Most Recent Reviews
Review of Theme Park Photo Pass
Reviewed by speedybb Review Date: 11/19/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
I really like the PP system. Now the kids are out of the house my wife and I take a trip every year without them and it is nice that we can both be in the pictures 🙂
I was shocked when I was in the parks the other day, and had gone on some rides that take pictures. We chose not to purchase the pics and never talked to anyone about them.
When we got back to the hotel I looked at the site and the pictures we were in were there!! Apparently it knows by the magic bands who you are... VERY COOL!!!
(My wife thinks its big brother watching hence the con!)
Pros:
All of us are in the picturesCons:
A bit big brother see reviewReviewed by jessm11 Review Date: 11/19/2013
Rating: (6) Recommended
Things I wish I'd known when booking my room reservation at Disney. We picked Port Orleans Riverside over Art of Animation because of reviews that said AofA was noisy in regards to toilets flushing and that the moderate resorts
provide refrigerators.
Well one of our beds in Alligator Bayou was positioned directly under the toilet in the room above and all night long we could hear every single time someone upstairs peed or flushed - not cool at all! We would have asked to change rooms but I injured myself right before we went and needed a ground floor and were told when we checked in that there were no other ground floor rooms so we kept it (this was before we knew about the toilets and was based on distance to the lobby). In addition the walls between the rooms were thin and
we heard the nightly 10/11 pm tantrum of the tired kiddo next door clearly. It was also noisy with the staff carts motoring around the pathway outside beginning very early in the morning. Lawn mowing also starts early.
The second primary reason we picked Riverside was because we knew we'd be eating breakfast in our rooms every day and wanted to be able to keep juice, yogurt, and cream cheese there. Unfortunately there was a recall on all units before our trip and refrigerators
were scarce. I did call and request one and was told they'd do their best to accommodate the request. When we got there we found out it was for medical need only; information that would have been helpful to have been given prior to our arrival.
The rooms were clean and adequate but much smaller than a regular hotel room and the bathroom was tiny.
If you are going to really be spending time at your resort then Port Orleans is certainly lovely and offers beautiful outdoor play spaces and
activities. The rooms stayed nice and dark on the mornings we chose to sleep in after late nights and the staff were all friendly.
Given that we focused on spending time in the parks we would have been much better served by a value resort as we saw NO added value in staying at a moderate resort versus value. I think if I hadn't read so many glowing reviews about how quiet and great a value Port Orleans was I might not have been as disappointed but I went with expectations of a quiet, decent sized room with a refrigerator and none of that proved to be true.
Pros:
dark rooms in am, cleanCons:
very noisyReview of Garden Grocer
Reviewed by jessm11 Review Date: 11/19/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
The price for the food is higher than what you'd pay if you went to the store yourself but having food and water delivered to our resort saved us a bunch of money over eating every meal at Disney prices and meant we could enjoy breakfast and snacks the kids were familiar with. We also were able to bring our own water into the parks with us at a huge cost savings. If you are not doing a meal plan this is well worth your money! The food was waiting for us at Bell Services when we arrived.
Pros:
Saved us money!Cons:
—Review of MagicBand
Reviewed by kristy1992 Review Date: 11/19/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
We tested the Magic Band system the week of November 10 and found it to be very good. It was very easy to use and easier than looking for your card to pay for items/meals/snacks.
Also having the FassPasses on it was wonderful! I was able to secure 3 FP per park/day. There were 9 in our party so I booked FP for everyone, yet if someone didn't ride something, like Everest, than we still had FP that could be utilized for a rider to go a second and in some cases a third time. It was wonderful. Several days I moved FP reservations to later times with no problems.
Do take a print out of your FP reservations with you though. We had one glitch with Soarin and luckily I had my printouts from My Disney Experience. The manager was more than accommodating and got us on the ride ASAP.
Even though I liked the system, the cast members we talked to about them did not. Most of the restaurants don't like the bands, as a matter of fact we couldn't find one waiter or waitress that was happy with the system. They all said it was more work.
Pros:
Convienent, easy to use, everything in one placeCons:
a little uncomfortable when it is hotReview of Cape May Cafe Clam Bake Dinner
Reviewed by WDWAndy Review Date: 11/18/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
If you like fresh seafood, this is the place for you at WDW. Crab legs and mussels were fantastic and the buffet options were wonderful for all ages. Service the night was slow with bringing out drinks. We were finished with our first plates before our drinks came out. Come hungry!
Pros:
Fresh Seafood, varietyCons:
Slow ServiceReviewed by WDWAndy Review Date: 11/18/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Amazing meal enjoyed by entire family. Loved the buffet options and ability to try new items without committing to an entire entree. Vegetarians should love this place since there are many meat free options. Of course the beef was awesome as well!! Small desserts allowed us to sample everything. Atmosphere was bustling and energetic. Might not recommend for a quiet romantic meal, but totally fun and entertaining for people of all ages!
