Affordable Walt Disney World Vacation
THE DISNEY NEWS
January 18, 2006
Copyright © 1999 - 2006 by John P. Gross. All rights reserved.
=================================================
To subscribe to Affordable Disney's blog, click the following
icon:
Or copy and paste the following URL into your RSS Reader:
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=================================================
Hi Everyone!
In this blog...
* Deals and specials - including free ticket add-ons at
Universal!
* The latest news from around the "World" - including an
article about Disney's Port Orleans French Quarter Resort
serving as a substitute for the real "Big Easy" post Katrina
* Melissa asks about Disney's Extra Magic Hours schedule
* Rosie asks about entry after 2 PM tickets at WDW
* Maryann reacts to Natina's letter of complaint to Disney
last week
* Deb sends us a note of praise for Beth, our travel agent
=================================================
We continuously update our information and you can find
these current specials in our Addenda:
WALT DISNEY WORLD:
5 new ways to win a Disney/Florida vacation!
--------------------------------
Buy four tickets to Universal and get the fifth ticket free!
Plus! Get three additional days free!
--------------------------------
Discounts on tickets to Canadians at this popular Florida
park! Expires April 30, 2006
--------------------------------
DISNEYLAND CALIFORNIA
Paradise Pier starting at $109; Disneyland Hotel, $119; and
Grand Californian, $199. Valid through 03/02/06.
--------------------------------
Discounts on tickets to Canadians at this popular park!
Expires April 30, 2006
--------------------------------
DISNEYLAND PARIS
Discounts for UK residents on tours, food, merchandise,
green fees and transportation!
--------------------------------
VEGAS
Resort & Casino Special!
From $79! Plus!
* $25 Dining Credit (per stay)
* $25 Entertainment Credit
* $15 Spa Credit
Promotion Runs January 10, 2006 - March 6, 2006.
--------------------------------
Affordable Disney Members should log in at our password-
protected site (The Disney Reading Room) to access the
particulars about the above mentioned specials.
If you are not a member, you can join our Disney family here.
=================================================
NEWS FROM AROUND THE "WORLD"
WALT DISNEY WORLD
Tourism Officials Applaud New U.S. Border Entry Plan
"Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Homeland Security
Secretary Michael Chertoff on Tuesday announced the three-
part plan, which calls for an easing of the process to
obtain certain travel visas and a more welcoming attitude in
U.S. airports.
The plans are the result of the national travel industry's
efforts to work with federal officials to fight a perception
that the United States has grown hostile to foreign visitors
and put up obstacles to crossing its borders in the wake of
9-11." (Source: Orlando Sentinel, 01/18/06)
--------------------------------
"Orlando's theme parks are often a major lure for the
nation's most-attended and biggest-spending conventions and,
in turn, reap the rewards of deep-pocketed corporations
trying to top competitors...
On Friday night, Disney planned to host a nearly 400-person
party and dinner at Animal Kingdom's African village with a
private showing of the park's Festival of the Lion King for
Window Classics, a window and door company in town for the
International Builders' Show." (Source: Orlando Sentinel, 01/14/06)
--------------------------------
"Port Orleans Resort [is] a place that duplicates the Big
Easy right down to its lampposts, wrought-iron railings and
hurricane cocktails... It seems that in this post-Katrina
world, some people who can't get to the real New Orleans are
opting for the next best thing." (Source: NY Times, 01/13/06)
--------------------------------
Lifeguarding at Disney World in the Disney College Program
"Eight hours a day, Chad Friesz patrolled the water's edge
at the Happiest Place on Earth.
Friesz spent his fall semester in Orlando, Fla., instead of
Moorhead, Minn., participating in the Disney College
Program. He is a graduate of Mandan High School and attends
Minnesota State University at Moorhead. He is a sophomore
elementary education major." (Source: Bismarck Tribune, 01/12/06)
--------------------------------
Walt Disney World Monthly Calendar.
