rebelbuddhist
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- May 28, 2010
My wife and I have been regular visitors to WDW from mid-December to the 31st. We went this year with the expectation that things would not be any where near as magical as in the past, but if we lowered our expectations the trip could be ok. But we were skeptical the vacation would be worth the $ we would spend. Well, we were very pleasantly surprised by the trip although for sure there were disappointing changes. The give them less but charge the same or more likely charge more is too evident throughout WDW.
Among the disappointing the changes to DME are at the top of the list. Even though carts helped with the luggage, the time and effort to retrieve our luggage and then get to ME was truly quite a chore for us. We are 67 and 70 and I have mobility challenges. But the trip to our resort was quick and relaxing. We are happy to hear that the Mears replacement for DME will include luggage handling as before and that other services are being announced about transport to and from MCO. Our room was a real improvement with the Pop Century refurbishing. Exactly what we need--a place to shower and sleep. We were in Bldg 4 but had not yet discovered the benefits of the Skyliner
We were all moved in by 6:00 pm with plenty of time to take the DME to Disney Springs for a 8:00 pm dinner ADR. We were sad that all the Christmas trees were not in one location. Even with a map (we never found one) it was a pain to walk all over to find the trees. We did happen upon the Star Wars tree, the Beauty & the Beast, and one other we don't remember. Dinner at the Boathouse was excellent as always. The weather was so nice that we sat outside, saw some fireworks and enjoyed crabcakes for our first night dinner. We walked right up to the bus stop for a ride to Pop Century after walking around, window shopping and people watching the West Side.
We get the PhotoPass Memory Maker since it is the only way we can get both of us in a picture larger than a selfie. We do sometimes take up a person's offer to use our iPhone to take our picture, but I am a bit nervous about that since I had a camera stolen that way many years ago in DC.
But we were saddened that there were so few PhotoPass photographers in any of the parks.
Day 1 We always spend our first dat at my wife's favorite park--Animal Kingdom. After a breakfast in our room from the food court, we were ready to hit the park. By the way the bacon, egg and cheese bagel sandwich was really good and enjoyable way to start the day. We again walked up to the bus stop as a bus was arriving, so we were at AK in no time. We were pleased that although very busy, the crowds were very manageable and not as large as we anticipated. With our DAS pass we were able to ride Flights of Passage with not having to stand in long lines. With a DAS you do wait whatever the current standby time, but you do not have to stand there in a line, but can leave a return to the Lightening Lane after that time has passed. We love FOP and were happy we could ride it more than once this trip. The Festival of the Lion King in its abbreviated version is still entertaining but we missed the tumble monkeys! Animation Academy at Rafiki's Plant Watch was no where as engaging as when it was in Hollywood Studios and a bit time consuming to get to. We did draw Pumba but did not go to any other classes as we had planned since there is not enough at Rafiki's to engage us between classes. It sprinkled a bit but not much this day and all the other days of our trip were amazingly pleasant-- days in the 80's with a light breeze and evenings in the upper 70's. The new Kite Tails show is a filler if you have nothing else to do and want to sit for a few minutes break. It is not artistically interesting nor anything special! Tusker House breakfast was a real disappointment. The food was good but with little variety. It was all you care to eat but in no way worth the same cost as the full buffet was. We canceled a dinner and a breakfast ADR for other days and won't consider going back until the full buffet returns. A nice surprise was the puppets that visit in front of the Tree of Life. They are cute and interact with the crowds nicely. We also rode the Safari twice, did It's A Bugs Life, walked both of the animal trails. We ate at Yak & Yeti which is a favorite of ours. Food is always tasty and portions large (unlike many of the Disney owned restaurants). Our only concern was we witnessed a table being cleared of used dishes but no other COVID protocol. We were careful wearing masks both in and out doors and had Lysol wipes so we wiped our own table and silverware ( we also had plastic wear with us if we felt we needed it). The Lettuce Cups for two have significantly shrunk. In years past, six lettuce cups were on the plate and I would request more to finish up the appetizer. Now, there are 4 cups and we ran out of fillers before using the four lettuce cups.
