Tom's 2013 DLR Trip Report

[Tom]

Sounds like a great time! I can't believe how many MAGIC posters have been in DLR lately!

I'm just gonna go ahead and like all your posts now... I have a feeling they'll be good.

Well, don't get carried away just yet...I could still write a bad post, but probably not

I'm going to try to work on a few more tonight, before the series finale of The Office!

 

[Cosmic Commando]

Well, don't get carried away just yet...I could still write a bad post, but probably not

I'm going to try to work on a few more tonight, before the series finale of The Office!

Well, no pressure... and I didn't want to say anything... but I do have that "unlike" button in my virtual bandolier just in case you let me down.

No pressure.

 

[Tom]

Well, no pressure... and I didn't want to say anything... but I do have that "unlike" button in my virtual bandolier just in case you let me down.

No pressure.

Crap!

And I'm out of time tonight. Watched the pre-finale show about The Office, then the finale - both on DVR delay. I'll be finishing up my report tomorrow night while I sit here and watch the various Late Night shows.

 

[TP2000]

I'll be finishing up my report tomorrow night while I sit here and watch the various Late Night shows.

We'll be looking forward to it! Nice to hear you had such a fantastic time in Anaheim. (That rhymes.)

 

[Californian Elitist]

I just noticed something in your report... The couches in the apartment are actually beds. When I visited the apartment, I thought they were couches as well, and I sat on the "couch" to the left. I was actually sitting on Walt's bed. The one to the right is Lillian's bed.

 

[GiveMeTheMusic]

I was actually sitting on Walt's bed. The one to the right is Lillian's bed.

Lucy and Ricky style, huh? OT, but I knew a couple who were married for 50+ years and NEVER saw each other in the buff (and they had children). It's odd how attitudes toward relationships change over time.

When I build GiveMeTheMusicLand, my fire station apartment will have a king sized heart-shaped waterbed, which I will never sleep in due to back issues. But when the Walk in GiveMeTheMusic's Footsteps tour guests come through, it'll give 'em something to talk about.

 

[Tom]

I forgot to say, it's a shame part of the apartment was roped off. The rest of the apartment is AMAZING.

I just noticed this post of yours....

When I saw it was roped off, it was just a velvet rope that was draped across the apartment from one side wall to the other. They just didn't want guests standing over there, to preserve it. We saw every inch of the apartment - just couldn't walk all the way up to the window with the lamp in it.

 

[Tom]

I just noticed something in your report... The couches in the apartment are actually beds. When I visited the apartment, I thought they were couches as well, and I sat on the "couch" to the left. I was actually sitting on Walt's bed. The one to the right is Lillian's bed.

Yeah, they did point out that the couches were hide-a-beds.

 

[Californian Elitist]

I just noticed this post of yours....

When I saw it was roped off, it was just a velvet rope that was draped across the apartment from one side wall to the other. They just didn't want guests standing over there, to preserve it. We saw every inch of the apartment - just couldn't walk all the way up to the window with the lamp in it.

Oohhh, okay well that's awesome then!

 

[fractal]

Tom,

Enjoying the report. I totally agree with you regarding PotC - Amazing at DL. I love those caves and waterfalls and all the scenes before the drop.
I don't agree with JC. It may be shorter at DL but I thought it was in much better condition and everything worked - I especially enjoyed the piranhas.

The castle is underwhelming - when I first walked into DL it felt very surreal to me, like I knew where I was but things were not where they should be. Did you sense any of that? Just curious.

Looking forward to the rest!

 

[Tom]

Tom,

Enjoying the report. I totally agree with you regarding PotC - Amazing at DL. I love those caves and waterfalls and all the scenes before the drop.
I don't agree with JC. It may be shorter at DL but I thought it was in much better condition and everything worked - I especially enjoyed the piranhas.

The castle is underwhelming - when I first walked into DL it felt very surreal to me, like I knew where I was but things were not where they should be. Did you sense any of that? Just curious.

Looking forward to the rest!

