shoreline99

10 hours ago, disney4dan said:

The rivers in the mountain area are so different than they are in New England.  They can be just a trickle one minute and then a raging river the next.  There was a scout death in 2015 due to a thunderstorm unloading for a few hours in the mountain peaks while kids were sleeping in the their tents in the canyons below.  One scout in a crew at Indian Writings camp did not get out of his tent  in time, the river went from a few inches deep to 25 feet deep and 200 yards wide.  I don't bring that up to be a downer, but to mention that the rest of the crew spent the next day finding him, and then voted to continue their trek in his honor.  I don't know if I would have had the energy after that.  

My son arrived a day or two after that happened in 2015, and his crew ran into the crew that lost a scout getting re-outfitted to go back out.

We (the parents at home) found out about it while they were traveling there and no one wanted to say anything to the scouts, and the scouts found out about it when they got to Philmont and no one wanted to say anything to the parents at home lest they miss their opportunity.

His review went very well, and we officially have another Eagle Scout in the family. Pretty awesome. 

And yes, he wore his big a$$ philmont belt and buckle to his board of review for luck. 

I never got to go, either. I went to the national jamboree but not Philmont.

My son went in 2015, he still talks about it regularly. It was very impactful on his outlook on life and I believe he wrote both his NHS and his college essays about it.

He has his Eagle board of review tonight, so not to threadjack but send a little good vibes his way around 7:30.

That's the rumour I've heard. Makes sense, and fits with the tomorrowland theme, but I'm not sure how you shield that from the other areas (say Fantasyland or the Big Top area). One one hand that speedway is a people eater, it fits a lot of people on the track and in the queue that would be somewhere else in the park, otherwise, and accommodates all ages. A new TRON coaster would presumably be for older kids and adults, and certainly would be a big draw. They could certainly use the land on the other side of the tracks by having the proposed coaster dip under the railway in a tunnel or the like, so logistically it makes sense in that location.

On 4/3/2017 at 1:42 PM, ftwildernessguy said:

I would ride that thing all day.

New big upsell - all day unlimited use priority gondola ticket!

My issue is the people that bring MULTIPLE dogs into the park, ostensibly for "training" (like the lady with the multiple poodles). IMHO that goes beyond every possible rule about accessibility and the like. "Train" them somewhere else.

4 minutes ago, Tri-Circle-D said:

I agree.

I don't know why they don't just go for it.

What's the big deal about mixed drinks when they're serving beer and wine anyway?

In this era of money grubbing, it surprises me that they've resisted the temptation to open full bars in the MK.  They would make a ton on those.

TCD

My prediction is that they will have special, over 21 only, extra hours events with bar carts in the MK - eventually.

Ugh. you had me all excited there. :/

That place SCREAMS OUT for a full bar serving tropical drinks.

Sorry if I missed this, but how will this work for monorail resort guests? Bag check / TSA pat down at each resort prior to getting on?

1 hour ago, Travisma said:

But if you did that, there would be no possibility of suckering you into purchasing something at EPCOT.  Here if you have to walk thru, you will be enticed to buy something, plus you will need an AP or some sort of ticket to go thru the park.

I have to say, the little gift shop by the International Gateway is probably second only to Mouse Gears as my favorite in EPCOT. It's a really neat little shop, and they often have unique merchandise there.

On 4/1/2017 at 2:15 PM, Tri-Circle-D said:

When you go back, ask to be seated in the S.E.A. room and ask for the drink menu. They serve the same drinks as Trader Sam's in there. They don't publicize it because they don't want flack from the Walt wouldn't approve crowd. 

TCD

Seriously? Awesome tip, TCD.

Meh, we miss it by two weeks. I'm hoping for a soft opening at the end of April.

17 hours ago, mouseketab.....Carol said:

You are correct. Go to the TTC ticket windows for the upgrade. They have the most knowledge on doing the upgrade correctly.

We bridged ours in February and have done this before in the past. Both times we've waited and done it in City Hall at the MK. The first time, a few years ago, we purchased multi-day tickets in advance and upgraded to an annual pass on our last day; the annual pass start date was the first day of USE of the multi-day pass. They credit the full tare amount for the multi-day pass against the annual pass (we are not Florida residents so it's a lump sum).

Again, as far as I know the purchase date does not matter for the multi-day pass, it's the first day of usage.

This year we had to do it on our first day into the parks as we had heard rumours of price increases, which turned out to be correct - the next day the price increases went into effect. Same deal - they credited the amount of the multi-day pass and the start date was, in this case, the same day as it was the first day we used the multi-day ticket.

