Disney Vacation (1 Viewer)

[The Hank]

Bumping an old thread...I've read through several pages of this and lots of it has been helpful. We're likely going in April with our girls, 6 and 4. A few days in Tampa with family, and a few days in Orlando (off the park sites, since we have to have a car anyway). We'll likely just priceline a hotel. Besides Magic Kingdom, what other park would you recommend? We figure it would be between Hollywood Studios and Epcot? The girls are into all of the princesses and movies; the 4 year old might not even meet the height requirement for many rides....

If it were me given these choices, I would go with Hollywood studios. At DHS you wouldnt be able to do some of the more intense rides (Rockin' Roller Coaster & Twilight Zone tower of terror), but you would be able to see some great shows, like Muppets 3D, Fantasmic (night laser light show), Indiana Jones, Beauty and the Beast Live and some more mainstream parades (not sure if they still do a High School Musical parade, but they usually have parades like this from time to time). Also, the new Pixar wing of DHS has Toy Story Mania ride, which is a MUST! Excellent ride there. Also, some of the slower rides are enjoyable, such as The Great American Movie Ride. Dining is pretty good with the Drive in Theater and 50's primetime cafe.At EPCOT, you wouldnt be able to do some the parks most popular thrill rides as well (Mission: SPACE, Norway's Maelstrom & possibly Test Track). What you're left with is some rides that may be on the boring side of things to younger kids(Spaceship Earth, Mexico Boat Ride, Pretty much every country's video 'exhibit') and outdated theme rides (Universe of Energy with Ellen/Bill Nye). If you choose to go to EPCOT, be prepared for you and your kids to walk a ton! The journey around the world show case takes some time and aside from the food (which is really good), there isnt much exhibits. If at EPCOT a must for your kids is "The Seas". Its an aquarium with all sorts of things to do, but the best exhibit in there is "Turtle Talk w/ Crush" from finding nemo. Really cool show, and your kids will love it. Also a must is the Illuminations World Showcase firework show at night. Really cool show.Have you thought about Animal Kingdom? Even though you can't do the park's best rides (Expedition Everest/Dinosaur!) there are tons of exhibits for kids there like Kilamanjaro Safari, It's a Bug's Life 3D show, Finding Nemo - The Musical, The Boneyard (playground), Camp Minnie-Mickey (they have a Lion King show) and is a pseudo zoo, which tons of animal exhibits. Food isnt that great (few good bbq places to eat quick and Rainforest Cafe' but thats it).HTH.

 

[The Hank]

Spent the day at Universal's Islands of Adventure. We only waited in line for two rides: Harry Potter Experience and Hippogriff roller coaster. HPE was well worth it, and I wouldn't wait for hippogriff again,

Everything else was <5 min. Dragon Challenge was awesome. Dr Doom and Hulk are skips IMO. Spiderman was great.

Mykos for lunch was meh.

Hulk is one of the best coasters I've ever been on, and I've been to every "coaster park" this country has to offer (Magic Mountain, Great Adventure, Cedar Point, both Busch Gardens, etc.)

The Hulk is great

 

[Evilgrin 72]

Spent the day at Universal's Islands of Adventure. We only waited in line for two rides: Harry Potter Experience and Hippogriff roller coaster. HPE was well worth it, and I wouldn't wait for hippogriff again,

Everything else was <5 min. Dragon Challenge was awesome. Dr Doom and Hulk are skips IMO. Spiderman was great.

Mykos for lunch was meh.

Hulk is one of the best coasters I've ever been on, and I've been to every "coaster park" this country has to offer (Magic Mountain, Great Adventure, Cedar Point, both Busch Gardens, etc.)

The Hulk is great

That initial launch halfway up the incline is a ballbuster the first time you ride it.

"I...I think this time it's..... going to work !! WARNING WARNING SYSTEM MALFUNCT-"

***ZOOM***

Right into that twist and then the drop.... that ride rules.

 

[3 hour lunch]

Bumping an old thread...I've read through several pages of this and lots of it has been helpful. We're likely going in April with our girls, 6 and 4. A few days in Tampa with family, and a few days in Orlando (off the park sites, since we have to have a car anyway). We'll likely just priceline a hotel. Besides Magic Kingdom, what other park would you recommend? We figure it would be between Hollywood Studios and Epcot? The girls are into all of the princesses and movies; the 4 year old might not even meet the height requirement for many rides....

