„Did you feel pressured to provide only EXCELLENT ratings?“

[Wicket's Mom]

Just got back from 5 weeks in Florida, so am very far behind on my Dis subscriptions. I'm signing up for this one & will have to catch up as soon as I can. Can't wait to start reading.

 

[dizneeat]

My parents had a bad experience with Hertz this last trip and they will never rent from them again. The people working were rude and basically called them liars. the lines were long and they ended up charging them twice as much as what we reserved it for (Under a friends and family rate and they told my parents they were liars and not related). I am going to write a letter and so is my mom. they even called me on the phone and were rude to me as well.

Sorry to hear that you and your parents had a bad experience with Hertz. For us it was always the easiest rental agency to rent with. A few years ago they started to raise their prices to a level where they were just no longer in the race - so we went with Dollar. Well, my experience with Dollar was always a "not so nice" one when it came to check in. They were very pushy with insurance - even though we had paid for it upfront and it required 15 signatures to set the deal. So when Hertz's prices came down we went back to them - this was the first real LONG line and slow employees.

Your room looks fabulous. I just heard recently about the 10pm closing for the DVC resort areas. I had not known that before either.

I never knew about the 10pm closing, otherwise we would have just driven up to the GF. Well, live and learn, so we at least had a nice walk over to the GF.

I agree, going to Mk that late probably would have been a waste.

I would not have even thought about it, had we still had APs. But since we don't return until next March I had let ours expire. And I was not up to wasting a whole day's ticket for an hour and a half.

Claire and I parked at the GF one day for her tea party and they had us right over by the villas and I was tempted to go in and look, but we just didn't have enough time when we arrived to do so. I did get a picture of that fountain as well.

You really need to go and explore it, Jen. It IS a beautiful DVC resort. I liked it more than the GF itself.
And that fountain is just too cute.

Those villas are so incredibly beautiful- the color palette is beyond gorgeous! The referbed rooms in the hotel are also quite lovely.

I never really cared for the GF, but the villas are very beautiful and they have made the studios pretty comfortable!

Your plane was so cool! I have never been on such a huge plane- and the food they serve on Luftahnsa looks so good!

We usually go on the 747/700 in February - in the summer they use an Airbus - about the same size. I really love the Airbus plane as they only have two seats left and right and four in the middle.
Lufthansa does pretty well on food - even in economy. We were so lucky (and happy) with our choice of flying business this trip. The whole trip started out on such a wonderful note!

So sorry about immigration and customs- it really is not a lot of fun at ALL when it is crowded, and when its late.

Well, immigration is hit or miss. Had we arrived 20 minutes earlier it might have been a whole other situation.
But given that we had been up for about 24 hours when we arrived we didn't really mind to much about changing our plans.

I love the pictures of your villa and the view from the balcony!

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

It was really awesome, Teresa. I went out on the balcony and was in awe. Well, I loved the room as well. It was amazing!

Karin, I'm way behind in your TR, but took time tonight to catch up.

Thank you for taking the time, Elaine!

Wow...That's some food you got on your flight...looks delicious

They do cater well in business class - but I think we got really lucky with the menu this time.

I hope Tom is feeling much better with his treatments, please send him our regards. I LOVE the scenery pictures by his spa. You know I love the alps.

I thought of you when I posted that first set. There are some more to come on my PTR!
And thanks, Tom is feeling a lot better at the moment. I hope it stays that way for a while, even though with his work I doubt it.

Great pictures on your approach. I hate car rental lines. We always have a line, then we always have some type of problem when it is our turn. For some reason it's never an easy process for us, even though I have all my documents.

It's awesome when you fly in and see those landmarks! It really makes you even more excited.
As far as rental cars - we have had some really easy times, where we walk up to the counter and two minutes later we have a key in hand. I don't know what was going on when we arrived in February. It was just a mess.

YAY for Krispy Creme! Howie always has to take the long way and go under the Walt Disney arch. He says he isn't in Disney until he drives under that sign!!

