2011 Beach & Yacht Club FAQ

[heatherbabydoll1]

Teena,

First, let me tell you I have been praying for ya and will continue. I am hopeing for the best for you and your family.

Second, I need your input badly. For about three trips we have gone an eaten at at Cape May and have googled eyed over the BC. This year if everything goes right we will be there!!!! My son will be turning 13 this Dec. when we are there and he has NO IDEA! We have booked a 1 bedroom suite over at the villas for Dec. 13 thru 22. We might have to shorten by a day but besides that we are saving like crazy to make this dream come true for our son.
Right now all he knows is that we are going to fly in to Sanford (because Alligant moved back there) and we are going to rent a car and drive to the beach club to go to beaches and cream for lunch. He has always wanted to go there and order the kitchen sink, so he thinks that is where we are going there right off the bat because it is the only time we can work it in. Then we told him we might take a few to walk around and look around but we have to drive over to the French Quarter (where we normally stay) to check in before we go to the Yaht club that night. The operator when I booked the room worked with me so he heard me say we wanted to stay at the French Quarter even though we were reserving the BC 1 bedroom villa!

So besides the fact we got to keep our mouths shut for almost a whole year. Do you have any advice to pull of this suprise with any other ideas to make it extra special there. My husband and I want to blow this out of the water but it is taking just about every extra penny we have to pay off the trip. So anything that would cost a lot can't happen, but anything special about the resort any ideas would be great! Please!!! any help would be great. We have one child and he will only become a teenager one time in his life and we want to make this rock!!!!!! He is so special, he is even sharing his room to help us with our minastry of fostering children also. He is so deserving of this. Thank you ahead a time for any help you can give me! Thank you!

 

[TeenaS]

...unless, of course, you come on and question insensitive remarks and then respond and try to defend yourself. Things will get uncomfortable then, LOL.

No one will ask you when you are coming down to visit BC/YC or even thank you when you offer your heartfelt support and assistance during their difficult time by sharing your own experience.

Not surprising, but very disappointing...thanks for reminding me why I prefer men over women. Us strong women are scary!

Looking forward to seeing some of you at SAB in August. I'll be the crazy b**ch with the perfect rack, compliments of BC and Tamoxifen.

Have a great day!

I'm sorry you feel that way. I apologized earlier and tried to explain why I was so excited about not having to take Tamoxifen (my past experiences with killer hot flashes). I certainly appreciated your advice and went to the other thread you mentioned. And I definitely appreciated you sharing your experience. From others that have shared their experience, I was able to find out so much and could ask questions of my doctor that I would have never known to ask.

I definitely look forward to meeting you when you are at the Y&B!

 

[Sinderelly]

Robyn:
I'm so glad to hear your Mom made it through her surgery. I hope the worst is behind her and she can begin to heal and get stronger. I will still keep her and you in my prayers

 

[DisneyMomx7]

I love this thread and the people subscribed to it.

I just want to say that last summer when I was trying to determine whether or not I should go ahead and go on my vacation planned for August after my father was diagnosed with lung cancer, I received so much support from my YC/BC family that I decided to go ahead and celebrate my DS10 birthday at WDW. My father then passed away two days before Christmas, we buried him on Dec. 28 and after returning home the next day I was sitting around and picked up the computer and logged on to the Disboards. Fifteen minutes later I had a trip booked for the next day through Jan 2.

Some people would think that was odd, but I found comfort in it. My DH, DS22, DS10 and myself spent New Year's night at California Grill; bought an expensive bottle of champagne and toasted the life of my dear father. It was a moment I will cherish in the middle of a very bad time.

My warmest wishes go out to those who are facing obstacles and hurdles in their lives right now. We are here. Love you all!

Nettie

I think that was a fabulous thing to do. I'm sure that's exactly how your father would have wanted it.

I know I thank God every day that we did the Grand Gathering in 2008. My Mom always says that it was the best vacation she ever had. I'm even more thankful that we did the Resort Portrait Session - 4 generations - priceless.

 

[TeenaS]

Teena,

First, let me tell you I have been praying for ya and will continue. I am hopeing for the best for you and your family.

