what a frustrating day. sorry it was such a rough one.
on a positive note, your daughter’s shirt is great. kinda love it.
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Awe, thank you so much! Her and I don’t go on ToT, so it is always our little break to go get a pretzel with cheese, a lemonade, and explore the park. I love every minute of it!
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If it’s open for breakfast, can you order their bread plate and sit inside?
At Sanaa? The bread service is not on the menu for breakfast I don’t think.
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The bread service in not available at breakfast. It is a decent breakfast and you have your choice of tables (especially if you go early).
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I learn so much on here. I never knew any of this!
And rightly so! I’m so sorry it was such a poor experience.
The worst
Oh I hate this and this never occurred to me. You are the anti-sales pitch for G+ for me and again I’m so sorry it went this way for you but you’re saving me from the same headache.
Ooh, a fellow Rebel Scum! I love her!
Same!
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I am not buying Genie + for HS!
I have 3 days at HS, first offsite and 2 onsite.
On our first day I booked experiences and dining.
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We bought G+ two days last week and found it a huge waste of money. As you mentioned, they run out quickly and can’t be used unless you want to ride at the end of the day or visit attractions for which you wouldn’t need them. We won’t be going down that rabbit hole again. It just added stress to the day. I was, however, able to purchase it at midnight, then got up early to make reservations at 7AM and there wasn’t much available already. We have annual passes (renewals) and are DVC members staying on points. I don’t know if that makes a difference as far as buying them at midnight or not. I won’t bother shortening my sleep on both ends again just to throw money down the aforementioned rabbit hole.
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This is how we felt as well. I don’t know who it is supposed to be useful for - On the one hand you have people like us, who RD and plan obsessively. Our use for G+ isn’t that great, b/c we already know how to maneuver things to avoid waiting. On the other hand, you have people who want to wake up whenever, and just go with the flow. These people won’t get much use out of G+ either, b/c everything was booked by the time they show up in the parks. It is as useful as an umbrella in the desert.
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DAY EIGHT - Tuesday the 23rd - Given our fiasco with G+ the day before at DHS, we decided to have a day where we would need very minimal planning. I was sick of looking at my phone all day to be honest. We woke up early, got to MK around 8:00am, and went straight to Philharmagic. I don’t know what it is about this attraction/show, but it is one of our favorites. They recently remastered the film, and added a scene from Coco, so it is even better! Since the girls were 2, I have brought fake gems to give to them at the part where Donald throws them into the audience. I still act surprised, like “OMG! GUYS, LOOK! GEMS!!!” My kids are now nearly 7 and for sure know it is just me digging them out of my purse to throw to them, but they always play along.
We then hit up IaSW, followed by massive amounts of popcorn eating, then onto CoP. My kids had never seen CoP. But in our quest to find things we knew would have no waits, we went, and I must say, they really enjoyed themselves. This makes me proud. We then ate churros, Mickey bars, watched some cavalcades, and hit the Enchanted TIki Room (the very best attraction in all of WDW, don’t @ me).
Our last night was spent at Epcot, where we continued our quest to find no waits. We hit up Awesome Planet and then Living with the Land. Again, we had never done either of these with the kids and it was great (except the screaming toddler on LWtL that punctured my eardrum - just take him home, he needs a nap).
We ended our night with the Rose & Crown Dining Package. I was able to book this about 24 hours out, so I had no idea what to expect, but it ended up being our favorite thing this trip. We checked-in at 8:15 at R&C and they took us to a table right on the water. The only thing between us and the giant Harmonious barges was a railing! It was freezing, and there was this lovely heater right above us to keep us toasty. Our server, Amanda, was one of the best CMs I have ever encountered. With the package we got unlimited alcohol from the R&C menu, an appetizer (cheese plate, Scottish egg, or soup of the day), an entree, and a dessert. I got the cheese, and fish & chips, and my husband got Shepherd’s pie. Everything we had we excellent. My children, as previously mentioned, have very sophisticated palates and opted for the traditional English dishes of turkey and meatballs, and grilled chicken with rice. 
Kids also get this cute souvenir cup with a clip-on Ariel or Buzz Lightyear that glows.
When Harmonious started, they turned off the lights in the seating area and we sat back and watched the show. And what a show it was my friends! I will be the first to admit that I was not a fan of Harmonious when I saw it streamed. I still, to this day, listen to the Illuminations soundtrack at least once a week, so Harmonious really had no chance. But when you see it live, it is a whole new animal. It is simply spectacular. We were so close, the fireworks felt like our own personal show. The barges, and the way they move in coordination, is just amazing. I cannot even imagine how much work went into making them work, or how much it will take to keep them fully operational. It is just so complex. For 20 minutes, we just stared in awe and wonder, taking it all in as a family, and lived in the moment. It was the perfect ending to a really memorable trip.
And then we left the next morning, drove 10 hours, stayed at a very questionable Best Western in Georgia, drove 6 more hours, and promised each other we would never drive again. 
And then we booked a trip for March… 
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We used to plan obsessively, but that kind of went down the tubes with Covid and no fastpasses. We had bought our grandkids annual passes so we wouldn’t have to spend the whole day in the parks anymore–wanted to go in and use our 3 fastpasses, meander a bit, then go back. We stayed for about a month and the kids would be there for a week and a half, so we could easily do this. But it never happened because Covid hit before they even activated their passes. We have been DVC members since 1993 and our experiences have been getting less magical for many years now. The crowds are horrendous and there aren’t enough attractions to allow the guests to enjoy the parks. Paying for fastpasses and then paying separately for the headliners in each park is outrageous.
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This is the way.
Great trip report! Thank you for taking us along! I’m encouraged by your review of Harmonious. I have a deep love for Illuminations and was not happy with the live stream of the new show. Your review gives me hope.
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I get this, and I am hopeful for the future. With the overhaul of Epcot’s Future World, I think that park is really going to be great in a few years. Genie+ needs to be overhauled b/c it isn’t working. I think people were ok with spending the extra little bit to skip lines, but then taking 2 entire attractions out of the already very limited inventory at each park in order to squeeze just that last little drop of $ from people was probably not the best idea. Sometimes I feel like no one who actually goes to WDW is in charge of its operation.
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Let me know what you think when you see it! Illuminations still had better music, hands down, but visually Harmonious is just stunning. I cannot wait to see it again in March!
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