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Fifth Horseman posted:And yes you can easily spend 14 days in disney world without getting bored and we are currently saving up for a three week visit next year. This depends on group size and who the group is made out of. I fully expect a week down there will be plenty for me and my husband, but it'll be just us two. Groups of any more than 4, or groups with kids, will slow you down a lot. Military goons should call the Disneyworld/land reservations hotline, because hot drat does your military ID get you some sweet deals (currently). 40% off disney-owned rooms, $159 4 day park hopper tickets for adults, dining discounts-all sorts of stuff. And Shades of Green might feel a bit like a barracks, but if you're e-5 or below, you should stay at Shades of Green. You're looking at $100-ish a night (depending on time of year) for some of the largest rooms on the property. However, the DoD owns Shades of Green so you won't get a discount on the rooms and it's low on (  ) "Disney magic" in that you won't get towel animals or theming and such. E-6 and above should look at the discounts and see if they can get in cheaper at a disney-owned room (value or moderate). After running numbers for friends for 4 years now, it's almost always either a tie, very nearly a tie, or a bit cheaper to stay at a disney room than Shades. allears.net is generally my go-to because they constantly keep stuff up to date. Re: Dining/Dining plan: Menus are everywhere online, and a quick GIS will show you what the food looks like in almost all cases. Have an allergy? You can work with it. Even the quickie snack carts are selling soy milk these days because they're trying to be that inclusive. It's great, especially for people that are sensitive. If you have a reservation, you can call the kitchen and talk to the chefs about your options if there's nothing on the menu that you can handle, or if you just want to make a small change to the food and want to be sure it can be done. If anything, these people will bend over backwards to make you happy as long as you're concise with what you want. They really, really understand food allergies and really try to help out. Even if you're allergic to oxygen, I'm pretty sure they'd try to find a way to help you enjoy your stay. Dining plan-as he said, it's more for families in my opinion. It's also good to browse around and see what restaurants require two credits and then do the math, dining plan versus paying for the item. Unless you're dining upscale, you will often do better just to pay. Mostly where you save cash is snacks with the dining plan, and little kids tend to want more Mickey pretzels than adults will. Still, if you get free dining plan, you may as well use it. So largely I agree, but if you ask for the cash value of the dining plan daily, the operators will happily tell you. Makes the math easier.
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Apr 18, 2013 22:38
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Riptor posted:Awesome OP. It made me want to go back to Disney World Villain Village/World/Park (etc) was supposedly an idea thrown out a really long while back. Disney's not going to build anything major any time soon with them working so heavily within the parks that they already have, and last I'd heard Villain (whatever) was just sort of something they amused themselves with. That the only current incarnation of villain-anything is the stuff they do during Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party and that's as far as they want to go with it for the foreseeable future, because the money is in fairies, pirates and princesses. And while Disney's not exactly hurting for money, they're going to ride that particular train into the ground because so much is already set up (or can be altered) to easily cater to it. E: Supposedly that's one reason for so many new meetup spots and "interactive Disney meet and greet experiences" like Belle reading to kids and so on and so forth.
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Apr 27, 2013 22:53
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Abugadu posted:Thanks for the app recommendation, I'll be heading there later this month. Any restaurant recommendations for Downtown Disney? http://allears.net/menu/menus.htm#pi and http://land.allears.net/reviewpost/showcat.php?cat=40 I don't have any recommendations, but that has a listing of restaurants and reviews from folks that've been down there recently. And menus, too. Nathilus posted:I tend to agree that 5 or 6 is the earliest age it is wise to take a kid. A toddler simply doesn't have the stamina or faculties to appreciate most of the parks. Besides they'll likely barely remember it at that age. I think it depends on where you go, what you intend to do and how much patience you have. If you're just going to Magic Kingdom for a day, the toddler will probably have plenty to do (if they aren't freaked out by the characters) and they have child swap on all the rides I can think of. If you're staying down there for a week, yeah, it'll probably be lost on the kid. We lived near there when I was a toddler. My dad worked construction on the place. We went a lot because we got discounts. While I don't remember it great, I do still remember bits of it. We also took a 15 month old and his 3 year old sister to Disneyland and they had a blast. They only got fussy after the fireworks went off, and we did plan the day around entertaining them, not us. So some kids can do it, and while I agree 5-6 is probably the best age, it's possible to do it with a smaller kid and for the smaller kid to enjoy themselves.