If it were me given these choices, I would go with Hollywood studios. At DHS you wouldnt be able to do some of the more intense rides (Rockin' Roller Coaster & Twilight Zone tower of terror), but you would be able to see some great shows, like Muppets 3D, Fantasmic (night laser light show), Indiana Jones, Beauty and the Beast Live and some more mainstream parades (not sure if they still do a High School Musical parade, but they usually have parades like this from time to time). Also, the new Pixar wing of DHS has Toy Story Mania ride, which is a MUST! Excellent ride there. Also, some of the slower rides are enjoyable, such as The Great American Movie Ride. Dining is pretty good with the Drive in Theater and 50's primetime cafe.At EPCOT, you wouldnt be able to do some the parks most popular thrill rides as well (Mission: SPACE, Norway's Maelstrom & possibly Test Track). What you're left with is some rides that may be on the boring side of things to younger kids(Spaceship Earth, Mexico Boat Ride, Pretty much every country's video 'exhibit') and outdated theme rides (Universe of Energy with Ellen/Bill Nye). If you choose to go to EPCOT, be prepared for you and your kids to walk a ton! The journey around the world show case takes some time and aside from the food (which is really good), there isnt much exhibits. If at EPCOT a must for your kids is "The Seas". Its an aquarium with all sorts of things to do, but the best exhibit in there is "Turtle Talk w/ Crush" from finding nemo. Really cool show, and your kids will love it. Also a must is the Illuminations World Showcase firework show at night. Really cool show.Have you thought about Animal Kingdom? Even though you can't do the park's best rides (Expedition Everest/Dinosaur!) there are tons of exhibits for kids there like Kilamanjaro Safari, It's a Bug's Life 3D show, Finding Nemo - The Musical, The Boneyard (playground), Camp Minnie-Mickey (they have a Lion King show) and is a pseudo zoo, which tons of animal exhibits. Food isnt that great (few good bbq places to eat quick and Rainforest Cafe' but thats it).HTH.

Thanks Hank...hadn't thought much about Animal Kingdom but may have to take a look. Didn't realize they had so much other stuff to do there. They love toy Story so DHS sounds cool as well.

 

[The Hank]

Bumping an old thread...I've read through several pages of this and lots of it has been helpful. We're likely going in April with our girls, 6 and 4. A few days in Tampa with family, and a few days in Orlando (off the park sites, since we have to have a car anyway). We'll likely just priceline a hotel. Besides Magic Kingdom, what other park would you recommend? We figure it would be between Hollywood Studios and Epcot? The girls are into all of the princesses and movies; the 4 year old might not even meet the height requirement for many rides....

If it were me given these choices, I would go with Hollywood studios. At DHS you wouldnt be able to do some of the more intense rides (Rockin' Roller Coaster & Twilight Zone tower of terror), but you would be able to see some great shows, like Muppets 3D, Fantasmic (night laser light show), Indiana Jones, Beauty and the Beast Live and some more mainstream parades (not sure if they still do a High School Musical parade, but they usually have parades like this from time to time). Also, the new Pixar wing of DHS has Toy Story Mania ride, which is a MUST! Excellent ride there. Also, some of the slower rides are enjoyable, such as The Great American Movie Ride. Dining is pretty good with the Drive in Theater and 50's primetime cafe.At EPCOT, you wouldnt be able to do some the parks most popular thrill rides as well (Mission: SPACE, Norway's Maelstrom & possibly Test Track). What you're left with is some rides that may be on the boring side of things to younger kids(Spaceship Earth, Mexico Boat Ride, Pretty much every country's video 'exhibit') and outdated theme rides (Universe of Energy with Ellen/Bill Nye). If you choose to go to EPCOT, be prepared for you and your kids to walk a ton! The journey around the world show case takes some time and aside from the food (which is really good), there isnt much exhibits. If at EPCOT a must for your kids is "The Seas". Its an aquarium with all sorts of things to do, but the best exhibit in there is "Turtle Talk w/ Crush" from finding nemo. Really cool show, and your kids will love it. Also a must is the Illuminations World Showcase firework show at night. Really cool show.Have you thought about Animal Kingdom? Even though you can't do the park's best rides (Expedition Everest/Dinosaur!) there are tons of exhibits for kids there like Kilamanjaro Safari, It's a Bug's Life 3D show, Finding Nemo - The Musical, The Boneyard (playground), Camp Minnie-Mickey (they have a Lion King show) and is a pseudo zoo, which tons of animal exhibits. Food isnt that great (few good bbq places to eat quick and Rainforest Cafe' but thats it).HTH.

Thanks Hank...hadn't thought much about Animal Kingdom but may have to take a look. Didn't realize they had so much other stuff to do there. They love toy Story so DHS sounds cool as well.

No problemI like Animal Kingdom alot but the down side obviously is the lack of premier dining options and is the smallest theme park out of the 4 (as far as attractions go). I love EPCOT as an adult, and the food options are obviously outstanding but looking at it from a kids perspective, may not be my cup of tea due to lack of exciting attraction options. Safe bet is DHS, best balance of little kid friendly attractions and above average dining options.

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

Bumping an old thread...I've read through several pages of this and lots of it has been helpful. We're likely going in April with our girls, 6 and 4. A few days in Tampa with family, and a few days in Orlando (off the park sites, since we have to have a car anyway). We'll likely just priceline a hotel. Besides Magic Kingdom, what other park would you recommend? We figure it would be between Hollywood Studios and Epcot? The girls are into all of the princesses and movies; the 4 year old might not even meet the height requirement for many rides....