Second, I need your input badly. For about three trips we have gone an eaten at at Cape May and have googled eyed over the BC. This year if everything goes right we will be there!!!! My son will be turning 13 this Dec. when we are there and he has NO IDEA! We have booked a 1 bedroom suite over at the villas for Dec. 13 thru 22. We might have to shorten by a day but besides that we are saving like crazy to make this dream come true for our son.
Right now all he knows is that we are going to fly in to Sanford (because Alligant moved back there) and we are going to rent a car and drive to the beach club to go to beaches and cream for lunch. He has always wanted to go there and order the kitchen sink, so he thinks that is where we are going there right off the bat because it is the only time we can work it in. Then we told him we might take a few to walk around and look around but we have to drive over to the French Quarter (where we normally stay) to check in before we go to the Yaht club that night. The operator when I booked the room worked with me so he heard me say we wanted to stay at the French Quarter even though we were reserving the BC 1 bedroom villa!

So besides the fact we got to keep our mouths shut for almost a whole year. Do you have any advice to pull of this suprise with any other ideas to make it extra special there. My husband and I want to blow this out of the water but it is taking just about every extra penny we have to pay off the trip. So anything that would cost a lot can't happen, but anything special about the resort any ideas would be great! Please!!! any help would be great. We have one child and he will only become a teenager one time in his life and we want to make this rock!!!!!! He is so special, he is even sharing his room to help us with our minastry of fostering children also. He is so deserving of this. Thank you ahead a time for any help you can give me! Thank you!

First of all I have to tell you how lucky you are to get a one bedroom villa at the Beach Club Villas. It's really hard to get in there unless it's your home resort and you are a member of the vacation club!

Off the top of my head, I can't think of anything except if it were me, I'd probably have one of the adults take him to Beaches & Cream and the other adult should probably say they need the restroom. That adult could check in so he doesn't see that part of the surprise. Only draw back is if it's before 4 PM, I doubt your room will be ready. But you'll have the keys and you can certainly hang on to them and go have lunch and just tell him that you want to walk around the resorts (BC, YC and Boardwalk) and check out all the holiday decorations before checking in at Port Orleans. You mentioned dinner at the Yacht Club. So, after lunch and after spending LOTS of time at the 3 resorts checking out the decorations, you could say something about it being too late to go check in at Port Orleans and since you were coming back here for dinner anyway, you'd just stick around until dinner and go exploring. By then (4ish), you should have received a text on your cell phone with your room number and since you already have your keys, go explore the Beach Club Villas (the green building). Just explore, look around, and find yourself right next to your room. Then you could pull out the keys, hand them to him and have him open the door to the room and yell SURPRISE. When whoever checks in gets the keys, make sure you get him a Happy Birthday Button too so you can give it to him, and make sure they have your cell phone number and tell them you want to be notified as soon as your room is ready.

I'm sure with all the folks on this Y&B thread, they will come up with loads of ideas that won't cost you much. Make sure your son wears his birthday button everywhere!! Sometimes you get extra desserts at meals ... you just never know what could happen. I think just surprising him with stay at the Y&B will be plenty ... what a wonderful birthday!!!!!

Make sure you are ready for every kind of weather. You can hit 85 degrees and 40 degrees in the same week while you are there at that time of year ... be prepared!!!!!

And thanks for the good wishes!!!!!

 

[YCFAN]

I think that was a fabulous thing to do. I'm sure that's exactly how your father would have wanted it.

I know I thank God every day that we did the Grand Gathering in 2008. My Mom always says that it was the best vacation she ever had. I'm even more thankful that we did the Resort Portrait Session - 4 generations - priceless.

I loved meeting you last August at our mini Dis meet!
I'm praying for your mother.

 

[pkdof]

I'll be there Sunday from 9:30 AM to 5:45 PM. Then on Monday, back to the Mayo Clinic.

Teena, we should arrive at BC at about 5 pm Sunday - so glad we'll get a chance to meet you! Where can I expect to find you?

 

[YCFAN]

heatherbabydoll1:

As Teena said, be sure and have him wear his birthday button everywhere he goes. Random people will wish him a happy birthday and believe it or not, that will end up being the highlight of the trip. Just a wonderful celebration of his birthday!!

