First timer’s last minute questions

B3rlingirl

DIS Veteran
Joined
May 12, 2018
Hello everyone!:wave2:

So my trip is getting pretty close now (17 more days:woohoo:) and I have some “last minute” questions... actually quite a few if I think about it and most of them short and unrelated so I just put them in one thread because I don’t wanna open up like 10 different threads...
  1. we are flying with carry-on-luggage only. So our liquids are quite limited. Are there shampoo and soaps provided in the rooms of the DLP hotels for free (we stay at the Santa Fe if that’s important)?
  2. About the check in procedure...we just show our booking confirmation and they give us the tickets, “room keys” and such stuff... we don’t need anything else, right?
  3. We booked a special offer which includes a preloaded gift card... can we use that gift card in every CS restaurant in the parks? How about food carts? Do they accept gift cards? Are there any limitations I should be aware of (besides that we can’t use them in the Disney Village)?
  4. I know in DL you can pay pretty much everything besides balloons with a credit card, is that also the case in DLP or do you need cash?
  5. Water... I know there are no free cups of ice water like in DL, but just in case we might get really thirsty... are there any drinking fountains in the parks? And if there are, how is the water (is it cold?) any other ways to save some €€€ on beverages?
  6. Another CS Restaurant question... I know that service is supposedly pretty slow... and I know I somewhere read a recommendation to eat at off-times when not all locals are trying to eat in order so save some time... but I can’t remember where I read this and don’t remember the recommended timeframe. So do you have any recommendations when to eat or which times are better to be avoided? (We only plan to do CS and snacks so no TS or reservations)
  7. A question about big thunder mountain...is it similar to the one in DL? Especially in terms of intensity and drops? (My mom doesn’t like “real” drops but she likes Matterhorn, BTMR and GRR in DL for example

I am really exited about that trip! it is the first one I planned and booked completely on my own and my first time to DLP...:donald:

I am just a little concerned about the food. I have a rough idea of some places I might wanna eat at but haven’t really planned anything... I guess there is always McDonald’s (or Earl of Sandwich, I’ve never eaten there so might be a good time to try it out) in the Disney village so we won’t starve...
 
1. Yes.
2. Yes. You will fill in a form as well, but you don't need anything else.
3. Not 100% sure, but yes on CS, no on food carts.
4. There are some foodcarts, ice cream stands etc. where you can't pay by card. I think the popcorn carts on the hub can accept them.
5. Yes, there are some, only ones I remember now are near the bathrooms at Pinocchio's CS, at the beginning of the queue at Pirates and near the exit of Tower of Terror, but probably more.
6. going at 11:30 for lunch is usually a good time for me. After 12 things get packed. Also 6 to 8pm are busy times.
7. No it is better. Yes, it can be described as intense, but if she can handle the rides you mention she should be able to do Big Thunder Mountain in DLP.

Earl of Sandwich is good, go there instead of McDonalds. Just avoid the CS in the main hall of the Studios and the one in Discoveryland.

Have fun!
 
1. Yes.
2. Yes. You will fill in a form as well, but you don't need anything else.
3. Not 100% sure, but yes on CS, no on food carts.
4. There are some foodcarts, ice cream stands etc. where you can't pay by card. I think the popcorn carts on the hub can accept them.
5. Yes, there are some, only ones I remember now are near the bathrooms at Pinocchio's CS, at the beginning of the queue at Pirates and near the exit of Tower of Terror, but probably more.
6. going at 11:30 for lunch is usually a good time for me. After 12 things get packed. Also 6 to 8pm are busy times.
7. No it is better. Yes, it can be described as intense, but if she can handle the rides you mention she should be able to do Big Thunder Mountain in DLP.

Earl of Sandwich is good, go there instead of McDonalds. Just avoid the CS in the main hall of the Studios and the one in Discoveryland.

Have fun!

Thank you! This answers my questions.

Yes, I know there are some CS better to be avoided (I already did a short food research a few weeks ago) gotta do some more research in the next days...

All the answers are here, only wanted to add to 6 be warned, the water in the DLP area contains a lot of chlorine, if you're not used to this (like I am) it will taste funny, but worse still, your intestines might not agree with it. I really can't drink this water, I don't think it's unhealthy in general, but my intestines just can't handle that amount of chlorine.
Oh, ok... that’s good to know for sure... it’s not like I think we will use them anyways... but it is better to be prepared... (after all we managed 5 summer trips to DL without knowing there was something like free water...)
 


