The **NEW** Grand Floridian FAQ!(MAY 2011)

[Sweetly]

I have to say I do miss hearing the train whistle in the morning to start my day off at the GF. Ok I still can't figure out how to upload some pics...any advice?
I decided to skip the online check in. When we arrived we were greated by a Cast Member who walked us right in and up to the desk for check in. We got our packet, our buttons and off we went.
We did see the beginnings of the construction at the GF. It wasn't too bad, as it seems to be in the beginning stages. I was thrilled to see the elderly gentlemen, Richard who still works at the GF. We saw him 8 years ago when we visited for Christmas. We had a little chat. Found out that Richard is 86 and he looks great!!! We only saw him that one day, but we took our picture with him.
We saw the fireworks from our room. It was PERFECT!!! We caught the show while at the MK, but we wanted to view it from our room. Besides what is the point of having the room with a view if you don't catch the fireworks??
The girls it.
I have to say celebrating a birthday at WDW was the best!!! My DD heard Happy Birthday all day long, got special fast passes, her desserts were always with a candle, Mickey & gang all made a fuss, and everyone sang Happy Birthday to her. Maybe for my next "BIG" birthday I will have to return to celebrate.

 

[KCmike]

KC Mike - Nice shot of the entryway to Narcoossee's! You know, I've never gotten photos of that restaurant empty.

Thanks! Here's one more...

 

[Jungle Cruiser]

I have to say I do miss hearing the train whistle in the morning to start my day off at the GF. Ok I still can't figure out how to upload some pics...any advice?
I decided to skip the online check in. When we arrived we were greated by a Cast Member who walked us right in and up to the desk for check in. We got our packet, our buttons and off we went.
We did see the beginnings of the construction at the GF. It wasn't too bad, as it seems to be in the beginning stages. I was thrilled to see the elderly gentlemen, Richard who still works at the GF. We saw him 8 years ago when we visited for Christmas. We had a little chat. Found out that Richard is 86 and he looks great!!! We only saw him that one day, but we took our picture with him.
We saw the fireworks from our room. It was PERFECT!!! We caught the show while at the MK, but we wanted to view it from our room. Besides what is the point of having the room with a view if you don't catch the fireworks??
The girls it.
I have to say celebrating a birthday at WDW was the best!!! My DD heard Happy Birthday all day long, got special fast passes, her desserts were always with a candle, Mickey & gang all made a fuss, and everyone sang Happy Birthday to her. Maybe for my next "BIG" birthday I will have to return to celebrate.

I had problems trying to figure out how to post pictures, everyone was helpful but I just couldn't make it work. I found however a tutorial under the Technical Support Thread on exactly how to do it under DIS Video Tutorials. They also have a test thread just for trying to load photos correctly. Good luck.

KCMike, love your pictures of Narcoossees when it is empty! Great shots!!!

 

[kaffinito]

I have to say celebrating a birthday at WDW was the best!!! My DD heard Happy Birthday all day long, got special fast passes, her desserts were always with a candle, Mickey & gang all made a fuss, and everyone sang Happy Birthday to her. Maybe for my next "BIG" birthday I will have to return to celebrate.

I'm glad you had such a nice visit! I was just thinking today how nice it would be to celebrate my next BIG birthday there as well. It really would make the sting of turning 45 again (and again and then some) a lot more pleasant.

GF called yesterday to check any room requests we have. I am good wherever we are! I want to thank everyone here for helping me get excited and all the great pics, info, TR! I will let you know how our stay is in 2 weeks when we get home!!!

Awesome! We've never been called to ask about room requests, very nice. I wonder if that is part of the new concierge program?

Safe travels, and have a magical, Grand vacation.

I know pas130 landed safely - she sent me a nice text to let me know

I received a call too from GF IPO. It really floored me! Now that is truly great service. I'm going to ask them when I get there if that's new.

 

[Lisa S.]

I feel left out. . .I didn't get a call from IPO and I arrive on Wednesday. I'm sure everything will be great, but I'm curious as to why.

 

[janeapplemeadow]

.
August can be very hot and humid at the GF. Make sure you enjoy the pool in the evening before you leave for the park.

 

[MommyGina]

I feel left out. . .I didn't get a call from IPO and I arrive on Wednesday. I'm sure everything will be great, but I'm curious as to why.

We have stayed at CL 3 years and never got a call from IPO either. I also wonder why? Everything was fine.

Safe travels and have a great time!

 

[Lisa S.]

We have stayed at CL 3 years and never got a call from IPO either. I also wonder why? Everything was fine.

Safe travels and have a great time!

Thanks, MommyGina! I can't wait!

 

[kaffinito]

I feel left out. . .I didn't get a call from IPO and I arrive on Wednesday. I'm sure everything will be great, but I'm curious as to why.

I'm sure everything is fine It's probably a new thing they're testing out.

Have a great trip!

.
August can be very hot and humid at the GF. Make sure you enjoy the pool in the evening before you leave for the park.

Lovely pic!

 

[k&a&c'smom]

disneydreamin247 - that often happens, DISers choose the GF for someone else and then see all the photos and fall in love. I know you are going to have a magical vacation!

Sweetly - Isn't Richard sweet? We love talking with him, too.

As Jungle Cruiser posted, there is a lot of help on the Tech Support board. Since it can sometimes be hard to find, here is a link to the forum: http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=30&f=43

and, a link to the video tutorials: http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/video-tutorials/

Good luck! Can't wait to see your photos.

janeapplemeadow - thanks for the photos, we can never have enough.

KC Mike - thanks for that photo of Narcoossee's, it is one of our favorite restaurants in the World.

