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INTERCOT Insider
January
2005
- Edition Two |
Brought to you by
INTERCOT's network of sites:
INTERCOT - Walt Disney World
Inside & Out
INTERCOT West - Disneyland Inside
& Out
INTERCOT's WebDisney - Guide to
Disney on the Internet
INTERCOT's MousehutMail - Free Web
Based Email
INTERCOT's Thrillride
Experience - Thrill Ride Parks & Attractions
This newsletter and other past issues can also be read online at;
http://www.intercot.com/interactive/insider/archive
<< Introduction >>
Is everyone
ready for the Oscars and the Super Bowl? As we end the first month of the
New Year, and finish revising all of our New Year’s resolutions, it’s a
great time to take a step back and…read the Insider! In this issue we share
Accommodation specials, Ron will challenge you to a quiz, Ray gives the
lowdown on royal character meals, and Linda captures some great tips on
finding groceries for your next Disney World trip. Try to peel yourself
away from the boards and get on with your reading!
<<
Accommodation Specials >>
Radisson Resort Parkway
The
Radisson Resort Parkway
has reduced their
Preferred rates for dates of January – June with
rooms as low as
$79.00 per night. Also
congratulations are in order. Effective January 1, 2005 the Radisson Resort
Parkway officially became a Disney Good Neighbor Hotel. This is exciting
news as Disney has not accepted any additional Good Neighbor hotels in
several years.
The Radisson Resort
Parkway is
conveniently
located just 1.5 miles from Walt Disney World with free shuttle service &
roomy guest accommodations.
More
Information & Rates
ALL STAR Vacation Homes Reader Special!
ALL STAR
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bedroom condos and town homes or up to 7 bedroom private pool homes.
Luxurious accommodations, at reasonable rates, make ALL STAR Vacation Homes
the perfect choice for the ultimate vacation. When booking mention INTERCOT
and save $175 off Weekly Estate Home Rental or $125 off the Weekly Rental of
any other private pool home. You may also redeem special online by typing in
"INTERCOT" when asked for a promotional code. (not valid with any other
special or discount, for condos/town homes, or during holiday season)
ALL
STAR Vacation Home Details
<< History & Trivia with WDWdriver >>
A Big Thunder Mountain Quiz
Most of you out there have ridden the old Big Thunder Mine trains that whisk
passengers away on a harrowing old west adventure. Riders brave flashfloods,
earthquakes, avalanches and hairpin turns as the train careens around
redstone slopes and caverns. Along the way we see a small western town, a
long john-clad resident spinning through the flood in a bathtub, and the
rainmaker who caused the downpour. Sharp-eyed guests might also note that a
party is going on in the second-story room of a saloon. But how much do
you really know about the attraction. Here are some trivia quiz questions,
with the answers at the end of this Insider edition.
1. The height of the attractions main butte is _______.
2. Each train consists of one engine and _____ cars.
3. The number of animatronic figures seen on the ride is ______.
4. The name of the town is _______________.
5. The rainmakers name is _____________________.
6. The name of the miner in the bathtub is _________________.
7. The names of the six trains are __________________.
Scroll down for answers!
<< Dining With Royalty by TiggerRPh >>
Walt Disney World Dining offers three meals with the Disney Princesses:
Cinderella’s Royal Character Breakfast, The Princess Storybook Breakfast,
and Cinderella’s Gala Feast. A lot of INTERCOT members justifiably get upset
when they can’t get a Priority Seating (PS) at Cinderella’s Royal Character
Breakfast. The other meals are alternatives if you don’t medal in the “Cindy
Olympics” if they fit your need. They all have benefits and they all have
negatives. They also fit different niches or fans of the Princesses.
Cinderella’s Royal Character Breakfast has some big draws going for it.
First of all, it’s the original princess breakfast. For many years, this was
the only choice. The other big draw is that the meal is in “the castle.” No
matter what people think of the meal, it’s just impressive to eat inside
“the castle.” The Princess Storybook Breakfast is the only princess
character meal that has just Disney Princesses…no princess friends. Another
plus that the Storybook Breakfast has is that its dining times extend to
almost lunch time. You can get a Priority Seating arrangement up until 11:45
AM. Cinderella’s Gala Feast is a dinner instead of a breakfast and has a
character you’ll probably hardly see anywhere else at Walt Disney World…that
would be Prince Charming.
The negatives for each of the choices are things one needs to consider when
deciding which one it best for you.
Cinderella’s Royal Character Breakfast may have 2-3 characters at the
breakfast that are not princesses. While not necessarily a drawback, if you
want princesses not all the characters are at this meal. The biggest
negative for this meal is that it is nearly impossible to get into.
The Princess Storybook Breakfast has princesses but if you want a meal with
Cinderella, this is not the breakfast for you. Over the years since this
breakfast has been around, the characters has been pretty static with
Jasmine, Belle, Snow White and Princess Aurora (Sleeping Beauty). I’m not
aware of Cinderella ever showing at this meal.
