Rope Drop is Tip #1!! A June 2016 TR...updated 10/31 pg 19 post 373 THE END!

[ErinF]

Your boys really light up when they meet the characters, those are very cute pictures!!!

Dang it, we should have taken a picture, can't believe we forgot! Maybe there will be another chance down the road. It was so nice to meet you in person.

Yes, Chef Mickey's is definitely over-priced and the food is nothing spectacular. The only reason we go there anymore is really just because it's tradition and the kids don't think it's a visit to WDW without a visit to Chef Mickey's. But with my family now being 4 adults and one kid (because two of the kids are Disney adults), the cost is becoming extremely prohibitive! I don't know if we'll do it again on our next trip, we'll see.

 

[ArielSRL]

Just noticed you've updated!
I feel like you needed that fancy glow cube drink on this day lol
It's weird the converted pooh FP's weren't good for JC-were they good for everything else? Even if there were a couple other exclusions, why JC? I maybe could understand if it was the holidays and it had become Jingle Cruise.....just seems odd??

It usually only includes attractions close by and in the same "caliber". So mostly Fantasyland rides but not 7DMT. But the real problem was it should have used those when we went on Pooh after it opened back up and then the ones we had received from the exec office could've been used for JC. But the system prioritizes them weird apparently!

Yes, I did need that drink on that day...lol!

 

[ArielSRL]

Your boys really light up when they meet the characters, those are very cute pictures!!!

Thank you!

Dang it, we should have taken a picture, can't believe we forgot! Maybe there will be another chance down the road. It was so nice to meet you in person.

I think it was just the logistics of me being in line getting food. Otherwise one of us probably would've thought to take a photo! Yes, it would be fun to meet again at Disney! When is your next trip?

Yes, Chef Mickey's is definitely over-priced and the food is nothing spectacular. The only reason we go there anymore is really just because it's tradition and the kids don't think it's a visit to WDW without a visit to Chef Mickey's. But with my family now being 4 adults and one kid (because two of the kids are Disney adults), the cost is becoming extremely prohibitive! I don't know if we'll do it again on our next trip, we'll see.

Glad to see I'm not the only one! I'm sure we will get back around there in the future but we won't be in a rush.

 

[gracer9977]

Great pictures of all the characters and your boys. They really look like they are having a great time. I really like the meal and we always have gone for dinner. I know it's basic buffet food and the price is high but it's tradition for us to go every time we are in Disney. Plus as everyone says it's the best way to meet the Fab 5.

 

[vamassey1]

Fabulous group photo at Chef Mickeys. I agree your boys do light up for the character pics. I can take Chef Mickey's or leave it. Michelle really likes it for the chance to meet the Fab 5. I think we're going to skip it next time around. We had a great time just not the greatest food.

 

[ArielSRL]

Great pictures of all the characters and your boys. They really look like they are having a great time. I really like the meal and we always have gone for dinner. I know it's basic buffet food and the price is high but it's tradition for us to go every time we are in Disney. Plus as everyone says it's the best way to meet the Fab 5.

I totally agree about it being the best place to meet the Fab 5. We will definitely do it again (though it might be breakfast as I like that better), most likely if we do the dining plan again. Next trip we are trying 'Ohana instead.

 

[ArielSRL]

Fabulous group photo at Chef Mickeys. I agree your boys do light up for the character pics. I can take Chef Mickey's or leave it. Michelle really likes it for the chance to meet the Fab 5. I think we're going to skip it next time around. We had a great time just not the greatest food.

I agree. The character experience is great...food, just okay and it should be better for the price!

And thanks for the compliments on the photo! Yes, the boys really enjoyed the character meals. We don't have as many planned for next time because we are paying OOP but I still have a few in there!

 

[ArielSRL]

Quick tidbit before the update...my DH mentioned that I needed to block someone on FB for this weekend. It turns out they are at Disney and he didn't want to depress me or make me envious. I said, honestly, I'm okay with it because we have a trip booked...I know we are going back, so no bother. But then I mentioned, "now, after this next trip, when we have no trip booked, I will probably be crying if I see someone going to Disney." He said (and I quote), "Well, if it all goes well, maybe we will book a trip for the next year." Where has my DH gone and who is this replacement??? Honestly, I think he is getting excited! I showed him some Figment MBs this weekend on the Shop Disney Parks app (he LOVES Figment) and he was very interested. He also loves the Muppets and I shared with him the new Muppets thing opening up in Liberty Square and he is very excited about that. I hope it is successful and sticks around until June! Of course, this means the pressure is really on me to get this trip planned right!

