What not to miss at The Grand Floridian

[kik4adog]

My wife and I will be staying at The Grand Floridian for 2 nights for our anniversary and I was wondering if anyone could tell me some things about the resort that are not to be missed.
I will say that we do not intend on dining at Victoria and Albert’s, Citricos, or Narcoosees simply because it’s not in our budget for this trip and these are restaurants we can enjoy any other trip down without staying at the resort. We will be doing breakfast Sunday morning (our check-out day) at The Grand Floridian Café and we may decide to do a couple’s massage.
What I’m looking for is information on when the orchestra plays in the lobby, is there a viewing area for fireworks with piped-in audio anywhere at the resort outside of the restaurants, etc. This may be a one-time experience for us staying at the resort and we want to make sure we experience all of the little things that make it the Flagship resort of WDW.

Thanks in advance for all of your suggestions and advice.

 

[minniebeth]

You will get a resort information sheet in your registration packet when you check in with all the information you are looking for. As for the fireworks viewing area, with piped in music, you will want to be at Narcossee's, outside by the boat launch dock. It is a perfect location and you can hear everything perfectly. It's really beautiful. You can also see the Electric Water Pageant from there too with a great view each evening.
Take some time to explore the resort and decide from there what would appeal to you. There are many places/opportunities to relax and enjoy that will not cost you extra since you are already paying for a beautiful resort.
Enjoy your anniversary celebration there!

 

[Scott MC]

The patio in front of Gasparilla's is also a great place for fireworks viewing and I believe they pipe in the music there as well.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

GF Activities
. . . Afternoon Tea
. . . pianist in lobby during afternoon
. . . orchestra on balcony after (I think) 5:00pm
. . . sitting in lobby and viewing surroundings
. . . relax on beach
. . . rent a boat from the marina

 

[Disney Fool]

don't know if they still do this, but at 8 am on Thursdays, the Mousekeepers used to promenade in the courtyard with their ruffled parasols. Very Victorian.

 

[ols386]

That patio area right outside of the food court is a good place to see the fireworks at MK. They do pipe-in the music and words that go along with it. We watched the fireworks from the boat dock area, clear down at the very end, towards the MK.

 

[iluvhawaii]

Watch fireworks from in front of Gasparilla's.
Play a friendly game of ping-pong/table tennis near the courtyard pool.
Relax in the courtyard pool or large jacuzzi at night--open 24 hours. It can be pretty quiet and peaceful late, late.
People watch, relax in the lobby of the main building.
Enjoy your anniversary celebration!

 

[kik4adog]

I just wanted to let everyone know that we absolutely enjoyed our first-ever stay at The Grand Floridian on our anniversary trip this weekend.

Just a few quick highlights that we loved about the resort:
As soon as you walk in you're hit with the wonderful scent of fresh flowers from all of the elaborate and surely expensive fresh floral bouquets in the lobby.
I love the new tile they've been installing with the somewhat subtle inclusion of Disney characters in the designs.
The pianist and the orchestra both in the lobby are fantastic! The orchestra was playing as soon as we walked in the lobby to check in-FYI...The orchestra and pianist alternate 20 minute sets from 3:00 pm - 9:30 pm. At least that's what we were told at the front desk.
Gasparilla's was a fabulous spot to watch the fireworks. We watched Hallowishes from in front. The music wasn't piped in because that is a seperate ticketed event at Magic Kingdom but from what I understand they do pipe in the music for regular Wishes over there.
We did a couples massage while we were there at the Grand Floridian Spa. This wasn't new to us because we did one there also on our honeymoon but it's always a great experience. I would highly recommend it.
I have only 2 minor complaints...For such an extravagant resort I felt that both of the pools were somewhat small and just very basic, at least when you compare it to Stormalong Bay at The Beach Club or even the pool at The Wilderness Lodge. Probably back when it was built in 1992 it was sufficient but I felt they really could use a pool upgrade to fit with the scope and size of the rest of the resort.
The other thing is there seemed to be lots of noise from the boat horns and the whistle from the steam train at Magic Kingdom. The first few times you hear the train from the resort are truly magical and you want to pinch yourself because you can't believe you're staying that close to Magic Kingdom. After hearing it all weekend I remember hearing it the morning we were checking out and thinking that I had definitely had enough of that. The noise wasn't enough to wake me up or anything. So all in all those are 2 very very small complaints.
The Grand Floridian Cafe was great and even with the resort at 100% capacity we were able to get seated right away for dinner as a walk-up.

Thanks so much for all of the tips. We really appreciate it and had a fabulous anniversary weekend.

 

[marielynn724]

sorry i'm getting in on this thread late! i just want to say that everyone has listed so many great suggestions - i will be staying in the GF this april with my new husband on our honeymoon! it is already a splurge for us to stay there and i really love all the fantastic ideas for things to enjoy at the resort that don't cost extra. now i really can't wait to go!