A few random questions About This Page:

[Eliz]

Hi! I've been lurking for a bit reading all the great advice and suggestions, and now I have a few questions of my own.

1. Are you allowed to eat/drink on Disney transportation? My current AM plans involve grabbing coffee & pastries from the food court and eating on the way to wherever I'm going that day.

2. Are the fireworks/laser shows ever timed so that you can see all three in one night. I just think it would be a cool thing to do if feasible.

3. I'm about to start making Hotel ressies, and I don't know wether to make the reservations for ASMu and then upgrade if codes permit, or just make them for POFQ and downgrade if the codes don't happen. It's just me, I'm going in early Sept. when most kids are hopefully back in school and I can afford AS rack rates, but not moderates.

3a. Are there likely to be alot of shcool/sports groups in residence in September, or will they all be busy playing their regular seasons?

Thanks lots,

Eliz

[HiddenMickey]

Welcome to the Passporter boards. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

1. I've taken OJ and cookies to eat on the bus before. Noone gave me any grief. Don't know what the policy is really.

2. It is a very rare occasion when someone is able to see all the nightime entertainment on one night---I have read a trip report where it did happen. In Sept you will likely only have fireworks and parades in the Magic Kingdom on Saturday nights (and maybe Monday)and will probably be around 7 oclock. Epcot will likely have Illuminations around 9:00. MGM Studios will probably hold Fantasmic around 7-7:30. Under these circumstances it would be impossible.

3. Make the All Star reservations. If codes come out later, then upgrade to the Moderate resort.

4. I don't recall hearing of too many school groups or sports groups at WDW in September. They are usually just getting into the year and have not had time to plan these types of trips yet.

Hope this helps. -HIddenMickey

[ 03-17-2003, 03:10 PM: Message edited by: HiddenMickey ]

[Brant]

Welcome Eliz!

I agree, seeing all three shows in one night would be REALLY cool, and definitely a near impossible feat [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] .

No one will say anything if you want to eat on the bus, in fact it's a great way to save some time if you like pastries!

I also can't say whether or not there will be many school groups there in September, but I would say don't worry about them. Even if there were some there, the chances that their presence would bother you inside your room are very slim to nil.

Happy planning!

[ 03-17-2003, 03:38 PM: Message edited by: Joe Carioca ]

[Joy J]

Hi Eliz and welcome to the boards! [img]graemlins/wavin.gif[/img]

As far as I know, you're not really supposed to eat or drink on the WDW buses. On one of our first rides there last month while we were staying at the All Stars Music Resort, a little recorded announcement came on to that effect. So what we ended up doing was usually buying pastries of some sort at one of the bakeries the day before and then grabbing a beverage from the food court with the indispensable refillable mugs and then taking them back to the room for a quick but yummy breakfast. Our room was in the Jazz building and it was a very short walk to the food court and back.

As for catching all three fireworks displays in one night, I think that would probably be close to impossible to achieve unless there were more than one showing of Fantasmic planned on the evening in question and even then, it would be a tight squeeze. In order to get good seats for Fantasmic, you have to show up at least an hour before showtime as the theater fills up very quickly. Then, when you figure in travelling time between the three parks, it gets even dicier.

I'm not sure but it wouldn't surprise me if there will still be sports groups of some sort present even in September. They seem to flock to the ASMu resort. When we were there, we were up to our eyeballs in cheerleaders. But they were all very well-behaved and didn't cause any problems that we could see. Leastwise, if they did, we never heard them.

Joy

[Marv]

Two years ago, we brought dry cereal for the kids to eat while waiting at the bus stop. We have always had time to eat while waiting. This time, the bus pulled up right as we arrived. When I got on, I asked the bus driver if it was o.k. for the kids to eat on the bus. She said the rules said there was to be no eating, but she didn't mind. We thanked her and ate very carefully so as not to spill. You can imagine they have to have that rule or the bus could potentially be a mess. We didn't eat on the bus again but have since seen people eating on the bus.

