Disney World

RISE!!!!!
wow, 2009
OK, so I just booked our 3rd trip to Disney so I thought it would be fun to hear other's experiences and stuff!

We are going for 7 fun-filled days on a land and sea adventure.
3 nights at the Animal Kingdom Lodge then running off to the Disney Dream for 4 nights cruising and hopefully 2 days on the private island Castaway Quay (or key).

This is the 3rd time we've done this trip! First time was in 2008 and we did the same as above.
The last time was in 2010 and we did the opposite. I missed being on the ship a bit. It was great fun but my son was 1 inch too short to ride the Aquaduck water slide

We love staying at the AKL. The first time we stayed and got a view of the savanna. Waking up to go out on the balcony to see giraffes, zebras, gazelles and all kinds of other African fauna was amazing!
Last time we just booked a regular room with no view. We were told by a friend to ask for an upgrade when we arrived. We did and We got a room with the Savanna view!
This time we booked with a pool view. we'll still ask for the savanna view upgrade but we wont be too disappointed if we don't get it.

The building is amazing and I can't wait to "go home" again in February.

The cruise is a lot of fun. Tons of activities for my 8 yr old, and lots to do as an adult as well. Adult-only area with a pool, bar, sitting area to get away from the rest of the ship. Dance clubs and restaurants, Theaters etc. Of course there are the pools and hot tubs (thankfully you come out bleached with all the chlorine).

My son nearly cracked his skull open the first time he tried to use the bathroom. I forgot and he didn't know about the gangway. The bit of wall at the floor that pokes up 6 inches separating the bathroom from the rest of the cabin. He tripped on it and went head-first onto the toilet bowl. He was screaming in pain and I was sure that I would pick up a boy with a broken jaw or plastered nose.
Nothing, he bounced. His jaw had a little scrape, but that was it. We were all in shock. Scared the $hit out of us.
When we booked this new trip he asked if the bathrooms will be the same. He remembered that trip/fall. Poor guy.
He ended up getting a fever for part of the trip so was in our room more than we normally would but we made the bet of it. We had a lot of fun and will again in Feb!

So, anyone have any stories?

I've only been the once, but it was a Savannah-view room at the AKL. That room pretty much made the vacation; the experience was so unique and special that it set a great tone for the park visits and night time activities, like giraffe watching through IR goggles.

groan wrote:

So, anyone have any stories?

*pages Demyx*

I grew up 45 minutes away from disney, but my parents refused to take me again after my 8th birthday. They took me to the Magic Kingdom and I spent nearly the entire day crying after experiencing the most terrifying ride ever. Snow White's Scary Adventure. I didn't ride it again until I was 18 and in high school. I told my girlfriend at the time (now my wife) about my experience as an 8 year old and she laughed for the duration of the ride. Lucky for me I won't have to worry about it when we go back in October.

We went for our honeymoon and stayed in the Wilderness Lodge Resort. Now we go every year or two with friends and rent a big house in Kissimmee that ends up costing less per room per week than 1 night's lodging at the resorts. One of the best times there was in December when they had one of the parks (Hollywood Studios?) all lit up:

IMAGE(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-s8gc06Ggo8s/T1K3qT13CRI/AAAAAAAABuY/vhMbGLjL4Tg/s604/Photo+4.jpg)

But my favorite time there had to be on pleasure island at one of the comedy clubs where they get you involved with the acts going on in room to room. I was heckled, a lot. Mostly because I lose my hearing when I drink and didn't notice when it was time to shut up and listen.

Sadly, they closed pleasure island.

Yellek wrote:

One of the best times there was in December when they had one of the parks (Hollywood Studios?) all lit up:

IMAGE(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-s8gc06Ggo8s/T1K3qT13CRI/AAAAAAAABuY/vhMbGLjL4Tg/s604/Photo+4.jpg)

That's Hollywood Studios. We went there last year, and it was an amazing time.

Did you get to do the Christmas Parade in the Magic Kingdom too?

I've gone to Disney World 4 times in the past two years.

First time, my daughter was 18 months or so...stayed at Caribbean Beach Resort. The resort was nice, but let's face it: CBR is one of the cheaper resorts, and you do get what you pay for at Disney.

Still, it was easy enough to get around, even with the stroller. We were able to take full advantage of our 4 day park pass, hitting Epcot, Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom (x2), and Downtown Disney via the shuttles.

We sorta realized that this was a great place to travel with a little one, so we decided to go back later in the year.

