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Greetings all,
I'm delurking to report on our recent trip to Orlando, Epcot, and the Animal Kingdom Lodge. My family and I (Me 49 Wife 46 Son 16 and Daughter
13) were in Florida from 6/17 to 6/24, but I'll confine my remarks to Disney related events. We arrived on Monday evening 6/17 on AirTran and
picked up a rental car from National, getting a Pontiac Montana mini-van for the price of a full-size with Emerald Club - then checked in to the
Radisson Resort Parkway - very nice hotel (recently renovated), great pool, great price with Mousesaver discount. Tuesday 6/18 we went to
Downtown Disney to get 1 day/1 park tickets to use at Epcot Wednesday 6/19. If you're staying off-site and only want the 1 day/park tickets,
they can be purchased at the Guest Relations window at DD, saving time at park entry.
I had planned to eat Wednesday morning at the Radisson's breakfast buffet, but it didn't open until 7:00 AM. I was floored when my son
suggested Cracker Barrel (he usually complains whenever I suggest it), because they start serving at 6:00 AM, allowing us to arrive earlier at
Epcot for our first visit since 1993. We got to the Cracker Barrel on 192 about 6:15 and were nearly the only ones there. Our very efficient and
friendly waitress brought our order quickly and we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast before arriving at Epcot around 8 AM. I was pleasantly
surprised at the small crowd - we were first in line at one of the security tables and quickly entered the park around 8:30 after the guard
searched my wife's purse.
We went as far as possible toward Test Track and got very close to the front of the rope line outside Innoventions West. Before the crowd
got very large, the CM said, "I'm only going to say this once - the fastest way to Test Track is through those doors !" - pointing to the
Innoventions West doors. Somebody mentioned it was their daughter's 9th birthday, so the CM led us in singing Happy Birthday and designated that
family as the day's official greeters. About 8:45 AM, another CM came out on a Segway People Mover, demonstrated it, and took questions - very
interesting, but they wouldn't allow guests on the thing. Just shortly after 9:00 AM, the signal was given, the family said "Epcot is now open
!!", the rope dropped, and most of the crowd headed into Innoventions West on their way to Test Track. Disney wisely posted a lot of CMs at the door
to prevent the crowd from running into In-west, but we went at a very fast pace and broke into a run after exiting In-west near Test Track. My
family managed to make it onto the second set of cars, even with slow-poke Mom in tow. It was our first time on Test Track - I'm not a big fan of
roller coasters and was a little concerned, but managed to get through it with only a slight nautious feeling - watch out for those sharp curves !!
The Test Track line built up quickly to 90 minute length (I didn't notice the Fast Pass time)- riding it early freed up a lot of time for
other attractions. My son demanded to take a look at Innoventions at this point, while I wanted to head for the Imagination building, so we
compromised by my going to get Fast Passes for Journey through your Imagination while everyone else looked at Innoventions. JTYI was
temporarily down, so I got FP's for Honey I Shrunk the Audience instead. After some difficulty finding the family, we went over to HISTA and used
the FP's to go right past a half hour wait. HISTA is wonderful, great effects, wacky story. The 3D effect seemed much better than the previous
attraction (Captain EO). Journey into your Imagination opened up again while we were in HISTA, the line was short and we quickly got on. I
really liked the original version of JIYI, even though it was a relatively minor attraction, but never saw the interim version without Figment. Now
there is a new version, which features Dr. Nigel Channing (of HISTA fame) and Figment. It was amusing enough at the time, but I really don't
remember much about it - the general idea is that Dr. Channing is giving a tour of the Imagination Institute, while Figment runs around messing
everything up.
At this point we were getting pretty thirsty, so we headed to Ice Station Cool for free soft drinks. As you are probably aware, this
attraction lets you walk down a heavily air-conditioned tunnel that features real snow ! Just the thing for a hot day. We were treated to the
rather amusing sight of someone complaining it was too cold in the snow area (this was a 90 degree day, after all) and they turned around and
walked out. After the snow tunnel, you enter a large room that features dispensers of soft drinks Coca-cola markets in other countries. You can
drink as much as you want, but the cups are only sample size. Some of the drinks are pretty good - others are an acquired taste. By unanimous vote,
the Japanese watermelon drink was the best, followed by the Israeli lemon drink. Also pretty good was the German Mezzo Mix (which tasted a lot like
Coke), but the Italian Beverly drink was very bitter. They also had a lot of Coke memorabilia for sale, in case anyone's wallet was too heavy.