Day Six 6/9/2016 ~ Magic Kingdom (part 3)

Okay, so before I get started on the update, I'll post a very offensive (to me) photo from our trip:


I could not believe after everything, I had to endure a friggin ride photo! Ugh...moving on.

So after we finished up at Chef Mickey's, we headed back to MK. And just an fyi...here's a night where we pretty much did everything right and (almost) according to plan. When we got into the park, we immediately headed for Liberty Square to line up for the parade. Some of us had FPs for Splash (Mom, Dad, and AJ), some of us for Aladdin (really just me but I planned to ride with Will). We were planning to do rider swap for Splash but there wasn't going to be enough time for that and Mom decided she didn't want to ride Splash anyway. It was probably a little after 8pm so she just decided to line up with Will right at the rope near Diamond Horseshoe so we would get a great spot for MSEP. Dad and I grabbed AJ and headed to Splash. This would be his very first ride on it. He did ask about drops but we kind of played it off since there is only the one big one at the end and everything else is so good, I wanted him to experience it and not bow out. We were cutting it a little close to the start of the parade but we didn't have to wait hardly at all in the FP line. Oh and there was a tad bit of drama going in bc I had forgotten to get Mom's band and she was the one with the Splash FP. But once I showed the CM our FPs on MDE she let me in.

Here's our ride photo:

Again, I look horrible and AJ looks scared out of his mind...lol. At least we are consistent! AJ definitely did not like the drop but liked the rest of the ride....but now he says he doesn't like the ride. I'll be dragging him on it next June, regardless...lol.

After the ride we hurried back over to our spot. I was a little worried we wouldn't make it across bc it was about 8:50 at this point but we were still able to cross with no issues. However, when I got to our spot, a lady was standing at the rope in between my mom on her scooter and Will in his stroller (we had spaced them out a bit, as well as put our park bags down on the ground, to "save" our spots). I immediately said, "Excuse me, this is our spot," to the woman and she moved a tad but certainly not enough. I said, "Look, lady, you are going to have to move more than that. We have 3 more people to fit up here and we have been holding the spot since 8pm." She did actually end up moving but my mom told me that when she first appeared, she had told her the same thing and the lady had said, "you don't own this spot." My mom is very non confrontational so she thought, no, but I've been here about 50 more minutes than you have, but she didn't say anything and didn't push the issue. As you can see, I do not take after my mom in that regard...haha. And she probably knew I would take care of it when I got back...lol.

So after that got handled, thank you very much, it was almost time but it seems the parade was running late. AJ had to go potty so Dad took him, and I took the time to go talk to the CM manning the FP kiosks and ask about what happpened with ours. This is where I got the explanation of how the system prioritizes the FPs in a certain way and if ever in the same situation again, just speak with a CM first and they can make sure the correct ones are used.

I think I forgot to mention that another problem was that we could not book any additional FPs from the app because we still had that converted Pooh FP. The CM said that it just glitches sometimes from the app and that I should be able to book a 4th at the kiosk, so she set me up on one. She asked what I had wanted to book and I said BTMRR. At first there wasn't anything but she kept refreshing and eventually found it for us. She then proceeded to write us two other FPs for our troubles. She asked what I wanted and I said Peter Pan and Haunted Mansion, so that's what we got. Nice! Plus we still had the converted Pooh FP that was good for several Fantasyland rides. During all this, Dad and AJ came out of the bathroom searching for me because AJ wanted his pressed penny money. I may have forgotten to mention he collected several of those on this trip and I am sure we will continue on the next trip.

After I got that taken care of, it was finally time for MSEP. So here goes with a ton of photos (fair warning):









Continued in next post...

 

[ArielSRL]

**Continued** Day Six 6/9/2016 ~ Magic Kingdom (part 3)












Continued in next post...

