Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>This Magic Kingdom (DLP that is...) is the king of all for sheer beauty and attention to detail. My favorite MK, no question.<< True, and besides CA's original DL, I have to say that even HKDL has a certain charm in the details that comes close to some of the cosmetic beauty found at DLP. >>I always thought DL Anaheim was the bomb--especially after the 50th paint job and refurb. and Tok DL was first class, grade 'A' but DLP is a visual paradise for theme parks.<< I agree, but then again, when you take TDS' attributes into account.. it's hard to place DLP as the very best of ALL the Disney parks (DLs and 2nd Gates included).
Originally Posted By Inspector 57 Spirit, first of all... I want to know how you spent your time in Amsterdam. I mean, here you are, posting on LP several days after your return, and you're STILL mellowed out! Seriously, thank you for a great report (so far)! Reading your account has made my vision of DLP significantly more three-dimensional, and I thank you for that. And NOT that your report is not valuable on its own, but allow me to observe that it's a wonderful complement to barboy's recent epic and to the many shorter-but-illustrated reports TDLFAN shares with us. Different eyes, different observations, different perspectives. Together, I think you guys cover it all. The Park sounds fabulous, which makes it all the sadder to read of things like the potholes and the "first two stories" paintjob. You believe that these are the result of the exec's "Let's just do the bare minimum we can get by with" approach. If that's the case, let's hope execs or their philosophies change. Perhaps it was just that they had to prioritize limited funds and time in their pre-15 spruce-up. If that's the case, let's hope they keep working their way through the "lower" priority repairs that need to be made. You wrote that it was not crowded on the May weekdays you attended. Is the Park not performing well? or is this considered to be acceptable attendance for this season? What is Small World's postshow? How very cool to be able to actually explore the Castle! You didn't comment on this thread about your fellow DLP guests and their behavior. (You did address this somewhat on barboy's report thread, IIRC.) How were they? Just like an Orlando crowd? Reserved? Happy? Obnoxious? Fun? Is there a significant presence of AP'ers there? Sincere thanks again. (And for those of you keeping score at home, note that I didn't complain once about the few cheap potshots.)
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>What is Small World's postshow?<< It's a small walk-thru presentation sponsored by France Telecom. In it, we see different miniture icons from around the World, and within such miniature sets, we can peek in and see 3D TV images of kids from around the world communicating with one another. The room is circular and they have fiber optic effects on the walls, to simulate "communication connections" between the many parts of the World. It's a very cute "explore at will" post show. I have posted several pics from it (as well as the interior walk thru areas of the castle) here in my previous reports.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>You didn't comment on this thread about your fellow DLP guests and their behavior. (You did address this somewhat on barboy's report thread, IIRC.) How were they? Just like an Orlando crowd? Reserved? Happy? Obnoxious? Fun?<< I57, read his follow up TPs on this subject matter... quite entertaining what 74 thinks of them european guests. >>Is there a significant presence of AP'ers there?<< To some degree...yes. And I am one of them APers...
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo Hi Inspector. DLP is very quiet during the off peak weekdays, with slightly larger crowds on Wednesdays (as some French schools are off) and Fridays (Weekend arrivals). Saturdays, Sundays and holidays at DLP are crazy though, with Peter Pan having 2 hour waits, Big Thunder sometimes 3 hours, and it has been known to have a 20 minute wait for the treehouse. In Europe, many countries it is illegal to take your kids out of school, or some schools impose fines. DLP is slowly gaining adult only fans, but it takes a generation or 2 to do this I think. I would not worry. DLP still is the most popular tourist attraction in Europe and regularly recieved 11 - 12 million guests per annum. It's the debt repayments that are a killer.
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo APers can mostly be found there at weekends. There are a fair number, but it's not like a DL Ca situ.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>Peter Pan having 2 hour waits, Big Thunder sometimes 3 hours<< The long wait times at those attractions is due to Fastpass. If there was NO fastpass, BTM's wait would be at the most 70 mins, and Peter Pan's no more than 50 mins on horribly crowded days. Both of those rides have enough capacity to move huge crowds thru the queue at a reasonable pace. Go see how long the wait is for POTC on those same days and compare. As for the treehouse.. well, so many Americans are so out of shape, no one wants to climb this attraction anymore, reason why the lines in Paris might be longer? Not to mention the attractive surroundings in relation to the treehouse in Paris.