With girls those ages, I'd put Hollywood Studios way ahead of Epcot, but I'd also consider Animal Kingdom.The live shows at AK are really good. The Lion King show is spectacular, and if the girls are seated in the first couple of rows (it's a theater in the round), they might get to participate in the "Lion Sleeps Tonight" finale. The Finding Nemo show is also fantastic, a mix of live performers, lights, animation, and puppetry. There's also a 3-D animated show based on A Bug's Life that works in some smoke and mist and such to add to the interactivity. The rides aren't as a aggressive/thrilling as DHS's Tower of Terror or Rock and Roller Coaster, but there are some good ones. I doubt the 4-year-old will be big enough to ride on Expedition Everest, but the 6-year-old might be. (It was my then-7-year-old's favorite ride in all of WDW when we went last year.) The Safari isn't a life-changing experience, but you do get to see some exotic animals up close - we had giraffes walking right up to our tram, and a close view of elephants and rhinos. The Dinosaur ride was a little bumpy for my tastes, but the story and ride was fun. If the girls are into the original Disney characters, the Tusker House is fun to eat at because you get to see Mickey/Minnie/Donald/Goofy/Pluto in safari gear. We went there for breakfast and loaded up on waffles shaped like Mickey Mouse. I also thought the food at Yak and Yeti was pretty good. In DHS's defense... it has Toy Story Mania, which is a blast - a shooting gallery sent from the future. You will need to hit the FastPass window there not long after the park opens if you don't want to wait an hour to ride it, but it is a lot of fun. DHS also has live shows based on Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast, so if those are favorites of the girls, take it under consideration. The Pixar Block Party parade is at DHS, and that's one of the best parades in WDW. The dining at DHS is a bit limited, but there's a pizza/pasta place near the Muppetvision theater that is a surprisingly good value. If you go DHS, skip the Backlot Tour. It's a lot of waiting for little payoff. I wasn't a big fan of the Great Movie Ride, other than it was an indoor air-conditioned experience on a 95ish degree day at a park with a lot of heat-absorbing pavement.

 

[3 hour lunch]

Bumping an old thread...I've read through several pages of this and lots of it has been helpful. We're likely going in April with our girls, 6 and 4. A few days in Tampa with family, and a few days in Orlando (off the park sites, since we have to have a car anyway). We'll likely just priceline a hotel. Besides Magic Kingdom, what other park would you recommend? We figure it would be between Hollywood Studios and Epcot? The girls are into all of the princesses and movies; the 4 year old might not even meet the height requirement for many rides....

With girls those ages, I'd put Hollywood Studios way ahead of Epcot, but I'd also consider Animal Kingdom.The live shows at AK are really good. The Lion King show is spectacular, and if the girls are seated in the first couple of rows (it's a theater in the round), they might get to participate in the "Lion Sleeps Tonight" finale. The Finding Nemo show is also fantastic, a mix of live performers, lights, animation, and puppetry. There's also a 3-D animated show based on A Bug's Life that works in some smoke and mist and such to add to the interactivity. The rides aren't as a aggressive/thrilling as DHS's Tower of Terror or Rock and Roller Coaster, but there are some good ones. I doubt the 4-year-old will be big enough to ride on Expedition Everest, but the 6-year-old might be. (It was my then-7-year-old's favorite ride in all of WDW when we went last year.) The Safari isn't a life-changing experience, but you do get to see some exotic animals up close - we had giraffes walking right up to our tram, and a close view of elephants and rhinos. The Dinosaur ride was a little bumpy for my tastes, but the story and ride was fun. If the girls are into the original Disney characters, the Tusker House is fun to eat at because you get to see Mickey/Minnie/Donald/Goofy/Pluto in safari gear. We went there for breakfast and loaded up on waffles shaped like Mickey Mouse. I also thought the food at Yak and Yeti was pretty good. In DHS's defense... it has Toy Story Mania, which is a blast - a shooting gallery sent from the future. You will need to hit the FastPass window there not long after the park opens if you don't want to wait an hour to ride it, but it is a lot of fun. DHS also has live shows based on Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast, so if those are favorites of the girls, take it under consideration. The Pixar Block Party parade is at DHS, and that's one of the best parades in WDW. The dining at DHS is a bit limited, but there's a pizza/pasta place near the Muppetvision theater that is a surprisingly good value. If you go DHS, skip the Backlot Tour. It's a lot of waiting for little payoff. I wasn't a big fan of the Great Movie Ride, other than it was an indoor air-conditioned experience on a 95ish degree day at a park with a lot of heat-absorbing pavement.

Cool, thanks. Little Mermaid and Beauty & the Beast are pretty much on all the time here, so I think that clinches it for DHS. Plus, they are a little bit scared of some of the bigger animals at the local zoo anyway.

 

[soothsayer]

Bumping an old thread...I've read through several pages of this and lots of it has been helpful. We're likely going in April with our girls, 6 and 4. A few days in Tampa with family, and a few days in Orlando (off the park sites, since we have to have a car anyway). We'll likely just priceline a hotel. Besides Magic Kingdom, what other park would you recommend? We figure it would be between Hollywood Studios and Epcot? The girls are into all of the princesses and movies; the 4 year old might not even meet the height requirement for many rides....

If your girls have seen the movie "A Dolphin's Tale" they would LOVE going to the Clearwater Aquarium during your time in Tampa. My boys (5/7) saw the movie and then went in October. It's a very small place and you can see it all in a 2 hours easy....but it's way cool if they know the story of Winter.

