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Quixotic1 posted:Is Trader Sam's worth a visit even if I think liquor is the devil's drink/it all tastes like a hobo's armpit to me? Oh yeah, definitely. It's got non-alcoholic cocktails and small plates in a really cool atmosphere.
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Jan 20, 2018 03:28
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Trader Sam's had such a great first impression on me that I immediately bought their green Hawaiian shirt and now have a fairly decent sized tiki mug Collection (including ebaying the Haunted Mansion one) Be warned. It's definitely more about the overall vibe and experience vs the booze.
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Jan 20, 2018 03:32
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Quixotic1 posted:Is Trader Sam's worth a visit even if I think liquor is the devil's drink/it all tastes like a hobo's armpit to me? Absolutely, yes. Even if you just have an appetizer and a non alcoholic cocktail. Definitely worth it. Also, it was a frivolous expense because it was our wedding anniversary dinner, but the Minnie Van service is awesome. Pristinely clean ride, comfortable and you have a cast member driving. So the conversation was good. Since it was a special occasion, it absolutely beat taking a resort bus or rolling the dice on the usual local Lyft/Uber. And I'll probably have dreams about Jiko. Holy poo poo, it's good. Expensive, but worth it.
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Jan 20, 2018 04:47
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You just haven't had a Tiki tiki tiki tiki tiki rum. Also Disneyland Sam's>>>>Orlando Sam's in terms of chill.
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Jan 20, 2018 04:52
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Trader Sam's is fun. We just got back from DL and I took my kids in there (8 & 6). We had a nice lunch and they got to see some of the special effects. I like the one in WDW better though.
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Jan 20, 2018 06:45
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Quixotic1 posted:Is Trader Sam's worth a visit even if I think liquor is the devil's drink/it all tastes like a hobo's armpit to me? If there's any type of bar that's going to prove to you that there are really tasty ways to enjoy liquor, it's a tiki bar. Although Trader Sam's is not the best of all the tiki bars I've visited, they are still pretty darn good at mixing a drink there. I would mention to the waiter that you don't like to taste the booze and they will probably have some solid recommendations.
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Jan 21, 2018 16:35
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Man i should’ve picked to stay at the Polynesian during the hurricane I totally forgot about trader sans
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Jan 21, 2018 16:56
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Poly was my first ever Disney resort over 20 years ago and it’s still one of my favorites. I love that the POG juice is no longer exclusive to them.
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Jan 21, 2018 17:04
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BlueBayou posted:The bigger question is what happens to Star Tours in California So this post is months old but I wanted to bring something up. A few years ago me and my friend went to meet Baymax. I don't know if Hiro was there when you did it, but he was when we went, but what I found interesting was that while seeing Baymax was cool, the REAL star was the kid playing Hiro. He had Hiro's movement and body language down so perfectly it's almost like they actually brought the animated character into the real world. I was super impressed by how he moved when walking around and talking, like to the point where it almost felt like he, the real life human, was squashing and stretching. I was way more wow'd by that than I was seeing Baymax
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Jan 21, 2018 17:23
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Sitting here fine tuning FP+ and ADRs for next month and I've got a question for the general consensus - which do you like more, Spice Road or Restaurant Marrakesh? I always end up making an ADR for one of them and then cancel, and I really want to do lunch there on our last full day, but I am debating on changing from Spice to Marrakesh. I'll be rolling in from HS and trying to get a meal in before my sister's flight (she's getting picked up at 210), so I'm looking at a 1215-1230 meal. Any suggestions? I've only eaten at Tangerine Cafe, and we liked that, but that way we use up our last TS meal.
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Jan 22, 2018 19:20
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Marrakesh wins, hands down. And even better, you can often get in for a late lunch or early/late dinner without a reservation. People are intimidated by delicious food, I guess.
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Jan 22, 2018 19:54
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Last time we ate there for my wife's birthday we ordered the assorted Baklavas and right after paying our check and getting ready to leave they brought out an even bigger platter of them for her birthday. It was insane how much food they gave us and how much I ate that night. Good times.
