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They have to be planning to do a whole starwars thing at HS. Just like they have to be planning to go full Marvel in California.
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May 18, 2015 03:15
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We know they are, it's just how long it took and like I mentioned previously Universal has been cashing in on Potter for years now unopposed. The new area with Mine Train cannot touch Universal in terms of monetary value of the first Potter area or the expansion imho.
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May 18, 2015 03:20
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Potterland should really scare Disney a lot actually. I hope they bring it with Star Wars sooner rather than later.
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May 18, 2015 03:34
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Potter and Marvel are looming over Disney pretty heavily in Florida, and both EPCOT and HS are in desperate need of expansion and update (seriously, if you're not drunk or eating at EPCOT it's just a bunch of walking). A killer Star Wars expansion will make Hollywood exciting again along with the other changes, but that still leaves EPCOT floating with a lot of dead space. Animal Kingdom is actually poised to be pretty incredible once the new stuff launches, even if the IP is an odd choice. I'm excited as hell for the next 10 years, I think Disney will hit back hard (especially if they can somehow get the Marvel rights here too). But yeah, Star Wars Weekends is probably a beta test for things to come.
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May 18, 2015 04:05
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One thing that really struck my family while we were in Florida this past week is just how phenomenal the theming of Diagon Alley is. It's easily on par with the top stuff that Disney has, they've created a whole separate little world inside of the Studios, and everything is on point when it comes to how it fits together. I don't think the Nintendo stuff will have the same cohesion (unless they hire me as a designer for a Nintendo Theme Park I will do it for minimum wage seriously please), but Kong might, so if Avatar and the inevitable Star Wars world/Pixar expansion don't knock people's socks off like Diagon Alley, there might be a power shift. I mean, at large, Disney will still have the money and priority, but it will be far less than it has been in the past. edit: I'm aware that Dr. Seuss had some bomb-rear end theming, but as much as I like Islands of Adventure, the theming there is very schizophrenic (by nature). Seuss is top notch but being ignored, and it shows, Toon Lagoon is outdated, Super Hero Island is hilariously outdated, even as super hero poo poo is the most popular thing right now, because it looks like a city ripped from those 90's Marvel cartoons on Fox. Jurassic Park is simple but effective, Lost Continent was cool, but is now "Not Harry Potter", and Hogsmeade just got shown up by Diagon Alley. I'm curious to see how Kong will shape the future of the Islands, because if it's successful, I could see it expanding further into Toon Lagoon, and you know some sort of deal is coming w/r/t the Marvel superheroes. Probably not a deal to shut everything down, but one that will shape where they can go in the future. Yoshifan823 fucked around with this message at 05:53 on May 18, 2015 |
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May 18, 2015 05:48
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Yoshifan823 posted:One thing that really struck my family while we were in Florida this past week is just how phenomenal the theming of Diagon Alley is. It's easily on par with the top stuff that Disney has, they've created a whole separate little world inside of the Studios, and everything is on point when it comes to how it fits together. WWoHP was by far the most impressed I've been with a theme park since I went on Indiana Jones when it first opened. Yoshifan823 posted:I don't think the Nintendo stuff will have the same cohesion (unless they hire me as a designer for a Nintendo Theme Park I will do it for minimum wage seriously please), but Kong might, so if Avatar and the inevitable Star Wars world/Pixar expansion don't knock people's socks off like Diagon Alley, there might be a power shift. I mean, at large, Disney will still have the money and priority, but it will be far less than it has been in the past. I think Universal has realized the value of going full steam lately, while Disney has so many popular IP's, that they have been riding brand recognition for almost a decade. [ Yoshifan823 posted:} Dr seuss has great theming, but anyone who isn't a child: aka people who have/spend money frivolously, aren't going doing much more than a walk through there. Toon Lagoon focuses on IPs that I'd be willing to say 90% of kids don't know, SHI needs a facelift sure, but if they capitalize now, they could hit even bigger than they did with HP. Marvel has a ton of movies lined up for the next 5 years already plus the ones that sony and fox are making. JP is good and has a new movie coming out, Lost continent is another just walk past area, WWoHP, in addition to being insanely well themed and executed, is a fantastic marketing ploy for people buying park-to-park passes to a way higher percentage, Kong has yet to be seen, but I am pretty excited to see how it turns out. The rumored Ministry of Magic expansion would totally make sense to replace either Disaster or Fear Factor, since in the 3 days I was there last there was never a line for Disaster, and the Fear Factor announcers were trying to get people to sign up all day, and I don't think I saw anyone excited for either. If WDW or DW don't put in a Star wars or Marvel area asap, I'd be extremely shocked. Buuuuut, the last new thing they put in was based on a movie which while admittedly everyone has seen, and is a decent ride, is also based on an IP from 1937. More or less, I feel like Universal execs are cashing in on the biggest fandom IP's that they can, and Disney just says whatever, we'll always be popular. Old Man Pants fucked around with this message at 08:36 on May 18, 2015 |
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May 18, 2015 08:26
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demonR6 posted:Forgot who was the Stitch fan but this.. Looks awesome but I don't know what Star Wars character that's meant to be. Any ideas?