 

[parasaurolophus]

Next trip will be the half marathon run early January at Old Key West. Wife called me during my lunch break to discuss 2013 plans.

We loved our trip back in April and look forward to going again at some point, but can someone please explain why people go back every year and sometimes multiple times in a year? There's just too many other things to do and places to visit to make it worth it to me. Is there nothing else you'd like to try or are you fortunate enough to take multiple expensive vacations every year?ETA: then again, as a guy who has been happily married for 12 years, I can understand how comfort can trump variety in some regards.

We love how easy it is. We typically go during free dining and stay on property. Once you have made your initial investment we barely have to spend anything in addition. We have found the meals are huge and more than enough for us. We love that you can cram tons of activities into every day and not have to pay an extra dime. We just got back from Mexico in October, went to Vegas in August, Boston in July, Mexico in February, New Orleans in December. We loved all of these trips. The trips we took to Disney in March and September were our favorites. I don't know if it is just a mental thing for us but we just absolutely love not having to spend money for every activity. We love that pretty much no matter what service will be great and everything will be super clean, the wife is a bit of a germaphobe so that is kinda important.We had one trip a few years ago where we were pretty unhappy with the service. I wrote a letter to them. They sent me a $250 gift card and a crazy discount code that included free dining. We went back one month later on basically a do-over and had an amazing time. You either love it or you don't I guess, but in my case it certainly isn't out of ignorance.

 

[RBM]

Checking in from the Beach Club Villas.....here for the week. What a great fn place....there is just too much awesome stuff to do.

Ohana tomm night.....oh baby

 

[The Hank]

Checking in from the Beach Club Villas.....here for the week. What a great fn place....there is just too much awesome stuff to dhana tomm night.....oh baby

Ohana's is amazing.

 

[Osaurus]

Checking in from the Beach Club Villas.....here for the week. What a great fn place....there is just too much awesome stuff to dhana tomm night.....oh baby

Ohana's is amazing.

Meh. Not a big fan. Le Cellier though...

 

[Disco Stu]

The live shows at AK are really good. The Lion King show is spectacular, and if the girls are seated in the first couple of rows (it's a theater in the round), they might get to participate in the "Lion Sleeps Tonight" finale. The Finding Nemo show is also fantastic, a mix of live performers, lights, animation, and puppetry.

These two shows are worth the price of admission alone. Outstanding entertainment for all ages.

 

[RBM]

Think I broke the crab legs record last night at Cape May Cafe

 

[Osaurus]

Think I broke the crab legs record last night at Cape May Cafe

Gonna be there next month. Any tips?

 

[GreekFreak]

Checking in from the Beach Club Villas.....here for the week. What a great fn place....there is just too much awesome stuff to dhana tomm night.....oh baby

Good to see the renting of points went well for you!!Enjoy the Beach Club, that place is the best.

 

[Reaper]

Doing some research I found this site that ranks the weeks to go based on crowds Vs Costs.... Not sure if this was posted:

WEEKS TO GO

Also, I seem to be getting decent deals thru JetBlue Vacations with Air included.... Anyone go that route?

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

Checking in from the Beach Club Villas.....here for the week. What a great fn place....there is just too much awesome stuff to dhana tomm night.....oh baby

Ohana's is amazing.

Meh. Not a big fan. Le Cellier though...

If this is just a ploy to get Yankee23Fan to show up at your house and invite you to Ohana on his dime to prove that Ohana is the greatest dining experience in the history of the world, you're a genius.

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

Think I broke the crab legs record last night at Cape May Cafe

A rational person would tell you to pace yourself, but this is a vacation.

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

The live shows at AK are really good. The Lion King show is spectacular, and if the girls are seated in the first couple of rows (it's a theater in the round), they might get to participate in the "Lion Sleeps Tonight" finale. The Finding Nemo show is also fantastic, a mix of live performers, lights, animation, and puppetry.

These two shows are worth the price of admission alone. Outstanding entertainment for all ages.

My daughter, nieces, and nephews have pretty much overplayed the joy out of the Disney/Pixar catalog for me, but I was still blown away by those shows. I thought the Beauty and the Beast show at DHS (song selections from the Broadway play) was high-quality, and the Little Mermaid show has some outstanding moments (especially for dudes like me who loves them some aquatic fumder), but IMO Lion King and Nemo are a notch higher.

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

Cool, thanks. Little Mermaid and Beauty & the Beast are pretty much on all the time here, so I think that clinches it for DHS. Plus, they are a little bit scared of some of the bigger animals at the local zoo anyway.

You're making the right decision. Glad I could help. Yeah, if they don't like the big zoo animals, they're probably not ready for the Safari. If you dig thrill rides but the girls don't meet the height requirements for Tower of Terror or Rock and Roller Coaster, I have three words for you: Single Rider Line. During my last trip to DHS, my daughter wasn't ready for Rock and Roller Coaster. Bummer for me, as it might be my favorite ride in all of WDW. But my lovely wife suggested she take the kid to do character autographs and stuff like that, and I hit up the Single Rider Line at Rock and Roller Coaster multiple times. The Single Rider Line isn't as fast as the FastPass queue, but it's a LOT faster than the regular queue - an attendant at the loading station won't let a coaster go with an open seat, so if a group of three or five comes through the regular queue, the attendant fills that odd seat with a SRL rider.

