Our upcoming trip

[sinx001]

Hi All,

This is my first post on VF. My wife, our almost 4 year old daughter and I are coming to Disneyland on the 23rd April from Australia. My wife and I have been before (this will be our 4th trip) but it is the first time our daughter will have visited DL.

Whilst we feel that we've got most things planned, I've got a couple of general questions.

1. We're staying at the hyatt in a kids suite room - does anyone have any feedback about this place?

2. I've heard that one of the busiest times of the year at DL is a week either side of Easter. We're going to be there the week after the week after (if that makes sense). Does anyone have any ideas how busy it's likely to be then.

3. I've organised a couple of character meals. One at Ariels grotto for our daughter whose very much into princesses and one at Goofys kitchen on my wifes birthday. Does anyone have any thoughts on these character meals - good/not so good etc.

Lastly, as I mentioned, my wife will be celebrating her birthday while we are in DL, does anyone have any good ideas on how I could make it even more memorable for her?

Thanks in advance for any responses/thoughts you might have. BTW, I love this site and regularly look for Daddy B's photo updates.

[debijeanm]

I'm sure you'll get lots of good ideas from the good folks here. My sister has been treating my nephew to the character meals all his life and has nothing but raves for the experience. That was a good move on your part.

Silly as it sounds, be sure you stop at City Hall for a birthday sticker for your wife. Lots of people will wish her a happy one throughout the day. And do spring for a DL picture somewhere (In front of the castle or visiting Mickey in Toon Town, perhaps?) When you go to pick them up they'll add Tinkerbell and the year on it for you, which makes a special keepsake.

Depending on your sense of humor (and budget), they sell this truly, delightfully hideous birthday cake hat at the park. Last time I noticed someone had it on was an ancient old woman in a wheelchair, surrounded by family and grinning ear-to-ear with this enormous cake hat (complete with candles) on her head. How I wish now I had taken her picture!

Have a great time, and welcome to California to your daughter!

[Piglet]

I have been to Goofy's Kitchen 4 times and each time we had a great time! They have 2 buffet tables--one for adults and one for kids, so I'm sure your daughter will find plenty of things she likes to eat =) Be sure to bring your camera because at least 8-10 characters will come to visit your table while you're dining. As far as the park being busy, I think you can pretty much plan on that, but if you use fastpass and get to the park early each day, you will be fine. Besides, the park is so pretty in April. Don't miss the fireworks!! It is an amazing show. Have a great time!

[disneylover]

I have eaten at Ariels groto a lot of times and have never been disappointed. THe food is great and you get a lot of it for the price. I have not been there since the Princesses are there, but I know they do a lot of activities to get the kids involved. Also, the characters are very attentive to children and spend a good amount of time at the tables. I think you will have a great time!

As far as your wife's birthday, I agree with debijeanm. Get a birthday sticker. I went for my birthday last year and have never felt SO special! Everyone wishes you a happy birthday! For something special, you may want to look into the desert Fantasmic! viewing at the Disney gallery. It may be full already, and it is pretty pricey, too. From what I have heard,it is well worth the price!

Have a great trip!

[mrhappybomb]

never eaten at those places but will next time your doughter will have a great time at those restruants

[Mickeysgirl]

Ok, well true it is most likely to be crowded during that time, however since you are going for longer than a week you will probally experience some good and bad days, varying in crowd heavyness.. As for the character dinners... Ariels Grotto is a bery nice place to eat, however it does have pretty expensive prices, and during the evening time the charactors are short in coming.... usually Ariel is there but how many more im not sure... and Goofys Kitchen is also a nice place that has a lot of charactors but in my experience the food quality isnt as good as some other character dinners..I have one suggestion, THE STORY TELLERS CAFE! Now, ive been to ALOT of character dinners and i have to say the storytellers cafe is the best in my experience, it has the best food, and great atmosphere, the option for a buffet or order off the menu, and a lot of woodland disney characters, from movies like Poccohantas, Bambi, Brother Bear etc.. and the characters roam around a lot more than many other character dinners do.. It is a really great family place, it is located in the Grand Californian... As for it being your wifes birthday, i would say that to definitly see the fireworks show, it is a very memorable experience, also you could arrange some tours (for questions about the tours PM me ive found some great ones) and there is also a place to have a birthday picnic with the characters for info on that you can also PM me...

