dinner (loved the breakfast last year). Sooo excited.
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Apr 1, 2015 00:57
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I probably don't have to tell y'all this, but don't believe any Disney news you might read today. I've already had people outraged that they're changing Cinderella Castle to Elsa's Palace. 
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Apr 1, 2015 13:50
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I will march hand in hand with the rest of the angry mob carrying a pitchfork and torch to burn my annual pass in front of the castle. I might take an unceremonious dump on the way out somewhere but that depends on how satiated my anger would be by that time, also would depend on what was for dinner the night before but nevermind I would be angry! *rabble rabble*
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Apr 1, 2015 14:28
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Braksgirl posted:I probably don't have to tell y'all this, but don't believe any Disney news you might read today. I've already had people outraged that they're changing Cinderella Castle to Elsa's Palace. Don't they do that anyway during the fireworks show? Seems a logical step 
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Apr 1, 2015 14:28
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Cinderella sucks so that'd be a good thing anyway
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Apr 1, 2015 14:29
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Tim Whatley posted:Booked my ADRs for my September trip. Managed to nab BOG lunch since you're just there for the atmosphere anyways. Loved it last year. I have an extra table credit but since I'm going at a dead time, I figure we'll just walk into something. Bongos is probably my favorite downtown Disney dining. I especially love the mojitos with the cane stick as garnish. I'm also a huge fan of Cuban food and sitting outdoors. drat I wish I was there right now...
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Apr 1, 2015 17:08
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couldcareless posted:Bongos is probably my favorite downtown Disney dining. I especially love the mojitos with the cane stick as garnish. I'm also a huge fan of Cuban food and sitting outdoors. Bongo's is always a good time. Usually don't go to Bongo's though since there's another one in Miami I can go to. If I can I always try to go to restaurants in Downtown Disney that I can't really go to elsewhere.
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Apr 1, 2015 17:24
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Skeezy posted:Bongo's is always a good time. Yes but the likelihood of you getting mugged and murdered in Downtown Disney is exponentially less than downtown Miami by the arena. 
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Apr 1, 2015 18:36
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demonR6 posted:Yes but the likelihood of you getting mugged and murdered in Downtown Disney is exponentially less than downtown Miami by the arena. Hahahaa yeah you're right. I take back what I said, Downtown Disney Bongo's owns and is the better option. Also it's Disney area so it's a good time.
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Apr 1, 2015 19:07
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couldcareless posted:Bongos is probably my favorite downtown Disney dining. I especially love the mojitos with the cane stick as garnish. I'm also a huge fan of Cuban food and sitting outdoors. Yeah the couple we go with every year went last year and loved it. We do DD our first night we land every year because it really sucks hitting a park on a travel day. We did Raglan Road last year and loved it. Excited to try Bongos mainly because I also really love mojitos.
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Apr 1, 2015 19:33
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Braksgirl posted:WDWTools is paid notifier. They send you a text if a reservation is open for the dates you input. They stole my idea 
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Apr 1, 2015 19:36
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Wife is making me choose between Hoop Dee Doo and Halloween Party for this year's trip. This is probably the hardest decision of 2015. (note: we have done both)
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Apr 1, 2015 19:46
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couldcareless posted:Wife is making me choose between Hoop Dee Doo and Halloween Party for this year's trip. This is probably the hardest decision of 2015. (note: we have done both) Your wife is cruel, but you should totally choose the Halloween Party.
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Apr 1, 2015 20:22
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couldcareless posted:Wife is making me choose between Hoop Dee Doo and Halloween Party for this year's trip. This is probably the hardest decision of 2015. (note: we have done both) Has anyone been to the Spirit of Aloha show? We thought about doing it this year, but I'd read that while the entertainment is decent, the food is inferior to Ohana.
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Apr 1, 2015 20:30
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WhiteHowler posted:Has anyone been to the Spirit of Aloha show? We thought about doing it this year, but I'd read that while the entertainment is decent, the food is inferior to Ohana. Been to it. The show is great, the food is okay, Ohana is definitely better food. If you do do the show, pay the extra money for the closer seats.
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Apr 1, 2015 20:45
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WhiteHowler posted:Unless you're bringing little kids, Hoop Dee Doo looks pretty dumb. There is nothing dumb about all you can eat ribs and all you can drink beer. And I never get tired of the bear puns. I will echo the above, spirit of aloha show is pretty sick, especially the fire dancers. The food is pretty mediocre. Ohana on the other hand is top notch. Plus LapuLapus
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Apr 1, 2015 20:48
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My husband and I are going to Disney after my graduation in mid-May  He hasn't been in twenty years, and I've never been (or traveled for anything but business or family).These are the restaurant reservations I have atm: Raglan Road Biergarten Sanaa Chefs de France T-REX Any of those totally not worth going to other than maybe T-REX? Any other food recommendations (for table service), especially breakfast ones? Also, I'm glad Disney World is such a goddamned popular thing, because it makes it easier to find tons of info about disneyworld rides + fear of heights. I still want to try ride Space Mountain and Splash mountain, and watching POV videos I think has helped, but I don't know if I actually will. And you couldn't get me anywhere near ToT. No. I know there's plenty of other stuff to do, though, so if need be, my husband can go ride scary stuff while I do something else.
