PDA

View Full Version : Trip report January 1-8 fairly long read



IdahoMike
01-09-2007, 10:11 PM
My family of 5 (myself, DW, DS 6, DS 4, and DS 1) flew into LAX from Boise on New Year's Day. As we are Deluxe AP holders, we couldn't enter the park on New Year's Day, so we used that day to check into our hotel (Grand Californian! some of you may remember the great deal I got on getawaytoday for $834 for 7 nights), get some groceries, and watch the greatest college football game of all time (Fiesta Bowl, Boise State defeats Oklahoma). We also had dinner at the Rainforest Cafe with my wife's friend and her new husband who were on their honeymoon. Food was much improved from our last experience there 2 yrs ago.

My wife's friend and her husband were fairly inexperienced in the ways of DL, so we decided to spend the day with them on the 2nd. They had already been in the park for 2 days, and had no idea how to use fastpasses, or that they could get an early entry with their parkhoppers. Luckily, we got early entry as well, staying on property, so we were in the park at 7 am on Tuesday the 7th. We immediately headed for Peter Pan, rode that and Dumbo to to get them out of the way. We hit pretty much every ride in Fantasyland that was open (Pinocchio, Snow White, Carousel, Mr. Toad, Teacups, Alice, Matterhorn.) by 8 am. Headed over to Space to get fastpasses , and managed to ride Buzz twice, and Star Tours once before our FP's were effective. Rode Space on the last day before Rockin' went into effect, and it was great as always. Headed out of Tomorrowland and stopped to meet Ariel for the kids (they love collecting autographs, and we love taking pictures!) My middle son loves Big Thunder, so we headed there next, and everyone rode that, except DS 6 he was nervous) and DS 1 (too short). Headed over to get FP's for Splash, and rode Pooh, and HM Holiday. Had never been there for HMH, and we LOVED it. Ended up going on that about 7 times during the week. By that time it was lunch, so we headed to Village Haus (big mistake). Lines were ridiculously long. they had 2 lines feeding to each cash register, so the cashier had to take turns helping each line. Food was fine. We then got FP's for Indy, as our window to ride Splash was now open. Rode the Jungle Cruise while we were there, and then headed to Splash. My DS 6 got soaked, as he loves to ride in the front of the log. Met Tigger while we were over there as well. Decided to head to DCA after that, and rode Monsters, and then headed to Screamin', as my wife's friend wanted to ride that badly. She and I were the only 2 that wanted to ride it, so we used single rider, as the line was really long. Got on quickly, and had a blast on that. Went to see Lightning and Mater, and then headed to the hotel to rest (love the entrance from the Grand Californian to DCA). Came back in for Block Party Bash, and then headed into Disneyland to ride Indy and watch the fireworks. Loved the holiday fireworks as well, and we got a prime spot about halfway between main st and the partners statue, on a bench, and we only had to sit there for about 45 mins. Great day all in all, even though my wife's friend annoys the heck out of me and always has :D

Wednesday Jan 3rd: No early entry, so we decided to sleep in a bit, and go through the DCA entrance at 9:30, since the park opened at 10. I went on Soarin' with DS 6 while the wife went to get our free stroller with the Disney Visa. Went for the photo op as well at Ariel's (might as well use all the Disney Visa perks). We ended up doing this 3 times, got Chip & Dale twice, and Mickey & Goofy once, but it was great, you get a ton of 1 on 1 time with the characters. Rpde Grizzly, Golden Zephyr, Francis' Ladybug Boogie (had never ridden this one, it was always broken), and Monster's Inc. Then headed to Disneyland. Took the boys to Jedi Training Academy (The days run together, but I think this happened on Wednesday). Anyway, while we were waiting, the workers flooded Nemo, and the whole area by Tomorrowland Terrace was underwater, and it almost ran all the way up to the Jedi show. The show was able to go on, and the boys loved it, even though they didn't get picked. Darth Maul scared the heck out of them, he kept glaring at them, getting right up in their face while he stalked around. We did Small World Holiday as well, and it was also nice (I don't like that ride, but at least the song changes once in a while to Jingle Bells). Did Roger Rabbit, and went to Mickey's House to meet the Big Cheese himself. We pretty much spent the rest of the day trying to get on as many rides as possible, didn't see any shows that day. Oh, and I won the lanyard and pin set from the YOMD people, over by the entrance to Frontierland.

