A Grand Vacation: The 2012 Grand Floridian FAQ!

[MommyGina]

I got my 30 day away e-mail today from the IPO office at the Grand Floridian today. It is getting close!

Safe travels to all who are on their way now!

 

[Stan Solo]

Hi

While we are not staying at GF we do have a ADR for 1900 Park Fair in Aug at 8:20 pm. I have a few questions.

Will we have time to eat and catch the water parade?
Can you view the parade with the construction?
If so where?

Wishes is at 10:00 that night will we be able to view Wishes with the construction or should we go to another resort?
If so where?
If we stay at GF to watch Wishes where is the best place to view the fireworks?

Sorry if these questions have been asked before but I could not find them anywhere.

 

[k&a&c'smom]

I got my 30 day away e-mail today from the IPO office at the Grand Floridian today. It is getting close!

Safe travels to all who are on their way now!

YAY! So fun to get Mickey Mail. Close indeed.

Hi

While we are not staying at GF we do have a ADR for 1900 Park Fair in Aug at 8:20 pm. I have a few questions.

Will we have time to eat and catch the water parade?
Can you view the parade with the construction?
If so where?

Wishes is at 10:00 that night will we be able to view Wishes with the construction or should we go to another resort?
If so where?
If we stay at GF to watch Wishes where is the best place to view the fireworks?

Sorry if these questions have been asked before but I could not find them anywhere.

Welcome! Glad to help if we can.

Since the EWP usually passes the GF at 9:15, it will be cutting it very close to finish dinner and get out to the water in time. You would have to get into your AR early or spend less than an hour eating and seeing the characters. Not what you hope, rushing through dinner to get outside.

If you do manage to finish dinner early, you can easily see the EWP from the boat dock or on the walkway near Narcoossee's. If you are a little behind, you might still see it (though a bit further away) when it comes back and stops in front of the MK boat dock at around 10:20 p.m. This is only during extended MK park hours. You may be able to catch Wishes, then see the EWP after.

When you look at the map for the GF (first page, first post!) you can see the beach area near the Wedding Chapel - this is where the DVC construction is currently taking place. The MK is near the opposite side of the resort, so the construction shouldn't affect viewing of Wishes. You can either remain on the boat dock, or do what so many other DISers love to do and grab a drink at Gasparilla's and watch from the marina landing.

If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask - we are here to help.

 

[Stan Solo]

Welcome! Glad to help if we can.

Since the EWP usually passes the GF at 9:15, it will be cutting it very close to finish dinner and get out to the water in time. You would have to get into your AR early or spend less than an hour eating and seeing the characters. Not what you hope, rushing through dinner to get outside.

If you do manage to finish dinner early, you can easily see the EWP from the boat dock or on the walkway near Narcoossee's. If you are a little behind, you might still see it (though a bit further away) when it comes back and stops in front of the MK boat dock at around 10:20 p.m. This is only during extended MK park hours. You may be able to catch Wishes, then see the EWP after.

When you look at the map for the GF (first page, first post!) you can see the beach area near the Wedding Chapel - this is where the DVC construction is currently taking place. The MK is near the opposite side of the resort, so the construction shouldn't affect viewing of Wishes. You can either remain on the boat dock, or do what so many other DISers love to do and grab a drink at Gasparilla's and watch from the marina landing.

If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask - we are here to help.

Thank you for your quick reply! I thought we would be cutting it close to see EWP. It will just be the two of us and we are both quick eaters usualy we spend most of our time waiting for the bill to arrive so well see how it goes. I tried to change our ADR to 8:00 but it was a no go. It's just as well because I think an 8:00 ADR would be hard for us to make on time.

 

[brsirak]

So excited for all of you that are there now or are going soon...I am trying to vicariously live through you!!!

I wanted to post my results of my Deluxe King quandary... I emailed the IPO and asked about whether my 3 person booking in the Deluxe King was legit...it indeed is. However, as most of you know, we are not guaranteed the Turret Style that we have as a request.

Now, we are considering upgrading to a 1 Bed Suite...so I have tried to read all the info on this thread and various other places...I even emailed the IPO about what I should be asking for...we determined that we either need to "really upgrade" to the Victorian Suite...or book the Outer Building King Bed in Sago Cay (which the IPO says there is also a King in Conch Key)...