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Apr 1, 2015 21:51
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Honestly ToT is a much easier drop ride for me than Splash Mountain. It really doesn't ever drop that far because of the ride mechanics (it constantly goes up and down, but never that far all at once). ToT is also one of the greatest themed attractions anywhere, so it's certainly worth experiencing. Space mountain is jerky but really a light thrill ride (it only goes about 34 mph). The drops are very minor and more dips than anything. If thrill rides really scare you the only two I would advice you to stay away from are Rock'n Roller Coaster and Orange team Mission Space. Those are both likely to make you feel pretty queasy or poo poo your pants. As for the restaurants: Biergarten is great if you like German food, eating there Saturday night myself. You'll be sharing a big table with other parties, so try to make the most of it and get to know them and enjoy the company. Sanaa is one of the best on the Disney property. I'd consider adding or switching for Coral Reef because it's a really unique experience and has some really great dishes (the pork belly is out of this world). I didn't want to try it the first time we did because I wanted to eat in World Showcase as much as possible, but it was really awesome and is now my favorite EPCOT restaurant. I'd definitely drop T-REX and do Bongo's (Cuban) or Fulton's Crab House (it's a big river boat and better adult experience, better food as well). Also, are you doing a dining plan? Bottom Liner fucked around with this message at 22:07 on Apr 1, 2015 |
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Apr 1, 2015 22:03
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I'd ditch T-Rex, it's just a dinosaur version of Rain Forest Cafe. And I hate Rain Forest Cafe. Although I'm not a fan of any of the restaurants owned by that company at Disney (yes, even Yak & Yeti). If you've got the money, hit up one of the signature dining restaurants. I'd recommend either Jiko or Artist Point. Watching the fireworks from California Grill is pretty cool too. If you don't want to drop a lot of money on a signature meal, The Wave in The Contemporary resort is amazing and fairly easy to get reservations for. i was going to list off a bunch of World Showcase restaurants, but you've already got 2. But you can't go wrong eating in world showcase. Boma at Animal Kingdom Lodge is great. And most people recommend O'hana at the Poly. I'm not a huge fan. The food is really good, I just preferred the way it was a few years ago to how it is now. If you've never been though you have no expectations and it is yummy.
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Apr 1, 2015 22:05
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Teppan Edo is the first and only pricey restaurant I've ever been to. Went with my girlfriend at the time (it was actually the big trip before we closed the gap on our LDR), it was a hell of a good time. Plus I spent like $200 on food for two people because I decided "the hell with it, I might never come back here so I want to enjoy it". What I'm saying is that Edo owns and it's a great time.
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Apr 1, 2015 22:15
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Gnossiennes posted:My husband and I are going to Disney after my graduation in mid-May I've heard mixed things about Biergarten, but T-Rex I agree that it can go. Go to the bar and save some money since you still get the atmosphere. E: Recommendations. Replace T-Rex with Yak & Yeti, or Ohana. I also really really enjoy Coral Reef. As mentioned, Tusker House Breakfast is incredible. The spread is awesome. It's also character dining though if you're not into that. I'm deathly afraid of heights and both Splash Mountain and ToT are two of my faves. I agree that believe it or not, ToT is a lot smoother of a drop and also is just themed incredibly well. It also helps that it's all indoors. Tim Whatley fucked around with this message at 01:10 on Apr 2, 2015 |
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Apr 1, 2015 22:50
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The naan service at Sanaa with different dipping sauces is a really, really good appetizer. Even better if you have enough people in your party to justify the full flight. (It comes with one of thee types of naan, and three of nine sauces. We had a bunch of people there once and did all three/nine. It was awesome.) I've been there three or four times, and I've never had anything there that I didn't thoroughly enjoy. Also; Do Tower of Terror. It's not as bad as it looks, and it's a really, really good ride.
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Apr 2, 2015 00:49
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Tower of Terror is such a good ride It helps if you psyche yourself up to be scared. Ive ridden it many many times and the best time was the most recent when my friend and I made ourselves get all nervous and scared about it. The extra adrenaline makes it amazing
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Apr 2, 2015 02:01
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We've done Biergarten twice and enjoyed it. It's not spectacular but it was fun with the drinking songs and the buffet was not half bad either, I ate.. a lot. ToT is really not that bad, I am afraid of roller coasters and get sick 99.999% of the time but ToT I can do without issues.
