Young Adult’s Review of Disney
The Magical Express upon arriving in Orlando was very efficient. After landing, it was easy to find where to go to get the transfers. The staff was friendly and it took less than 5 minutes to register and get right on the bus. The bus ride to Port Orleans Riverside took about 25 minutes. It was the 2nd stop of 3 stops. It was such a convenience not to have to deal with the luggage.
Check In
Since we arrived with the others from the Magical Express bus, there was about a 10 minute wait to check in. Otherwise, check in was efficient. If you made dinner reservations prior to arrival, you must go to the Dining Concierge to get your confirmation. CHECK ALL OF THE DATES AND TIMES OF THE RESERVATIONS- we had a major error on our dinner for the first night.
Room
We were in the Alligator Bayou section of the Riverside resort in building 24. It was just about the furthest you could be from the front lobby. Although we didn’t pay for a king bedded room, we were assigned a room with a king bed. We later realized that it was a handicapped room, which made the odd lay out and bathroom understandable. There is adequate storage, TV, small refrigerator and a very small wall safe. The safe will hold your wallets but not much else so if you need to lock larger items like a lap top, you might want to use the concierge for that.
The bathroom was large but didn’t have a lock on the door. There was a large sink/vanity top but no other storage.
Pools were nice and open late and the food court had great choices.
Mama Melrose and the Fantasmic Package
Food was decent, friendly waiters-although a bit slow. Bill for 2 came to $82.15- thank goodness for the free dining plan!
Fantasmic is a MUST SEE. Plan to get there early for a good seat. It is first come, first served (even with the entrance package from Mama Melrose). We got there 1 hour ahead and it was ¾ filled.
MGM
Get fast pass. Kiosks tended to close around 6:30PM. Most shows have their last showing around 5pm.
Indiana Jones Stunt show as cute.
Beauty and the Beast Live was very cute.
Tower of Terror- good
Rockin Roller Coaster- get fast pass.
The wait times are listed at the entrance to all attractions.
Bus transportation
Be prepared to wait for the buses. Plan about 1 hour to get to your destination although the actual time was closer to ½ hour.
Epcot
Get fast pass for your choice of ride and then go to the character greeting. Lines can get long very fast.
Many of the rides are inside (which is great when you are there the end of August)
Soaring- excellent
Honey I Shrunk the Audience- cute and you don’t need fast pass
Living with the Land- nice soft ride
Circle of Life- very environmental- It was OK. Made a good filler.
Nemo- cute- nice ride
Maelstrom- good but short
Lunch at the Electric Umbrella was decent- about $12 each
Dinner at Alfredo di Roma was good with prompt service but the restaurant was loud and crowded. Dinner ran $86.94 for 2.
Illuminations- great show with the best views from Italy.
Animal Kingdom
Get there when it first opens and go right to fast pass for Expedition Everest.
Next do the Kali River Rapids and then head to the Safari. You’ll be able to cover all of them in a relatively short time.
Expedition Everest- very good
Kali River Rapids- you will get wet. Great to cool down in the August heat
Safari- do it
Dinosaur- inside ride- cute.
The Animal Kingdom is hotter by a couple of degrees than the other parks because of all of the trees.
*most rides have pouches to hold your belongings (like back packs and bags).
Magic Kingdom
Do Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Railroad, It’s a Small World (good for pictures) and Pirates of the Caribbean. The Jungle Cruise isn’t great but it is only a short wait with fast pass. Hall of Presidents movie wasn’t great but the presentation was cute.
See the Dreams Come True Parade and the Electro Spectro Magic Parade.
Wishes- best view was from the train station
Lunch at Pinochios was good- still ran about $25 for 2.
Do the Characters in the early morning.
Dinner at the Grand Floridian Café was ok- not wonderful food but a nice atmosphere with the characters. Service was good and the bill came to about $75 for 2.
Blizzard beach and Typhoon Lagoon
Go early and rent a locker for $7 for a large locker with a $5 refundable deposit.
California Grill
Good service, good atmosphere. Good filet mignon.
Comedy Warehouse- Downtown Disney
Cute improv show.
Concourse Steakhouse- Excellent- Our Favorite.
In all, the dining plan is definitely worth while getting. We went during the free dining plan promotion (usually available in late August – September and again in May). Even at the current rates of $39.99 per adult per day, it is worthwhile.
You get 1 counter service meal (entrée, drink and dessert) which usually came to about $12 pp daily. We saved the dessert for later. You get a snack with a value of up to $4 daily. One day, I had soup and breadsticks in the food court of the hotel.
The dinner includes appetizer or soup, entrée, non alcoholic beverage and dessert. They also include the tip. The average price for dinner daily was $40 per person which is the price of the meal plan. There are some signature restaurants like the California Grill and the Dinner shows which take 2 sit down dinner coupons.
