Trip Report: Disney's Hollywood Studios

After a week of visiting theme parks and attractions in the Orlando area, we decided to sleep in a bit before heading to the last park of our trip.  We arrived for our first ever visit to Disney’s Hollywood Studios about an hour after rope drop and headed straight for our first fastpass attraction of the day, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.  This ride absolutely blew me away.  The theming was top notch, the backstory was intriguing, and the ride itself was thrilling.  This was by far my favorite attraction in all of Walt Disney World, and it deserves every bit of praise it receives.

We took our time throughout the rest of the day, because frankly, if we hadn’t, we would have been done with the park in only a couple of hours.  It was possible to see everything we wanted to see without having to traverse back and forth across the park to hit our fastpass windows or avoid long lines.  Our feet appreciated the choice to make this park the last on our trip due to the least amount of walking involved.

Outside of the Tower of Terror, none of the rides really stood out to me.  Everything seemed to be “so-so” or “just okay”.  The Great Movie Ride was a bit boring due to its slow pace, Star Tours seemed like a generic motion simulator with a Star Wars overlay, Toy Story Midway Mania was enjoyable even though you just moved from one screen to another without much in between, and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster was fun but had way too much head banging.

In addition to the rides, we also experienced several of the shows: Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular, Muppet Vision 3D, Lights Motors Action, Voyage of the Little Mermaid, The Magic of Disney Animation, and Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream.  Again, much like the rides in the park, the shows were decent but seemed to fall flat.  They didn’t quite measure up to the Disney standard that I had built up in my head, and they all felt like filler in a park lacking quality attractions.

The remainder of our time in the park was spent perusing gift shops, eating a mediocre lunch at the ABC Commissary, taking a gander at the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground, and taking in the general vibe of the generic movie set theme.  The park did not feel as neglected as EPCOT did, but it did feel incomplete.  It seemed as though many of the attractions were being promoted as major attractions in this park, when in reality they would only be considered minor attractions if they were located in another park such as the Magic Kingdom.   

We ended our day by watching Fantasmic.  This was by far my favorite nighttime show in all of Walt Disney World.  The production really captured the mystical proverbial “magic” that exudes from the Disney brand.  The lights were great, the props were great, the actors were great, and the music was great.  The way everything came together was, for lack of a better word, magical.  It was the perfect way to end not only that night, but our entire Orlando trip as well.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios is far from a perfect park, but I also don’t think it deserves some of the criticisms it receives.  I had a fun time here.  If it came down to returning to this park or going back to EPCOT, I would choose the Studios based on Tower of Terror and Fantasmic alone.  There is certainly much room for improvement, and thankfully, if the rumors are true, upgrades are on the way in the not too distant future.  It will be interesting to see what this park looks like in a few years.

Trip Report: EPCOT

Anticappointment has a name, and its name is EPCOT.  Out of all of the parks on my Orlando trip itinerary, I was looking forward to EPCOT the most, and after hearing Disney fans clamor over how amazing the park was for years, I was excited to finally visit for the first time.  My expectations remained low though, knowing full well how the Walt Huggers like to proclaim everything Disney related as the greatest thing ever, but the supposed blend of entertainment and education within EPCOT was very intriguing to me.

It was cold and grey on the day we visited, and the crowds were very low.  We had our three fastpasses booked in advance for Test Track, Mission Space, and Spaceship Earth.  Even though the only two attractions in the entire park that needed a fastpass were Test Track and Soarin’, due to the tiered FastPass+ system in place at EPCOT (and Hollywood Studios) we had to use our three fastpasses early in order to be able to reserve an additional time for Soarin’ as well.

We spent the first half of our day in Future World.  EPCOT first opened in 1982, and based on the sad condition of the entire area it feels as though nothing has changed since then.  Everything felt very outdated and downright neglected, which is something I did not expect from the supposedly industry leading Disney.

Future World had two attractions that I thought were good in Test Track and Soarin’, and four attractions I thought were okay in Mission Space, Spaceship Earth, Living With the Land, and The Seas with Nemo & Friends.  Everything else was awful.  Universe of Energy, Circle of Life, Journey into Imagination, and Captain EO could (should?) be demolished tomorrow and I would not care at all.  They were terrible.  Innoventions East could go as well, and as far as I’m concerned the only thing worth saving in Innoventions West is the Cool Club and its free samples of sodas from around the world.  None of the attractions blew me away, and to say I was disappointed would be an understatement.

One of the few bright spots in Future World for us was our lunch from Sunshine Seasons in The Land pavilion.  The selection here goes well beyond your typical counter service offerings, and it didn’t feel like a complete rip-off based on the quality of the ingredients and the quantity of the entrees.  I ordered the spicy thai green curry shrimp with jasmine rice (and a cup of free water), and I would highly recommend it.

After lunch we decided to roam around World Showcase.  The only attractions I can comment on are the Gran Fiesta Tour and the American Adventure because, well, those are really the only attractions there outside of a few films from various countries.  Neither of these attractions are anything to write home about.  The Gran Fiesta Tour has a cool setting next to the indoor marketplace and restaurant in Mexico, but the ride itself is rather boring.  The American Adventure is worth seeing if you’ve never seen it before, and the shuffling of the audio animatronics is interesting from a technical standpoint, but you’re not missing much if you decide to skip it.