 

[ArielSRL]

**Continued** Day Six 6/9/2016 ~ Magic Kingdom (part 3)





And there ya have it...MSEP! I'm so glad we made time to do this and do it right. The boys loved it and now that it is going away, we obviously won't see it again next June. Great (close to an) ending to our MK night...but we weren't quite done. We headed up to Fantasyland to use some of our FPs. We jumped in line for Peter Pan. AJ had been so worried about this ride before our trip (I think I mentioned this on our first MK day but it's been so long I can't remember...oops) and then it ended up being a favorite so I'm glad we got another ride on it. We didn't wait long before we were sailing over London. Next trip I am going to plan this for Rope Drop one day so we can experience the interactive standby queue.

After we got done with PP, we went across to IASW. We used our converted Pooh FPs for this though we didn't really need to - I probably should've checked standby before just heading into the FP line but we probably wouldn't have had much time for anything else anyway, as it was getting late. At the end, we got to see this:

which was extremely neat! Will was on the ride but we didn't have his MB with us since he is under 3 and didn't need it. Not sure if his name would've shown up had we had it or not.

Mom decided to skip out and said she got to see Wishes from Fantasyland. I almost wish we had waited and done that, then jumped on IASW but my mind probably just wasn't able to jump on that and process that at the time. It is a lot to keep up with!

BTW, Fantasyland was pretty much the least crowded we had seen it at any point of our trip and I have to admit, I absolutely love those type of nights at MK. Just strolling through, late at night, listening to all the sounds and music without a lot of people noises. I was worried I wouldn't get to experience it this trip as it was just so busy during the day, but I got it!

After that, we headed down to HM. We tried to talk AJ into doing it but he was absolutely not having it, so I told Mom and Dad to go and I would wait with the boys, but Mom must've been done at this point because she said no and told Dad to go. I didn't want to leave her with both of the boys again (we had done that a few times this trip and we were about to do it one last time so I didn't feel right doing it again) so we told Dad to go alone, but he didn't want to so we skipped it. As a matter of fact, I still have that paper FP. Kept it as a souvenir!

So the night was coming to a close...but we did have one more thing to do....BTMRR!! One of my absolute faves at WDW and we hadn't gotten to do it yet! So all of us headed over and we got Mom set up with the boys in a good spot and we headed in. We didn't wait very long but there was a bit of drama here too. Once we got into the actually queue for our spots on the train, a guy handed us one of the red cards because his young daughter had forgotten to give it to the CM. He specifically said, she felt bad about forgetting, so of course, we said no problem and turned to pass it to the next person so it could get passed up. Well this guy was a total douche and instantly started complaining about how he had to pass up a red card because we had forgotten to give it to the CM. Of course, I can't keep my mouth shut...lol...so I said, "Actually it wasn't us, it was a nice young lady a little further back and we were just helping her out, but I am so sorry that we inconvenienced you and ruined your whole trip because we asked you to help her out, too." Well, that shut him up. I think he was quite shocked but who cares...douche!

After that exchange, we took our turn on the wildest ride in the wilderness and of course, it was incredible! What a great way to close out MK...MSEP, PP, IASW, and BTMRR! No matter what had happened up til that point, this was quintessential Disney for me, and I loved every bit of it!

Not to drag out this update past its prime, but to finish, we headed out of the nearly empty park and headed back to the TTC, and then SSR. It was late but AJ and I had an early date at DHS to get him signed up for JTA in the AM, so off to bed ASAP after a shower and a glass of wine (I'm sure) for me.

Up next: Day Seven 6/10/2016 ~ Hollywood Studios (part 1)

 

[gracer9977]

I am so glad you got to see MSEP one last time and take a bunch of pictures since it is gone in a few days. One thing I highly regret is not setting aside a night to watch it one last time but who knew it would be getting cancelled. We saw pieces of it and I got a few pictures but not as much as I would have liked.

Good for you for speaking up not only to the woman who took your parade spot but also to the douche in line at BTMRR. It constantly amazes me how rude and inconsiderate people can be. Although on the flip side I have seen people at Disney who are so happy and friendly that you instantly love them.

Sorry you all missed out on Haunted Mansion. My kids are not afraid of any rides. They will ride the fastest, tallest, craziest coasters and yet are terrified of Haunted Mansion. I finally got my son to go on last time but he was clinging to me the whole time like something was going to reach out and grab him. After though he said he loved it even though he couldn't have seen anything being buried into me the way he was but I'll take it. The first time we went on with my kids, my daughter was 6 and my son was 3. I was holding Aurora's hand and my dad was holding Jack. Aurora walked into the stretching room, panicked and bolted leaving me to chase after her. When Jack realized I was gone he started screaming as if he was being murdered and peed all over my poor dad. He came out the side door with a clearly panicked 3 year old and covered in pee. I ended up going back to the resort to get him clean clothes. It was not funny at the time but now it is hilarious to me.