=================================================
DISNEYLAND HONG KONG
"Media reports that claim Disney is building a park in
Beijing are inaccurate and not based on fact. Disney has no
plans to build a park in Beijing at this time," Disney said
in a statement." (Source: Associated Press, 01/17/06)
--------------------------------
Disneyland Resort Calendar
=================================================
NOTE: Links to newspaper articles change quickly and without
notice. If you receive a "File Not Found" error message,
search the newspaper's archives for the story. Certain
newspapers require a free registration to view their
articles online. If web addresses are broken into more than
one line, copy and paste all lines.
=================================================
Melissa writes:
"I’m really anxious to make the dining reservations because
each year that we go to Disney my daughter misses out on
dining at Cinderella’s Castle for breakfast. I am determined
to make sure that I get her there for our upcoming trip; but
I don’t want to make reservations without knowing the
schedule. We’re not utilizing the hopper tickets so my plan
is to visit theme parks on the days that they’ll be open up
to three hours after closing. So my question is, do you know
if Disney will be releasing their schedule for May anytime
soon? Thanks!"
For Disney's extra magic hours schedule click here.
=================================================
Rosie writes:
"As our flight doesn't arrive until 12 noon, we have been
hearing about entry after 2PM tickets. Do you know anything
about these?"
SeaWorld offers it to conventioneers.
"From what I'm finding [at Disney's site], theirs must also
be for conventioneers."
Yes, those are convention tickets and they are not available
to the general public. You have to call them to buy these.
They're bound to ask for convention ID.
=================================================
Last week we published a letter from Natina complaining
about the crowds during her October, 2005 vacation at WDW.
Maryann sent us her reaction to Natina's comments:
"Wow! I find it very hard to believe that Magic Kingdom was
so packed on October 27, 2005 as I was also there during
that time. There were many rides that you could get right
onto or had a no more than 15-20 minute wait. We rode Splash
Mountain 2 times in a row and then went on Thunder Mountain
with a 15 minute wait - wasn't even that long - we walked
almost all the way to the train before we stopped. I don't
think Natina read up on anything from your site or any
others.
If she thinks it's packed in October, which it isn't, she
should try going in the middle of the summer! Now that's
packed. She didn't seem to have any idea how to get around
the park. I do agree that maybe a few rides had long lines -
like Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, and the three Mountains -
if you didn't use Fast Pass. Why should she be upset that
people were walking right by in the Fast Pass line when she
didn't utilize the same system that was available to her?
First of all, it doesn't sound like she planned a place to
watch the Electrical parade. Sure, if you're on Main Street
it's packed and people line up for good spots way ahead of
time. She had that same option and sounds like she chose to
ignore it and just expected "there to be room for her right
there up front for whenever she decided was a good time for
her." My 84 year old mother is wheelchair bound and has
gone to Disney with us multiple times. There are special
spots available for the handicapped. Why didn't she make use
of them?
I find most of her comments to be way out of line as far as
Disney goes. A long wait to get on the monorail - yes if you
expect to get right on. Don't plan to leave the park as soon
as the parade or fireworks are over. Stroll back a little
and let the crowd move, grab an ice cream and sit and people
watch. By the time you finish your ice cream, you can
navigate wheelchairs and even strollers much easier. Take
the ferry instead of the monorail. The queue seems to move
faster.
Actually, it appears she didn't do ANY pre-planning and just
winged it. Seems funny that the kids were okay but the
adults weren't. It's usually kids that have low attention
spans and don't like to wait. She sounded tired and REALLY
cranky. Maybe she should have taken a break during the day.
I'm not sure what she expected but sounds like she thought
she should be treated better than anyone else there. Disney
is a magical place and you should leave everything behind
when you walk thru the turnstiles.
A 45 minute wait for the Crystal Palace? Maybe because it's
a large party? Was the whole party there at the same time?
Did they get there early and expect to get in right away?
Were only some of them there and did they expect to go in
and wait for the rest at the table? The most we've ever
waited at any eating establishment has been no more than
15-20 minutes for a party of 6. And we've tried the majority
of them over the years. You do have to take into
consideration that some people seated ahead of you might eat
slower than you do. It's no different there than at any
other restaurant outside Disney.
