VWL Groupies & Lovers Thread (Special Collectors Edition 2.5) updated 2 February 2025

[Dizny Dad]

OK Groupies . . I think we need a feel good spot about now. Just think; even though there may be extensive construction going on in the next 18 months or so, the Territory Lounge will still be open, along with Trout Pass!

 

[sleepydog25]

Sleepy, now my blood is boiling, havent considered in the least how they are treating us like kids. Too much of that going on in the world as it is. We can get that form our govt. they know what is better for us than what we know is good for us. The Photopass, pass, dont want it. But the way they approach telling us about it, spot on! I think in general, they are treating the Disney faithful with a little disregard. Probably someone got paid big bucks to come up with a way to sugar coat it all.

Greg, you hit it on the head, VWL owners, we arent to be messed with right now. Now they are barking up the groupies tree too. Might be time to whoop out some Moose Dust gone bad on them

Ruh roh, JT is on the warpath! Your "Moose Dust gone bad" comment made me chuckle. Laughter is always a good thing. Yeah, approach us like valued patrons and not just a number, and I'll grouse but still feel as though I matter. The way they and other companies act anymore, it seems as if they just don't care. Yes, much of the world operates on that standard now, and that aspect is what fuels my ire.

KAT: Can I like this post multiple times?!?!!! That's right on Sleepy! I too am not happy about paying more but the spin - do they really think we're that naive? It's just salt in the wound.

Thanks and yes!! lol Salt in the wound is exactly it. I do realize it's all a matter of perspective, and that this is very much a first world problem. However, Disney has always been about emotions, so they stir those when they act so imperious.

As others have said re: parking passes at VWL, our experience has always been that when you show up at the guard shack, they look up the name on the reservation and hand you a parking pass. If others in your party arrive earlier, they should allow them to head to the lobby to get the passes after checking IDs. Never had an issue.

Happy Friday all!

 

[sleepydog25]

OK Groupies . . I think we need a feel good spot about now. Just think; even though there may be extensive construction going on in the next 18 months or so, the Territory Lounge will still be open, along with Trout Pass!

Oh, don't forget the new coffee shop in TL--great place for a latte, espresso, cappucino, pastries, or just plain ol' coffee.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

OK Groupies . . I think we need a feel good spot about now. Just think; even though there may be extensive construction going on in the next 18 months or so, the Territory Lounge will still be open, along with Trout Pass!

Well, I did read one post that a CM told a guest that Trout Pass would be closed......

It was just a rumor though!

 

[sleepydog25]

Well, I did read one post that a CM told a guest that Trout Pass would be closed......

It was just a rumor though!

Nah, but Trout Pass is going to require a Deluxe Drink Pass card which costs $25 and allows you to access Trout Pass where you then pay for your drinks. Or, you can go with the Top Shelf Deluxe Drink Pass for $50 which includes upscale spirits, but there are blockout dates from 15 Mar - 15 Apr, July 4th week, Thanksgiving Week, and the entire month of Dec through 2 January. Finally, there's the Platinum Top Shelf Deluxe Drink Pass for $100 with no blockout dates. Each form of the Drink Pass comes with free pool towels. Passes can be bought at Concierge Desk, and DVC owners get a 10% discount. ID required.

 

[ottawagreg]

So checking in next week for the first time!!! 1?question 2 parts.....first part of my group is driving in so I need a parking slip???? I will have their magic bands second where is the villas desk in the main lobby of in the villas if I need a pass do I get it from them?

You will absolutely need a parking permit. I am certain that they check vehicles overnight. Here is how it works for us. We are one vehicle family, so when we arrive the guard house attendant gives us a permit and welcomes us home. For the second vehicle you will need to request it at the desk in the main lodge. I suppose that they could try to ask the guard for a grace period while you go check in, but my guess is they will note the make & model and verify that night. if there is no permit then you will have some issues in the morning. They are fairly pleasant and cooperative as people are coming and going from other resorts for dinner reservations and such. But the watch the overnight parking pretty close.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Nah, but Trout Pass is going to require a Deluxe Drink Pass card which costs $25 and allows you to access Trout Pass where you then pay for your drinks. Or, you can go with the Top Shelf Deluxe Drink Pass for $50 which includes upscale spirits, but there are blockout dates from 15 Mar - 15 Apr, July 4th week, Thanksgiving Week, and the entire month of Dec through 2 January. Finally, there's the Platinum Top Shelf Deluxe Drink Pass for $100 with no blockout dates. Each form of the Drink Pass comes with free pool towels. Passes can be bought at Concierge Desk, and DVC owners get a 10% discount. ID required.

