Fielin's 30th birthday trip 20-28th of March, day 6

[fielin]

Sixth day at WDW, and it was planned to be a day 'off'... Not so !

We left early to go back to Animal Kingdom. This day was very hot, and even in the early morning, we could feel the heat coming.

As soon as we arrived we checked the times for the shows : I wanted to see Nemo again, and to discover Festival of the Lion King.

We managed to do Expedition Everest, Dinosaur, and Primeval Whirl one again. Then off to Nemo !

I cried as much as the first time. The music, the acting, the puppets, and the special effects are beautiful.

Festival of the Lion King did not compare well. It seemed dull, the story felt feeble... If you go see Nemo, do it last, because it will spoil all the shows you'll see afterwards.

Then we left and took the bus for Typhoon Lagoon. Disney really has the knack with water parcs.

We had a lot of fun ! The surfing pool is unbelievable. Still, thrill addicts that we are, we consider this park inferior to Blizzard Beach.

After three hours in the park (again, it seems to be enough to do everything in the park, and enjoy a quiet time in the lazy river and in the pool - and not burn !) we left for POFQ.

Again this was a great joy to smell the jasmine and enjoy a quiet drink... Just enough time to gather ourselves : this would be a long evening !

We took the boat to Downtown, and boy, was it fun ! Not only is this a beautiful cruise, but we also had an incredible captain. He kept telling jokes, and generally involving everyone in the conversation. We loved it, we loved him !

As we had never had a chance to try Planet Hollywood, even though there is one in Disney Village, in Disneyland Paris, we had dinner there.

The line was very long to go in, but as there were only two of us, we were seated in five minutes (as opposed to the 40 minutes we were told to expect by a waitress while going in).

The meal was nothing special, but service was good, and this was a fun moment.

Afterwards, we headed towards the Adventurer's Club, because I had read rave reviews, and was very excited to try it.

As it was still 7pm, we entered for free (I was amazed) and had a few drinks while sharing the adventures of these strange guys.

We loved every moment of it, especially the French Maid. The spontaneous interactions with the audience (one young lady asked some questions, and this allowed for an hilarious conversation with several cast members) were great !

At 9, while going out of the library, we were led outside, as we hadn't paid, and we decided not to come back this evening - the show is great, but I cannot imagine staying a whole evening.

But one thing is sure : I'll be back after 9 next time, to know what happens next !

Instead, we headed towards MK, to enjoy the evening EMH. It was a really nice experience to discover MK by night.

What we did :

Peter Pan, Snow White : nice dark rides, not a whole lot of differences with Paris... I do not get what all the excitement is about - but I guess this is just not the kind of rides that get my attention.

Winnie The Pooh : This one does not exist in Paris. Again, nice ride, maybe just a little bit above the other two.

Haunted Mansion : Just loved it ! Very different from France. Most of it is the same, but in France, for example, we do not go through the graveyard while in the ride (we have a graveyard outside, full of very funny tombstones).

Moreover, the cast member was great. In the lift, we we all looking up at the ceiling. When the doors opened, we slowly proceeded towards the exit, when suddenly, one of the teenagers let out a shout... and then laughed.

He was lying down, face towards the ground, as if dead. This was hilarious !

Space Mountain : Again, this was hilarious... but not for the same reasons ! We immediately realized that the theming was different from Paris... But we did not suspect one thing.

This is NOT the same kind of ride. If you have read my previous review, you must have noticed that WDW often compares favorably with Paris. A lot of rides are better, the theming is better...

Well, not this time.

You have to know, first, that in Paris, Space Mountain is a great hit. It is themed around Jules Verne's universe (a few years back, we had the nautilus in front of it, but now, it has been replaced by Buzz Lightyear). But this is not the only difference.

Our Space Mountain works a lot like Rock'n Roller Coaster : you have a tremedous acceleration at the start (originally, the story was that you were put in a cannon, and launched towards the Moon). There is a very inspirationnal music all through the ride, and incredible special effects along the way.

I was soooooo surprised when I realised :
1/ that it was a "traditional" roller coaster
2/ that there was no music (dreary !)
3/ that all that made it "spatial" was that we were surrounded by darkness

It still is a great rollercoaster, but... this time, Paris is better !

Buzz Lightyear : I love this ride ! I was a bit surprised to discover that In Florida, guns are attached to the vehicles. For the second (and last !) time, Paris won over Florida : the theming is better in Paris (with an incredible animatronic of Buzz Lightyear in the waiting line), and guns are detachable.

But again, I just loved the ride !

After that great day, full of surprises, it was time for us to go back to the hotel, and sleep a short night... The day after was our last full day, and was dedicated to Epcot.

[ElenitaB]

Glad you enjoyed your looooong day! I can't wait to go to the Adventurer's Club so I really loved hearing your impressions of it! Sounds like that and Finding Nemo are two things that should be on my priority list!

Thanks for sharing!

[sleepingbooty]

Wow, the French version of Space Mountain sounds fantastic! I'll always have a soft spot for the original though, because of childhood memories of it as my first roller coaster. Probably same reason so many of us enjoy the Fantasyland dark rides - pure nostalgia.

[pogo]

Another great day !

Now I'm really getting excited about seeing Finding Nemo after reading your opinion of it. I thought Festival of the Lion King was very good.

Thanks for sharing.

[Bethis26fan]

Thanks for sharing.

[faline]

Some rides do seem to be improved when they're recreated for other parks. I suspect Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear fall in this category.

What a long and fun day you had!

[BelleCiavo]

Oy, that was a long day. I hope to experience the Adventurers Club one day and mayb e even DLP!
Karen

[pdrlkr]

Thanks for the report!