We have taken MANY trips to Disney over the past 20 years
starting while I was in high school. And if anything, Disney
cast members go out of their way to accommodate. Our most
special memory is eating at the Rose and Crown about 8 years
ago when my children were 4 and 8. Our waiter sat down with
us as we were his last customers. At first we didn't even
realize he was the waiter and thought he was just someone
from another dining party. He sat with us while we ate and
talked about how he came to work in Disney and what he did
back in England. He even took the kids outside to watch
Illuminations close up and talked with them the whole time
they were out there. They are now 12 and 16 and just last
night started talking about 'Paul.'
Just a note that we are not locals and travel down from
Massachusetts.
I enjoy your site and feel that Natina should have reviewed
it and others before she left home..."
=================================================
Deb writes:
"Dear John,
Thank you for getting in touch with Beth for me. She has
contacted me several times now with detailed, helpful
advice. She possesses great patience with overwhelmed,
confused, undecided customers. Her advice has been wise and
helped us consider things that we'd deemed unimportant.
For example, we'd assumed that we would save more by staying
off-Disney and figured that the extra hours that resort
guests receive were not that big a priority for us. Beth
advised us to reconsider the benefit that early morning and
evening hours would bring in terms of dealing with the heat.
I'm so grateful that she brought that to our attention as it
will make a tremendous difference in our enjoyment of the
park.
I look forward to working with her more as we nail down our
vacation plans. Thank you for finding such a great travel
agent to assist your customers. Beth is the BEST!"
=================================================
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Don't Leave Home Without It!
Universal offers special deals to Universal Entertainment
MasterCard cardholders. Apply now and receive a movie ticket
with your first purchase! For more details, click here.
--------------------------------
Affordable Disney Books
Disney and other new books 50-90% off the list price.
Hundreds of books under $1.00! Plus! Over 700 videos have
been marked down to $1.99! To check out the bargains, click
here.
--------------------------------
Got Coupons?
With the Orlando Entertainment Book, you can save big on
travel, groceries, shopping, movie tickets, and more!
Coupons in the 2006 book are valid through 11/01/06. Save at
hotels and restaurants near Walt Disney World, on car
rental, airfare, admission to Universal Orlando, SeaWorld
Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa! For details, click here.
--------------------------------
Affordable Accommodations
Get the guaranteed lowest prices at the Downtown Disney
Resorts as well as at hotels, condos and vacation rentals
outside Disney property. Plus! Receive up to a $100.00 rebate! For hotels, click here.
--------------------------------
Affordable Car Rental
Just enter in your travel dates, select the kind of car you
want, and receive a list of car rental prices at over 12
companies starting with the cheapest price! Click here.
Cheryl writes: "I saved over $200.00 on my mini van rental!!!"
--------------------------------
Affordable Airfare
This service delivers as many as 230 flight options in a
single search - more options than any other travel site.
It's possible to save as much as 80%! To compare prices, click here.
--------------------------------
Affordable Luggage
Save up to 60% on Luggage, Backpacks, and more! Donna and I
bought a beautiful 5-piece set of Samsonite luggage for our
daughter for Christmas for $144! Click here.
--------------------------------
Own a piece of the Magic Kingdom
Disney framed stock certificates are works of art. They
feature Walt Disney and the Disney characters. Unlike stock
brokers that require you to purchase several shares of
stock, OneShare sells one share of stock and mails you the
certificate. You can frame the stock certificate yourself or
OneShare will frame if for you at a nominal cost. Click here.
=============================================
See You Real Soon!
John
AffordableDisney.Com.
johngross@affordabledisney.com
=============================================
Disclaimer: We cannot guarantee the accuracy of information
contained in THE DISNEY NEWS. Always check to be sure. The
views and opinions expressed by others in THE DISNEY NEWS do
not necessarily reflect the views of AffordableDisney.Com.
=============================================
January 18, 2006
Copyright © 1999 - 2006 by John P. Gross. All rights reserved.
