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also this thing I got a marketing e-mail for https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CVucnt46ww
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Feb 16, 2022 17:31
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DTaeKim posted:Thinking of attaching a Disneyland trip after attending my cousin's wedding in mid-October with the family. We would be there starting October 17. 3 Full days is plenty of time imo, especially if you're just going to see things that aren't at WDW. I stay across the street at the Tropicana, I don't see any reason to stay on property at Disneyland
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Feb 16, 2022 17:40
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alg posted:also this thing I got a marketing e-mail for Sounds like a good Defunctland episode in 10 years though.
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Feb 16, 2022 17:43
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Bob: "Celebration? Never heard of it."
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Feb 16, 2022 17:58
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"Broken windows dot the barren landscape of a community that was once dreamed to be the future of the Walt Disney Company. It is only too bad it became their nightmare." *Defunctland intro splash* Seriously why the hell is Disney putting up real estate in the water-starved desert. Go somewhere else if you want to build bougey poo poo.
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Feb 16, 2022 18:01
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did anyone else key in when josh said "crystal lagoons technology"? It seems to be a real thing https://www.crystal-lagoons.com/concept-technology/
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Feb 16, 2022 20:40
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Yes and it's pretty impressive. Saddle Brook in Wesley Chapel uses it
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Feb 16, 2022 21:37
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Dren posted:did anyone else key in when josh said "crystal lagoons technology"? All I can think of is how unsustainable and environmentally damaging these things are but they claim on their website to use a fraction of the energy of a regular pool so 
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Feb 16, 2022 21:52
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https://twitter.com/business/status/1493974964143370250?s=21 Probably for the best.
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Feb 16, 2022 22:02
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Feb 17, 2022 18:19
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alg posted:also this thing I got a marketing e-mail for Disney looked at The Villages and got big mad they aren't getting any of that money.
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Feb 17, 2022 18:37
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Boxman posted:Disney looked at The Villages and got big mad they aren't getting any of that money. Disney don't want of that mostly MAGA, weirdly horny money. The Villages are weird as gently caress.
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Feb 22, 2022 04:45
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I probably need to start considering booking transport from/to the airport this summer. I'd rather not rent a car from the airport when it'd be sitting unused for most of the trip, and taxis/ubers/etc are needlessly expensive for travelling solo if other good options are available. The two bus services both look around the same price, but Sunshine Flyer looks like it's more of a thing for families with kids. Has anyone tried Mears Connect yet, and is it any good? I know taking luggage directly to the hotel isn't a thing anymore, but that was never a thing for international flights anyway.
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Feb 22, 2022 12:36
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We did Mears Connect for our trip a few weeks ago and it was exactly the same as the Disney service except we had to get our luggage first. The pain was that baggage claim in Orlando is in terminal A and the bus is in B, so it’s a little bit of a walk with your bags to get there.
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Feb 22, 2022 14:27
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We are trying out Sunshine Flyer next month just because I assume it will be the less chosen of the two options. I'll report back if it's anything beyond just "bus from point a to point b"
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Feb 22, 2022 14:38
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I used Sunshine Flyer last week and it was fine. I only used it from the airport to Pop. We did Uber for the return because I have trust issues. Other agents have reported lots of issues with Mears so I would steer clear.
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Feb 22, 2022 14:47
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My fiance and I are planning to goto Disney World for our honeymoon. It'll be the first time there for both of us and we're really excited for it. I've been to Disney Land Paris a fair few times and we particularly love it there at Christmas, so it makes sense for us to go to Disney World in December. However, I noticed in the OP that you'll just walk onto rides in January, I was wondering if we can expect it to be roughly the same in December or will the Christmas holidays significantly extend queue times? If so would it be worth delaying the trip by a month to catch the shorter queue times but lose out on the Christmas atmosphere? Tea Bone fucked around with this message at 16:31 on Feb 22, 2022 |
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Feb 22, 2022 16:26
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I don’t know about Paris but there are no more walk on times at WDW Florida. I was there last week when it should have been practically a ghost town and it was quite the opposite. I expect pent up demand and relaxed mask rules will have WDW slammed for at least the rest of the year.
