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Your individual trip "traditions"

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Sun, 01/18/2009 - 18:53
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Your individual trip "traditions"

Just wondering if any of you have "traditions" you do when going to WDW. We have a few things we pretty much do every trip -

We usually have a car, so on the way to WDW from the airport, we go to the Outlet Mall where the Character Warehouse is located. We don't always find anything worth having, but occasionally you can get some souvenirs early and at a discounted price.

We pretty much always have dinner our first night on property at Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary. That just evolved over the years and its kind of a "celebration" of being at WDW!

If its an extended trip, we'll usually have dinner at the diner in downtown Celebration sometime while we're visiting.

We'll also usually hop on the monorail to cruise to all the monorail hotels and just walk around. (This is usually followed by my "the Poly is my favorite hotel of all time" speech)

Even if we're not staying at OKW, we'll go over to Olivia's for lunch at some point.

Parkwise, I'm not sure we have traditions so much, but we do always eat at that restaurant at the end of main street (on the right, the very last building before you go to the castle or right to Tomorrowland, can't remember the name) as my dad became friends with one of the ladies that works in there and they get to visit.

A lesser tradition is that if we're around on a weekend, sometimes we'll tour the model homes at Celebration. It's nice to dream!

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Sun, 01/18/2009 - 21:13
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We always like to arrive early in the morning and when we get there, we check in and then immediately go over to the Magic Kingdom. Sometimes we don't even ride anything while we're over there, but we always check in with the MK before we do anything else.

Mon, 01/19/2009 - 03:10
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We usually hit MK first and the first ride of the trip is POTC.

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Mon, 01/19/2009 - 04:13
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Both your replies triggered something for me too. We also always go to the Magic Kingdom before any other park. Guess its kind of a mental "tradition renewal".

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Mon, 01/19/2009 - 04:22
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shelleyg74 wrote:
We usually hit MK first and the first ride of the trip is POTC.

We always save PotC until sometime when lines are long or it's really hot out.

Mon, 01/19/2009 - 13:44
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Hi,

I usually go to the MK first and ride the Walt Disney World Railroad once around.

Jim

Mon, 01/19/2009 - 15:03
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Great question MT.

One I can think of, that I've been doing since I was a kid, deals with my touring route of MK. After walking Main St upon entering the park, and arriving at the hub, I always seem to go left, towards Adventureland first, no matter what.

One of these days I'll go right to Tomorrowland or straight through the castle to Fantasyland, but something (tradition?) alway draws me to Adventureland first.

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Mon, 01/19/2009 - 15:32
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LeCellierBuff1963 wrote:
Hi,

I usually go to the MK first and ride the Walt Disney World Railroad once around.

Jim



I really like that tradition. The railroad is such an "original Disney gem." I think I might try that on my next trip.

As for our traditions, we always try to go to MK first as well, but we like to be sure to take the monorail if we can--it just adds that extra little burst of WDW magic when we think "we're really here!"

Also, we like to do one thing on each trip that we've never done before--restaurant, backstage tour, ride, etc.

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Mon, 01/19/2009 - 16:36
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SpaceAce wrote:
LeCellierBuff1963 wrote:
Hi,

I usually go to the MK first and ride the Walt Disney World Railroad once around.

Jim

I really like that tradition. The railroad is such an "original Disney gem." I think I might try that on my next trip.



Michael Broggie told me that when Disneyland first opened, Walt used to keep his 'engineers suit' handy, and when he got stressed he would run over to the train and send the engineer on duty off for a break. He would then drive the train around Disneyland as long as he wanted.

He said there are no telling how many thousands of tourists who rode the train at Disneyland and never knew Walt was driving.

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Mon, 01/19/2009 - 18:15
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MouseTraveler wrote:

Michael Broggie told me that when Disneyland first opened, Walt used to keep his 'engineers suit' handy, and when he got stressed he would run over to the train and send the engineer on duty off for a break. He would then drive the train around Disneyland as long as he wanted.

He said there are no telling how many thousands of tourists who rode the train at Disneyland and never knew Walt was driving.