 

[HellToupee]

Doing some research I found this site that ranks the weeks to go based on crowds Vs Costs.... Not sure if this was posted:

WEEKS TO GO

Also, I seem to be getting decent deals thru JetBlue Vacations with Air included.... Anyone go that route?

http://www.disboards.com/this site will help you do a lot of research

 

[RBM]

Checking in from the Beach Club Villas.....here for the week. What a great fn place....there is just too much awesome stuff to dhana tomm night.....oh baby

Good to see the renting of points went well for you!!Enjoy the Beach Club, that place is the best.

Pool is amazing...especially for kidsJust returned from Ohana.....holy mother of God was that an experience. Everything was amazing but they really do save the best for last....that bread pudding.....dear lord there are no words

 

[RBM]

Think I broke the crab legs record last night at Cape May Cafe

Gonna be there next month. Any tips?

For destroying crab legs? Sleeves up and prepared to get messy

 

[shader]

Hey guys, I was thinking about surprising the wife and kids with a VERY last minute 3 day trip to Disney world over the thanksgiving holidays. Is this a bad idea? We already have a 10 day vacation booked next October, and are scheduling all the best restaurants and scheduling everything out.

But, I was thinking about surprising my wife with this, as she really needs something special right now, lots going on.

Anyway, a few questions:

1. This late is dining even important? I mean, I seriously doubt any of the restaurants will have openings?

2. Thanksgiving...anyone ever been? Is it insanely crowded? I mean, are we going to stand in line and hate life the whole time?

3. Does disney do any kind of late, late specials where they really chop the price? I have enough points through work stays to stay in hotels for three nights and get free lodging. This would really save money as opposed to staying at the resorts, unelss there was some package.

Anyone with experience with thanksgiving trips or last minute trips to disney in general please chime in! Thanks!

 

[The Hank]

Hey guys, I was thinking about surprising the wife and kids with a VERY last minute 3 day trip to Disney world over the thanksgiving holidays. Is this a bad idea? We already have a 10 day vacation booked next October, and are scheduling all the best restaurants and scheduling everything out.

But, I was thinking about surprising my wife with this, as she really needs something special right now, lots going on.

Anyway, a few questions:

1. This late is dining even important? I mean, I seriously doubt any of the restaurants will have openings?

2. Thanksgiving...anyone ever been? Is it insanely crowded? I mean, are we going to stand in line and hate life the whole time?

3. Does disney do any kind of late, late specials where they really chop the price? I have enough points through work stays to stay in hotels for three nights and get free lodging. This would really save money as opposed to staying at the resorts, unelss there was some package.

Anyone with experience with thanksgiving trips or last minute trips to disney in general please chime in! Thanks!

Its going to be busy, be prepared to wait. Use fast pass anywhere you can though. This will help shave some waiting time on your visit.Have fun.

 

[Reaper]

OK.. Just booked The Wilderness lodge for the 1st week in march with meal plan. Got a villa since the MIL is coming along as well.

haven't been to Disney in maybe 20 plus years - Was apprehensive about the Wilderness Lodge - From back in the day I remember really liking the Polynesian and Contemporary but, did a search thru this thread on the Wilderness and read alot of great reviews... And Godsbrother pimping the Polynesian every time

We're doing 5 nights with a 3 Day Park pass - no need for us to Hop.

Traveling with a 4 year old girl so - One Princess Dinner

Also Booking Ohana based on the "pretty good" reviews here. ha.

I guess at least 1 dinner should be at the Wilderness lodge.

This trip will probably just get our feet wet - no Jam packed days and no reason to run around like crazy.

2 Days at the MK and 1 Day at Animal Kingdom!!

The rest of the time - Relax and just sight see with the little one.

Hopefully we get some great weather for early March and use the pools a lot?????

 

[The Ref]

OK.. Just booked The Wilderness lodge for the 1st week in march with meal plan. Got a villa since the MIL is coming along as well.

haven't been to Disney in maybe 20 plus years - Was apprehensive about the Wilderness Lodge - From back in the day I remember really liking the Polynesian and Contemporary but, did a search thru this thread on the Wilderness and read alot of great reviews... And Godsbrother pimping the Polynesian every time

We're doing 5 nights with a 3 Day Park pass - no need for us to Hop.

Traveling with a 4 year old girl so - One Princess Dinner

Also Booking Ohana based on the "pretty good" reviews here. ha.

I guess at least 1 dinner should be at the Wilderness lodge.

This trip will probably just get our feet wet - no Jam packed days and no reason to run around like crazy.

2 Days at the MK and 1 Day at Animal Kingdom!!

The rest of the time - Relax and just sight see with the little one.

Hopefully we get some great weather for early March and use the pools a lot?????