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May 18, 2015 09:13
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PkerUNO posted:Looks awesome but I don't know what Star Wars character that's meant to be. Any ideas? General Grievous I think.
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May 18, 2015 10:19
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Biggz posted:General Grievous I think. Correct goon-sir. Universal cashed in with Potter, took advantage and rolled a seven with the expansion. Riding the wave of popularity and flush with cash expanded the resort (hotels) with the Cabanas and now the new resort in construction, a likely water park on property, the new Kong which is far along. Unlike Disney at the moment they seized the opportunity and reinvested money to expand the parks and resorts. Disney gave us the Fantasyland area with Mine Train as the new attraction, I don't even count Little Mermaid because it is practically irrelevant. BOG albeit it popular is not an attraction but lump it in there if you'd like. Sure there's Avatarland but if I was packing my bags coming to Florida that would not be my motivation. Oh wait, we did get Magic Bands to the tune of how much sunk into it? demonR6 fucked around with this message at 11:34 on May 18, 2015 |
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May 18, 2015 11:22
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I don't like the Cars movies but the area is stunning and I have faith that the Avatar area will look just as good. I remember reading somewhere (can't remember where, sorry) that the current impact HP has had on WDW is minimal and MagicBands are an anchor to stay on site. The only explanation that I can think of for the delay in Star Wars is they are waiting for the popularity of the new films to see what to base it on. It does frustrate me that the resort has so much land and yet they are so slow at expansions at the moment. Oh well, it's not as bad as Paris 
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May 18, 2015 12:21
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Dugong posted:The only explanation that I can think of for the delay in Star Wars is they are waiting for the popularity of the new films to see what to base it on. It does frustrate me that the resort has so much land and yet they are so slow at expansions at the moment. Oh well, it's not as bad as Paris A lot of the land in and around the resort that Disney owns is wetlands / conservation and they are not allowed to build on it. Just recently Disney bought a large parcel of land in an adjacent area in exchange for the rights to build on their conservation area. The county really wanted that parcel of land because it was an important part of a conservation effort in the area. Concession made, Disney has a parcel now big enough to build a new theme park so suspicion abounds here.
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May 18, 2015 12:56
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Magic bands is the answer to why haven't we gotten _____ as of right now. As a big fan of ease of use through technology, I can't fault them. They dropped a ton of money to overhaul a somewhat dated system for entry and fast pass handling and rolled everything into a single convenient package. It's a stepping stone for the future and for that I can appreciate it.
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May 18, 2015 13:07
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Have they opened up the Starbucks location in Animal Kingdom yet? Planning on grabbing all the resort mugs, to gift the set, when I come down this weekend.
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May 18, 2015 13:36
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RIP Quixotic for planning a trip to Disney on a holiday weekend. We can meet up for cocktails later, we will both need them. I am going back to SWW for more order requests and I will definitely be taking those specialty booze cocktails.
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May 18, 2015 13:42
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demonR6 posted:RIP Quixotic for planning a trip to Disney on a holiday weekend. We can meet up for cocktails later, we will both need them. I am going back to SWW for more order requests and I will definitely be taking those specialty booze cocktails. Don't cry for me, I am the walking dead. Nephew wants to go, for one last ride(quoting to me Furious 7) before his graduation from HS and I couldn't refuse. I just plan to people watch during the 24hr event and witness the insanity, is the Space Mt arcade still closed? That was an area alot of people were taking their naps for last years 24hrs.
