Just got back from our 6th trip. We are a family of 6 with kids ranging from 15-22 and this year we brought along a girlfriend. I'll try not to get too wordy and stick to my points. We did 5 park days plus our 2 travel days. Overall, we had a great time and already thinking about next time (which will be a few years from now).
Hotel - stayed at Coronado Springs. It was ok, not bad, but nothing special about it. There were 2 negatives - the cashier in the Pepper Market was really grouchy and somewhat bossy. We observed her barking at other customers as well. Also, saw a roach in our bathroom - not the outdoor kind, the nasty small kind. Yuck! There was construction at the entrance, which was unsightly, but not bothersome to us at all as far as noise went. The beds were comfortable and I liked that there was a ceiling fan in the rooms. (I thought I read on here that they got rid of all the ceiling fans?)
Disney Springs - on our arrival day, we went to DS and saw The Incredibles then later had dinner at Splitsville. This was so much fun! The theater was packed and it felt really special seeing that movie in Disney before the "official" opening. The food at Splitsville was surprisingly one of our better meals.
Speaking of meals... I had several table service meals reserved, but I ended up cancelling a few due to scheduling, being tired, or just not hungry. I may rethink that aspect for future visits. (We used to stop and eat TS meals every trip, but this time didn't.) We didn't do the dining plan (as we have in previous trips). Even though I calculated everything and we still paid LESS than what the dining plan would have cost, it was still such a shocker. OMG... we ate breakfast at Hollywood & Vine. It was good and all, but I want to say it cost us about $300 - FOR BREAKFAST. Again, I knew it going in, and remember we were 7 people, but it was still such sticker shock. One of our other meals was the Fantasmic dining package at Mama Melrose. For us, well over $300, but it was delicious! Everyone loved their meal there. Cost about the same as H&V, but way better food of course (delicious steak compared to scrambled eggs lol). Another "fancy" meal was San Angel in Mexico - very expensive also and not worth it in our opinions. It wasn't bad, but for the money, we would have rather eaten somewhere else. Lastly, we ate at BOMA (for the second time). I think since my kids are older now, it was worth it. Everyone enjoyed it. For the first time ever, we didn't eat at 'Ohana and we missed it and agreed next time we'll go back. The rest of the meals were quick service. I wasn't crazy about any of those, but I did like the rotisserie chicken meal at Cosmic Rays. I don't care what anyone says about that place... lol. Tried Sunshine Seasons for the first time and unfortunately, we were all disappointed. Not very good at all.
First park day - Epcot. We started there because it's everyone's least favorite. We rope dropped it and got a lot of rides done, then took an afternoon break for a couple of hours, and went back in the evening. We actually ran out of time to see everything and didn't get to finish seeing all in the world showcase. That was a first for us. We had to take that break though or we wouldn't survive the week. I wish Epcot was open later, even to 10:00 would be nice.
Second day - Hollywood Studios. Stayed the entire day only resting during our long dinner at Mama Melrose. Filled up the whole day doing stuff! I was surprised at how crowded HS was with what little they have. I can't imagine when Star Wars opens...
Third and Fourth days - 2 glorious days at Magic Kingdom. Rope dropped, afternoon break, stay until closing. Worked great. Going 2 days we got to do everything! I truly love MK! Not that this ruined anything, but I did notice.... dirty bathrooms!
I've read that complaint on here a lot and to my surprise, it was true! The dirtiest that I've ever seen too! Not Disney standards at all! They were especially bad over by the Pinocchio Haus. Again, it didn't ruin my trip, just an observation.
Last park day - Animal Kingdom. Well.... it was our half-day park before and now is a full day. 3 of our 4 kids' favorite park. The whole week I believe was EMH, so we got there promptly at 8:00 - maybe a little before actually because we were finished with Navi River by 8:00. Of course everyone headed to FOP first so the Navi River line was very quick! Then we rode the safari while it was still early and we saw so many animals out! Probably our best safari ever.
Flight of Passage - we had a fast pass at 10:45. It was exhilarating!! Everyone's new favorite ride. The land itself was "neat" but let's face it, the main event is the ride. And we loved it so much that my kids talked me into doing standby later that night. Yes, we waited about 1.5 hours! Estimated wait time was 2 hours, but we timed it. I normally wouldn't do that, but this was a special occasion lol. We got in line about 10:30 and left around midnight. My feet and back hurt by then, but we passed the time talking so it wasn't too bad. My family felt like we ended our trip with a bang.