I was very underwhelmed by the rest of World Showcase.  The thing I hear time and time again from the die hard Disney fans is that the best thing about World Showcase is the opportunity to spend money.  Whether it’s the overpriced restaurants that you need a reservation ten years in advance for, or the gift shops peddling kitsch inspired by random countries, everything seemed like a money grab.  The various entertainment throughout each country was a nice touch and helped the otherwise lacking atmosphere, but it did not make up for the cheap feeling I received from nearly everything.  Perhaps it’s because I’ve experienced some of the countries and landmarks first hand, but I did not see the appeal of World Showcase.

We wanted to have a nice sit down meal for dinner, but after being turned away by restaurant after restaurant because we didn’t have a reservation, we decided to eat at Tangierine Café in Morocco.  It was decent food, but keeping with the overall trend of World Showcase it was way overpriced. 

After dinner we found a spot near the lagoon and settled in to watch IllumiNations.  I had heard good things about this show, but after the disappointment from the rest of EPCOT my expectations were down the drain at this point.  I must say that I enjoyed this show quite a bit.  The fireworks, the laser lights, and the physical set pieces on the barges combined with a great soundtrack to create a very entertaining show.

As I was leaving the park for the night, I couldn’t help but think of what EPCOT could be compared to what it currently is.  There is so much potential here, but Disney is not doing anything with it because people still flock here in droves for some reason unbeknownst to me.  With all of the empty buildings and neglected attractions in Future World, and all of the overpriced everything in World Showcase, I don’t see the appeal of spending a bunch of money just to have the opportunity to spend even more money and experience a couple of mediocre attractions.  I had a decent day at EPCOT, but I don’t have much desire to return until something changes.  

Trip Report: Magic Kingdom

My only previous visit to the Magic Kingdom was in 2001, and after a 14 year absence I finally made it back for a second visit.  Aside from the addition of New Fantasyland, not much had changed since my last visit.  Usually a lack of growth and updates throughout a park does not sit favorably with me, but for some reason I have no problem giving the Magic Kingdom a pass.

As someone who had only visited the park once previously, my apathetic stance on the stagnant condition of the Magic Kingdom is not rooted in nostalgia like most others who defend the park.  I’m willing to overlook the lack of growth for two reasons: 

1) The park already has a large amount of attractions
2) The Magic Kingdom is just plain fun

In a park devoid of major thrills, the clichéd “magic” that seems to permeate throughout every 

attraction leaves everyone with a smile on their face.  I believe this is a direct result of Walt Disney’s vision and Roy Disney’s execution of that vision.  But I digress.  On to the trip report.

Despite being the off-season, the crowd levels were heavier than expected.  With strategic use of the FastPass+ system we were still able to hit nearly every attraction that we wanted to.  We pre-selected FastPasses for Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad all for the morning, and throughout the day we were able to get additional FastPasses for the Jungle Cruise, the Haunted Mansion, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and Peter Pan’s Flight.  The FastPass+ system is far from perfect, but you can skip a lot of lines simply by understanding how the system works.  Most people had no clue how to use it, let alone use it effectively.

Most of the attractions were just as good as I remembered.  The three mountains, the Haunted Mansion, the Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean, and all of the other rides were so much fun.  The Enchanted Tiki Room, the Country Bear Jamboree, and the rest of the shows were still entertaining after all these years.

There were a few attractions that I had not experienced previously either due to time restraints or they had since been added since my last visit, and most of them were good as well.  Mickey’s Philharmagic, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Walt Disney World Railroad, Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor, Stich’s Great Escape!, Tomorrowland Transit Authority, and the Carousel of Progress were all new attractions for me and I enjoyed all of them except one (*cough* Stich *cough*).  There are still a few things that I’ve yet to experience, so I guess that means I’ll just have to come back.  Wishes was a decent fireworks show as well.

For our meals we stuck to counter service restaurants mostly as a cost saving measure, but also because we didn’t have reservations 17 years in advance.  For lunch we had the waffle sandwiches from Sleepy Hollow.  I had the sweet and spicy chicken while other members of my family tried the ham, prosciutto, and swiss.  For the quality of the ingredients and the size of the sandwiches, we actually felt like we were getting a good value from ordering these.  Dinner consisted of a trip to Pecos Bill’s.  There’s only one reason to eat here, and that reason is the toppings bar.  Being able to customize an otherwise uninspired burger and fries is certainly a plus.  Both of my meals were accompanied by cups of ice water, which are free upon request in case you didn’t realize it.

The only other food or beverage options that we tried were the Dole Whip and the LeFou’s Brew from Gaston’s Tavern.  Having tried Butterbeer at Universal Studios just the day before, I was interested in seeing how Disney’s specialty drink stacked up against the competition.  While I enjoyed the LeFou’s Brew, it just tasted like frozen apple juice.  I didn’t get any of the toasted marshmallow, passion fruit, and mango flavors that were advertised, but as a sucker for slush type drinks I still liked it quite a bit.  It’s certainly no Butterbeer though.  The Dole Whip is still delicious in case you were wondering. 

All in all it was a great day.  With the mix of rides, shows, and other attractions, it was easy to find something to please everyone in the family.  A little bit of planning went a long way in allowing us to skip a lot of lines and maximize the number of attractions we were able to experience.  I look forward to getting back in the future, and I would certainly recommend visiting the Magic Kingdom if you’ve never been there before.