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May 2, 2013 13:53
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Ockhams Crowbar posted:This is a great link. I remember vividly going as a kid - I have no idea how old - and thinking that the Garden Grill in Epcot was absolutely amazing, because they just kept bringing us more and more food to share amongst ourselves. I'd never been to a restaurant like that before. Plus, characters. Your other post also says she's a fan of the princesses. While the new Be Our Guest restaurant doesn't have characters wandering around (I don't get the appeal of that either), well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noAge3e0hAY It's really, really pretty and the food is supposed to be fantastic. It's back in New Fantasyland in Magic Kingdom. https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/magic-kingdom/be-our-guest-restaurant/ There's a menu, and you have the option of 'quick service' for lunch or a full service dinner. And they take reservations if you want to do that.
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May 3, 2013 15:11
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Walking around Disney roads can be pretty dangerous during the night, but as long as you keep a look out during the day you can walk from WL to TTC... or from Shades of Green to the Polynesian and take the monorail into the park for a much lower price. Just, you know. Wear bright clothes, really watch the road when crossing and stay tight against the curb otherwise. Like lamb said, there's not much in the way of sidewalks when walking along Disney roads unless you're closer to the parks/TTC/parking lots afaik.
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May 13, 2013 01:45
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Nathilus posted:I don't care how well behaved the kid is, most of em are going to get bitchy when they're hot and tired just like adults. I'm glad you had a good experience, but I stand firm in my assertion that it's a better bet to wait for your kid to have the increased stamina, patience, and self-control that comes with being six or seven before dragging them around theme parks. I've seen too many stressed the gently caress out kids and their parents at Disney to say otherwise. v  v Anything to do with kids at any Disney park is going to anecdotal at best, negative or positive. There's some four year olds out there that are more mature than seven year olds in terms of stress and self control. There's some kids that wouldn't do well going until they're 10+. HPanda posted:I think it comes down to the kids. Parents should assess their kids on an individual basis. For us, our two-year-old can't get enough Disney World and every trip we take is magical for her. If we had a kid that was prone to temper tantrums, sickness, or otherwise had a high stress level, we would need to reconsider. As she is, we would have missed out on some incredible vacations if we had waited until she's older. This is dead on though. It really depends on the kid and that's how any parent should approach it. Plus, if you're staying at an onsite resort, a ton of them have child care. In this case you can just take the kid back to the hotel and let them nap with a caretaker if the parents want to go back with the park. For most kids, you'll be fine as long as you have a stroller and you don't expect to whip through the park. You give the kid plenty of rest, keep them well hydrated and come prepared (change of clothes, medicine, bandages, snacks if they're super little, etc) and it's usually fine. The kids that are stressed are with parents that are trying to do the whole park in a day and it's just too much for them because they're tired, they're hot, they're hungry, everything going on is too much for them- whatever. There's also a bunch of quiet hideaway places at most of the parks to just take a kid so they can settle down if they're getting overexcited or freaked out by the giant characters and so on and so on. You can do it, kids can get a lot of enjoyment out of it at any age, but the kid's parents need to judge if they're good to go, and be ready to blow $150 on tickets then have to leave in 10 minutes if they were wrong.
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May 16, 2013 13:52
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BromanderData posted:I was particularly fond of the Japanese melon soda. I have no idea how the tasting fountain works, but if you can, get some ice cream beforehand and make a melon soda float. Tastes like a dreamsicle, but melon and cream instead of whatever that devil dessert is. lamb posted:Fun trick - get the Italian soda and tell your spouse "this is AWESOME, you have to try it". Have someone with a camera ready to capture the look on their face. Seconding this.
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Jun 6, 2013 21:18
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Nathilus posted:Yeah the Astroblasters are rad. Bumper cars and air cannons go so well together I'm surprised they aren't combined more often. I always thought it was awesome. Like you said, even the theme fit. Disney Springs looks like a nice concept art, but I bet it'll be boring and pointless 5 years from opening date. I agree that DQ needs an update. You'd think, with all the stuff Disney's doing with queues, they'd pour some money into it and let their creative folks have some fun with it. Seems like it'd be a prime place to put in games based on new and upcoming movies (I mean how hard would it be to make some sidescrollers or kinect-like games?). Disneyland had Fix it Felix Jr for Wreck It Ralph. Did they even have that at WDW?