Krispy Kreme are the taste of vacation to us. I think it is because we have nothing like it here, where you can have them hot off the belt.
And I am with Howie - the vacation hasn't started until you have gone under the arch.

I love the lobby. Your room is beautiful and what a wonderful view you had. I think we will have to go visit there in July. Maybe I'll convince Howie to take a tour of the villas.

You really need to try the VGF once. They are really wonderful. We were so happy with our decision. And the studios are bigger than the ones at BLT.

 

[pas130]

Beautiful!!! Karin I love it!!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

They have a lot of great cruises (some really exciting Europe ones, like Norway or the Baltics again). And even without a cruise you are going to have a blast at WDW. Is there a special time frame you are looking at? We are going the second half of August and into September in 2015.
And to answer your question - YES, I did get what I wanted but it was quite a long way there. (I will disclose all the details in my PTR hopefully this weekend)[/QUOTE]

I'm glad you got what you wanted! It is great that you could leave from your part of the world if you choose to! Looking forward to see what you do!
We are planning on May 2-9 2015 - Mason's birthday will be on the 4th, and it is Star Wars weekend, I think so it is a perfect time to go!

 

[ddstratton]

Joining in! Loving your report so far. Looks like you guys have had a great start to vacation, with only a couple little bumps along the way. I'm enjoying your pictures so much!

 

[dizneeat]

That Villa bathroom is awesome! And I love the cute pull out bed. Dumbo is one of my favorites. I used to sing "Baby Mine" to my children when they were infants. Every time I hear the song now, I tear up. (I was a complete mess when they played the song in one of the shows on the Fantasy!)

The studio was awesome and actually having two bathrooms was incredible.
And the pull down bed is so cute. I really loved to see it, even though, if it is out it goes way into the path from the room to the bathroom. I can see someone falling over it in the dark.

Ah, how awesome that you have such a beautiful connection to "Baby Mine".

I'm all caught up and you just finished your first day. I love flying First/Business Class. We are lucky that wpue have enough Frequent Flyer miles that we can do it, but we've never had meals that looked as good as what you were served.

For us flying Business is a rare treat. I was able to snag a REALLY low fare for it last summer and we upgraded with miles this time.
The food on Lufthansa business is always outstanding. But this time they outdid themselves.

Love the pictures from the Grand Floridian Villas! We'll be staying there in about 7 weeks! Looks beautiful from the pictures! I'm sure they're even better in person.

You are going to LOVE the villas! The colours are so beautiful and the rooms are very well thought through (apart from the kind of scary locks in the bathroom ) and the balcony was HUGE!

I chuckle at the way you two hit Krispy Kreme every time you come to the US, I would imagine with all the fancy pastries you have in your home country, the donuts would pale in comparison.

The thing is that I can have the fancy pastries here every day, but to have those warm doughnuts, fresh off the belt is just amazing.
I am not a huge fan of doughnuts in general, but these glazed ones make my mouth water.

Looking forward to hearing more!

I'm glad that Tom is home and you are getting back to normal life.

Real life turned out to be stressful, but my Easter vacation starts on Saturday, so that is something to look forward to.

Yay for finally arriving and checking into the VGF! Aren't those rooms outstanding? My only complaint is I would like more draw space. Not having drawers is just an excuse for Denny to leave everything all over the floors!

Mary Ellen, there are huge drawers under the bed! Lots of storage. The rooms are just beautiful and the balcony is huge. We really fell in love with it.

What a lovely view!

And your snacks look so yummy! What a relaxing first night!

We loved the view of the Contemporary from the balcony.
And since it was far too late to head over to the MK we really enjoyed our nice leisurely meal.

Just got back from 5 weeks in Florida, so am very far behind on my Dis subscriptions. I'm signing up for this one & will have to catch up as soon as I can. Can't wait to start reading.

Welcome back, Doris.
Take your time catching up - there are links in the first post to help you out!

