Here's my four day TR in a nutshell, just chock full of tips and highlights :-)
• Who: Me (34), my 2 year old son, and our 13 year old babysitter
• What: 3 nights, 4 days
• When: Saturday - Tuesday, Feb. 3 - 6, 2001
Resort Report -- All-Star Music
Room Size: Perfectly adequate for two people and a toddler. I honestly didn't miss an inch of space over the moderates. The air conditioning is "central", not a big window unit, and that frees up a good deal of floor space. The bathroom is just as small and cramped as it is at the moderates. I can't imagine what you're paying for with all that extra money at the moderates, because it sure ain't space.
Theming: Very cute theming -- feels "Disney," and was a big hit with the kids.
Food Court: The scrambled eggs were inedible (microwaved or convection baked or something, but blechh). Everything else we tried for breakfast was OK. That said, we found other places to eat after our first morning. I can't imagine anybody ever saying "Oh boy, it's time to go eat at the Food Court!" Transportation: The bus service was excellent. Way better than Port Orleans/Dixie Landings, as the stops were closer to the park gates, and the busses ran far more frequently.
Resort Service: Pretty motel-ish. A step above Motel 6, but definitely not a fine hotel. NO coffee makers available, though we did get a hair dryer. It takes bell services and housekeeping a while to show up to do anything.
Highlights
• Animal Kingdom! What a pleasant surprise this park was. Festival of the Lion King was excellent. Probably the best show I've ever seen in the parks. My two year old loved it. I rode Dinosaur by myself and was scared about out of my wits. I thought that thing was going for my face. My idea of a good time! The safari was fun and the whole Africa area is beautifully done. I could listed to African accents all day long. Lovely poeple. The animal exhibits were what a great zoo should be. Kali River Rapids has one of the best queues ever (coupled with one of the most pointless rides -- to quote a guest in my raft, "That's it already?"). The theming throughout this park is totally wonderful. They need to do something with the river that runs around the park -- I wanted to get down onto it. They should have another stab at excursion boats, or maybe a suspended nature walkway for "hikes."
• Got to see Space Mountain with the lights on, via the People Mover. SM is down for rehab through Friday. I love looking at things behind the scenes.
• Dinner at the Mexican Pavilion. I can't remember the name of the restaurant -- the one inside. We walked up and were seated immediately without a PS, at 5:00 on a Monday. Reviews I'd read previously had me expecting terrible, weird food. Instead, it was one of the best Mexican meals I've ever had. Worth every penny, and great service, too. Totally delicious. I can't wait to drag my husband back here in 2002.
• Dinner at Chef Mickey's. While it was expensive, and the dining room was more like a college cafeteria than a restaurant, the food was quite good. Nice service, and the characters came around a bunch. Up tempo, and fun. I can't believe my toddler sat for over an hour! He was thoroughly entertained. I was thoroughly fed.
• Fantasy in the Sky fireworks show and the Electrical Light Parade. Magic for the teenager and the toddler. Fun for me, too. I bought the toddler a spinning light up Mickey glow toy thingy from a cart before the fireworks. I thought maybe I'd lost my mind because it was $13, but the kid got a lotta mileage out of it! Kept us all entertained while we waited. Note: We stood on the bridge from the Teacups/Starlight Ray's area, and it was a fine viewing spot. Not very crowded even 5 minutes before the fireworks, and Tinkerbell went fairly close by us. We could see all the shots. We watched the parade right next to the Frontierland sign -- also a great spot, and close to lots of places to grab a late snack and use the rest room while you're waiting.
Lowlights
• The teenager. Jeesh, she just about ruined our trip with her increasingly frequent snits, fits, sulks, and whining. And by the 4th day, I had heard enough about her jeans, her hair, and what she thought about other girls' jeans and hair. I was very happy to drop her off and bid her farewell last night. Someone remind me not to be so nice anymore -- I'm done taking other people's kids to Disney World.
• Construction and crowds in the Magic Kingdom. Too many iron walls and closed attractions, coupled with a really large crowd Tuesday -- I wish we'd just gone back to Animal Kingdom or the Studios and skipped the MK altogether. It's usually my favorite park, but it's just too damn crowded all the time these days.
• Crystal Palace food -- blechh. Shoot the chef.
• Winnie the Pooh SlowPass -- return times were 5:40 to 6:40 p.m. at 2 in the afternoon. If you want to do this ride, do it before noon. My son could have ridden it four or five times and would have loved it -- maybe they need to build a second!
• Rude CM's. Someone has been giving cm's the ok to snap at guests, be really sarcastic, etc. Not much friendliness. Few cm's seem relaxed or happy. And wherever groups of cm's congregated, there was open bitching and whining about backstage stuff. Lots of kids looking bored, tired, and like they could care less. Nary a smile in sight -- they looked way too weary to smile.
Hints and Tips
• Ignore the posted ride wait time signs at attraction entrances -- they were totally wrong, all the time, every day, in every park.
• Baby swap -- the cm's at Splash and Thunder Mountains both informed us that no, you cannot bring a toddler with you through the line and then swap at loading. Quote the Splash cm "That's what the playground is for down there." (Said, by the way, in a tone of voice that suggested that I was the biggest criminal and scamming piece of **** he'd ever had to speak to.)
• My son came down with a bacterial eye infection Saturday, and Sunday I took him to the First Aid station at the Magic Kingdom for a professional nurse's opinion. She confirmed it looked bacterial to her, too, and gave me a phamplet on a local walk in clinic, but mentioned they also had a doctor on staff to do out-call service. I opted for that, and boy was that the way to go. A great doctor came to our resort room exactly when we scheduled him to (I think he was two minutes late, lol). $140, great guy, gave me all the paperwork to submit to my insurance company. He made one phone call and had all the medicine we needed sent from a local pharmacy right to the hotel desk, where it arrived in about two hours. Expensive, yes, but it saved our whole day, and hopefully I can get reimbursed for part of it (about a year from now :-P). Also WAY less stressful for the toddler than going to a hospital or clinic!
Well, that's all for now. Overall, I'd give this trip a B+. Anyways, it will have to do, at least until this December and RADP VI!