Just got back from DL. Cheers/Jeers

[mesabravo]

Ok, well after waiting 2 yrs for this trip lets get rolling. We stayed at the CA Grand w/concierge. Room-great. Concierge-great. Worth it w/4 kids. Staying on site (1st time 4 us) was worth it. DH not a crowd fan and loved not having to wait in lines for shuttles. Jeers-took 2 1/2 hrs to ck in to hotel as they messed up our reservations from 6 months prior. I had even called the day before to confirm and everything was ok. They only gave us a $100 comp as our family had to be split up in sep rooms. Not cool. They did give balloons & signed pics to our 3 b-day kids. No CM escorted us to the Concierge level and not even a bell cap to help with bags (8 + carry ons). They also forgot a couple times to do turn down service. Not a big deal for me, but kids missed the chocolates and were bummed. Tickets - If you are using your DVC to get a discount, you MUST purchase at the ticket booth! The line was 55 minutes then you had to stand in line to get your pic done at main street bank as the ticket was only good for that day. That was 1 1/2 hr line. DH was not happy by that time with all the mix ups. Park was crowded on both weekends we were there, but during the week we never even got a fast pass. We waited in line longer for Churros than a ride (truely!). We went to the Fantasmic buffet and loved it. Didn't like the screaming kid next to us who knocked over his table and got drinks spilled on his brother. They even took one of our chairs when my DH went to the bathroom. There are NO extra seats by the way. The spread was great and the CM was always asking if she could get us anything else. Would do it again sometime. Rides-Monster's inc. was a dissappointment, but Buzz ride was really fun. Better than the kids expected. We must have rode that one about 5 times in one day. Fireworks were poor as fog made it very hard to see most of the show. Was better the following weekend. That's good for now. If you have questions just ask as I'm sure we did EVERYTHING in the parks. Going again in DEC. Can't wait.

 

[CoastalCA]

Not clear on what this means.
Are there discounts when tickets are purchased with VISA card?

 

[degrapevine]

DVC = Disney Vacation Club (Disney's "Timeshare" Plan)

 

[SuzanneSLO]

One suggestion for those wanting to get discounted DVC annual passes, you can purchase a PH in advance and then upgrade to a more expensive annual pass at City Hall before you have used all the days on your PH. If you plan to use EE or AAA free parking on your PH ticket, make sure you do that before you upgrade.

Buying in advance and upgrading allows you to at least avoid the ticket booth line and will give you more flexibility on timing your upgrade at City Hall. Unfortunately, I think those lines are often long throughout the day early in the calendar year, but they are probably better on a weekday than a weekend. We have waited in that horrible AP picture line one January for more than an hour. In contrast, we were the only ones at City Hall when we upgraded our 4 day PH last July!

-- SuzanneSLO

 

[Pir8girl]

Mesabravo: I'm sorry to hear about check-in especially since you were on the conceirge level.
We have booked a room on conceirge level for April. Was it worth it? How was the breakfast?
We were at the GC last year - just a standard view - and we had turndown service everynight. I can't believe you didn't have it on the 6th floor

 

[mesabravo]

For my family of 6, it was extremely worth it. Although, if you are there for an extended time (us 9 days), you get a little tired of the same food items. For breakfast, we had 2 different pastries, 2 different cake breads, 4 differents cold cereals, and a huge platter of fruit to choose from. However, each day was the SAME assortment of each. Tea time was ham, salmon, and sprout finger sandwiches. Also was hot mickey head nuggets, choc dipped strawberries. Wine and cheese was about 4 different cheeses, 4-5 different crackers, vege platter, 1/2 pbj uncrustables, and crab cakes. Storytime was 3-4 different cookies and 2-3 differnt dessert finger types. Couldn't really tell you what they were called. One was a chocolate cream square and the other was a green custard drop shape. The coffee, soda, and water probably paid for charge itself with our family. We took advantage of the breakfast each day, but only the other items when we were passing through. There are times when no food is out, but you only would have to wait about an hour until the next time.
The other things were that they have internet if you need to pull mail, and you can check out DVD's if you have fussy kids/or just want to stay in. The one thing I can tell you is, my son got strep throat the third day we were there and they helped me find an on call dr., pizza and beer for me, they even offered to go to Haggendaz to get ice cream for him. I don't know if the other cast members would go that far, but maybe. It is quite expensive, so think about what you would spend on those items and compare. If you do get it, you need to be determined to use it as much as possible or you'll end up spending money on soda and water in the park. Let me know if you have any more questions.

