Trip Report From Disneyland to Disneyworld

Travel Day – Part 1 November 19th.

Hi all and welcome to my first trip report. I’ve been back home for a few weeks now after my three week trip to Disneyland and Disneyworld with an intermission in New Orleans. I had a great time, so much so that even though I had thought I wouldn’t do another American Disney trip for at least three years the thought of not being there for Christmas next year is unimaginable and I am now planning a (shorter) trip for December 2016.


The travel day began with a sad goodbye to my lovely dog (sad for me anyway – she was none the wiser) and a handover of my house keys to Dad who dog sat while I was away. This is Sookie as a very unimpressed Christmas elf.
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She is a three year old spoodle and named after Sookie Stackhouse from True Blood.


My flight left at 4.30pm so I worked until midday and then headed to Auckland airport to check in as early as possible. I am lucky at the moment to have the option to travel on heavily discounted but stand-by airfares. I had paid extra to be upgraded if possible and was hoping that this would come through, but mostly that the flight wouldn’t be full!! A seat on the flight was confirmed straight away which was a weight off my mind. I had a couple of wines with a friend and then a few samples of duty-free liquor while waiting to board and was starting to really feel fairly relaxed about my 12 hour flight. I felt even better when I was upgraded to premium economy.
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My seat was comfortable with lots of leg room and I had no one next to me so I could put all my stuff on the seat next to me and use the extra pillows. I watched the 2nd best exotic marigold hotel, Trainwreck, Ant man (I cant remember this movie at all- but my notes say I watched it so I must have!), Frozen fever, Poltergeist and a few episodes of Modern family. I kept trying to sleep as I was arriving in LAX at around 7am and knew I had a lot of time before I could get into my room to rest, but just couldn’t get comfortable or tired enough to manage more than a few minutes here or there.

The service was great and the food was good for plane food but not great. Here is a photo of my half eaten bread and butter, appetiser and dessert.

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One of my aims for the trip was to take photos of all my food and drink as food photos are one of my favourite parts of trip reports. I failed miserably at this task, either forgetting altogether or only remembering after I had already started eating the food. When I did remember the photos were crap until I finally managed to take a food photo I actually liked on the very last day of the trip. This bodes well for any future trip reports, but you’ll have to forgive the poor and half eaten quality of many of my food photos.


The cold chicken, cucumber and coriander salad was the highlight of the meal, really fresh and tasty. The main was a beef stew and dessert was an apple and custard tart which was too cold.

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Breakfast was nice with fruit salad, yogurt, croissant and pancakes although the rhubarb compote was too tart.

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Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Travel Day – Part 2. Arrival and its still the 19th of November.

The flight arrived a bit early at 6.45am, still the 19th due to crossing the date line. I passed through customs and immigration relatively quickly and with no issues. In fact all my airport interactions were good. There wasn’t a single TSA or airport staff member at LAX, New Orleans or Orlando airports that wasn’t professional and polite. This hasn’t always been the case on previous visits, especially at LAX.


I just missed a Disneyland express bus so I bought a big coffee and waited for the next one which came at 8.50. The trip to Anaheim was quicker than I expected, especially considering the time of day and that it was a work day. In around 40 minutes the bus started its first drop offs at the Disney hotels and I got my first small look at the wonderful Christmas decorations that awaited me. I looked enviously at the people being dropped at the Disney hotels but not too badly as my time would come!!


I was staying for the next three nights at the Camelot Inn right across the road from Disneyland, followed by three nights at the Disneyland Hotel. Thankfully, even though it wasn’t yet 10am in the morning the Camelot Inn had a room ready for me so I was able to drop my luggage, shower and lay down for a while. After more than 24 hours awake this was bliss. I didn’t take a photo of the inside of my room which was pretty ordinary but I took a photo of my view (which for some reason I cant upload). But I had a nice view of the matterhorn and the monorail track along harbor boulevard and if I looked very carefully some castle turrets. Not too bad a view for approx. $150 a night. I could sit on a chair in the comfort of my room and get a great view of the fireworks.. umm, this might be a good time to confess my Disney secret. I am bored by fireworks, any fireworks, even Disney fireworks. I’d rather sleep.


Who can rest for long when Disneyland is beckoning and its been 10 years since you have had a chance to answer its call? I took a really short walk to the ticket booths to exchange my voucher for a ticket. In New Zealand you can get 10 day Disneyland tickets whereas in the US you can only get 5 day tickets. This is the one and only perk of being a New Zealand based Disney fan. They are only a few dollars more than the five day tickets and I paid for mine with credit card points so my ticket was essentially free.


