theluckyrabbit
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 23, 2012
So glad you had a good time! We loved it, too.
Thank you for the great review!
A Touch of Disney 2021 Experience - Superthread - Read First Post for Updates - Updated with Full Menus
- Thread starter ej119
- Start date
Report for Friday April 2nd
Arrived around 1pm, parked at the Best Western on Harbor. IMHO the $15 is worth it if you are concerned about the long walk from the parking structure! We walked right in, no one else in line at all.
I quickly realized that I could not pay for mobile orders with the dining cards on my phone. I have an iPhone 6, and the latest version of the Disneyland app is not available for my phone. According to the CM I spoke with, in order to pay with the dining cards you needed the latest version of the app and to be on the Disneyland wifi. Some places allowed walk ups for ordering and we could use them at the Marketplace stands. Later in the day, many places were not doing walk up ordering (or maybe they never were), so that was a big old pile of suck. We missed out on some items because of this and I still have $10 on one of the cards.
General impressions from my family were:
Churros!!! So many churros! The horchata churro gets a big thumbs up from my BIL.
It's wonderful to be back in the parks.
The photo ops were really fun, everyone loves a good Disney pic. Definitely check out the Visa photo opp if you have one.
Crowds were not bad and the pace of the day was relaxed.
There were times we all wished there was more seating. We frequently saw people walking around with trays of food looking for a place to sit. The upstairs at Sonoma Terrace was a great find!
The difference in how/where/when to order food was confusing. For folks who are used to food events at DCA, its probably easy. But my mom was continually perplexed about why we couldn't just go buy food from a certain location
Everyone was social distancing when they could and wearing masks. (if you are concerned about having distance from strangers, don't go into Cars Land around sunset, its very crowded) Hand sanitizer is everywhere!
My personal impression:
Very bummed about the app situation. (and the general CM response to me saying 'I can't mobile order on my phone' was just a shrug, no suggestions or other options) I really wish this was something that I knew would be an issue in advance. I even tried the app ahead of time to make sure it was working but never bothered trying to get to the payment page. But aside from feeling like all of my planning was for naught, it was a nice day. Highlight for me was the neon lighting in Cars Land and getting to cruise down the street with my husband (dodging vloggers along the way) and singing very badly.
Overall, I give it B.
Arrived around 1pm, parked at the Best Western on Harbor. IMHO the $15 is worth it if you are concerned about the long walk from the parking structure! We walked right in, no one else in line at all.
I quickly realized that I could not pay for mobile orders with the dining cards on my phone. I have an iPhone 6, and the latest version of the Disneyland app is not available for my phone. According to the CM I spoke with, in order to pay with the dining cards you needed the latest version of the app and to be on the Disneyland wifi. Some places allowed walk ups for ordering and we could use them at the Marketplace stands. Later in the day, many places were not doing walk up ordering (or maybe they never were), so that was a big old pile of suck. We missed out on some items because of this and I still have $10 on one of the cards.
General impressions from my family were:
Churros!!! So many churros! The horchata churro gets a big thumbs up from my BIL.
It's wonderful to be back in the parks.
The photo ops were really fun, everyone loves a good Disney pic. Definitely check out the Visa photo opp if you have one.
Crowds were not bad and the pace of the day was relaxed.
There were times we all wished there was more seating. We frequently saw people walking around with trays of food looking for a place to sit. The upstairs at Sonoma Terrace was a great find!
The difference in how/where/when to order food was confusing. For folks who are used to food events at DCA, its probably easy. But my mom was continually perplexed about why we couldn't just go buy food from a certain location
Everyone was social distancing when they could and wearing masks. (if you are concerned about having distance from strangers, don't go into Cars Land around sunset, its very crowded) Hand sanitizer is everywhere!
My personal impression:
Very bummed about the app situation. (and the general CM response to me saying 'I can't mobile order on my phone' was just a shrug, no suggestions or other options) I really wish this was something that I knew would be an issue in advance. I even tried the app ahead of time to make sure it was working but never bothered trying to get to the payment page. But aside from feeling like all of my planning was for naught, it was a nice day. Highlight for me was the neon lighting in Cars Land and getting to cruise down the street with my husband (dodging vloggers along the way) and singing very badly.
