Spending xmas in Bahrain and lookin forward to it!!! thanks all for the reads and comments by the wa...
Spending xmas in Bahrain and lookin forward to it!!! thanks all for the reads and comments by the way much appreciated!!! :)
Got engaged there as well ~ so happy running away to gibraltar in March 2010 to get married woop woop :D
Member since:29.12.2006
Reviews:42
Members who trust:28
We visited Orlando in August of last year and all I can say is I'm so glad our hotel ran shuttle buses to Disney as it would be quite confusing to get to driving yourself, although it doesn't take long, about 10 minutes from International Drive. I cannot really comment on the prices as I purchased my tickets online before I left home, but I can recommend the place where I got them:
www.attraction-tickets-direct.co.uk
It cost £163 for the Disney 14 Day Ultimate Ticket which gives unlimited access to:
• Magic Kingdom Park • Epcot • Disney-MGM Studios • Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park • Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park • Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park • Downtown Disney Pleasure Island • Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex • DisneyQuest Indoor Interactive Theme Park
With this ticket you can visit these places as many times as you want within the 14 days. Please note they finger scan you on first use and every use thereafter so you cannot transfer these tickets on to anyone else if you don't need them before the time runs out.
Anyway on to the park!
When we arrived at the Disney Travel Centre, we jumped on the easy to find Monorail to MGM Studios, which is free - Everything in Disney is well marked out, so you will not get lost.
On arrival it is better to already have tickets as the queues are quite long for buying them. Once set you have to go through security, which is not much, just a couple of friendly guys who look in your bag to make sure you don't have anything you shouldn't.
When you enter the park the first thing you will notice is the trademark Disney Hat - You know the one Mickey wore in Fantasia (see picture below for the one am I referring
to).
There are various gift shops and loads of places to eat throughout the park, each of them having priority seating for wheelchair users. Of course there are various information booths throughout the park incase you need help with anything and all the staff members are very friendly. There are toilets everywhere as well and these are clearly marked out on your parkmap. There are even loads of pay phones, I guess incase you need a taxi or something to come and get you, or maybe you just want to phone home and rub it in that you're on holiday and they're not lol.
As in all American themeparks there are few smoking areas, which are also marked on your parkmap, but these can sometimes be hard to find, we had to ask for directions a couple of times.
There are also 3 or 4 different character meeting areas where the kids can queue up to meet their heros and have their pictures taken with them. Disney like to take ppictures themselves because then you will have to pay for them, although I'm sure you could sneak your own pictures in then decline theirs :)
The good thing is you can take bags and things onto the rides with you in this park (yes even the upside down rollercoaster), so don't worry about renting lockers unless you really require one.
I would advise going round the park backwards (anticlockwise) as everyone else goes clockwise so you can get onto some of the rides without queuing too much.
Okay onto the rides, please note I will only point out the rides/exhibits we actually went on ourselves, there were not many though as most of them were aimed at kids, well it is Disney afterall:
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular - This is an awesome stunt show, which lasts about 30 minutes with various showtimes throughout the day, check your parkmap for details. This is one of the best shows in the park, full of action, flying through the air, explosions, etc. This is great for both kids and adults, but be warned it gets very warm sitting watching this so bring some water to drink so you don't dehydrate.
Startours - This is a fun ride/flight simulator. The outside of this place is fantastic looking with a replica of the Ewok village and one of them huge robot things (the name escapes me, see photo below). As you wait in the queue there are a lot of exhibits and things to look at and keep you occupied, so you don't really notice how long you're waiting. The staff in this section are even dressed up like starwars shipmates and really look the part. This is a cinema like ride in which you wear 3D glasses and move about in your seat a lot. I hate Starwars myself but seemed to love this ride for some reason - perfect for all you Starwars fanatics - kids will love this too, although there is a height restriction of 102cm. There is a Starwars shop attached to the end of this ride and it is crammed full of anything to do with Starwars that you could ever imagine. The cool thing is that you can buy fullscale replicas of all the weapons used in the films, they are even made from the same metals, but be warned they are really really expensive - you can buy miniture ones on the other hand though for around $60.
Muppet Vision 3D - Join Kermit, Miss Piggy and friends on their tour of the muppet labs. This is fun for little kids (or big kids who love the muppets) with some of the usual muppet singing. This is an extremely well done and thoughtout ride and lasts around 25 minutes. There is no height restriction for this ride and it is not at all scarey.
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Play It - This is just like the TV show, but with audience participation. Unfortunately this was closed when we visited so we didn't get to win anything :( Check your parkmap for opening times as shows run throughout the day (when it's open that is).
Rock 'n' Rollercoaster Starring Aerosmith - This is one of the best rides in the park. You queue in an indoor area, which is quite nice as you get out of the heat for a while. Once in there is a video on a huge screen with Aerosmith talking to your and their manager. They tell you a few things and then you are asked to jump on board. Once through there is a wee bit more waiting, but it is so worth it. This is an in the dark rollercoaster with loads of neckbreaking twists and turns and shocks along the way and yes yes yes it even goes upside down. A strange thing about this ride is that even though it goes upside down you are allowed to take bags and things on with you, you just store them under your seat and hold them in place with your legs, I was worried at this, but nothing fell out on us. I totally recommend buying your photo at the end of this ride, there are various different sizes and prices and they are so awesome looking, you won't believe your eyes. The height restriction
Pictures of Disney MGM Studios, Orlando
The Famous Trademark Fantasia Hat
for this ride is 122cm. Not for small kids, pregnant women, people with heart problems or scaredy cats.
