TRIP RETROSPECTIVE
I’ll divide this into sections so you can just read the parts that interest you:
Courtyard Marriott
Great hotel - checks all my boxes of comfy beds, cleanliness, responsive thermostat, good water pressure, vanity separate from shower / toilet area (our room also had a tub by the vanity), and close (though not the absolute closest) to the Harbor entrance. Walking time was like 10 minutes - not bad at all. Staff was all very friendly and helpful.
Food
The lines for festival food were all long and we were on a budget, so we stuck to quick service options. Docking Bay 7 was great, though I missed some of the options that were available at WDW. Corn Dog Castle was perfect as always, if you like corn dogs (and who doesn’t?!). Smokejumpers Grill was very meh, though the onion rings and waffle fries were good. Cocina Cucamonga’s menu had changed, unfortunately, and none of the new menu items looked good to me, so we skipped it. Disneyland needs to up their QS game.
Snacks
We got churros, blue milk, beignets from Mint Julep, and Clarabelle’s ice cream. All fantastic, as expected. Remember to order beignets using Mobile Order! Do NOT wait in the ridiculously long line! But you need to order at least 30 minutes before you want them, if not more. You can choose your return time.
Rides
I was so glad to catch Soarin’ over California for its limited run! So good. After doing Webslingers a couple of times, I think it’s just ok – TSM is better. Indiana Jones is in need of some serious TLC - several of the effects aren’t working properly, and the audio is not very clear. My favorites are still Incredicoaster, GotG, RSR, BTMRR, Space Mountain, and RotR.
Genie+
Lightning Lane worked great for us. We were able to do every major ride, and most minor ones, in one day (moderate crowds - 5 Friday / 6 Saturday). The only major rides we missed were Splash, Matterhorn, and Grizzly River Run, which were closed. We could have squeezed them in if they were open. The app is a mess - very cluttered and not intuitive. But we succeeded in spite of that. The entire system is very similar to MaxPass, so veterans of that system will do well. Rookies need to study up and perhaps plan on having one day to figure it out before they can start maximizing their time.
Mobility Access
The Mobility Access system was helpful at Disneyland. We didn’t use the “return time” feature very much though, because LL was usually the more convenient way to skip the line. I would say MA saved us about as much time as having an ECV cost us (e.g., being slow, having to park it, etc.). In that way, it is an equitable system. We skipped a half-hour line for Jungle Cruise, 30 minutes for BTMRR, and 45 minutes for Peter Pan. We didn’t use it at all at DCA.
We took the ECV into a few queues where allowed, and in some it was kind of annoying (especially Indiana Jones with all the switchbacks and tight corners). We often parked the ECV when reporting for our LL return, or standby queue if short, especially in Fantasyland, etc. where space is tight. Most rides / queues at DCA were easily navigable for ECVs.
In general I would highly recommend an ECV if you have mobility issues, not because it saves you time in line, but because it is a way to rest your feet and get around more easily. By the same token, don’t begrudge the person next to you who has one – they likely aren’t getting an advantage from having it.