2013 Beach and Yacht Club FAQ: Don't Post Here! New Thread Now Open

[Wood Nymph]

Does the Grand Floridian have a dedicated shuttle for their guests only from the airport?

to the Yacht & Beach Club FAQ thread.

The Y&BC ME buses usually share with POR and BWI.

Are you looking for the Grand Floridian thread?

Has anyone here stayed at the GF recently and know the answer about the GF ME bus route?

When we stayed at the WL in February the ME shared with the GF, Poly and WL. That was for both to and from the airport. The GF was the second stop after the Poly on the way in, and it was the last stop before heading to the airport on the way out.

 

[DancinDaisyDuck]

Just registered for the half marathon 2014! Next stop, Beach Club!

 

[mademluc]

Skip the dining plan and pay out of pocket for meals when staying club level!

Teens eat at all different times so club level really works out for them. If you are hanging at the resort and you have teens who are late sleepers you can always bring back some breakfast items to the room for when they (finally!) get up. I always say the key to Club Level is ASKING the staff for the things that you need so if YOU decide to sleep in perhaps they can save you some pastries!

With my guys, we dined on the club level offerings, did a couple of lunch table services and then if someone was hungry after the appetizers we gave them money and said find some food. I was so glad to see the end of uneaten dinners because half the family was still too full from lunch. For us Club Level solved a lot of problems and the desserts at night were perfect for teens on the run.

My family is at the stage where we don't travel in one large pack anymore so if someone was going out and wouldn't be there when the desserts were put out they would request that the person who was going to be there at dessert time bring something back to the room for when they finally made it back from the parks.

The thing that really amazed me was that the kids weren't spending money in the parks for snacks and treats because they knew something even better was waiting for them back at the hotel!

I really think the key to sensible eating at WDW for my family was Club Level breakfast, the big meal of the day at lunch and then the CL appetizers/desserts at night. I especially liked that after the big noon meal we were taking a break at the resort and not running around. Not having a heavy meal at night was perfect for hitting the parks hard and not being bogged down from all the food. My guys really liked Club Level. It met all of their eating needs while at WDW.

~NM

This is exactly how we do it and exactly why it works for us. We would never miss breakfast in the lounge, then hit the parks, have lunch somewhere, more park(ing) or resort-ing and then a graze through the appetizers. No one was ever hungry enough for dinner - even if we skipped the appetizers - and there was always dessert later for our sweet-toothed girls if they were so inclined. Dining plans never worked for us because they were always too much food for our group but CL hits that sweet spot of supplement.

 

[tpoo]

We are here, it is awesome, and the chips are fantastic!

 

[pixarmom]

Just a few thoughts regarding club level. As a mom of three boys (ages 6, 12 and 13) I appreciate CL more and more every trip. We still have two ADRs per day because my husband is counter service averse. But breakfast in the club lounge is SO convenient for our family of five that it makes a huge difference in the start of each day. With CL, you don't have to eat in your room, and you don't have to get everyone up and out the door to a restaurant at the same time. And we like a light breakfast, so it's perfect for us. We also return to the resort for down time in the late afternoon, so we're around for evening appetizers and a glass of wine. But not having the dining plan (we use TIW for discounts) is a key part of this for us. We still have a dinner ADR, but we can order light if we're not hungry after CL snacks.

On the other hand, BC is the one WDW resort that I love with or without CL. But again, we like light breakfasts and I'm a huge BC Marketplace fan. I think we've decided that when we stay at any other deluxe resort, CL is an important part of our enjoyment.

Good luck with your decision!

Just registered for the half marathon 2014! Next stop, Beach Club!

Just had to cheer for a fellow runner! We're doing the Inaugural DL 10K in August. We're not attempting the 1/2 until our middle son is old enough to run it with us in 2015. Then I saw the Inaugural WDW 10K in 2014: 1) our middle son is old enough; 2) in Epcot - my favorite park; 3) with a Minnie medal - my favorite character! But I promised my husband a break from Disney in 2014. So I hope you'll share all the details of your 1/2 marathon planning!!!