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Jan 22, 2018 19:57
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Anya posted:Sitting here fine tuning FP+ and ADRs for next month and I've got a question for the general consensus - which do you like more, Spice Road or Restaurant Marrakesh? It's been literally years, but I personally loved Marrakesh and still think about it time to time. And my own question: What are people's solo experiences with Disney World like? Did anyone feel like they missed out because they didn't have anyone else with 'em? Or weird that you were showing up for dining solo or anything like that? My early planning just went from 2 to just me, and I'm still going, I'm kinda excited by the prospect of running solo but kinda going 'hmmm' at the idea of rolling into say, Garden Grill or something on my own.
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Jan 22, 2018 19:58
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It's a completely different experience solo, but it's freeing and refreshing to have no obligations to anyone but yourself and to be able to do exactly what you want at your own pace. Want to rush a bunch of rides and go for 16 hours? Sit and people watch on Main Street and eat your weight in ice cream? Ride Haunted Mansion 10 times in a row when there's no wait later in the evening? Do whatever you want and enjoy! It's an especially nice way to try new things like bar hopping the resorts, practicing photography to get a great shot of your favorite spots, or doing out of the way experiences like the Seeds tour at The Land. Also talk to a lot of cast members, they'll be happy to chat usually and can recommend other ideas for solo. And don't worry about being seen as a weirdo, my number one advice for Disney people worried about standing out is that you won't be 1/10th as weird as the real weirdos that people see every day there.
Bottom Liner fucked around with this message at 20:09 on Jan 22, 2018 |
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Jan 22, 2018 20:06
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Single rider lines can be pretty good. I don't think anyone will judge or even notice you flying solo, especially a restaurant.
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Jan 22, 2018 20:08
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Bottom Liner posted:It's a completely different experience solo, but it's freeing and refreshing to have no obligations to anyone but yourself and to be able to do exactly what you want at your own pace. Want to rush a bunch of rides and go for 16 hours? Sit and people watch on Main Street and eat your weight in ice cream? Ride Haunted Mansion 10 times in a row when there's no wait later in the evening? Do whatever you want and enjoy! It's an especially nice way to try new things like bar hopping the resorts, practicing photography to get a great shot of your favorite spots, or doing out of the way experiences like the Seeds tour at The Land. Also talk to a lot of cast members, they'll be happy to chat usually and can recommend other ideas for solo. And don't worry about being seen as a weirdo, my number one advice for Disney people worried about standing out is that you won't be 1/10th as weird as the real weirdos that people see every day there. Hah, fair enough. Yeah, this is the big excitement for the idea of solo for me, since I'll be the first to admit the rides ain't the big draw for me, it's the themeing and just, y'know, being there. I always had it planned as a 'slow' trip, taking time to do a few tours and just relaxing. Maybe actually find all the Pascals for once. And yes, Seeds. That's like, top list for me. And it's a vacation, I'm not gonna stress too much about being weird, it was mostly just thinking like the family-style dining places, kinda why I specifically mentioned Garden Grill since my number two thing I wanted to do was a Character Dining or two since I've never done them before. I was too cool for it when I was a kid, and when I was in my 20's they made me uncomfortable. Still kinda do, but I think it's mostly lack of exposure. And dammit I want a picture with Mickey for once, so whatever. But yeah, family-style and flying solo sounds odd in my head, so that's why I was asking that.
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Jan 22, 2018 20:29
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Is there anywhere that lists all the places Made with Magic ears do cool things?