Overall, I give it B.
Kender
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2015
You definitely need the latest version of the app to use gift cards instead of CCs so that's correct information (a friend just proved this today with his not updated app not having the option to enter a gift card to pay with, but his fiancee/my other friend with the fully updated app could), but you don't have to be on DLR WiFi. You can be on your cell network. Odd the CM thought that with how unreliable the WiFi has been in the past
Sorry to hear that your phone can't take the latest update that allows gift cards to be used
. That's a real bummer that older phones aren't compatible.Right? I feel like we've all learned to not trust Disney wifi lolOdd the CM thought that with how unreliable the WiFi has been in the past
Kender
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2015
taaren
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 17, 2010
My party went Saturday, we stayed at the Springhill Suites Convention Center and walked over around 12:30 via Harbor (with 3 teens, that was the earliest we could get them to roll out of bed and get going lolz), lines were nonexistent on Harbor security and not too long at the CA Adv entrance and moved fast. Springhill was a lovely place to stay, although the walk felt soooooo long when we went home the DtD way (we wanted Earl of Sandwich the night before, and on the way out we had beignets from the jazz kitchen). We put it on our short list of places we'd like to stay again when we run out of DVC points.
The park didn't feel too crowded, although we got there too late for same-day Lamplighter reservations which we periodically checked on. Mobile app food pick up times were all over the place, although our favorites tended to get later in the day return times sooner (for Smokejumpers and the Marketplace Golden Dreams). We'd spent our dining cards by about 3p, didn't spend much over them (one adult drink per adult plus another $5 or so for each of our two households).
I had difficulty with the DL app because once I clicked on the restaurant, no back button or "x" appeared to let me go to the home/main screen. My friend's iPhone had the app working just fine, so I figured it was a flaw with my new Pixel 4a's ability to interact with the DL app (I've only had it a month but I miss my Pixel 3A it seemed to have a lot less weird programming flaws .... prepandemic I'd used mobile ordering with my 3A). So every time I ordered something or looked at a menu, I had to close the app and start from scratch.
There was no line for the Legacy Passholder picture/pin/magnet when we got there around 4p. Games lines were short, but the kids didn't want to play they were content to just soak in the atmosphere. Original intention was to stay until 8p, but around 7p the breeze picked up and we started shivering since we hadn't brought jackets so we took our last sunset Photopass pix and left for DTD .... and boy was the line to get from ToD to DtD long! A lot of people gave up, and it took us about 20 minutes to get in which was what the CM at the front of the line had predicted, to me it looked like that line easily could have lasted much much longer (to find the end I thought we'd end up at the M&F Parking).
Only time we had difficulty finding seating was when we wanted to eat in Carsland/Pacific Wharf area around 3p. There were always empty tables every time we passed by Grizzly, which was our favorite place to enjoy our snacks for the atmosphere and because we liked being near the Grand Californian entrance. The only time we passed Boardwalk Pizza area there was plenty of empty tables there too.
Best foods were the ones people already mentioned, the Carbonara Mac & Cheese w Bacon and Strawberry Rose Lemonade were so good we ordered it at the beginning and everyone had an encore order of those two items again at the end of the day. Monte Cristo and Smores shake were also outstanding (we shared that half-portion and felt like half of the half was more than enough grease for the day). The teens also thought the Horchata Churro was outstanding, we were just bummed it didn't open until 2p because we'd planned on starting with satisfying our churro craving.
Oh, and I got my Watermelon Agua Fresca around 4:30p, it was weak and watery, and we were not impressed. My friend got hers at 6:30 and got a strong/much more watermelon-ey one, and thought it was pretty good. So drinks quality varied by when you picked them up apparently.
