Off to Disney

[TheDane]

I've been to WDW 6 times in the last 5 years. With a little kid, I have to say, that the best dining experiences are Crystal Palace (Magic Kingdom), the Tuskerr House with its new character lunchtime dining (Animal Kingdom), and Chef Mickey's (Contemporary). My family is partial to pacific culture, and we love that the Polynesian has two really neat restaurants, O'Hana and the Spirit of Aloha luau.

Like everyone has said, make reservations as soon as you can.

Cinderella's Royal Table is a great experience for your little princess, but like Larry said, the food is rather miserable. I don't know if it's coincidence or not, but the two times we've eaten there, we've had bad adult experiences with random parents who were extremely aggressive. I suspect it's because it's such a popular and expensive place.

For adults, nothing beats dining at Epcot's World Showcase. Our best meals have been at La Hacienda de San Angel, Tokyo Dining, and Le Cellier, in that order. Our most fun meal is *by far* at the Biergarten. Marrakesh was pretty good. Haven't tried Nine Dragons. There is character dining at Akserhus in Norway. France and Italy were woefully bad, especially Italy.

[Teller]

Larry, I'm sorry you didn't get your pictures with the whole family, and I will certainly heed your advice there.

As an aside, I met Joe Theismann in Carlisle in 1982. He stopped and talked to Mom, Dad and I for a good five minutes, sat me on his knee and posed for pictures, then headed out to practice.

This was back in the olden days of actual film cameras, and was right around the advent of one-hour photo processing. We hurried home when practice was over, making a beeline for the local mall's one-hour shop.

We returned to pick up our pictures, and were told by the clerk that, "Apparently the camera door was open. The entire roll was exposed." So I have no pictures of my moment with Joe T. As you said of your experience though, I do have the memories. And over time, I've learned that that may actually be better.

[Larry]

Also strongly recommended: Eat a Mickey Mouse ice cream bar.



IMO, best bargain in the parks. I think they're $3.50, which is the cheapest thing I know of in the parks.

(One of the curious things about the prices in the parks. Water costs like 75 cents more than soda.)

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Another thing you might want to note. One thing that was really popular when we took nephew was what we called "squirty places". In '05 (not any more), they had this place "Ariel's Grotto". They had rocks that had fountains in them, that squirted water at random intervals. Kids get to run around and play in the water and get soaked. (And cool off. Which can be important in Florida in the summer.) Also lets them run around and burn energy, which can be a welcome break from standing in line and sitting in rides and standing in line and sitting in restaurants and standing in line and watching a parade and . . .



Now, Ariel's Grotto isn't there, any more. But, according to this Disney Parks blog, they've opened a new version of the "squirty place", in the Fantasyland that they're expanding.



When we went, Daddy insisted on bringing the kid's swimsuit. He'd find a corner, change the kid into the suit, turn him loose for a half hour, then change him back into clothes. But I always figured that if it were my kid, I'd just let him get his clothes wet. It's just water, and they'll dry.

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That blog post also covers something new that Disney is doing, at the new Dumbo ride that they just opened. According to supposedly secret things I've read, Disney has budgeted, I think, a billion (yep, that's with a "b") dollars for a massive technology upgrade for their parks. A big part of their objective is to supposedly eliminate waiting lines in the parks. (Many comments I've seen on the subject have been of the "Good Luck" variety.)

The new Dumbo ride is supposedly a test vehicle for this idea. Instead of standing in line, guests will receive a pager, and sent to an air conditioned play area, where kids can run around and play, and adults can sit down and rest, and everybody can shed some body heat. And after a while, your pager will go off, telling you that it's your turn to ride the Dumbo ride.

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I can't find links, but Disney has some new things at Magic Kingdom and EPCOT that are more like interactive self-tours. I think the one at Kingdom is based on the "Kingdom Keepers" books, and the one at EPCOT is based on Kim Possible. From what I understand, you sign up for the things, and they issue you a "membership card". (Which contains an RFID chip.) They'll assign you a "mission", and some clues. As you travel around the park, and you go to places, various things around the park will activate when you get near them. (Say, as you walk down Main Street, one of the window displays in the store will "come to life", and will give you a clue for where to go next.)

Never done it, but it sounds to me like a cross between visiting Disney and being in a video game.

Might be really neat for a 10 year old. Not quite as "cutesy" as some things.

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Another thing that might be really fun for that age. (Or for geeky grownups.):



Jedi Training Academy.

I'm also a really huge fan of Festival of the Lion King, at Animal Kingdom.

It's a live performer stage show, performing the big songs from Lion King. They have acrobats, dancers, audience participation (kids get to help out).

Disney has lots of various stage shows in various places. But this is the only one I know of where the performers aren't simply lip-synching to a recording. These people are actually performing the songs, and they're really good.

(I recorded video of part of one performance, last year. I've decided to actually post it on YouTube, but my DSL modem uploads at 56K, so it may take an hour or more to finish uploading. IMO, the video doesn't do justice to the performance. But I'll edit this post to include the YouTube, when it finishes uploading.)