Can I get reviews of the 1 Bed Suites? Thanks

I have sooooo much time until our trip and all I do is think about it...I need therapy

 

[Melodious]

Hi guys We're coming back for our second GF stay in November again

But I have a question and am getting quite frustrated On our last stay, I had a friend join my mother and I in our resort room in the middle of the trip. We checked her in at the front desk and they waived the $25 extra adult fee for the couple of nights that she stayed.

Similarly this trip, my mom and I booked a 'package' of a resort room and eight day park hopping tickets. Then my mom invited a friend to fly down with us, but the friend will fly out again half-way through the trip. The problem is getting the friend from the Orlando airport to the GF.

We are not willing to separate our package into room only and tickets, because we booked with a now expired pin code and frankly got a better deal than the pin stated. It has been suggested that we could decrease the days of tickets so that all three of us would have one day tickets and thus the same package and then we can add days once we arrive.

My question is what about the extra adult room charge? If we were to add her to our package and decrease our tickets, would we have to pay the $25 for all the nights right away? And if we do, can we get a refund if she leave early?

She could ride the Mears shuttle, but I have heard that it can be even longer than the DME and we have ADRs at Jiko. If we're looking at paying the additional adult room fee for all the nights that she will not be staying with us, a cab ride might be cheaper. It is her first time at WDW so we would like to stay mostly together

 

[jd99]

Having a great time. Wil report much more when we are home. I WILL have a blog post titled "concierge pigs" to report on what we have seen at sugarloaf so far. Breathtaking.

 

[CoachBagFanatic]

CoachBagFanatic - I'm so impressed with your willpower, way to go! LOL about your son's confusion, I'm sure he's wondering what's up with Mom?!

You know so am I when it comes to packing. You hit the nail on the head. My DS knows me like a book and he asked me last night if I was feeling ok as I haven't packed yet. After I told him that I just waiting a few more days, he went in his room and put shorts and tee shirts together.

 

[k&a&c'smom]

jd99 - Glad you are having a great time, can't wait to hear details.

CoachBagFanatic - LOL! He figures you've gone so far around the bend he needs to do it himself.

StanSolo - My plan would be to get to the reservation as early as possible so that you can be seated as close to your scheduled time, or even a few minutes early. For us it has always been more about waiting on the characters rather than our actual time eating. You can mention to your server you will be trying to make it out in time for EWP, maybe this will help speed up the check.

brsirak - Good to know about the deluxe king, they must have changed the room max.

I haven't booked a 1-BR, so hopefully someone with experience can weigh in.

Melodious - Good to hear from you again, glad you are planning another Grand trip.

In your situation, I would either a) leave the friend off until check in, and work with the CMs at that time; or b) change your tickets to one day, put the friend on and then upgrade each person's tix at check in. We've done this and it works well.

My personal advice is "a". Yes, if your friend is added to the pkg. ahead of time, she will have to have the same tickets as everyone else on the pkg. and you will pay the extra adult fee for the whole trip. If you wait, you can add her then and work out how much the resort charges for the partial visit and her tix. Besides, she may drop out before the trip arrives, and you'll have to rearrange everything again - or worse, have to pay a change fee, if it is within the 45 day window.

If you choose "a" she will likely not have a dining plan, if that is added to your pkg., but you don't want to pay for a full week's dining plan for only a few days, anyway.

HTH!

 

[Melodious]

I haven't booked a 1-BR, so hopefully someone with experience can weigh in.

Melodious - Good to hear from you again, glad you are planning another Grand trip.

In your situation, I would either a) leave the friend off until check in, and work with the CMs at that time; or b) change your tickets to one day, put the friend on and then upgrade each person's tix at check in. We've done this and it works well.

My personal advice is "a". Yes, if your friend is added to the pkg. ahead of time, she will have to have the same tickets as everyone else on the pkg. and you will pay the extra adult fee for the whole trip. If you wait, you can add her then and work out how much the resort charges for the partial visit and her tix. Besides, she may drop out before the trip arrives, and you'll have to rearrange everything again - or worse, have to pay a change fee, if it is within the 45 day window.

If you choose "a" she will likely not have a dining plan, if that is added to your pkg., but you don't want to pay for a full week's dining plan for only a few days, anyway.

HTH!

The problem with "a" is that then she cannot ride the DME from the airport to the resort if we wait to check her in at the resort. Which is the problem. If she were not arriving with us on the plane, then we would do exactly what you said and she would be able to take the DME to the resort when she did arrive. But because we are all three arriving at the same time, then she needs some kind of transportation from the airport to the GF because she cannot ride the DME with us if she is not on the reservation ahead of time, apparently.

