September 2017

All in all our September trip went very well. We were alone the first 4 days and just did light Disneyland stuff. The hardest thing was the heat and humidity. By 10AM we would find ourselves dripping sweat and it lasted until around 6. We had our RV in the parking lot so we could slip out for some lunch and AC. Burned up a lot of gas running the generator.
Gibson Girl (where, to our surprise, there was NO line) ice cream helped us beat the heat.

We were so excited to catch the Train. Funny, the line at the Main Street Station was soooo long that we walked on over to Tomorrowland and caught the 2nd train that went by.

We were happy to get on the Mark Twain as well. I was so skeptical about the changes. But I have to admit; I was impressed with the job they did.


The parks were not opening until 10 so we were getting there early. We avoided whichever Park had Early Entry each day. On Tuesday we went to DCA and got in the CM guided line to Tower of Terror. (Yep! I am gonna keep calling it that.) It was so orderly and well handled that we were off the ride by 10:20! I did enjoy it a little more now that I knew what to expect. Still so loud and bright. (Whoa, guess I am showing my age.)
We got FP’s for RSR right after. When we went back; it was down. We asked about our FP’s and were told that we could use it on any other attraction, except Tower. So we went to Toy Story. As expected, our passes flashed blue. We were told, by a rather rude CM that we had passes for RSR. We said that we knew that and told our story. We were told to come back after it expired. Since that was only 10 minutes away we went to the bathroom and on King Triton. I was sure our passes would not work and lo, they did not.

We had the same CM and she got really nasty about it. Luckily, there was a lead right there who stepped in. She checked her computer and asked if we still had our paper ticket. We did. She pushed some buttons and the thingy flashed green and we went on in. She told us that under those circumstances to be able to provide proof. (So, don’t throw away your “reminder” until it has been used or expired.)

Now, we have done this enough to know that it can be very arbitrary. We have been late and told, with a wink, to try to be on time. The CM then works some magic and ding! there is a green light. So, we went to Guest Services just to see if we could get some clarification. In usual CM manner the lady talked all around it but never really admitted that we were kind of at the mercy of the CM’s mood. She did take our passes and loaded them with another FP for RSR that was good for the rest of the day.
So, without giving us any real information; she resolved it to our satisfaction. And the FP worked when we went back!

After our great experience with ToT we decided to try for Peter Pan on Wednesday. Why oh Why, when they know the mayhem that ensues every single morning in Fantasyland; do they not try some management?!?
I know it is kind of a tradition; but with huge crowds on either side of the hub all planning to rush Peter Pan......... They come in from at least 3 directions and all try to shove their way into a tiny queue. There is no CM guiding folks; just an extremely disorderly free-for-all. If they are willing to guide guests in to an Eticket ride like Tower why not PP? I mean, this happens pretty much every morning. We should have been fairly close to the front but once it was established where the line actually was and all the dads and kids from strollers had crowded into where Mom was holding their place and others had just plain cut into the front of the queue; well, it took us an hour and a half in Fantasyland to do Peter and Storybook Boats.

We have never eaten a meal at the Jolly Holiday before. We were hungry and the lines were short so we got a roast beef sandwich and the tomato basil soup; both of which were very good. Of course, we added a Matterhorn Macaroon for dessert.

On Thursday we had done everything at least once and were waiting for Hallie. We join her most years to celebrate her birthday in Disneyland. Like us, she goes often enough that there was no rush to do a whole bunch. We did some Fantasyland stuff and we were all hungry so we headed to the Bengal BBQ for some skewers. Their veggie skewer is still one of the best deals in the park.

I have already told the lengthy story of our Nightmare Fantasmic! so I will skip that. We all left after the fireworks to get a good night’s sleep for Hallie’s birthday the next day.

We started by treating her to a hearty breakfast at Rancho. Little hint, if you want a Mexican style breakfast you can still substitute items from the Traditional American side. I do not like their rice so I get the fried potatoes.

The day went really well with minimal wait times and strategic use of FP’s. We got FP’s for RSR but when we returned the FP line was super long. So, we did single rider. When we got off the FP line was gone so we did it then. Worked out really well.


Spoiler Alert if you have not done the Tomorrowland Skyline Lounge Experience and do not know what to expect!!!




This was definitely the highlight of the trip and so nice after the Nightmare Fantasmic! experience the night before. We had no idea of what to expect. Unfortunately, we had eaten too much dinner so could not eat all of the wonderful dessert plate. And offering me unlimited hot cocoa is down right dangerous.

If we do this again we will go hungry!

We were warned ahead of time that this prime view of the fireworks is a bonus and not guaranteed. So we did wonder what would make this worth the price. What we did not know was that we would get a personal visit from not just Minnie but Mickey as well. Plenty of opportunities for pictures and then they hung around and played Giant Jenga. Such fun!!!



There were wonderful cushy couches and the CM’s came around and “talked story” with us and made sure we were having a good time. There were games to play on the light-up tables and light sabers available for play. They even came around with plush blankets for anyone feeling a chill. The fireworks went off and that was awesome.

Sadly, the family seated next to us was not at all friendly. We saw other folks meeting new friends and laughing it up. Nobody’s fault of course, just bad luck. We just love meeting new people and so does Hallie.
After our F! experience; we all agreed this helped make up for it. (Of course, we did have to pay.) But this is not an experience that used to be free and is now only available to those with money. It was designed to be an experience to pay for.

We did Nemo right after. Hallie went on back to the RV park and we hung around until midnight. We were able to do Fantasyland with no waits (except Peter of course). When I gave Rod the choice of Alice or catching the Monorail (which gives us a shorter walk to our RV) he only hesitated a moment before choosing Alice. So we had a long walk back on our sore feet.

Our last day was slow and relaxed. We started with Mickey bignets and coffee. We sat there for quite a while just watching the Trains and people and feeding little sparrows.

We were really excited to see the Canoes up and running and got right in line.

We had one last go on Mansion and used FP’s for the Matterhorn for the first time. We were hungry and decided that fish and chips at the Golden Horseshoe were in order.

We had originally planned to stay until 7 as the AC in the cab of our RV does not work. But it was cool enough that we decided to head on home. I was all for taking a nap and then going back into the Parks until midnight and then get in a few hours of driving with no traffic. But Rod won. We drove out about 3 hours and stopped for the night continuing on home the next morning. Everyone was fine at home but I already miss the Parks.

I cannot wait until February when we will be there for 2 weeks and be all by ourselves. We love being with friends and family but sometimes it is nice to have no schedules. Hopefully the weather will be nice but not too wet by then.