Castillo Mom
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 5, 2003
Just back from 4 days at DL! This will be a quick report.
Let me first preface this by saying that I subscribed to Ridemax for the first time. Best $15 I ever spent! We saved lots of time and running back and forth. Living only 20 minutes away, we've done many trips to DL but never really followed an itinerary. I planned our trip last summer to WDW down to the last detail, so I decided why not do the same for DL?
The players: Me, mom to 3 wonderful boys ages 11, 13 and 16 who love all things Disney. On one of our days we were joined by my SIL, BIL and my 3 year old niece.
8/22/05 The plan was to check in early at the Crowne Plaza before heading to DL, but we got a bit of a late start so decided to do a very late check that night. We arrived at the front gates at about 7:30 a.m. As soon as they opened, we headed straight to Tomorrowland. I'm too tired to remember in what order we did the rides in but we got on Buzz, Space Mountain twice, Star Tours, Indiana Jones, Haunted Mansion, Pirates, Big Thunder Mountain and saw Honey I Shrunk the Audience all by 11:30. We rested and people watched for about 30 minutes while waiting for Plaza Inn to open. I had the pot roast which was delicious and had carrot cake for dessert, my 11 year old had the chicken and chocolate mousse, 13 year old had pasta with a red sauce (can't remember type of pasta) and chocolate cake and 16 year old had pasta Alfredo and chocolate cake. Needless to say we couldn't finish our food and we absolutely stuffed! Next we rode Splash Mountain, Roger Rabbit, saw the Snow White show and toured Innoventions for a little over an hour. We had 5:00 PS for Goofy's Kitchen. The character interaction was very good but the food was only average. After that we took the Monorail to Tomorrowland where we met my cousin and her family who have APs. We rode Space Mountain again then saw the fireworks show. After that we rode Buzz and then Space Mountain one last time for the night.
8/23/05 We were exhausted from the previous day's activities so we just slept in. We arrived at DCA at around 1:00. We really took our time this day. First stop was lunch which was fish and chips in Paradise Pier. Next we rode Tower of Terror, saw Muppet Vision 3D, It's Tough to Be a Bug, rode Grizzly River Run and Soarin'. We also saw the Aladdin show which was excellent. I had forgotten to make a PS for the Vineyard Room and tried to see if we could get a table to coincide with the Electrical Parade, but no go. Instead, we grabbed a bench along the parade route. I got a whole pizza and garlic bread at Pizza Oom Mow Mow which wasn't bad. We really enjoyed sitting there as a family eating our dinner while waiting for the parade to start. The parade was just as I had remembered from when I was a kid, albeit shorter.
8/23/05 This is the day my SIL, BIL and niece joined us. Since she's 3 we saved Fantasyland for her arrival. We were at the gate by 7:15. Upon entry we rode the carousel, Dumbo, Snow White, Alice and Wonderland, the teacups, Buzz, Star Tours and Space Mountain. We had 10:20 PS at Paradise Pier for the Lilo and Stitch character breakfast. I was disappointed in the food, but again, character interaction was excellent. Unfortunately, I had overdone the walking our first couple days which caused a bad flare up of my arthritis. After breakfast, I was fortunate that there were ECVs left and rented one. Thereafter, we rode Pirates, Splash Mountain, saw the Snow White show, rode It's A Small World, Indiana Jones. Dinner was cheesburgers at Club Buzz which were nasty. After that, we staked out an excellent spot right in front of the castle for the fireworks. The boys went back to Fantasyland while the adults just sat and took in the sights and sounds of Disneyland. Snack was turkey legs, yummy! The fireworks were beautiful and it was definitely worth getting our spot early.
8/24/05 Unfortunately, my 16 year old caught a cold, so we slept in again. We didn't arrive at DL until 2:00 but we wanted to take our time anyway. Upon arrival, I rented an ECV again and then we stopped for lunch at Refreshment Corner and had chili dogs. After that we rode Buzz, Star Tours, Space Mountain, saw Honey I Shrunk the Audience again, Roger Rabbit, saw Disneyland, The First 50 Years, went to the Tiki Room, rode Indiana Jones. We waited around in Adventureland while the the first showing of Fantasmic! ended. We were able to see the fireworks from a different perspective, although we got a much better view in front of the castle. After they were over, we got our spot for the 10:30 showing of Fantasmic! While we waited for it to begin, the boys had clam chowder and I had steak gumbo. After the show, we ended the evening with a bang with one last ride on Space Mountain. After that, we took our time walking down Main Street. I told the boys that when they become adults, that probably one of their fondest memories will be walking down Main Street and seeing the twinkling lights and the wonderful smells coming from the treat shops along the way. I know it's one of mine.