The handwashing stations around the park were a nice touch, but more often than not we ended up just using the wipes I carry in my purse for sticky hands, so was very glad I brought those. Also having a small folding umbrella for standing in line kept us from getting burned, so carrying those two things was well worth the baggage. (I'm one of those people that if I can get away with carrying nothing but a lanyard, I do, since I detest carrying bags in the park if I can avoid it).
The park didn't feel too crowded, although we got there too late for same-day Lamplighter reservations which we periodically checked on. Mobile app food pick up times were all over the place, although our favorites tended to get later in the day return times sooner (for Smokejumpers and the Marketplace Golden Dreams). We'd spent our dining cards by about 3p, didn't spend much over them (one adult drink per adult plus another $5 or so for each of our two households).
I had difficulty with the DL app because once I clicked on the restaurant, no back button or "x" appeared to let me go to the home/main screen. My friend's iPhone had the app working just fine, so I figured it was a flaw with my new Pixel 4a's ability to interact with the DL app (I've only had it a month but I miss my Pixel 3A it seemed to have a lot less weird programming flaws .... prepandemic I'd used mobile ordering with my 3A). So every time I ordered something or looked at a menu, I had to close the app and start from scratch.
There was no line for the Legacy Passholder picture/pin/magnet when we got there around 4p. Games lines were short, but the kids didn't want to play they were content to just soak in the atmosphere. Original intention was to stay until 8p, but around 7p the breeze picked up and we started shivering since we hadn't brought jackets so we took our last sunset Photopass pix and left for DTD .... and boy was the line to get from ToD to DtD long! A lot of people gave up, and it took us about 20 minutes to get in which was what the CM at the front of the line had predicted, to me it looked like that line easily could have lasted much much longer (to find the end I thought we'd end up at the M&F Parking).
Only time we had difficulty finding seating was when we wanted to eat in Carsland/Pacific Wharf area around 3p. There were always empty tables every time we passed by Grizzly, which was our favorite place to enjoy our snacks for the atmosphere and because we liked being near the Grand Californian entrance. The only time we passed Boardwalk Pizza area there was plenty of empty tables there too.
Best foods were the ones people already mentioned, the Carbonara Mac & Cheese w Bacon and Strawberry Rose Lemonade were so good we ordered it at the beginning and everyone had an encore order of those two items again at the end of the day. Monte Cristo and Smores shake were also outstanding (we shared that half-portion and felt like half of the half was more than enough grease for the day). The teens also thought the Horchata Churro was outstanding, we were just bummed it didn't open until 2p because we'd planned on starting with satisfying our churro craving.
Oh, and I got my Watermelon Agua Fresca around 4:30p, it was weak and watery, and we were not impressed. My friend got hers at 6:30 and got a strong/much more watermelon-ey one, and thought it was pretty good. So drinks quality varied by when you picked them up apparently.
The handwashing stations around the park were a nice touch, but more often than not we ended up just using the wipes I carry in my purse for sticky hands, so was very glad I brought those. Also having a small folding umbrella for standing in line kept us from getting burned, so carrying those two things was well worth the baggage. (I'm one of those people that if I can get away with carrying nothing but a lanyard, I do, since I detest carrying bags in the park if I can avoid it).
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clarrkkent79
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Apr 15, 2006
My wife and I attended on Easter Sunday. We flew down from Seattle and went to Knotts Boysenberry Festival on Saturday and then ToD on Sunday.
First things first for out of towners. If you are planning to utilize rideshare services, be prepared for a shocking sticker price AND a long wait. Initial quotes were pretty typical for $23ish dollars to the Disney resort area. However, we had multiple drivers accept and then cancel on us, then immediately we'd get an option to pay $50-85. We kept declining until we got a reasonable offer. It appears the drivers in the SNA area are gaming the system. It was equally as bad going to the airport as well, so factor in multiple cancellations and a long wait for a ride so you don't miss your flight. Even if you pre-schedule a pickup, it likely won't work. We set up a pickup time and even 10 minutes out the App still said it was "looking for a driver" and minimum 25 minute wait. I couldn't find a shuttle service that was operating, so the only other option appears to be Taxis, public transit, or car rental (which were equally astronomical).