=================================================
To subscribe to Affordable Disney's blog, click the following
icon:
Or copy and paste the following URL into your RSS Reader:
http://affordabledisney.blogspot.com/atom.xml
: My Yahoo! users can instantly add our blogcontent to My Yahoo! Add My Yahoo!
: You can also subscribe to our blog at MSN! Add to My MSN!
=================================================
Hi Everyone!
In this blog...
* Deals and specials - including free ticket add-ons at
Universal!
* The latest news from around the "World" - including an
article about Disney's Port Orleans French Quarter Resort
serving as a substitute for the real "Big Easy" post Katrina
* Melissa asks about Disney's Extra Magic Hours schedule
* Rosie asks about entry after 2 PM tickets at WDW
* Maryann reacts to Natina's letter of complaint to Disney
last week
* Deb sends us a note of praise for Beth, our travel agent
=================================================
We continuously update our information and you can find
these current specials in our Addenda:
WALT DISNEY WORLD:
5 new ways to win a Disney/Florida vacation!
--------------------------------
Buy four tickets to Universal and get the fifth ticket free!
Plus! Get three additional days free!
--------------------------------
Discounts on tickets to Canadians at this popular Florida
park! Expires April 30, 2006
--------------------------------
DISNEYLAND CALIFORNIA
Paradise Pier starting at $109; Disneyland Hotel, $119; and
Grand Californian, $199. Valid through 03/02/06.
--------------------------------
Discounts on tickets to Canadians at this popular park!
Expires April 30, 2006
--------------------------------
DISNEYLAND PARIS
Discounts for UK residents on tours, food, merchandise,
green fees and transportation!
--------------------------------
VEGAS
Resort & Casino Special!
From $79! Plus!
* $25 Dining Credit (per stay)
* $25 Entertainment Credit
* $15 Spa Credit
Promotion Runs January 10, 2006 - March 6, 2006.
--------------------------------
Affordable Disney Members should log in at our password-
protected site (The Disney Reading Room) to access the
particulars about the above mentioned specials.
If you are not a member, you can join our Disney family here.
=================================================
NEWS FROM AROUND THE "WORLD"
WALT DISNEY WORLD
Tourism Officials Applaud New U.S. Border Entry Plan
"Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Homeland Security
Secretary Michael Chertoff on Tuesday announced the three-
part plan, which calls for an easing of the process to
obtain certain travel visas and a more welcoming attitude in
U.S. airports.
The plans are the result of the national travel industry's
efforts to work with federal officials to fight a perception
that the United States has grown hostile to foreign visitors
and put up obstacles to crossing its borders in the wake of
9-11." (Source: Orlando Sentinel, 01/18/06)
--------------------------------
"Orlando's theme parks are often a major lure for the
nation's most-attended and biggest-spending conventions and,
in turn, reap the rewards of deep-pocketed corporations
trying to top competitors...
On Friday night, Disney planned to host a nearly 400-person
party and dinner at Animal Kingdom's African village with a
private showing of the park's Festival of the Lion King for
Window Classics, a window and door company in town for the
International Builders' Show." (Source: Orlando Sentinel, 01/14/06)
--------------------------------
"Port Orleans Resort [is] a place that duplicates the Big
Easy right down to its lampposts, wrought-iron railings and
hurricane cocktails... It seems that in this post-Katrina
world, some people who can't get to the real New Orleans are
opting for the next best thing." (Source: NY Times, 01/13/06)
--------------------------------
Lifeguarding at Disney World in the Disney College Program
"Eight hours a day, Chad Friesz patrolled the water's edge
at the Happiest Place on Earth.
Friesz spent his fall semester in Orlando, Fla., instead of
Moorhead, Minn., participating in the Disney College
Program. He is a graduate of Mandan High School and attends
Minnesota State University at Moorhead. He is a sophomore
elementary education major." (Source: Bismarck Tribune, 01/12/06)
--------------------------------
Walt Disney World Monthly Calendar.