[agoneil]

We had dinner at Goofy's Kitchen in 2002 and it was the highlight of our trip. Expensive, yes, but we still talk about it all the time. The characters were all terrifific.

[caimakale]

They have a birthday party at the plaza inn. Pat E. Cake is the host. We did it for my daughters 5th birthday, but there were quite a few adults also celebrating their birthdays, so it isn't just a kid thing. They bring you a drink and a mickey shaped cake to decorate. It's a lot of fun, then the birthday people get their picture taken with mickey and minnie. It was alot of fun and worth it. Definitely get the sticker and I also recommend the birthday hat from the downtown disney store. It has candles on top and when you push a button, they flash....it is great.

Have fun!

[sinx001]

Thanks to everyone that replied. You've given me some great ideas. Not long to go now

[snoozy]

First off welcome to the boards.

The Hyatt: my BIL stays there all the time, not the kids suite, but, he loves the place.

Don't worry about the crowds, just use fastpass for the rides. Take advantage of the parade time, fireworks, and Fantasmic shows to go on rides. Avoid the meal rushes by eating early or later then most. Do Fantasyland and Toontown early in the morning it gets crazy in the afternoon. Scope out a good spot for the parade, fireworks, and Fantasmic at least 1 hour ahead of time.

Excellent choices on your character meals they are our favorites. Ariel's is if I remember correctly is a 3 course meal. Goofy's is an all you can eat buffet. You will have some good eats and good time.

For your wife's birthday see if you can arrange to get someone on the staff to help decorate your room and get a gift basket for her. Or, and this is a really good one. You could get her a massage at the Mandara Spa at the Grand Californian Hotel. You don't have to be a quest of the hotel to use the Spa. The prices are resonable, there are a variety of treatments ranging from $20.00 up to over $100.00. My DH did this for me on this last Valentines day, OOOOOOO, I felt very special.

Have and wonderful trip!

[sinx001]

Hi Snoozy,

Thanks for the advice. Didn't know about the massage etc. at the Grand Californian. I reckon I'll look into that. Just over a week to go - looking forward to it.

Thanks again.

[tysmom]

Hi,
I just returned from my trip to Disneyland, April 10-12th. My husband and I and our 3 kids stayed at the Hyatt and had a kids suite also. I really liked the hotel. There was a Pizza Hut and a Starbucks as well as a hotel restuarant. Not to mention there are a bunch of restaurants around the hotel. The only thing bad that I could say about the hotel was that on the door that seperates the main bedroom from the kids room the lock is on the kids room side. So my 4 year old thought it was a great fun game to lock me out. The bathroom is also on the kids side of the suite. Those things are minor though and I think you'll find the hotel to be clean and comfortable.
Disneyland itself was incredibly busy. But... we got there early when they opened and used the fast pass system for the rides. We got to do everything we wanted to and then some and didn't stand in line too terribly long. If you get there when they open I say you can do a lot more in the first hour or two than you will the rest of the day after it gets crowded.
You'll have a great time! :)

[Piglet]

Originally Posted by tysmom

Hi,
The only thing bad that I could say about the hotel was that on the door that seperates the main bedroom from the kids room the lock is on the kids room side. So my 4 year old thought it was a great fun game to lock me out.

LOL...4 year olds are just great at that, aren't they?? You'd think the people who build the hotels would think of such things and put the locks on the parent's side! Sorry you had to go through that, but glad you all had a wonderful trip =)

[sinx001]

Thanks Tysmom,

I'd read that about the kids rooms, it'll be interesting to see what our daughter does- it really doesn't make sense having it on that side though. Is there a lock on the inside of the bathrooms as well (if there's not, that's about the only reason I can think of it being on the kids side of their door).

We'll keep getting there early in mind, that was the plan - hopefully it will work out okay. I guess we benefit from spending 8 days there so we should be able to learn how things are operating during that time. I hear that mid week is probably quietest.

Anyway, as my timer suggests, not long now!

[tysmom]

Yes, there also is a lock on the bathroom door too which is on the kids side of the suite so becareful with that one also. :) My 4 year old is just like the character Stitch so with any luck your 4 year old will be much calmer. :)