Thursday Jan 4th: Early entry again, and then Breakfast at Minnie's at the Plaza Inn. Had a great time with the characters. Kids got to meet Minnie, Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore, Capt. Hook, Chip & Dale. Fairy Godmother was also there, but she never came outside during the entire 90 mins we were there. The boys had a ball, esp. with Chip & Dale. Dale signed their book after Chip, and he wrote "Dale rocks, Chip stinks" in 2 of the books, and "Dale #1, Chip #2" in the other. DS 4 fell out of his chair, and Minnie rushed over and gave him a kiss. We did our usual rides after that (Big Thunder being #1 most important, DS 4 rode it 13 times during our trip) Hit our mainstays of Indy, Splash, Pooh, Buzz, and Star Tours. FP for Autopia as well. We rode the Columbia for the first time ever, and the boys got to steer the ship, which was a thrill for them. As it got later, the rain came down, and the boys got soaked, so we decided to call it a night. F! and Fireworks were both cancelled that night.

Friday Jan 5th. No early entry, but we realized we hadn't ridden Pirates yet, so after rope drop, we booked it over there. We all rode, and loved it, except for DS 4. He doesn't like rides that have water, or drops (but loves Big Thunder, go figure), so he decided no more Pirates for him. We spent a good deal of time meeting characters on this day, and riding our usuals. Saw the Christmas parade, and DS 1 was infatuated with that. He loved the music, and all the characters, and had a great time. We decided that we would see Fantasmic that night, so we crowded ourselves down to Rivers of America about 8:15, and although the show was great, the experience with the crowds was not. I had to hold DS 6 the entire time so he could see (the other 2 boys were asleep.) I found it interesting that some of the characters that are on the Mark Twain at the end, are ones that you never see in the park (Prince John from Robin Hood, Raccoon from Pocahontas, Clarabelle the Cow). Fireworks were cancelled due to wind, so we headed off to bed.

Saturday Jan 6th: Early entry again, so we cruised through Fantasyland yet again, rode Casey Jr. and Storybook Land as soon as they opened as well. Crowds were much lighter on Saturday for some reason (not complaining, mind you). We headed to DCA to see Crush, and he talked to DS 4 again (did so last summer as well). Asked his name "Um, Cameron", and Cameron was anticipating Crush asking him where he was from, since that's what he did last time, but Crush asked him to say "totally" and Cameron said "Idaho". Crush was quite confused, but persisted, and got Cameron to say "totally sweet". Dory also came out for the show. We met lots of characters that day, including Mr & Mrs. Incredible, Goofy, Snow White, Cinderella, and Belle (dressed in the blue & white dress from the beginning of the movie, not the beautiful gold dress from the end). I have to admit, I have a crush on this particular Belle, as she was the one we met last summer as well, and also the one that is on the Disney Princess storytelling on ch. 44 at the Grand Californian. My kids thought that was kind of funny, but she really is pretty, and my wife didn't seem to mind either. Rode Grizzly twice, and got wetter than I ever had before, soaked top to bottom, and finally got hit by the geyser at the end. Went back to DL, and were able to walk on Splash 3 times in a row with no wait, as it was getting dark. I also saw radio host Jim Rome and his family between HMH and Splash. We decided to do HMH twice as well, and by that time F! was starting up and we sat on the brick wall outside of HMH, and had a perfect, unobstructed, uncrowded view. Wish I had known that earlier in the week, but now we know, and will be sitting there from now on Watched the fireworks from that spot, and then DS 6 decided he wanted to try Big Thunder. However, the traffic control was horrible, and there was really no way for us to get over there. We headed through Adventureland, and ended up stuck on main street, because we couldn't get to anywhere else for over 1/2 hr. We finally got to BTMRR, and the boys rode it with mom, and DS 6 LOVED it. Went 2 more times in a row, and he ended up riding it 8 times during the last 3 days. Strangely, as we left, we saw the cat from Pinocchio (not J. Worthington, but his friend) out on main st. We had never seen him before.