 

[TeenaS]

Teena, we should arrive at BC at about 5 pm Sunday - so glad we'll get a chance to meet you! Where can I expect to find you?

Unless I'm fixing a problem for someone, I should be the old lady you see dressed in a navy type skirt and jacket in the middle of the lobby as you walk in the front door.

 

[heatherbabydoll1]

Thank you so much! Does anyone have any room they think I should request or anything like that. Any Ideas would be great. I really would love any ideas! Any tricks of the resort, where the shortest walks to the pool is ect and less crowded. My family is pooh sized and I don't want to be going through the lobby to get to the pool in my suit and cover up. Here is another question. Since I am staying in a villa but not an owner do I get daily mousekeeping, what do people tip there for mousekeeping? Also I have heard that there can be groceries deliverd, is it expensive? Who do we call? and can the stuff be in the room when we check in?

 

[tortoni]

Well I did it. We were not planning to come down to the BC until October for a quick food and wine weekend, but since Teena shared her news I've been wanting to give her a hug, so we will be down the first week of August! Teena, now I am thinking that this is when Jeanne is having her baby and you might be in Las Vegas. Let me know because I've got some date flexibility and I want to give you that hug!

 

[nannette]

Thank you so much! Does anyone have any room they think I should request or anything like that. Any Ideas would be great. I really would love any ideas! Any tricks of the resort, where the shortest walks to the pool is ect and less crowded. My family is pooh sized and I don't want to be going through the lobby to get to the pool in my suit and cover up. Here is another question. Since I am staying in a villa but not an owner do I get daily mousekeeping, what do people tip there for mousekeeping? Also I have heard that there can be groceries deliverd, is it expensive? Who do we call? and can the stuff be in the room when we check in?

OMG!!! Pooh sized... I LOVE THAT!!! I hope you have a great birthday trip!! Take him to Chef Mickey's they do the best birthday celebration there!! I took my 25 at the time DD and it was great!!!

~Nannette

 

[TeenaS]

Thank you so much! Does anyone have any room they think I should request or anything like that. Any Ideas would be great. I really would love any ideas! Any tricks of the resort, where the shortest walks to the pool is ect and less crowded. My family is pooh sized and I don't want to be going through the lobby to get to the pool in my suit and cover up. Here is another question. Since I am staying in a villa but not an owner do I get daily mousekeeping, what do people tip there for mousekeeping? Also I have heard that there can be groceries deliverd, is it expensive? Who do we call? and can the stuff be in the room when we check in?

If you have a car/truck, it will be lots cheaper if you just go out to Walmart or Super Target and get your groceries! Just my opinion!

From the Villas, you will walk out of the Villas and through the BC to get to SAB. You don't have to walk right through the lobby. When you enter the BC, it will be right there at the Marketplace - make a right. Just walk past the Marketplace and make the second left as soon as you pass the Marketplace. That takes you to the restrooms and there is a door that leads outside. If you go out that way and head to the lake and make a right at the lake, you can get in SAB there. It will get you there without walking directly through the lobby.

If you are paying for the villa with $ instead of points, you will get daily mousekeeping. What you tip is entirely up to you. I'm sure everybody is different. The one bedroom villas are big. For a family of three, personally, I would leave $5 every day. I always leave it every day because you could have the same person do your villa for six days in a row and on the seventh day when you might checkout, if you leave a large end of trip tip, a brand new mousekeeper that never did your room before could end of getting it. Again, this is just what I would leave. Hopefully others will let you know what they leave so you can get a general idea.

And I wouldn't worry about your size. Every size, shape, etc. has been through that lobby wearing things that just shouldn't be seen in public. And I'm no "small" person by any means and walk through the lobby with my flip-flops and my Donald Duck cover up.

 

[TeenaS]

Well I did it. We were not planning to come down to the BC until October for a quick food and wine weekend, but since Teena shared her news I've been wanting to give her a hug, so we will be down the first week of August! Teena, now I am thinking that this is when Jeanne is having her baby and you might be in Las Vegas. Let me know because I've got some date flexibility and I want to give you that hug!

If "Peanut" comes when it is due, early August should have me at the BC!!!!

