2011/2012 Beach & Yacht FAQ, Part IV- DO NOT POST- see new 2012 thread

[jenneth79]

Wow!! That is an EXCELLENT idea!!!!

If we keep going and install a Caramel conveyor belt from the Karamell Kuche we might never have to leave Storm A Long Bay!

~MM

I vote express boat from YC dock to France!

 

[distherapy]

Okay - I need Disney brain help! We're thinking of having the kids go to the Sandcastle Club one night during our trip. They seem suspicious of the idea so far and don't realize that Mom & Dad want to spend some time in the Tequila bar... When/How do I make reservations? It would be for the middle of May...

 

[natebenma]

I did give them the heads up to collect collect collect and use them later. He might have given Dee a run for her money on the fp in hand from what he was telling me.

Thanks so much for the followup. I'm glad your relatives had a great time on their last minute trip and I'm sure they were singing your praises many times throughout their stay.

But, seriously???


Last year, when we finished our meal at CHH, we took a picture of the FPs we had gathered that morning, when we realized we had been on all 3 Mountains AND we had FP for all 3 Mountains (all before 11:30 am)- it was a Double Triple Mountain Whammy!


This year, our FP collection looked like this:

I got a pocket, got a pocket full of Fast Pass!

Excerpt from "Welcome Foolish Muggles" Trip Report.


These were just the FP we had by lunchtime. Immediately after lunch, we obtained FP to Big Thunder Mountain, followed later in the day by FP to Winnie the Pooh, and more FPs to Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain and Jungle Cruise.

.

 

[natebenma]

Okay - I need Disney brain help! We're thinking of having the kids go to the Sandcastle Club one night during our trip. They seem suspicious of the idea so far and don't realize that Mom & Dad want to spend some time in the Tequila bar... When/How do I make reservations? It would be for the middle of May...

I'm not sure when you can start to make reservations. My guess is six months out, like the dining. So now?


From Page 1 (Ameneties Section):


Kids Programs

Sandcastle Club
Hours: 4:30 PM to 12 midnight
Reservations: (407) WDW-DINE
Designed especially for children ages 4-12 years old.
Supervised activities including free play arcade games, Sega/Nintendo, board games, Disney movies), "play" kitchen and living room area, dolls and stuffed animals, arts and crafts, and much more!! Charge is approximately $12 USD per hour per child, with a two-hour minimum. Sandcastle Club provides a complimentary dinner for children that is available at 6:00 PM, 7:00 PM and 8:00 PM in the Club. Reservations required.

Visit the Sandcastle Open House each day from 1 PM to 3 PM for a variety of video games, toys and arts and crafts. Fun for the whole family!

Kid's Nite Out, Inc.
Kid's Nite Out caregivers can provide one-on-one in-room childcare in the comfort of a Walt Disney World® Resort room. The professional staff of Kid's Nite Out gives the child individual attention by playing a variety of fun-filled activities with him/her including reading books, coloring, or playing "I Spy" games. They can also provide a fun, well-trained sitter to just hang out with the family if they need a father's/mother's helper. Kid's Nite Out also plans and works children's parties, camps, and children's theme conventions.

 

[bookgirl]

Thanks so much for the followup. I'm glad your relatives had a great time on their last minute trip and I'm sure they were singing your praises many times throughout their stay.

But, seriously???


Last year, when we finished our meal at CHH, we took a picture of the FPs we had gathered that morning, when we realized we had been on all 3 Mountains AND we had FP for all 3 Mountains (all before 11:30 am)- it was a Double Triple Mountain Whammy!


This year, our FP collection looked like this:

I got a pocket, got a pocket full of Fast Pass!

Excerpt from "Welcome Foolish Muggles" Trip Report.


These were just the FP we had by lunchtime. Immediately after lunch, we obtained FP to Big Thunder Mountain, followed later in the day by FP to Winnie the Pooh, and more FPs to Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain and Jungle Cruise.

.

Okay maybe not as cool as 3 mountains but he said when all was said and done they ended up with so many multiples at the end of the day (collected in morn and saved for evening) that they actually gave away some both nights. I actually used that trip report as an example of how to use the system.

They did split it up though and got FP in groups of two (four of them on trip) so that they had multiple rides that they then just one adult would take the princess on the rides and then they all did non fp rides together. He did not get to do EMH, but he made them get up early (the women were not morning people) and they were there as soon as the public were allowed in.