That's wonderful. I can't even imagine how fulfilling that must have been for him, with his boyhood love of trains. He essentially made a giant, life-sized train set all his own. mickey

Our traditions all seem to revolve around food! My favorite is eating at 'Ohana on the first night we're in WDW. I get a big ol' Lapu Lapu and settle in to watch the sunset and Wishes from the window table (that I request and wait for... laugh )

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Mon, 01/19/2009 - 20:35
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bali wrote:

That's wonderful. I can't even imagine how fulfilling that must have been for him, with his boyhood love of trains. He essentially made a giant, life-sized train set all his own. mickey

Our traditions all seem to revolve around food! My favorite is eating at 'Ohana on the first night we're in WDW. I get a big ol' Lapu Lapu and settle in to watch the sunset and Wishes from the window table (that I request and wait for... laugh )


Michael travels the country talking at model railroad conventions and doing a presentation on Walt's trains. If you EVER get the chance to go, do so! He does a multi-media presentation that is incredibly moving.

When Walt had the home train, Michael and his brother were the weekend 'crew' and would be there every Saturday & Sunday with their dad. I've got a picture somewhere of Michael and Walt on the Disneyland train about a month before the park opened. They're riding around and Walt is scoping out things that need to be done, etc.

According to Michael, when Disneyland opened, the train was the ONLY part of the park not owned by the corporation. The train remained Walt's personal property under another company until the day he died.

You also find out more by visiting www.carolwood.org.

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Mon, 01/19/2009 - 21:05
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Now, a pivotal question:

Who goes someplace BESIDES the MK first?

Mon, 01/19/2009 - 22:28
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MouseTraveler wrote:

Michael travels the country talking at model railroad conventions and doing a presentation on Walt's trains. If you EVER get the chance to go, do so! He does a multi-media presentation that is incredibly moving.

When Walt had the home train, Michael and his brother were the weekend 'crew' and would be there every Saturday & Sunday with their dad. I've got a picture somewhere of Michael and Walt on the Disneyland train about a month before the park opened. They're riding around and Walt is scoping out things that need to be done, etc.

According to Michael, when Disneyland opened, the train was the ONLY part of the park not owned by the corporation. The train remained Walt's personal property under another company until the day he died.

You also find out more by visiting www.carolwood.org.

That's really cool. I think deep down, all of us boys really just want to play with trains and dinosaurs. Or maybe that's just me?

Tue, 01/20/2009 - 17:26
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we always go straight to the haunted mansion if it's night, or big thunder mountain if it's daytime when we get there. i guess i'm another person who goes to magic kingdom first.

Tue, 01/20/2009 - 19:18
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The train ride seems like a really good idea. A nice relaxing welcome to WDW.

Tue, 01/20/2009 - 19:24
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Its not often these days that you find someone of age making their FIRST trip to WDW, but when asked I always tell them go to the Magic Kingdom first. See the dream as first imagined by Walt Disney before you go to Epcot or wherever. Same for me. Renew the magic!

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Tue, 01/20/2009 - 19:25
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Yeah, EPCOT, cool as it is, is certainly not what Walt envisioned.

Tue, 01/20/2009 - 20:06
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cdub wrote:
Yeah, EPCOT, cool as it is, is certainly not what Walt envisioned.


Well, now, let's not get out of hand. Epcot is a "version" of what Walt envisioned. At least the seed idea came from him, no? He wanted an educational community where people could live, work, and learn together--that's somewhat what Epcot has become (well, minus the "living").

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Tue, 01/20/2009 - 21:56
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Do you think that there's any "work" going on there that isn't Disney related too? I mean by the same token people "work" at the MK. I think the point is Walt envisioned it to be more functional than it is. I'd certainly agree that I don't think it fits his "vision" that closely.

Wed, 01/21/2009 - 00:58
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We usually have a lunch scheduled. For a long time we went straight to the ESPN Zone and ate there, but we've started going other places. Mainly because we like to eat in the Magic Kingdom.

Wed, 01/21/2009 - 02:46
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dsoup wrote:
Do you think that there's any "work" going on there that isn't Disney related too? I mean by the same token people "work" at the MK. I think the point is Walt envisioned it to be more functional than it is. I'd certainly agree that I don't think it fits his "vision" that closely.


I agree. The Epcot that we all know and love is not that close to the Experimental Prototype Community (or City, as Walt referred to it as both) of Tomorrow. So much so that the theme park Epcot is no longer an acronym, but a word in itself.

It still embodies the spirit of Walt's vision, but it in no way is the working community that he wanted. In a way, one might make an argument that Celebration has some of the characteristics of Walt's E.P.C.O.T, but even that is a stretch.

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Thu, 01/22/2009 - 15:20
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That's a really interesting question. I heard similar things even before the downturn, and Florida was really hard hit.