So, we saved a few bucks and got to use the passholder entry lines for the rest of our trip.

A couple of other notes -

-The break-even point is roughly 11 days (plus or minus)

-Current annual pass benefits are 10% on food and nonalcoholic beverages as well as 20% on merchandise.

-Look into the Tables in Wonderland card if you are not doing a dining plan and like to eat at table service meals. For $150 You get a 20% discount INCLUDING alcohol at most table service restaurants, and one card is good for up to 10 people. I think this paid for itself for us going to the Hoop dee doo with a large group. More info: http://tablesinwonderland.com/

I think those are aggressive dates. My guess is that they start the AP previews towards the end of April, but I have no info to back that up.

8 hours ago, Tri-Circle-D said:

It just dawned on me that the style of these new villas is similar to what they did to the Fort Wilderness cabins- they took out all of the charming wilderness theming, and went for a Courtyard by Marriot generic look.

OMG I never commented on that after our last trip. You hit the nail on the head. The bedroom is still 'wilderness-ey', but that pull out couch is awful sunbrella fabric and doesn't fit in the cabin. Too many patterns - on the curtains, the furniture, etc.

It was, though, one of the most comfortable pull-outs that I've slept on. And I've slept on more than a few in my time. Still, not a comfortable (or convenient) as the murphy bed. And while the extra storage is nice, who needs a 50" tv in the cabin when you should be out exploring the wilderness or in the parks??

Which circles back to the reason they are looking to improve their housekeeping and upgrade the Grand Flo.

I'm still not clear on how all this selling off property doesn't dilute the brand or the RCID - I know there are two different towns in the RCID, don't these property owners (including Golden Oaks) get some kind of voting rights within the municipal framework?

1 hour ago, Travisma said:

Probably, but we will never know.

Now another possibility.  Disney wants the 5 Star clientele those 1/2% ers that spend without blinking an eye, but they didn't want to bother building, staffing, and maintaining a 5 star place.

Four Seasons is close enough for the people to spend spend spend at WDW, then get coddled by someone elses workers.

Disney looses out on the room $$ and some dining $$ but they get the best of both worlds.

This. I think, however, that they didn't realize exactly how lucrative that small market is.

45 minutes ago, WannaBeImagineer said:

I've read it's because the old readers couldn't accept the cards with chips.  You know how you have to insert them now.

WBI

That makes sense; I've heard that the processing companies charge a slightly higher rate for non-chip transactions. Imagine the incremental cost to the Mouse just over the course of a day of a few cents a transaction...

It's pretty awesome. We drove by it on our way back from Carlisle but didn't have time to stop. Say what you want about SA, them stepping up to keep the brewery open and the locals employed was a pretty great move.

On 3/2/2017 at 0:06 PM, WannaBeImagineer said:

For what it's worth a facebook page I follow about the Wilderness Lodge (Humphrey's) said that the Salon was going in the Trout Pass Bar.

I agree those interiors don't fit at all.  The dresser looks like something from IKEA not out west.

WBI

Yep. I think it was 'officially' leaked late Friday or Saturday that the trout pass bar will become a 'poolside mini spa' offering manicures, pedicures, and poolside massages.

This is modified from a recipe we found online, but it's a winner and everyone here loves this.

Instant Pot Steel Cut Oatmeal: (serves 2-3)

Ingredients

• 1 cup of steel cut oats
• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, plain or vanilla (I use 1 tub vanilla Chobani)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• One apple, chopped (we like granny smith, unpeeled is fine)
• 1/4 cup real maple syrup
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground cloves (optional)
• 1/4 cup craisins or other dried cranberries

Instructions

1. Put everything in the Instant Pot and stir well.
2. Put the lid on.
3. Turn the valve to seal.
4. Manual cook for 4 minutes.
5. Let pressure release naturally.
6. Release any extra pressure.
7. Stir well and serve.

Let natural release for 10 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure. Eat, enjoy.

We usually double this; if doubling the recipe go 6 minutes on Manual.

*** as with any oatmeal recipe, do not let your pot insert or bowls sit or the remainders will become an impenetrable, unwashable mass of concrete ***

I hate going into city hall. Every time we go in there it's a madhouse, and it seems like there are larger and larger groups in there complaining about everything. What they need is a separate location for fastpass+ griping - "I missed my fastpass window because the (insert Disney transportation mode here) was late getting here", etc etc etc..

Those interiors are god awful. I really think this expansion was not well thought out.

Lots of story, little substance.

We will be staying at WL at the end of April and I'm looking forward to seeing if they have worked out this kinks by then or have just dumbed things down to accommodate the unwashed masses.