When he was telling me about the trip he had it broken down in time sequence, "we hit the gate at 8 by 8:25 Aunt was in line for Repunzel that started at 9:30, mom and princess went to Dumbo and I headed to BTMR got fastpasses for frontier land with a 55 return minute, made it to Dumbo and some people let me go up to join them and we only waited 15 minutes so we all rode and made it out to get another two sets of fp and went to the line for Repunzel.........."it was hilarious. Navy Seals couldn't have broke down a mission better. He had more fun playing the fp system and working out the logistics then a kid on Christmas morning. He had a blast running around and collecting and timing and plotting.

 

[natebenma]

Okay maybe not as cool as 3 mountains but he said when all was said and done they ended up with so many multiples at the end of the day (collected in morn and saved for evening) that they actually gave away some both nights. I actually used that trip report as an example of how to use the system.

They did split it up though and got FP in groups of two (four of them on trip) so that they had multiple rides that they then just one adult would take the princess on the rides and then they all did non fp rides together. He did not get to do EMH, but he made them get up early (the women were not morning people) and they were there as soon as the public were allowed in.

When he was telling me about the trip he had it broken down in time sequence, "we hit the gate at 8 by 8:25 Aunt was in line for Repunzel that started at 9:30, mom and princess went to Dumbo and I headed to BTMR got fastpasses for frontier land with a 55 return minute, made it to Dumbo and some people let me go up to join them and we only waited 15 minutes so we all rode and made it out to get another two sets of fp and went to the line for Repunzel.........."it was hilarious. Navy Seals couldn't have broke down a mission better. He had more fun playing the fp system and working out the logistics then a kid on Christmas morning. He had a blast running around and collecting and timing and plotting.

My husband was the same way! He got such a rush planning out which FP to get when. He did not let more than a minute or two of time expire from the time he could get the next FP. Mark even said after our visit that he doesn't think he would want to go during a slow time of the year because it wouldn't be enough of a "challenge".

 

[distherapy]

I'm not sure when you can start to make reservations. My guess is six months out, like the dining. So now?


From Page 1 (Ameneties Section):


Kids Programs

Sandcastle Club
Hours: 4:30 PM to 12 midnight
Reservations: (407) WDW-DINE
Designed especially for children ages 4-12 years old.
Supervised activities including free play arcade games, Sega/Nintendo, board games, Disney movies), "play" kitchen and living room area, dolls and stuffed animals, arts and crafts, and much more!! Charge is approximately $12 USD per hour per child, with a two-hour minimum. Sandcastle Club provides a complimentary dinner for children that is available at 6:00 PM, 7:00 PM and 8:00 PM in the Club. Reservations required.

Visit the Sandcastle Open House each day from 1 PM to 3 PM for a variety of video games, toys and arts and crafts. Fun for the whole family!

Kid's Nite Out, Inc.
Kid's Nite Out caregivers can provide one-on-one in-room childcare in the comfort of a Walt Disney World® Resort room. The professional staff of Kid's Nite Out gives the child individual attention by playing a variety of fun-filled activities with him/her including reading books, coloring, or playing "I Spy" games. They can also provide a fun, well-trained sitter to just hang out with the family if they need a father's/mother's helper. Kid's Nite Out also plans and works children's parties, camps, and children's theme conventions.

Thanks! I should have known to look back there. Funny thing is, you posted while I was reading your fantastic Foolish Muggles trip report. Loved it!

I wonder what the cancellation policy is for the club. I'm sure they'll tell me something when I call, but I wonder if it will be right.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

Dee

This is my new mission - to accumulate as many fps as possible. I don't think I'll be in your league but you will be my mentor and role model!!!!!

My kids loved the Sandcastle Club. This year it will just be ds (girls are too old now). He can't wait. I'm trying something new (and I'm a nervous wreck as I am somewhat over protective of the girls). While DH and I are having dinner at our favorite restaurant (Narcoossee's) ds will be in the Sandcastle Club and girls are going to be allowed to go to MK, have a cs dinner and ride the rides. Now one dd will be almost 15 and other dd will be 13 1/2 so I KNOW they are old enough - it's just they've never done it before! They are super excited though. Wish me luck!