You have 0 reason to be apprehensive about booking the wilderness lodge. The place is awsome. No it is not on the monorail but you can take a boat directly to the MK and you can get anywhere from there.Ohana is the truth.

The table service resturaunt at WL (I forget the name) is a fancy pants dinner. I'm more a meat and potatos type of guy so I didn't think it was worth the $$. Not the best kids place I'd argure. Now canyon ranch or whatever the qucik returaunt is named is great for brekfest. Wait staff is rude (on purpose, its part of the shtick) and fun and the food is great.

Have fun. When I go next year if I don't do the buying points thing I'll probably do the WL again and not spend the money on the Poly.

 

[Osaurus]

Wilderness Lodge is one of my favorite places to stay. You will not be disappointed.

 

[Evilgrin 72]

OK.. Just booked The Wilderness lodge for the 1st week in march with meal plan. Got a villa since the MIL is coming along as well.haven't been to Disney in maybe 20 plus years - Was apprehensive about the Wilderness Lodge - From back in the day I remember really liking the Polynesian and Contemporary but, did a search thru this thread on the Wilderness and read alot of great reviews... And Godsbrother pimping the Polynesian every time We're doing 5 nights with a 3 Day Park pass - no need for us to Hop. Traveling with a 4 year old girl so - One Princess DinnerAlso Booking Ohana based on the "pretty good" reviews here. ha.I guess at least 1 dinner should be at the Wilderness lodge.This trip will probably just get our feet wet - no Jam packed days and no reason to run around like crazy. 2 Days at the MK and 1 Day at Animal Kingdom!!The rest of the time - Relax and just sight see with the little one. Hopefully we get some great weather for early March and use the pools a lot?????

Early March will probably be great for walking around the parks, not as much for pools. Even if they're heated, you're more likely to get low 70s by day that time of year, so it's a little cold getting out. You never know though, the weather varies quite a bit here in those spring/autumn months, it can be 60 degrees by day and 40 at night one weekend and 85 by day / 65 at night the next.

 

[Godsbrother]

OK.. Just booked The Wilderness lodge for the 1st week in march with meal plan. Got a villa since the MIL is coming along as well.haven't been to Disney in maybe 20 plus years - Was apprehensive about the Wilderness Lodge - From back in the day I remember really liking the Polynesian and Contemporary but, did a search thru this thread on the Wilderness and read alot of great reviews... And Godsbrother pimping the Polynesian every time We're doing 5 nights with a 3 Day Park pass - no need for us to Hop. Traveling with a 4 year old girl so - One Princess DinnerAlso Booking Ohana based on the "pretty good" reviews here. ha.I guess at least 1 dinner should be at the Wilderness lodge.This trip will probably just get our feet wet - no Jam packed days and no reason to run around like crazy. 2 Days at the MK and 1 Day at Animal Kingdom!!The rest of the time - Relax and just sight see with the little one. Hopefully we get some great weather for early March and use the pools a lot?????

The Wilderness Lodge is awesome, you will love it. You can't go wrong with any of the Deluxe resorts -- my main reason for pimping the Poly over the others is for transportation reasons.The Whispering Canyon is the main restaurant at the WL and is pretty good if you like smoked meats and a somewhat rowdy dining experience. Your daughter should like it and make sure to ask for ketchup and straws.You'll need to take a bus to get to the AK. The best way to get to the MK is by boat.Have a great time!

 

[Bob Sacamano]

Hey guys, I was thinking about surprising the wife and kids with a VERY last minute 3 day trip to Disney world over the thanksgiving holidays. Is this a bad idea? We already have a 10 day vacation booked next October, and are scheduling all the best restaurants and scheduling everything out.

But, I was thinking about surprising my wife with this, as she really needs something special right now, lots going on.

Anyway, a few questions:

1. This late is dining even important? I mean, I seriously doubt any of the restaurants will have openings?

2. Thanksgiving...anyone ever been? Is it insanely crowded? I mean, are we going to stand in line and hate life the whole time?

3. Does disney do any kind of late, late specials where they really chop the price? I have enough points through work stays to stay in hotels for three nights and get free lodging. This would really save money as opposed to staying at the resorts, unelss there was some package.

Anyone with experience with thanksgiving trips or last minute trips to disney in general please chime in! Thanks!

Its going to be busy, be prepared to wait. Use fast pass anywhere you can though. This will help shave some waiting time on your visit.Have fun.

One thing I can not stress enough... USE THE LATE NIGHT PARK HOURS TO YOUR ADVANTAGE WHENEVER YOU CAN. MK clears out after the fireworks. Monday night we watched the fireworks from California Grill, grabbed the monorail over in time to see the Electric Parade, and then stayed until close at 1am. We pretty much walked onto anything with no wait for the better part of 2 hours. It was FANtastic.

 

[bshell27]

I need restaurant recommendations.

We booked for 3/3-3/8 with free dining.

I am planning on the Wave and Le Cellier. Need some more suggestions. I have read this before, but am too lazy to go through 53 pages. Recommendations?

 

[Osaurus]

I need restaurant recommendations.We booked for 3/3-3/8 with free dining.I am planning on the Wave and Le Cellier. Need some more suggestions. I have read this before, but am too lazy to go through 53 pages. Recommendations?