=================================================
DISNEYLAND HONG KONG
"Media reports that claim Disney is building a park in
Beijing are inaccurate and not based on fact. Disney has no
plans to build a park in Beijing at this time," Disney said
in a statement." (Source: Associated Press, 01/17/06)
--------------------------------
Disneyland Resort Calendar
=================================================
NOTE: Links to newspaper articles change quickly and without
notice. If you receive a "File Not Found" error message,
search the newspaper's archives for the story. Certain
newspapers require a free registration to view their
articles online. If web addresses are broken into more than
one line, copy and paste all lines.
=================================================
Melissa writes:
"I’m really anxious to make the dining reservations because
each year that we go to Disney my daughter misses out on
dining at Cinderella’s Castle for breakfast. I am determined
to make sure that I get her there for our upcoming trip; but
I don’t want to make reservations without knowing the
schedule. We’re not utilizing the hopper tickets so my plan
is to visit theme parks on the days that they’ll be open up
to three hours after closing. So my question is, do you know
if Disney will be releasing their schedule for May anytime
soon? Thanks!"
For Disney's extra magic hours schedule click here.
=================================================
Rosie writes:
"As our flight doesn't arrive until 12 noon, we have been
hearing about entry after 2PM tickets. Do you know anything
about these?"
SeaWorld offers it to conventioneers.
"From what I'm finding [at Disney's site], theirs must also
be for conventioneers."
Yes, those are convention tickets and they are not available
to the general public. You have to call them to buy these.
They're bound to ask for convention ID.
=================================================
Last week we published a letter from Natina complaining
about the crowds during her October, 2005 vacation at WDW.
Maryann sent us her reaction to Natina's comments:
"Wow! I find it very hard to believe that Magic Kingdom was
so packed on October 27, 2005 as I was also there during
that time. There were many rides that you could get right
onto or had a no more than 15-20 minute wait. We rode Splash
Mountain 2 times in a row and then went on Thunder Mountain
with a 15 minute wait - wasn't even that long - we walked
almost all the way to the train before we stopped. I don't
think Natina read up on anything from your site or any
others.
If she thinks it's packed in October, which it isn't, she
should try going in the middle of the summer! Now that's
packed. She didn't seem to have any idea how to get around
the park. I do agree that maybe a few rides had long lines -
like Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, and the three Mountains -
if you didn't use Fast Pass. Why should she be upset that
people were walking right by in the Fast Pass line when she
didn't utilize the same system that was available to her?
First of all, it doesn't sound like she planned a place to
watch the Electrical parade. Sure, if you're on Main Street
it's packed and people line up for good spots way ahead of
time. She had that same option and sounds like she chose to
ignore it and just expected "there to be room for her right
there up front for whenever she decided was a good time for
her." My 84 year old mother is wheelchair bound and has
gone to Disney with us multiple times. There are special
spots available for the handicapped. Why didn't she make use
of them?
I find most of her comments to be way out of line as far as
Disney goes. A long wait to get on the monorail - yes if you
expect to get right on. Don't plan to leave the park as soon
as the parade or fireworks are over. Stroll back a little
and let the crowd move, grab an ice cream and sit and people
watch. By the time you finish your ice cream, you can
navigate wheelchairs and even strollers much easier. Take
the ferry instead of the monorail. The queue seems to move
faster.
Actually, it appears she didn't do ANY pre-planning and just
winged it. Seems funny that the kids were okay but the
adults weren't. It's usually kids that have low attention
spans and don't like to wait. She sounded tired and REALLY
cranky. Maybe she should have taken a break during the day.
I'm not sure what she expected but sounds like she thought
she should be treated better than anyone else there. Disney
is a magical place and you should leave everything behind
when you walk thru the turnstiles.
A 45 minute wait for the Crystal Palace? Maybe because it's
a large party? Was the whole party there at the same time?
Did they get there early and expect to get in right away?
Were only some of them there and did they expect to go in
and wait for the rest at the table? The most we've ever
waited at any eating establishment has been no more than
15-20 minutes for a party of 6. And we've tried the majority
of them over the years. You do have to take into
consideration that some people seated ahead of you might eat
slower than you do. It's no different there than at any
other restaurant outside Disney.