[Grumpygal]

Hi Eliz and welcome to the boards.

I've never had any problems bring food or drink on any of the Disney transportation. I even had a cup of coffee with me in the front cab of the monorail and they had no problems with that.

I too would love to be able to see the night time entertainment in one night, but agree that it would be darn near impossible.

[joyjoy]

Hi, Eliz

We were there (staying at ASMusic) the first week in September last year and are planning on the same week this year. There was a baseball tournament of some kind going on for high school boys, and frankly, the two teenaged girls I took with me were thrilled. [img]graemlins/love.gif[/img] The boys were not rude or overly loud. They were in the pool at night, but didn't cause any trouble. They were never at the parks when we were, and they left on Tuesday (after Labor Day.)

Have fun with your planning!

[boBmouse]

Hello and Welcome Eliz,

I have been to WDW the last two years in September after labor day. I did not notice any sports groups there. Crowds were very light during the week and picks up on the week ends.

Happy Planning, Bobºoº

[*Pixie*Dust*]

We have never had any problems with drinks on the bus.
As for September codes, we were there 9/12-9/16 and the rates were $55 AllStars and $89 for PO. I would assume something comprable will be offered this year.
The crowds were basically non-existent while we were there. My DD and her friend were able to ride ToT three times in a row without fast passes.

[ 03-17-2003, 10:42 PM: Message edited by: Happy&Grumpy ]

[OffKilter_Lynn]

Hi, Eliz and welcome!

Originally posted by Joe Carioca:
I agree, seeing all three shows in one night would be REALLY cool, and definitely a near impossible feat [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

<font size="2" face="Comic Sans MS, Arial">Wouldn't that be "impossible FEET"?!?

September is a good time to go... heat can be high but crowds tend to be low. Have a great time!

[Eliz]

Thank you all for all the great advice. This will be my first encounter with WDW in something like 17 years, and my first no-family, no-business, all-me vacation ever, so I'm a little nervous about it, but this board is wonderful and it helps the over-planning to go smoothly. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Eliz

[sandar]

Hi Eliz,

Just a quick welcome! [img]graemlins/wavin.gif[/img]

And my own feeling is that there is no such thing as "over" planning. Disney World is enormous and it's wise to spend time on research and making at least some of the decisions before you arrive.

Happy planning for your solo trip! I bet you are going to have a blast.

Sandi

[vickeymouse]

I must disagree on the "over planning" part - caused myself some anxiety attacks last trip planning. [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] I think the more people, the more planning that is necessary. Going yourself would seem to me would allow for much more go-with-the-flow.

Crowd were not a problem for us in Sept, but it was melt-your-brain-in-your-skull HOT! Go prepared!

Have a blast! [img]graemlins/wavin.gif[/img]

[TINKN]

Welcome to the boards!

I was also told that the official rule is no food or beverage on the bus, but never had a problem with a refillable mug. Keep in mind that it may be difficult to eat on the bus if you do not get a seat. A good number of riders on Disney buses are forced to stand and hold onto the hand bars or wait for the next bus (usually about 20 minutes).

[sandar]

You make good points, Vickeymouse. If you start to stress out about the planning to the point where it's not fun anymore, then I guess it is possible to overdo it.

Perhaps I should rephrase my statement a bit -- I don't think it's possible to be over-prepared for a trip to Disney World. For a first time visitor, or for someone who's not been in 10 years or more, there's a lot to learn about. The more reading you do ahead of time, the better prepared you are for making good decisions during your trip.

For those lucky enough to visit WDW frequently, I bet it's more likely that you could show up with no game plan at all and still have a good time, simply because you're familiar with the parks and restaurants.

And while I agree that the crowds in September are bound to be low, I'd still recommend having an idea of which attractions you most want to enjoy in each park. For example, I'd still head to Test Track first thing at Future World, then mosey around to see other stuff. Just one slob's opinion!

Sandi