Sounds like you had a great time at MK and everything fell into place for you for once.

 

[Jfsag123]

Yes! I love you calling people on their crap! I may or may not have some tendencies in that direction as well Love the description of your Space Mountain ride photo - you will have getting talked out of your ride and then ditched by your dad commemorated forever.

Also love that you got a fastpass-filled evening! We had that happen one night on our trip in 2013 when it was still paper fastpasses. The FP machines kept being unable to read our tickets and we had to get CM assistance every time we wanted a FP, so I went to Guest Relations to have our tickets replaced. While I was in there the computer froze so the process ended up taking a quite a bit of time. When it was finished, the CM gave us 3 anytime fastpasses for all of us, then also gave me a CM master FP card that allowed me to pull FPs from the machines with no time restriction in between. Score! That sure was a fun night.

So glad you got to see the MSEP one more time. Also glad that it sounds like your DH is coming around! If he's already thinking about a trip again in 2018 before even going on next year's trip, I think your odds of being able to go back again the next year are pretty good!

 

[dnllmz]

Your MK night sounds great with the exception of the 2 jerks that you had to deal with. This is a dumb question but what's a red card? I'm a newbie!

 

[ArielSRL]

I am so glad you got to see MSEP one last time and take a bunch of pictures since it is gone in a few days. One thing I highly regret is not setting aside a night to watch it one last time but who knew it would be getting cancelled. We saw pieces of it and I got a few pictures but not as much as I would have liked.

Yes, I think it stinks that there wasn't much time after the announcement til closure. So many people may not have made time for it this year because they had no idea it was going away. I truly hope they either come up with a great new one, or get Paint the Night, for our next trip in June 2017!

Good for you for speaking up not only to the woman who took your parade spot but also to the douche in line at BTMRR. It constantly amazes me how rude and inconsiderate people can be. Although on the flip side I have seen people at Disney who are so happy and friendly that you instantly love them.

Yes, I'm so glad that nice people outweigh the not-so-nice people! Unfortunately the not-so-nice people can leave a much bigger footprint than the nice people sometimes. Fortunately for us, the situations didn't end up being huge issues!

Sorry you all missed out on Haunted Mansion. My kids are not afraid of any rides. They will ride the fastest, tallest, craziest coasters and yet are terrified of Haunted Mansion. I finally got my son to go on last time but he was clinging to me the whole time like something was going to reach out and grab him. After though he said he loved it even though he couldn't have seen anything being buried into me the way he was but I'll take it. The first time we went on with my kids, my daughter was 6 and my son was 3. I was holding Aurora's hand and my dad was holding Jack. Aurora walked into the stretching room, panicked and bolted leaving me to chase after her. When Jack realized I was gone he started screaming as if he was being murdered and peed all over my poor dad. He came out the side door with a clearly panicked 3 year old and covered in pee. I ended up going back to the resort to get him clean clothes. It was not funny at the time but now it is hilarious to me.

Okay, that is an absolute hilarious story! But I'm sure a major inconvenience/embarrassment at the time. I'd apologize for laughing but you admit you do now too! LOL. And yes, unfortunately with our kids at the impressionable ages that they are, there are a few attractions that will not make the list for a few years. I'll still push for HM next June but I'll be prepared for a resounding NO!

Sounds like you had a great time at MK and everything fell into place for you for once.

Thank you! It truly was a nice last night there!

 

[ArielSRL]

Yes! I love you calling people on their crap! I may or may not have some tendencies in that direction as well Love the description of your Space Mountain ride photo - you will have getting talked out of your ride and then ditched by your dad commemorated forever.

Yeh, I pretty much call it like I see it most of the time. I have tried to get better in my old age of not overreacting to things or staying out of any unnecessary drama, but those situations, I felt, called for words and fortunately, it didn't take much! Oh and yep, what a wonderful photo souvenir. I should have it printed and framed for my dad...but he still would be oblivious to the fact that I was so ticked off at his inappropriate (imo) actions!

