For the Love Of All Disney Parks!- Page 3

[wizard2joe]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 1:21pm

I been to Disney Sea a couple yaers ago (I think it was 4 years ago) and anyways it was great.
When I went, there wasn't a lot of rides but the shows and and the decorations were great.
Everything was translated in english so you will understand what they're saying (it doesn't matter to me because I speak Japanese, fully).
There parade is on water, so they have boats/floats on the water. They have a volcanoe that shoots out fired every few minutes.
I remebered going on Sinbad's Storybook Voyage and it was actually the last ride we rode so I don't really remember the whole thing but I still remeber some of the ride.

The best thing though was the food and the characters that are dressed differently then the ones in the US.

The bad thing about it was that mostly every ride was like a 2 hour wait line.

[HollyGolightly2]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 2:43pm

^ That's to be expected in Japan, where even public restrooms have a 2 hour wait line.


(Okay, I'm not speaking from experience, but I do know that Tokyo Disneyland is NEVER not crowded. Ever. Japanese people are very populous and like Disney very, very much.)

[adamgreer]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 8:03pm

The WDW Dining Plan is an absolute STEAL of a deal. I'm really shocked WDW hasn't caught on to it yet. It costs $46 a day per person this year, but you get a table service meal, a counter service, and a snack. There were restaurants I ate at where my table service meal was more than $46. The trick is to avoid the buffets.

I will second Mister Matt's recommendations for Le Cellier, which is my choice for the best meal anywhere on property. Their cheddar cheese soup is absolutely to DIE for and goes great with one of their steaks, which are also excellent. Jiko is also fabulous, if you're feeling adventurous and willing to try different things. My other on property recommendations include the soon to be closing Spoodles, and, if you have a big group, the Whispering Canyon Cafe, at the Wilderness Lodge.

[HollyGolightly2]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 8:52pm

^ Disney's still benefiting. They're standardizing and cheapening all the meals, so you can only get the same three things at all the restauraunts, as opposed to when all the restaurants had their own specialized menus. The dining plan really sucks for people who visit Disney World often. Also, servers get automatically included tips from people on the dining plan, so they can be as rude and inattentive as they want.

I forget all the reasons why Disney is making money and why the dining plan sucks... I'll have to ask my mother. She's all-knowing when it comes to Disney. She used to write the Anita Answer column on AllEars.net.


ANYWAY... My favorite restaurants are Cape May Cafe (at the Beach Club resort), Teppan Edo (in the Japan pavilion at Epcot), Tony's (in the Town Square at Magic Kingdom), Ohana (at the Polynesian resort), and Boma (at the Animal Kingdom Lodge). Yum! Even though Boma always makes me sick afterwards.
Updated On: 9/8/09 at 08:52 PM

[adamgreer]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 8:57pm

Last year, the dining plan was changed. It no longer includes tax or gratuity, so that's wrong. The menus are incredibly varied among restaurants, except for the children's menus. Not sure where you got that from, either.

Disney benefits with the dining plan and Magical Express by keeping their guests on property their entire vacation. If you use the dining plan and Magical Express, you never leave the resort. Updated On: 9/8/09 at 08:57 PM

[HollyGolightly2]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 9:05pm

Well, when we tried it a few years ago, the gratuity was still included. I don't keep up with the dining plan because we don't use it. And if you look closely, you're gonna find that some menus have the same items on them. The menus aren't all exactly the same, no, but there are some dishes that are present at more than one restaurant.

Also, I don't really think the dining plan helps that much to keep people on property. I mean, it's pretty hard to leave without a car, and even most of the people who have cars don't know where the heck they're going. It's probably used to get people to spend more money on souvenirs or stay exclusively at Disney resorts. I don't know the logistics of it, but trust me, Disney's making money off of it somehow. They're clever. As long as no one's getting ripped off, though, I'm fine with it.

Updated On: 9/8/09 at 09:05 PM

[adamgreer]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 9:28pm

Also, I don't really think the dining plan helps that much to keep people on property.
Then you don't understand the logistics of the plan.

I mean, it's pretty hard to leave without a car
Which is why they push Magical Express. Prior to Magical Express, people rented a car.

most of the people who have cars don't know where the heck they're going.
International Drive is less than 10 minutes away and not at all hard to get to. Heck, if you drive down I-4 about a minute off the property, you're deluged with about 20 different eateries. Without a car, these aren't an option!