That trip, we stayed up by Sea World, rented a car, and tried to vary out the food a bit. Disney is great for food if you like things fried, but it gets old quick. Of course, pretty much everything in the Kissimee/Orlando area is fast food, or southern, so you get a little more variety in fried food, but don't really escape it.

That time, we got a 5 day pass, did MKx2, AKx2, and we hit Hollywood Studios for the first time. I think Hollywood Studios is now our second favorite, after the Magic Kingdom.

As soon as we got back, Olivia wanted to go again. We looked at our finances, and said..."How about Christmas?". The whole Christmas in Orlando thing is a little weird, mainly because it's still 80F in the shade, but they put on an awesome show, and I did consume my weight in hot chocolate and cookies.

Our last go 'round, my wife an I thought "let's get the hell out of here", and we decided to do a June run to Disney. We hadn't done the water parks yet, so went down there for that. Really glad we did, because both Parks are loads of fun. I don't think you can really have a preference between Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon...other than a few ridges, they are really similar. Well worth the option on a multi-day Parks pass though, especially on a hot day.

Turns out, it was Gay Pride Day on our first day there, which was a lot of fun. It gave the Magic Kingdom a different vibe from the other times we've been there. I can't tell you how many male couples remarked "Oh my GAWD, your daughter is soooo CUTE!". Of course, Olivia ate that right up. Show off.

We're planning on going back November 2013. Going to do the Christmas thing again, but want to go with Sister/Brother in Law. They want to wait for their daughter to get a little more mobile before they tackle that sort of trip.

Looking forward to it!

When's your next trip?

jonfentyler wrote:

I grew up 45 minutes away from disney, but my parents refused to take me again after my 8th birthday. They took me to the Magic Kingdom and I spent nearly the entire day crying after experiencing the most terrifying ride ever. Snow White's Scary Adventure. I didn't ride it again until I was 18 and in high school. I told my girlfriend at the time (now my wife) about my experience as an 8 year old and she laughed for the duration of the ride. Lucky for me I won't have to worry about it when we go back in October.

Ha! Here on the other coast I was always terrified on Pirates of the Caribbean that one of the cannonballs would hit our boat on the way into the fortress.

I've been to the Orlando parks only twice. Once in 1989 and again last year (2011). Was strange to compare childhood memories to the reality.

mateo wrote:

That's Hollywood Studios. We went there last year, and it was an amazing time.

Did you get to do the Christmas Parade in the Magic Kingdom too?

I don't remember the parade, but I'm not much into watching the parades. We're heading down at the end of October this year so we'll probably see some cool halloween decorations this time.

We're going on our fourth trip this year in October. Going to rent a house for a couple of weeks with good friends (hmm... I wonder who ;)) taking rotations over the span. I've been more times than I can count since my first trip in 1976. Ever since we had kids, my wife and I will buy annual passes and binge on Disney for a year - partying with family and friends as much as possible. Then we'll back off for a couple of years while our finances recover.

Some of my favorite moments are also in the Adventurers' Club that Yellek is talking about. They even stuck me on stage in the library to sing the "Jump Up for Jinkies" jingle and be a foley artist.

Yellek - Speaking of that, Disney has halted demolition of Pleasure Island and the Adventurers' Club is still standing. Word is they want to revise/rework the plans that Eisner's bunch of goons had to trash the place and put in shops. Cross your fingers!

EDIT: Oh... and here's the place mocked up in Garry's Mod for anyone who wasn't lucky enough to go there:

LouZiffer wrote:

Yellek - Speaking of that, Disney has halted demolition of Pleasure Island and the Adventurers' Club is still standing. Word is they want to revise/rework the plans that Eisner's bunch of goons had to trash the place and put in shops. Cross your fingers!

Woohoo!

So many awesome little details in that place, including bar stools that'll slowly rise or lower depending on what the staff want to do to the poor drunks that are sitting on them.

Does Disney Land compare well to Disney World? I know it's smaller, but is it typically just as crowded as DW, or is it even more so?

Lots of great stories! My wife was also freaked out by that Snow White ride as a child.

sheared wrote:

Does Disney Land compare well to Disney World? I know it's smaller, but is it typically just as crowded as DW, or is it even more so?

I've only been to Disney World twice, so can't say with certainty, but Disneyland usually feels more crowded. Even if the numbers for both resorts see similar numbers a year, you're talking four parks+ versus two.