Sunday Jan 6th: Made sure to do a lot of the things we hadn't done, like the rest of a Bugs Land (boys were scared of It's Tough to be a Bug), Muppet Vision, Rockin Screamin', Sun Wheel, Mulholland, Met more characters (Sulley, Lilo & Stitch, Flik, Aurora, Donald (only saw him once when he was greeting guests, otherwise only in parades). We did the Aladdin/Jasmine storytelling show on this day, and it was very enjoyable. DS 6 and I went to the Ducks/Red Wings game that night, while the other 3 stayed at the park and went on a lot of rides that small kids would like. They also saw Mary Poppins and a penguin, and Clarabelle (over in Big Thunder Ranch) I forgot to mention, we did Santa's reindeer roundup earlier in the week). We were able to meet them around 8:30 that night, and we hit Buzz, Star Tours, and HMH 2 more times before it closed, and then headed off to bed.

Monday Jan 7th, our last day. We decided that everyone could do their favorites that day, so I sprinted to Rockin' Space when early entry started, rode that quickly while the family waited. We then did Buzz 2x (I scored 576,900 on one ride), Matterhorn 2x, Star Tours, Big Thunder 3x, and Pirates. Met Cruella on our way out of the park. before heading over to DCA to hit Monsters 2x. No crowds, no lines, it was great! Unfortunately we ran out of time before we could do Soarin' again, but we had to get to LAX. My wife cried all morning, she would live in DL if she could. Kids didn't cry, just their mother :crying: We flew out at 4:19, and were home at 7:30 MST. GREAT VACATION.

Highlights: Haunted Mansion Holiday was awesome, and we also liked IASW holiday. Fireworks and F! were great as well. I liked Rockin' Space as well. kids got 28 autographs, including some they hadn't gotten before like Lilo & Stitch. Crowds were much less on Fri/Sat/Sun than they had been Tues-Thurs. Characters were great, esp. Ariel, Belle, Chip & Dale. CM Don on Winnie the Pooh was super friendly to my kids. DS 4 rode Big Thunder 13 times, beating the 9x from our last trip. Weather was perfect, other than that bit of rain on Thursday night. Grand Californian was amazing, and everyone there was super friendly and super helpful. Mind you, I'd never pay the usual rates for it, but for the rate I got, it was more than worth it. Winning something in the YOAMD promotion was cool as well. Boys are now huge into Pin Trading, and DS 4, who is a huge Piglet fan, was able to trade for a Hong Kong Piglet pin that is apparently fairly rare.

Lowlights: not many, but we saw a little boy punch Tigger (luckily, Tigger didn't respond, unlike in WDW), obnoxious teenagers swearing profusely on Big Thunder, crowd control after the fireworks (either the CM's were taking their job way too seriously, or not paying attention at all, just waving their glow sticks and staring off into space.), pushy parents during character meet & greets, and the restrooms were dirtier than last summer. We didn't make it to the Aladdin show in the Hyperion Theater this time either. The biggest lowlight was having to go home though. Good news, we'll be back in June!

I could go on for hours, but this is probably long enough. Sorry if I put any of you to sleep.

Mike

momuvseven
01-10-2007, 03:41 AM
That is cool Mike. We were there last week too but I'm too lazy to write it all out. Fri/Sat were our best days where we never waited for a thing.

ESS Heckler
01-10-2007, 09:54 AM
Thanks so much for taking the time to write a great trip report.
For those of us that live in the Rocky Mountains, and can't get to the Park very often , it gives us a chance to live vicariously through others.
I always love to read them.