Who else registered for the 2014 Half Marathon today? Amanda? Mickey T?

 

[disneymagicgirl]

Looks like our dates are wrong on the BOG list...
Should be 5/9-5/18,..arrival night YC GV...then 5/10-5/18 BC WV

 

[DancinDaisyDuck]

Just had to cheer for a fellow runner! We're doing the Inaugural DL 10K in August. We're not attempting the 1/2 until our middle son is old enough to run it with us in 2015. Then I saw the Inaugural WDW 10K in 2014: 1) our middle son is old enough; 2) in Epcot - my favorite park; 3) with a Minnie medal - my favorite character! But I promised my husband a break from Disney in 2014. So I hope you'll share all the details of your 1/2 marathon planning!!!

Who else registered for the 2014 Half Marathon today? Amanda? Mickey T?

Thank you! I will definitely start a planning report once I book our resort. I've been training already and will start the Galloway program in August. Can't wait to run it! It'll be my first half.

 

[natebenma]

We are here, it is awesome, and the chips are fantastic!

Excellent!!!

Hey, can you check on the beer in the coolers this afternoon and report back. Someone going next week wants to know.

(And no, Mousemommy1, that doesn't relieve you from your duty to check out the beer during your trip)

 

[ocalla]

We are here, it is awesome, and the chips are fantastic!

Eat all you can...cause you can't take them back home

 

[Wolpenski]

Excellent!!!

Hey, can you check on the beer in the coolers this afternoon and report back. Someone going next week wants to know.

(And no, Mousemommy1, that doesn't relieve you from your duty to check out the beer during your trip)

We were Just there yesterday and they Had Yuengling, Heineken, Bud Light and Samuel Adams seasonal Alpine Spring.

 

[CT Disney]

We were Just there yesterday and they Had Yuengling, Heineken, Bud Light and Samuel Adams seasonal Alpine Spring.

Thanks so much for the beer report!!! My hubby will be happy that they've got Sam Adams!

We'll be there Saturday...save some for us!

 

[DancinDaisyDuck]

We were Just there yesterday and they Had Yuengling, Heineken, Bud Light and Samuel Adams seasonal Alpine Spring.

Mmmmmm, Alpine Spring. *added to grocery list*

 

[ocalla]

Well I have been reviewing our ADRs, and can't wait to get to some of them!!! But, while looking over the menus I noticed that Sanaa isn't showing my FAVORITE dessert....Orange sesame cake.

I have been thinking about this cake since we got home last year.

Has anyone been as sad as me to see a favorite be replaced??? I really feel ridiculous to be so sad right now.

But the positive part of this post is that we are Sooooo close to double digits!!!!!

 

[YCFAN]

I know this is completely off topic and I apologize for that but I just wanted to say that Walt has his favorite Mouseketeer back with him now. Rest in peace, Annette.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

I know this is completely off topic and I apologize for that but I just wanted to say that Walt has his favorite Mouseketeer back with him now. Rest in peace, Annette.

She was my favorite too. Wasn't she just the sweetest "girl next door"?

 

[YCFAN]

She was my favorite too. Wasn't she just the sweetest "girl next door"?

I grew up watching all her beach movies too. I remember her talking during an interview about how devastated she was when Walt Disney died. She was a class act.

 

[Feckless]

Hello all, I have been avoiding this thread because it was making me too sad... We had a trip of a lifetime in May 2012, staying 10 days BC CL. I then planned to do the TOT 10 miler as an excuse to both get in shape and get back to Disney in 2013. Unfortunately, I injured my knee in November and am in physiotherapy trying to be able to walk without pain, so the run is out of the question. That plus unexpected house renos putting spring vacation plans off the table has made me very crabby! I finally let spoke out loud that I can't see us getting back in 2013 a couple of days ago and voila! An opportunity presented itself. A close friend asked if our family would like to go with them to Disney for a week in late August. Our kids are best friends and we have vacationed with them many times. It would be the most amazing experience for the kids, I cannot overstate this. My DD told me that vacationing to Disney with these friends would be the best experience of her life. And we even talked about surprising them... I decided that I can't let this opportunity go by, especially when my friend wants to do BEACH CLUB with us!!!

