Just back (5/23/14). LOVE me some FastPass+!!!!

[godchaser]

My family of four just returned from 7 days and 7 nights at WDW. We stayed at Coronado Springs for the second time in 4 years and we still love it, they have queen beds and have the most convenient/quickest bus routes. We requested a room close to bus stop 2 since it's the first stop for bus drop off in the evenings and we got it. Our Magic Bands worked great and FastPass+ was awesome. We weren't rushing all over the parks trying to hit rides and juggle old FastPasses, we hit already reserved FP+ rides in the morning and then added extra FP+ rides once our 3 were done. We had the Dining Plan and Magic Bands worked great for that as well. Weather was awesome, low 80's until last day when it hit 92. Flower & Garden Festival was cool. Crowds were larger than expected, not as bad later in the week though. For our family we think 7 days is too long for us, we we're wore slap out and dragging the last day. We have reservations to go back this December for 5 days/nights since they are offering free dining; thinking about staying at Caribbean Beach Resort. We're grateful for a wonderful and safe trip.

 

[JeninTexas]

How did the extra Fastpasses work out for you? What rides were available and at what times?

Glad you had such a good trip. Thanks for sharing info about your experience!

 

[godchaser]

Simple, once you've used your third FP+ you find the nearest FP+ Kiosk and a castmember can show you which rides/attractions still have available slots and you pick which one you want. They were plenty of good rides left later in the day.

 

[buteraa]

so happy to hear you had a nice time. We are staying at CSR for the first time in December so was happy to hear you like the resort. 204 more days to go!

 

[Planogirl]

Were there ever lines at the kiosks?

 

[OnSpaceshipEarth]

Simple, once you've used your third FP+ you find the nearest FP+ Kiosk and a castmember can show you which rides/attractions still have available slots and you pick which one you want. They were plenty of good rides left later in the day.

Godchaser...great to hear! We always think 7 nights isn't enough.

Just curious how crowded were the restaurants and did your resort seem to have a lot of guests? Which park seemed to have the lightest crowds?

 

[foreverdreams]

Godchaser...great to hear! We always think 7 nights isn't enough. Just curious how crowded were the restaurants and did your resort seem to have a lot of guests? Which park seemed to have the lightest crowds?

We r currently here and Epcot had the lowest crowds other parks been really busy ak was crazy today we left by 2pm as it was 97.f and far too busy.

Magic kingdom was quiet last night but that was because we hit the rides when every1 else was waiting for electric parade, was manic trying to get out and we left just as wishes started so it would have been 10x worse after that. It's memorial weekend here now so resorts are busy, pools due to really high temps

 

[OnSpaceshipEarth]

We r currently here and Epcot had the lowest crowds other parks been really busy ak was crazy today we left by 2pm as it was 97.f and far too busy.

It's memorial weekend here now so resorts are busy, pools due to really high temps

Wow...AK was busy? I know DHS has Star Wars Weekends so I expected *that*...but not for AK to be crowded.

Are you staying at a Disney Resort, foreverdreams?

 

[godchaser]

There were small lines at some kiosks but not bad. Epcot was kinda crowded our first weekend but that was probably due to the F&G Festival wrapping up, after that it wasn't bad. AK is always crowded for some reason, so we're usually done there around 4-5 pm. HS wasn't bad at all, we rode Rockin roller coaster 3 times, ToT and Star Tours twice. NOTE: if you're on the Dining Plan take advantage of the Fantasmic Dining Package, it was awesome walking right in to see Fantasmic. As for CSR, not crowded at all, there were a couple of conventions going on but didn't bother us at all. We spent on day at Typhoon Lagoon and it was half empty, we rode everything we wanted to twice.

 

[OnSpaceshipEarth]

There were small lines at some kiosks but not bad. Epcot was kinda crowded our first weekend but that was probably due to the F&G Festival wrapping up, after that it wasn't bad. AK is always crowded for some reason, so we're usually done there around 4-5 pm. HS wasn't bad at all, we rode Rockin roller coaster 3 times, ToT and Star Tours twice. NOTE: if you're on the Dining Plan take advantage of the Fantasmic Dining Package, it was awesome walking right in to see Fantasmic. As for CSR, not crowded at all, there were a couple of conventions going on but didn't bother us at all. We spent on day at Typhoon Lagoon and it was half empty, we rode everything we wanted to twice.

We've stayed at both CSR and CBR and much prefer CBR so I hope that you enjoy your next trip staying there. Nothing particular in why we liked CBR more...just kind of the vibe and foodcourt, etc.

 

[foreverdreams]

Wow...AK was busy? I know DHS has Star Wars Weekends so I expected *that*...but not for AK to be crowded. Are you staying at a Disney Resort, foreverdreams?