On to ToD: We got in line around 11am. At that time you could put in mobile orders for a 11:30-12 window. Gates opened at 11:15 and we were in the park by 11:30. Putting in orders before entry means you cannot use your Dining Card for those orders, so plan accordingly. We knew we'd end up paying out of pocket eventually so it was a good strategy for us.
We did not utilize the Marketplace cashiers at all. Instead opting for Mobile orders. I'd say the longest we waited in a pickup line was 10 minutes and usually was a couple minutes or less. We'd order food for our next "meal" while we were eating our current. Adorable Snowman Treats and Golden Dreams pickup slots seemed to outpace all the other vendors. By 2pm the pickup windows were approaching 6pm and later for those. All others seemed to be within an hour.
The place felt pretty empty until 1:30-2pm. This seemed to be when the crowds were largest and it became very difficult to find a table in the shade. I have extreme sun sensitivity due to medication, so we ended up setting up "base" at a single table with umbrella and took turns picking up food. Many others did the same to hold their shaded tables. IMO - this is where Disney failed. There weren't enough shaded areas for seating near the bulk of the vendors. I wouldn't know any better except crowds at Knotts were similar and there was absolutely no shortage of shaded seating wherever you turned. I was very impressed.
Crowds tended to reduce starting about 5pm. We never waited more than 5 minutes to get into any shopping areas. People were good about masks and staff were, for the most part, appropriately enforcing the policies. Most staff wouldn't bother anyone with a mask off if they were seated at a designated seating/dining area. Some went as far to ask that you actually be taking a bite or drink, otherwise have your mask on. I only saw the latter twice though.
It was a nice experience. No rushing for rides or shows or other things like I'm used to and we were able to try some food we normally wouldn't bother with. I think we'll be seeking out the Carbonara Mac and chicken wings whenever we visit now.
We probably wouldn't do it again. Not because it was bad, but $75 (or $50 after accounting for the Dining Card) just felt steep for what it was. At this point, we were ready for anything Disney that didn't involve a 5 hour flight and masks in a 90 degree and humid climate though.
First things first for out of towners. If you are planning to utilize rideshare services, be prepared for a shocking sticker price AND a long wait. Initial quotes were pretty typical for $23ish dollars to the Disney resort area. However, we had multiple drivers accept and then cancel on us, then immediately we'd get an option to pay $50-85. We kept declining until we got a reasonable offer. It appears the drivers in the SNA area are gaming the system. It was equally as bad going to the airport as well, so factor in multiple cancellations and a long wait for a ride so you don't miss your flight. Even if you pre-schedule a pickup, it likely won't work. We set up a pickup time and even 10 minutes out the App still said it was "looking for a driver" and minimum 25 minute wait. I couldn't find a shuttle service that was operating, so the only other option appears to be Taxis, public transit, or car rental (which were equally astronomical).
On to ToD: We got in line around 11am. At that time you could put in mobile orders for a 11:30-12 window. Gates opened at 11:15 and we were in the park by 11:30. Putting in orders before entry means you cannot use your Dining Card for those orders, so plan accordingly. We knew we'd end up paying out of pocket eventually so it was a good strategy for us.
We did not utilize the Marketplace cashiers at all. Instead opting for Mobile orders. I'd say the longest we waited in a pickup line was 10 minutes and usually was a couple minutes or less. We'd order food for our next "meal" while we were eating our current. Adorable Snowman Treats and Golden Dreams pickup slots seemed to outpace all the other vendors. By 2pm the pickup windows were approaching 6pm and later for those. All others seemed to be within an hour.
The place felt pretty empty until 1:30-2pm. This seemed to be when the crowds were largest and it became very difficult to find a table in the shade. I have extreme sun sensitivity due to medication, so we ended up setting up "base" at a single table with umbrella and took turns picking up food. Many others did the same to hold their shaded tables. IMO - this is where Disney failed. There weren't enough shaded areas for seating near the bulk of the vendors. I wouldn't know any better except crowds at Knotts were similar and there was absolutely no shortage of shaded seating wherever you turned. I was very impressed.
