WannaBeImagineer

14 hours ago, Tri-Circle-D said:

The TCD twins rode Slinky Dog Dash three times today. They said it's similar in intensity to the 7DMT ride in MK. They mentioned that the entire ride is outside, and that it was rather warm waiting in the outdoor queue. Also, the Alien ride is still not done, and has yet to be tested, and we are less than two weeks out from opening. Three years to build two rides, and they're scrambling at the end?

It sounds like we have another hit on our hands.

TCD 

That's pretty great they got early access!

I never understood the outdoor queue, after all these years why would they do that to us...(I know it's cheaper)  The whole ride and queue make me think of Barnstormer, but I doubt the waits will ever have any low times.

Typical construction stuff, always scramble at the last minute, story of my work life.

WBI

9 hours ago, Beckers said:

Well the Fort Wildeness wedding and reception were beautiful. I couldn’t figure out a time other than it was early morning-ish since they had breakfast foods at the reception. 

We were wondering about the time also because the Hoop sign said they had a show at 4 something, then we noticed the breakfast food so I guess it was real early.

I have to say Pioneer Hall looked great for a reception, the more I thought about it, it's a great choice, it has history, looks great already, has a stage, plenty of room, and it dressed up real nice!  Plus the food and booze are already there! lol

WBI

48 minutes ago, BradyBzLyn...Mo said:

If they can do anything with drones even close to what they did for the Olympics, it would be amazing.

But those were pre-recorded right?  They didn't do the show in front of a crowd or live on tv because of fears of problems and weather. I wonder if they could really do drones every single night for years and years...

WBI

21 hours ago, Tri-Circle-D said:

Was there some kind of contest or application process to select the wedding candidates?  Of course, there was no mention about what these weddings cost, and it seems like the cost would be astronomical. I get the impression that the wedding party didn't pay for the wedding. 

TCD 

I believe they were planning a Disney wedding and Disney approached them about being on the show.  She couldn't (or wouldn't) tell any cost information, but I'm hoping after the show airs that maybe she'll reveal some details.  

15 hours ago, Beckers said:

Brian and I were discussing this. We are guessing Disney picked likable people who were already spending a ton on weddings there and then they added some free upgrades. Like the couple who were married in China didn’t know about the Chinese dragon bringing out the rings or that the Stanley cup was going to be there.  

I also think it's something along these lines.  I got the impression they were already planning a Disney wedding so Disney asked these couples to be on the show for exchange for something like upgrades.  I don't think that couple would have paid for the fireworks show, that had to be outrageously expensive.

Speaking of that, I'd feel jipped if I was the bride that got married in Epcot with a Chinese Lion when the other couple got fireworks and a projection cake inside Magic Kingdom, but I guess if they paid more it levels out.

WBI

9 hours ago, Beckers said:

I watched tonight’s, a wedding in China at EPCOT and one on Main Street. The Main Street one she got married at midnight and then the reception was at Tony’s. It was raining (enough that their hair was frizzing and falling flat and you could see rain drops on the grooms suit). I can’t inagine spending all that money for a wedding in front of the castle and it being rainy. 

We watched it also, my wife was all excited because an old friend of hers was picked to be on the show and she thought it was last night, turns out it's later in the season.  I think she got married on a cruise or Castaway Cay.

I said the same thing about the rain, but also the time of night, I couldn't imagine getting married that late at night.  They said midnight on the show but the clock on mainstreet said 1am when they walked by!

WBI

On 6/2/2018 at 6:53 AM, twiceblessed....nacole said:

 

We left Tucson, Tuesday afternoon (April 24th).  The push was our reservations at Zion (which was 580 miles away) that started the next day.   I had stalked the reservation site for weeks, trying to get a spot at Watchmen Campground inside Zion National Park.  This is one of the NP, that has sites that will actually fit a big rig (we are 40' but I would not try any larger).  The sites were 30 amp electric only, but potable water was available with a very short walk.  And they had a very nice dump station.  Price was only $30/night.  When planning this trip, I didn't want to go, if I couldn't stay at Watchmen Campground.  I had heard, too many good things about it.  I was THRILLED when I finally got a spot.  Over-the-moon excited.  Once this spot was reserved, I started planning the full trip.  As for Tucson to Zion, we stopped overnight at a Cracker Barrel South of Vegas.