Cinderella’s Gala Feast is a dinner not a breakfast…this may not matter, but
it is something to consider. To me its biggest drawback is its location. If
you’re not staying at a monorail resort or plan on being at the Magic
Kingdom prior to eating here, you’re going to have to allow plenty of time
to get there. You first of all need to get to the Magic Kingdom and then you
need to factor in a monorail ride of about 20 minutes. Total transit time
could easily be an hour, more if you don’t catch a Magic Kingdom bus
immediately. This could explain that most of the people attending seemed to
be from the Grand Floridian. When we went, I didn’t see too many people
arriving at the resort and going to the meal.
Another point to consider is the meal style…and again this may not matter to
some. Cinderella’s Royal Table is a “pre-plated” meal in such that you get a
plate with your meal on it but you can have items replenished. The Princess
Storybook Breakfast is served “family style” where you get pan with your
food items in it and you can pick what you want to eat. Again these can be
replenished when needed. Cinderella’s Gala Feast is a buffet.
If you have little kids or more importantly, a little princess of your own
and you need a Princess Breakfast, you do have choices. If you aren’t lucky
enough to medal in the “Cindy Olympics”, you now know that you have
alternatives or back-ups available you so that you and your little princes
or princesses can still dine with Disney Royalty.
Please Note;
Beginning Sunday April 10, Restaurant Akershus at Epcot will begin
offering Princess Character dining for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. At that
time, availability will be added for lunch and dinner seatings. As of Monday
Janauary 10, the Princess Storybook Breakfast was renamed Princess Storybook
Dining.
Disney Dining Menus
Disney Character Meals
<< Grocery Tips with faline >>
You’re headed
to Disney World and you want to save money on food. What can you do? Or
perhaps, you just want to be sure you have some munchies put aside for
snacking. What will keep well in your room? Now that the moderate and deluxe
resorts offer an in-room refrigerator at no-charge, it should be even easier
to bring food along. INTERCOTees share their tips and ideas.
Eating breakfast in your room can be a real money saver. DisneyDog “will
usually bring some breakfasty type things. Cereal bars and cheerios for our
toddler, pop tarts for us.” Also included in the packing list is “crackers
and raisins”. David and Missy “also brought bagels”.
Bringing along some items that you can tote to the park can also save money.
TheMartellFamily buys “our own bottled water as it is very expensive in the
parks.”
Folks plan a number of liquid refreshments. dalechip brings “Parmalat milk”.
lebo “bought the pre sweetened kool-aid.” 3GoofySons “also kept powerade and
small bottles of cranberry juice in the room.” Piglet822 suggests that “if
you’re Pepsi drinkers you’ll definitely want to buy soda. Disney sells only
Coke products.” readytogo’s list includes “beer”.
For general snacks, TheMartellFamily suggests “some easy fruits like grapes,
apples, oranges, and bananas...we bring chewy granola bars and fruit juice
boxes.” “For snacks we had individual bags of peanuts, rice krispie squares
and some goldfish and cookies” reports 3GoofySons. DisneyHopper’s list
includes “chips ahoy....Pringles...Cokes, Peanut Butter, Beef Jerky, Candy
(not chocolate), gum, Gatorade...Bread...Coffee...bologna.”
What if you need groceries and you don’t have a car? brian5635 asks “Is
there a grocery store nearby that we can get to without a car?” Tinkermom
reports “Every hotel does sell pantry type items in their gift shops. They
have things like baby food, peanut butter, bread, yogurt, soups, spaghetti
O’s, coffee, sugar, snacks, frozen pizza and some frozen dinners, etc. etc.
I thought it was a pretty good selection but expect to pay for the
convenience.” Some town car services will provide a free grocery stop on the
way to your resort. For example, INTERCOT’s sponsor,
Happy Limo,
will provide a 15-minute grocery stop if you make arrangements for this
service at the time you book your town car service.
What if you arrive at your resort and your room isn’t ready? mattlauriem
wonders “How can you check in early and go to the parks when you have things
that need ice or refrigeration?” JWDisneyFan reports “the resort not only
stored our luggage but our refrigerated items in a big refrigerator....from
what I understand, all of the resorts can store perishables if your room
isn’t ready.”
<< History & Trivia (Answers) >>
1. 197and 1/2
feet above sea level
2. 5
3. 20 (don’t forget all the chickens, donkeys, possums, a goat, etc)
4. Tumbleweed
5. Professor Cumulus Isobar
6. Cousin Elrod
7. U. B. Bold, U. R. Daring, U. R. Courageous, I. M. Brave, I. B. Hearty, I.
M. Fearless
<< Conclusion >>
That’s it for
this month. Hopefully you did better on the quiz than we did… we’ll be back
in a few weeks, but until then enjoy the discussion boards! Happy planning!
<< INTERCOT Would Like To Thank>>
The INTERCOT Insider and INTERCOT.com
are supported by the following sponsors who in turn, help us bring the Magic
to you!
Magical Journeys
Magical Journeys is your Disney Vacation specialist. Start planning your
Vacation Discount Dreams today!
Website:
http://www.yourmagicaljourneys.com/
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Happy Limo
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Walt Disney
World’s, Universal Studios and Sea World’s #1 guest service provider for the
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more than 7 years now and sells tickets only, at a discount price.
Website:
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