I don't know the logistics of it, but trust me, Disney's making money off of it somehow. They're clever.
I explained how Disney is benefitting from the plan. They're keeping you on property, in the parks and resorts, the entire length of your trip.

[blaxx]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 9:32pm

So, is it bad idea to include in my online dating profiles "Must love Disney parks?" :)

[adamgreer]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 9:48pm

Depends who you're trying to attract, blaxx!! If I saw that in someone's profile, I'd be messaging them immediately!

[singalongsong2]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 10:01pm

Add me to the list of Disney fans. I've been going to WDW every November for the past 8 years or so. Great time to go. No lines whatsoever! I highly recommend that everyone go to the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater at Hollywood Studios. It is a fun place to eat. They have good shakes and burgers. The tables are made to look like convertibles and, while you eat, you can enjoy some clips of old monster movies on the big screen. It's just a really cool drive-in atmosphere.

Lots of people have told me about the dinner plan. I think it is worth it if you plan on staying and eating on Disney property only. However, if you are like me, then I don't think it would be beneficial. Even though we stay on Disney property, we don't really eat there. Many of our fave Orlando restaurants are not on Disney property. Plus, we also go to the Universal parks and their eateries are obviously not part of the deal.

[Jilani]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 10:25pm

I'm a big fan of both WDW and Disneyland in CA. We've found one of the best times to go to WDW is in early December, when all the Christmas decorations are up (and they are beautiful; you have to tour all the resorts just to see the incredible displays), but the crowds are at some of the lowest levels of the year. Two things I love at the Disneyland Resort in CA that WDW doesn't have are its version of Fantasmic! and Disney's Electrical Parade, which has a unique charm to it.

To those who have been to Le Cellier, how far ahead did you call to reserve it? I have tried twice now to book it on the first day that I could (most recently, 92 days in advance), and it's always booked solid!

Other memorable dining experiences the last time I was in WDW: Jiko at the Animal Kingdom Lodge; California Grill at the Contemporary Resort - this has a beautiful view of the Magic Kingdom, and you can go out onto the balcony to watch the Wishes! fireworks display - they pipe in the soundtrack for that purpose; and Victoria and Albert's at the Grand Floridian, which was simultaneously elegant and unpretentious - the servers made us feel completely at ease, and the food was like art.

[HollyGolightly2]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 11:24pm

I think the last time I ate at Le Cellier, we booked it probably four or five months in advance. That's another thing about the dining plan; it makes it a lot harder to get into restaurants because more people are booking reservations on it. (It used to be that you could walk into Le Cellier without a reservation and be seated either right away or after some waiting. Nowadays, forget it. Unless it's off season, you're not getting in without booking it in advance.)

[Princeton78]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 11:47pm

I just returned from a week at WDW...
I'm very lucky that my partner-in-crime has become a mouse-aholic like me, though he isn't as wild as I am for the deluxe resorts.
All but one night was spent at the Grand Floridian, and though we booked a standard view, we were upgraded to club level (Royal Palm Club)in the main building with a stunning view of the Seven Seas Lagoon. It was an experience I will never forget. Watching the sun rise over the Polynesian from my bed......sigh.

Anyhow...
We were on the dining plan and our best meal by a mile was at Citrico's at the Grand, and our worst was at The Wave at the Contemporary. It was bland and our server, though nice, was clueless. We finally got the Le Cellier reservation, and we got it exactly 90 days ahead of time. It was good. It wasn't spectacular, but it was good. I can also highly recommend California Grill, the Grand Floridian Cafe, 'Ohana (which means family), the Crystal Palace and Mama Melrose's.

Should we start a separate Mouse-junkie thread?

Updated On: 9/8/09 at 11:47 PM

[adamgreer]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 11:48pm

The most difficult meals on property to get a priority seating for are, in order: Cinderella's Royal Table, Victoria and Albert's, Le Cellier, California Grill, and Chef Mickey's.

[Princeton78]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 11:50pm

Lately, and inexplicably, I might put Le Cellier ahead of Cindy's Royal Table and V and A's.
Part of the problem there is that the dining room is absolutely tiny.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 9/8/09 at 11:59pm

The order I quoted above comes from Disney, I'm not just guestimating. The reason Cindy's Royal Table remains the hardest is because of the novelty of getting to go in the castle, coupled with the absolutely teeny tiny dining room make it nearly impossible to get into (read The Unofficial Guide's description of how to get a reservation, which involves atomic time, setting a stop watch, and practicing your phone call for an idea). The draw there certainly isn't the food.