Zion National Park is amazing.  Flat out, amazing.  The scenery is beautiful (something not fully depicted by my simple pics) and the weather for our trip was absolutely perfect.  Dry and 80-90 the entire visit.  We had 6 nights at the park.  One downside (I thought), was that they have no showers onsite.  At any of the bathhouses.  The town of Springdale is just a few minutes walk from the CGs (ZNP has 2 or 3 campgrounds, but Watchmen was the only one with electric that would fit our larger rig).  I believe the price was $4 for a 5 minute shower.  The town of Springdale is very small, but there are still several restaurants and shops.  There are also a couple of full hook-up campgrounds either in the town of Springdale or just before.  I had brought jugs for both potable water and grey tank disposal, so we did just fine with electric only.  Oh... and the dry climate?!  Awesome for drying clothes on the rack outside!  You put something wet outside to dry and it's dry in an hour!  It was crazy awesome!  Not like the Fort, where you hang your pool towels out to "dry" and they stay damp all week 

Our loop at Watchmen, was loop A.  This was the best loop as not only did this loop have paved parking pads, but they had put down new rock for your table and fire pit area... plus, this loop was the closet to the Visitor's Center.  We had spot A25.  It was positioned between two bathhouses (or maybe I should say restrooms, since there were no showers?); potable water was located at each restroom.  The walk to the Visitor's Center was maybe 5 minutes.  The walk, to the little bridge that took you over to the city of Springdale, was maybe 7 minutes.   It's very quiet at Watchmen.  The mornings and evenings are awesome.  The way the light hits the canyon walls, as the sun rises and sets:  breathtaking.   There were mule deer everywhere and they were not afraid of people.  They did, however, find Simon our pup....to be very interesting.  That was quite hilarious.

Hey Nacole, are you in Disney right now?

Quick question about the potable water at Watchman.  Did you fill your freshwater take before arriving?  You mentioned the fresh water available at the  restrooms, did you go there an fill some jugs or something?  I'm thinking I could fill the tank at my last stop, and it would last me quite a while before I needed more.  If i did need more i could probably get some 5 gallons at a time from the restrooms?

I'm seriously planning next years trip right now and was curious about that. lol  

Thanks!

WBI

2 hours ago, dblr....Rennie said:

I will add my 2 cents now, we have enough points on a average for a 2 bedroom once a year, do we go every year....no. Sometimes we go at high times so the banked points work there. What I liked about the DVC is options, size of unit, length of stay and not the same week every year. I have traded out once to RCI to stay at a Wyndham resort to ski with my sons, extra cost zero, value, priceless spending time with my boys!!!!!!! After paying off the purchase the yearly cost does seem like a PIA but it works for us and as always that is the most important factor we figure in, will it work for everyone, probably not but as I like to say that is why we have both kinds of ice cream, vanilla & chocolate.

Hey Rennie, how long ago did you buy in?  I assume since you were able to trade out to RCI you bought from Disney or long enough ago that still got that perk with resale.

I'm just curious because it seems that the longer ago you bought in the better deal it is.  We met people on a cruise once that bought when it first started and they loved it, but they paid a fraction of what it would cost now.  BUT I guess it will keep going up every year, so you could buy in now and in 20 years it will be a great deal.  How are they going to handle the life of contracts though, a lot expire in 2042.

WBI

1 minute ago, Beckers said:

I can’t stand when people say that. Are we just supposed to sit home and do nothing until they are “old enough to remember”? 

Exactly! What the heck?

10 minutes ago, Beckers said:

Oh maybe I’ll move my tile tracker to my stroller if we go back before stroller days are done. I won’t need it on my keys during a trip. I’ll test it out, steal your idea and make millions 

We used our tracker on the stroller during our last trip, but I think we only activated it one time. Because you know how it is at Disney it's busy, crowded and you're watching kids so by the time I remembered to look on my phone for it I was able to find it on my own.

WBI

3 minutes ago, momof3kids-Yvonne said:

This is so true. I sit here now reading this report as well as following some friends current western vacation on Facebook wishing we had taken the time when the kids were younger to go. Heck now just trying to plan a trip back to Nebraska is like herding cats. If I had to do it over again, I would take more time when they were younger for these dream vacations. People always say oh they won't remember it. Go when they are older. I say go when you can and if you are fortunate go back again.



Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
 

People question our trips all the time saying that they won't remember.  I always tell them but I will! We love to travel and so do our kids, I totally agree on not postponing dream vacations!

WBI

6 minutes ago, Grumpy and Grandma said:

X-2  We took our first long trip, 3 wks out West, when our youngest was under 2 middle was 3 & eldest was 6 and they did fine. Rally in TX then on to DL and Knott's Berry Farm. They didn't quit traveling with us until high school.

26 minutes ago, DaveInTN said:

It doesn't get any easier.  Don't wait until they are tied up with sports, activities, jobs, etc.  If you do, you'll end up needing to wait until you are empty nesters some day when the kids are grown and gone.  

Thanks yall, very good points. W is 4 and does good on long trips, B is only 1 she can do 12 hrs pretty good, but we haven't pushed her past that.  I know they can handle long days in the car, but we haven't done multiple days in a row yet.

WBI

12 hours ago, LONE-STAR said:

I was looking at buying used a few years back and right when I was getting serious Disney got rid of a lot of the benefits if you buy it second hand. So I lost interest.

I was in the same boat, I was seriously considering it until that happened.

12 hours ago, DaveInTN said:

I think in some ways Disney hurt themselves by doing that.   We don't own DVC, but when I've considered it I have thought that a primary benefit compared to other timeshares is the ability to easily resell.   I'm not sure it's that easy anymore since they've killed many of the benefits of buying that way. 

I agree, it had to of hurt the resell market, but it may have helped the point rental market?

On another note I've heard that's it's hard to get the DVC resort room that you want even when you have the points, just like the Fort people are booking as soon as they become available 11 months in advance (or whatever it is).  Am I'm the only one getting tired of having to do that?  I feel like all my trips are that way now, even local state parks.  Heck even thinking about a trip out west you have to be prepared to book early to get the best campgrounds.

WBI

Great trip report!

Thanks for all the details on the campgrounds, I want to save all of those for future reference.  I'm just not sure if my kids are ready to be in the truck for that many days at a time.

WBI

2 hours ago, twiceblessed....nacole said:

I'm not sure if they've forgotten... or if they're searching for where the CM moved it to.  They are constantly moving strollers, so you have to do this search when you come back to pick it up.

I don''t really get this new system.  We've never had a problem with stroller parking.  

I don't understand this statement.  The CMs at this ride, take your stroller from you... then you swing in and pick it up (okay, go and find it) after the ride.  I thought it worked well.  I must be missing something.

I agree the moving of the strollers is the problem when you go to find yours, I get the reason, as they constantly shuffle them to make more available space but it is frustrating when its not where you left it.

In Animal Kingdom I agree Safari wasn't a problem, but the Lion King show was bad!  The color parking lots could work well there.  You pull up they tell you a color, when you leave you go to a smaller parking area that matches your color, that seems ok.  That way you don't have to deal with big parking areas with everyone getting their stroller at once.

WBI

1 hour ago, Tri-Circle-D said:

I agree. I was over at Disneyland earlier this month, and visited DHS last week- they are WAY further ahead with the construction in California. Not only that, but the California version looks much bigger in area than what they're shoving into that back corner of DHS. I believe that part of our Galaxy's Edge is going to be part of the Star Wars hotel they're building here, and that both the hotel and the land are going to open together. At the current pace, they will not be done in late fall of 2019. 

TCD

This link I ran across today shows that the Star Wars hotel is located outside of the current footprint, much further away than I would have guessed.

http://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/attractions/2018/05/30/disney-world-reveals-location-for-star-wars-hotel

Didn't the announcement say that both parks were getting 14 acres of Star wars Land?  How does Hollywood Studios current star tours factor into that?  

WBI

Holy smokes, sorry to hear about that damage!

I agree with you and everyone else about the quality of these rvs they really do just throw them together.  I've noticed so many quality issues on our Cougar but luckily no major problems yet.  The problem is these campers sale as fast as they can put them together and I think most people don't realize what their getting.  So big question, are their any brands left that turn out some good quality campers?

Oh I almost forgot, that definitely looks like they made a repair to your frame, or they knew that frame was weak at that point so they added some plate to strengthen it instead of up sizing the frame.  Either way they took the cheap way.