Braksgirl fucked around with this message at 17:08 on Feb 22, 2022 |
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Feb 22, 2022 16:37
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Tea Bone posted:My fiance and I are planning to goto Disney World for our honeymoon. It'll be the first time there for both of us and we're really excited for it. The OP is out of date; you can't walk onto most rides at any time of year. There is no "slow" season at WDW anymore. And December is one of the absolute busiest months. Christmas decorations at MK stay up through Marathon weekend, so there's a chance you could see them then, but then you're also dealing with the race crowds. Honestly, you need to decide if ride wait times or Christmas decorations is more important, and remove the idea of a time where you can just walk on many rides from your mind. Here's the current standby times right now: Remy - 190 minutes Rise - 170 Flight of Passage - 160 Slinky - 140 Tower of Terror - 135 Mine Train - 130 Peter Pan - 95 Rock'n'Roller Coaster - 90 Navi River Journey - 90 Millenium Falcon - 90 Kili Safari - 90 Haunted Mansion - 90 Runaway Railway - 85 Test Track - 80 Splash Mountain - 75 Big Thunder Mountain - 75 Jungle Cruise - 70 and on and on...
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Feb 22, 2022 16:39
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Early December is better than late December (closer to post Thanksgiving the better), but yeah, temper expectations. WDW is always a bit busy now. It's just the difference between "I can easily navigate the park walkways" and "I dread walking past small world/Peter pan"
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Feb 22, 2022 16:43
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Omne posted:The OP is out of date; you can't walk onto most rides at any time of year. There is no "slow" season at WDW anymore. And December is one of the absolute busiest months. Ah poo poo, I thought walking on would be a bit of a reach but was hoping for <40 minute queues. I figured it would be the same as DLP, where mid-week December, as long as you were happy to just go on whatever had short queue times you could walk onto everything in the course of a day or two. If that's what queue times are, then that's what they are. Certainly gives us something to think about, I'll have to do some digging if I can find December queue times vs January.
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Feb 22, 2022 16:49
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yeah unfortunately you missed 40 minute queues by a few years. FastPass would have let you get away with that, but now the park is slammed all the time and the new system has not caught up yet.
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Feb 22, 2022 16:55
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alg posted:yeah unfortunately you missed 40 minute queues by a few years. FastPass would have let you get away with that, but now the park is slammed all the time and the new system has not caught up yet. In Winter 2005 I remember riding Tower of Terror fourteen times in a row without standing in line for more than a few seconds. I could have done more, but after the last one I almost threw up. It was glorious. It's sad to think that unless something significantly changes, I may never go back to WDW. It's three times as expensive now, and ten times as crowded on the lightest days.
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Feb 22, 2022 17:05
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I waited an hour for Mine Train at park closing last week during what should have been a dead week. Like we got in line at 8:50 and park close was 9. Granted, there were extended hours for Deluxe resort guests, but the park close hack is pretty effective usually. Also waited an hour for Remy at park close. It is what it is. We had intended to do Genie+ one day of our trip just to get a feel for how it worked so to better assist clients, but neither of us could get the app to let us purchase it. So that was a big bust.
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Feb 22, 2022 17:11
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I realise it's a matter of personal opinion but do you goons still think it's worth going to WDW if the crowds are that bad? We're looking at 14 days, so will have a decent chunk of time there, but if queue times are 90 minutes for even the less popular rides and 3 hours for the popular ones, we'll get on what 5 rides a day? We'd probably be staying in the Grand Floridian, so will be able to take advantage of the extended hours. How much difference do they make? The Paris extended hours are pretty paltry (only Mainstreet and fantasy land are open)
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Feb 22, 2022 17:21
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If you are planning to stay at the Grand Floridian (for 14 days no less!), you likely can afford to pay for Genie+ and Lightning lanes and not worry so much about lines. Maybe I’m mistaken though.
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Feb 22, 2022 17:46
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yeah thats a shitload of money lol
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Feb 22, 2022 17:49
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If you're happy with a more relaxed pace, meaning you ride a few rides a day, see some shows, eat some food, then you absolutely will have a good time. You can knock out a few rides with low waits if you rope drop every day and take advantage of the early entry for resort guests. If you're the kind of person who isn't going to be happy unless they've done every mountain and every ride, then you might not have the best time. I would say to maybe purchase Genie+ a few days of your trip just to knock out the big stuff like Rise and Slinky Dog with lower waits. Personally, I just like being in the parks on vacation and shopping and eating and stuff. Rides are great and I like doing them but they're not the end all be all of my park agenda.