Sounds about right!

 

[ottawagreg]

Hi Greg!

I'm assuming that you activated your AP in late July? If so, it is not subject to any of the new AP categories or restrictions...you are good until next July as far as usage on any date.

If you bought the voucher and don't intend to activate it until December, that's where I'm fuzzy. I have to think that Disney will legally have to give you the rights that you purchased in July which would mean one year with no blackout dates. That's my best guess but I'm pretty sure that it is correct.

We renewed our fast pass from the previous year. it expired on 06/20 something and I used the 30 day grace period. The CM could not find us in the system. We may have gone a few days outside the window. So she just renewed the pass on the day we spoke 07/21 (??) and sent the green vouchers, and charged my disney visa card. I assume that they are valid now and will expire next july. We are concerned that when we arrive they tell us that it is blacked out. I'm Whining at this point but the idea of all this DVC business was to alleviate the planning, questions, phone calls and so on. I am very busy, and time is precious. I am really not feeling magic these days. I asked in another posts weeks ago about resale prices going up and shortage of VWL contracts. Now the AP stuff. Myrtle Beach is looking better all the time. They have over 100 golf courses there. DW and DD don't want to sell, but me.......

 

[ottawagreg]

Nah, but Trout Pass is going to require a Deluxe Drink Pass card which costs $25 and allows you to access Trout Pass where you then pay for your drinks. Or, you can go with the Top Shelf Deluxe Drink Pass for $50 which includes upscale spirits, but there are blockout dates from 15 Mar - 15 Apr, July 4th week, Thanksgiving Week, and the entire month of Dec through 2 January. Finally, there's the Platinum Top Shelf Deluxe Drink Pass for $100 with no blockout dates. Each form of the Drink Pass comes with free pool towels. Passes can be bought at Concierge Desk, and DVC owners get a 10% discount. ID required.

Sleepy,This is extremely bad news for me. Even worse then all this nonsense about Titanium Gold plated APs. The trout pass is where I go to sneak alcoholic drinks without telling my wife and daughter that I'm secretly drinking. They think that I have seven years sober now, when in reality it is only four months (our last trip was June!). Since it is not possible to buy anything without the ever-present magic bands, they will question me about the Platinum Top Shelf Deluxe Drink Pass. What could I say that isn't very obvious? I drink iced tea a lot, it is the only brown stuff I'm supposed to drink now. Perhaps I tell them I go there for the Blackberry Mojito Green tea, or the Maharaja Chai Oolong Tea. Does that sound believable?

Stupid Mouse!

 

[sleepydog25]

Sleepy,This is extremely bad news for me. Even worse then all this nonsense about Titanium Gold plated APs. The trout pass is where I go to sneak alcoholic drinks without telling my wife and daughter that I'm secretly drinking. They think that I have seven years sober now, when in reality it is only four months (our last trip was June!). Since it is not possible to buy anything without the ever-present magic bands, they will question me about the Platinum Top Shelf Deluxe Drink Pass. What could I say that isn't very obvious? I drink iced tea a lot, it is the only brown stuff I'm supposed to drink now. Perhaps I tell them I go there for the Blackberry Mojito Green tea, or the Maharaja Chai Oolong Tea. Does that sound believable?

Stupid Mouse!

Uh, yeah. . .uh huh.

 

[jimmytammy]

OK Groupies . . I think we need a feel good spot about now. Just think; even though there may be extensive construction going on in the next 18 months or so, the Territory Lounge will still be open, along with Trout Pass!

Sounds good too me!

 

[DiznyDi]

I've had a nice chuckle reading this, this morning. Thanks all for the laughs!