We don't ever purchase the dining plan so that is not a consideration for us. It's just the transportation issue. She could take the Mears shuttle, but I have heard that it takes longer and I would prefer if we all three could stay together and would prefer not to worry about the bags. Which is why I ask if anyone knows about the extra adult room charge. We are certainly happy to pay the extra adult room charge for the days that she will be at the resort with us, but for the price of her paying that charge for days that she won't be there, she could pay for a taxi and arrive at the GF before us and the bags,

 

[Stan Solo]

Which is why I ask if anyone knows about the extra adult room charge. We are certainly happy to pay the extra adult room charge for the days that she will be at the resort with us, but for the price of her paying that charge for days that she won't be there, she could pay for a taxi and arrive at the GF before us and the bags,

As far as I can figure the extra adult room charge at GF is now $28 a night. I would think if you are staying 7 days and your friend is only staying 5 days you would only have to pay for the 5 days. The other advantage is your friend would be able to use ME to get back to the airport. Just be sure to let Disney know your friends flight information so she gets a ME ticket back to the airport.

 

[Melodious]

As far as I can figure the extra adult room charge at GF is now $28 a night. I would think if you are staying 7 days and your friend is only staying 5 days you would only have to pay for the 5 days. The other advantage is your friend would be able to use ME to get back to the airport. Just be sure to let Disney know your friends flight information so she gets a ME ticket back to the airport.

I do realize all of that but the only problem we have is how to get her from the airport to disney in the first place. If we book her onto the room reservation before arrival she will need the same package as us, room nights and tickets, but she will be allowed to use DME to get to the GF. If we wait and simply check her in at the GF front desk upon our arrival, the friend will not be allowed to use the DME to get to the GF, but she will not need to have the same number of room nights and tickets as us, but then she will need alternate transportation to the GF.

The problem is the transportation to the GF. I am happy to pay $28 for every night that she stays with us, but if I add her to the package ahead of time, will I have to pay that for each night of the package whether she is with us or not? If I add her to the package ahead of time and pay for the additional adult room charge for every night of the package, can I get a refund for the nights that she is not actually staying with us? The only reason to add her to our package reservation prior to arrival is so that she can ride the DME with us to the GF from the airport.

 

[Stan Solo]

I do realize all of that but the only problem we have is how to get her from the airport to disney in the first place. If we book her onto the room reservation before arrival she will need the same package as us, room nights and tickets, but she will be allowed to use DME to get to the GF. If we wait and simply check her in at the GF front desk upon our arrival, the friend will not be allowed to use the DME to get to the GF, but she will not need to have the same number of room nights and tickets as us, but then she will need alternate transportation to the GF.

The problem is the transportation to the GF. I am happy to pay $28 for every night that she stays with us, but if I add her to the package ahead of time, will I have to pay that for each night of the package whether she is with us or not? If I add her to the package ahead of time and pay for the additional adult room charge for every night of the package, can I get a refund for the nights that she is not actually staying with us? The only reason to add her to our package reservation prior to arrival is so that she can ride the DME with us to the GF from the airport.

I would have to think that Disney has a solution for a situation just like yours. I'm thinking maybe a split stay on two different reservations one for three and one for two. Once you are there I think you should be able to add more ticket days to just the two of you. You can call Disney and hope you get a knowledgable call center member.

 

[Stan Solo]

StanSolo - My plan would be to get to the reservation as early as possible so that you can be seated as close to your scheduled time, or even a few minutes early. For us it has always been more about waiting on the characters rather than our actual time eating. You can mention to your server you will be trying to make it out in time for EWP, maybe this will help speed up the check.

I changed our ADR to 8:10. Wow! I sure hope we can make it on time. I'll aim to be there at 8:00. All I need is a fast pick of our luggage from our Star Wars Celebration hotel, a fast taxi, a fast check in at our resort, a fast bus to MK and a short wait for the monorail. That's not too much to ask. Is it?

I need one like this ---> this thing never runs out of time!

 

[beckysko]

We are in the main building in a 2-bdrm suite...2 bedrooms with a living rm in the middle! 5th floor....enjoyed watching the EWP and wishes from our balcony while the baby slept...he's been sleeping like a champ! Concierge club is awesome too! I was so surprised to hear the mk train whistle....sooo close!

