Official SHADES OF GREEN Information

[JanetRose]

And NO tax on Food!

 

[bigAWL]

BTW, Janet. Thanks for making this an Official Information Thread. I hope it helps answer a lot of questions for those wondering about SOG.

 

[JanetRose]

You're welcome - I'm just so excited that I was able to post pictures!

I guess the next time we call for reservations and SoG is booked, it's only us to blame for posting the many good things about the resort!

 

[MAGGIED]

Here is what I figured for cost.....

SOG room - depending on your rank it is between $89-$119 per night... so $623 to $833 for 7 nights

Purchasing your tickets at SOG... MYW tickets 8 day tickets with park hopper and fun and more would be 310 er adult and 275 for child... total of 895.... or
Purchase the Stars and Stripes tickets which are 293 per adult and 260 for child for a total of $846....

We are using ****** transportation for our trip in April and round trip for a van is $82...

So you could be between $1551 and $1810... depending on your rank and which tickets you buy... So that is a savings of $390-$649... I guess for me it would depend on what type of dining you plan on doing.... are you going to have a sit down meal everyday.... are you just going to have a few..... I would take a look at the menus on allearsnet.com and see....

The SOG is beautiful..... but the CSR is our favorite moderate.... we have stayed there a few times also!!

 

[mom2jcc]

So happy to see this thread! We are big fans of SOG, too.

 

[MWMicimac]

We have been to WDW twice but never to SOG. We are planning a big family trip with four families and my dad and will probably need 4-5 rooms. We have a DOD civilian who is eligible anytime and myself who is an honorable discharged vet. But the way I understand it we can only get 3 rooms at that time because I am limited to reservations in Sept and Jan only.

For you SOG veterans out there, am I understanding this correctly? And we've already checked and the villas are already reserved for this week.

 

[Henneman's]

thanks everyone for all the information, i really appricate it! i love dis because i can get the real info on disney well my husband is a e-5 in airforce right now hes stationed in korea for the year i convinced him that for his mid tour we should go to dw again! so since i already have him convinced and also his sister and here son are coming along and maybe his brother with his two kids but everything is up in the air right now! but with this new info i will talk to them and see what they want to do with the quote i got taxes were in included 2200! the last two year we did luv the dining plan cause we ate at places that we proably wouldnt if we did not have it i know this year grautiy and apps are not included so that was a downer. but if i dont convince the rest of the family i know next year i could convince my husband about sog and going to dw again

 

[Lesia]

I dont think you can buy the Dining Plan while using any discount on the room. The DDP is only available while paying rack rate, so you might want to check that.

 

[bdcp]

When I think about the Dining plan, I don't consider it exactly free. You still have to pay the tips, which can be really high if you choose the most expensive items on the menu (which many on the Dining Plan do). For some, the tips over 3 meals can add up to as much as some of us would pay out of pocket all day for meals. Just look at the price list of the Tutto Italia menu. It;s outrageous! Think about that tip! Would most of the people on the Dining Plan eating there choose that place if they had to pay everything out of pocket? Just my thoughts. The savings are all in how you view it. One might say ME is free, but I can assure you Disney has found a way to be reimbursed through higher room rates or higher food court costs .

Okay, you confused me. I didnt' say it was free. What I meant by what I said was if you pay out of pocket for meals in addition to the inexpensive room at SOG, it's still cheaper than a comparable room in a WDW resort and with the dining plan, even more so. Because as we all know the dining plan is never free, even when it's free, you're paying more for the room. SOG is overall a great bargain.

 

[Sleepy]

Okay, you confused me. I didnt' say it was free. What I meant by what I said was if you pay out of pocket for meals in addition to the inexpensive room at SOG, it's still cheaper than a comparable room in a WDW resort and with the dining plan, even more so. Because as we all know the dining plan is never free, even when it's free, you're paying more for the room. SOG is overall a great bargain.