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Jun 16, 2013 18:18
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If you're only staying the one night, you will see less discounts. Most of their big discounts are on things like multiple day park-hopper-included kinds of discounts. If they want to see Cars Land you're going to be over in Disney California Adventure, which can easily be done in a day whether you're a thrill seeker or you guys prefer more mellow things. But since there's kids, they're probably gonna wanna see the castle and do the classic rides in Disneyland. You might not get everything done on a Saturday/Sunday in Disneyland. You'd probably have better luck on a Monday or a Tuesday. http://touringplans.com/disneyland-resort/crowd-calendar A month prior to going you'll be able to see this for free. It was about 95% accurate while we were there last December. November isn't a bad time to go. The holiday decorations might already be out (they should be, but I don't want to guarantee it, y'know?) and Haunted Mansion will be in full Nightmare Before Christmas regalia so if you have any fans in the party, it's definitely worth hitting up. From earlier in the thread: quote:Military goons should call the Disneyworld/land reservations hotline, because hot drat does your military ID get you some sweet deals (currently). 40% off disney-owned rooms, $159 4 day park hopper tickets for adults, dining discounts-all sorts of stuff. Allears' disneyland area is pretty small, but it'll still give you a good idea of things. The best piece of advice I can give you is wait until early September and contact Disneyland reservations directly about a November 1 day vacation. They'll have all the current promotions by that point and they'll work to get you the best deal they can. If they bring up staying off property, we stayed at the Anaheim Marriot Suites. It's only a couple of miles to the main gate, the breakfast buffet is pretty nice and the place was lovely. There's also a Target literally across the street for any necessities. Parking was a bit of a bitch, but it's a solid property and it's a Good Neighbor hotel, which means if you go on a day with extra magic hours, you get those as if you were staying on a disney property. Extra magic hours are for people staying at a disney or affiliate (good neighbor, in this case) hotel. Sometimes they're in the morning, sometimes they're in the evening, but lines are usually pretty short. The biggest thing is, your id will probably give you some cash off, be it a little or a ton. But due to when you're going, you really won't know how much until the reservations/CS hotline get the updates for 2013-2014 deals for the military. Sometimes they're different, sometimes they're the same, but they won't confirm anything until they have word from over their head. Which is great. But it kinda fucks you a little for planning. Are you looking for any information in the park specifically?
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Jun 28, 2013 05:14
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You can walk from Shades of Green to the Polynesian to take the monorail, however it is not necessarily recommended because it's a lovely road to run across and it can be dangerous. But tons of people do it every year anyway and it's not against the rules as far as I'm aware.
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Jul 4, 2013 20:14
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This depends on what time of the year you go. Specifically with Disneyland, unless you leave an hour before the fireworks, the trams to the Mickey and Friends parking area are always packed if the park has been packed at some point of the day. It doesn't matter if you leave when the park is closing or if you leave right after the fireworks. There's going to be a line. However, Downtown Disney usually stays open a little later than the parks in this case. You may be able to screw around in World of Disney or La Brea bakery while the lines calm down a little.
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Jul 7, 2013 20:32
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It's also a nice break from the elements. It's an easy ride with a lot of pretty scenery that's super relaxed if you can get over the fact that your legs are dangling. The chairs lifting freaked me out a little, but after the first swooping pass I didn't care anymore because it was so drat pretty.
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Aug 8, 2013 15:05
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Biggz posted:Thanks for the advice, for reference I was originally looking at a value resort but when I saw this offer it got me thinking. Caribbean Beach is fantastic, but Port Orleans has boat and bus travel to parks instead of just busses. Are you taking any kids? Because Port Orleans (the Riverside part only, buildings 90 and 95) has Princess rooms that you might be able to upgrade to for girls. Caribbean Beach has pirate rooms for upgrade too. E: Here's the princess rooms: http://allears.net/acc/g_PortOrleans-RoyalRooms.htm Here's the pirate rooms: http://allears.net/acc/g_cbrpirate.htm Fluffy Bunnies fucked around with this message at 21:10 on Aug 25, 2013 |
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Aug 25, 2013 21:04
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Braksgirl posted:I've never priced for an overseas client, but if you're getting a package with a discount on one element (room,tickets, dining) then you're probably going to have to book it as a package to get that discount. So you wouldn't be able to let a US agent book two elements and not the third. Does that make sense? Depends on who you're taking. Coronado is definitely less heavily themed and a kid might not be as impressed with it as one of the brighter rooms. If it's all adults that aren't into all the theming and stuff, I totally agree. Of all the moderates, Caribbean Beach does tend to be a bit sprawling. Port Orleans is much better about it in my opinion.
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Aug 25, 2013 21:12
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Biggz posted:I've pretty much decided on Coronado or Caribbean. I can get Coronado for £100 less than Caribbean. Agreeing with Nathilus. Go ahead and go Coronado. It's got a nice pool too. Both only have bus service to TTC/the parks. Keep in mind Downtown Disney IS undergoing a ton of rehab right now, too.
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Aug 30, 2013 22:33
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Nathilus, how hard is it to get ingredients out of Jiko chefs? I've heard they're the super busy types.