You're right about the piranhas - forgot all about those. I think my JC experience was tarnished a bit by the fact that I was drenched with sweat and sick of climbing stairs and weaving through the mile long queue

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I'm really working hard "planting seeds" with the hubby for my first ever trip to CA/DL for our anniversary this year. ((#20!)) I'm loving your TR! Your organization & style are very different in a refreshing, informative way. Thank you so much for the time & effort! Now hurry up & write more so I can procrastinate more! LOL!

 

[Laura]

Looks like there's already been a lot of commentary on the fireworks, which is what I was going to comment on.

I HATE Magical. It's the crappiest fireworks show I've ever seen. I am surprised you had to wait to see it. I've never once waited to see fireworks at Disneyland. I just show up 5 minutes before and there's always plenty of space. But then again, I watch from Main Street, not the hub.

Remember Dreams Come True is the BEST fireworks show I've ever seen. It's unfortunate you didn't get to see that. My first time ever at Disneyland they were playing Remember, and I was freaking out over how much better it was than Wishes. Then the second time I went to Disneyland I was all excited to see it again, only to be disappointed with that stupid Magical show.

It's also not usually 97 degrees.

You can the wrong week. Plain and simple.

 

[Tom]

Looks like there's already been a lot of commentary on the fireworks, which is what I was going to comment on.

I HATE Magical. It's the crappiest fireworks show I've ever seen. I am surprised you had to wait to see it. I've never once waited to see fireworks at Disneyland. I just show up 5 minutes before and there's always plenty of space. But then again, I watch from Main Street, not the hub.

Remember Dreams Come True is the BEST fireworks show I've ever seen. It's unfortunate you didn't get to see that. My first time ever at Disneyland they were playing Remember, and I was freaking out over how much better it was than Wishes. Then the second time I went to Disneyland I was all excited to see it again, only to be disappointed with that stupid Magical show.

It's also not usually 97 degrees.

You can the wrong week. Plain and simple.

As my wife mentioned, we were there for the FIRST playing of "Magical" for the season. So mad that we missed Dreams.

Everyone told us how un-crowded the parks are, but it's obvious that we chose the worst week of the year - what with the weather and actual crowds and some people I eKnow from California that were busy and couldn't hang out

When we stood up for the actual fireworks, we turned around and looked south down Main Street, and it was PACKED! I think everyone in the park was either sitting at the first showing of Fantasmic, or standing somewhere on Main Street for fireworks. It was like we were at WDW, the way people were drooling over these nighttime shows.

 

[AmongMadPeople]

I don't agree with JC. It may be shorter at DL but I thought it was in much better condition and everything worked - I especially enjoyed the piranhas.

The castle is underwhelming - when I first walked into DL it felt very surreal to me, like I knew where I was but things were not where they should be. Did you sense any of that? Just curious.

I know this is "Tom's" trip report, but I'm going to chime in too I also disagree with him to some extent on Jungle Cruise. I liked some of the scenes that were different. The temple is one of my favorite scenes in WDW's, but I knew DL didn't have it so I wasn't disappointed. I must like something about people being quiet on a boat, because my absolutely favorite part of the Submarine Voyage was when everyone shut up for a few seconds, and the only noise was the radar ping sound. This may also be why I hate Pirates in WDW, because I can only think of one time I've ridden and people haven't been blabbering the whole time. Ok, Kayla's boat revelations over...

I'd heard people say before that the Matterhorn is really an icon, and not the castle. I didn't really "get" that until we were there. The Matterhorn is always what drew my eye, what made me raise my camera.

The first time we walked on Main Street we were rope dropping Magic Morning, and the biggest impression I remember having was "Oh my! They have real gas lamps!"

 

[AmongMadPeople]

Looks like there's already been a lot of commentary on the fireworks, which is what I was going to comment on.

I HATE Magical. It's the crappiest fireworks show I've ever seen. I am surprised you had to wait to see it. I've never once waited to see fireworks at Disneyland. I just show up 5 minutes before and there's always plenty of space. But then again, I watch from Main Street, not the hub.