We have taken MANY trips to Disney over the past 20 years
starting while I was in high school. And if anything, Disney
cast members go out of their way to accommodate. Our most
special memory is eating at the Rose and Crown about 8 years
ago when my children were 4 and 8. Our waiter sat down with
us as we were his last customers. At first we didn't even
realize he was the waiter and thought he was just someone
from another dining party. He sat with us while we ate and
talked about how he came to work in Disney and what he did
back in England. He even took the kids outside to watch
Illuminations close up and talked with them the whole time
they were out there. They are now 12 and 16 and just last
night started talking about 'Paul.'
Just a note that we are not locals and travel down from
Massachusetts.
I enjoy your site and feel that Natina should have reviewed
it and others before she left home..."
=================================================
Deb writes:
"Dear John,
Thank you for getting in touch with Beth for me. She has
contacted me several times now with detailed, helpful
advice. She possesses great patience with overwhelmed,
confused, undecided customers. Her advice has been wise and
helped us consider things that we'd deemed unimportant.
For example, we'd assumed that we would save more by staying
off-Disney and figured that the extra hours that resort
guests receive were not that big a priority for us. Beth
advised us to reconsider the benefit that early morning and
evening hours would bring in terms of dealing with the heat.
I'm so grateful that she brought that to our attention as it
will make a tremendous difference in our enjoyment of the
park.
I look forward to working with her more as we nail down our
vacation plans. Thank you for finding such a great travel
agent to assist your customers. Beth is the BEST!"
=================================================
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Don't Leave Home Without It!
Universal offers special deals to Universal Entertainment
MasterCard cardholders. Apply now and receive a movie ticket
with your first purchase! For more details, click here.
--------------------------------
Affordable Disney Books
Disney and other new books 50-90% off the list price.
Hundreds of books under $1.00! Plus! Over 700 videos have
been marked down to $1.99! To check out the bargains, click
here.
--------------------------------
Got Coupons?
With the Orlando Entertainment Book, you can save big on
travel, groceries, shopping, movie tickets, and more!
Coupons in the 2006 book are valid through 11/01/06. Save at
hotels and restaurants near Walt Disney World, on car
rental, airfare, admission to Universal Orlando, SeaWorld
Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa! For details, click here.
--------------------------------
Affordable Accommodations
Get the guaranteed lowest prices at the Downtown Disney
Resorts as well as at hotels, condos and vacation rentals
outside Disney property. Plus! Receive up to a $100.00 rebate! For hotels, click here.
--------------------------------
Affordable Car Rental
Just enter in your travel dates, select the kind of car you
want, and receive a list of car rental prices at over 12
companies starting with the cheapest price! Click here.
Cheryl writes: "I saved over $200.00 on my mini van rental!!!"
--------------------------------
Affordable Airfare
This service delivers as many as 230 flight options in a
single search - more options than any other travel site.
It's possible to save as much as 80%! To compare prices, click here.
--------------------------------
Affordable Luggage
Save up to 60% on Luggage, Backpacks, and more! Donna and I
bought a beautiful 5-piece set of Samsonite luggage for our
daughter for Christmas for $144! Click here.
--------------------------------
Own a piece of the Magic Kingdom
Disney framed stock certificates are works of art. They
feature Walt Disney and the Disney characters. Unlike stock
brokers that require you to purchase several shares of
stock, OneShare sells one share of stock and mails you the
certificate. You can frame the stock certificate yourself or
OneShare will frame if for you at a nominal cost. Click here.
=============================================
See You Real Soon!
John
AffordableDisney.Com.
johngross@affordabledisney.com
=============================================
Disclaimer: We cannot guarantee the accuracy of information
contained in THE DISNEY NEWS. Always check to be sure. The
views and opinions expressed by others in THE DISNEY NEWS do
not necessarily reflect the views of AffordableDisney.Com.
=============================================
posted by AffordableDisney.Com at 8:00 AM
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