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Sep 10, 2013 18:52
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Dole whip is fine and dandy but I'll never understand the obsession with it (please don't crucify me, disney thread) Though seriously, this place: http://www.menchies.com/yogurt-shop-our-locations/all has a dole pineapple soft serve yogurt that tastes almost exactly like it, if you have one locally and you're dying for it. E: Looking at it, it may even be the same.
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Sep 10, 2013 22:36
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Their rage over the new snow white roller coaster was incredible. Pretty sure it was Disboards and not Mousesavers I saw them practically screaming about taking up arms against Disney over it.
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Sep 12, 2013 14:28
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So someone with more info on magic bands: What happens if you lose one? Do you just run to City Hall or something and get it replaced with your personal info? A password? D'you have to go back to your resort?
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Sep 12, 2013 16:01
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I wonder if they haven't simply because of how elaborate a lot of the villains' costumes are? I know it's Disney and they can basically do everything in that park but control the weather, but surely it must cost more to do repairs on something like Maleficent's hood than grabbing Peter Pan a new pair of green leggings. The princess dresses probably get beat up a little, but they're basically overdone pagent dresses/ballgowns. A lot of the other "common" M&G costumes seem to be more toned down than their villain counterparts, even with some mascot characters. I'm not much for M&Gs but I'd probably go to a villain one. 
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Sep 15, 2013 14:32
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The Grand Floridian is wonderful but pretentious and all that other stuff. All of the deluxe hotels are pretentious. It's just, Grand Floridian goes the extra mile in it. The animals are never a guarantee on the savannahs and there's been a lot of talk of bugs lately over at AKL. Wilderness Lodge stole my heart from the first second I ever saw it and I fully intend to stay there whenever we go down. It's a gorgeous place and there's a good variety of places to eat in terms of atmosphere. So I gotta suggest Wilderness Lodge.
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Sep 29, 2013 02:20
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That "locals" park thing is what I feel like they mean when they say "intimate". WDW is a great resort, but it doesn't have the familiar, snuggly feel that Disneyland does. And that picture, in my opinion, puts it in perspective as to why. Disneyland's fantasyland is literally my favorite part of either California park. It's more like a cozy little village than the wildly overblown circus I remember from WDW. E: I still say the worst thing about Disneyland is the fairly low level food. Fluffy Bunnies fucked around with this message at 21:10 on Oct 29, 2013 |
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Oct 29, 2013 21:06
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BlueBayou posted:ooohhhh i dunno I can think of a couple. I guess my point's more: we can think of a couple, whereas people talking about WDW can usually spout at least 4-5 a park that are worth eating at.
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Oct 29, 2013 23:26
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Happitoo posted:Meanwhile things like the Wonders of Life pavilion and 2nd floor of Imagination sit empty. Like they're like "look at the cool poo poo we had" but at the same time leaving a bunch of stuff to rot. It's kind of sad. Wonders of Life is used for events on and off, but last I knew Disney asked for a partial demo permit on it... but that was also a few years ago too, I think. So it's not just sitting completely empty, it's just rarely used. 2nd floor of Imagination is pretty empty though, just storage. Starcade's 2nd floor at Disneyland has a huge X-wing fighter but you can't get up to it anymore, and Innoventions at Disneyland has a second floor that hasn't been used afaik in ages, too. And for a park that complains about not having enough space to do what it wants, you'd think they'd have every inch of usable floorspace in use. It's sad to see older stuff go but it's neat to see the new stuff and the promo stuff for the new stuff. So I don't really have a problem with them having nostalgia merchandise. It'd be neat if they put something together at Epcot to let you "ride" the old stuff via simulator. Surely there's plenty of videos out there. Fluffy Bunnies fucked around with this message at 22:44 on Dec 7, 2013 |
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Dec 7, 2013 22:42
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I'm just gonna toss out that yall can like whatever you like, but nothing beats Carousel of Progress and the day it closes forever will 
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Dec 8, 2013 15:36
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Kart Barfunkel posted:I'm not into that whole pin thing by any means Spend 5 minutes talking to a cast member about pins and they suck you in faster than anything I've ever seen. I wanted to go prancing around buying about $200 worth until I got a grip on myself (I still kinda want to).
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Jan 29, 2014 02:55
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However, I will say there is a lot of pineapple on property at WDW. Stay away from the Polynesian.
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Jan 31, 2014 02:10
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Tigntink posted:I feel like a broken record of dumb short questions but I've got another one: It'll depend on who you ask and what they have available at the time. Even during the slow season your particular hotel might be fuller than others.