I feel left out. . .I didn't get a call from IPO and I arrive on Wednesday. I'm sure everything will be great, but I'm curious as to why.

We have stayed at CL 3 years and never got a call from IPO either. I also wonder why? Everything was fine.

Safe travels and have a great time!

We, too, have stayed CL many times, and never received a call from IPO just before our arrival. We've always had room requests on the reservation, maybe they are only contacting those who do not make a request in advance?

It's almost here! Have a wonderful, Grand vacation.

 

[k&a&c'smom]

I know pas130 landed safely - she sent me a nice text to let me know

I received a call too from GF IPO. It really floored me! Now that is truly great service. I'm going to ask them when I get there if that's new.

Thanks for the update regarding pas130, I'm glad to hear she and her family landed safely.

Looking forward to hearing about any new developments!

Sweetly - I forgot to say, I'm glad your DD had a great birthday. My DD has celebrated her birthday at WDW several times, and it is always fun. Just as you described, everyone (guests included) wishes you a "Happy Birthday!" all day long, very festive!

 

[Jungle Cruiser]

k&a&c'smom, it's so nice to check this thread and see you posting again. Hope you are continuing to feel better! Also, thank you for posting the actual link to the Technical Support Thread, I should have thought to do that. It's a great help, they take you through the process and make it easy.

Just emailed IPO for the GF! We are leaving in less than 6 weeks for our fall trip and I haven't heard from them since the initial email. I want to make sure everything is in place (I am a planner!).

Everytime I see another photo of the GF on this thread I get so excited. The pictures are amazing, it makes me feel like I am there already.

 

[msmith1026]

Thanks! Here's one more...

My husband and I are eating here to celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary. I can't wait!!

 

[JoBird]

Good Morning!

I'm in the single digits and I can hardly stand myself I'm so excited.

Just wanted to pass along that I too got a call from IPO-- just yesterday.

I have a talking phone that says who is calling. Well, I'm awful about refusing to answer the phone and said out loud as it began ringing "I'm not answering, I don't care who you are."

Then it said outloud "Call from.... DISNEY".

I jumped up so fast I knocked my chair over.


Anyway, I spoke with Lauren, she said that since we were 10 days from arrival that she wanted to double check my info. She went thru the list of people in my party, wanted a phone # in case we needed to be reached during the vacation, noted my arrival time (we arrive really late and I had told IPO) and asked if I had any questions.

I did ask her the best way to ship a box (USPS, UPS, FED EX) and she said any way that I wanted to would be fine and made sure I had the correct shipping address.

That was about it.

It must be something new that they are doing. Nice touch... It sure made my day.

Now, if ONLY they could guarantee that no Tropical storms or Hurricanes would ruin our vacation........



ETA-- She said that she had my request for Marina side of SL already in the system- I asked her if she had it noted.

 

[k&a&c'smom]

Aw, thank you, Jungle Cruiser! I do feel much better, thanks. I hope you are doing well, too.

Don't worry about the link, I happened to remember that the thread sometimes drops off the opening page to the DIS. I had a frustrating time looking for a DVC thread once, until I remembered they have an extended list at the bottom of the page.

I'm a planner, too, even after so many trips to the World. I feel lost if I don't plan down to the most minute details, lol. I'm envious of your upcoming trip, we love WDW in October.

 

[k&a&c'smom]

Jo Bird - lol about knocking over your chair, I would have been the same!

What a nice touch, thanks for the details on the call. I guess that cancels my theory about requests on the reservation.

I'll keep my fingers crossed regarding hurricanes.

MommyGina - Have you eaten at Narcoossee's before? We love it, and try to dine there whenever we are at the GF. Usually have excellent service and food, although there are a couple menu items that I've had issues with. More than once, the lobster tail on the surf and turf was waaay overcooked, and the filet tasteless. I avoid that option now, though I've read others have had good luck with it.

Enjoy your anniversary dinner.

 

[JoBird]

k&a&c's mom---
It's a good thing my dog wasn't underneath my feet. He might have gotten stepped on in the rush to answer.

I was totally shocked that they called and actually came on here this morning to see if it was a normal thing that was done. Do you think all CL IPO's are doing it now?

Thanks for the crossed fingers! There's a lot of activity in the Atlantic it seems. I guess we'll just be wet at Disney!

 

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

We've never stayed at the GF and are thinking of booking there the week before Christmas to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary.

Before I book, I'm torn if we should splurge for the lagoon view. We would be booking for 5 nights with the AP code and it will come out to about $300 more than the GV. I plan on requesting a king bed and do not want a first floor room.

One more question- does anyone recommend Citricos and what did they like there?

Thanks so much for the advice!

 

[Ranger1873]

Hi,

We have a stay at the GF outer building club level in 10 days time, so I can now check in online. Is there any advantage to doing this or would I be better checking in at the resort?

Thanks

 

[lin7]

Either way is not a bad idea cause the check-in lines at the GF are not long. So even waiting to check-in wont be much of a wait either.

We've never stayed at the GF and are thinking of booking there the week before Christmas to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary.

Before I book, I'm torn if we should splurge for the lagoon view. We would be booking for 5 nights with the AP code and it will come out to about $300 more than the GV. I plan on requesting a king bed and do not want a first floor room.

One more question- does anyone recommend Citricos and what did they like there?

Thanks so much for the advice!

There's nothing like celebrating xmas @ the GF. It's absolutely beautiful at xmas. We already visited back in March, so we wanted to try something new, one of the Epcot resorts cause it fitted better with our dining reservations since most of them are at Epcot or the resorts around there. But then we're thinking it's xmas, how can we not spend it at the GF. So we're now booked there for xmas