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Jan 22, 2018 20:56
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I loved doing Disney solo and basically I have done it multiple times during all of my trips (ditched the parents and husband to their own devices). I taught someone how to use snapchat on the bus from AKL to EP and it made her day, have had so many awesome conversations with people whilst in line for various things, and could just do what I wanted without feeling I had to plan everything. Plus no one really cares or pays attention if you're by yourself. I've wandered drunk many times and felt safe. Totally recommend it. Thanks for the heads up - changed the ADR to Marrakesh. Probably everyone will love the dancers and my family is adventurous food wise, so it will be a hit. Plus my sister does actual belly dancing, so she'll be happy. Anya fucked around with this message at 22:47 on Jan 22, 2018 |
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Jan 22, 2018 21:03
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Chiming in to also add that we loved Marrakesh. Be adventurous in your ordering. Also get some of that fantastic Moroccan coffee as well. It is delightful.
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Jan 22, 2018 21:32
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Anya posted:Sitting here fine tuning FP+ and ADRs for next month and I've got a question for the general consensus - which do you like more, Spice Road or Restaurant Marrakesh? Sporkie posted:And my own question: What are people's solo experiences with Disney World like? Did anyone feel like they missed out because they didn't have anyone else with 'em? Or weird that you were showing up for dining solo or anything like that? My early planning just went from 2 to just me, and I'm still going, I'm kinda excited by the prospect of running solo but kinda going 'hmmm' at the idea of rolling into say, Garden Grill or something on my own. When I went to AK solo, I ended up sharing pics through social media and messaging some friends on and off during my day, but I never felt that I was treated oddly by cast members, even when I just walked into Tiffins and Jiko (no reservations). If anything, they were even more accommodating and happy to chat with a solo diner - my Tiffins server was also from New York so we chatted a bunch at the end of the meal, and it was easier to get a seat at the jiko because I was alone, where basically everyone came to talk to me at one point or another so I learned a lot about all the wine and food I was downing. I know you specifically mentioned family-style dining and my examples are Signature, but I'd have to imagine that the ante is upped for characters and family-style dining to make guests comfortable. As for everything else, if there are single rider lines you get to optimize those and the most relaxing part of it will be not having to worry about following a plan or making sure that anyone else is happy, and just enjoying yourself. I was actually kind of looking forward to going through most of my upcoming trip solo before some of my friends decided to extend their stay to match mine, so I may just do what Anya did a few times and they'll just have to put up with it. 
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Jan 22, 2018 23:09
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I’m solo a few times a year at WDW due to work travel. Having freedom and flexibility is nice. Like eating at the open oven thing at Jiko or at the bar at Flying Fish. The only thing that gets me is that I wind up feeling lonely knowing my wife and daughter are back home and I’m here alone. I’d much rather be enjoying the experience with them.
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Jan 22, 2018 23:47
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Eating at California Grill by myself was pretty cool. I chilled at the bar for a bit, then ate dinner and didn’t have to share my sushi. Plus I ate at 10 pm so I could see the fireworks. I like to people watch, so watching those upscale folks knocking bottles of high end champagne was amusing. It’s fun going around with people who love Disney and it’s fun by yourself. I’m the type of person who can travel by myself and it doesn’t bother me.
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Jan 23, 2018 02:59
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Sporkie posted:And my own question: What are people's solo experiences with Disney World like? Did anyone feel like they missed out because they didn't have anyone else with 'em? Or weird that you were showing up for dining solo or anything like that? My last trip (April 2017) was solo and I had a blast. I agree with what everyone else has said - being able to do your own thing and not have to worry about making a group happy is great. I felt perfectly safe, but not really that weird; I did eat exclusively quick-service food, though, both because I wanted to get on with my day and I did feel slightly weird about eating at a table-service table by myself. That doesn't necessarily mean you should be afraid to do it, though - go for it! On the subject of photography, on my solo day at MK, I spent 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM (ish) running around on a personal quest to take a particular series of photos of particular spots in the park. I finished the quest and was completely exhausted from the number of times I'd crossed and re-crossed the park to hit up both my photo spots and my FPs, so I slowed down, did Pirates, got a Dole Whip, and chilled out and people-watched on Main Street. Those were some really good times. 
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Jan 23, 2018 04:57
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PurpleButterfly posted:On the subject of photography, on my solo day at MK, I spent 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM (ish) running around on a personal quest to take a particular series of photos of particular spots in the park. Do you want to elaborate on this? Was this something other people might want to try on their trips?