By this time it was about 11 AM and we needed to get a snack to hold us until our 4 PM PS at Restaurant Akershus (more on that later), so off
we went to the food court at the Land. Once again, Fastpass came in very handy - I got FPs for Listen to the Land while the rest of the family
procured the food. After eating -we had enough time before the FP to see Food Rocks, which is more or less a revamped version of the old Kitchen
Kaberet show - newer music and slightly more outrageous characters.
Listen to the Land is pretty much what I remembered from 93 - the boat ride through the greenhouses and desert area - informative narration -
etc. This is interesting, but IMHO not a must-see. There didn't seem to be many characters in Epcot that day, but we did see Mickey working the
crowd at the Garden Grill Room Character Lunch.
Next we went to the Living Seas, where the line was also fairly short. We quickly got on a hydrolator and went on into the attraction. There
seemed to be little new since we'd last seen it in 1993 - as has been mentioned elsewhere, you now walk through a tunnel to get to the tank
viewing area instead of riding. The marine mammal area was closed for refurbishment, which was a disappointment because my daughter wanted to
see a manatee. Overall, LS looked dated and worn - hope they do a major refurb soon.
A quick walk got us to the Wonders of Life Pavilion - I was looking forward to seeing Cranium Command and it didn't disappoint. This FUNNY
look at the functions of a 12 year old's brain is very well done - it hasn't changed in 9 years and doesn't need to. Pay attention to the
pre-show cartoon - you may have difficulty figuring out what's going on if you don't see it. Note that the voice of the General is Lee Ermey - the
voice of the toy soldier sergeant in the Toy Story movies. He also played the drill sergeant in the 1987 movie "Full Metal Jacket" - an outrageous
performance worthy of an Oscar IMHO, but hardly G-rated.
We next headed into World Showcase - stopping at the Mexico Pavilion before heading to our PS at Norway's Restaurant Akershus. I really like
the village marketplace motif here, even if it is just another gift shop. The combination of the marketplace, the San Angel Inn restaurant, and the
volcano in the background are very well done. We rode the El Rio del Tiempo (River of Time) boat ride - think Small World exclusively in
Spanish, with some outdated stock footage of Mexican tourist attractions. This ride is ok, but very expendable if time is short.
We were getting hungry, so we showed up at Restaurant Akershus at 3:30 for our 4:00 PS. I'd made the PS four months previous and it turned out I
wasted my time - we were one of only two occupied tables, although the place filled up to maybe 1/3 capacity by the time we left. It had been
raining off and on through the day, but really started pouring as we ate our lunch, which kept the crowd down. The food is excellent and I highly
recommend this buffet - many seafood salads, as well as hot fish dishes, and other foods such as chicken curry stew and a sort of beef stir fry.
Also hot and cold vegetable dishes, Norwegian breads, and the obligatory mac and cheese and chicken fingers, etc. for the kids. The food is very
well prepared and the service was good, although my iced tea got empty a few times. They switch from the 12.95 lunch to the 21.95 dinner at 4:30
(which was the reason for my 4:00 PS) - the only difference I saw was peel and eat shrimp at dinner. I understand
this buffet is pretty authentic Norwegian food - when's the next plane to Norway?
Before lunch, I had picked up FP's for Maelstrom, which was under construction in 93, so it was new to us. The art work, etc. is good and
the subject (Scandinavian history and folklore - namely trolls) is interesting. I had been a little concerned about the backwards downhill
in the dark boat ride (call me a fraidy cat, if you must), but the actual ride is not at all scary (except for the under 5 crowd, maybe) and far too
short. The subject is worthy of better (i.e. longer) treatment.