Wed, 01/21/2009 - 18:09
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Yeah, I didn't mean to imply it was "bad." Just not really to the plan.

Thu, 01/22/2009 - 15:15
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Imagineer wrote:

It still embodies the spirit of Walt's vision, but it in no way is the working community that he wanted. In a way, one might make an argument that Celebration has some of the characteristics of Walt's E.P.C.O.T, but even that is a stretch.



What is happening in Celebration these days? I've heard that it's taken a serious downturn in home sales and that the community is essentially deteriorating. I imagine the economic downturn hasn't helped at all.

Thu, 01/22/2009 - 15:40
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Annie wrote:

What is happening in Celebration these days? I've heard that it's taken a serious downturn in home sales and that the community is essentially deteriorating. I imagine the economic downturn hasn't helped at all.

I noticed yesterday where the bookstore in Celebration was closing. That's not big news in itself, but just an observation.

As for the property, it seems like it has escalated far more than the average (pricewise). Many times when we're at WDW, we go over to Celebration, particularly on the weekend when they have open houses. The design of the houses is so different from what we're used to, and we love checking them out.

We probably did this the first year that Celebration was open, and I believe the price of an average house has way more than doubled in that time. In the early days, you could get a decent sized home in the range of 300-350K. Now, that home would cost you at LEAST twice that.

In fact, I checked the real estate there a couple of weeks ago and if you are under $500,000, you are looking primarily at a condo, a townhouse or a cracker box.

They DID have a brand new 6,700 square foot house (billed to be on Celebration's largest lot) for around 3.7 million. I'm currently taking up a collection!

A gentleman I know sold his business a few years ago and decided to move to Florida. I knew he was a BIG Disney fan and asked him if hewas moving to Celebration. He laughed and said there were WAY too many regulations for him! He was moving to another community instead. And this was a guy who could have bought pretty much whatever he wanted.

I know in Celebration they even control the types of shades or blinds you put up at the windows.

Having said all that, when that lottery comes in.......

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Thu, 01/22/2009 - 16:33
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MouseTraveler wrote:

As for the property, it seems like it has escalated far more than the average (pricewise). Many times when we're at WDW, we go over to Celebration, particularly on the weekend when they have open houses. The design of the houses is so different from what we're used to, and we love checking them out.

I'm intrigued. I have never even thought about going and checking it out. What makes the houses so different?

Thu, 01/22/2009 - 16:36
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cdub wrote:

I'm intrigued. I have never even thought about going and checking it out. What makes the houses so different?


We call it the "Florida style", but I'm sure there is a better name than that. It is not your traditional split level ranch style. The rooms are very open to each other, lots of interesting colors and even the woodwork is stained in lighter, brighter stains.

A lot of outside light coming in too.

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Fri, 01/23/2009 - 03:26
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You know, I've heard that there are some pretty harsh regulations. That + the prices escalating must be a major deterrent to a LOT of people, especially right now with the economy how it is.

I've driven around Celebration (and watched the Pie Competitions on the Food Network), but have never really stopped and walked around.

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Fri, 01/23/2009 - 04:21
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bali wrote:
You know, I've heard that there are some pretty harsh regulations. That + the prices escalating must be a major deterrent to a LOT of people, especially right now with the economy how it is.

I've driven around Celebration (and watched the Pie Competitions on the Food Network), but have never really stopped and walked around.


We always go over there and usually have lunch or dinner at the little diner on the corner. There are several nice restaurants, but the stores have come and gone over the years. There also used to be a Goodings downtown but it also closed several years ago.

Next time you're down there, head over on a weekend and check out the open houses. It's pretty fun!

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Fri, 01/23/2009 - 04:27
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MouseTraveler wrote:
bali wrote:
You know, I've heard that there are some pretty harsh regulations. That + the prices escalating must be a major deterrent to a LOT of people, especially right now with the economy how it is.

I've driven around Celebration (and watched the Pie Competitions on the Food Network), but have never really stopped and walked around.


We always go over there and usually have lunch or dinner at the little diner on the corner. There are several nice restaurants, but the stores have come and gone over the years. There also used to be a Goodings downtown but it also closed several years ago.

Next time you're down there, head over on a weekend and check out the open houses. It's pretty fun!

Any restaurants in particular worth checking out?

Fri, 01/23/2009 - 09:26
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dsoup wrote:

Any restaurants in particular worth checking out?

We always go to the 'Market Street Cafe'. Its kind of like a diner and they have a great menu with indoor and outdoor seating. Not very expensive either.

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