DTD for senior citizens

[thejens]

I checked out DTD briefly on my recent trip and feel that it is mostly a young energy place and not especially appealing for seniors. There are so many shopping opportunities elsewhere. Am I missing something? During a short trip to the world, I am thinking this is skipalbe. Any opinions from seniors or those who have travelled with them?

[Tink's Friend]

I checked out DTD briefly on my recent trip and feel that it is mostly a young energy place and not especially appealing for seniors. During a short trip to the world, I am thinking this is skipable. Any opinions from seniors or those who have traveled with them?

I guess it depends on what you're looking for.

DH and I are both 54, and we enjoy going to Downtown Disney and just looking around at the shops and grabbing a bite to eat. Our trips, though, are usually fairly long; if we were there for only a couple of days, I don't think I'd take the time away from the parks to go to DTD, unless I were going there for something special like La Nouba.

There are quite a few good restaurants, ranging from the fairly cheap (we especially liked the Earl of Sandwich), to moderate (Wolfgang Puck's Cafe was good) and on up to quite expensive (haven't tried any of those).

DTD is a great place to spend some time just people watching. And for a relaxing (and free) ride, take the water taxi from one side of DTD to the other (or to one of several resorts).

Then there's Cirque du Soleil La Nouba (for which we finally got tickets for our October trip--yeah!), and although it's pretty expensive, I've heard nothing but rave reviews of it.

Most of the stores in MarketPlace are, in my opinion, overpriced, but this is DisneyWorld, so what can one expect?!?!? LOL :mickey: We still end up spending more than I think we should, but we end up with some good souvenirs and gifts, and it's fun to browse the stores. I'm also a pin-trader, so PinTraders is a must-do place to visit, too.

Best of all, though, when we were down there on a Friday night (first week of January this year), there were performers in the Downtown Disney Marketplace area: magicians, jugglers, mimes, and other street performers. I don't know if this is the norm or if it was just due to it being near the holidays. If anyone knows whether they're always there or if this was a special thing, please let me know.

We also enjoyed DisneyQuest. While some of it is very definitely kid, teen and young adult geared, there were quite a few things that we oldsters enjoyed, too. (Keep in mind that I'm a child of the very start of the video game era and spent hours and hours in a bar while in college playing Pong and even more hours playing Space Invaders.) The virtual Pirates of the Carribean: Battle for Buccaneer Gold was so much fun that we probably would have done it over and over if the lines hadn't been so horribly long (we were there at the Christmas and New Years holiday season). And I hear that if you're a roller coaster fan, the Cyber Space Mountain is fantastic. (Personally, I get ill if I even look at a roller coaster, much less ride one.) And there were lots of other rides and activities at DisneyQuest that we wanted to try but didn't have the time for. We've scheduled a whole day for Disney Quest for our October trip.

As for Pleasure Island, I haven't made it over there yet, but I'd like to go to Adventurer's Club, though, and maybe Comedy Warehouse (depending on who's there when I get there).

Sorry this post is so long, but there's so much to DTD that I didn't want to leave anything out! :D

Suzanne Q
Bristol, TN

[Jasper]

I would say that in some cases you are correct and in other cases I would say you are not correct. It really depends on the individual and their taste. My Mother and Father-in-Law went to Downtown Disney several years ago with my Sister and my Brother-in-Law when they were both right around 80. They bothed just loved Downtown, including Pleasure Island. Granted, the hard rockin' dance halls were not something they even went into but, I know they did several of the clubs where they had dinner shows and the like (sorry, I don't remember which ones they did) and just loved them.

They also ate at several different rest. at Downtown and really liked them. As for shopping, I really thought my Father-in-Law would come unglued at the very mention of the idea but, he really got into the spirit of it and enjoyed looking at all the different things you don't see elsewhere.

The bottom line is don't just automatically give up on Downtown simply because you may be a little older. Be sure to use Intercot to really get the lowdown on the various establishments and then be willing to take a chance.

[Polynesian Dweller]

Not quite senior yet but getting closer. Anyway, DTD is a never miss for us. We enjoy the shops and the restaurants. Pleasure Island is a miss (except for some great restaurants, Portabello is a favourite) but we've never been into clubs anyway. West Side is fine and we tour the shops and the restaurants as well.