Bete
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 14, 1999
I gave this about a week before posting to make sure the entire trip was absorbed in my memory. Let me say I've been to Disney over a dozen times and I know the ins and outs of how to enjoy the Disney parks. It's the place I have visited the most for our vacations. I'll be going back this May for the Flower and Garden show because we have not done that event. This was our first Christmas Holiday trip to Disney and the other parks. We did it all starting in Tampa, then heading for Cypress Gardens, onward to Disney and then Orlando. We took 24 days for this trip and 11 days were devoted to Disney.
Our Busch Gardens experience was fantastic. Through AAA we were able to get annual passes for this park and Sea World together for $99 each. The boards here led me to this great deal; so, thanks. Their animal experiences beat out Animal Kingdom in a heartbeat. The rides are more fun and interesting, as well as, you get a closer view of the animals then the Safari ride at Disney. We took a special tour which shelled out another $75 a piece but let me tell you what an experience. We hugged a giraffe, fed a rhino (yes, a rhino), and we were in breathing distance to hippos. I'll remember that experience forever. A photographer was with us and we have 18 photos to remember this adventure. The good news: we bought the additional photos at half price because we had annual pass discounts. The park has a good mix of challenging roller coasters, shows and animal encounters. We loved it. The park is very manageable in 2 days with even repeating certain rides that we enjoyed. We spent time at the aquarium and science museum while we were there, too.
Next, we went to Cypress Gardens and what a Christmas light show. Again, I felt it beat out Disney and the Osbourne lights-sorry. The layout was more stetched out and they had a theme in one area for the twelve days of Christmas. There were two directions for the lights; so, you are not packed in like sardines when viewing it. Cost of annual passes here for us was $65 a piece. They had a Victorian theme and wonderful carrollers strolling for your enjoyment. The park was manageable in a day because they had extended hours for the Christmas lights. We took in another place, Bok Santuary, for their Bell Tower. This was another wonderful Christmas experience.
Onward, we went to Sea World. I absolutely loved the Norman Rockwell exhibits for Christmas. They had a Christmas group nearby for carols. We saw two, different Shamu shows, one at night with fireworks. The Shamu dining experience was a joy and well worth the $25 price tag. It was crowded but everyone seemed polite enough.
Okay, we made it to Disney. I forked out $367 each for regular annual pass vouchers and I know the price is higher, now. I know it's Chritmas but I'm allowing 2 days at each park with three days reserved for going back to favorites or just relaxing. I felt crowded the whole time. Compared to everywhere else (including Universal and IOA) people here were more pushy and rude. We know fastpass is a good thing but with huge wait periods to go back and ride, it just isn't practical to do it at this time of year. We accomplished alot by going early mornings and leaving for a break in the afternoon and going back in the evening. I was big on seeing the special, traditional holiday features at Epcot. Well, the Norway Santa Claus didn't show up for the first show. A CM came by and informed us the next time would be ok. We went to France and the same thing happened there-a no show. This time no CM to tell us anything. We lunched at Chef de France to wait for the next time. Again, a no show and again no CM. I wanted a complete collection of all the countries. Needless to say, this didn't happen because of France. We talked to families who were happy to get in a parade and 3 attractions for the day. I don't believe that's enough for the money you spend. I'm a picture taker; so, we had to line up 2 hours ahead for the best views of parades and fireworks at all the parks. Of course, you had to contend with the last minute groups who want to push their way in after you put in your two hours waiting for a good spot. My favorite Christmas experiences there were MVMCP and our Illuminations cruise. Keep in mind though we had to dish out another $40 dollars each for the party and $120 not counting tip for the cruise. We stayed at Animal Kingdom Lodge and I have no bad comments there but we did pay the most for our stay there per day. Our dining experiences were even worse. We had PS for everything we did and we took in alot of the special character meets, etc. With PS we still waited at times for 20-30 minutes. I think that's too long. 1900 Park Fare was a zoo. The buffet was sub-standard and the children were not to be believed. They were running around trying to get at the characters instead of waiting at their table for their turn. One child near our table was throwing her food all over including the floor were you could slip and fall. She was old enough to know better. The parents were not moved by this behaviour. The noise level here was unreal. I will never go near this place again. We went to MGM for NYE. AS everyone knows there was a downpour of rain that night. Luckily for us, I had Hollywood and Vine PS for the time the rain started. I couldn't believe it but there were people with PS for two hours later trying to get in earlier because of the rain. It made it tough to even get into the restaurant because of these crowds. Even shopping was a push and shove experience to pay. It was exhausting each and everyday after all the struggles through the parks, etc. We talked to others and many felt the same way we did.
Next, we headed for the Royal Pacific. The commute on the boat to the parks is very convenient and very fast. We had our worse wait of 10 minutes for a boat. It was our first time enjoying front of the line access to Universal and IOA. Here, we paid $250 for both of us for annual passes(breakdown $125 a piece). We absolutely loved this perk. I believe it was more crowded here then Disney. As an example, Spiderman had a three hour wait in the regular line and it's 1/2/03. The Macy parade was very refreshing. Noone pushed for the parade for the last minute viewing, either.