[Teller]

J..J...Jedi Training Academy??? This geeky grownup says "This IS the attraction I'm looking for."

[Larry]

J..J...Jedi Training Academy??? This geeky grownup says "This IS the attraction I'm looking for."

He is too old. Too old to begin the training.

(I have no idea if they have a maximum age limit on the thing.)

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I've also read about (never been by) "Captain Jack Sparrow's Pirate Tutorial".

And, similar to Bibbidy Boppity Boutique, for turning little girls into princesses, they also have The Pirate's League, where they do makeup and costuming and such to turn kids, and adults, of both genders, into pirates. Supposedly they have a pirate's roster that you enter your name in, and a Pirate's Parade.

[Teller]

And, similar to Bibbidy Boppity Boutique, for turning little girls into princesses, they also have The Pirate's League, where they do makeup and costuming and such to turn kids, and adults, of both genders, into pirates. Supposedly they have a pirate's roster that you enter your name in, and a Pirate's Parade.

Hmm...

I'm beginning to wonder if the kids really need to go. I fear they'll get in the way of all the stuff I want to do.

And Mommy in a pirate get-up. Daddy like.

[Larry]

Just to bump the thread (my YouTube upload is almost half done), a commercial for the reopening of the refurbished Star Tours, at Disneyland:

[SWFLSkins]

Don't MAKE me start a new thread....so help me I will!!!

Just go with the flow, Walt would want you to relax and let him drive the family bus. Trust me, those Disney people make magic happen. Just be sure to let the concierge know when you check in and see what is available. Disney is un-matched in terms of resorts and experience.

---------- Post added July-11th-2012 at 12:14 PM ----------

We are spending thanksgiving week there this year. Will have a 3 and 6 year old in tow. Been to Tokyo and Anaheim Disneyland probably a dozen times growing up, but never been to Orlando

If you can get it in go to SeaWorld. I like it second best and better than Animal Kiingdom.

[Predicto]

I hope Disney has the same positive impact on your mom as it has in the past. Have a wonderful time. And again, though we may not agree on anything ever, I really admire what you do for her. She is very blessed to have you as a son; sincerely.

This. 100 percent this.

[KAOSkins]

Knowing how much you love that place, it makes me happy to know you're going. Have a blast!

[Larry]

Looks like we're going again, tomorrow.

(It's not necessarily that big a deal. We've been going every month or two for like a year and a half.)

[Predicto]

By the way, this may seem obvious, but the key to having a good Disney trip is to minimize the time that your kid has to wait in line. That means two things:

1) Try to get on a different cycle than everyone else. For example, hit the small kid rides with the most brutal lines (rides that load slowly like Dumbo and Peter Pan) early. Eat lunch earlier than noon (at noon, the restaurants are packed but the ride lines drop a bit because everyone is getting lunch). In the mid morning and mid afternoon, when the lines are the worst, take it easy. Ride the railroad, or the Tomorrowland Transit Authority, or at least go on rides and shows that load very fast (you would be amazed how fast the line moves for Pirates of the Caribbean compared to, say, Space Mountain or Splash Mountain - like 10 times faster at least).

2) Take massive advantage of the FastPass system. Dad, your job is to take everyone's tickets and run to grab FastPasses for the most popular rides as often as the computer system will let you (every 2 hours I think). You should NEVER EVER wait in the general admission line for the most popular, slow loading rides. It's not worth it. Splash Mountain can be an 8-10 minute wait with a FastPass, and literally a 2 hour wait without one. No kid will enjoy that. What is amazing is that at least half of the people in the park don't even bother to figure out the FastPass system.

Also, go to Amazon and buy this book: "The Unofficial Guide Walt Disney World 2012" It's great for info like this.

disclaimer - I've only been to Disneyworld once, but Disneyland many times. I assume the same principles apply to both.

[Larry]

My brother had read a suggestion that, every afternoon, go back to your hotel for a swim or a nap. The reasoning was that that's when it's the hottest, and it's when the waiting lines are the longest. His reasoning was that you could spend two hours going back to the room for a one-hour swim, or you can spend two hours standing in line for a four-minute ride.

You do know about Fast Pass, right? (And the fact that Disney recently started actually enforcing the fact that Fast Passes have an expiration time?)

[Predicto]

My brother had read a suggestion that, every afternoon, go back to your hotel for a swim or a nap. The reasoning was that that's when it's the hottest, and it's when the waiting lines are the longest. His reasoning was that you could spend two hours going back to the room for a one-hour swim, or you can spend two hours standing in line for a four-minute ride.

You do know about Fast Pass, right? (And the fact that Disney recently started actually enforcing the fact that Fast Passes have an expiration time?)

Ohhh bad news on the expiration time thing. We cheated that all the time (so we would spend less time zigzagging back and forth). Oh well.

[Larry]

OK, my video finally uploaded.

This isn't the entire show, just (IMO) the three big songs. And, IMO, the video quality stinks. (For several reasons, such as performers standing in front of me.) So, what I'm trying to say is, the Real Thing is way better than this.



I also observe that there are lots of other people who have posted parts of it on YouTube. And their videos look like they're at least exposed better.