 

[pixarmom]

Dee, Robyn, and fellow FP collectors, you would all love FP collection at DL! Seems like nobody gets up early there, so rope drop is amazing and then you can pull FPs literally every 45 minutes or so. And the FP machines for the two parks are disconnected from each other, so you can even hop back and forth collecting. As a result, the hard part isn't collecting the FPs, but having time to use them all!

Unfortunately, a condition of our upcoming DL day is that we park hop once from DL to DCA, but not go back and forth. So we will not reach our FP collection potential.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

Nobody gets up early??????

How do these people survive when the go to WDW?

We are planning in a few years of doing the "Big California Trip" - Disney,
San Diego and San Fransisco. I guess everyone will know we are from the East Coast when we're at rope drop every day!

 

[pixarmom]

Nobody gets up early??????

How do these people survive when the go to WDW?

We are planning in a few years of doing the "Big California Trip" - Disney,
San Diego and San Fransisco. I guess everyone will know we are from the East Coast when we're at rope drop every day!

Yay! I think you'll all love it - let me know when you start to plan and I'm happy to share tips, info, etc. My mom lived minutes away from DL as a teenager and I'm originally from the San Francisco area. Our family has been vacationing in Newport Beach and other parts of CA since I was tiny. Now, we go back with our extended family nearly every year. Next month, we're driving San Francisco to Newport with a last day at DL.

It's great for WDW vets at DL. Last trip (August, 2010) we were at the security tables around 7:20 for an 8am MM (equivalent of EMH.) We were the only ones there for nearly 1/2 hour - seriously. We were first through security, first to the gates, chosen to open the park that morning, first on Main Street and first on the Matterhorn! (That last DL experience made our WDW vet kids a little greedy.) Everything was a complete walk-on for over two full hours. And that was in the summer when it was supposed to be super crowded (and it was crowded - much later.) Bring your WDW strategies to DL and they will be even more effective!

 

[Marlton Mom]

I wonder what the cancellation policy is for the club.

I believe you have to forfeit one of your children but there is an 'upside' to this as most people just leave the cranky one.... Some women have even tried to leave their husbands...

Nobody gets up early??????

I get up early (until about day 3) then I take a "break" at mid day which entails entertaining my son in the pool while my husband naps ( !! ) and then I go back until closing where park security has been known to very nicely walk me out. Usually by day 3 my body revolts and refuses to cooperate with any of my brain's plans.

How do these (late sleeping) people survive when the go to WDW?

These are the people we see waiting in that 90 minute line for Peter Pan/Pooh/Tower of Terror/rocknroller coaster/ yeti ride thing. Be sure and wave your fast passes at them as you zip by them to ride for a second time.

The people that we see in the 90 minute line for Toy Story Mania 5 minutes after the park opens are the slow and crotchety ones that can't run fast.


As for me, I can sleep when I'm dead!

I'll have 104 hours at Disney when I go on my February trip. If you remember Marlton Mom's Bounce Back Clock calculations I shouldn't have any time loss due to annoying people accompanying me on my solo trip. (As hard as I try I can not find myself to be annoying, that's the job of other people)

So 104 hours times 60 minutes is 6240 minutes. If you take just the Disney fees and not the airfare, the cost for my trip would be $818.05.

$818.05 divided by 6240 minutes is 13 cents a minute.

Like I said before, I can sleep when I'm dead!

~MM

 

[Music City Mama]

Question: Is this most active resort thread on the resorts forum?! It's got to be! I can't believe how many new PAGES (not posts) there are since I checked in the other day. Btw, you guys are quite comical!

The only thing I can think to comment on that might be helpful is that I'm guessing the Sandcastle Club has a 24 hour cancellation -- or perhaps the same day by a certain time. I only base this on the fact that Camp Dolphin (at the Dolphin) was like that. Speaking of Camp Dolphin, as much as I know the kids would love the Sandcastle Club, I can't bring myself to pay for it (and dinner for DH and me) when I know I can drop them off at Camp Dolphin for free for 2 hours as long as I eat at a S/D restaurant (which is what I want anyway) AND I can use a $25 restaurant.com certificate for the restaurant. I'm cheap like that.

 

[kelleigh1]

Nobody gets up early??????

Being on East Coast time, I think we would put these people to shame. Hubby is up at 5 or 6am even when we are on vacation. Add the time difference and he'll be ready to hit the park at 3am or earlier.

hmmmm....maybe we should have considered a Leap Day trip to DL. We could sleep all day and play all night.