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May 18, 2015 13:58
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Bottom Liner posted:Potter and Marvel are looming over Disney pretty heavily in Florida, and both EPCOT and HS are in desperate need of expansion and update (seriously, if you're not drunk or eating at EPCOT it's just a bunch of walking). A killer Star Wars expansion will make Hollywood exciting again along with the other changes, but that still leaves EPCOT floating with a lot of dead space. Animal Kingdom is actually poised to be pretty incredible once the new stuff launches, even if the IP is an odd choice. I'm excited as hell for the next 10 years, I think Disney will hit back hard (especially if they can somehow get the Marvel rights here too). The guy that runs Theme Park Insider made a point along these lines last week, and I'm paraphrasing, "What Universal is doing is incredible, but relative to Disney, it's like scoring 3 or 4 touchdowns when you were down by 62." I haven't visited Uni since sometime in 2012, but I have a feeling Disney is going to hit them back, hard, somehow. I just don't believe that's going to come with 3D coasters and big ticket thrill rides. I think they're going to aim for the more immersive theming and total-family experiences. Universal, to me, is more appealing for thrill ride seekers (young adults, families with teenagers), while Disney presents the most non-threatening immersive environment that money can get you into (ALL ages). They actually complement one another really well in terms of options - it's all just in what you're after as an experience. Although EPCOT makes me a little sad in a way. There's really not THAT much to do anymore. Although I'd change my tune if somehow Horizons and the old Journey Into Imagination were resurrected. Unlike AK and DHS, there also hasn't been any announced plans, or even rumors, as to what they intend to do with all the dead space in there.
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May 18, 2015 15:42
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I quite enjoy epcot for what it is. Rides be damned, walking around with a drink in hand seeing different performers at each country is one of my favorite things to do. I think some of what I like about it would be lost if they try and squeeze in some out of place attractions. Hollywood studios needs the attention. They have, what, 5 total rides (not counting shows here) and tons of unused space with lots of potential. Lights motor action is on its way out, backlot tour (which I loved) shuttered, American Idol is done, big useless building that was formerly the Prince Caspian/Jack Sparrow thing is collecting dust. It's easy to forget how empty HS is becoming because it's hard to see past the rockin roller-coaster, tower of terror, and toy Story. I think I could easily spend more time at AK than HS these days.
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May 18, 2015 16:17
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Doronin posted:Although EPCOT makes me a little sad in a way. There's really not THAT much to do anymore. Although I'd change my tune if somehow Horizons and the old Journey Into Imagination were resurrected. Unlike AK and DHS, there also hasn't been any announced plans, or even rumors, as to what they intend to do with all the dead space in there. I was really excited to go to epcot after seeing that drat dome on tv my whole life. We went for food and wine, and everything was closed except the ride in the giant ball. I felt like I paid to get into a fancy food court.
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May 18, 2015 16:18
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Can we talk about the Tomorrowland preview at Epcot? I was already excited for the movie but I was surprised at the amount of Disney references in the preview. No idea why I'd be surprised to find references in a Brad Bird directed movie about Tomorrowland lol. It's a Small World being used as the gateway to Tomorrowland was funny as hell.
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May 18, 2015 16:24
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Can I do both universal parks in a day or do I need two? Bearing in mind I mostly want to hit the harry potter stuff and I'll be going in the off season. Probz also spiderman, transformers and JP. I've got 3 days to do parks. Well 3.5. Doing Epcot the day I land after the divequest. The I was going to do 2 Disney and 1 uni. But now idk. I was at Disneyland and DCA in January so I feel like I could skip a lot of stuff at MK. Or just say F it and stay an extra day
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May 18, 2015 16:33
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BlueBayou posted:Can I do both universal parks in a day or do I need two?  ).If you only have three days I'd say one is enough for Universal.
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May 18, 2015 17:12
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BlueBayou posted:Can I do both universal parks in a day or do I need two? If you pick up the Universal Express thing as anti-line insurance, you'd probably be able to knock both out in a day if you're there from open to close. When I was there last week it was really light on crowds and I was able to walk on pretty much everything except the Harry Potter stuff, and if you save those for the very first thing and very last thing you do, you can pretty easily get everything else done in the middle.
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May 18, 2015 17:18
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We didn't bother with the Express thing but we may have used the single rider queue for a couple of things, I forget now. I think we queued about 30mins for Gringotts and that was the worst, most other stuff we just walked right on.
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May 18, 2015 17:24
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Sorry for the late email, Demon. Just shot you one.