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Jan 31, 2014 21:59
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kri kri posted:Exterior I can deal with, maybe I can stay at Contemporary. You might (should) be allowed to take the boat on, but they aren't going to let the kid sit in the stroller due to safety reasons. They won't let you do it on most forms of transport afaik.
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Feb 4, 2014 00:12
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Savage Bliss posted:Well, first time at Disney World was a definite success in the eyes of the children. The weather stunk, but what can you expect in January? We stayed at PO French Quarter and it was okay I suppose, but I'm not exactly sure what I was expecting being a first time Disney tourist. Here's my dilemma: We will definitely be going back (in a 2-3 year time frame), and it may be the last time we do so with the kids......should we dive into a more expensive hotel like the Polynesian which is on the monorail and has (supposed) extra amenities? We had dinner one night at Ohanas and dear God I don't know how much more smoked meat I could have eaten if I had 3 stomachs but it was awesome. Consider it again when you're closer to going because your preferences will change several times as your kids get older.
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Feb 5, 2014 05:36
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I've heard the grey stuff is delicious but if you don't believe me I heard these dudes know what's up:  In all seriousness I've heard nothing but good about everything there for dinner except for the salmon, but I'd suggest looking at a menu shortly before you go (you should be able to find one online) and then looking for newer reviews. The folks I've heard good things from are easily impressed when it comes to disney food.
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Feb 9, 2014 21:46
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TheBigBudgetSequel posted:To the surprise of no one, ticket prices have seen another increase this year. I was always under the impression that if you cared enough to blog about Disney you're probably an AP holder to one of the parks. And it may not be to anyone's surprise, but I'm curious why MK is $7 more than a basic Disneyland ticket. MK and Disneyland are relatively close in size-ish. I wonder if overhead is that much more at MK comparatively?
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Feb 23, 2014 19:28
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APOLLO OHNO-UDIDNT posted:What is a reasonable age for a first visit to Disney? I recently became a parent back in December and my folks who live in FL are already hinting at future Disney trips. We visit them in Tampa about once a year so Orlando is very doable. To me it seems reasonable to maybe go for his third birthday, because do kids younger than that really get much out of it? My husband and I both enjoyed the parks but we're not superfans so I'm thinking wait until he's three? Any thoughts? Some kids are into the colors and the lights and everything early on, some just get freaked out by it. Your little one is super tiny and it's really hard to judge how he/she will develop. Grandma and grandpa sound great but maybe tell'em to hold their horses until you see how your kid responds to that kinda stuff in a couple years. 3 is pretty typical, 4 and 5 year olds can almost definitely handle it.
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Mar 1, 2014 16:35
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Go hit Universal and get your AP in my opinion. Downtown Disney's under a lot of renovation as far as I've been told.
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Mar 11, 2014 22:33
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TheBigBudgetSequel posted:Hiking in Florida sounds like the opposite of any kind of fun. I was there in December, which was considered cool by the locals around, and I was like "whew its warm" at like 10am so I can't imagine summer at any time of day. You ended up in a relatively shady position didn't you? The humidity will suck but if you're inside(ish) you'll probably adjust better since you'll have "off" time from the heat and the sun.
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Mar 30, 2014 02:11
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TheBigBudgetSequel posted:Just a guy coming at me yelling "STAIRS! DO YOU HAVE STAIRS!" You'll have to Disney Gesture toward the nearest set of stairs, smiling brightly while saying "Yes sir, we do have stairs! They're right there!" in your chirpiest, cheeriest voice. And demonr6 will chuckle. It'd be great if you got Disneyquest. I hear it's a really comfortable little position. Is there a mockup of the new Animal Kingdom map once they get Avatarland in and all?
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Mar 31, 2014 21:14
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Braksgirl posted:I would stay far away from Poly. Too much construction right now. Did they ever get the bug problem under control at AKL?
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Apr 26, 2014 04:09
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Braksgirl posted:I wasn't aware there was one. It's mostly just an issue of it being Florida and people leaving doors open long term to watch the animals graze nearby from what I understood but it seemed particularly grouched about the past couple years on allears and mousesavers.
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Apr 26, 2014 04:23
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Jose Valasquez posted:So is it just completely impossible to get reservations to Be Our Guest unless you are doing it 180 days in advance? Nope, keep checking every day. People cancel reservations all the time.
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May 4, 2014 06:06
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Cais posted:I got to preview the Mine Train on Monday and rode it five times. It's a pretty fantastic addition to New Fantasyland. It doesn't look like there's much as far as drops. Nothing bigger than a few small 10ft hills. Does that sound about right?
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May 17, 2014 00:49
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