Still early in the planning, and I haven't mentioned it to my stressed out DH yet, but I can see this happening. We have plans made to go to Toronto for my son's birthday at the end of August to see the Blue Jays play the Yankees (his two favourite teams) and I was going to book 3 nights at Great Wolf Lodge at the end of that stay. If I cut that out, that will pay for half of the week at the BC! The logistics will be interesting, since we would be stopping in Toronto for 6 nights on the way home, and I may have to change around my DDs trip to visit my sister out west...

Anyway, I hope to come here for more info as my plotting and scheming continues!!

 

[YCFAN]

Hello all, I have been avoiding this thread because it was making me too sad... We had a trip of a lifetime in May 2012, staying 10 days BC CL. I then planned to do the TOT 10 miler as an excuse to both get in shape and get back to Disney in 2013. Unfortunately, I injured my knee in November and am in physiotherapy trying to be able to walk without pain, so the run is out of the question. That plus unexpected house renos putting spring vacation plans off the table has made me very crabby! I finally let spoke out loud that I can't see us getting back in 2013 a couple of days ago and voila! An opportunity presented itself. A close friend asked if our family would like to go with them to Disney for a week in late August. Our kids are best friends and we have vacationed with them many times. It would be the most amazing experience for the kids, I cannot overstate this. My DD told me that vacationing to Disney with these friends would be the best experience of her life. And we even talked about surprising them... I decided that I can't let this opportunity go by, especially when my friend wants to do BEACH CLUB with us!!!

Still early in the planning, and I haven't mentioned it to my stressed out DH yet, but I can see this happening. We have plans made to go to Toronto for my son's birthday at the end of August to see the Blue Jays play the Yankees (his two favourite teams) and I was going to book 3 nights at Great Wolf Lodge at the end of that stay. If I cut that out, that will pay for half of the week at the BC! The logistics will be interesting, since we would be stopping in Toronto for 6 nights on the way home, and I may have to change around my DDs trip to visit my sister out west...

Anyway, I hope to come here for more info as my plotting and scheming continues!!

Oh I love plotting and scheming!!!

 

[emmysmommy]

Thanks Dee for adding us to the BOG list. Sure wish I had taken advantage of the bounce-back offers last month. Argh! I don't think we saw the offer before we checked out of YC but we were told that we had up to 24 hrs to book (per guest services at CR) not sure if that is true so for what its worth....

 

[zup2002]

This thread has been very informative!!! We head down to the YC in less that 60 days and I'm trying to get my game plan on. This will be my first trip to Disney and it is very overwhelming for me. I am very accustomed to lazy beach vacations and I'm trying to wrap my head around having to wait in lines. (well that and making dining reservations 180 days out (although we were just over 100 days out when we booked.)

Our flight arrives around 5:00pm and from what I read, I can expect to arrive at the park around 6:30 use ME. Would you recommend online check in. Is that a high volume arrival time? It seems like most people (at least DISers) arrive in the morning. Our plan for arrival is to head to HH to eat dinner and hit the SAB to burn any excess energy before bed. I plan to have swimsuits and pajamas packed in our carry on.

The questions I had about what time we should leave YC to make it to MK rope drop was answered previously in the thread but I have a follow up. What do you guys do for 30-60-90 minutes after you arrive at the park but before you are let in? If you are chosen to be the "the family of the day" what exactly does it entail? Trying to decide if I arrive early and schmooze up a CM as someone suggested.

Finally, I see that Yuengling is available at CL but is it available at the Marketplace? Yuengling is a special treat for us since we don't live in an area they distribute to and I would love to have some bottles in the Room for DH to enjoy after the girls go to sleep. I've also booked an Illuminations Cruise and would like to have some drinks to take on it.

Thanks!!!