Originally Posted By leemac <<>>Peter Pan having 2 hour waits, Big Thunder sometimes 3 hours<< The long wait times at those attractions is due to Fastpass. If there was NO fastpass, BTM's wait would be at the most 70 mins, and Peter Pan's no more than 50 mins on horribly crowded days. Both of those rides have enough capacity to move huge crowds thru the queue at a reasonable pace. Go see how long the wait is for POTC on those same days and compare.>> I had the misfortune of needing to walk the park yesterday which was a big mistake. The queue out front by 10am was back to the Legends statue. I don't think I've ever seen that before. Every single walkway was full of people. Pirates was up to 70 minutes and overspilling out of its queue area (which if I recall is longer than any other except for Indy), Pan was never below 90 minutes and Manor was between 45-90 minutes all day (and again spilt out through the gates). It was just a painfully busy day. Space was north of 90 all day and BTM hit 150 when I walked past. I was glad to be able to leave before the parade. Even the Studios was rammed although the closure of the Television Studio now is putting a greater strain on the rest of the park. I don't know why they couldn't have waited another month for Toon Studio to open.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN What's the deal with that? Holidays in Europe? Althought I have to admit.. I love seeing DLP bursting at the seams with guests. I wish the same held true for HKDL...
Originally Posted By mstaft Hope it slows down a littel in early June. We'll be there in about 3 weeks.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>Hope it slows down a littel in early June.<< How early in June? Remember May 30th thru June 4th id Gay Days in Orlando and WDW will be crowded. More queens than princesses at the park that weekend.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<Spirit, first of all... I want to know how you spent your time in Amsterdam. I mean, here you are, posting on LP several days after your return, and you're STILL mellowed out!>> I'm always a mellow spirit. ;-) But likely the cold medication I'm taking could have something to do with things too. <<Seriously, thank you for a great report (so far)! Reading your account has made my vision of DLP significantly more three-dimensional, and I thank you for that. >> You're very welcome. I'm glad the observations are interesting. <<And NOT that your report is not valuable on its own, but allow me to observe that it's a wonderful complement to barboy's recent epic and to the many shorter-but-illustrated reports TDLFAN shares with us. Different eyes, different observations, different perspectives. Together, I think you guys cover it all.>> I agree. I'm actually very happy that barboy visited right before me (my opening act, we'll call him!) and got to a lot of things that I can either leave out or add my take on. <<The Park sounds fabulous, which makes it all the sadder to read of things like the potholes and the "first two stories" paintjob. You believe that these are the result of the exec's "Let's just do the bare minimum we can get by with" approach. If that's the case, let's hope execs or their philosophies change. Perhaps it was just that they had to prioritize limited funds and time in their pre-15 spruce-up. If that's the case, let's hope they keep working their way through the "lower" priority repairs that need to be made.>> The park is amazing. Just a wonderful example of what WDI can do when the budget constraints err on the side of unbridled creativity and not on building on the cheap and we'll get to it later. I don't know what budgets were or weren't for the 15th rehabs, but there's no excuse for allowing a park to decay like this. But Disney did the same in Anaheim and does the same now in Orlando. It's like they sit back and say 'We can spend $35,000 now and fix X or we can leave it rot for five years and spend a million later ... we'll choose later.' And the fact DLP is run by two Florida castoff execs who are known for quick results tells me all I need to know about getting things done. <<You wrote that it was not crowded on the May weekdays you attended. Is the Park not performing well? or is this considered to be acceptable attendance for this season?>> I don't know enough about trends to give you a really fair answer. I would suspect May weekdays aren't considered a very busy period. Just like they wouldn't be in Anaheim ... and, to a lesser extent, Orlando. I can tell you that not one day in May does DLP stay open past 8 p.m. and the Studios past 7 p.m. <<What is Small World's postshow?>> I see that TDLFAN already handled this one. <<How very cool to be able to actually explore the Castle!