Ariel'sMom
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Feb 18, 2000
Okay, just read Barry Hom's report and realized that people actually work on their trip reports while they're there! Why didn't I think of that? The main reason I'm writing this so soon is because I'll forget otherwise! That's a good tip for people going--take notes! We're on Sunday afternoon now--decided to head to the HRH pool. Laying in the sun by the pool, I realized that was the moment I had been waiting for--after a long Michigan winter (when we left it was 28 degrees), I was sunbathing in Florida surrounded by beauty. Soon it was hot enough that I had to try the slide. I love slides, and this one was just my speed. The water temperature was perfect as, you can tell, I don't like to be cold. After sunbathing we headed up to the room and showered before helping ourselves to drinks and appetizers. We were rested and ready for IOA. I really didn't know what to expect. As soon as we were inside the gates, I could see there was a much faster pace to this park. It was pretty crowded, but we had our hotel keys in hand and they were great. We decided on Spiderman first as I didn't want to lose the sushi I had just eaten on the Hulk. We loved Spiderman. It is the epitome of entertainment and thrills for me. I loved the 3-D film interaction with the ride. I loved the illusion that we were rising and falling, and the motions the car made in interaction with the film. We used our keys all evening for rides as there were usually 20-30 minute waits. There was rarely a wait in the express lane. I didn't see many people with express passes. If you are staying offsite, I highly recommend using the express pass. We did this in Disney last year and it worked great. Perhaps people are worried that having an assigned time will cramp their style, but there is a lot to do that doesn't require express pass to pass the time so I would go for it. We got off Spiderman and rode again and again. It was late and not hot enough for water rides so, knowing that we would be back the next day, we skipped those. We bypassed Toon Lagoon and JP for this reason. We did do Triceratops Encounter, which a recommend for children. My 11-year-old enjoyed getting to pet the dinosaur, but everyone else wondered where the rest of the ride was. I actually would have like doing the Pteranodon Flyers, but we didn't have anyone under 54 inches. I actually think it's great they have a height restriction cause the little kids need something of their own. We then came face to face with Dueling Dragons. This looked great, but I was still worried about the sushi so DH, DDs, and niece did this. Older DD liked this more than a later ride on Hulk (which she would later say was too tame). DH said he was a little dizzy when he got off the ride. We missed the last entry to Poseidon's Fury (7:30) so we decided to take it easy and do what we could. Everyone was just a little too old for One Fish, Two Fish, but I talked them into doing The Cat in the Hat. I love rides like this. It reminded me of Winnie the Pooh at Disney. I really appreciate how well-thought-out and visually appealing rides like this can be. We got to the IOA entrance and all looked at each other and said "Spiderman!" So we headed there right at closing and rode again. I think next week the closing times are later, which I would have liked since we like that afternoon break time. But I was happy with the evening. We then headed for Hard Rock Cafe as DDs and DH would revolt if we didn't dine there. We have eaten at Hard Rock Cafes in Chicago, Paris and Barcelona because my less diet-daring DH and DDs know they can get a meal where they know what they're eating. We used our hotel card for PS seating, but I don't think it was needed. Our package included a free dinner for the four of us and we used it here. DH had half slab of ribs which he said weren't bad and sister-in-law and I had pork tenderloin (overcooked). DDs and niece had burgers, which were just right. Afterwards, we did a little shopping in CityWalk. DDs liked the Glow shop and Quiet Flight surf shop. Niece tried on $46 shorts and s-in-law wondered what she was thinking. Did find a couple of cute tops for $20. Very tired, we headed for the hotel. Decided to walk, which wasn't far, but there was also a water taxi that we would use later. Turn down service left two HRH key chains. Gotta get dinner going--Day Two in IOA is next.
Hard Rock Hotel 4/01
Wyndham Palace 7/00
Port Orleans & DCL 12/00
Disneyland Paris 4/99
AllStar Sports 2/98
[This message was edited by Ariel'sMom on 04-05-01 at 07:04 PM.]
Hard Rock Hotel 4/01
Wyndham Palace 7/00
Port Orleans & DCL 12/00
Disneyland Paris 4/99
AllStar Sports 2/98
[This message was edited by Ariel'sMom on 04-05-01 at 07:04 PM.]