 

[dizneeat]

Beautiful!!! Karin I love it!!

You really need to check the Studios out on one of your travels. They are really beautiful.

I'm glad you got what you wanted! It is great that you could leave from your part of the world if you choose to! Looking forward to see what you do!
We are planning on May 2-9 2015 - Mason's birthday will be on the 4th, and it is Star Wars weekend, I think so it is a perfect time to go!

We did not decide on anything here in Europe. Funnily enough the European itineraries don't tickle our fancy that much. I mean I can fly to Norway in less than two hours from Vienna. So, we have decided on cruises in warmer climate again.

Yeah, planning a trip for Star Wars weekend. AWESOME!!!! The kids are going to love it.

Joining in! Loving your report so far. Looks like you guys have had a great start to vacation, with only a couple little bumps along the way. I'm enjoying your pictures so much!

Welcome!
Great to have you on board.
Travelling from Europe we know what to expect concerning flight delays and immigration, so we knew what we were in for, we had just hoped that it would work out differently.

 

[dizneeat]

Day 2, February 16

„Are you on a Disney cruise right now?“ - Part 1

I woke up a few times during the night, but given that we both had to get over the 6 hour time change, it was okay.
By 6am I could not stay in bed any longer. Tom was awake too, so we got up, Tom was putting on some coffee and I did was I always do, I wandered out onto the balcony. I came straight back in to get the camera.









The sun was coming up and it was an absolutely beautiful view. Tom went to take a shower while I stayed out on the balcony snapping away.

























Once Tom came back we had “coffee on the veranda” (thanks for letting me borrow that, Cynthia!). And not only coffee, there were still a few of the Krispy Kreme doughnuts left, so we sat outside, soaking up the sun that had come up and enjoying the morning so far.









And after enjoying some food on the balcony it was time for me to finish the repacking, and taking a shower, while Tom got himself a snack from the day before’s leftovers.
When we were done there was just enough time to sit out on that balcony for some more time before we needed to say goodbye. By 8.30 we were ready to make the first luggage run.
We took our suitcase and our two bigger bags and went down to the car. Once there we were able to load everything into the boot and drive back to the entrance of the villas. We stopped right in front of the main entrance, let bell services know that we would just get the rest of our stuff and then we would leave.
They were quite okay with it and told us not to hurry and take our time. Back to the room we went. We got the rest of our stuff together, checked everywhere again and then were heading towards the door. But, well, wait a moment, one last visit out on the balcony to soak in the scenery again. And then we were finally on our way out.
We put the rest of our luggage into the car and got ready to drive away, but then I didn’t know if I had taken all the pics I had wanted to take. So I got out of the car again and walked inside again. The bell service guys commented that it was hard to say goodbye and they were right, but we were on our way to a Disney cruise ship.









And after that final visit we now were on our way.

To be continued ............ ​

 

[KatMark]

What a spectacular view. And no better way to enjoy it than with coffee and Krispy Kremes.

I bet it was hard to say goodbye, but you were going on a cruise so not too much sympathy from me.

 

[jenseib]

I love that donut shot with sun coming through..It's like nothing can get better than that!

We had issues in 2012 with dollar and I wrote about them, but I went with them again for myself this time because the price was sooooo much cheaper and I was pleasantly surprised. They changed the signing system and no more tricking you into getting insurance and they only asked me once if I wanted it and then never again and no arguments. I was so happy.

 

[englishrose47]

Wow a whole lot of updates !!! The soup on the plane looked really good !!! Yay for the Hot sign at Crispy Crème donuts !! The GF Villas look amazing !!!

 

[rteetz]

Wow that is one heck of a view I have yet to stay at any MK area resort. I'm hoping very soon I can stay at one of them, I've been eyeing up the contemporary for a while now. Anyways loving you trip report so far can't wait to hear more.