Let me first preface this by saying that I subscribed to Ridemax for the first time. Best $15 I ever spent! We saved lots of time and running back and forth. Living only 20 minutes away, we've done many trips to DL but never really followed an itinerary. I planned our trip last summer to WDW down to the last detail, so I decided why not do the same for DL?
The players: Me, mom to 3 wonderful boys ages 11, 13 and 16 who love all things Disney. On one of our days we were joined by my SIL, BIL and my 3 year old niece.
8/22/05 The plan was to check in early at the Crowne Plaza before heading to DL, but we got a bit of a late start so decided to do a very late check that night. We arrived at the front gates at about 7:30 a.m. As soon as they opened, we headed straight to Tomorrowland. I'm too tired to remember in what order we did the rides in but we got on Buzz, Space Mountain twice, Star Tours, Indiana Jones, Haunted Mansion, Pirates, Big Thunder Mountain and saw Honey I Shrunk the Audience all by 11:30. We rested and people watched for about 30 minutes while waiting for Plaza Inn to open. I had the pot roast which was delicious and had carrot cake for dessert, my 11 year old had the chicken and chocolate mousse, 13 year old had pasta with a red sauce (can't remember type of pasta) and chocolate cake and 16 year old had pasta Alfredo and chocolate cake. Needless to say we couldn't finish our food and we absolutely stuffed! Next we rode Splash Mountain, Roger Rabbit, saw the Snow White show and toured Innoventions for a little over an hour. We had 5:00 PS for Goofy's Kitchen. The character interaction was very good but the food was only average. After that we took the Monorail to Tomorrowland where we met my cousin and her family who have APs. We rode Space Mountain again then saw the fireworks show. After that we rode Buzz and then Space Mountain one last time for the night.
8/23/05 We were exhausted from the previous day's activities so we just slept in. We arrived at DCA at around 1:00. We really took our time this day. First stop was lunch which was fish and chips in Paradise Pier. Next we rode Tower of Terror, saw Muppet Vision 3D, It's Tough to Be a Bug, rode Grizzly River Run and Soarin'. We also saw the Aladdin show which was excellent. I had forgotten to make a PS for the Vineyard Room and tried to see if we could get a table to coincide with the Electrical Parade, but no go. Instead, we grabbed a bench along the parade route. I got a whole pizza and garlic bread at Pizza Oom Mow Mow which wasn't bad. We really enjoyed sitting there as a family eating our dinner while waiting for the parade to start. The parade was just as I had remembered from when I was a kid, albeit shorter.
8/23/05 This is the day my SIL, BIL and niece joined us. Since she's 3 we saved Fantasyland for her arrival. We were at the gate by 7:15. Upon entry we rode the carousel, Dumbo, Snow White, Alice and Wonderland, the teacups, Buzz, Star Tours and Space Mountain. We had 10:20 PS at Paradise Pier for the Lilo and Stitch character breakfast. I was disappointed in the food, but again, character interaction was excellent. Unfortunately, I had overdone the walking our first couple days which caused a bad flare up of my arthritis. After breakfast, I was fortunate that there were ECVs left and rented one. Thereafter, we rode Pirates, Splash Mountain, saw the Snow White show, rode It's A Small World, Indiana Jones. Dinner was cheesburgers at Club Buzz which were nasty. After that, we staked out an excellent spot right in front of the castle for the fireworks. The boys went back to Fantasyland while the adults just sat and took in the sights and sounds of Disneyland. Snack was turkey legs, yummy! The fireworks were beautiful and it was definitely worth getting our spot early.
8/24/05 Unfortunately, my 16 year old caught a cold, so we slept in again. We didn't arrive at DL until 2:00 but we wanted to take our time anyway. Upon arrival, I rented an ECV again and then we stopped for lunch at Refreshment Corner and had chili dogs. After that we rode Buzz, Star Tours, Space Mountain, saw Honey I Shrunk the Audience again, Roger Rabbit, saw Disneyland, The First 50 Years, went to the Tiki Room, rode Indiana Jones. We waited around in Adventureland while the the first showing of Fantasmic! ended. We were able to see the fireworks from a different perspective, although we got a much better view in front of the castle. After they were over, we got our spot for the 10:30 showing of Fantasmic! While we waited for it to begin, the boys had clam chowder and I had steak gumbo. After the show, we ended the evening with a bang with one last ride on Space Mountain. After that, we took our time walking down Main Street. I told the boys that when they become adults, that probably one of their fondest memories will be walking down Main Street and seeing the twinkling lights and the wonderful smells coming from the treat shops along the way. I know it's one of mine.
