WL - Balconies & Laundry ??'s

[Kimberle]

Hello, WL experts!

Couple of questions, if you don't mind.

We are staying at WL with our 4.5 yr dd in Sept. She's tiny, abt 38"s, 30#'s. I've read the chatter about closed and open balconies. We have a Courtyard view & was told they all have balconies by the CM.

For the saftey of our DD, should I request a room with a closed one? I don't know how far the slats are in an open one. I don't want the smallest risk of her falling. Or would it be better to get an "open" one because the closed ones may be climbed over for viewing?

My next question. I always end up doing a load of laundry. My dh changes at least 3x per day! *LOL* Does anyone have any tips on the quickest time to get in & our of the laundrymat? When we stayed at the comtem. it took me about 3 hours because 1/2 the dryers were broken so I had to wait forever to grab one! FL's so humid, no chance of line drying!

Thanks so much!!

 

[Tesabat]

Hi Kimberle -

Why not ask for the lower floor? Courtyard rooms that are located on the lower floor you can step right off onto the grass (they aren't enclosed) - a nice option for kids that can wiggle out or climb over anything.

Laundry room was busy at 11:00 pm on a Wed. nite...and it took three spins in the dryer for the clothes to dry, so can't help you out there. Maybe first thing in the morning when everyone is either racing to be first at the park or sleeping in??

Have fun!

 

[Kimberle]

Thanks so much for answering!

 

[BostonMouse]

I don't think you'll have a problem with the open balconies. The rails are sufficiently tight to prevent any problems. Otherwise, Disney would have been sued long ago for kids falling out!

As for the laundry facilities, GOOD LUCK! They are woefully inadequate. There are about 8 washers and 12 dryers for 700 rooms. There's always a wait for the machines. One night I was down there at 1 AM and ALL the washers were humming and most of the dryers too.

Good side is that they're front loading Maytags with a good capacity. Similar to the Maytag Neptune. It costs $2 to wash a load and $1 for 15 min of drying. I always needed 30 min to dry a load. They also have a soap dispenser for $2 a pop.

Finally, there's a TV in the room so you won't get too bored waiting.

The secret to getting a machine is to leave your load on top of a machine that's running and return just before the time is up. Then you can put your load in right after the machine is unloaded. If the person using the machine doesn't show up, wait about 5 min or so and then unload the machine for them and leave their washed clothes on top.

I found this out was standard practice after waiting in vain for 30 min for some thoughtless clod to come back and empty the washer.

 

[FloridaCat]

I have had encloed, 6th floor and open, 5th floor. I don't think the open would be problem and the encloesd are 4' high so I don't think she could climb that.

 

[BostonMouse]

There are chairs and a table out there that a child could climb up on. Basically, you need to watch for your child. Nothing is foolproof.

 

[Liv2CdWorld]

My DS is 4.5 too. I would say you want an open balcony. With an enclosed one (our last trip), my DS climbed the chair so he could see over the balcony...basically giving me heart failure.

I'm not so sure I'd like ground level either since it's open to the pool area. All in all, you should be fine with an open balcony.

As far as the laundry goes, when we were there in May, I did my laundry around 8 - 9 pm. I got a washer and dryer right away.

As far as taking out someone elses clothes when the washer stops....I would never think of doing that

Previous trips I tried doing laundry at 11pm and at that time, it's packed!

 

[wld]

Have to echo the terrible laundry facilities, very crowded with few machines and the dryers......everyone was giving up and taking out damp clothes.