After this came the moment when after all the dreaming, the waiting, the watching of vlogs, the reading of trip reports I am finally walking towards Disneyland with my own legs and seeing the floral mickey and train station with my own eyes.
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When I walked into town square I just stood there under the perfect blue sky for a while taking everything in: the towering Christmas tree, the band playing on the steps, the horse drawn tram waiting to take people up main street. It felt like the Disney powers that be had got together to arrange a perfect scene for me as I started my holiday – Thanks Bob Iger, that was really thoghtful!!
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After a while I started moving around, I took a bad selfie with Christmas Goofy, bought some Minnie ears and had my photo taken in front of the tree.

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I also took some close-up shots of the tree.

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Look at that stocking with the Mickey and the candy canes. The whole huge tree was full of those amazing small details.

I got to the hub just as the characters were parading past in their 60th anniversary outfits.

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Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
After watching this I went to adventureland, perhaps my favourite land. I saw a short line for dole whips so had my first Disney food of the trip: a dole whip float. It was beautiful with its umbrella and cherry and as tasty as I remember. I chose not to photograph it as it was melting in the sun and eating it before it dripped all over me was my number one priority. Looking for a place to eat it I saw the tiki room was about to open so I enjoyed by first attraction and my first Disney food at the same time.


I then walked through the rest of adventureland, passing by the jungle/jingle cruise which is one of my favourites and the very first ride I ever did at Disneyland. The wait wasn’t super long (20-30 Minutes)but I felt like wandering and more than waiting in line.

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If I could have peered into the future and seen how quiet this day was relative to the rest of my time here I might have taken a less relaxed attitude to my touring today.


I walked down to the New Orleans square/rivers of America area. This stretch of park from Adventureland through to New Orleans square and the Rivers of America is most charming and beautifully detailed part of any Disney park to me. When I’m at home dreaming of Disney it will usually be a scene from this area that is running through my imagination. I don’t have a lot of photos from this walkthrough but I like this shot of the Columbia, Mark Twain and the rafts.

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I then walked on to Critter country and felt like it was time for me to start riding some rides. As I was in front of the Pooh bear ride when I had this thought and it had no wait I made this my first ride. This is a cute little ride and I don’t understand why it was always so empty even when the rest of the park was teeming with people. I love the ride vehicles and the building are queue area is gorgeous.

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The shelves of sweet treats in the Pooh shop were very tempting but I thought they could wait for a later date as I had much more important food business to take care of soon.

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I then did Splash Mountain in the single rider line with almost no wait. I wasn’t too worried about getting wet as it was a lovely warm day but as it happened I hardly got a drop on me. I am right at the back of the shot below.

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The woman at the front looks pretty wet though!! I bought this shot as it made me laugh that I looked so scared and miserable which is the exact opposite of what I was feeling. I love this ride for its big drop, the anticipation of whether you’ll get soaked, the catchy music and amazing animatronics. For years I thought the song went “pretty girl, show us your bone” instead of “pretty good sure as your born” The ride has lost some of its sinister edge for me now. This sounds like it might be a good thing, but I like rides that have a dark edge.


After this I retraced my steps back to the hub and headed towards the Plaza Inn for a food mission I have been anticipating for many years.

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This chicken was everything I remembered. It was moist, flavourful and crispy. The potatoes and the gravy were amazing, so much so that I resented the presence of the green beans on my plate for taking up space that could have been filled by more potato. I didn’t like the biscuit, it was dry, but was too full from chicken and potato to eat it anyway.


I was sitting outside and could see people lined up for a parade so lingered over my meal (not hard, it was huge) so I could see some parade sitting down. Although my view was very restricted, sitting at the Plaza Inn eating chicken while watching the Christmas parade go by is one of my favourite memories from the trip. After lunch/dinner (linner?, dunch?) I was at the point of complete exhaustion so decided to go back to my motel to rest. I followed part of the parade down main street, saw and fell in love with the reindeer (many, many different photos to follow from future viewings) and then walked back to my room. Despite my best efforts to stay awake until a proper bed time to help get into a proper schedule I slept until the fireworks started. I got up and watched the fireworks from the chair in my room. They were OK so far as chair fireworks go. Thankfully after this I slept again until the morning.