Wave is meh IMO. I really liked the sit down place in Morocco. I pretty much avoid most places at the Magic Kingdom. Brown derby is , but very good (love the grapefruit cake). Plenty of places in Downtown Disney too. Fulton's is pretty good as is Raglan Rose. I may think of more later.

 

[bshell27]

I need restaurant recommendations.We booked for 3/3-3/8 with free dining.I am planning on the Wave and Le Cellier. Need some more suggestions. I have read this before, but am too lazy to go through 53 pages. Recommendations?

Wave is meh IMO. I really liked the sit down place in Morocco. I pretty much avoid most places at the Magic Kingdom. Brown derby is , but very good (love the grapefruit cake). Plenty of places in Downtown Disney too. Fulton's is pretty good as is Raglan Rose. I may think of more later.

Bump for weekday crowd.

 

[ATC1]

I need restaurant recommendations.We booked for 3/3-3/8 with free dining.I am planning on the Wave and Le Cellier. Need some more suggestions. I have read this before, but am too lazy to go through 53 pages. Recommendations?

Wave is meh IMO. I really liked the sit down place in Morocco. I pretty much avoid most places at the Magic Kingdom. Brown derby is , but very good (love the grapefruit cake). Plenty of places in Downtown Disney too. Fulton's is pretty good as is Raglan Rose. I may think of more later.

Bump for weekday crowd.

Well Ohana is a must if you have read any of the pages in the thread. Cape May at the Beach club has all you can eat crab legs, muscles, boiled shrimp.

 

[Mr. Ected]

I need restaurant recommendations.We booked for 3/3-3/8 with free dining.I am planning on the Wave and Le Cellier. Need some more suggestions. I have read this before, but am too lazy to go through 53 pages. Recommendations?

Wave is meh IMO. I really liked the sit down place in Morocco. I pretty much avoid most places at the Magic Kingdom. Brown derby is , but very good (love the grapefruit cake). Plenty of places in Downtown Disney too. Fulton's is pretty good as is Raglan Rose. I may think of more later.

Bump for weekday crowd.

Well Ohana is a must if you have read any of the pages in the thread. Cape May at the Beach club has all you can eat crab legs, muscles, boiled shrimp.

Any kids going???

 

[bshell27]

Sorry. Yes a 5 and 2 year old. Also, I remember the Ohana talk and I called every day until a reservation opened up.

 

[bshell27]

Wave day one

Le cellier day two

Ohana day three

Park fare day four (bibbidy boutique and Cinderella character dinner)

Don't remember the rest

 

[Bobcat10]

For those of you that choose to stay at a WD Resorts, what benefits do they have that other resorts/hotels in the area cannot offer? I've found resorts that offer transportation to WDW, have nice outdoor pools/recreation, etc. I'm speaking of places like the Hilton Grand Vacation locations and condos in resorts on VRBO.com.

 

[Osaurus]

I need restaurant recommendations.

We booked for 3/3-3/8 with free dining.

I am planning on the Wave and Le Cellier. Need some more suggestions. I have read this before, but am too lazy to go through 53 pages. Recommendations?

Wave is meh IMO. I really liked the sit down place in Morocco. I pretty much avoid most places at the Magic Kingdom. Brown derby is , but very good (love the grapefruit cake). Plenty of places in Downtown Disney too. Fulton's is pretty good as is Raglan Rose. I may think of more later.

Bump for weekday crowd.

Well Ohana is a must if you have read any of the pages in the thread. Cape May at the Beach club has all you can eat crab legs, muscles, boiled shrimp.

Tasty

 

[gmbacm]

For those of you that choose to stay at a WD Resorts, what benefits do they have that other resorts/hotels in the area cannot offer? I've found resorts that offer transportation to WDW, have nice outdoor pools/recreation, etc. I'm speaking of places like the Hilton Grand Vacation locations and condos in resorts on VRBO.com.

We stayed at a disney resort recently and had a rental car so transportation wasnt an issue. Did take the bus one day to magic kingdom and waited for 50 mins for pickup - might have been fluke.Main reason we stayed on vs off was the dining plan, it made the trip that much better. But we also went during a free dining plan time, so price was right too. Having stayed both on and off resort, staying on is certainly more convenient and you get more perks, and its nicer for the kids. But depending on the difference in price I would have no problem staying off resort in the future if everything else was comparable.

 

[schlesinj]

For those of you that choose to stay at a WD Resorts, what benefits do they have that other resorts/hotels in the area cannot offer? I've found resorts that offer transportation to WDW, have nice outdoor pools/recreation, etc. I'm speaking of places like the Hilton Grand Vacation locations and condos in resorts on VRBO.com.

Magic hours, getting to the park early saves a ton of time waiting line. Sitting on a bus traveling all over the place is a little much. You already have to go on the bus to Animal Kindom and Hollywood Studio why add to it.We stayed at the Contemporary for a week in early October. I have 4 kids 7 and under and it just made our life so much easier. We had some rain one day and we were just able to go right back to the hotel rather and come back out again without a major production.