 

[k&a&c'smom]

I do realize all of that but the only problem we have is how to get her from the airport to disney in the first place. If we book her onto the room reservation before arrival she will need the same package as us, room nights and tickets, but she will be allowed to use DME to get to the GF. If we wait and simply check her in at the GF front desk upon our arrival, the friend will not be allowed to use the DME to get to the GF, but she will not need to have the same number of room nights and tickets as us, but then she will need alternate transportation to the GF.

The problem is the transportation to the GF. I am happy to pay $28 for every night that she stays with us, but if I add her to the package ahead of time, will I have to pay that for each night of the package whether she is with us or not? If I add her to the package ahead of time and pay for the additional adult room charge for every night of the package, can I get a refund for the nights that she is not actually staying with us? The only reason to add her to our package reservation prior to arrival is so that she can ride the DME with us to the GF from the airport.

Yes. As I said above, you will pay the extra adult charge for the whole stay if you add her to the pkg. Everyone on a pkg. has to have the same pkg. components - be it tickets, dining plan or length of stay. I know you've said dining doesn't apply.

If it were me and we were all arriving together, I'd forgo ME from the airport to the GF and book a town car, or rent a car for one day and drop it off at the Car Care Center near the MK gates. Everyone arrives together, you add your friend at check in and don't pay the extra adult fee for the days she won't be with you. Of course, you won't be able to check your bags with the ME tags, you'll have to pick it up at the airport and take it with you - but you can check it through on the way back.

I changed our ADR to 8:10. Wow! I sure hope we can make it on time. I'll aim to be there at 8:00. All I need is a fast pick of our luggage from our Star Wars Celebration hotel, a fast taxi, a fast check in at our resort, a fast bus to MK and a short wait for the monorail. That's not too much to ask. Is it?

I need one like this ---> this thing never runs out of time!

LOL! Good luck, hopefully the stars will align. For another idea - you might take a taxi from your resort to the GF, might make it just a little easier. We rarely pay more than $20 with tip for anywhere on WDW property.

We are in the main building in a 2-bdrm suite...2 bedrooms with a living rm in the middle! 5th floor....enjoyed watching the EWP and wishes from our balcony while the baby slept...he's been sleeping like a champ! Concierge club is awesome too! I was so surprised to hear the mk train whistle....sooo close!

Awesome upgrade, congrats!! Enjoy your stay.

 

[CoachBagFanatic]

CoachBagFanatic - LOL! He figures you've gone so far around the bend he needs to do it himself.

Oh you are probably right. Even though our DS is 16, he has some band shirts that are pretty gross with blood and skeleton's. Things of this nature. While I don't mind him wearing them here, I just don't feel they are appropriate for Disney. If that makes any sense. I am always the one in control of getting the clothes together and I had such a pang in my stomach but he did pretty good with picking descent band shirts.

Ok, I am getting very excited about visiting the GF. I can't wait to walk into the lobby and take a really big deep breath. I know I will be crying too just to be visiting. I really miss the GF. 2013 can't come soon enough.

 

[k&a&c'smom]

CoachBagFanatic - I totally understand about the packing, and making sure appropriate attire is in the bag. I've always done the packing for my whole family, even when the kids were teens, as I am better at getting more things in one bag - and I have a chance to remind them of forgetting their socks, or adding a nice set of clothes for TS dining.

DD is pretty good at the last part, but the guys...not so much.

We love visiting the GF even when we are staying elsewhere. In fact, we drove over from PBH last month! Shopped, took photos, soaked up the atmosphere.~sigh~

 

[PinkCindere11a]

We arrive in 3 weeks
We are staying at the main building concierge.

We are celebrating our BabyMoon

I can not wait to relax by the pool and enjoy the parks at night.

I am loving all the posts - they are making me so excited.

 

[Melodious]

I would have to think that Disney has a solution for a situation just like yours. I'm thinking maybe a split stay on two different reservations one for three and one for two. Once you are there I think you should be able to add more ticket days to just the two of you. You can call Disney and hope you get a knowledgable call center member.

I would have thought this would not be a strange situation and that there would be some kind of solution as well. I suppose that there is not, and that we will either have to pay the resort room charge for days that she will not be there or we will have to pay for separate transportation to the airport. I am quite frustrated by this situation, or more specifically, that rules aren't rules once you arrive at the resort .