Daily stats:

19, 109 steps.

Stood for 24 out of a target of 12 hours!!!!!
 

Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2: 20th of November.

This morning I was going to go to Disneyland but there was a long wait at the entrance so I decided to bite the bullet and visit California Adventure instead. I was nervous about visiting this park; I had read and seen good things about the newly renovated park but my visit to the earlier cheap and unimaginative version of the park was such a dispiriting experience that it contributed to years of disillusionment with Disney. I had my finger crossed for better things today: more imagination and beauty, fewer tractor displays. My hopes were well rewarded!!

When I entered I checked the gas station by the entrance for Oswald but I couldn’t see him. I made a note to check in here often as meeting Oswald was a top priority.
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I was going to try and find Cars Land but I saw a trolley awaiting passengers so decided to hop on and scope things out in comfort. I never got round to taking many photos of Beuna Vista street but I loved the art deco stylings and the colour scheme and landscaping. It’s a great entrance to the park.
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I got off the at the Tower of Terror. I figured now was as good a time as ever for this ride, I hadn’t eaten yet so there was nothing to come back up if I was sick. Thankfully I rode without incident, though I didn’t think a second go would be a good idea even though the line was still short.
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I really wanted to buy some merchandise in the ride store but didn’t commit to anything yet, it was one of those things I thought I had plenty of time to do later but never got round to doing again.

I then went to bugs land and rode Heimlich’s chew chew train. I love this short (very short) ride. It was the highlight of my previous visit.
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I wish I had a shot that showed more of the Heimlich car as the best part of the ride for me is hopping into his belly. Does anyone know why it was necessary to wear a seatbelt in this tamest of tame kiddie rides while splash mountain had no restraints at all? I’d love to know.

I didn’t feel comfortable as a solo adult to ride anything else in this area and was impatient to get to Cars Land. I’ll post more about this in a separate post as I took so many photos of this amazing place.
 

Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2: part 2.


I came into Cars Land the back way and the scale and majesty of the rocks made me catch my breath, it was if I had truly stepped into a desert world.
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I would recommend any newcomer to Cars Land enter for the first time I through this entrance, it’s absolutely stunning. I watched for a while to see some cars coming down the track but there were none. I went to find the ride entrance though, just in case. The cast members confirmed that the ride was down so I explored radiator springs for a while. The sense of being in another world continued.

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I decided to have breakfast here,
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I sat outside overlooking the desert and race track, feeling like there wasn’t a nicer place to eat breakfast in all of the world. I had an American breakfast with bacon, potatoes and scrambled eggs. The bacon was amazing – American bacon is always amazing. A cast member said to a family near me that radiator springs racers uses an old track from test track in Florida which is why it breaks down so often which I thought was interesting – no idea if its true or not.
 

Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2: part 3.

I loved the Christmas details in radiator springs.
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As the ride was still down after breakfast I decided to wander down the road to Paradise Pier. Lightening McQueen was finishing off his meet and greet as I passed.
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I rode the little mermaid,
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After this stumbled upon the Viva Navidad parade which was one of the best things I experienced in the whole trip. Even though my view was not the best for this viewing I was still infected by the joy and energy of this parade and came back to see it often – it played every hour.

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Watching the ladies dresses swirling as they danced was hypnotising and between this parade and the Gran Fiesta tour I fell in love with the three caballeros, who are the stars of the show, especially Jose Carioca. My biggest regret of the trip is not realising that there was a three caballeros meet and greet at DCA so I missed out on meeting them.
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Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2: part 4.

After this I took some photos in paradise pier but didn’t ride anything.
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I saw Viva Navidad again. This time I put myself into a better position to see the characters. It was hot and sweaty with no shade but it was worth it.
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I then wandered to the grizzly peaks area. It was really hot and I would have loved to have gone on the rapids ride but this feels like a strange one to ride solo. It felt like a long time since I had ridden anything so I decided to try Soarin in the single rider line although I was worried would make me nauseous. I enjoyed it; even though it is a simulator it is smooth so didn’t trigger any motion sickness for me. It’s not a favourite though, I don’t like how it changes from scene to scene, I think I would like it better if I was flying through one continuous landscape.

The fastpass area for radiator springs racers is open so I grab one for the early evening and then head to the single riders line, anxious that the ride not go down again before I get there!!
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This ride lives up to the magnificent landscape in which it is set. The combination of the great dark ride portion with the thrill of the racing makes it an instant classic in my view.