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Jan 23, 2018 05:11
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Grundulum posted:Do you want to elaborate on this? Was this something other people might want to try on their trips? Sure, and yes, it might be. My very first visit to WDW was when I was 14. This was before consumer digital cameras or smartphones, so I took with me two manual Kodak FunSaver film cameras. I've kept the resulting prints all these years, and before last year's trip, I put them all into a photo album, which I hauled with me in a bag all day. I referred to it and did my best to recreate every shot that 14-year-old me took, intending to put the new shots into the album under the old ones and make a photo essay. (I really should go back and finish that project now that the subject has come up.) So yes, finding old vacation photos and recreating them can add a fun challenge to your trip.
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Jan 23, 2018 05:37
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PurpleButterfly posted:Sure, and yes, it might be. My very first visit to WDW was when I was 14. This was before consumer digital cameras or smartphones, so I took with me two manual Kodak FunSaver film cameras. I've kept the resulting prints all these years, and before last year's trip, I put them all into a photo album, which I hauled with me in a bag all day. I referred to it and did my best to recreate every shot that 14-year-old me took, intending to put the new shots into the album under the old ones and make a photo essay. (I really should go back and finish that project now that the subject has come up.) Holy crap that is awesome. Any chance you could share an example?
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Jan 23, 2018 14:15
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Omne posted:Holy crap that is awesome. Any chance you could share an example? Thank you! This thread motivated me to get that project moving. So far, I've started an album on Imgur for it and uploaded the first 4 scanned-in pictures from the 2000 trip. Not very exciting so far, but there's much more to come.
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Jan 23, 2018 18:44
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Love it! I actually fell in love with photography on my first trip to Disney in 4th grade. My mom gave me a disposable 35mm to use each day and I remember taking photos of all of the cool buildings and scenes I saw and the kids in my class all asking me why I was taking pictures of "stuff" instead of my friends and myself (the typical touristy stuff) lol. I filled up all 4 cameras in 2 days and ended up spending my souvenir money on more cameras. Wish I could find that album. My mom was mad that the only photo of me from the trip was the Splash Mountain photo my chaperone bought and photocopied for our group.
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Jan 23, 2018 18:54
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Well the weekend DVC getaway staying around Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake was awesome. Some thoughts! Polynesian - I think this 'won' among the three places we stayed. The DVC studio rooms are nice and spacious, even if there is a shitload of wasted space with the incredibly large bathrooms. But watching fireworks from our room was a great bonus. I mentioned earlier that Trader Joe's was wonderful. All things considered, this is where I'd most want to stay again closest to Magic Kingdom. Plus I had a Dole Whip float with rum for the first time, and it's delightful. So much happiness in a cup. Bay Lake Tower - Really not a ton to say here. Super basic, but the room had a ton of storage space for a long stay. If we had children, I could easily see the convenience and the utility of staying at Bay Lake Tower and Contemporary. The only thing that sucks about the Tower is that literally every last amenity are at Contemporary, so you have to go to the fifth floor and walk over the bridge to get anything. The pool is also a little nicer and calmer than neighboring Contemporary. Boulder Ridge at Wilderness Lodge - I really liked this resort a lot. It was a completely different vibe, obviously, than the Poly, but everything was super nice. The pool was great (the one day it was warm enough to go to the pool). There was a water transport to get to Fort Wilderness, but the downside is that they only have one boat and the waits are around a half-hour. Although the boats to Magic Kingdom run much more frequently. Although all three had the same exact fishing excursions, boat rentals, etc.. The only disappointment of the trip was that somehow our Ohana reservation was cancelled. Now the only DVC properties we haven't visited at WDW include Grand Floridian, Caribbean Beach, Old Key West, Boardwalk, Copper Creek (also at Wilderness Lodge), Beach Club and ... I think that's it. We won't get new APs until next year probably, so I imagine we'll test drive a few more without visiting the parks in the meantime.