>> Yes. The Castle here really is an attraction in its own right. From the balconies to the second level where you can see the story of Sleeping Beauty told in beautiful stained glass and tapestries to the dragon in the dungeon ... and not one sight of a character meal or a Jon Benet Boutique anywhere. <<You didn't comment on this thread about your fellow DLP guests and their behavior. (You did address this somewhat on barboy's report thread, IIRC.) How were they? Just like an Orlando crowd? Reserved? Happy? Obnoxious? Fun?>> Hmm ... I thought I hit on this somewhere. I know I planned to. I would say a bit of all the above. They dress better that's for sure ... the Paris audience just doesn't wear the cheap character merchandise that flies off the shelves of the US parks ... I'm not sure I saw more than a dozen adults wearing a DLP tee in my entire time at the resort. People are clearly having a good time and are happy ... except for some of the UKers who seem to go out of their way to putdown the CMs for speaking French and not understanding them. In some cases, the guests are more reserved like you don't have anyone talking over the Ghost Host on Phantom Manor, for example. In others, like hopping over fences and into planted areas ... it's like anything goes (but this I blame squarely on management). You haven't seen anything until you see folks climbing into the Mickey floral at the entrance and CMs just walk right by. <<Is there a significant presence of AP'ers there?>> It's hard to tell, but I believe there are a lot. They also are a GREAT value. For instance you get 10% off almost all fod and shopping with even the least expensive AP ... and there's no tacky $10 limit like in Anaheim. If you spend $2.67, you still get 10% off. You also get to buy tickets for guests at a discount. And, not that I have a car over there, but parking is included with all the APs too. And I was just telling TDLFAN how I got my renewal in the mail just after I got back from Europe and they're offering six FREE months if I renew. 18 months for 12 isn't shabby at all. And judging by the wall-to-wall plastering of advertising in all the subways/ RER stations and on the sides of buses, I would bet a large number of Parisians are APers. <<Sincere thanks again. (And for those of you keeping score at home, note that I didn't complain once about the few cheap potshots.) >> True ... you get a few points for that ... but I'm not sure the cheap shots are really that cheap ... OK, maybe a few ...
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<The long wait times at those attractions is due to Fastpass. If there was NO fastpass, BTM's wait would be at the most 70 mins, and Peter Pan's no more than 50 mins on horribly crowded days. Both of those rides have enough capacity to move huge crowds thru the queue at a reasonable pace.>> I don't know how those attractions would fare without FP. I do know they are consitently the longest waits in my visits to DLP. I will only ride them (and always do as they're great rides) with FP. <<Go see how long the wait is for POTC on those same days and compare.>> Only did it once this time. I think the wait was around 15 minutes ... kind of hard to tell because you're inside and it constantly moves. <<As for the treehouse.. well, so many Americans are so out of shape, no one wants to climb this attraction anymore, reason why the lines in Paris might be longer? Not to mention the attractive surroundings in relation to the treehouse in Paris.>> Well, unless some MAJOR reconstruction work has been done in 2007, I wouldn't advise any average (weight) American to climb the Treehouse as the wood is rotted clear through in many places. I'm amazed no one (at least that we know of) have fallen through the boards and been seriously injured. This attraction has had NO rehab since the park opened. Hey Karl, why not wait until someone is hurt or worse ... as long as you get that bonus.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<I had the misfortune of needing to walk the park yesterday which was a big mistake. The queue out front by 10am was back to the Legends statue. I don't think I've ever seen that before. Every single walkway was full of people. Pirates was up to 70 minutes and overspilling out of its queue area (which if I recall is longer than any other except for Indy), Pan was never below 90 minutes and Manor was between 45-90 minutes all day (and again spilt out through the gates). It was just a painfully busy day. Space was north of 90 all day and BTM hit 150 when I walked past. I was glad to be able to leave before the parade.>> Sounds miserable. But that again makes me seriously question the hours of operation, something I haven't touched upon in my trip report yet. If the park is that busy AND you're celebrating the 15th Anniversary with an elaborate lighting show on the castle, WHY ON EARTH do they not leave the park open until 10 or 11 p.m.? An 8 o'clock close is absurd enough on non-crowded days this time of year as it doesn't get dark until around 9:40 p.m. There's no way to appreciate Candleabration when the sun is shining. We lucked out and got a Florida-like rainstorm at 7 p.m. that made it much darker so we could appreciate some of the great work that was done. <<Even the Studios was rammed although the closure of the Television Studio now is putting a greater strain on the rest of the park. I don't know why they couldn't have waited another month for Toon Studio to open. >> I just would have liked to have seen Toon Studio open NOW. I have heard very good things about Crush's Coaster and now I must wait months to experience it.