[Princeton78]

Posted: 9/9/09 at 7:23am

"read The Unofficial Guide's description of how to get a reservation, which involves atomic time, setting a stop watch, and practicing your phone call for an idea"

You think I haven't read it cover to cover multiple times? :)

[adamgreer]

Posted: 9/9/09 at 8:37am

Their two page description of how to get a priority seating for Cinderella's Royal Table never fails to make me laugh, no matter how many times I've read it. It reads like a 12-step plan for the occupation of a foreign country. I guess there's no limit to what some parents will do for their kids...

[Jilani]

Posted: 9/9/09 at 9:09am

Count me as someone else who has read the Unofficial Guide multiple times! The newest edition (2010) puts Le Cellier, Coral Reef, and dinner at the Crystal Palace ahead of Cinderella's Royal Table in difficulty, based on their field testing. The reason is that CRT used to only have character dining at breakfast, but now they've expanded it to lunch and dinner. Also, it's now called an Advance Reservation rather than a Priority Seating.

[Princeton78]

Posted: 9/9/09 at 10:34am

I got my Le Celllier reservation by calling 90 days out and saying, ""We're here on these dates, is there anything available at Le Cellier?," and boom, we were hooked up.
I also got dinner at Crystal Palace this past time with little trouble. We got one of the last seatings and went out to the deck for a postcard view of Spetctromagic and Wishes.
For the record, I liked Crystal Palace much more than Le Cellier.

[HollyGolightly2]

Posted: 9/9/09 at 12:34pm

Ha, the Crystal Palace holds fun memories for me. Last time I was there, it was the day that Hurricane Charley hit. Magic Kingdom was going to close in the early afternoon, and it was EMPTY. So we decided to walk in to Crystal Palace for lunch, which is normally impossible in early August. The restaurant was deserted, just like the park, so all the characters were being extra silly and there were tons of food at the buffet.

The day after that was pretty interesting, too. All the parks were open except for Animal Kingdom. We checked out all the on-property damage and went to Epcot, where every other tree had been downed. (I'm not at home, so these aren't my pictures. )





Updated On: 9/9/09 at 12:34 PM

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/9/09 at 1:42pm

I've only ever had breakfast at Crystal Palace (since 1976!), but it has always been so great, I've never thought of having lunch or dinner there. I think I booked Le Cellier about 3 months in advance, but I can't remember. It was three years ago. I remember being surprised because the restaurant used to be cafeteria-style long ago and it was always one of our favorites back then. I do remember that our bill at Le Cellier would have been approximately $120 had we not used the dining plan. Gratuity was included then, but we always had excellent service (not so much at Disneyland Paris where we walked out of one of the restaurants). With the new dining plan upgrade, I'll probably end up booking mostly table meals as you are no longer limited to just one per day, but you do still have to trade two table meals for one signature meal (i.e. Cinderella's Castle, Jiko, California Grill, etc.). And I almost forgot the fantastic Raglan Road in Downtown Disney. We had to make a quick change in our dinner reservations and chose to eat there before a performance of La Nouba and we were delighted! The live music and dancing were wonderful and the food was excellent. By the way, has anyone tried Boma or Sanaa at the Animal Kingdom Lodge? I'm curious to hear some opinions on those.

For a cheaper option, they also have a quick-service only dining package including three meals and two snacks for those not interested in dealing with table service meals (though I assume it is not as economical as the ones including table service meals), but all their plans are geared towards guests staying at the resorts for extended stays who do not intend to travel off the property, just as the extended hours in the parks are a way of luring guests into staying at a Disney resort. In my case, it was a great option and it worked beautifully.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/9/09 at 1:44pm

Holly - That second picture reminds me how much I loath what they did to Journey Into Imagination. Bleagh!

Updated On: 9/9/09 at 01:44 PM

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 9/9/09 at 2:47pm

I' have never been a fan of DL's food.

Sure, they've upgraded it over the years, but it's just too overpriced for the quality.

Besides, who goes for the food?!



I also thought I'd change the thread title since the thread seems to have morphed.

[Q]

Posted: 9/9/09 at 3:09pm

Well, I'm going for dinner tonight at Napa Rose - which is not only my favorite restaurant, but has also been named the best in Orange County every year since it opened. And their wine list is regarded by Wine Spectator as amongst the best in the country.

So, I do go for the food