The we loooooove Bonnet Creek thread Part 3

[carlbarry]

Originally Posted by Karlzmom

Ok, I'll display my ignorance. Is there more than 1 lazy river on property? We arrive a week from today and will be completely bummed out if the one, and only, lazy river is down for our stay. It was the feature that really sold me on trying the place. TIA!

Yes, there is another one, and for my money, better. It is by the themed area in the newer section.

[laborrn2]

Originally Posted by Karlzmom

Ok, I'll display my ignorance. Is there more than 1 lazy river on property? We arrive a week from today and will be completely bummed out if the one, and only, lazy river is down for our stay. It was the feature that really sold me on trying the place. TIA!

I'm pretty sure there are 2 lazy rivers.... 1 at the main bldg (down right now?) and 1 at Tower 5...

[syk731]

Originally Posted by SJerseyMommy

Quick question-I believe we will have access to both the gym at BC and also the gym at the Grand Orlando Hotel correct? Does anyone know the gym hours? I'm hoping I have time to get to the gym early and make it to rope drop at the parks.

Thanks!

Hi, I'm looking to know this too!

Also, I'm renting through a friend who is a Wyndham owner. She sent me "pre-arrival" letters with a confirmation number on it. I just wanted to confirm that this is all I need to check-in.

Thanks!

[saysay]

We are going to WDW next month. I asked 2 people for quotes at WBC and both said nothing available....yet one of them on her web page showed availability in lastminute deals....however it was split. We are planning on going Friday to Tuesday and the availability showed was the week before through Saturday then another availability starting the Saturday of our trip for a week. Is our friday arrival messing up the ability to stay? We have stayed 4 previous times and I haven't ever arrived on a saturday.

Oh and there is also availability through Hotwire or Expedia at twice the race we usually pay, so just wondering.

Thanks for any insight you can give.

Julie

[Brian Noble]

and also the gym at the Grand Orlando

I'm not sure about this. I would be a little surprised if the timeshare guests had access, to be honest, but I think the pools are all fair game. I would call the direct line and see about hours:
Phone: 407-238-3500

[JessB320]

Originally Posted by SJerseyMommy

Hi everyone! We leave one week from today for Bonnet Creek. It will be our first stay and we are REALLY excited.

Quick question-I believe we will have access to both the gym at BC and also the gym at the Grand Orlando Hotel correct? Does anyone know the gym hours? I'm hoping I have time to get to the gym early and make it to rope drop at the parks.

Thanks!

Yup, we just got back a couple weeks ago. You are welcome to use the gym, pools, even the activity center in the grand. Sorry I can't remember the hours!!

[snappy]

Originally Posted by saysay

We are going to WDW next month. I asked 2 people for quotes at WBC and both said nothing available....yet one of them on her web page showed availability in lastminute deals....however it was split. We are planning on going Friday to Tuesday and the availability showed was the week before through Saturday then another availability starting the Saturday of our trip for a week. Is our friday arrival messing up the ability to stay? We have stayed 4 previous times and I haven't ever arrived on a saturday.

Oh and there is also availability through Hotwire or Expedia at twice the race we usually pay, so just wondering.

Thanks for any insight you can give.

Julie

The guy I rent from told me earlier this year that the days to start a reservation are Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I like the presidential units so he recommended Sunday as the best day to start a vacation. It must be far easier to secure a reservation on Sunday, but I think it depends on the unit configuration as well. Are you staying in a deluxe 2 bedroom? Those are the most prevalent units at WBC by far.

Good luck in getting your reservation.

[snappy]

Originally Posted by carlbarry

Yes, there is another one, and for my money, better. It is by the themed area in the newer section.

I used to prefer the newer one as well. But the chairs were upgraded at the lazy river behind the main building a year or so ago. Also, the one behind building one seems to be larger and quieter to me, and the landscaping is more mature. I think kids would prefer the newer one due to the whole pirate theme, I thought the pirate theme structure blocked views of the lake and the sunset in the evening. However, I like the bar there just fine.

On occasion they have had a musician playing a guitar near the lazy river behind building one. Not sure if that is still happening. It is a very short walk from this lazy river over to buildings 1, 4 and 5, farther walk to buildings 2 and 3.

You obtain your pool towels from the main building or building 6, but we just check some out when we arrive and turn them in on departure day.

[Peggy5555]

Originally Posted by carlbarry

Yes, there is another one, and for my money, better. It is by the themed area in the newer section.

We are here now and staying in Building 5. The lazy river is great, and the pool is the easy entry. The main building pool is under construction, but I noticed that they are allowing some people in that lazy pool and the smaller pool.

I must say that we love building 5. We arrived on Saturday around 10:00 hoping we could check in early, but we didn't get in our room till 4:00. Reason so long was I requested a certain type of room. I requested a high floor with a fireworks view. The registration desk told us to use the facilities while we waited, so we went got our swimsuits out of the car. There are lockers in the bathrooms by the main pool, and they gave us locks, so we enjoyed the lazy river, the pools etc. while we waited. Had a nice lunch there and received our room at 4:00. I must say the wait was well worth it! We are in room 1586, building 5. We are on the top floor and the view is fantastic. Yes, if we look down, we see the top of the garage, but when we sit and look out over the deck we see all of disney, with downtown Orlando in view also.