 

[Pir8girl]

Mesabravo: I've already booked conceirge. I've always wanted to try it. It's only money, right
Thank you so much for the rundown.
I do have some questions:
*What is a hot mickey head nugget?
* I was wondering about the pb& j thing. I'm hoping they'll have alternatives as ds is allergic to nuts and peanut butter. Last year we sat along the electric light parade route in CA - I think it was the vineyard - and had boxed snacks. The CM's were outstanding (a married couple) and they made sure DS had turkey rather than pb&j.
* Do you just grab the water and soda on your way out?
* Do you need your own laptop or do they have computers there? Are they
on the 6th floor?
* Do they serve drinks like mojitos or is just wine and beer?
I am very excited and am counting down the days!

 

[mesabravo]

If you let the cm's know your child has allergies, I'm sure something can be arranged. There are other things though that I'm sure your child will eat. The mickey head is basically ckn nuggets. The Electric Parade is gone, and we didn't do the vineyard. The soda/water is in a fridge in the concierge so you can get it all day long (6am-10pm). There is one computer in the lounge so no laptop needed unless you wanted to log on in your room. All is on the 6th floor in the Craftman's Lounge. If you want milk at other times than breakfast and storytime, all you have to do is ask. The beer and wine is basically bud, miller lite, and one red/one white wine. You can purchase anything else and they would bring it up. We bought a couple Coronas during the Super Bowl. There were only a couple other men in the lounge thoughout the game. Like I said before, you can make it worth it if you plan around some times. We always did breakfast and usually one other time too. You run back to your room to get jackets etc., so take the extra 20-30 minutes to grab a snack. My kids looked forward to it. I don't let them drink too much soda, so it was a treat to snack in the lounge. We only ate one meal at the park. That cut down on expenses and also waiting in lines for food. Did make up for it in park sweets though. Ha Ha. I won't have enough points in November when I go to stay concierge. Bummed!!

 

[Pir8girl]

Thanks so much for the info. I was considering buying my kids a refillable mug at Whitewater Snacks, but they really don't drink a lot of soda. My daughter doesn't drink it at all and my son only has one occasionally. We'll definitely make use of the water bottles.
How is their coffee? Coming from the Pacific Northwest I am coffee nut and must have my daily dose
How did you have points? Do you belong to DVC?
I've been wondering if it's really worth belonging.

 

[Baloo2003]

One suggestion for those wanting to get discounted DVC annual passes, you can purchase a PH in advance and then upgrade to a more expensive annual pass at City Hall before you have used all the days on your PH. If you plan to use EE or AAA free parking on your PH ticket, make sure you do that before you upgrade.
-- SuzanneSLO

Suzanne: That is a great suggestion. I will want to use my EE on a Monday, which will be the last day of the Hopper Pass. Will there be any problem upgrading on my last day there (last use day of my hopper pass)? Other than that day I won't have any days remainging on my hopper pass.

More info: Based on other discussions on this board, I know the days I can use EE when I am there is Saturday, which may be a busier day, and Monday. I would rather use my EE on my last day becasue it was recommended to be a lighter crowd day.

Thanks, Jeff

 

[SuzanneSLO]

Will there be any problem upgrading on my last day there (last use day of my hopper pass)?

No, there shouldn't be any problem of upgrading on your last day. If you are nervous and there is no line on Sunday at the annual pass processing center, you could double check then. Also, if you need to, you could probably also upgrade to add another day to your PH pass so you can go Tuesday as well. As long as the upgraded PH is still cheaper then the AP, you can still upgrade again to the AP.

Good luck and enjoy your trip -- Suzanne

 

[Pir8girl]

We updated on the last day. It worked out great. The line for AP's can be long so try and get there when the park opens.