Crowds tended to reduce starting about 5pm. We never waited more than 5 minutes to get into any shopping areas. People were good about masks and staff were, for the most part, appropriately enforcing the policies. Most staff wouldn't bother anyone with a mask off if they were seated at a designated seating/dining area. Some went as far to ask that you actually be taking a bite or drink, otherwise have your mask on. I only saw the latter twice though.
It was a nice experience. No rushing for rides or shows or other things like I'm used to and we were able to try some food we normally wouldn't bother with. I think we'll be seeking out the Carbonara Mac and chicken wings whenever we visit now.
We probably wouldn't do it again. Not because it was bad, but $75 (or $50 after accounting for the Dining Card) just felt steep for what it was. At this point, we were ready for anything Disney that didn't involve a 5 hour flight and masks in a 90 degree and humid climate though.
Another update: we also went on Sunday and can share a few things. We took the earlier suggestion of parking in Simba to avoid the long walk from Mickey... worked great for arrival.... we did have to arrive in the direction of Ball Rd, as coming in from Katella its blocked and you had to go clear up to Ball and U-turn. It looked like that might be a regular thing. A word of caution, when you exit TOD to walk back thru Downtown Disney, you might have to wait in a very long line to get into DTD, it took us 32 minutes in line. We had wanted to visit the new Trading Post on our way back, the line to get into it took maybe only 10 minutes.
We had arrived at the park just a few minutes after 11 and they seemed to open the turnstyles a few minutes later. We were getting familiar with the mobile ordering but found you could not order and use your food cards until you passed through the turnstyles so you could enter the numbers. You have to enter your card before you fill in the order, we couldn't get it to let us do it after we had made our selections at the payment section, we had to do the 'add a card', enter the card number, and then make our choices. Someone else may know if there was an easier way.
Our favorite item was also the carbonara mac n ch, without question, as well as the strawberry rose lemonade. We headed there first and enjoyed the shaded Grizzley area. While there we set up our next card for the Franks place. The time we were able to get was maybe 1:20 so we had plenty of time for the Pier area, the music is wonderful. Played a couple arcade games, got our legacy pin, magnet and picture.
The Franks place did not go nearly as well. You enter from the hub into the Hollywood area and almost immediately see the back of the line. We went almost to the pickup windows looking for seating, there is so very little there and enough crowd that we didn't pick up on the very little sign for mobile pickup because we hadn't gotten close enough. After 30 minutes in the line with my daughter and only having gotten halfway, I walked up closer to see our pickup window 7, only to find out we were in the wrong line. There is a separate line for window 7 but its not visable until you are really close because it tucks out of sight around the side of the building into the little alcove with the Tinkerbell photosite. This is where we ran across the only unpleasant CM of the entire day, the girl running the line was shockingly bossy and unpleasant, she acted like she really disliked the guests. I will say that every single other CM was an absolute delight, happy to greet, happy to smile, genuinely warm and welcoming, so we didn't let this get to us. She was the same with everyone. Once in the correct line we were less than 15 minutes in getting our food. The corn dogs were pretty nice but our one cheese dog was completely cold in the center, the cheese had not even tried to soften or melt, but on such a hot day it was still delicious.
We set our next card for the dole whip back over on the pier and wandered through Cars Land on our way, some really neat photo opportunites there, cannot wait for the parks to be able to open again. More outstanding CMs. One other neat thing was for those with a Disney visa card. We headed back through Grizzley Falls area for the cooler shade and that is where they are set up, they have a backdrop and do a magic shot, I won't spoil the surprise but it was really nice. Downloads right to the Disney app on your phone. They are open 2:00-5:00.