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Feb 22, 2022 17:56
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Braksgirl posted:If you're happy with a more relaxed pace, meaning you ride a few rides a day, see some shows, eat some food, then you absolutely will have a good time. You can knock out a few rides with low waits if you rope drop every day and take advantage of the early entry for resort guests. If you're the kind of person who isn't going to be happy unless they've done every mountain and every ride, then you might not have the best time. I would say to maybe purchase Genie+ a few days of your trip just to knock out the big stuff like Rise and Slinky Dog with lower waits. Okay thanks, this has put my mind at rest. Our favourite thing about Paris is the atmosphere and Disney "experience" over the rides. I'm certainly more interested in soaking in the theming and shows than rollercoasters. I've seen Paris so busy you can't even enjoy the atmosphere and had worries we were letting ourselves in for two weeks of that.
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Feb 22, 2022 18:10
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I'm here now, I absolutely recommend Genie+ every day you're going to the parks if you want to ride rides. It's $20 a day to get 2-3 extra rides in per day, if you're already staying at a Disney resort (especially Grand Floridian) that's a small amount of money extra per day to not have to wait 1-2 hours for every single ride you want to do. You can also book the individual lightning lane passes for the top rides in addition to the regular Genie+ lightning lane passes, so you can have multiple things lined up at the beginning of the day and then add extras throughout the day once the 2 hour window or your first LL is used. If you're talking about 14 days at Grand Floridian then you could do Genie+ for the full 14 days and book an individual LLs each day as well for <$1000 on what's likely to be a $12000+ vacation. (I would personally recommend something more like park tickets for 8-10 days instead of a full 14 and do other stuff on the off days, in which case it'll be even less expensive to add Genie+). It's mid February and these are the worst crowds I've ever seen, December is going to be bonkers. Unless your idea of fun is just standing in line after line for a 2-5 minute payoff don't cheap out on Genie+
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Feb 22, 2022 18:58
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This past weekend was as crowded as Christmas-New Years. Before Covid, that was absolutely unheard of, the theme parks used to be relative ghost towns in February.
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Feb 22, 2022 19:21
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Tea Bone posted:Okay thanks, this has put my mind at rest. Our favourite thing about Paris is the atmosphere and Disney "experience" over the rides. I'm certainly more interested in soaking in the theming and shows than rollercoasters. If you go to WDW in mid-to-late December, it will absolutely be that way: shoulder-to-shoulder people, and the Disney atmosphere is basically ruined in a lot of areas. Especially the weekend before Christmas through New Years -- sometimes the parks get so crowded that they hit maximum capacity and temporarily close the gates. If you go earlier, it will still be crowded, but you'll have more breathing room. Since you're spending a bundle anyway, buy Genie+, and consider Lightning Lane passes for everything you feel passionate about riding. You'll want to get your dining reservations as early as possible too -- a lot of restaurants are fully booked months out, even during the "slower" season. Edit: I agree with Jose Valasquez; buy some LL passes, cut your WDW stay by a few days to (more than) cover the cost, and check out the other amazing stuff around central Florida. Universal Studios is no Disney but has a ton of unique things to do and see -- and arguably better rides than the Disney parks. And there are several smaller -- but quality -- parks around the area. SeaWorld has a bad rep but is worth spending a day at, and I hear Discovery Cove is one of the area's best-kept secrets. WhiteHowler fucked around with this message at 19:45 on Feb 22, 2022 |
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Feb 22, 2022 19:33
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It's presidents day weekend which is infamously crowded. This coming week you're getting the Mardi gras escapees. Honestly, February is rarely slow because of those things.
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Feb 22, 2022 19:36
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couldcareless posted:It's presidents day weekend which is infamously crowded. This coming week you're getting the Mardi gras escapees. Honestly, February is rarely slow because of those things. February used to be slow until Presidents Day weekend. This year it was insane the entire time.
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Feb 22, 2022 19:53
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WhiteHowler posted:If you go to WDW in mid-to-late December, it will absolutely be that way: shoulder-to-shoulder people, and the Disney atmosphere is basically ruined in a lot of areas. Especially the weekend before Christmas through New Years -- sometimes the parks get so crowded that they hit maximum capacity and temporarily close the gates. Thanks, we're looking at probably 5th-19th December. It'll be my first time in the US and my fiance's first time on a plane so we definitely want to see a bit more of what Florida has to offer. We've already factored in a day at universal. Like I said, we both love Disneyland Paris so Disney World felt like the obvious choice for our honeymoon. For the same budget we could have a club level stay in Disney Paris for 5 nights and probably another 14 nights visiting the US somewhere not Disney. I'm starting to wonder if that's the better choice seeing as we know what to expect in Paris but this is probably the last time we'll have the opportunity to do this before having kids in tow.