Today is packing day! One more sleep - but really more like 1/2. We leave home at 4 AM. DDad says we're taking our little laptop with us, so we'll try to give updates. This is a quick trip. Our son, who hasn't been with us to Disney since 2006 will be joining us. So exciting! We hope to meet up with Julie tomorrow in Epcot. The week's weather is looking to be beautiful - mid eighties. Much better than our current 44. Enjoy your week-end!

 

[Granny]

Off topic: I finished watching the Walt Disney PBS special last night...it is two episodes with a total of 4 hours of programming so it took me a while to watch it over the past couple of weeks. I thought it was very well done, and provided a good insight into Walt Disney...his vision & drive as well as his insecurities and overbearing nature. I came away very impressed with what he accomplished in his lifetime. Really, he was a pioneer in so many different areas.

Maybe even more impressive was the depiction of Roy...though he wasn't mentioned all that often it is clear that Walt would not have accomplished much if he were in charge of his own finances. While Walt overrode Roy on several decisions, it is clear that Roy was a very loyal and loving brother. The mention of him massaging Walt's feet in the hospital was just an incredible image of service and devotion. To me, Roy was as inspiring as Walt in a completely different way.

I have never read a book on Walt Disney so this was really the first biography I had seen. I thought it was very thorough and unbiased. The interviews throughout with various illustrators and imagineers were illuminating and balanced. I recommend the show to anyone interested in Walt's life. I would think that it would be available On Demand on many cable or satellite providers.

 

[Granny]

I've had a nice chuckle reading this, this morning. Thanks all for the laughs!

Today is packing day! One more sleep - but really more like 1/2. We leave home at 4 AM. DDad says we're taking our little laptop with us, so we'll try to give updates. This is a quick trip. Our son, who hasn't been with us to Disney since 2006 will be joining us. So exciting! We hope to meet up with Julie tomorrow in Epcot. The week's weather is looking to be beautiful - mid eighties. Much better than our current 44. Enjoy your week-end!

Di....I hope that you and DDad have an awesome trip! I'll look forward to any updates you can share with us.

Julie...have a great trip as well!!

I should warn you guys that our Mickey topiary (DVC one near the walkway to VWL) was removed during our visit. I saw workers around it one day and thought they were just pruning it but then we came back and it was just empty dirt. We went out again and a few hours later returned to a fully landscaped area there with flowers. Just a touch of the Disney magic that still goes on...if we hadn't been around the villas that day we would never have seen the empty dirt area.

I must have 20 pictures of that Mickey topiary including the one with the old DCV two mountain logo...for some reason I just keep taking pictures of it! I am sure that it is a temporary removal since it looks like they are going to use that walkway for some of the equipment access. Or maybe they are going to relocate the topiary to some other spot once the construction is done. But for some reason, the removal of that topiary did cause a little wistfulness...hoping that it wasn't a sign of any unwelcome changes in the new designs. So I just wanted to give a heads up so you guys can mentally prepare for the missing topiary.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I've had a nice chuckle reading this, this morning. Thanks all for the laughs!

Today is packing day! One more sleep - but really more like 1/2. We leave home at 4 AM. DDad says we're taking our little laptop with us, so we'll try to give updates. This is a quick trip. Our son, who hasn't been with us to Disney since 2006 will be joining us. So exciting! We hope to meet up with Julie tomorrow in Epcot. The week's weather is looking to be beautiful - mid eighties. Much better than our current 44. Enjoy your week-end!

Have a great trip DiznyDi and DiznyDad!!!

And I hope you're having a great trip too Julie!!!

Di....I hope that you and DDad have an awesome trip! I'll look forward to any updates you can share with us.

Julie...have a great trip as well!!

I should warn you guys that our Mickey topiary (DVC one near the walkway to VWL) was removed during our visit. I saw workers around it one day and thought they were just pruning it but then we came back and it was just empty dirt. We went out again and a few hours later returned to a fully landscaped area there with flowers. Just a touch of the Disney magic that still goes on...if we hadn't been around the villas that day we would never have seen the empty dirt area.