Overall we really enjoyed being back in the park, did a LOT of shopping and a LOT of spending, loved helping Disney get their staff back on their jobs, everyone was cooperating with the masks, you could sense all the smiles even though we couldn't see faces. We have done a couple of the Knotts tasting and found their system a lot less hassle, just walk up and pick each of your 5 choices, but Disney is its own magic and anything that helps get the parks open again is great.
We had arrived at the park just a few minutes after 11 and they seemed to open the turnstyles a few minutes later. We were getting familiar with the mobile ordering but found you could not order and use your food cards until you passed through the turnstyles so you could enter the numbers. You have to enter your card before you fill in the order, we couldn't get it to let us do it after we had made our selections at the payment section, we had to do the 'add a card', enter the card number, and then make our choices. Someone else may know if there was an easier way.
Our favorite item was also the carbonara mac n ch, without question, as well as the strawberry rose lemonade. We headed there first and enjoyed the shaded Grizzley area. While there we set up our next card for the Franks place. The time we were able to get was maybe 1:20 so we had plenty of time for the Pier area, the music is wonderful. Played a couple arcade games, got our legacy pin, magnet and picture.
The Franks place did not go nearly as well. You enter from the hub into the Hollywood area and almost immediately see the back of the line. We went almost to the pickup windows looking for seating, there is so very little there and enough crowd that we didn't pick up on the very little sign for mobile pickup because we hadn't gotten close enough. After 30 minutes in the line with my daughter and only having gotten halfway, I walked up closer to see our pickup window 7, only to find out we were in the wrong line. There is a separate line for window 7 but its not visable until you are really close because it tucks out of sight around the side of the building into the little alcove with the Tinkerbell photosite. This is where we ran across the only unpleasant CM of the entire day, the girl running the line was shockingly bossy and unpleasant, she acted like she really disliked the guests. I will say that every single other CM was an absolute delight, happy to greet, happy to smile, genuinely warm and welcoming, so we didn't let this get to us. She was the same with everyone. Once in the correct line we were less than 15 minutes in getting our food. The corn dogs were pretty nice but our one cheese dog was completely cold in the center, the cheese had not even tried to soften or melt, but on such a hot day it was still delicious.
We set our next card for the dole whip back over on the pier and wandered through Cars Land on our way, some really neat photo opportunites there, cannot wait for the parks to be able to open again. More outstanding CMs. One other neat thing was for those with a Disney visa card. We headed back through Grizzley Falls area for the cooler shade and that is where they are set up, they have a backdrop and do a magic shot, I won't spoil the surprise but it was really nice. Downloads right to the Disney app on your phone. They are open 2:00-5:00.
Overall we really enjoyed being back in the park, did a LOT of shopping and a LOT of spending, loved helping Disney get their staff back on their jobs, everyone was cooperating with the masks, you could sense all the smiles even though we couldn't see faces. We have done a couple of the Knotts tasting and found their system a lot less hassle, just walk up and pick each of your 5 choices, but Disney is its own magic and anything that helps get the parks open again is great.
Winnowill
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2014
So, if my friend and I get in line to get into the park on our Saturday (4/17) around 11:30, what are the chances that we'll be able to "Join Walk-Up Line" at Lamplight Lounge at that time and get a suitably lunch-y time? We have our hearts set on lobster nachos, but missed the reservation period.
The Expert
Has been to every Disney park in the world
- Joined
- Nov 8, 2009
I wonder if this was due to the holiday and fewer drivers being available? We also flew into SNA (on 3/27) and were able to get an Uber with maybe a 10 minute wait at reasonable rates. Going back very early on Monday morning, it took about 15 minutes to get one at the JW Marriott but the price wasn't crazy. We definitely had the issues with longer waits than expected, but not the cancelations and price gouging. That stinks!
TOTALLY agree this was a Disney fail and I'm sorry to see it was still happening. We went on March 28 and it was almost 90 degrees that day. After about 1:00 it was impossible to find seats in the shade without stalking tables. I did just that in the Grizzly area while my husband picked up our order at a booth. I waited about 10 minutes for a table to open and snagged it, but most of the tables in that area weren't turning over at all. While I was there, I saw lots of "suit" CMs coming by and looking at tables, taking notes, etc. I was hoping that meant they would add more shaded seating or umbrellas, but sorry to hear they have not fixed this issue.