I consider finding somewhere new to eat but cant resist sitting at Flos and watching cars race by. I had a turkey sandwich with a strawberry milkshake.
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The sandwich was nice but the potato was the highlight, it tasted the same as at the plaza inn. The strawberry milkshake was insane!! I am tired after my delicious meal so head back to my room to rest until my fastpass return time.
 

Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2: part 5.

I return to DCA in the early evening. I want to make the end of my fastpass return time from 4.40 to 5.40pm so that I can ride in the dark. On the way I buy a hat, I like it because it has some Disney bling but not so much that I wouldn’t feel comfortable wearing it in real life.

I have abandoned my cute Minnie ears by this stage as I couldn’t handle with their vice like grip on my head!!
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Cars Land is just as, if not more amazing at night.
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After my night time race I head to Disneyland but get waylaid by the Pixar play parade on my way out.
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My mate Heimlich.
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The toy story acrobatic display was awesome.

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Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2: part 6.


At Disneyland I walked up main street and through the beautiful castle to fantasyland.

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I rode Snow White and Pinocchio with short waits.

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I wanted to ride Peter Pan but the line was huge, which would become a very familiar story! I got a frozen lemonade and had it with a cookie from the plane that I found in my bag, sitting at tables by Casey Junior Circus Train. I gave up trying to take photos at this stage as my photography skills are not up to taking good night photos. After this I head off through Frontierland to Pirates which only had a 20 minute wait. I then headed onto Main Street just in time for the paint the night parade. The only spot I can find is an awful position in front of the Plaza Inn but it still looks magnificent. I follow Mickey’s float down Main Street and head out, exhausted but feeling as though I couldn’t have had a more perfect first full day in the parks.

Steps: 19,765.
 

Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 3: Saturday 21st of November
Today I caught a taxi and went shopping at the Bloc at Orange. I bought some Toms and a couple of shirts for great prices. I love shopping in America: the land of shoppurtunity! After lunch at the McDonalds by my motel I went to Disneyland in the late afternoon. I watched part of the Christmas parade, thankfully my favourite bit with the reindeer in it!
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After this I rode the railroad while I worked out what to do next. It looked like someone was wanting to transport a Christmas tree.

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I then rode single rider splash again and got wet this time which was predictable as it was getting dark and a bit cold.
I then rode pooh bear with wet pants.

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I walked to the country bear restaurant as I wanted to try one of their famous funnel cakes. I also got a honeybee frozen lemonade which the cast member assured me would not be too sweet in conjunction with the funnel cake. She lied!!, but I was happy to let her lie to me so I could try both things. I sat in an area that was peaceful and almost deserted overlooking the river. I heard an almighty bang which I soon realised was fireworks so watched these while eating my funnel cake.
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I left the peace of the country bear to join the absolutely manic crowds in New Orleans Square. Even with the crowds the line for holiday haunted mansion was only half an hour, so I hopped in line with my honeybee lemonade. I liked the holiday overlay but didn’t love it and was happy that I would be able to do the “real” haunted mansion when I got to Florida. I rode pirates and when I came out it was barely possible to walk with throngs of people in the walkways. This was to be the pattern for the rest of my nights there – large parts of the park were roped off or shut down to accommodate multiple nightly parades and fireworks making it difficult to manoeuvre and so packed it was almost intimidating. I was tired and went back to my room so I could get there early the next day.

Steps: 17, 638.
 

Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 4: Sunday 22nd November. Part 1.
This morning I checked out of the Camelot Inn at around 7am and took a taxi to the Disneyland hotel. I loved fantasyland themed artwork, the tea cup seats in the reception area and the small world styled carpet. I’m happy to be checking into the hotel with such a long Disney history.
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I have wanted to stay here since childhood – but mostly because you could catch a monorail there when I was a kid! My room isn’t ready so I leave my bags with bell services and head to the parks. There are lovely statues and lights in the bell services area and comfortable chairs to relax in.
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I start walking through downtown Disney to get to Disneyland,

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I see that there is only a small queue at the monorail station so I ride the monorail from Downtown Disney to Tomorrowland. My first stop is the Matterhorn which still has a very short queue even though I have missed park opening.