 

[Mr. Ected]

Sorry. Yes a 5 and 2 year old. Also, I remember the Ohana talk and I called every day until a reservation opened up.

Whispering Canyon Cafe in the Wilderness Lodge is a fun place to take kids. Food is good for adults, and for kids when they need ketchup, the waiter asks for ketchup loudly and everyone in the restaurant brings a bottle of ketchup over to your table. They do other stuff for the kids, which they also will find fun. When we went last month, we also had a great waiter that was not a normal waiter. He did a bit of talking back (in a funny way) to fit in with the nature of the restaurant. He gave my older son (9) a huge hard time because he refused to ask for ketchup because he knew that he would get all of those bottles and he didn't want them (he is going through the shy phase). The waiter did ask if he was being too hard on the kid, we said no!

Not a quiet, romantic place for dinner; but a Disney place.

 

[spOOfy]

Sorry. Yes a 5 and 2 year old. Also, I remember the Ohana talk and I called every day until a reservation opened up.

Whispering Canyon Cafe in the Wilderness Lodge is a fun place to take kids. Food is good for adults, and for kids when they need ketchup, the waiter asks for ketchup loudly and everyone in the restaurant brings a bottle of ketchup over to your table. They do other stuff for the kids, which they also will find fun. When we went last month, we also had a great waiter that was not a normal waiter. He did a bit of talking back (in a funny way) to fit in with the nature of the restaurant. He gave my older son (9) a huge hard time because he refused to ask for ketchup because he knew that he would get all of those bottles and he didn't want them (he is going through the shy phase). The waiter did ask if he was being too hard on the kid, we said no!

Not a quiet, romantic place for dinner; but a Disney place.

Based on recommendations in this thread, we ate here on our last visit. Loved it. We're heading to Disney in 2 weeks and booked another dinner there, this time taking my mom and step father. Food was excellent and plentiful and the kids loved it.

 

[Bobcat10]

For those of you that choose to stay at a WD Resorts, what benefits do they have that other resorts/hotels in the area cannot offer? I've found resorts that offer transportation to WDW, have nice outdoor pools/recreation, etc. I'm speaking of places like the Hilton Grand Vacation locations and condos in resorts on VRBO.com.

Magic hours, getting to the park early saves a ton of time waiting line. Sitting on a bus traveling all over the place is a little much. You already have to go on the bus to Animal Kindom and Hollywood Studio why add to it.We stayed at the Contemporary for a week in early October. I have 4 kids 7 and under and it just made our life so much easier. We had some rain one day and we were just able to go right back to the hotel rather and come back out again without a major production.

Magic hours is probably good to have. I will say...we've been to Disney two times the last 4 years because I've had some work down there. We never really felt like we were standing in line all that long since we used the FastPass wisely and maybe we just got lucky on other rides.Not too concerned about the transportation part. If I knew it wouldn't be a direct shot from location A to WDW I would just drive and pay the 20 to park there. $100 in parking fees doesn't add up to the four figure difference it is to stay on site.

 

[bshell27]

Sorry. Yes a 5 and 2 year old. Also, I remember the Ohana talk and I called every day until a reservation opened up.

Whispering Canyon Cafe in the Wilderness Lodge is a fun place to take kids. Food is good for adults, and for kids when they need ketchup, the waiter asks for ketchup loudly and everyone in the restaurant brings a bottle of ketchup over to your table. They do other stuff for the kids, which they also will find fun. When we went last month, we also had a great waiter that was not a normal waiter. He did a bit of talking back (in a funny way) to fit in with the nature of the restaurant. He gave my older son (9) a huge hard time because he refused to ask for ketchup because he knew that he would get all of those bottles and he didn't want them (he is going through the shy phase). The waiter did ask if he was being too hard on the kid, we said no!

Not a quiet, romantic place for dinner; but a Disney place.

Based on recommendations in this thread, we ate here on our last visit. Loved it. We're heading to Disney in 2 weeks and booked another dinner there, this time taking my mom and step father. Food was excellent and plentiful and the kids loved it.

Cancelling wave and eating here.

 

[SteelCurtain]

Looking at a last minute (January 2012) potential trip. How bad are the lowest priced Value level hotels? Are they horrible?

 

[spOOfy]

Looking at a last minute (January 2012) potential trip. How bad are the lowest priced Value level hotels? Are they horrible?

They're decent. You will have the longest ride on property that you can have to the parks. Still shorter ride than off property though. I stayed at the All Star Music once. Pool was large, food selection was also good (I actually liked the quick service selection here much better than the limited-selection they had at Polynesian). The room are basic, but if you're like me, you don't spend much time in the room awake.As you go up in price, the rooms get a little bigger and might be themed. But what you really get with the higher-priced rooms is proximity to the parks, imo.For reference, I've stayed at the Boardwalk, All Star Music, Yacht & Beach Club, and Polynesian in the last 10 years.

 

[RBM]

Wish I was back already...we are already discussing next yrs trip.

Highlights for me was the Beach Club pool and Ohana. My 3yr old loved anything Princess. We did two meals and the boutique....she has not stopped talking about the Princesses coming to our table to spend time with her.