 

[natebenma]

Thanks! I should have known to look back there. Funny thing is, you posted while I was reading your fantastic Foolish Muggles trip report. Loved it!

I wonder what the cancellation policy is for the club. I'm sure they'll tell me something when I call, but I wonder if it will be right.

No problem. You are forgiven! Thanks for the kind words about the report.

Sorri, I'm not sure if the cancellation policy is 24 hours or 48 hours or something else, or what the financial penalty is if you don't keep the appointment.

 

[bookgirl]

<-----------


not a MORNING Person.

On vacation when my parents were there I had to drag them out the door sometimes not till 10:30.


Solo I was at the busstop and making rope drop. I um even managed to sneak in to the Magic Kingdom early. I didn't mean too, but yeah like I totally did.

I kinda did write a trip report but I'm rubbish at pictures and there was just text text text ad nauseum.

But I'll post that part if you want to hear.

 

[distherapy]

I believe you have to forfeit one of your children but there is an 'upside' to this as most people just leave the cranky one.... Some women have even tried to leave their husbands...

I just choked on a Skittle.
Of course, I shouldn't be eating the Skittles anyway, but what the kids haven't finished from Christmas is fair game once they are back in school!

 

[natebenma]

Dee

This is my new mission - to accumulate as many fps as possible. I don't think I'll be in your league my you will be my mentor and role model!!!!!

Rule Number 1 (and Number 2): NO BATHROOM BREAKS!!!

Dee, Robyn, and fellow FP collectors, you would all love FP collection at DL! Seems like nobody gets up early there, so rope drop is amazing and then you can pull FPs literally every 45 minutes or so. And the FP machines for the two parks are disconnected from each other, so you can even hop back and forth collecting. As a result, the hard part isn't collecting the FPs, but having time to use them all!

WOW!!!

Being on East Coast time, I think we would put these people to shame. Hubby is up at 5 or 6am even when we are on vacation. Add the time difference and he'll be ready to hit the park at 3am or earlier.

I'm the same way. Awake by 5 am every day of the year, weekends, vacations, holidays. I'd be waiting at the turnstiles at 3 am with your hubby too!

Question: Is this most active resort thread on the resorts forum?! It's got to be! I can't believe how many new PAGES (not posts) there are since I checked in the other day. Btw, you guys are quite comical!

We must be! We rarely dip onto Page 2 of the thread listing. But these past couple of days have been particularly active. The moon must be in the Seventh House, or Jupiter is aligned with Mars, or something!

<-----------

Solo I was at the busstop and making rope drop. I um even managed to sneak in to the Magic Kingdom early. I didn't mean too, but yeah like I totally did.

I kinda did write a trip report but I'm rubbish at pictures and there was just text text text ad nauseum.

But I'll post that part if you want to hear.

Would love to hear about your adventures. Especially the illicit ones!

 

[kelleigh1]

I'm the same way. Awake by 5 am every day of the year, weekends, vacations, holidays. I'd be waiting at the turnstiles at 3 am with your hubby too!

It's funny because during the week, I'm up at 5 for work and I wake him between 6 and 6:30. On weekends, he's up at 5am and I sleep in until somewhere between 7 and 8. He wakes me by 8 usually because he knows that as much as I like my sleep, I don't like to waste the day either and I want to get moving.

Disney...we are at rope drop. No doubt about it. He's up before me and it's his job to go refill our mugs in the morning. Then he comes back and we get ready to head out.

 

[mousiemom]

well, we just return from our fabulous trip @ the beach club concierge's level touring a family of 29!!! i am so spoiled now. our room was right outside the lounge & concierge's. it had 3 huge windows and a balcony that overlooked the courtyard but we could still see illuminations at night. we were treated like kings and queens. the week after christmas was very busy but we managed to be there early and fp and got to do and see our favorites. the family loved it. one of the families asked if they could get a ressie in the castle with cinderella and i was like good luck with that one, and he got it!!! The weather was perfect. Our dd loved the slide and she went swimming 2 days. we loved the whole area. the walk to epcot was wonderful, i loved just leisurely walking over there to go to ws and get our snacks and drinks. we spent NYE in epcot and it was the most exciting place to be. i know that MK closed @ 11:30 on that day but epcot was fine. we had breakfast in bed on our free day, it was glorious. i loved having the cordials in the evening. i will dream about staying there!