Skyegirl1999
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 11, 2016
I’ve seen very few reports of LL walk-ups - anecdotally, I’ve seen way more for Carthay.
I’d just keep checking for reservations until then, especially the day before.
Winnowill
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2014
Oh, I am, believe me. Just trying to have a backup plan. We've done the Carthay thing, and, while I'm glad we did it, we're not interested in repeating it.
Tinkerbelle's Mom
<font color=purple>Will clean houses for tags!<br>
- Joined
- Jan 8, 2007
Went to ToD yesterday and had a fabulous time! It was great weather, lines were short, and best of all no issues with marketplace lines or with mobile order times as I've read others experienced.
The only "issue" we had at all was with people setting up "camps" at tables with umbrellas. The main area was filled with people not ever seeming to move. We went in knowing this would happen. We were totally ok eating while standing off to the side but on a hot day it would have been super irritating. Not much Disney can really do about that - more tables would be good but I imagine it would just mean more campers, lol.
It was just so nice to have an in park relaxing day.
The only "issue" we had at all was with people setting up "camps" at tables with umbrellas. The main area was filled with people not ever seeming to move. We went in knowing this would happen. We were totally ok eating while standing off to the side but on a hot day it would have been super irritating. Not much Disney can really do about that - more tables would be good but I imagine it would just mean more campers, lol.
It was just so nice to have an in park relaxing day.
we went on friday afternoon after straight drive from bay area. parked at mickey & friends, took the ultra long walk along the tram route (omg, so long) and was in DCA 20min after (2pm). we really only spent 4 hrs there, the mobile order times were for 1-1.5 hrs after we ckd in & I couldn't predict if we will eat the food by then so we opted to wait at the marketplace cashier line by BV (took 15 min..bout 7parties ahead of us) & placed our orders then. w/3 dining cards totaling $75 to use--we still had $6 leftover & was able to cash out at the winery. yes, you can cash out if less than $10 on the cards at winery, smokejumpers, and award weiner locations only.
food wise wasn't anything to write home about. had the cabonara mac & cheese (decent), grilled beef tenderloin slider, the 3 drumsticks from poultry box (quite tasty but spicy for me, got 2 boxes so 6 drumsticks), watermelon agua fresca & the farmstand punch (both refreshing). dole whip for my sis...i wanted to get the cozy cone swirl but i was a little full from our light bites. My only gripe was that there wasn't enough areas to sit IMO, lots of ppl camped out at the tables for a while..snagging a shaded area table is like winning the lottery. we mostly sat to eat & rest, continued on.
by 5:30p, the crowds do thin out so just going into the shops at DCA was pretty much walk in.
My cousin's family went to DtD saturday night (just to shop & walk arnd) @ 8:30p & the line to DtD was crazy!!! 35 min waits?!
food wise wasn't anything to write home about. had the cabonara mac & cheese (decent), grilled beef tenderloin slider, the 3 drumsticks from poultry box (quite tasty but spicy for me, got 2 boxes so 6 drumsticks), watermelon agua fresca & the farmstand punch (both refreshing). dole whip for my sis...i wanted to get the cozy cone swirl but i was a little full from our light bites. My only gripe was that there wasn't enough areas to sit IMO, lots of ppl camped out at the tables for a while..snagging a shaded area table is like winning the lottery. we mostly sat to eat & rest, continued on.
by 5:30p, the crowds do thin out so just going into the shops at DCA was pretty much walk in.
My cousin's family went to DtD saturday night (just to shop & walk arnd) @ 8:30p & the line to DtD was crazy!!! 35 min waits?!
NiceOneSimba
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 24, 2011
We went on Monday, flying down from Seattle into SNA. Like the previous poster, the Uber ride from SNA to the Fairfield on Harbor was ridiculously expensive. I rejected probably 10 offers all around the same $55 offer--but never got anything cheaper than that. At least on our way back to the airport, we got the normal $22 rate on Lyft.