Like Tom said, I would consider it "packed" for Magical that night. We were in the hub, next to the Partners statue, and I also remember looking back and seeing the crowd on Main Street before the show. But something I've also learned is that due to the size of everything there, the same amount of people feels like a much larger crowd in DL than it does in WDW, so my interpretations of "crowded" are colored by being a WDW vet. While I was fixated on how crowded it seemed, seasoned DL vets we talked to in the parks didn't find the crowds remarkable at all. I can't imagine being there during a peak travel season.

 

[AmongMadPeople]

Since World of Color is technically an attraction here, I'll comment on it now. It's pretty friggin' cool. We had just been to Vegas and watched the Bellagio water shows. That was a nice segue into this show, which blows Bellagio out of the "water". We saw it once using the reserved seating deal through dinner at Wine Country, and then watched it again from the back after we exited TSMM one night. Oh yeah, we also watched it from our balcony the night we checked in, but it wasn't the best vantage point. It will never surpass Illuminations for me (my all-time favorite nighttime show), but it was 1000 times better than fireworks. If you're planning a trip to DLR, and are teetering on whether or not to see this - see it!

Food
On our first night, we had dinner at Wine Country Trattoria. Aside from having to sit outside after dragging our wretched souls through near 100-degree weather all day, the dinner was great. We were the first people seated for the day, so we got great service.

Just to elaborate for any first timers or WDW vets who are planning trips... WOC dinner packages are pricey, so if you're trying to keep your food purchases within a budget and don't specifically want to eat at Wine Country Trattoria or Carthay Circle, just get Fastpasses.

In my opinion, viewing for WOC is a little confusing. They have several entry points set up. The Fastpass entry points queued up well before the show. However, they don't label or let people queue in the dinner package line until it actually opened. Carthay opened before WCT, so all the next to the railing spots (both in the wet zone and not) were already taken when we were let in, even though we were like vultures waiting for them to open our entry. Annoying, confusing, and/or cumbersome viewing is a huge minus for me, which is why we've only seen WDW's Fantasmic three times in the last 5 years/9 trips. Of course, now that we've seen Disneyland's Fantasmic, it will be even harder to justify seeing WDW's for a long, long time.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

You're right about the piranhas - forgot all about those. I think my JC experience was tarnished a bit by the fact that I was drenched with sweat and sick of climbing stairs and weaving through the mile long queue

I have also been a victim of the upstairs queue at Jungle Cruise. The imagineer who designed it is a member here... you can give him a piece of your mind!

Just to elaborate for any first timers or WDW vets who are planning trips... WOC dinner packages are pricey, so if you're trying to keep your food purchases within a budget and don't specifically want to eat at Wine Country Trattoria or Carthay Circle, just get Fastpasses.

In my opinion, viewing for WOC is a little confusing. They have several entry points set up. The Fastpass entry points queued up well before the show. However, they don't label or let people queue in the dinner package line until it actually opened. Carthay opened before WCT, so all the next to the railing spots (both in the wet zone and not) were already taken when we were let in, even though we were like vultures waiting for them to open our entry. Annoying, confusing, and/or cumbersome viewing is a huge minus for me, which is why we've only seen WDW's Fantasmic three times in the last 5 years/9 trips. Of course, now that we've seen Disneyland's Fantasmic, it will be even harder to justify seeing WDW's for a long, long time.

That's the dirty little secret of WoC viewing and the reason I'm glad I never bought a picnic or a dinner package. Yeah, you get your cute little reserved viewing area, but there are still only so many spots on the railings. For me at least, it's a completely different experience watching it on the railing versus in the middle of the crowd. If you're right by the water, it feels like they're putting on the show just for you.

 

[Laura]

If you're right by the water, it feels like they're putting on the show just for you.

That's because they are putting the show ON you.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

That's because they are putting the show ON you.

That is a risk.

But I watched the show twice from as close to the fountains as you could possibly get, and I barely got sprinkled. A refreshing mist.