I guess I did confuse you. I was actually working from what you said so that person could understand their package with "free" dining cost was going to be more than they were quoted. With free dining, now you must pay a tip out of pocket which is the percentage of the meal they ate. So, if you are on this plan and choose the most expensive dishes on the menu, your tip will be maxed and could end up costing a small fortune....sometimes as much as the average person would have spent on a reasonably priced meal if paying out of pocket. As has been replied, that person understands that even though they have free meals included in that quote, it is really going to cost them more for the tax(which can add up to hundreds over the week). Sorry for the confusion.

 

[TLSnell1981]

We have been to WDW twice but never to SOG. We are planning a big family trip with four families and my dad and will probably need 4-5 rooms. We have a DOD civilian who is eligible anytime and myself who is an honorable discharged vet. But the way I understand it we can only get 3 rooms at that time because I am limited to reservations in Sept and Jan only.

For you SOG veterans out there, am I understanding this correctly? And we've already checked and the villas are already reserved for this week.

The only time you cannot book up to 6 rooms is at Christmas. I don't know about the limitations to specific times of the year....my step-father is retired military.

 

[bigAWL]

The only time you cannot book up to 6 rooms is at Christmas. I don't know about the limitations to specific times of the year....my step-father is retired military.

The way I read it, an eligible person can reserve three rooms and his/her dependent spouse (if there is one) can reserve three. Except during the holidays, perhaps the spouse thing is out. But I don't see anything limiting any eligible person to a certain time of year.

From the SOG Website:

Sponsoring

As an eligible Shades of Green guest, you may sponsor up to three rooms. In addition, a dependent spouse can also sponsor up to three rooms provided the following conditions are met...

• You are a registered guest at Shades of Green
• You agree to be responsible for your guests
• You must accompany your guest at time of check in. Sponsored guest will not be authorized to check in without the sponsor being present
• Sponsored guest reservations must check in on the same day and must depart before or on the same day as your reservation
• You accompany your guests while purchasing attraction tickets
• Your guests must follow the rules of the resort

Eligible Shades of Green guests have used this unique Sponsorship program to bring in-laws, grandparents, close family friends and relatives to share in their vacation fun. This is especially helpful if you are planning an intimate wedding or family reunion to be held at Shades of Green. Many servicemembers on leave from OIF/OEF have used this option to reunite with family members here in Orlando. Family members get to enjoy their loved ones in a low stress environment away from the pressures of daily life and maximize their time together.

* During the "Hollydays" (Christmas, New Year's) only three rooms per military sponsor are allowed.

 

[suevee]

We have been to WDW twice but never to SOG. We are planning a big family trip with four families and my dad and will probably need 4-5 rooms. We have a DOD civilian who is eligible anytime and myself who is an honorable discharged vet. But the way I understand it we can only get 3 rooms at that time because I am limited to reservations in Sept and Jan only.

For you SOG veterans out there, am I understanding this correctly? And we've already checked and the villas are already reserved for this week.

If you are a retired honorable discharged vet who served 20 years are more you are eligible for SoG. If you are not a retired vet (active or reserve) then you may not be eligible for a room. This year they did set aside two month (I think) where honorable discharged vets who were not retired were able to get rooms. I do not think this is a regular promotion. Ordinarily you are required to produce a military ID when you arrive. You may want to call or check their site.

The DOD civiliam may be able to reserve rooms if they are attached to the military. Hope this info helps.

 

[Maine-iac]

Official SHADES OF GREEN Information (UPDATED 28 JAN)

Thanks for the hard work JanetRose. We really needed special info thread on SOG. Awesome!!

 

[MWMicimac]

I believe I was able to get all my questions answered, but I will post a response I rec'd from SOG as an FYI in this thread.

The "Salute to Our Veterans" Program...
Shades of Green® on Walt Disney World® Resort is pleased to announce our "Salute to Our Veterans" Program, which is designed to give all military veterans who have received an honorable discharge (verified by current DD-214), the opportunity to vacation at Shades of Green during the months of January and September. We will be happy to try to accommodate you at an overflow resort on Walt Disney World year round.