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May 18, 2015 17:44
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Quixotic1 posted:Don't cry for me, I am the walking dead. Nephew wants to go, for one last ride(quoting to me Furious 7) before his graduation from HS and I couldn't refuse. I just plan to people watch during the 24hr event and witness the insanity, is the Space Mt arcade still closed? That was an area alot of people were taking their naps for last years 24hrs. We go every year but show up after midnight when it starts slowing down and people become the walking dead. I'll PM you via the forum if you are checking so you can meet up with us if you are available. I have 'special' bottled water I bring along for such occasions. It's called vodka. I think the arcade is being refurbished still, at least it was two weeks ago. Maybe BBS can answer that since he works at MK still. demonR6 fucked around with this message at 18:41 on May 18, 2015 |
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May 18, 2015 18:39
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Yoshifan823 posted:edit: I'm aware that Dr. Seuss had some bomb-rear end theming, but as much as I like Islands of Adventure, the theming there is very schizophrenic (by nature). Seuss is top notch but being ignored, and it shows, Toon Lagoon is outdated, Super Hero Island is hilariously outdated, even as super hero poo poo is the most popular thing right now, because it looks like a city ripped from those 90's Marvel cartoons on Fox. Jurassic Park is simple but effective, Lost Continent was cool, but is now "Not Harry Potter", and Hogsmeade just got shown up by Diagon Alley. I'm curious to see how Kong will shape the future of the Islands, because if it's successful, I could see it expanding further into Toon Lagoon, and you know some sort of deal is coming w/r/t the Marvel superheroes. Probably not a deal to shut everything down, but one that will shape where they can go in the future. I agree that Super Hero island is outdated, but it hits my childhood Fox cartoon nostalgia so hard that I never want it to change. Toon Lagoon has my favorite rides though. BBRB and Ripsaw Falls are easily my favorite water rides ever. Also, the Gringots and Transformers rides completely blew me away last year. Universal is killing it right now. couldcareless posted:I quite enjoy epcot for what it is. Rides be damned, walking around with a drink in hand seeing different performers at each country is one of my favorite things to do. I think some of what I like about it would be lost if they try and squeeze in some out of place attractions. EPCOT world showcase is great, but future world needs a lot more to do. It's easily a half-day park if the crowds aren't crazy. Hollywood is definitely getting a lot of attention next, right behind the AK expansions. Also, a Universal water park sounds really amazing, hope that rumour comes true. And Disney's fifth park will be bonkers, I hope that's also true. Hell, if they start construction on a fifth park, they can leave HS and EPCOT to rot for all I care. Bottom Liner fucked around with this message at 19:11 on May 18, 2015 |
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May 18, 2015 19:00
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When I was at WDW for spring break 2 years ago I did HS, AK and Epcot all in one day. Because there is so little at them Hrm. Maybe I SHOULD do 2 days at Universal....
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May 18, 2015 19:31
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If you prefer rides over shows/other attactions then yeah, you'll enjoy 2 days at Universal. You can easily spend a full day at each Disney park if you actually see/do everything, but that's not for everyone.
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May 18, 2015 19:39
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The problem is that Im going with other people who will probably want to do more Disney stuff. Whereas I can totally skip MK since Ive been to Disneyland so many times. Sure I want to ride the minetrain, and I LOVE splash mountain more than anything... but... timmeee Can you tell which one is me and which one is my friend I dragged on the ride, at night, in the rain (there was NO line) 
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May 18, 2015 19:47
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BlueBayou posted:The problem is that Im going with other people who will probably want to do more Disney stuff. Whereas I can totally skip MK since Ive been to Disneyland so many times. Sure I want to ride the minetrain, and I LOVE splash mountain more than anything... but... timmeee This owns so hard.
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May 18, 2015 20:30
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Night Splash is the best 
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May 18, 2015 22:30
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BlueBayou posted:When I was at WDW for spring break 2 years ago I did HS, AK and Epcot all in one day. Because there is so little at them If you dig rides, it might be worth the two days. Depends on the time you go. I went this past September to Universal and walked into Diagon Alley at open, waited in zero lines, and did every ride in both Universal & IOA in under 12 hours. Edit: I guess there's early showings of Tomorrowland in a lot of places. Anybody see it yet? I'm just stoked because you can clearly see Space Mountain in the trailer, and they filmed scenes at Small World and Carousel of Progress. Maybe more. Tim Whatley fucked around with this message at 01:24 on May 19, 2015 |
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May 19, 2015 00:15
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demonR6 posted:We go every year but show up after midnight when it starts slowing down and people become the walking dead. I'll PM you via the forum if you are checking so you can meet up with us if you are available. I have 'special' bottled water I bring along for such occasions. It's called vodka. The Arcade is closed for good, I am pretty sure. Who knows what is going in that space, but they even took the Arcade sign off the building. It's dunzo.