Also love that you got a fastpass-filled evening! We had that happen one night on our trip in 2013 when it was still paper fastpasses. The FP machines kept being unable to read our tickets and we had to get CM assistance every time we wanted a FP, so I went to Guest Relations to have our tickets replaced. While I was in there the computer froze so the process ended up taking a quite a bit of time. When it was finished, the CM gave us 3 anytime fastpasses for all of us, then also gave me a CM master FP card that allowed me to pull FPs from the machines with no time restriction in between. Score! That sure was a fun night.

Yes, it truly worked out really well, especially with it being our last night, so we were able to hit up most of our favorites! And that sounds like a frustrating-turned-awesome night in 2013!

So glad you got to see the MSEP one more time. Also glad that it sounds like your DH is coming around! If he's already thinking about a trip again in 2018 before even going on next year's trip, I think your odds of being able to go back again the next year are pretty good!

He definitely is visibly getting more and more excited for the trip. I think we are all infecting him! But I do feel like I have to "get it right" so as not to sour him on the experience. Rope drops are going to be a requirement for us this year, as those early hours are going to be key to get a lot of stuff done without a lot of people around, along with the midday breaks during the busiest/hottest parts of the day.

 

[ArielSRL]

Your MK night sounds great with the exception of the 2 jerks that you had to deal with. This is a dumb question but what's a red card? I'm a newbie!

It really was an incredible finish! A red card is a card that the CMs give out to a patron at the beginning of a line and that patron turns it in at the end of the line. It's supposed to help them with wait times.

 

[vamassey1]

I have to say it does look like your Dad had a great time on Space.

What a great night in the MK! I'm a parade person and don't mind setting up early an waiting, but I do not like for someone to show up late and think they can take my spot. Good for you for standing up for your spot. Most people you meet at Disney are great but there are those that aren't either. Danielle is 17 now and has finally gotten to where she will ride HM in the last few trips. Good luck with your boys on that. BTMRR is the best at night! Great job putting things in perspective for non friendly guest.

I'ms so glad you got the nice quiet view of Fantasyland. I love it when it's like that too. It seems to be so rare now days.

 

[ArielSRL]

I have to say it does look like your Dad had a great time on Space.

At least someone did, right? Haha

What a great night in the MK! I'm a parade person and don't mind setting up early an waiting, but I do not like for someone to show up late and think they can take my spot. Good for you for standing up for your spot. Most people you meet at Disney are great but there are those that aren't either.

I agree that most are nice and friendly. Sometimes the not so nice ones can really b stinkers, though! Fortunately, our stinkers weren't too much of an issue!

Danielle is 17 now and has finally gotten to where she will ride HM in the last few trips. Good luck with your boys on that. BTMRR is the best at night! Great job putting things in perspective for non friendly guest.

AJ rode it on his first trip at 9.5 months but I guess that's different, right? I'll keep trying to talk them into it but I won't hold out hope. DH and I may have to do one at a time in June.

I'ms so glad you got the nice quiet view of Fantasyland. I love it when it's like that too. It seems to be so rare now days.

I was a little shocked...there were still many, many strollers around, just no people! It was very nice. I should've taken photos!

 

[gracer9977]

Okay, that is an absolute hilarious story! But I'm sure a major inconvenience/embarrassment at the time. I'd apologize for laughing but you admit you do now too! LOL. And yes, unfortunately with our kids at the impressionable ages that they are, there are a few attractions that will not make the list for a few years. I'll still push for HM next June but I'll be prepared for a resounding NO!

You can laugh. Even my dad laughs about it now and Jack loves to hear the story about how he peed on papa in the Haunted Mansion. I finally succeeded in getting Jack on now I just have to convince Aurora that it is not that scary. We have a dark ride in an amusement park in PA that we go to every year and that is a scarier ride than the Haunted Mansion and Aurora will go on that 50 times in a row. Maybe by the time we can get back to Disney she will be brave enough to finally try it.

 

[Jfsag123]

He definitely is visibly getting more and more excited for the trip. I think we are all infecting him! But I do feel like I have to "get it right" so as not to sour him on the experience. Rope drops are going to be a requirement for us this year, as those early hours are going to be key to get a lot of stuff done without a lot of people around, along with the midday breaks during the busiest/hottest parts of the day.

You've got the dream strategy down already. Unless he's someone who struggles to wake up early (which I totally get as a night owl), the rope drop/mid-day break plan is pretty much a slam dunk as far as successful planning goes for getting things done. Those early hours are like gold.