Then on to China, where we saw a performance of the acrobats - indoors due to the rain. They are very talented - and still teenagers ! Great
show, although not flawless - there was an occasional juggling item dropped. Also saw the China CircleVision 360 movie - hasn't changed since
'93 and doesn't need to. The narrator is an 8th century Chinese poet - no mention of Mao or communism here. Many scenic and historic sites.
After about an hour of torrential downpour, the rain slacked off enough for us to return to Future World to ride Spaceship Earth, the
history of communication. Although the line looked fairly long, it moved quickly and off we went. I understand there have been some changes to
this ride recently - it was hard to tell after 9 years. As you are probably aware the ride goes up into the globe and then down again - the
weakest part used to be on the way down (the modern communications era), so changes have probably been made in this area. I enjoyed it, but
wouldn't have missed it if we hadn't been able to ride.
Then it was back to World Showcase - we took the boat to Morocco and got to France (next door) at about 8 PM. Saw one of the last showings of
the Impressions de France movie. You may think you've seen a lot of travelogues (and maybe you have) , but this one is absolutely superb.
Scenic shots of the French Alps, the palace at Versailles, Paris, wine country, etc. - all set to the music of French composers. I was really
looking forward to it , as I hadn't seen it since 1987 - it didn't disappoint.
After the movie, we were in need of a restroom. Just as I understand it is in the real Paris, there didn't seem to be any, so we went over to
Morroco. Arrived back in time to get some excellent French pastries and coffee for dessert while viewing the Living Statue. If you haven't seen
this bit of whimsy, don't miss it. A woman is dressed in white, with white makeup - and looks like a stone statue. She will pose for pictures
with you - and make humorous gestures as the picture is snapped. It sounds hokey, but is very amusing - perfect to keep our minds off the
rain.
Just as we finished the pastries, it was time for Illuminations. Due to the bad weather, we were able to walk to a good viewing spot in Morocco
just as the show started - no need to stake out a spot hours beforehand. Illuminations is pure Disney - a great show - great effects. Afterwards,
we decided to walk the long way around the World Showcase to get back to Future World - so we passed by Japan, Germany, US, etc. after they closed.
The Mouse Gear gift shop in Future World was still open, of course, and my wife and kids are not known for their ability to avoid gift shops, so
we spent far too long in there.
I finally managed to drag the family out of there about 10:30 PM (and they were not the last customers), so it was about a 14 hour day. As we
had arrived so early, our car was near the entrance - we easily found it and drove back to the Radisson Resort Parkway. Overall, a very long and
very satisfying day.
A few impressions of Epcot:
Parts of Epcot seem dated (Living Seas, especially) and are in need of major refurbishment or replacement.
In addition, some peripheral areas are getting seedy. For instance, the Odyssey Center between Future World and World Showcase no longer
houses a restaurant and, except for the restrooms, is closed to the public. It has peeling paint, the facade is faded, and the restrooms were
dirty, with wastebaskets full. I think the layoffs and cost cutting have extended to restrooms all over Epcot - they seemed to be dirtier than one
would expect from Disney, although not out of line with your average public restroom. However, this is Disney World - and we have been
conditioned (by Disney, no less) to expect better.
Don't hesitate to go to Epcot in bad weather. We managed (even without rain ponchos) to see a lot more than I expected because the
weather kept the crowds away.
FastPass is the best thing to hit Disney World in a long time. Each use saved us precious minutes (or hours) of waiting in line - we could see
or do something else until the FP return time.
You will save a lot of time by arriving early to ride Test Track. The line quickly built to 90 minute length - and Test Track does not run in
the rain, which is practically guaranteed for some time during the day at this time of year. So, on top of waiting in line for 90 minutes, it may
be closed before you get to ride.
The food, although expensive (Yep, this is Disney World), has improved since our 1993 visit. Restaurant Akershus was excellent (and all you
could eat), the veggie wraps from the Land food court were very fresh and flavorful, and the French pastries and coffee were exceptional.
I will cover our Animal Kingdom Lodge adventure in another message - suffice it to say we had a great time both there and at Epcot.
Jim Tuma, MI
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