It looks like we can almost touch the Epcot ball. It is much closer than the pictures look. We can see fireworks from Magic Kingdom and Epcot, with Epcot being so close!

Building 5 is right out to the lazy river, and a really nice pool. Also a bar right there. The BC buses pick up right next to this building, just a short walk through the parking area.

If you can, request room 1586 in Building 5. It's a 2 bedroom and on one side there is the housekeeping storage, so no noise beside us on that side and no one above since you are on the top floor. Also the elevators are fast!

Loving our stay here and will be sure to come back again

[Bellamouse]

Just returned Saturday from a week at WBC. It was our first visit. It was wonderful. We were in tower 4, 8th floor. Our view was of "Epcot" - but I put that in quotes because the 8th floor wasn't really high enough to see over the tops of the trees. So we saw trees really, for our view. But we spend most of our time at the parks, so the view wasn't absolutely critical to us.

The room was fantastic. No ripped furniture, super clean, had absoutely everything we needed. Beds were pretty comfortable. The only thing I didn't like (and this is really minor) were the shower heads. That awful water saving spray that feels like needles coming down on you. And I also hate Florida water - it makes my hair and scalp smell and feel funny. But that's not WBC fault

We loved the property in general as well. Spent one of our days just using the pools/lazy rivers/bars. Just a gorgeous property. The pirate pool was the most fun - they had a disc jockey playing music and tons of activities for the kids - hula hoop contest, water balloon toss, etc. So fun. I think it was a salt water pool as well.

We were able to use the lazy river at the main building even though the regular pool there is under construction.

The pool near the mini golf course and pizza bar was the most boring. We didn't spend much time there. We liked the pool near building 5 the most - the one with the zero entry and lazy river. It was the most shaded and peaceful.

We will definitely be back to this property. The proximity to everything and value just cannot be beat.

[nancy155]

As a previous poster noted regarding the elevators. That too is one thing I was HIGHLY impressed with was the speed of the elevators never really ever having to wait on one. I have never had this type an experience at any other place or building.

[artemis4]

Originally Posted by nancy155

As a previous poster noted regarding the elevators. That too is one thing I was HIGHLY impressed with was the speed of the elevators never really ever having to wait on one. I have never had this type an experience at any other place or building.

We commented on this during our stay as well. Those were some speedy elevators!

[klledoux]

We loved it! We chose WBC because we are total brats and want more space for our money. We have a 6yo and 4yo and my husband and I like to put them in bed and unwind. After much back and forth about staying at a WDW resort, the transportation and missing out on the free dining plan, we went with WBC.

We had a 9 night stay through Vacation Strategies, everything was smooth. It was so much nicer than I had imagined! We were in 1809 Tower 6. It was a pool view, great location, elevators were super fast, staff was friendly and helpful.

The unit was gorgeous, my husband was wowed!

A few side notes;
The water really is harsh! We are from MA, and the moment I ran a faucet or the shower it would smell funny to me. My hair never lathered and my complexion was a wreck by the time I left! For you ladies out there, invest in some FrizzEase! I have never considered my hair frizzy but out that water with the humidity down there and voila, your hair is a wreck!

We never had to override the AC even with 95 degree humid weather, it would kick on immediately after we entered and was very efficient.

WiFi was never a problem, no issues connecting, with speed or with getting dropped.

One of the few things I have to pick on is it would be great if the exterior doors had deadbolts, my kids are not wanderers but unlocking the entry door and pulling on the handle would have gotten them out. The unit is so big, really we felt like we each had our own wing, the thought of the kids wandering scared me a tiny bit! We brought a monitor with us and kept the bedroom doors open. The door to the balcony ws the same but much more difficult to open, even for me!

Went to Publix for food shopping, not too much more expensive than my area grocer.

We rented a car and drove everywhere, we are the sort of people who like to be in charge of our destiny. The shuttle schedule seemed great though. The only PITA was MK. You have to park, then take a shuttle to the monrail or ferry, then get into MK.

We rented strollers from Kingdom Strollers, they were awesome to work with! Always a fast reply, free parents console, cooler bag and rain canopy.

It rained a little every day and washed us out 2 full nights, of course it was the 2 nights we did MNSSHP, but we made the best of us: )

To sum it up we loved the WBC, loved our trip to Disney and want to stay 9-10 full days next time so we can enjoy the resort more!

[SJerseyMommy]

Thanks for the review klledoux!! I can't wait to get there.

I have a question about the jogging path around the property (for anyone who can answer). Is it well-lit?? The fitness center doesn't open until 7am and I'd like to get a run in early so we can hit rope drop at the parks. Will I feel safe running the path in the dark??

Also, which grocery store does everyone recommend?? I've heard of Publix and Walmart in the area. Does one have better produce/selection?? Thank you!!

[SYLVESTER7577]

Walmart has a slighly lower price schedule and a liquor outlet, as well as, a good selection across the board. However Publix has a better meat and superior seafood department. Fresh seafood including sushi, crab and great shrimp/fish. The have a very good deli with made on the spot subs and a good variety of different packaged sides. Produce is something I would give to Publix. Usually a very good selection and fresher offerings. They are about equally priced in that department . Both stores are close and we usually pick the best of both worlds.