 

[annmarieda]

Oh my goodness! I think I am in love with your room and view! I have not been anxious to stay at the GF.. but the Villas are a different story. So pretty! I would have a hard time saying good bye after only being there such a short time. But... on to a cruise!!

 

[ddstratton]

What a beautiful sunrise view!

 

[pas130]

What an amazing view Karin!!! Coupled with coffee and a krispy Keene, perfection!!!

 

[JKSWonder]

What a view! Just beautiful.

 

[Ntrain]

I'm so glad I found your other report. Love your trip reports.
Wow those are nice views from the GF. We are thinking of renting DVC points for our next WDW vacation. I might consider the GF.

 

[Linda67]

Hi Karin
I had a lot to catch up on!
Great photos from the GFV or is it VGF
We aren't fans of the GF and I can't imagine I could convince Philip to stay there but the rooms look beautiful
Love the photos and view from the veranda - what a perfect way to start the day

 

[dizneeat]

What a spectacular view. And no better way to enjoy it than with coffee and Krispy Kremes.

I bet it was hard to say goodbye, but you were going on a cruise so not too much sympathy from me.

We loved the view - and I could have spent a lot more time out there. Our KKs came in pretty handy in terms of breakfast - perfect start to a perfect day.

To be honest, we were quite torn. It was hard to say goodbye, but the thought of a Disney vessel really eased the pain.

I love that donut shot with sun coming through..It's like nothing can get better than that!

We had issues in 2012 with dollar and I wrote about them, but I went with them again for myself this time because the price was sooooo much cheaper and I was pleasantly surprised. They changed the signing system and no more tricking you into getting insurance and they only asked me once if I wanted it and then never again and no arguments. I was so happy.

Jen, you summed up the feeling of that morning - nothing could get better than that morning.

Good to know about Dollar, Jen. They are considerably cheaper than Hertz, but we have had a few really horrible encounters with Dollar. Apart from what I already told you I remember picking up a rental in Port Canaveral and it took an hour and a half in line, as they only had one guy working there. There were two other people, but one decided to go on break and the other would only take returns - I was at boiling point.

Wow a whole lot of updates !!! The soup on the plane looked really good !!! Yay for the Hot sign at Crispy Crème donuts !! The GF Villas look amazing !!!

I just did a few updates this last weekend, Rosie. I thought I might get a lot done while Tom was away, but alas - I got NOTHING done.
We just love to see that "Hot Now" sign. Tom even has an ap on his phone that shows us when it is on. So sad that we would have to fly across the pond to pop in.

Wow that is one heck of a view I have yet to stay at any MK area resort. I'm hoping very soon I can stay at one of them, I've been eyeing up the contemporary for a while now. Anyways loving you trip report so far can't wait to hear more.

The view was awesome. I knew we would see "some" water, but to see the Contemporary, the Poly and part of WL was awesome.
We have stayed at all the MK resorts now and I have to say that the Villas at the GF have won my heart - they are beautiful! Other than that we loved staying at the CR. We stayed Concierge with a MK view and it was AWESOME. We very rarely left the hotel. The other resort we really like is BLT. You cannot beat walking to the MK.

 

[dizneeat]

Oh my goodness! I think I am in love with your room and view! I have not been anxious to stay at the GF.. but the Villas are a different story. So pretty! I would have a hard time saying good bye after only being there such a short time. But... on to a cruise!!

I know what you mean about the GF, Ann, but the villas are like a different resort - so beautiful. Such great studios. We loved it.
We did have a hard time saying goodbye, but as I had thought we were up very early and had some time to enjoy the balcony and room for a while.

What a beautiful sunrise view!

It was awesome. I could have spent a lot more time out there, but the Dream was calling my name.

What an amazing view Karin!!! Coupled with coffee and a krispy Keene, perfection!!!

We were so happy with the view. Made for an absolute perfect start to the vacation.
And to top it all off we had yummy doughnuts.

What a view! Just beautiful.

It was a perfect morning and the perfect start to our trip!