The Complete Report: Donna Does Disney...and Universal, too!
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tikibird · 08-29-2002, 06:47 PM

Wow, sorry you had such a long, frustrating trip home, but other than that, sounds like you had a great trip!

Looking forward to your wrap-up! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

luvnwdwgal · 09-05-2002, 11:16 PM

Thanks so much for the great trip report!
I really enjoyed reading it! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

disneydonna · 09-06-2002, 12:59 AM

Part XII: Ramblings and Rumblings: Our trip in Retrospect

Never having visited WDW in the summer months before, I had been dreading the crowds. I was pleasantly surprised to find them bearable. With the help of Disney's FastPass and Universal's FOL, we were able to see just about all of the attractions that we had planned to see in each park. I would plan a return trip for July with no hesitation.

Staying at a Disney resort is half of the fun of a visit. Next time, if I were again staying for a full week, I would split the time and stay at more than one resort. A week at the Beach Club was nice but I can't help feeling I missed out on a little magic by limiting our stay to one hotel. I've never done "resort hopping" but, after reading the boards, I would definitely like to try it next time.

All of my advance planning was worth it. By making PS's for at least two meals each day, we had a great plan to follow and never had to wait more than a few minutes at mealtime. I would advise anyone to take the time to plan, plan, plan. It really is worth it in the long run.

Three days prior to our arrival, I had faxed a somewhat humorous letter to the Beach Club's room assignor "challenging" him/her to find us the perfect room. I listed each of my desires in order of how important they were to me. Then, I let the room assignor go to work. My Passporter had specifically mentioned some awful rooms with ugly rooftop views but I didn't note this in my letter. I was glad that I didn't because the ideal room that the room assignor chose for me had one of those views. The other requests, such as a spacious room, were much more important to me. Plus, I found the view peaceful. You read lots of advise here on the boards and in the travel guides, but each person has a different view on things. Beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder. So, my advise to you is to let the room assignor do his/her thing.

As for restuarants, we re-discovered some old favorites and found some new ones. A WDW trip would not be complete without visits to The Hoo-De-Do, Cinderella's Royal Table, and the Kona Cafe. On future trips, we will also schedule stops at Cape May Cafe and the Liberty Tree Tavern.

We spent a lot more money on food than we had planned. Next time, I wil explore the packages that include your meals.

I think it's a scream how everyone has their favorite treats, from Dole Whips to Oatmeal Cookies. My personal favorite is Disney's banana stuffed french toast. Next time, I vow to sample Canada's Beaver Tails and to continue looking for an old-tyme favorite that they used to serve at Disney's Golf Club Resort, french fried ice cream.

We stayed at Disney for seven nights, allowing for one day for each park. Ideally, it would be nice to have one additional day. You really need to schedule a "do-nothing" day in the middle of your stay to combat exhaustion.

On future trips, I will definitely include a stay at Universal. I am a true fan of Disney and it is a little hard for me to say, but some of Universal's rides are better than Disney's.

Universal's FOL rules! It's nice to be able to get a Fastpass to beat the crowds but being able to go on every ride first, every single time, is almost unbelievable.

Even though I was disappointed with the Royal Pacific Hotel, if they were still offering FOL I would not rule out a stay at one of the other Loew's hotels. Once again, FOL rules!

With FOL, a 3-day, 2-night stay at Universal allows plenty of time to see and do everything.

Visiting WDW with teenagers is a whole lot different than a visit with toddlers. On our last trip, the kids were "knee-high to grasshoppers" and looked at everything with wide-eyed wonder. As teenagers, they had a totally different experience. Be prepared to have them pronounce that your favorite Disney ride is "lame" or to have them get totally embarassed by you when you wear a poncho on the water rides. Expect the Virgin Megastore to have more appeal than any theme park. Plan to either ride on the Car-0-Suess-el by yourself or to wait until you have grandchildren. With teenagers, the magic is still there; it just takes on a whole new perspective.

Never, ever, ever do DisneyQuest when it is raining! Build an escape plan in your itinerary just in case it even sprinkles on your planned day.

Always share your trip report with others on the boards when you return. It truly allows you the opportunity to re-live the magic. (Surprisingly, as I write this, the last entry to my report, I am almost as choked up as I was when I drove past the Disney gates to return home.)

If possible, include photos in your trip report. (I don't have a scanner and wasn't able to do this. You're all going to have to imagine how DD(16) looked with her braids. Think Bo Derek. Alas...Considering how much money we spent at Disney, the purchase of a scanner is way off in the future, too.)

I don't know if or when we will be able to return to WDW. The kids will soon start college and money will be tight. We really spent big on this vacation, knowing it would be our last family trip for quite a while. I'm still going to hang around here on the Passporter message boards. I can read about all of your Disney trips and, maybe, travel vicariously though your reports.

It's been fun! [img]graemlins/wavin.gif[/img]

[ 09-07-2002, 04:35 PM: Message edited by: disneydonna ]