Twilight Zone Tower Of Terror - This is the other best ride in the park, even though it's not a rollercoaster (don't read this paragraph if you don't want to spoil it for yourself). This is a huge hotel and you can ride both sides in the lifts. Upon entering you walk through an old creepy hotel with loads of fantastic exhibits, the staff here are dressed up like they are ready for a halloween party and glare at you to try and scare you (but end up making you laugh). Once inside your chosen lift you start out on a little tour of the twilight zone while being told a creepy story, there are dark moments which might scare kids and brilliant special effects and optical iilusions. Then all of a sudden you don't know where you are, it is pitch black and the voices and music stops, then in an instant the doors open and you are at the very top of the building in the small lift overlooking the whole park, just as your starting to feel safe the doors close again and you are dropped a heartwrenching 13 floors at an amazing speed, seriously you actually lift off your seat with only a seatbelt to hold you in, you then bounce up and down a few more times until you come to a peaceful stop. You can actually hear people screaming in this ride from all over the park. There is a height restriction of 102cm. Not for pregnant women, people with heart problems, or scaredy cats, especially if feared of heights.
This brings us to the end of the rides, there are many more rides and attractions in the park itself, but most of them were for young children and we were too big to go on them.
Always remember to check your parkmap for the parade route, this is marked out by a red dotted line, because once it starts there is no escaping and you will be asked to move along if you are in the way, I know this because we were told to move when taking pictures of the Starwars Ride, although they let us finish what we were doing first. Parade time is a great time to get on any ride you wish as there are no queues at all because everyone is watching the parade.
It was very hot and clammy and there are loads of kids running around and mum and das with strollers, who will not move out of your way so be warned and watch your toes, they will run you down lol.
The queues in this park don't seem to be as bad as any other Disney park, so fast passes are not really required, unless you want to go get something to eat then come back at your appointed time.
We went here in the early morning at like 9am, I would recommened going in the afternoon if you are wating to see the nightly fireworks, because I assure you it is way to warm to stay all day and night, plus there is really not enough rides to warrant a whole day visit. We never got to see the fireworks because of this, we were so hot and tired we just had to get back to our hotel for some relaxation.
Holiday Tips:
Have a huge breakfast before you arrive, it will keep you full throughout the day and you'll spend less on the expensive food. Wear comfy shoes as there is a lot of walking and a bit of queuing, which is very tiring in the heat.
Rent a buggy if you have small kids, there are numerous buggy areas to leave them when using the rides. Don't let staff take your pictures, as you have to pay for them later if you want them and they are not cheap.
Bring plently of water in a cooler bag because you will drink loads and will not want to keep forking out your hard earned holiday cash. Do not fill water bottles from the drinking fountains, this water tasted quite salty/full of flouride.
Do not buy the water assisted mist spraying fans, they cost $12.50 or 2 for $18. Go to Walgreens before you go and pick up one for $1.99. The ones in Walgreens are better as well because they come in different shapes and sizes, like footballs, basketballs, etc.
Have fun whenever you are going :)
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Well, I enjoyed the review, and it was nothing to do with whether I would get revenge ratings, or anything else, for that matter. I am too old, and too long a member to be bothered with that side of Ciao. It is best to just let comments wash over you. The review was good. No one can write EVERYTHING about whatever, or each review would be identical, and not worth reading more than one of them. The variety of different views and writing skills is what makes Ciao what it is. // I went here over the Christmas of 1994 - I am a scaredy cat, but I loved the Muppet 3D film/ride, lol! Gwen x
purplifried 03.03.2007 17:38
well okay then one more point, you wrote this about my magic kingdom review "While this was quite long I feel you could have grouped things together and given highlights only. It's not necessary to mention every attraction whether or not you went on it, selected highlights will do, point out which parts you liked best, what you didn't like, who the park is aimed at, prices inside the park and do not try and cover everything, it makes it very long and the review doesn't flow that well. It's so much more important to cover what you and your family thought, not necessarily what is there. People who want to visit can then read your review and get a few good ideas what to look out for. " so you tell me not to mention everything then in here you want me to mention everything, instead of just highlights of things I actually did - bit of a contradiction with yourself there...
purplifried 03.03.2007 16:42
And I cannot comment on the other parts of the park, because as I informed you before, I DIDN'T GO TO THOSE PARTS. You need to read correctly before you answer things. This might be the most adult park of disney, but it's still for kids rather than grown ups, if your not happy I would appreciate you not reading my reviews then I won't have to suffer reading your whinges. matter finished with, goodbye i wont be replying again!
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Advantages: Awesome value for money, and very friendly helpfull staff! Disadvantages: Very large park, transportation around the park could be improved.
Advantages: Awesome value for money, and very friendly helpfull staff! Disadvantages: Very large park, transportation around the park could be improved.
very helpful by (94%):
somewhat helpful by (6%):