Not sure if this is still the case but when I last went, you needed your passport at checkin too as the form requires your passport number
 
Not sure if this is still the case but when I last went, you needed your passport at checkin too as the form requires your passport number
Just to be clear, not necessarily your passport, ID card is fine. Although I admit, I do not remember filling in the number the last few stays. I do remember showing my ID.

I am assuming the OP is from Germany (or is very in love with Berlin :) ) and I think both France and Germany have an obligation to carry ID with you. I think most EU countries have this nowadays.
 
Just to be clear, not necessarily your passport, ID card is fine. Although I admit, I do not remember filling in the number the last few stays. I do remember showing my ID.

I am assuming the OP is from Germany (or is very in love with Berlin :) ) and I think both France and Germany have an obligation to carry ID with you. I think most EU countries have this nowadays.

Didn't see what country they were from :) we don't have ID cards in the UK so have to use passport
 


Just to be clear, not necessarily your passport, ID card is fine. Although I admit, I do not remember filling in the number the last few stays. I do remember showing my ID.

I am assuming the OP is from Germany (or is very in love with Berlin :) ) and I think both France and Germany have an obligation to carry ID with you. I think most EU countries have this nowadays.
Actually, we only have to own an ID/passport as Germans (in Berlin you were required to carry one with you at all times when the four power agreement on Berlin was still in place... but not any longer...)
Not sure if this is still the case but when I last went, you needed your passport at checkin too as the form requires your passport number
Yes, thanks for pointing that out just in case...(better safe than sorry... also for others who might be reading this...)

I guess an German ID is enough and we don’t need an actual passport or am I wrong in that assumption...? (When I think about it I should check my passport’s expiration date for our US trip later this year...)
 
Doesn't the UK have cards to travel within the EU? You need passports for that? Didn't know that

No, it would be so much easier, especially as we allow people to enter the country with ID cards. We only have passports, there has been talks for years about ID cards but nothing has come from it.
 
Oh, I just came up with another question... so I just add it here...

Are there celebration Buttons in DLP?
And if yes, can you get them at a Disneyhotel like Santa Fe or do you have to go to the city hall?
 
I think they do, but it's not a big thing at DLP. At Santa Fe the last two times we did get buttons for the season, so a Marvel a while ago and recently we received the Lion King button.
Officially they only hand these out to kids :p But if you ask, adults can get one too.

I'm quite sure that they will also have these and probably a celebration button at City Hall.
 
I’m a member of a DLP FB group, and several people there were told that birthday buttons were discontinued last month, so if that’s something that is important to you, maybe bring your own.
 
I’m a member of a DLP FB group, and several people there were told that birthday buttons were discontinued last month, so if that’s something that is important to you, maybe bring your own.

Oh, that’s not good to hear...
Why would they do that? Those buttons aren’t expensive and a nice and easy way to spray some pixie dust...(even if it’s not as big in Paris as in the US)
 
Oh, that’s not good to hear...
Why would they do that? Those buttons aren’t expensive and a nice and easy way to spray some pixie dust...(even if it’s not as big in Paris as in the US)

I haven’t been since the opening weekend, so this is all second-hand info. In that group, people often ask and expect pixie dust if they are wearing a button, and get upset if they don’t get it. Perhaps they were having too many entitled guests who were complaining because they weren’t getting free meals, being allowed to skip queues or whatever else they wanted. That’s just my guess based on the stuff I have seen in the DLP FB groups, and one in particular.

Not sure if it's true, they've said this before (permanently discontinued) and then they did return. Might just be that their supply is gone and the CM are told to say this even though they reappear some time

That’s interesting. I hope they do return, as it’s nice that people wish the wearer a happy birthday, even if they don’t get perks.
 
A question about big thunder mountain...is it similar to the one in DL? Especially in terms of intensity and drops? (My mom doesn’t like “real” drops but she likes Matterhorn, BTMR and GRR in DL for example
I wanted to add to @BadPinkTink's response to this - BTM at DLP is AMAZING. It is MUCH longer and quite a bit faster than the one at DL. We were really impressed with it!
 

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