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >>'We can spend $35,000 now and fix X or we can leave it rot for five years<< Well, if it helps changing X's opinions on HKDL, I would say...fixing him GOOD! >>The Castle here really is an attraction in its own right. From the balconies to the second level where you can see the story of Sleeping Beauty told in beautiful stained glass and tapestries to the dragon in the dungeon ... and not one sight of a character meal or a Jon Benet Boutique anywhere.<< Agreed... however, I have this one petpeeve in regards to that Chateau. The cascading waterfall that used to come down from the upper level and into the pond found next to the staiscase leading to the upper level has been shut down and inop since like ..1998. That particualr aspect of the castle made it's interior passage way much more beautiful. Now? It's just another effect turned off... and I think it's tacky that the light fixture that used to be below the water level at the bottom of the pond can still be seen there. Other than that... this Castle *rocks*. TDL's was second but since they have closed the Mystery castle tour, I give TDL's castle a slight thumbs down. (but it sure had a much nicer paintjob on it than the currene paintjob they did recently at WDW).
Originally Posted By MPierce >> After a quick meal at Disney Village's McDonald's (amazing how much better McD's is in Europe) it was off to the park. << I'm sorry Spirit, but after reading your great trip report I'm still obsessed with this statement. I have eaten at a lot of different McDonald's, some better than others, and the worst Big Mac I had was still wonderful. I may only eat there two or three times a year, but I still love them so. So could you please tell me what makes McDonald's in Europe so much better.
Originally Posted By TDLFAN >> After a quick meal at Disney Village's McDonald's (amazing how much better McD's is in Europe) it was off to the park. << Memo to the Spirit... try McDonald's in Japan... they are the BEST outlets, with the best service you will ever get from McDonalds.... EVER!
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<I'm sorry Spirit, but after reading your great trip report I'm still obsessed with this statement. I have eaten at a lot of different McDonald's, some better than others, and the worst Big Mac I had was still wonderful. I may only eat there two or three times a year, but I still love them so. So could you please tell me what makes McDonald's in Europe so much better. >> Only 2-3 times a year? You obviously don't have a weight problem! To answer the question, my opinion is that McDonald's in Europe is run like it was in the USA maybe 25 years ago. When everything was made fresh. When the menus weren't so overdone with new choices and limited time choices etc ... The beef tastes hot and fresh. The fries taste like they used to many years ago here ... always hot, crispy (and likely fried in beef fat). The employees aren't 17-year-olds, special needs folks (who McD's can pay even less than minimum wage) or losers who can't work anywhere else. They care. The units are much more upscale. Plasma screens, art, gourmet dessert stands etc ... and, again, a menu that doesn't feature 35 variations on a burger and 17 variations on a chicken sandwich. I had a chicken ceasar salad, which came with vinegarette type dressing (but any dressing in Europe that isn't just oil or mayo is a good thing), at the DD outlet and I swear it was terrific. REAL restaurant quality. That's not McD's in the USA and (sadly) I eat at one usually at least once a week.
Originally Posted By u k fan I guess it must be relative because I think the quality at McD's here in the UK is going down as more and more variations on the burger are added to the menu!!!
Originally Posted By MPierce >> You obviously don't have a weight problem! << Oh, but I do. That's why only a few times a year. I would eat there a few times each week if it weren't for my weight problem. Thanks for clarifying the difference in European McDonalds. I have noticed a decline in flavor in some of the products. For the most part I have noticed it more in the French Fries, and I always thought they made to best French Fries around. I just chalked it up to my changing taste buds. The quality of help is very bad at most larger city McDonalds I've been in, not such a problem in smaller sized towns. I agree that all fast food chains have a much to varied selection of food. You need to concentrate on fewer items, and make them well.