Walked right up to a bus waiting at park closing, so our trip back to Pop was uneventful. We had a great first day in the parks. Will end for now and report days 2-10 soon.
Among the disappointing the changes to DME are at the top of the list. Even though carts helped with the luggage, the time and effort to retrieve our luggage and then get to ME was truly quite a chore for us. We are 67 and 70 and I have mobility challenges. But the trip to our resort was quick and relaxing. We are happy to hear that the Mears replacement for DME will include luggage handling as before and that other services are being announced about transport to and from MCO. Our room was a real improvement with the Pop Century refurbishing. Exactly what we need--a place to shower and sleep. We were in Bldg 4 but had not yet discovered the benefits of the Skyliner
We were all moved in by 6:00 pm with plenty of time to take the DME to Disney Springs for a 8:00 pm dinner ADR. We were sad that all the Christmas trees were not in one location. Even with a map (we never found one) it was a pain to walk all over to find the trees. We did happen upon the Star Wars tree, the Beauty & the Beast, and one other we don't remember. Dinner at the Boathouse was excellent as always. The weather was so nice that we sat outside, saw some fireworks and enjoyed crabcakes for our first night dinner. We walked right up to the bus stop for a ride to Pop Century after walking around, window shopping and people watching the West Side.
We get the PhotoPass Memory Maker since it is the only way we can get both of us in a picture larger than a selfie. We do sometimes take up a person's offer to use our iPhone to take our picture, but I am a bit nervous about that since I had a camera stolen that way many years ago in DC.
But we were saddened that there were so few PhotoPass photographers in any of the parks.
Day 1 We always spend our first dat at my wife's favorite park--Animal Kingdom. After a breakfast in our room from the food court, we were ready to hit the park. By the way the bacon, egg and cheese bagel sandwich was really good and enjoyable way to start the day. We again walked up to the bus stop as a bus was arriving, so we were at AK in no time. We were pleased that although very busy, the crowds were very manageable and not as large as we anticipated. With our DAS pass we were able to ride Flights of Passage with not having to stand in long lines. With a DAS you do wait whatever the current standby time, but you do not have to stand there in a line, but can leave a return to the Lightening Lane after that time has passed. We love FOP and were happy we could ride it more than once this trip. The Festival of the Lion King in its abbreviated version is still entertaining but we missed the tumble monkeys! Animation Academy at Rafiki's Plant Watch was no where as engaging as when it was in Hollywood Studios and a bit time consuming to get to. We did draw Pumba but did not go to any other classes as we had planned since there is not enough at Rafiki's to engage us between classes. It sprinkled a bit but not much this day and all the other days of our trip were amazingly pleasant-- days in the 80's with a light breeze and evenings in the upper 70's. The new Kite Tails show is a filler if you have nothing else to do and want to sit for a few minutes break. It is not artistically interesting nor anything special! Tusker House breakfast was a real disappointment. The food was good but with little variety. It was all you care to eat but in no way worth the same cost as the full buffet was. We canceled a dinner and a breakfast ADR for other days and won't consider going back until the full buffet returns. A nice surprise was the puppets that visit in front of the Tree of Life. They are cute and interact with the crowds nicely. We also rode the Safari twice, did It's A Bugs Life, walked both of the animal trails. We ate at Yak & Yeti which is a favorite of ours. Food is always tasty and portions large (unlike many of the Disney owned restaurants). Our only concern was we witnessed a table being cleared of used dishes but no other COVID protocol. We were careful wearing masks both in and out doors and had Lysol wipes so we wiped our own table and silverware ( we also had plastic wear with us if we felt we needed it). The Lettuce Cups for two have significantly shrunk. In years past, six lettuce cups were on the plate and I would request more to finish up the appetizer. Now, there are 4 cups and we ran out of fillers before using the four lettuce cups.
Walked right up to a bus waiting at park closing, so our trip back to Pop was uneventful. We had a great first day in the parks. Will end for now and report days 2-10 soon.