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May 19, 2015 03:04
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Got back from my first WDW trip on Sunday! We stayed for 6 nights in pop century, and over all it was pretty fun. The only bad parts were how EXHAUSTED we were by day three/four. Seriously, we only spent a few hours in HS + AK on those days because of the heat and just tiredness. We're from the deep south, so I thought we'd be alright with the heat, but man, I couldn't deal. We would leave in the early afternoon, rest for a bit, and go to dinner. A couple days we stayed and walked around more after dinner, but not much. The middle days had me kind discouraged because of being too tired to do/see more than what rides we'd fastpassed. But, best things: SPACE MOUNTAIN SPACE MOUNTAIN SPACE MOUNTAIN I posted a while back about being afraid of heights/prone to panic, but it didn't stop me from riding anything really. I still rode space mountain (three times), splash mountain (twice), btmrr, expedition everest, and TOWER OF TERROR. Tower of terror made me pretty anxious after riding, but it was still fun as hell during it. I'm glad I didn't keep my husband from riding the awesome rides he wanted to do, and I'm glad I enjoyed them too! Magic Kingdom is the best park and at night is for real kinda magical. We spent our last day/night at MK and even with the pretty big crowds, it was awesome. Saw the parade, fireworks, celebrate the magic thing, rode the teacup ride twice (without getting sick!), and in general just had a fantastic time. Things I'd do different: Go in either late fall (October/November) or early spring (February/March), to dodge the heat and the amount of people. Not get the Dining Plan at all, but if we did, just the quick service. Our TS dinners we reserved were good, but not worth the time stress or how packed in all the restaurants are. The QS stuff on the other hand was consistently great and much less stressful to me (I'm a little panicky if I think I'm going to be late for something). Stay more nights, spend less days in the parks, and plan a couple days for non-Disney relaxing things. Eat at Flame Tree because my husband wanted to eat Yak & Yeti instead 
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May 19, 2015 05:33
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I think most people go through burn out of trying to do too much too fast heir first time. You don't want to miss anything so you scramble to fit it all in. Next trip will be even better, you'll know what you're doing and what you like more. Your husband is a doofus. Flame Tree is some of the best QS food on the resort and Y&Y is super bland. Did you ride Aerosmith? It's the one ride my wife won't ride after a bad childhood experience. Glad you had fun and conquered your fears!
Bottom Liner fucked around with this message at 06:37 on May 19, 2015 |
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May 19, 2015 06:34
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E. Don't even fret because we're skipping the arcade poo poo lol
Skeezy fucked around with this message at 18:14 on May 19, 2015 |
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May 19, 2015 17:28
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Gnossiennes posted:Got back from my first WDW trip on Sunday! We stayed for 6 nights in pop century, and over all it was pretty fun. I'm a big Yak & Yeti fan, but no Flame Tree makes me sad. Glad you managed to hit all those rides and I hope you go again!
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May 19, 2015 18:07
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I love MK at night. The night it was open until 3AM was the best night of my last trip there. We rode a few rides but just walking around and soaking in the detail and ambiance and magic was awesome. Granny was in the room with the kids, so it was just me and my wife. You definitely learn a lot your first trip there, our next trip (March 2016) we'll be much better prepared. I have little kids, so we generally hit the parks hard in the morning, go back to the room around 2 to 3 and the kids nap and we relax. From there we play it by ear. Usually we end up at MK for the evening because MK is just awesome at night. Gnossiennes, how bad were the buses? Definitely my least favorite part of the vacation and the reason we're staying at BLT next time. We were at AoA and at least they have their own buses, I've heard Pop Century is miserable.
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May 19, 2015 19:04
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This Friday.. 24 hours of Disney. Whose in town this weekend?
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May 19, 2015 20:02
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demonR6 posted:This Friday.. 24 hours of Disney. Whose in town this weekend? Dammit Demon don't make me buy a plane ticket.
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May 19, 2015 21:40
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