Yes we r staying on site at ssr xx

 

[foreverdreams]

There were small lines at some kiosks but not bad. Epcot was kinda crowded our first weekend but that was probably due to the F&G Festival wrapping up, after that it wasn't bad. AK is always crowded for some reason, so we're usually done there around 4-5 pm. HS wasn't bad at all, we rode Rockin roller coaster 3 times, ToT and Star Tours twice. NOTE: if you're on the Dining Plan take advantage of the Fantasmic Dining Package, it was awesome walking right in to see Fantasmic. As for CSR, not crowded at all, there were a couple of conventions going on but didn't bother us at all. We spent on day at Typhoon Lagoon and it was half empty, we rode everything we wanted to twice.

We went to typhoon on Thursday and it was packed times were all at least 40 mins some were well over an hour

 

[beer dave]

Thanks for the FP+ report---- It's nice to hear as opposed to the past slamming.
We knew they would work this out.

 

[csmith041177]

Great to hear a good review on FP. I am ready to see for myself in September!!

 

[kayjaybe]

We were there during this same time period and experienced similar to the OP. Our first full day was Sunday and did MK, even though it wasn't recommended, so that was our only crowded day, but still rode plenty of things.

Did Monday at Typhoon Lagoon and had maybe 5-10 minute waits on some rides at the height of the day. Most were walk ons.

DHS on Tues & AK on Wed allowed us to walk on to most rides. We had a few FP+ booked and used them, but probably didn't need them.

BB on Thursday wasn't bad either. Again, 5 min waits at most for the slides (except those 2 body slides, which we did not attempt!) Did multiple rides during Electric Light parade and fireworks that evening, as we caught those shows on Sun.

 

[hockey mom]

just curious did you have free dining for this trip also?.

I am taking my mother next May and was wondering if free dining was offered during May this trip.

 

[godchaser]

No free dining this trip, just the 30% off the room. I think free is traditionally in the fall.

 

[OnSpaceshipEarth]

We were there during this same time period and experienced similar to the OP. Our first full day was Sunday and did MK, even though it wasn't recommended, so that was our only crowded day, but still rode plenty of things.

Did Monday at Typhoon Lagoon and had maybe 5-10 minute waits on some rides at the height of the day. Most were walk ons.

DHS on Tues & AK on Wed allowed us to walk on to most rides. We had a few FP+ booked and used them, but probably didn't need them.

BB on Thursday wasn't bad either. Again, 5 min waits at most for the slides (except those 2 body slides, which we did not attempt!) Did multiple rides during Electric Light parade and fireworks that evening, as we caught those shows on Sun.

@kayjaybe

How's the Beach Club? Does it seem to have a lot of guests in the lobby/restaurants?

 

[kayjaybe]

@kayjaybe

How's the Beach Club? Does it seem to have a lot of guests in the lobby/restaurants?

I'm probably not going to be much help there as we ate few meals at the resort. But here's what I observed:

Beaches & Cream is pretty busy. We didn't eat any meals there, but got takeout ice cream a few times and just sat at an outside table. But from what we could see, there was always a wait for an inside table & real food.

We didn't eat in Cape May because we aren't big on buffets. We don't eat a lot, so they are a waste of money, especially for the kids. Any time we walked by, it seemed busy inside, but there wasn't a huge line outside or anything. Just a few people waiting for tables.

The snack bar in the gift shop was hit or miss on how busy it was. We only got drinks at Hurricane Hanna's (pool bar) and had no trouble getting a seat at the bar one afternoon.

We had breakfast at the Yacht Club, I think in the Captains Grille one morning. No reservation, but no trouble getting a seat.

The great thing about BC is there are so many dining options because in walking distance, you also have YC, Boardwalk, Dolphin, Swan and Epcot World Showcase.

The lobby didn't seam overly-crowded to me at all. There isn't a ton of seating there, but there always seemed to be somewhere to sit if you wanted to.

Oh, and elevators came VERY fast. There are 4 elevators and because they only go up 5 floors, we rarely had to wait more than 30 seconds for one to arrive.

 

[OnSpaceshipEarth]

I'm probably not going to be much help there as we ate few meals at the resort. But here's what I observed:

Beaches & Cream is pretty busy. We didn't eat any meals there, but got takeout ice cream a few times and just sat at an outside table. But from what we could see, there was always a wait for an inside table & real food.

We didn't eat in Cape May because we aren't big on buffets. We don't eat a lot, so they are a waste of money, especially for the kids. Any time we walked by, it seemed busy inside, but there wasn't a huge line outside or anything. Just a few people waiting for tables.

The snack bar in the gift shop was hit or miss on how busy it was. We only got drinks at Hurricane Hanna's (pool bar) and had no trouble getting a seat at the bar one afternoon.

We had breakfast at the Yacht Club, I think in the Captains Grille one morning. No reservation, but no trouble getting a seat.

The great thing about BC is there are so many dining options because in walking distance, you also have YC, Boardwalk, Dolphin, Swan and Epcot World Showcase.

The lobby didn't seam overly-crowded to me at all. There isn't a ton of seating there, but there always seemed to be somewhere to sit if you wanted to.

Oh, and elevators came VERY fast. There are 4 elevators and because they only go up 5 floors, we rarely had to wait more than 30 seconds for one to arrive.

Sounds great...it's definitely a Resort that we are considering for our next stay. How was the ice cream from Beaches And Cream, btw?