I do think Disneyland has benefited some from its smaller are though. With only one park for years, they have ended up with a higher concentration of rides in it. I found myself surprised at how little was at each of the Disney World parks. Much easier to jump between the parks and downtown Disney in Anaheim, they are all connected by a single plaza rather than by bus.

Course Disneyland castle is laughably small compared to the other Disney parks I've visited. :p

Should have been checking this. I'm somewhere in Pensylvania on the drive back to O town. Three days driving.

I don't think that I'm as big a fan of theme parks as you are though.

It was HOT. Like 95 degrees F and 90% humidity hot. I don't think it changed at night either.

I have to say Hollywood studios stood out for me, but that may have been because of Star Tours.

Three cheers for the adventurer's club. My wife and I were actually married at Disney (honeymooned at the grand floridian) and went there all the time that week. We go every other year pretty much. Totes different now with a 12 and 8 year old -- we're in prime awesome zone.

Been in Florida for 2 years now and still haven't been to Disney World proper. Been to Sea World a bunch and some of the Universal parks (Islands of Adventure for Harry Potter stuff). Really need to see them all but Busch Gardens/Sea World combo is so much cheaper than Disney, and still tons of fun that we just keep doing that.

Ghostship wrote:

It was HOT. Like 95 degrees F and 90% humidity hot. I don't think it changed at night either.

Ooh, yeah I wouldn't want to go during the summer. It was hot enough the one June (honeymoon) that we went, now we stick to late fall thru early spring.

Of course, that's regular weather where I live, but I spend more time indoors at home that you do at the parks.

I've never been to Disney World, but I've been to Disney Land once. Back before they had the Indiana Jones boulder ride, it was all Rescue Rangers, Gummy Bears, and Tron.

I haven't been to Disneyland in 20 years but I was at Disney World about 5 years ago. Here is why Disneyland is better than Disney World: Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

That is all.

Agent 86 wrote:

I haven't been to Disneyland in 20 years but I was at Disney World about 5 years ago. Here is why Disneyland is better than Disney World: Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

That is all.

Hard to tell who got the worse trade off for the Winnie the Pooh ride. Disneyland lost the Country Bears. Disney's Magic Kingdom lost Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

Ah, Mr. Toad. We used to have such delinquent/unsafe fun running between the cars. I miss it, but it really was a pretty janky ride.

Yellek wrote:
LouZiffer wrote:

Yellek - Speaking of that, Disney has halted demolition of Pleasure Island and the Adventurers' Club is still standing. Word is they want to revise/rework the plans that Eisner's bunch of goons had to trash the place and put in shops. Cross your fingers!

Woohoo!

Why were there plans to get rid of Pleasure Island? I think those were the first bars I managed to sneak my way into as an under-aged beverage connoisseur. Fond memories aplenty.

My wife and I went for the second time last November/December. It was the perfect time to go. Christmas decorations were up and there were not very many people there at all.

So my 8 yr old has never been on any of the more active rides (except the GM test track) so this year I want to introduce him to something with more movement than the Dumbo and Small world rides (They are crazy scary, though!). Any suggestions of a ride that is not so crazy that it will throw our lunches out the side? I suspect Splash Mountain is a safe one. Any other suggestions?

Demyx took me to Disney World last spring, it was the first time I'd been since High School (band and robotics competitions so didn't get much time in the parks :(). No real stories from the trip aside from trying to seek out the glowing ice cubes we kept seeing around in the kid drinks during the trip. Well, that and cowering at the giant T-Rex that popped out right next to me on one of the Epcot rides. Overall, had more fun than I expected during the trip. So much that we're going back in October for the Food & Wine festival this year.

Dyni wrote:

Why were there plans to get rid of Pleasure Island?

Eisner I believe.

Dyni wrote:

Why were there plans to get rid of Pleasure Island? I think those were the first bars I managed to sneak my way into as an under-aged beverage connoisseur. Fond memories aplenty.

The evil overlord had grown tired of PI, and wanted to build an area called Hyperion Wharf. ("Nautical warehouse" themed. What the hell?) He was deposed, yet the clubs were gutted and a couple of them demolished. Then things went quiet last year, with a couple of the major clubs that were to be demoed still standing. All mentions of Hyperion Wharf disappeared, and Disney is simply saying "we've had a rethink on this". No one in the know is talking about what that means. I'm hopeful.

groan wrote:

So my 8 yr old has never been on any of the more active rides (except the GM test track) so this year I want to introduce him to something with more movement than the Dumbo and Small world rides (They are crazy scary, though!). Any suggestions of a ride that is not so crazy that it will throw our lunches out the side? I suspect Splash Mountain is a safe one. Any other suggestions?

