by Brian Bennett
4/10/01
Q.
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In my last "Notes from the World"
piece, Lance Asked: I will be visiting WDW in May
of 2001. I wanted to know if there were any places to do karaoke?
I would think with all those resorts, clubs, and restaurants,
at WDW, someone would have a karaoke show. I hope you can help!
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A.
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My, admittedly lame answer was,
I'm not aware of anyplace at WDW that has Karaoke. That doesn't
mean that it's not available, just that I'm not the type to
sing in front of a drunken crowd. :) On the other hand, that
might be the best kind of crowd for me to sing in front of...
But I've gotten several responses from MousePlanet readers!
Here they are!
David writes, "Just wanted to let you know that
on my last visit to WDW they had karaoke at Kimono's, the
Japanese restaurant at the Swan hotel. This was on a
Friday night I believe, so I'm not sure about the frequency
of their karaoke nights..."
Lynne noted, "I noticed the question about Karaoke
at WDW. Kimono's, the sushi restaurant at the Swan, has Karaoke
(every night, I think). Their sushi is average, but all we
could find in the area. I completely embarrassed myself singing
'Rainy Days and Mondays.' Thanks for writing the column."
and finally, John added, "There is a recording
studio in Pleasure Island right next to 8-trax."
Thanks to all of you!
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Q.
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Also, in a previous "Notes from the World"
Patrick Wrote: Is there an internet cafe on property
where I could check my email? I know DisneyQuest has internet
access, but the admission is a little pricey if all I want to
do is check my email. |
A.
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And my answer was, "No, to the best of my
knowledge there is no "internet cafe" on property."
Doobie answered, "Was just reading through your
letters and noticed something. I remember when I was
at Epcot they now have AOL kiosks, don't they? I don't know
if it allows email checking (AOL or otherwise), but thought
I'd bring it up in case you forgot. Also, many of the hotels
have business centers. Don't know what they cost and
if you have to be a guest to use them, but just something
else to consider. If you've already considered both of these
- never mind. :) Keep up the great work."
and Jim pointed out, "While it is not much, I
noticed they have added a couple of pay internet kiosks near
Germany in Epcot where Worldlink or whatever the touch screen
info system used to be. I suspect if that one works, others
may be added."
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Q.
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George writes: A listing of the
general level of crowds by month would be helpful in planning
my trip. |
A.
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The information you're looking for is on the WDW
Trip Planning Guide's "When
to Go" and "Year
at a Glance" pages. |
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Q.
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William writes: I am staying at the
Polynesian concierge. I have never stayed at this level. What
level of service should I expect. Ca I use the concierge desk
to assist with priority booking for dinning and shows. Does
the hotel have a web access of it's own? |
A.
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William,
The concierge at the Disney resorts can handle priority booking
for dinning and dinner shows. They also provide snacks throughout
the day and often very elegant wine and cheese and /or desert
layouts in the afternoon and evenings.
Probably the best feature of the concierge service at WDW,
though, is the personalized service you receive even before
leaving on your trip. You can arrange to have the concierge
contact you to help plan your trip, including dealing with
those priority seating issues, before you leave home.
Enjoy your trip! I'd love to hear back from you when you
return, so I can provide more details on the concierge in
the future!
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Q.
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Mindy writes: GREAT site! Keep up
the great work. I like this better than Disney's own site.
How about the scoop on NEW rides in the parks? Currently
there is a wall up in Magic Kingdom's Adventureland. I believe
it said an Aladdin theme ride 'Magic Carpets or some such
thing' was being built behind it. Also, in Animal Kingdom
there is a construction wall beside the Boneyard. If I heard
correctly, a thrill ride is going in there.
Sorry if I missed this info on your page - could you redirect
me? Otherwise, if it is possible to collect that type
of information, then your site would be that much more wonderful
:-\ Thanks!
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A.
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Thanks for the suggestion, Mindy. I struggle with
this issue, because I know many people enjoy that kind of "insider"
information. On the other hand, the WDW Trip Planning Guide
is oriented toward trip planning much more so than providing
information on the future of the Disney Company.
I'll do some thinking about it again, though. :)
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Q.
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Toni writes: My husband and I are planning
to take our son to WDW for the first time in September 2001.