I must have 20 pictures of that Mickey topiary including the one with the old DCV two mountain logo...for some reason I just keep taking pictures of it! I am sure that it is a temporary removal since it looks like they are going to use that walkway for some of the equipment access. Or maybe they are going to relocate the topiary to some other spot once the construction is done. But for some reason, the removal of that topiary did cause a little wistfulness...hoping that it wasn't a sign of any unwelcome changes in the new designs. So I just wanted to give a heads up so you guys can mentally prepare for the missing topiary.

I'm hopeful that he'll be back Granny. One trip we were there and Minnie moved in. But then a few weeks later somebody posted that Mickey was back. I guess everyone needs a vacation? I'll keep my fingers crossed that he needed some TLC R&R and will be back soon.

 

[Disney loving Iowan]

My aunt is very cruel. She calls me this morning from the Magical Express. Boo Hoo. Gonna be a long time till I get back to my favorite place.

 

[DiznyDi]

Thanks Granny and Kathy! We also have a plethora of Mickey topiary photos. Kathy, we must have been visiting the same time as you; we also have seen the Minnie topiary. Mickey is just one of those things that I EXPECT to see when walking toward the Villas. Ahh, yes... soon.....

 

[Lakegirl]

Need my fellow groupies advice. I had booked VWL 5/15-5-23/2016. Airfare was crazy and I also heard that the first weekend was a marathon weekend, the weekend after the 7 month mark I decided to switch to 5/18-5-25. Basically just switching weekends. No availability at VWL that weekend for a studio. At the time there was availability almost everywhere else EXCEPT VWL. I called MS to see if there was something going on that weekend I didn't know about and she said no but they may have taken any available rooms out of stock due to construction. Very upset that the construction is effecting owners so much!! I have wait listed the two nights but have not heard anything yet . Do you think they may have taken rooms out due to construction?

 

[ottawagreg]

Need my fellow groupies advice. I had booked VWL 5/15-5-23/2016. Airfare was crazy and I also heard that the first weekend was a marathon weekend, the weekend after the 7 month mark I decided to switch to 5/18-5-25. Basically just switching weekends. No availability at VWL that weekend for a studio. At the time there was availability almost everywhere else EXCEPT VWL. I called MS to see if there was something going on that weekend I didn't know about and she said no but they may have taken any available rooms out of stock due to construction. Very upset that the construction is effecting owners so much!! I have wait listed the two nights but have not heard anything yet . Do you think they may have taken rooms out due to construction?

That may very well be the case. Perhaps they are using dynamite that weekend to dig the new swimming hole. Or there is some other sort of construction activity and they are closing down the lake side of the villas for a period of time. Then later they may open up more rooms. It is hard to say because nobody seems to know the timeline for construction. It be real nice if they published the Gantt Chart, so we had an idea of what to expect. Earlier this year year, mid August maybe, we booked a studio for ten nights without any trouble. Those dates were something like 06/25 thru 07/06. Sounds like we better keep them until I am certain that we want to go elsewhere. Hope wait list comes thru for you.

 

[Granny]

Need my fellow groupies advice. I had booked VWL 5/15-5-23/2016. Airfare was crazy and I also heard that the first weekend was a marathon weekend, the weekend after the 7 month mark I decided to switch to 5/18-5-25. Basically just switching weekends. No availability at VWL that weekend for a studio. At the time there was availability almost everywhere else EXCEPT VWL. I called MS to see if there was something going on that weekend I didn't know about and she said no but they may have taken any available rooms out of stock due to construction. Very upset that the construction is effecting owners so much!! I have wait listed the two nights but have not heard anything yet . Do you think they may have taken rooms out due to construction?

For a while they had January and February removed from the availability tool...people were only able to book by calling MS. It looks like they are discouraging people from booking VWL as much as possible...most likely because they do not have a definitive construction schedule as Sleepy alluded to. So to answer your question, yes I think it is very possible that they have taken rooms out due to construction. Depending on what they are expecting, that could be anywhere from 20 - 50% of all the VWL villas. Best wishes on that waitlist. It might be a good time to sample another DVC resort?