Magic Kingdom: Splash Mountain is good. It has one very big drop, but it's the only ride like that which our 5-year-old will ride. Maybe try Pirates of the Caribbean first to see if that goes well. Goofy's Barnstormer (now reopened by the new Fantasyland stuff) is a great introductory coaster. If they can handle that MAYBE Big Thunder Mountain Railroad would be good also. Avoid Space Mountain for now.

By the way, bring a dry change of clothes for the kiddo to Magic Kingdom - and check out the new dual Dumbo. There's something nearby where the clothes will come in handy. You'll see what I mean.

EPCOT: Have you tried Mission: Space Green? The Orange side is a lot more intense, but less so than when it first opened. Green would be fine. Soarin' is amazing as long as you're okay with chairlift-like heights , though get your fastpasses early in the day. Norway has a sweet little boat ride that's Pirates-ish.

Animal Kingdom: Don't do Expedition Everest for a first coaster. It's a real one, and it's intense.

Hollywood Studios: Toy Story Midway Mania (again, get fastpasses first thing)!!! Star Tours!!! Avoid Rock n' Rollercoaster and Tower of Terror.

DISNEY WORLD!

Disney World is my favorite place of all time, especially EPCOT, and I am a total nut for the history and development of the place. If anyone else is interested in that sort of geekery, I recommend Passport to Dreams Old and New, Widen Your World and Progress City USA.

Anyway, growing up I had annual passes each year (we were local) and now I have Disney Vacation Club so I go pretty much every year and consider the place my second home. Yes, I am crazy

I'm currently trying to plan the best Disney trip EVER since it's Shop's second time going with me. This time we're doing Food and Wine, which I love dearly, and staying in Bay Lake, my second favorite DVC resort (last time we stayed at my favorite, Boardwalk). I like any place with easy access to EPCOT and Bay Lake has monorail access, so... We've got reservations for California Grill and Boma, both of which will be new to me and places I've wanted to try for a long time after hearing stories on many Disney sites.

Pleasure Island: The reason they're halting Eisner-era plans to demolish the place and replace it with shops, I think, has very little to do with goodwill towards the Adventurers' Club and the other clubs. It has everything to do with the fact that over half of those places have sat empty and unloved since Pleasure Island closed. No one's biting to build stores there, and they're already struggling with the empty retail space on West Side, so they have to change plans. That's my take anyway.

Disneyland: I visited Disneyland for the first and only time a couple years ago and LOVED it. Of course a lot of my love had to do with the fact that it is so steeped in respect for Disney history. I loved the Disneyland history museum near the entrance and all the great little historical touches, including the fact that their fireworks show is even a tribute to Disneyland itself. Best fireworks show ever, love it more than Wishes even. I liked that it was so small that I could walk from end to end. And the best part of all was finally getting to see all the rides I've heard so much about but never got to see for myself, such as original Pirates, Indiana Jones and the Matterhorn. And the DVC in Grand Californian is spectacular, truly.

California Adventure is a total mess though. I'm looking forward to going back and seeing it with Cars Land and World of Color (which was testing while I was there) and hope that the changes make it more... coherent.

Groan: On the subject of ramping up your kid for more thrilling rides -- Splash Mountain is a good choice since it is tame except for the drops. Be aware that there are several drops before the large one and one drop takes place in the dark, if that's an issue. Soarin' would be good since it has very little actual movement and most of the illusion of flying comes from the movie, so a scared kid could close their eyes. Star Tours is bumpy but doesn't actually go anywhere, and a kid can also close their eyes to block out the scariest parts.

Moving past those to a little more thrilling, Big Thunder is probably the tamest coaster apart from Barnstormer (which I think is closed now for Fantasyland renovation). Primeval Whirl is a small coaster but very jerky and potentially nausea-inducing. Stay away from Space Mountain, it's the jankiest of the coasters and the only one I don't like riding because it makes me ill (only WDW's, DL's is great). Rock and Roller Coaster and Everest are the most intense.

I'm a little disappointed that apparently New Fantasyland won't be open at all when we visit in October. I was hoping for at least part of it would be open, but alas

EDIT: Has AllEars been mentioned? It's my favorite place for pure planning purposes. Mostly because they have every menu.

Demyx wrote:

Everest are the most intense.

Adding to this, there's a silhouette of a yeti at the top of ride, which I imagine is a good recipe for nightmare fuel in conjunction with the rest of the ride.