I'm glad you and your family had such a great time. Although I don't cry when I leave the park, I am immediately planning my next rip.

nvmom
01-10-2007, 10:18 AM
Great trip report! A wonderful Disney time! :)


Went to see Lightning and Mater Where are Lightening and Mater?? My ds is a new found Cars fan and would love this when we go next month!

Btw, how about that Boise State game? WOW! We're from western Montana originally and remember back when Boise State was the Big Sky. Dh was on the edge of his seat the whole game.

nvmom

Rteneyck
01-10-2007, 11:42 AM
We saw mater and mcqueen by the Golden Dreams area at DCA. My son was in heaven.

disneyhound
01-10-2007, 06:25 PM
Thanks for the trip report, makes my mouth water knowing we are getting close to our vacation!!! :p

LibertyCall
01-10-2007, 06:57 PM
I didn't get past this...


"Grand Californian! some of you may remember the great deal I got on getawaytoday for $834 for 7 nights"



:eek:

kisroo
01-10-2007, 06:59 PM
I didn't get past this...


"Grand Californian! some of you may remember the great deal I got on getawaytoday for $834 for 7 nights"

:eek:


Me, either. :geek:

Great trip report!

~kisroo:)

LibertyCall
01-10-2007, 07:26 PM
Great trip report! I am a little ashamed to admit, that the trip before our last trip, where we were supposed to go for four days, I cried the night before we were supposed to leave...so we stayed another day, LOL. So we planned for five days last time, and we'll do that again in June.

Like your wife, I could live there if they would let me. In fact, when I was a little kid, I thought for sure I would work at Disneyland and I would get to live there. I was always trying to decide between living in the castle or an apartment in NOS. If only....

IdahoMike
01-10-2007, 09:35 PM
I have no idea how I got so lucky with the deal for getawaytoday, but even after calling twice to confirm, I was still skeptical when we showed up, but everything went off without a hitch. Of course now the wife and I have been giving each other the "We can't stay anywhere else, now that we have become accustomed to the GCH." spiel. I still think we will end up at the Candy Cane for most trips, but I will be continually looking for great deals on the Disney hotels.
The Boise State game was unbelievable. I am an Oregon State grad (who, btw also played a great bowl game), but as long as BSU isn't playing my school, I root for them. I also remember the good old days of the Big Sky Conference, as I grew up in Bozeman watching Montana State.

I forgot to mention in my report, isn't it about time for a lengthy refurb on Indy? The ride broke down every single day we were there, at least once. Luckily it was never when we were on it, or in line, but there were 2 or 3 times where we tried to go on it, and it was broken down.

LibertyCall
01-10-2007, 09:46 PM
Thanks to you, I checked out our dates for june and came up with these amounts (the + is added to the money we would be spending for two rooms plus tix at HoJo's)

+$800 for PP (I believe it was +$1500 with expedia or the Disney site)

+$1250 for DH (+$2,000 at expedia or the Disney site)


Now, if we were being smart, we wouldn't go to Disneyland AT ALL this year, but we skipped last year and we're feeling the effects of no vacation (DL is our big vacation every year).

We could go, though we should use that money to pay off our last credit card. But, here we are, dreaming (ok, more on the actual *planning* side) of going in June.

Now you go and tell me about this site where, for "only" $800 more, I can stay on property?! You should be ashamed of yourself.:( :fez:

LibertyCall
01-10-2007, 09:48 PM
I should add that I have never seen mention of that site anywhere but this thread.

And our only problem is, we need time to save before June to do the trip. Too bad getawaytoday wants their money NOW, LOL. I guess that makes it an impossibility for us.

As always, maybe next time....LOL.

Crazy4DL
01-11-2007, 10:22 AM
That is SO cool that you got to stay at the GCH for such GREAT rate!

Fun report . . . thanks for sharing! :D