Well I just got back from our 7 Day Disney vacation. I should preface this by saying I have been going to WDW for over 30 yrs
so like everyone on this forum I am a big fan. I thought I would give a brief run down on observations good and bad. Though I must say most were good.
Trip was from January 4-11th included my Wife and three children 15,8,5 We booked Port Orleans Riverside as it is the only resort that has a murphy bed and allows family of 5 to stay in one room. As part of our stay we booked 5 park tickets along with dinning plan which included table service.
RESORT
I would hope in the future Disney will make accommodations for families of 5 a little easier as it stands now Riverside is the only option without going to a suite. I thought about the suite but for the amount of time we are in the room it did not make sense for us. That being said I really enjoyed Riverside. The pool was good and the amenities where excellent. The quick service menu was better than I expected as well. On top of that Piano Bob plays in the bar which is a great way to spend an hour or two.
In regards to dining I was pleasantly surprised throughout the park. I remember in the past the quick service being the same for the most part throughout WDW just different decor. Now I am seeing more options with a variety of food being offered.
No real complaints other then nit picking. i.e the Burger buns are cold and massive, as well I can only eat so much cake for desert on the dining plan. (Quick service gives you a desert)
FOOD
Table service was better then I remember in the past. Our restaurants included Boma, Coral Reef, ESPN, Crystal Palace, Nine Dargons, Polynesian Luau. Again no real complaints other than the buffet style does show some repetition. Part of me thinks most people like that and it makes it simple for Disney. My least favourite would have been Crystal Palace as it seemed too bright and a bit cafeteria like. As for a fav this trip it would have to be Nine Dragons in Epcot.
I don’t know about you but I would like to see counter service deserts turn into snack credits or be eliminated and lower the price? Carrot and chocolate cake choices are a little too repetitive for me.
This brings up snacks, a good concept except many times I could not use them where I wanted to. Joffreys ,Star Bucks etc have very limited DP menus. I really wish Star bucks never entered the picture but that’s another story. I also found "snacks" at my resort would count towards DP but that item (or something similar) on Main st would be priced out of range. Small problem but still an issue. I found myself just buying snacks that I wanted and using my credits on random items here and there. This might be Disney's plan as I must of spent an extra $100 on misc food items.
PARKS
In regards to the Parks themselves they seemed clean and no major issues of broken rides etc. A few small things but nothing that I would not expect from a busy resort. Construction was heavy at AK as well as things starting at HS. I would like to see a few more updates to rides and shows. Innoventions is really a quick pass through. One man’s dream is a fav but I would like to see the historic items updated every 5 years or so?? I would think It would be a very simple task to pull from their archive and really should be done annually.
FP+
I will say that over time like I am sure is the case with most of you I had become an expert with Fast passes what rides to use them on, what parts of the parks to stay away from at certain times etc. Since the FP+ has been introduced it has become more difficult to juggle. The natural flow of the park is all over the place as guests run from one side to the other using passes. It really seems like confusion from most of the guests! The walking flow is brutal as it resembles an ant farm rather than a theme park.
The queues for the most part would be my one major complaint. Astatically they are nice but function is poor and with FP+ or FP in general it has become a mess. The fact that Disney Employees keep telling everyone to “fill all available space” creates an issue with fairness. Many take that as weave through the line etc. I don’t know if it is just me but I like to have my spot and not have to worry about people jumping past me or where I can make a move to fill in a spot. I am not referring to movie style rides or show but rides like POC, Haunted Mansion, Small World etc.
Buses for the most part stayed the same, one question I have is I could have sworn that resorts had buses to BoardWalk??
Now I had to catch it from Downtown which creates a lot more travel time? I could be wrong but I thought BW was a destination before?
All in all the trip was great. It was busy as it was Marathon week. I can’t seem to book at a quite time!!
Is Disney promoting heavily in certain countries i.e like Canada in the mid to late 90's. All in all it was a great trip and I would do it again...next year
so like everyone on this forum I am a big fan. I thought I would give a brief run down on observations good and bad. Though I must say most were good.
Trip was from January 4-11th included my Wife and three children 15,8,5 We booked Port Orleans Riverside as it is the only resort that has a murphy bed and allows family of 5 to stay in one room. As part of our stay we booked 5 park tickets along with dinning plan which included table service.
RESORT
I would hope in the future Disney will make accommodations for families of 5 a little easier as it stands now Riverside is the only option without going to a suite. I thought about the suite but for the amount of time we are in the room it did not make sense for us. That being said I really enjoyed Riverside. The pool was good and the amenities where excellent. The quick service menu was better than I expected as well. On top of that Piano Bob plays in the bar which is a great way to spend an hour or two.
In regards to dining I was pleasantly surprised throughout the park. I remember in the past the quick service being the same for the most part throughout WDW just different decor. Now I am seeing more options with a variety of food being offered.
No real complaints other then nit picking. i.e the Burger buns are cold and massive, as well I can only eat so much cake for desert on the dining plan. (Quick service gives you a desert)
FOOD
Table service was better then I remember in the past. Our restaurants included Boma, Coral Reef, ESPN, Crystal Palace, Nine Dargons, Polynesian Luau. Again no real complaints other than the buffet style does show some repetition. Part of me thinks most people like that and it makes it simple for Disney. My least favourite would have been Crystal Palace as it seemed too bright and a bit cafeteria like. As for a fav this trip it would have to be Nine Dragons in Epcot.
I don’t know about you but I would like to see counter service deserts turn into snack credits or be eliminated and lower the price? Carrot and chocolate cake choices are a little too repetitive for me.
This brings up snacks, a good concept except many times I could not use them where I wanted to. Joffreys ,Star Bucks etc have very limited DP menus. I really wish Star bucks never entered the picture but that’s another story. I also found "snacks" at my resort would count towards DP but that item (or something similar) on Main st would be priced out of range. Small problem but still an issue. I found myself just buying snacks that I wanted and using my credits on random items here and there. This might be Disney's plan as I must of spent an extra $100 on misc food items.
PARKS
In regards to the Parks themselves they seemed clean and no major issues of broken rides etc. A few small things but nothing that I would not expect from a busy resort. Construction was heavy at AK as well as things starting at HS. I would like to see a few more updates to rides and shows. Innoventions is really a quick pass through. One man’s dream is a fav but I would like to see the historic items updated every 5 years or so?? I would think It would be a very simple task to pull from their archive and really should be done annually.
FP+
I will say that over time like I am sure is the case with most of you I had become an expert with Fast passes what rides to use them on, what parts of the parks to stay away from at certain times etc. Since the FP+ has been introduced it has become more difficult to juggle. The natural flow of the park is all over the place as guests run from one side to the other using passes. It really seems like confusion from most of the guests! The walking flow is brutal as it resembles an ant farm rather than a theme park.
The queues for the most part would be my one major complaint. Astatically they are nice but function is poor and with FP+ or FP in general it has become a mess. The fact that Disney Employees keep telling everyone to “fill all available space” creates an issue with fairness. Many take that as weave through the line etc. I don’t know if it is just me but I like to have my spot and not have to worry about people jumping past me or where I can make a move to fill in a spot. I am not referring to movie style rides or show but rides like POC, Haunted Mansion, Small World etc.
Buses for the most part stayed the same, one question I have is I could have sworn that resorts had buses to BoardWalk??
Now I had to catch it from Downtown which creates a lot more travel time? I could be wrong but I thought BW was a destination before?
All in all the trip was great. It was busy as it was Marathon week. I can’t seem to book at a quite time!!
Is Disney promoting heavily in certain countries i.e like Canada in the mid to late 90's. All in all it was a great trip and I would do it again...next year