Stef and Dave
August 2007
The Magical Express upon arriving in Orlando was very efficient. After landing, it was easy to find where to go to get the transfers. The staff was friendly and it took less than 5 minutes to register and get right on the bus. The bus ride to Port Orleans Riverside took about 25 minutes. It was the 2nd stop of 3 stops. It was such a convenience not to have to deal with the luggage.
Check In
Since we arrived with the others from the Magical Express bus, there was about a 10 minute wait to check in. Otherwise, check in was efficient. If you made dinner reservations prior to arrival, you must go to the Dining Concierge to get your confirmation. CHECK ALL OF THE DATES AND TIMES OF THE RESERVATIONS- we had a major error on our dinner for the first night.
Room
We were in the Alligator Bayou section of the Riverside resort in building 24. It was just about the furthest you could be from the front lobby. Although we didn’t pay for a king bedded room, we were assigned a room with a king bed. We later realized that it was a handicapped room, which made the odd lay out and bathroom understandable. There is adequate storage, TV, small refrigerator and a very small wall safe. The safe will hold your wallets but not much else so if you need to lock larger items like a lap top, you might want to use the concierge for that.
The bathroom was large but didn’t have a lock on the door. There was a large sink/vanity top but no other storage.
Pools were nice and open late and the food court had great choices.
Mama Melrose and the Fantasmic Package
Food was decent, friendly waiters-although a bit slow. Bill for 2 came to $82.15- thank goodness for the free dining plan!
Fantasmic is a MUST SEE. Plan to get there early for a good seat. It is first come, first served (even with the entrance package from Mama Melrose). We got there 1 hour ahead and it was ¾ filled.
MGM
Get fast pass. Kiosks tended to close around 6:30PM. Most shows have their last showing around 5pm.
Indiana Jones Stunt show as cute.
Beauty and the Beast Live was very cute.
Tower of Terror- good
Rockin Roller Coaster- get fast pass.
The wait times are listed at the entrance to all attractions.
Bus transportation
Be prepared to wait for the buses. Plan about 1 hour to get to your destination although the actual time was closer to ½ hour.
Epcot
Get fast pass for your choice of ride and then go to the character greeting. Lines can get long very fast.
Many of the rides are inside (which is great when you are there the end of August)
Soaring- excellent
Honey I Shrunk the Audience- cute and you don’t need fast pass
Living with the Land- nice soft ride
Circle of Life- very environmental- It was OK. Made a good filler.
Nemo- cute- nice ride
Maelstrom- good but short
Lunch at the Electric Umbrella was decent- about $12 each
Dinner at Alfredo di Roma was good with prompt service but the restaurant was loud and crowded. Dinner ran $86.94 for 2.
Illuminations- great show with the best views from Italy.
Animal Kingdom
Get there when it first opens and go right to fast pass for Expedition Everest.
Next do the Kali River Rapids and then head to the Safari. You’ll be able to cover all of them in a relatively short time.
Expedition Everest- very good
Kali River Rapids- you will get wet. Great to cool down in the August heat
Safari- do it
Dinosaur- inside ride- cute.
The Animal Kingdom is hotter by a couple of degrees than the other parks because of all of the trees.
*most rides have pouches to hold your belongings (like back packs and bags).
Magic Kingdom
Do Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Railroad, It’s a Small World (good for pictures) and Pirates of the Caribbean. The Jungle Cruise isn’t great but it is only a short wait with fast pass. Hall of Presidents movie wasn’t great but the presentation was cute.
See the Dreams Come True Parade and the Electro Spectro Magic Parade.
Wishes- best view was from the train station
Lunch at Pinochios was good- still ran about $25 for 2.
Do the Characters in the early morning.
Dinner at the Grand Floridian Café was ok- not wonderful food but a nice atmosphere with the characters. Service was good and the bill came to about $75 for 2.
Blizzard beach and Typhoon Lagoon
Go early and rent a locker for $7 for a large locker with a $5 refundable deposit.
California Grill
Good service, good atmosphere. Good filet mignon.
Comedy Warehouse- Downtown Disney
Cute improv show.
Concourse Steakhouse- Excellent- Our Favorite.
In all, the dining plan is definitely worth while getting. We went during the free dining plan promotion (usually available in late August – September and again in May). Even at the current rates of $39.99 per adult per day, it is worthwhile.
You get 1 counter service meal (entrée, drink and dessert) which usually came to about $12 pp daily. We saved the dessert for later. You get a snack with a value of up to $4 daily. One day, I had soup and breadsticks in the food court of the hotel.
The dinner includes appetizer or soup, entrée, non alcoholic beverage and dessert. They also include the tip. The average price for dinner daily was $40 per person which is the price of the meal plan. There are some signature restaurants like the California Grill and the Dinner shows which take 2 sit down dinner coupons.
Stef and Dave
August 2007
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