My wife and I made our first Christmas time vacation to Disney World last month, and have some obervations to share. Some related to the time of year, most not.
- I usually get bothered when someone on this message board gets so mad about saying the name of attraction wrong...but sometimes, COME ON. I listened to a guy, who was looking DIRECTLY at the wait time board at Epcot say the following, "It looks like the speed pass for fast track is from 3:30 to 4:30." I mean....COME ON, LOOKING DIRECTLY AT IT.
- What is so hard about waiting for your fast pass return time? It says 1:06 to 2:06. That means 1:06. I watched a family get all ticked off at the poor lady working there because it was 1:04 and she, rightly so, told them they had to wait until 1:06. The argued and argued insisting that it's close enough. What does 2 minutes mean? You know what, they are exactly right, what does 2 minutes mean. Why can't they just wait 2 minutes? What is so hard about following the rules that have been set. Rules are there for a reason, to make it fair to everyone.
- Sometimes, just observing the behavior of others is just as much entertainment as the rides and attractions themselves. People from other places have different customs, and I'm not saying they are right or wrong and not making any judgement, sometimes it's just funny. Like watching the older man and his wife (clearly foreign) walking around innoventions with a tray full of food eating as they go through. As I said, not saying it's right or wrong, just interesting.
- This was my first visit that didn't occur in the middle of the summer. And I have to say that I was very suprised with the crowds. I was expecting wall to wall people from opening to closing, and 2 hour waits in the tamest of attractions. But I didn't really find it much more busy than in the summer. Granted, I was there Dec 21st to the 25th, so it is before the really heavy crowds hit, but even still, I was expecting it to be much worse. It WAS more crowded than in the summer, but the cooler temperatures made it much much much more desireable. I could actually stand outside for 5 minutes without feeling like water was just poured all over me.
- I don't know who she is, where she comes from, or what she does now, but that girl, Stacy I think, who does the show on the in room TV, is INCREDIBLY annoying. Although I suspect little kids really like her, and in the end, that's what it's all about.
- Because I was traveling with my pregnant wife, we were unable to do alot of the rides we normally do, but that was good because it let us do things we usually skip. And I have to say, that I think I found one of the lines that made me laugh more than any other. It was in The Circle of Life. One word sentence: "DAM!!!!" (freakin hilarious to me).
- I noticed that while on Living with the Land, if you look up to where you can see the restaurant above, there is yet another story about that. What is in there?
- Because my wife is pregnant, we decided to rent a car to avoid the chance of her having to stand on a bus. This was my first time with a car. What convenience! A little iffy going to the Magic Kingdom because of the whole Transportation and Ticket Center hurdle. But we spent a lot of time at Epcot. And it's SO much easier to get to Downtown Disney. I never understood why they make getting to Downtown Disney so difficult with the bus system. You'd think they want to get you to the place where you pretty much do nothing but spend money.
- Another attraction that we usually skip is Mickey's Philharmagic. What an excellent attraction. Very very well done all the way around. I hope it doesn't get taken away due to what I see as poor attendence.
- Yet another attraction that I'd never even been on is the Liberty Belle Riverboat. Again, what an excellent attraction. It really gets to what the Magic Kingdom is all about (at least from my point of view), nostalgia. Even tomorrowland is supposed to be nostalgic. And what is more nostalgic than sailing on a riverboat?
- I usually argue with people who say that Disney is very educational, because I honestly don't think it is...with one exception. Ellen's Energy Adventure. There is tons of good information that is given out in such an interesting and entertaining way. Being an engineer, understanding different forms of energy and how they all interact is a really good basis for having a fundamental concept of all science. Parents should take their kids on this ride and really try to understand it and help their kids understand it. I'm saying this not from a conservation point of view, but strictly a science point of view.
- I've been on the Great Movie Ride countless times, and just saw something I had never seen before. I can't quote it exactly, but when entering the Nostromo scene, if you look down to one of the panels on the left (you have to be sitting on the far left to see it), it says something about welcoming all aliens aboard this ship. Very funny little touch.
- On my last trip, I wrote a similar post, and I bashed The Seas ride. Going on it a 2nd time, I have to retract that. It's actually very good with very good effects. (Although the song needs to go).
- Lastly, regarding our most favorite attraction of any park anywhere, Soarin'. Since we couldn't go on any other thrill rides, we devoted most of our time to this one. We were able to ride 7 times in our 4 day visit. 6 of those times were in the front row (in my opinion, the best place to be). And the last time we rode (probably for several years waiting for the twins, yes twins, to get old enough), not only were we in the front row, we were in the two middle seats of the center section in the front row. This was our last ride before getting in the car and leaving for the airport. What a way to end it.