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Apr 2, 2015 02:49
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Trader Sam's Update: Went back last night for an actual visit rather than just popping in for a bit, and it was a great experience. First off, they were closed until 8pm for press events related to the DVC grand opening, but at 8 the bar filled up pretty fast. We got there at 8:10 and the bar was full already, but after being told a long wait, the pager went off within an hour or so. We got to watch Wishes from the Tiki Terrace outdoor seating area with music pumped in and man it was cool. Got two of the collectors mugs, one being exclusive to WDW (the Hippoptomaitai, which is sold at Disneyland, but sold in a Tiki glass they already sell in the Poly gift shop, so they made something new for Grog Grotto) and the other being a Disneyland mug. Soon all the mugs will have Grog Grotto variants (usually just a color change)
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Apr 2, 2015 03:20
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ToT is my favourite attraction at WDW. I still can't believe that it even got considered, let alone built because it is pretty intense by Disney standards. If you don't want to ride then you should walk through the queue and ask a CM for the chicken exit.
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Apr 2, 2015 11:20
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I love ToT, the theming is brilliant. The CMs who seat you always make me grin like an idiot with their little speech and when they wave you off. Disney does this poo poo so well. In the UK the theme parks we have are all just mopey teenagers manning all the rides. Thankfully we put a little more effort into the theming than "err, we built it on this car park and didn't even remove the painted car spaces" like the Batman coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain but we can't touch Disney for making a ride into an experience. The Harry Potter stuff at Universal really highlights this as well: the theming is fantastic but the staff just don't have the Disney touch. Anyway, back to ToT. The height is not really an issue because most of the ride is dark and you have no real sense of height. It doesn't do a massive drop all the way from the top, it's staggered and goes up/down a few times. There are different programmes so it varies each time you ride it. That bit where the doors open looks a lot worse from the ground than it does from on the ride because it's over in a couple of seconds and you're actually set back from the "window" quite a bit. It's also one of those great Disney rides where the Disneyworld and WDW versions are different enough that you have to ride both! Tunga fucked around with this message at 13:58 on Apr 2, 2015 |
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Apr 2, 2015 12:06
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Yeah I've done Paris (which is falling apart, whoops), DLR and WDW. Need to get on the Tokyo version.
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Apr 2, 2015 12:28
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The Tokyo version of ToT is my favourite - it has completely different theming since The Twilight Zone was never really a thing there. In my opinion both the outside of the building and the story inside are better than the Twilight Zone versions. In particular, I really like the way the ride builds up tension before the first drop. In Tokyo the story revolves around a cursed statue pilfered by the owner of the hotel. First you see the "corridor" scene in which the idol zaps the guy into the elevator which drops. Then the idol turns around and looks at you, which is creepy enough. The doors close, the lift rises a little and then you get the mirror scene. Only that just when you think the scene's done, your reflection disappears showing the idol right behind the mirror! He laughs and zaps your ride vehicle, which zooms up to the top before dropping. Video of it here if you're interested. Having said that ToT is pretty much the only Disney ride I'm perfectly happy not riding again. The theming is great and all but the sensation I get in my stomach when dropping is not the best. Also I tend to swear incredibly profanely and loudly which is not ideal. 
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Apr 2, 2015 14:14
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Yeah I've avoided stuff about the Tokyo version but the outside looks amazing and I can guess it has a similar system to Paris/CA.
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Apr 2, 2015 14:18
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PkerUNO posted:Also I tend to swear incredibly profanely and loudly which is not ideal. I do this every single time and feel bad about it. I try to hold it back but it just happens
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Apr 2, 2015 14:18
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I hate that dropping feeling in my stomach where you feel like your insides are up behind your eyeballs and then simultaneously falling out of your butt. I don't do ToT.
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Apr 2, 2015 15:37
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It's also worth noting that while the drop sequence in ToT is entirely randomized, a fake drop is always guaranteed, and so is a complete drop from top to bottom. You just don't notice because it's going super fast. God I love that ride. The Tokyo version sounds metal as hell.
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Apr 2, 2015 15:42
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I wish the ridiculous floater airtime drop thing was guaranteed. One of the plus sides of the DLR/Paris version.
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Apr 2, 2015 16:05
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We'll see; if I can handle the mountains without freaking out too bad, I'll maybe try ToT, but the feeling of my stomach dropping is pretty awful to me. but, what makes that fear better??? DOING IT We do have a dining plan (just Disney Dining plan 1x snack + quick service + table service per night). Even more excited for Sanaa now. Kicking out T-Rex. Braksgirl posted:I hate that dropping feeling in my stomach where you feel like your insides are up behind your eyeballs and then simultaneously falling out of your butt. I don't do ToT. THAT'S why I don't want to do it. That feeling is like, insta panic attack for me.
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Apr 2, 2015 16:40
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