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Feb 22, 2022 19:55
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idk where you live but keep in mind that the US is basically a plague state, there are no restrictions at all on COVID people. none
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Feb 22, 2022 20:11
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Tea Bone posted:For the same budget we could have a club level stay in Disney Paris for 5 nights and probably another 14 nights visiting the US somewhere not Disney. I'm starting to wonder if that's the better choice seeing as we know what to expect in Paris but this is probably the last time we'll have the opportunity to do this before having kids in tow. But I get that it's a once-in-a-lifetime chance to visit WDW without kids, and it's a very different (and awesome) experience. I think you'll have a blast either way. alg posted:idk where you live but keep in mind that the US is basically a plague state, there are no restrictions at all on COVID people. none
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Feb 22, 2022 20:22
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alg posted:idk where you live but keep in mind that the US is basically a plague state, there are no restrictions at all on COVID people. none  we'll be in the same boat at you by the end of the month anyway .
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Feb 22, 2022 20:52
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Tea Bone posted:
It’s a small world after all.
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Feb 22, 2022 21:11
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I got home from my trip with the family on Friday, but waited a few days to post a trip report. So here goes! Date of Stay: Feb 11 - 18 Resort: Copper Creek Villas at Wilderness Lodge ----- Thoughts on individual parts of the trip... RESORT: The Wilderness Lodge is easily one of my favorite resorts on property. We booked a 2BR/2BA suite, and we had plenty of space for storage during the trip. The only downside on our room was the kitchen is so much smaller than most other DVC lodgings because of the way the room is laid out. But it was comfortable, super clean and the customer service was sensational. If we ever go back, if we can't book one of the monorail resorts or Boardwalk, this is where I'd prefer to stay. The Artist's Point character dining restaurant (I'll elaborate more on it later) was absolutely phenomenal too. We didn't use the buses much, but when we did, our wait times were super reasonable. THE PARKS: I'm just doing this all at once, because we had the same issues at all of them, but holy gently caress the wait times in February. I've been going to WDW my entire life, and I've definitely experienced worse crowds, but usually only during the Thanksgiving/Christmas season. Typically in February you can count on cheer season and Mardi Gras escapees filling out a lot of the parks, but this time... it was just nuts. Wait times were totally unmanageable for the length of stay we had and mostly only doing one park per day. If there is a CM lurking and could verify, I am willing to bet they still haven't re-hired those 30k people that were laid off pre-pandemic, because it just felt like bottlenecks everywhere you go. What's weird is that on Saturday, Feb. 12, the wait times at MK were really easy and the park didn't get really crowded until almost 4 PM. I was pleasantly surprised but took full advantage of it. I just didn't understand how/why it got SO unmanageable every day after that unless my theory on a likely labor shortage is accurate. Animal Kingdom was hands-down the worst, and we were there on a Monday. The prices on merchandise also weren't that out of bounds, except for some of the 50th Anniversary apparel. I didn't find it to be much more expensive than the last visits I made before I moved away from Florida in 2020. On the other hand, food prices have gotten silly. I've never spent that much on food at the parks, and I can honestly say we didn't eat as much as we used to at the parks. I ended up being WAY under budget on merchandise purchases (there just wasn't much I saw that I wanted) but went way over on food. GENIE+: gently caress Genie+. That's my honest feelings toward this system, and the price of it isn't even what bothered me. It was the fact that you could only make ONE booking to start the day, and screw you if you aren't up at 7 AM waiting to nail down that Lightning Lane (LL) for the one big-ticket attraction you want to ride. The fact that you cannot book another attraction until you're within your redemption window also really sucks. Let's say you woke up on time for your DHS day and nailed down Slinky Dog for about 10 AM. Not terrible, but you can't book something else until after 10, and all the while, everything else is booking up, meaning your windows are later and later. So you might not get that Tower of Terror booking until sometime after 4 PM, so you're stuck deciding whether you lock that in and risk not getting to use your third LL, or getting something earlier to tighten up your day and hoping Tower doesn't sell out. The price isn't that bad at $15 per person, but the execution is very bad. If you haven't calculated every minute of your day pretty precisely, you're going to be stuck with some lovely plans. You also have to factor in the rides that are only available