just back...crowds not bad, tips for riding lots of rides

[firecracker]

we've been back a few days, but dd7 had tonsils and adenoids removed 3 days after our return, so i've been a little busy.

anyway, we were in heaven on earth from 6/8-6/13, crowds not too bad.

biggest tips:
1. get yourself out of bed! big payoffs--NO waits! on epcot ee day, we rode test track 4 times in 3 hours! mk ee, btmr 3x in 2 hours, splash 4x in 3 hours. posted wait times on all were 75 minutes! yeah for fastpass!

2. get tour guide mike! his itineraries were awesome and exactly right! i will definitely use him again!

3. use priceline for 1st Orlando night if necessary. we stayed at an awesome Radisson at US/IOA entrance for $40! It was awesome!

4. plan for the heat. we froze h2o bottles and wrapped them in handtowels/washclothes. refilled as necessary in drinking fountains. we wet the washcloths and put on kids heads/necks. worked great. mister fan was ok, but a hassle to drag around...i kept forgetting it was in backpack! also, get out of bed and you can be back in your cool resort room by 2pm to cool off and nap!

best memory: our dd's (7 and 6) unrestrained laughter on Splash and Big Thunder.

best food: OHana and Whispering Canyon--Heada Lettuce was our server!

most disappointing things:
1. CRT breakfast, after all the hassle to get a PS. food was OK, princesses were lovely, but we felt terribly rushed. our food came immediately and the princesses were coming one right after the other! no time to film, rushed pics, no time to eat while the food was hot...we won't go back...too much $ for too little enjoyment.

2. not enough time. we had 3 full days in the parks and got lots done, but just didn't seem to really ENJOY it. we didn't have time (or planning nazi didn't allow time! ) to just soak it all in. my biggest regret...will correct for next time.

3. very disappointing souvenir selection at Disney outlets in Orlando...we tried them all! We try to save $ by buying at the outlets before going onto property, let the kids buy there so we don't have to spend big $ in the parks. very little selection this time...had to spend the big bucks in the park. DH not happy with Planning Nazi...glad for resort delivery, but marriage vow "for richer, for poorer" really put to the test!

4. we stayed okw for the 1st time (rented points on eBay), but bus service was awful for epcot ee. 1st bus was supposed to be 7:20, didn't show until 7:50!! Grrr. So the front desk connected me wdw-ride later that day and I (kindly) expressed my disappointment and hope that mk's ee day would be handled differently. the next am, the first bus was johnny-on-the-spot at 7:15...no worries!

DH griped on the 20-hour drive home that we wouldn't be back for a LONG time---those darn gift shops!!!---but now, after a week to decompress and see that we CAN pay off the Disney VISA (I HAD to use it to earn $$ for our next trip!), he's ready to go back. His one stipulation is that we have to take one whole day in the MK to just take it all in, take pictures, and get character photos and autographs. That sounds GREAT to me!

well, those are the highlights! Any questions?

 

[bratray]

hello

sounds like you had a great time- i am also the tour commando!

we are always out of bed by 6:00 am and hit the parks for early entry then this gives us a chance to head back to the hotel for a nice aft break-

the first time we went to WDW in 97 we did a cruise\land deal and were at WDW for 3 days- not enough time!! and this was before they opened the AK- when we go now we always stay at least 7 - 8 days- plenty of time to see everything and even a day to sleep in- not as much commando action when you have a week - i just make sure i plan really well with my itineraries and which rides to do first- i also purchased tour guide mike and plan on following his advise!

thanks for the tips!

oh yeah my DH said the same thing about returning- funny thing is that we were just there in Jan 2003 and are now going back July 2003- (he can be a push over sometimes LOL)

Lisa

 

[tc]

On the way home from our first, exhausting WDW trip, Stephen told me, "I hope you liked that because we'll never be able to afford another trip." Funny how you can afford a lot more when you want to. We returned on three years later, for a Big Red Boat cruise/WDW trip (just before Disney Cruise line started up). We've been back countless times, and are now proud DVC owners.

The magic just gets ya.

 

[grinningghost]

You got me a little nervous about the CRT breakfast. We've been dying to try this and in 2 days I have to call for a PS. It is pretty expensive for breakfast, but we've never seen the inside of the castle. I hope it goes better than yours did. Glad to hear the overall trip was good though.

 

[CarolA]

I do think that the outlets are hit and miss and I seem to miss more in the summer. Perhaps there are more people so it is picked over.

I think that you hit it on the head, slow down and smell the roses is so important at Disney. It usually takes at least one trip to learn though. There is so much to do

What time was your breakfast? I have only done this once, but it was a LATE sitting and we did not feel rushed. Wonder if time makes a difference.

 

[maps]

we usually do CRT every year first thing in the morning. we haven't really felt rushed but that could also be because we wanted to hurry to get to the parks! i would always recommend to try it at least once. the castle is really nice inside and it just gives you that magical feeling.

 

[Geoff_M]

You're right about the crowds. I wasn't January, but it wasn't Spring Break either. I second the "get outta bed" observation.

We've done Cindy's twice with no such experience. The food came quickly (which I consider a good thing) because it's a limited menu that doesn't require a lot of food prep time. The swiftness of the characters had to do with where your table happened to be as they progressed around the room. Some people had them instantaniously, others had to wait 20 minutes after they were seated. We felt we could stay as long as we wanted, there was no "Are you done yet?" pressure applied by the waitresses we had.

As said, the outlets are true outlets and not the "full selection, but usual prices" outlets that now litter the countryside. The selection can be hit-n-miss, but the prices are awesome. We didn't have any problems pushing our luggage close to the weight limit after another trip to Belz. It's scary what percentage of our family's wardrobe has WDW on it. We easily saved $300 and bought a couple of items that are still on sale at the parks (2003 polos).

 

[Ratpack]

What time was your CRT PS for? I have one for 8:10am and wondering if the time has anything to do with feeling rushed. I know we will be in somewhat of a hurry so we can be finished by park opening at 9am but I don't want to feel as if we can't take the time we want.