Thank goodness most of the trip was wonderful. I'm sorry if this hurts the diehard Disney fans but I'm trying very hard to be honest; so, the newbies have a better understanding of it all.
Our Busch Gardens experience was fantastic. Through AAA we were able to get annual passes for this park and Sea World together for $99 each. The boards here led me to this great deal; so, thanks. Their animal experiences beat out Animal Kingdom in a heartbeat. The rides are more fun and interesting, as well as, you get a closer view of the animals then the Safari ride at Disney. We took a special tour which shelled out another $75 a piece but let me tell you what an experience. We hugged a giraffe, fed a rhino (yes, a rhino), and we were in breathing distance to hippos. I'll remember that experience forever. A photographer was with us and we have 18 photos to remember this adventure. The good news: we bought the additional photos at half price because we had annual pass discounts. The park has a good mix of challenging roller coasters, shows and animal encounters. We loved it. The park is very manageable in 2 days with even repeating certain rides that we enjoyed. We spent time at the aquarium and science museum while we were there, too.
Next, we went to Cypress Gardens and what a Christmas light show. Again, I felt it beat out Disney and the Osbourne lights-sorry. The layout was more stetched out and they had a theme in one area for the twelve days of Christmas. There were two directions for the lights; so, you are not packed in like sardines when viewing it. Cost of annual passes here for us was $65 a piece. They had a Victorian theme and wonderful carrollers strolling for your enjoyment. The park was manageable in a day because they had extended hours for the Christmas lights. We took in another place, Bok Santuary, for their Bell Tower. This was another wonderful Christmas experience.
Onward, we went to Sea World. I absolutely loved the Norman Rockwell exhibits for Christmas. They had a Christmas group nearby for carols. We saw two, different Shamu shows, one at night with fireworks. The Shamu dining experience was a joy and well worth the $25 price tag. It was crowded but everyone seemed polite enough.
Okay, we made it to Disney. I forked out $367 each for regular annual pass vouchers and I know the price is higher, now. I know it's Chritmas but I'm allowing 2 days at each park with three days reserved for going back to favorites or just relaxing. I felt crowded the whole time. Compared to everywhere else (including Universal and IOA) people here were more pushy and rude. We know fastpass is a good thing but with huge wait periods to go back and ride, it just isn't practical to do it at this time of year. We accomplished alot by going early mornings and leaving for a break in the afternoon and going back in the evening. I was big on seeing the special, traditional holiday features at Epcot. Well, the Norway Santa Claus didn't show up for the first show. A CM came by and informed us the next time would be ok. We went to France and the same thing happened there-a no show. This time no CM to tell us anything. We lunched at Chef de France to wait for the next time. Again, a no show and again no CM. I wanted a complete collection of all the countries. Needless to say, this didn't happen because of France. We talked to families who were happy to get in a parade and 3 attractions for the day. I don't believe that's enough for the money you spend. I'm a picture taker; so, we had to line up 2 hours ahead for the best views of parades and fireworks at all the parks. Of course, you had to contend with the last minute groups who want to push their way in after you put in your two hours waiting for a good spot. My favorite Christmas experiences there were MVMCP and our Illuminations cruise. Keep in mind though we had to dish out another $40 dollars each for the party and $120 not counting tip for the cruise. We stayed at Animal Kingdom Lodge and I have no bad comments there but we did pay the most for our stay there per day. Our dining experiences were even worse. We had PS for everything we did and we took in alot of the special character meets, etc. With PS we still waited at times for 20-30 minutes. I think that's too long. 1900 Park Fare was a zoo. The buffet was sub-standard and the children were not to be believed. They were running around trying to get at the characters instead of waiting at their table for their turn. One child near our table was throwing her food all over including the floor were you could slip and fall. She was old enough to know better. The parents were not moved by this behaviour. The noise level here was unreal. I will never go near this place again. We went to MGM for NYE. AS everyone knows there was a downpour of rain that night. Luckily for us, I had Hollywood and Vine PS for the time the rain started. I couldn't believe it but there were people with PS for two hours later trying to get in earlier because of the rain. It made it tough to even get into the restaurant because of these crowds. Even shopping was a push and shove experience to pay. It was exhausting each and everyday after all the struggles through the parks, etc. We talked to others and many felt the same way we did.
Next, we headed for the Royal Pacific. The commute on the boat to the parks is very convenient and very fast. We had our worse wait of 10 minutes for a boat. It was our first time enjoying front of the line access to Universal and IOA. Here, we paid $250 for both of us for annual passes(breakdown $125 a piece). We absolutely loved this perk. I believe it was more crowded here then Disney. As an example, Spiderman had a three hour wait in the regular line and it's 1/2/03. The Macy parade was very refreshing. Noone pushed for the parade for the last minute viewing, either.
Thank goodness most of the trip was wonderful. I'm sorry if this hurts the diehard Disney fans but I'm trying very hard to be honest; so, the newbies have a better understanding of it all.
We were there 8 nights and still felt majorly rushed and so much we didn't do or get to enjoy while there. 