We will be in Disney on his 2nd birthday and want to do something
special for him. We are already planning to do a Character Breakfast
the morning of his birthday, but were wondering if you have
any suggestions about where to go or who to talk to at Disney
to get something more than the free cupcake. (We are perfectly
willing to pay for anything extra, just don't know where to
start...) |
A.
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Toni,
My suggestion would be to contact the resort you'll be staying
at...and the restaurant where you'll be having that character
breakfast! I'm sure you can arrange something special.
If you're staying offsite, of course, you probably won't
get any help there...but the restaurant can still provide
special arrangements if you make them in advance.
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Q.
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Andrea asks: First, I just wanted
to say that I think MousePlanet is a really interesting site.
I'm going to Disney World in a few weeks and found it very helpful.
But here's my question. I don't think you addressed this anywhere
on the site, but if you did, I'm sorry to bother you. You have
so much information about Disney World, so I thought you might
know the answer to this. I was just wondering what the dress
code on Pleasure Island is, and what kinds of photo ID they
accept. Specifically, would they take a high school ID card? |
A.
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Andrea,
There really isn't a Pleasure Island dress code. You'll find
anything from typical tourist stuff (shorts and shirts) to
the stuff you might wear at a prom on the high end (although
that would be much more rare). Most people dress the way they
would to attend any typical party at home.
As far as the ID issue is concerned, if your high school
ID is a photo ID card, it will probably be accepted.
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Q.
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Thomas asks: Hi. For early
admission do you have to have the unlimited pass or can you
have a 6-day Park Hopper? I am staying on property, and am unsure
of how the early morning works. Thanks. |
A.
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Early Entry is open to all WDW resort guests regardless
of the admission media that they've purchased.
All you have to do, is make note of which park is opening
early on any given day, and get out to the WDW transportation
(bus, boat, monorail) early to get to that park early. The
buses, etc. all run earlier for the park that's opening early
that day.
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Q.
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Molly writes: What are the early
admissions times? |
A.
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The actual times vary as the park operating hours
vary, but in general, Early Entry at any given park begins an
hour and a half before the posted park opening time.
MousePlanet's WDW Trip Planning Guide has a page on early
entry that you may find helpful!
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Q.
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Fred asks: We are going to Disney
in December 2001 from the UK and would love to celebrate our
twins birthday by taking them to a character breakfast on the
10th December 2001 how can we book this from the UK ???
I HAVE ASKED EVERY ONE BUT NO ONE KNOWS THE ANSWER. |
A.
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You can make your priority seating arrangements
the same way we do in the states...
I'll quote from MousePlanet's Walt
Disney World Restaurant Resource:
"If you want to have a character meal at one of the
more popular venues (Cinderella's Royal Table, which offers
a very few seats for the "Once Upon a Time" character
breakfast, for example) you really do need to get on the phone
five minutes before 7:00am eastern time and start calling
(407) WDW-DINE over and over until you get a receptionist.
In fact, you really should do that exactly 60 days prior to
the date you want. Even if you do this, there is no guarantee
that you'll get a priority seating, but it's your best bet.
If you call any other day (within 60 days of the date you
want) you may be able to snap up a cancellation, but your
odds get worse as you get closer to the day."
This worked for me when we wanted to make reservations for
our last visit in the Fall of 2000. It should work for you,
too... except that the timing will be much less convenient
for you than it was for me (as I live in the Eastern US time
zone).
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Well, I hope you enjoyed the reader feedback
for the WDW Trip Planning Guide! Feed free to send more questions
or comments to brian@mouseplanet.com!
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Brian Bennett's Disney Trip Planner
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Click here to see
some awesome WDW pieces that have run on MousePlanet recently!
Click
here to check out the rest of Brian's Archive, including all of the previously
published "Notes From the World" pieces!
I've
always gotten email about the WDW Trip Planning Guide, but since we added
the feedback
form to the site several months ago, the number of questions has increased
dramatically! I do my best to answer each and every question personally,
but I've noticed that a lot of the questions are asked again and again.
The question that one person asks might very well be the question that
someone else is wondering about. Thus this page!
So...I'll post
reader email and feedback every once in a while, because the question
someone else asks might be the same one you're thinking about yourself!
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