So you were able to that all taken care of in one day?  The tow and repair?  That's pretty great if you did.  Did you hang-out at the fab shop watching them and then tow it back that evening?  Just curious because I would probably sit and watch them lol.

WBI

13 minutes ago, Tri-Circle-D said:

It wasn't as close as it seems. I knew how far I had to walk and how long it would take. I wasn't even a little bit worried about missing the ship. 

I forgot to mention that when I got back to the cabin, the girls told be that guest services had called about 15 minutes earlier asking if I was on the ship somewhere. They know exactly who is on and off the ship. On occasion, I imagine that someone's card is missed by the scanner, so they follow up with phone calls. We all wondered what would have happened if the girls had said I was back on board. I imagine they would have wanted to track me down to confirm I was really on board. 

TCD 

I bet your right, they would have wanted to see you in person somewhere to confirm that.

WBI

Great job being the last to board!

I like the part of the golf cart discreetly escorting you off the island.  I wonder if they had your picture pulled up on the ship and she was confirming it was you.  Castaway Cay is very unique in that they don't want to leave you there.

WBI

42 minutes ago, DaveInTN said:

On modern diesel trucks, if you run out of fuel do you still need to prime it before it'll restart?  I still remember my Dad drilling that fear into me with the trucks and tractors on the farm.  I was too scared to ever let it run low.  

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong because I haven't had a diesel in a long time but I think they all have a hand primer pump on them now, maybe on the filter?

1 hour ago, twiceblessed....nacole said:

WAIT...forgot to mention ROADS.  The roads in Louisiana as we drove through Bossier City and Shreveport on our way to Waco... that stretch was HORRIBLE.  I actually slowed down to 40 mph on I20 and considered slowing down to 35.  Remember this.  This point, could end up being an important part to the trip. 

More on that... later. 

Ahh my home state!  Louisiana roads are the worst!  At least you got to avoid I10.  Seriously though it's sad how awful our infrastructure is in Louisiana.

WBI

14 hours ago, twiceblessed....nacole said:

 But, not before I thought it a good idea, to stop for gas: 

Yeah...cut that one, a bit close 

 

 

Holy smokes! I've never gotten that close, I got down to the teens once towing and it made me so nervous I vowed to never do it again.  My parent's previous diesal was a 2004 and they ran out of fuel 2 or 3 times trusting that thing.  They got to where they didn't like to get close to 50 miles remaining.

That does look like a great Cracker Barrel, clean and well lit!

I can't wait to read more.

WBI

I saw a lot about this over the weekend and one of the big complaints was that service was very lacking and some servers used the gimmicks as a way to get around good service.

That's not from me, just repeating what I read.

We haven't eaten there since 2011 so I don't really know what it's like these days.  I do remember our server being slow, but I also remember getting a gallon sized soda so he didn't have to come back so often, I was fine with that, to me that's using your head to save work!

WBI

Great update!

Castaway Cay is one of those places that just reading about it and looking at pictures brings back a flood of great memories and makes me smile!

Spring-a-leak was one of the first places W and I went to on our first trip, it was totally empty so naturally we did it our last cruise too.  I'll always remember how much fun he has there and how cold that water was!

I think your building comparison pictures are a good example of how DCL still cares about the details.  They actually added more things to this non-important wall over the years.  Sure a sign is missing but I'm sure it wasn't for long.

WBI

5 hours ago, DaveInTN said:

Don't worry.  I may be highly intelligent and extremely good looking, but I'm humble. 

It's funny you say that because being humble is my best trait, I'm actually very very good at it.

58 minutes ago, Tri-Circle-D said:

Thanks for sharing your analysis, Nick. 

A 30 acre stockpile?  That's huge!  I wonder if Disney is excavating something somewhere on property?  Maybe new retention for the Star Wars expansion at DHS?  A canal for boat service to the Four Seasons?

 TCD 

It looks like I missed that is related to that Project 89.

But did you ever see the conveyor system they had setup for Star Wars Expansion at Hollywood Studios?  They created a new retention pond on the west side of World drive and the conveyor crossed over World Drive and dumped dirt on the new construction site.  I never saw it in person but you could see it in the aerial updates.  Very cool construction technique, it's already been taken down though.

WBI