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I annoyed the ride attendant and probably my fellow guests by pausing to put my hat and glasses in my bag when it is time to hop into my seat, thus getting shut out by the closing barrier. This messed up her carefully planned seat arrangement and caused confusion to my fellow passengers. The poor ride attendant got glared at by another cast member for sending the train out with an empty seat. I felt pretty sheepish! The Matterhorn is fun, but more bumpy than thrilling. I love the icy scenery and the Yeti, but mostly I just like riding in the Matterhorn which I like as a park emblem almost more than the castle.

I then rode Alice in Wonderland, a wonderful dark ride and then It’s a Small World twice. It always makes me so happy to see this beautiful pavilion.
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I love the Christmas overlay of this ride much more than the haunted mansion as it still maintains the essence of the ride.

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Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 4: Sunday 22nd of November: Part 2.


The most important tableau in the small world ride is of course this one,
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I love how the kiwis have Christmas bells around their necks, very festive. I’ll forgive how Australia had 20 times the space as New Zealand: Americans seem unnaturally fond of Australians for some unfathomable reason. This was also my first time seeing the Disney characters in the ride – I liked it.
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There was another touch of kiwi on the way out of the ride.
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After this I head to Adventureland to correct the lack of Jungle Cruising in my trip. The Christmas overlay in this ride is also fun and the skipper pulls off his jokes well today. When I get off my cruise it is starting to get busy again and I am getting irritable because I’ve had no coffee, but refuse to stand in a super long line to get coffee. I’d rather be irritable! Also, the tickle in my throat that I have had since almost the moment I hopped off the plane is starting to feel much worse this morning. I decide to head to DCA to see if the crowds and coffee lines are more manageable.

The first thing I see at DCA is a street show starring Mickey Mouse that takes place on a trolley. It’s about having a suitcase AND a dream, I think its called “a suitcase AND a dream”. Its all about how anything is possible if you have a suitcase AND a dream. Here is Mickey and his suitcase (dreams not visible in these shots – sorry).

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Mickey couldn't look any cuter in his 1930’s outfit.


I am hungry and thirsty but I ignore another too long line for coffee and decide to just wait until my lunch reservation. I buy the Starbucks DCA mug; I want to buy one from all six of the American parks. I then ride the Monsters Inc ride which is cute. I love Monsters Inc and Monsters University and love that Sully and Mike Wazowski have their own ride. After this I browse around a great shop (whose name I cant remember) with interesting books. There were a couple I would have bought, but I was worried about luggage space and weight, especially now that I have committed to buying 6 large, heavy and breakable coffee mugs.


After this I check in a little early for my Carthay Circle lunch reservation and sit around in a warm and distinguished looking bar/lobby area until I get taken to my table. I was sitting near the centre of a large room with lots of warm glistening timber and an intricate Snow White themed ceiling.

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The lights look as though they are hanging from rolls of film?

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Kiwiduck

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 4: Sunday 22nd of November: Part 3.

This is my first table service solo meal and I had been feeling worried that I will feel very self-conscious. As it happens I am so relieved to be off my feet and sitting down in beautiful surroundings down nice food and drink in front of me that I forget about feeling awkward. I just enjoy the relaxation and break from the stimulation of the parks.

I was doing the World of Colour package and I thought it was good value for money. I simultaneously drink a very nice pimms cocktail and a long sought after coffee!

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I have my own loaf of bread placed in front of me, followed by a lovely salad.

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I chose the burger which looked impressive and had great flavour but was quite dry. I regret not ordering one of the other options.

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Dessert was pretty nice but I cant remember what it actually was and I cant seem to find it on the menu anymore.

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I was glad they put suggested tip amounts on the bill as being from a country that doesn’t tip I find the process of working out how much to tip and how to go about it really uncomfortable.

After lunch I saw Viva Navidad again and found out that my room was ready.

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I had a look through Downtown Disney on my way to my room what was 2226 on the 4th floor of the Fantasy Tower. It was a calm and comfortable room with some wonderful Disney touches like the wooden light up headboard and a Mickey hand light in the bathroom.

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I had a nice view of the pool and the retro Disneyland sign.

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Once I was in my room my sore throat really started to bother me so I didn’t end up using my World of Colour fastpass. I just chilled in my room and went to bed early instead. I’m a real party animal!!!

Steps 11, 563
 

Olafhugs

New Member
Glad to know I'm not the only adult who likes the Heimlich train ride. Really enjoying your trip report. It is my dream to go to New Zealand, and I like seeing Disneyland through a Kiwi's eyes.
 

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