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Jan 23, 2018 23:22
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Disney is giving all full and part time employees a $1000 bonus (half in march, half in sept) and creating a 75 million education fund in response to the union wage deal falling through in the fall. Good on them, and good for the union not agreeing to a paltry increase and holding out for more. Disney needs to just go to 15 and make a statement.
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Jan 23, 2018 23:32
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Bottom Liner posted:Disney is giving all full and part time employees a $1000 bonus (half in march, half in sept) and creating a 75 million education fund in response to the union wage deal falling through in the fall. Good on them, and good for the union not agreeing to a paltry increase and holding out for more. Disney needs to just go to 15 and make a statement. I wonder how much each cast member can use for education. It didn’t state in Igers email if Disney will cover tuition in full or partly. I believe it’s 50 million and 25 million for the next year. Either way, 75 million for 125,000 cast members isn’t too much. If 20,000 people apply for it, that’s $3,750 per person assuming they will allow the fund to deplete in a year.
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Jan 24, 2018 03:19
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Bottom Liner posted:Love it! I actually fell in love with photography on my first trip to Disney in 4th grade. My mom gave me a disposable 35mm to use each day and I remember taking photos of all of the cool buildings and scenes I saw and the kids in my class all asking me why I was taking pictures of "stuff" instead of my friends and myself (the typical touristy stuff) lol. I filled up all 4 cameras in 2 days and ended up spending my souvenir money on more cameras. Wish I could find that album. My mom was mad that the only photo of me from the trip was the Splash Mountain photo my chaperone bought and photocopied for our group. That is super awesome  I got my Splash Mountain photo on my first trip, too, but I haven't scanned it (and I didn't get one on the 2017 trip).This afternoon, I finished uploading all my old and new pictures to my Imgur album. They're organized so that you see the old picture first, then the corresponding new one is below it (with some bonus new pictures in a few places). I did a detailed writeup of my experience and then discovered that the other forum where I was going to post all this doesn't allow you to insert inline third-party images via the [ img ] tag. I'll have to go back and add captions on Imgur tomorrow.
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Jan 24, 2018 05:25
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Sister got sick, staying in bed all day. I have the day all to myself at AK... Wondering if I should bother doing anything other than FOP standby for the rest of the day.... E: ridden FOP 3 times so far this trip. I have had to do the pre-show 7 times. Did you know that banshees are called Ikran? Cause I've been told about 2 dozen times Fejsze fucked around with this message at 19:11 on Jan 25, 2018 |
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Jan 25, 2018 16:13
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Fejsze posted:Sister got sick, staying in bed all day. I have the day all to myself at AK... Wondering if I should bother doing anything other than FOP standby for the rest of the day.... Single rider Everest all day
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Jan 25, 2018 16:58
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nimper posted:Single rider Everest all day This is a plan I can get behind
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Jan 25, 2018 17:29
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nimper posted:Single rider Everest all day This, but nomad lounge in between ride marathons
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Jan 25, 2018 18:26
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nimper posted:Single rider Everest all day my limit is 1x/day. That drat hard helix throws my head for a spin if I try to do it more than once. Sucks, I love that ride so much. How is the green version of Mission Space? I about puked all over Orange when I tried it, but I'd like to do the easy one if it's really not too bad.
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Jan 25, 2018 19:54
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Green Mission Space is on par with people mover lol. The 3D screen is a little wonky but you barely tilt at all and there is no other movement.
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Jan 25, 2018 20:02
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couldcareless posted:This, but nomad lounge in between ride marathons I might actually do this on my next trip 
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Jan 25, 2018 20:16
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Anya posted:my limit is 1x/day. That drat hard helix throws my head for a spin if I try to do it more than once. Sucks, I love that ride so much. I rode Rockin Roller Coaster about 12 days after having a concussion. Didn't occur to me that it was a terrible idea until I was already strapped in. 5/10 would not recommend.
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Jan 25, 2018 21:28
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