JodieJRanch
Registered
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2021
I often enjoy remembering back to our most enjoyable trip to the World as a family over the past number of years and by far, 1997 was our best trip ever for the following reason:
1) My parents went to help watch our 2-1/2 year old while my wife and I rode all of the height restricted rides;
2) We went in mid-October and the weather was absolutely perfect;
3) Prior to Magical Express, we took the Mears bus from MCO to the Polynesian, which was probably the only down side of the trip. My wife, mother and daughter waited for our luggage to be unloaded, while my father and I went inside to check-in. When we returned to the bus line, a Cast member had loaded our luggage on to a large multi-seat golf cart and drove us to our Long House. I thought wow this is good service. Unfortunately, we never got that service again in the many years thereafter staying there;
4) Fall Fantasy Package - For my wife and I and daughter, 4 nights at the Poly, including park hopper passes and free breakfast each morning (which included character breakfasts) $1,100.00 TOTAL. We ate granola bars for breakfast, and booked the absolute latest character breakfast possible each morning, which back then I believe was either 10:50 and treated it as an early lunch. The only meal we had to pay for each day was dinner;
5) They had early extra magic hours and we were able to do all of the rides we wanted to ride including all E-ticket rides and leave the park by 1:00 when the parks were becoming too crowded and last but not least;
6) Pay for Extra Magic hours at the Magic Kingdom were unbelievable. Limited to people staying on property including and the Swan and Dolphin. Back then there was no DVC, no friends of Disney resorts and the total Disney resort room count was MUCH lower. For $5.00-$10.00 each, cant remember which, it felt like we had the entire Magic Kingdom to ourselves. Being there at night with what felt like an empty park was kind of strange. We walked on to splash mountain over and over again. The only time we saw anyone in the queue was when we turned the corner to enter the loading and unloading area.
Those days are long gone, but I'd trade them for the Disney experience today in a heartbeat, and there was no Animal Kingdom, No Soarin or Test Track at EPCOT and no New Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom.
1) My parents went to help watch our 2-1/2 year old while my wife and I rode all of the height restricted rides;
2) We went in mid-October and the weather was absolutely perfect;
3) Prior to Magical Express, we took the Mears bus from MCO to the Polynesian, which was probably the only down side of the trip. My wife, mother and daughter waited for our luggage to be unloaded, while my father and I went inside to check-in. When we returned to the bus line, a Cast member had loaded our luggage on to a large multi-seat golf cart and drove us to our Long House. I thought wow this is good service. Unfortunately, we never got that service again in the many years thereafter staying there;
4) Fall Fantasy Package - For my wife and I and daughter, 4 nights at the Poly, including park hopper passes and free breakfast each morning (which included character breakfasts) $1,100.00 TOTAL. We ate granola bars for breakfast, and booked the absolute latest character breakfast possible each morning, which back then I believe was either 10:50 and treated it as an early lunch. The only meal we had to pay for each day was dinner;
5) They had early extra magic hours and we were able to do all of the rides we wanted to ride including all E-ticket rides and leave the park by 1:00 when the parks were becoming too crowded and last but not least;
6) Pay for Extra Magic hours at the Magic Kingdom were unbelievable. Limited to people staying on property including and the Swan and Dolphin. Back then there was no DVC, no friends of Disney resorts and the total Disney resort room count was MUCH lower. For $5.00-$10.00 each, cant remember which, it felt like we had the entire Magic Kingdom to ourselves. Being there at night with what felt like an empty park was kind of strange. We walked on to splash mountain over and over again. The only time we saw anyone in the queue was when we turned the corner to enter the loading and unloading area.
Those days are long gone, but I'd trade them for the Disney experience today in a heartbeat, and there was no Animal Kingdom, No Soarin or Test Track at EPCOT and no New Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom.
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