- I usually get bothered when someone on this message board gets so mad about saying the name of attraction wrong...but sometimes, COME ON. I listened to a guy, who was looking DIRECTLY at the wait time board at Epcot say the following, "It looks like the speed pass for fast track is from 3:30 to 4:30." I mean....COME ON, LOOKING DIRECTLY AT IT.
- What is so hard about waiting for your fast pass return time? It says 1:06 to 2:06. That means 1:06. I watched a family get all ticked off at the poor lady working there because it was 1:04 and she, rightly so, told them they had to wait until 1:06. The argued and argued insisting that it's close enough. What does 2 minutes mean? You know what, they are exactly right, what does 2 minutes mean. Why can't they just wait 2 minutes? What is so hard about following the rules that have been set. Rules are there for a reason, to make it fair to everyone.
- Sometimes, just observing the behavior of others is just as much entertainment as the rides and attractions themselves. People from other places have different customs, and I'm not saying they are right or wrong and not making any judgement, sometimes it's just funny. Like watching the older man and his wife (clearly foreign) walking around innoventions with a tray full of food eating as they go through. As I said, not saying it's right or wrong, just interesting.
- This was my first visit that didn't occur in the middle of the summer. And I have to say that I was very suprised with the crowds. I was expecting wall to wall people from opening to closing, and 2 hour waits in the tamest of attractions. But I didn't really find it much more busy than in the summer. Granted, I was there Dec 21st to the 25th, so it is before the really heavy crowds hit, but even still, I was expecting it to be much worse. It WAS more crowded than in the summer, but the cooler temperatures made it much much much more desireable. I could actually stand outside for 5 minutes without feeling like water was just poured all over me.
- I don't know who she is, where she comes from, or what she does now, but that girl, Stacy I think, who does the show on the in room TV, is INCREDIBLY annoying. Although I suspect little kids really like her, and in the end, that's what it's all about.
- Because I was traveling with my pregnant wife, we were unable to do alot of the rides we normally do, but that was good because it let us do things we usually skip. And I have to say, that I think I found one of the lines that made me laugh more than any other. It was in The Circle of Life. One word sentence: "DAM!!!!" (freakin hilarious to me).
- I noticed that while on Living with the Land, if you look up to where you can see the restaurant above, there is yet another story about that. What is in there?
- Because my wife is pregnant, we decided to rent a car to avoid the chance of her having to stand on a bus. This was my first time with a car. What convenience! A little iffy going to the Magic Kingdom because of the whole Transportation and Ticket Center hurdle. But we spent a lot of time at Epcot. And it's SO much easier to get to Downtown Disney. I never understood why they make getting to Downtown Disney so difficult with the bus system. You'd think they want to get you to the place where you pretty much do nothing but spend money.
- Another attraction that we usually skip is Mickey's Philharmagic. What an excellent attraction. Very very well done all the way around. I hope it doesn't get taken away due to what I see as poor attendence.
- Yet another attraction that I'd never even been on is the Liberty Belle Riverboat. Again, what an excellent attraction. It really gets to what the Magic Kingdom is all about (at least from my point of view), nostalgia. Even tomorrowland is supposed to be nostalgic. And what is more nostalgic than sailing on a riverboat?
- I usually argue with people who say that Disney is very educational, because I honestly don't think it is...with one exception. Ellen's Energy Adventure. There is tons of good information that is given out in such an interesting and entertaining way. Being an engineer, understanding different forms of energy and how they all interact is a really good basis for having a fundamental concept of all science. Parents should take their kids on this ride and really try to understand it and help their kids understand it. I'm saying this not from a conservation point of view, but strictly a science point of view.
- I've been on the Great Movie Ride countless times, and just saw something I had never seen before. I can't quote it exactly, but when entering the Nostromo scene, if you look down to one of the panels on the left (you have to be sitting on the far left to see it), it says something about welcoming all aliens aboard this ship. Very funny little touch.
- On my last trip, I wrote a similar post, and I bashed The Seas ride. Going on it a 2nd time, I have to retract that. It's actually very good with very good effects. (Although the song needs to go).
- Lastly, regarding our most favorite attraction of any park anywhere, Soarin'. Since we couldn't go on any other thrill rides, we devoted most of our time to this one. We were able to ride 7 times in our 4 day visit. 6 of those times were in the front row (in my opinion, the best place to be). And the last time we rode (probably for several years waiting for the twins, yes twins, to get old enough), not only were we in the front row, we were in the two middle seats of the center section in the front row. This was our last ride before getting in the car and leaving for the airport. What a way to end it.
on some of your points that are also a thorn in the side with me as well. 