individually like Space Mountain, Rise, Runaway Railway, the good Pandora ride, etc... Genie+ being kind of screwy and AK being so limited on attractions without Everest really caused us to have a lovely day at AK because if we weren't waiting 90+ minutes for something, we were running around like crazy people trying to catch more favorable wait times as best we could. SIT-DOWN RESTAURANTS: We didn't do as many sit-downs as usual, but here is everything we did and what I thought on those specifically... - Artist's Point (Wilderness Lodge): LOVED this place. Somehow the price here hasn't elevated as much as other places I noticed, but the food quality was stellar and the character interactions with Snow, Evil Queen, Grumpy and Dopey were as good as any in-park meet and greet at the moment. I had the prime rib entree for my meal, and it was one of the best prime rib meals I've ever had. I also hate mushrooms typically, but I was guzzling down their mushroom soup like no tomorrow... that's how good it was. Our daughter thoroughly loved the characters, and she also ate the most at this meal because she was really digging everything that was served. So it's toddler-approved too. - Cinderella's Royal Table (Magic Kingdom): I'm glad we did it, but I'll probably never book this again unless it's a special occasion and my daughter can't live without it. The food was fine... nothing to write home about. But the only good dessert was the chocolate mousse. The "character dining" part of this you're really paying for was also super underwhelming. Because the restaurant space is so tiny, Cindarella walks out and stands for a few moments in three spots so everyone has a chance to see her. She doesn't get near the tables, and you're not allowed to get up to get a better photo closer to her. So for what we paid, the photos we got weren't nearly as good as just going to Princess Hall. Do not recommend this at all, even for a toddler. Oh, and they were running over 30 minutes behind on checking in tables, so we ended up missing out on an entire hour of possible attractions. - Skipper's Canteen (Magic Kingdom): I'm soooo glad we gave this a second chance. We tried SC back in 2020 for our last visit as Florida residents, and it was horrible. But this time it was sensational. I got a pretty basic main dish (fried chicken), and it was very good. Everyone else's meals were first-rate. They were also on time getting us checked in and seated. - Oga's Cantina (DHS): It's not a sitdown restaurant, but you do have to reserve it, so I'm including it. But I loved it for the 45 minutes we were in there. The atmosphere is really cool and the drinks were great. I highly recommend trying to squeeze this in if you can get the reservation. - Tusker House (Animal Kingdom): The food quality here hasn't diminished at all, but everything is served family-style now instead of buffet. Because it's not a buffet, that also means there is a lot less variety in the food. We got some appetizers (I don't even remember what they were), and the entree portion has some roast chicken, steak, and pulled pork and fixings. It was all very, very good. If you're there with the kids, the character interactions were fantastic and my daughter really got into it. We were also there very close to park-close, so the characters were also able to spend a little more time in each section, which was nice. ---- OVERALL: This trip was fine, but even with 6-days/7-nights, we felt rushed as hell and missed SO much stuff from a combination of insane February crowds and Genie+ not being very efficient/helpful. The food price increases also really put a dent in my finances, and I walked away thinking how much better of a value Disney Cruise Line is all of a sudden. The MK 50th Anniversary also didn't seem like a big deal in any real sense. The castle is really pretty, especially at night, and I know for a fact a shitload of plans got scrapped overnight once the COVID shutdowns began, but it also seemed like the other 3 parks celebrated it more than MK did. Also, thanks to Genie+, I've never spent so much time on my phone at the parks. WDW was always somewhere I'd go so I could put my phone away most of the day except to take pictures, and for this trip, I was living on the thing trying to get some of my money's worth out of the trip. So we paid premium prices for a trip just to get a crick in our neck (literally) from staring down at a smartphone for 6 days. I told my wife in no uncertain terms that we will not be going back for at least 4 years once my daughter is 7, or something changes at the park to add even the tiniest bit of added value. I couldn't help but think that the sole reason this trip wasn't a total bust was because of our DVC membership and staying at a deluxe resort. I also did some other stuff like build a lightsaber (that was awesome, honestly), but if you have any questions from our trip, lemme know! EDIT: One thing I didn't note earlier, but the wait times on a Monday at Animal Kingdom were so bad, and Genie+ was so unhelpful the entire time, that we spent SO much time in line that the ONLY animals we got to see all day were on the Safari ride. That's it, we didn't even get time to see Kite Tails or walk those two trails. Doronin fucked around with this message at 21:30 on Feb 22, 2022 |
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Feb 22, 2022 21:26
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