We had such a great time! It'll be a few years before we can go back, but by then all the new stuff will be up an running so we're excited about that.
That's it, sorry so long!
Hotel - stayed at Coronado Springs. It was ok, not bad, but nothing special about it. There were 2 negatives - the cashier in the Pepper Market was really grouchy and somewhat bossy. We observed her barking at other customers as well. Also, saw a roach in our bathroom - not the outdoor kind, the nasty small kind. Yuck! There was construction at the entrance, which was unsightly, but not bothersome to us at all as far as noise went. The beds were comfortable and I liked that there was a ceiling fan in the rooms. (I thought I read on here that they got rid of all the ceiling fans?)
Disney Springs - on our arrival day, we went to DS and saw The Incredibles then later had dinner at Splitsville. This was so much fun! The theater was packed and it felt really special seeing that movie in Disney before the "official" opening. The food at Splitsville was surprisingly one of our better meals.
Speaking of meals... I had several table service meals reserved, but I ended up cancelling a few due to scheduling, being tired, or just not hungry. I may rethink that aspect for future visits. (We used to stop and eat TS meals every trip, but this time didn't.) We didn't do the dining plan (as we have in previous trips). Even though I calculated everything and we still paid LESS than what the dining plan would have cost, it was still such a shocker. OMG... we ate breakfast at Hollywood & Vine. It was good and all, but I want to say it cost us about $300 - FOR BREAKFAST. Again, I knew it going in, and remember we were 7 people, but it was still such sticker shock. One of our other meals was the Fantasmic dining package at Mama Melrose. For us, well over $300, but it was delicious! Everyone loved their meal there. Cost about the same as H&V, but way better food of course (delicious steak compared to scrambled eggs lol). Another "fancy" meal was San Angel in Mexico - very expensive also and not worth it in our opinions. It wasn't bad, but for the money, we would have rather eaten somewhere else. Lastly, we ate at BOMA (for the second time). I think since my kids are older now, it was worth it. Everyone enjoyed it. For the first time ever, we didn't eat at 'Ohana and we missed it and agreed next time we'll go back. The rest of the meals were quick service. I wasn't crazy about any of those, but I did like the rotisserie chicken meal at Cosmic Rays. I don't care what anyone says about that place... lol. Tried Sunshine Seasons for the first time and unfortunately, we were all disappointed. Not very good at all.
First park day - Epcot. We started there because it's everyone's least favorite. We rope dropped it and got a lot of rides done, then took an afternoon break for a couple of hours, and went back in the evening. We actually ran out of time to see everything and didn't get to finish seeing all in the world showcase. That was a first for us. We had to take that break though or we wouldn't survive the week. I wish Epcot was open later, even to 10:00 would be nice.
Second day - Hollywood Studios. Stayed the entire day only resting during our long dinner at Mama Melrose. Filled up the whole day doing stuff! I was surprised at how crowded HS was with what little they have. I can't imagine when Star Wars opens...
Third and Fourth days - 2 glorious days at Magic Kingdom. Rope dropped, afternoon break, stay until closing. Worked great. Going 2 days we got to do everything! I truly love MK! Not that this ruined anything, but I did notice.... dirty bathrooms!
I've read that complaint on here a lot and to my surprise, it was true! The dirtiest that I've ever seen too! Not Disney standards at all! They were especially bad over by the Pinocchio Haus. Again, it didn't ruin my trip, just an observation.Last park day - Animal Kingdom. Well.... it was our half-day park before and now is a full day. 3 of our 4 kids' favorite park. The whole week I believe was EMH, so we got there promptly at 8:00 - maybe a little before actually because we were finished with Navi River by 8:00. Of course everyone headed to FOP first so the Navi River line was very quick! Then we rode the safari while it was still early and we saw so many animals out! Probably our best safari ever.
Flight of Passage - we had a fast pass at 10:45. It was exhilarating!! Everyone's new favorite ride. The land itself was "neat" but let's face it, the main event is the ride. And we loved it so much that my kids talked me into doing standby later that night. Yes, we waited about 1.5 hours! Estimated wait time was 2 hours, but we timed it. I normally wouldn't do that, but this was a special occasion lol. We got in line about 10:30 and left around midnight. My feet and back hurt by then, but we passed the time talking so it wasn't too bad. My family felt like we ended our trip with a bang.
We had such a great time! It'll be a few years before we can go back, but by then all the new stuff will be up an running so we're excited about that.
That's it, sorry so long!
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