We had a great time at the event--we arrived from the Harbor side with absolutely no wait around 10:45. Preordered a corn dog and funnel fries for the first available time. Ate them in an almost completely empty Hollywood Land. Spent the next several hours wandering and snacking--Dole Whip, chicken wings, Strawberry Rose Lemonade. Went back to the hotel for a swim and rest, and returned around 4:45. Had more lemonade, then brisket mac n cheese and a monte cristo, and the Bengal BBQ skewers. Finished up the night with some churros. Honestly, everything we had was delicious, but the corn dog, monte cristo were excellent--and that lemonade was awesome.
Mobile order worked like a charm--the only time the return time was too far out, we used the marketplace cashier and had no wait at all. We did wait about 15 minutes for our monte cristo to be ready, but it was piping hot and delicious when we picked it up.
We took advantage of almost all of the Photopass opportunities and got some GREAT pictures. We also enjoyed the character interactions--we were thrilled to see Mickey and Minnie together. Goofy and Max and Chip & Dale were so much fun. My daughter had fun playing the arcade games, we did some shopping, we enjoyed watching them test some of the rides on Pixar Pier, we listened to the music, and we just had a great time.
We enjoyed the event quite a bit. It was so nice to be in the parks again, and to be able to enjoy most of our favorite park foods. It was a great start to our spring break, for sure. And when the CMs all greeted us with "Welcome Back," not gonna lie, I got a little misty-eyed.
We had a great time at the event--we arrived from the Harbor side with absolutely no wait around 10:45. Preordered a corn dog and funnel fries for the first available time. Ate them in an almost completely empty Hollywood Land. Spent the next several hours wandering and snacking--Dole Whip, chicken wings, Strawberry Rose Lemonade. Went back to the hotel for a swim and rest, and returned around 4:45. Had more lemonade, then brisket mac n cheese and a monte cristo, and the Bengal BBQ skewers. Finished up the night with some churros. Honestly, everything we had was delicious, but the corn dog, monte cristo were excellent--and that lemonade was awesome.
Mobile order worked like a charm--the only time the return time was too far out, we used the marketplace cashier and had no wait at all. We did wait about 15 minutes for our monte cristo to be ready, but it was piping hot and delicious when we picked it up.
We took advantage of almost all of the Photopass opportunities and got some GREAT pictures. We also enjoyed the character interactions--we were thrilled to see Mickey and Minnie together. Goofy and Max and Chip & Dale were so much fun. My daughter had fun playing the arcade games, we did some shopping, we enjoyed watching them test some of the rides on Pixar Pier, we listened to the music, and we just had a great time.
We enjoyed the event quite a bit. It was so nice to be in the parks again, and to be able to enjoy most of our favorite park foods. It was a great start to our spring break, for sure. And when the CMs all greeted us with "Welcome Back," not gonna lie, I got a little misty-eyed.
aymiewilson
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2017
Geeze that’s annoying about rideshare rates! But at the end of the day it’s cheaper than renting a car, buying gas and paying for parking at your hotel
Mathmagicland
Disneyland - the original since 1955
- Joined
- Jul 26, 2014
Thanks for sharing! I’d given up checking but just snagged a Lamplight for dinner.
aymiewilson
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2017
YEEHAW I got a 3 pm reservation for Lamplight on 4/17!!! This is HUGELY helpful. It sounds like there's not really 8 hours worth of stuff to do in DCA right now. I'm most interested in seeing the evening atmosphere (always my fave) and wanted to stay until 8 pm, but I was worried that if we didn't get in at the beginning, I couldn't get us on the Lamplight standby list.
Ok - does anybody know what seating area at Lamplight they're using? I'm hoping they are using all the outdoor seating areas. My last Disneyland trip in Jan 2020, we ate outside on that (almost) water-level patio area with beautiful views of the lake, and it was glorious to feel kinda out on the water!
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