Hi everyone,
Here's a general overview of our recent trip, some good parts, but i'll mostly focus on negatives because we all know that Disney is supposed to be fun.
It was me, my wife and our daughters; 12 and 6.
Accommodations:
We stayed at Pop Century. Needless to say, the room was cramped but beds were sufficient. thankfully, we spent almost no time in it so, i'd say it met my expectations.
Weather:
Weather was AMAZING! mid 70s mostly sunny, though it started getting humid later in the week. no rain at all! Nights were cool, we needed jeans and a light jacket.
Crowds:
WOW. Between the latin american "fifteen" groups (6-8 or so groups of 1-200 girls) and the extremely rude latin American families apparently celebrating Carnival (which we didn't know about until after the trip), this was enough to make to 65-75 minute waits for the main attractions as well as wall-to-wall sea of people in MK and HS on non-EMH days! OUTRAGEOUS! based on all the research we did, February before Valentines is supposed to be the least busy time to go. WRONG. WRONG. i was hugely disappointed in the crowd levels and it made for a miserable trip, from that perspective.
HS on 2/4:
despite the above rant on crowd levels, HS rocks! we loved the stunt shows and Toy Story Mania. the recommendations to go to Toy Story Mania first after going through the gate are spot on. At 9:15am we literally walked right on the ride with <2mins wait. By the time we were out, FastPasses were for 11:15! by 12 noon, all the FastPasses were gone! We did Toy Story Mania twice and had a great time. Star Tours was fun, but simulated motion rides make me nauseous. Voyage of Little Mermaid was very well done. Rock N Roll Coaster is quite good; but i much prefer outdoor coasters.
I can't say enough about the Indy Jones and Lights Motors Action stunt shows. Totally awesome. The girls and parents loved every minute, and the appearance by Lightning McQueen was great!
MK on 2/5:
Everything was packed by lunch, minimum 30min wait for everything. 1hr for Merida. 75mins for Belle. 1hr for Space Mtn, 30 mins for Speedway. Generally, the rides are all dated, not entertaining and were disappointing. Monsters inc Laugh floor was fun. Fireworks show was excellent and it almost made up for the crappy crowds; well worth seeing. Leaving the park after was a pain. 35min wait in elbow-to-elbow line to get on the monorail back to parking lot.
There was nothing magical about the experience as parents.
AK on 2/6:
Huge disappointment for everyone. We left after eating lunch and getting a few character signatures. Skip this park entirely, IMO.
Epcot on 2/7:
The seas with nemo is great. we loved Turtle talk and the Nemo ride. spent a lot of time enjoying the aquarium. Rude spanish speaking girls cut lines in nearly every character greeting line. cast members did nothing. Test Track was far and beyond the most disappointing ride at all the parks. I still don't know why i bothered going, even though there was no wait.
Fireworks show pales in comparison to MK's, IMO, don't bother, just see the MK fireworks.
Overall, with this being our first experience at Disney, we most certainly will not be returning. absurdly expensive, huge crowds and rude people all in what was supposed to be the LEAST crowded time, made for a regretful trip. from a cost/value perspective, and for as much as everyone hypes up Disney to be, yes... we regret going.
Here's a general overview of our recent trip, some good parts, but i'll mostly focus on negatives because we all know that Disney is supposed to be fun.
It was me, my wife and our daughters; 12 and 6.
Accommodations:
We stayed at Pop Century. Needless to say, the room was cramped but beds were sufficient. thankfully, we spent almost no time in it so, i'd say it met my expectations.
Weather:
Weather was AMAZING! mid 70s mostly sunny, though it started getting humid later in the week. no rain at all! Nights were cool, we needed jeans and a light jacket.
Crowds:
WOW. Between the latin american "fifteen" groups (6-8 or so groups of 1-200 girls) and the extremely rude latin American families apparently celebrating Carnival (which we didn't know about until after the trip), this was enough to make to 65-75 minute waits for the main attractions as well as wall-to-wall sea of people in MK and HS on non-EMH days! OUTRAGEOUS! based on all the research we did, February before Valentines is supposed to be the least busy time to go. WRONG. WRONG. i was hugely disappointed in the crowd levels and it made for a miserable trip, from that perspective.
HS on 2/4:
despite the above rant on crowd levels, HS rocks! we loved the stunt shows and Toy Story Mania. the recommendations to go to Toy Story Mania first after going through the gate are spot on. At 9:15am we literally walked right on the ride with <2mins wait. By the time we were out, FastPasses were for 11:15! by 12 noon, all the FastPasses were gone! We did Toy Story Mania twice and had a great time. Star Tours was fun, but simulated motion rides make me nauseous. Voyage of Little Mermaid was very well done. Rock N Roll Coaster is quite good; but i much prefer outdoor coasters.
I can't say enough about the Indy Jones and Lights Motors Action stunt shows. Totally awesome. The girls and parents loved every minute, and the appearance by Lightning McQueen was great!
MK on 2/5:
Everything was packed by lunch, minimum 30min wait for everything. 1hr for Merida. 75mins for Belle. 1hr for Space Mtn, 30 mins for Speedway. Generally, the rides are all dated, not entertaining and were disappointing. Monsters inc Laugh floor was fun. Fireworks show was excellent and it almost made up for the crappy crowds; well worth seeing. Leaving the park after was a pain. 35min wait in elbow-to-elbow line to get on the monorail back to parking lot.
There was nothing magical about the experience as parents.
AK on 2/6:
Huge disappointment for everyone. We left after eating lunch and getting a few character signatures. Skip this park entirely, IMO.
Epcot on 2/7:
The seas with nemo is great. we loved Turtle talk and the Nemo ride. spent a lot of time enjoying the aquarium. Rude spanish speaking girls cut lines in nearly every character greeting line. cast members did nothing. Test Track was far and beyond the most disappointing ride at all the parks. I still don't know why i bothered going, even though there was no wait.
Fireworks show pales in comparison to MK's, IMO, don't bother, just see the MK fireworks.
Overall, with this being our first experience at Disney, we most certainly will not be returning. absurdly expensive, huge crowds and rude people all in what was supposed to be the LEAST crowded time, made for a regretful trip. from a cost/value perspective, and for as much as everyone hypes up Disney to be, yes... we regret going.