Pros:
Food Quality and Variety, Wait StaffCons:
NoneReview of Pop Century Resort (Value Resort)
Reviewed by WDWAndy Review Date: 11/18/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
Just got home from staying 6 nights at POP. It was wonderful for our 2 young daughters (7&5). They loved the pools and activities they had each afternoon (crafts, bingo etc). The biggest surprise for my wife and I were the food selections at the food court area. Flatbreads, juicy burgers, big salads, curry shrimp, and healthier options were abundant.
The best part for me was the convenient parking. We stayed in the 50's section and parked just outside our building. All sections have this convenient feature.
Check-in for us was easy, we did the pre-check-in option and when we arrived the entire process took less than 10 mins.
Drinks at the pool bar were wonderful, pricey but what to you expect? Kids enjoyed the pools staying open until 12am.
Mousekeeping was amazing the entire trip. Rooms were cleaned very well, towel animals were made for us each day and the rooms were always done by the time we returned from the parks. Left a note asking for more towels and we had a pile of fresh towels that night when we returned and each night after as well. Rented a car so only used bus a few times, but the entire process seemed to be an efficient operation. Nice options at the gift shop as well including diapers, etc.
Pros:
Pool, Improved Food Court, Very Close Parking, MousekeepingCons:
A bit noisyReview of Akershus Royal Banquet Hall - Breakfast
Reviewed by chrgrfndan Review Date: 11/18/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
This is the 2nd time we've done the Princess Breakfast at Akershus and it's our favorite. I don't know if it's luck or misinformation but everything I read says Cinderella does not appear at this meal. Well we have done the breakfast twice and the lunch once and Cinderella has appeared each time. We are 3 for 3 in meeting her at this restaurant.
The food is good and plentiful. There were 5 of us and everyone went away full. The food while not spectacular is good standard breakfast fare of eggs, bacon, sausage, and potato casserole. Also the breads and pastries at the buffet were excellent.
In addition to Cinderella, we also met Belle, Snow White, Aurora, and Ariel. The girls loved getting their picture taken and showing off the princess gear they were wearing to each princess. I highly recommend this to anyone that loves the Disney Princesses.
Pros:
Great character interactionCons:
NONEReview of MagicBand
Reviewed by dymondclay Review Date: 11/17/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
We visited the World from 10/19-10/26 and stayed at BLT. We received the Magic Bands in the mail prior to the trip. I was able to secure Fastpass+ reservations on MDE before the trip. Other than the limitation of not being able to spread fast passes over multiple parks in one day(you had to pick 3 in one park), we liked the Fastpass+ system. Loved the easy room access, the Magical Express check-in, the dining charges, and the purchase usage. We loved making Fastpass+ reservations or modifying existing reservations on the fly.
We did have an instance where a member of our group lost their Magic Band in the pool at BLT. It was found and turned in before it was noticed missing. By the time our friend realized they had lost it, it was in the lost and found system. It may still be there to this day. Nobody could find out where it went and he was given a replacement. The replacement process was seamless and it worked just fine including charging to the room.
The app on the phone was very slow at times and it was not always clear how to get the results you wanted with the Fastpass+ reservation system. DH (a computer programmer) even accidentally deleted fastpasses when trying to change a fastpass time.
All in all, we really enjoyed the experience.
After our return home, I had "phantom Magic Band" feelings and my wrist felt naked without it.
Pros:
Not carrying key to the world card, easy charging, easy admission, and easy room access.Cons:
Fastpass+ limited to all fastpasses in one park, and lost and found still working on handling of "found" Magic BandsReviewed by Bailey Review Date: 11/17/2013
Rating: (3) Not Recommended
We had a wonderful vacation at Disney this year with the exception of MVMCP. We attended this event on 11-14-13, the last day of our trip. Crowds are awful. It is our opinion that asking guests without the special bands to leave is simply not working. It seems the only thing it truly keeps them restricted from is riding rides. We noticed many there without bands. I am also handicapped and we were unable to even move thru crowds because walkways were not kept clear. Putting masking tape on the sidewalk to keep the paths clear wasn't helpful. The cast members trying to help just seemed to give up at some point. It was just too much for them to handle effectively. My husband at one point was both verbally and physically assaulted by another guest for doing nothing more than trying to move us thru the crowd. People thought we were trying to steal their spot. While Disney can't control rude behavior of guests we did feel they had a responsibility to at least keep the walkways open for safety reasons at best. We love Disney and will recover from this unpleasant experience to vacation there again but will not buy tickets for special ticketed events again until Disney can figure out a better way to clear the park of those who didn't pay to stay. One last note, we did talk to Guest Relations. Their attitude is pretty much we already have your money stay, don't stay...whatever. We didn't stay. Upon returning to our hotel we spoke with other guests who also chose not to stay. Terrible waste of our money.