Also, to be able to reserve up to 6 rooms (during non holidays), your dependent must have a valid dependent card to be eligible as a sponsor. Unfortunately, we don't have that option in our case.

So in my own personal situation, I guess we'll either change our visit date to January or stick one family at the Poly.

 

[TLSnell1981]

I believe I was able to get all my questions answered, but I will post a response I rec'd from SOG as an FYI in this thread.

The "Salute to Our Veterans" Program...
Shades of Green® on Walt Disney World® Resort is pleased to announce our "Salute to Our Veterans" Program, which is designed to give all military veterans who have received an honorable discharge (verified by current DD-214), the opportunity to vacation at Shades of Green during the months of January and September. We will be happy to try to accommodate you at an overflow resort on Walt Disney World year round.

Also, to be able to reserve up to 6 rooms (during non holidays), your dependent must have a valid dependent card to be eligible as a sponsor. Unfortunately, we don't have that option in our case.

So in my own personal situation, I guess we'll either !change our visit date to January or stick one family at the Poly.

I can think of many places worse than the Poly! Hope you guys have a great time!

 

[Lowillian]

Hello everyone, great thread! I know this is a SoG info thread, but I have a question for active duty families, just interested in your opinion.

My DH and I are both DoD civilians and have stayed at SoG 3 times (before the expansion). We talk about whether we really deserve to be able to stay there - we are civilians. We feel we are taking away from the people who are fighting for our country and for our freedom. Those families deserve to stay there. How do the active duty families feel about this?

Thanks in advance for any opinions on this.

 

[love2driveinct]

Hello everyone, great thread! I know this is a SoG info thread, but I have a question for active duty families, just interested in your opinion.

My DH and I are both DoD civilians and have stayed at SoG 3 times (before the expansion). We talk about whether we really deserve to be able to stay there - we are civilians. We feel we are taking away from the people who are fighting for our country and for our freedom. Those families deserve to stay there. How do the active duty families feel about this?

Thanks in advance for any opinions on this.

Interesting... we are not active duty, either (Marine Reserves), but sometimes I feel a little guilty, too. I'll be interested to see what people say.

 

[ntsammy5]

... we are not active duty, either (Marine Reserves), but sometimes I feel a little guilty, too.

I'm retired now, but I'll tell you this, the reserve component has been activated more times than I can count. They deserve to stay here. As for DoD civilians, I really don't have an opinion. I certainly don't resent them for staying at Shades -- go for it!

 

[LadyZolt]

My DH and I are both DoD civilians and have stayed at SoG 3 times (before the expansion). We talk about whether we really deserve to be able to stay there - we are civilians. We feel we are taking away from the people who are fighting for our country and for our freedom. Those families deserve to stay there. How do the active duty families feel about this?

Actually, many DoD civilians end up having careers that are longer than active military careers! In the Navy, at least when I was in, we called our civilians "sand crabs" (LOL!), but we respected them because they were there all the time while most military folks transfer out every three years (some sooner, some later, but as an average). The DoD civilians are the ones who really provide continuity and in many cases, specific expertise. I doubt the DoD would function without them!

We're retired now and we stay at SOG, but we stayed there while on active duty, too, and I don't have any problem with anyone staying there who is authorized to stay there. I feel that everyone who qualifies has served in some way, military or civilian. My aunt just retired as a DoD civilian -- she's in her mid-60's now and always had some health issues that would have precluded her being active duty, but they certainly didn't affect her ability to use her brilliant mind for the benefit of the Department of Defense. Since the upgrades, SOG is much larger and you can reserve a room a year out, so I don't think anyone who qualifies is taking a spot away from anyone else who might also qualify. I'm sure they're not 100% full all the time, either, so I wouldn't worry about taking up a spot that might go to another qualified person. I say use it and enjoy! Civilians, reservists (my son is currently in the Navy reserves), retired, active duty, etc., -- all have served and all are able to enjoy SOG. I say go for it.

-Dorothy (LadyZolt)