I'm so happy you are coming!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[BLTtinkerbell]

As long as the five people in the party are ages 3 and over and Disney has not oversold that category (like the airlines), you will get a room with two queens and a daybed. If we are oversold in five sleepers in the category you booked, they will have to give you a room that fits a rollaway and they will have a rollaway delivered. If you are not happy with the rollaway (some people think they are more comfortable than a daybed so check it out before you decide you don't like it), then talk to a manager and let them know you are not happy!

Thank you for your quick response.
I have to say this is a very friendly & helpful board!
I look forward to my first BC visit this June!

 

[tortoni]

If "Peanut" comes when it is due, early August should have me at the BC!!!!

I'm so happy you are coming!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yay, I'm so glad timing will work out. Just reading your comments re standard view though, so I am going to call back and upgrade to garden if they have it. Staying at the hotel and not the villas this time.

 

[Sue M]

Does anyone know if there are toasters in The Marketplace for the public to use? We usually throw a couple of bags of bagels in our luggage and use the resort food court toaster for breakfast. They have been at all the other resorts I've been in, both Moderate & Deluxe. But Marketplace seems to be a bit different.

 

[heatherbabydoll1]

If you have a car/truck, it will be lots cheaper if you just go out to Walmart or Super Target and get your groceries! Just my opinion!

From the Villas, you will walk out of the Villas and through the BC to get to SAB. You don't have to walk right through the lobby. When you enter the BC, it will be right there at the Marketplace - make a right. Just walk past the Marketplace and make the second left as soon as you pass the Marketplace. That takes you to the restrooms and there is a door that leads outside. If you go out that way and head to the lake and make a right at the lake, you can get in SAB there. It will get you there without walking directly through the lobby.

If you are paying for the villa with $ instead of points, you will get daily mousekeeping. What you tip is entirely up to you. I'm sure everybody is different. The one bedroom villas are big. For a family of three, personally, I would leave $5 every day. I always leave it every day because you could have the same person do your villa for six days in a row and on the seventh day when you might checkout, if you leave a large end of trip tip, a brand new mousekeeper that never did your room before could end of getting it. Again, this is just what I would leave. Hopefully others will let you know what they leave so you can get a general idea.

And I wouldn't worry about your size. Every size, shape, etc. has been through that lobby wearing things that just shouldn't be seen in public. And I'm no "small" person by any means and walk through the lobby with my flip-flops and my Donald Duck cover up.

I leave envelopes everyday for mousekeeping usually with a little note attached with a tip in it. We are looking forward to not haveing to leave the room to do laundry and the whirl pool tub at night. I have really bad ankles from many years of marching band when I grew up in Altamonte Springs and now have handicape parking because of it. We might have to rent a scooter also, just trying not to because I am so young but I am trying to avoid surgury on them also. But how far is handicap parking or should I pay for valet?

 

[Sue M]

So as some of you know, I made my theatrical debut over the weekend as the Cook in a Monty Python-style version of The Canterbury Tales.

I just want to let you know that it went very well!

I think my husband was more nervous than I was, especially after I told him that I am up on stage alone, and I am basically ad-libbing most of my part. We have been married for 25 years and I have never been up on stage.

Mark can be my harshest (and most honest) critic, and I am pleased to say that he really enjoyed the play and my performance. A couple of my friends in
front of the house were watching Mark, watching me, and they said he was in shock!

Ben did great in his roles, and he noticed and commented proudly about the laughs he received!

3 shows down, 2 to go!

 

[Sue M]

Made it through the first day of work. Only had to take my pain meds around 1 PM. My one boss said he was coming out to see me at 2 PM to make sure I wasn't doing silly things in the lobby after taking the meds - he was really concerned even though I told him the pills didn't make me loopy. So when he came out later, a guest I knew really well was walking in the door so I said to him, "Sir, welcome to Pop Century". My boss didn't know what to do ... funniest look on his face and the guest came up to me and said, "darn, I thought I was at Allstars Music". He played right along ... it was great. I finally had to tell my boss I was close friends with the guest ... don't think he thought it was that funny. The guest and I enjoyed ourselves though.

That's funny. Too bad your boss has no sense of humor