2012 Beach and Yacht FAQ ~ March, April and May ~Do Not Post Here-Old Thread

[georgiasmom]

Just got through the whole thread! I probably won't be able to keep up but will pop in and out.

We will be staying at the BC August 25 through September 3. Probably spending one day at Typhoon Lagoon. Have ADR's for Rose and Crown dinner, Cape May breakfast, Le Cellier lunch, California Grill dinner, Boma dinner, Brown Derby dinner, Marakesh dinner. Also planning to do the Garden View tea at he GF and dinner one night at Big River Brewing. Would love to hear everyone's favorite CS choices. Esp from the foodies out there. I haven't really found great ones I like.

We are me, Husband, 9 year old daughter and SIL. We usually go at least every other year but haven't been since Jan 2010. We took a 3 week European vacation last year instead.

Also have a cruise Jan 13 scheduled on the Dream

A (dreaming about CL making next trip)

 

[mickeynut1]

It won't be a far walk at all if you're at the kids end of SAB. You will need to go through the lobby though, and they do require shoes & cover-ups in the lounge. We were at BC CL last week & there was a family with 5 kids that would run back & forth from the pool to the lounge dripping wet for snacks & drinks - on the 2nd day the CL CMs did stop them all & said they could not enter the lounge anymore without shoes & proper attire (cover-up I'ma ssuming they meant). I'm surprised they weren't stopped in the lobby, that marble floor could be very slippery with wet dripping kids & bare feet!

Thank you . It's nice to hear that some of the CL CMs enforce the rules, as I've seen quite a few who do not .

 

[scottmel]

Uh-oh...did I talk you out of the Poly? Sorry if I did...although I think you made a great decision, FWIW. If you like split stays and think POFQ makes sense, then by all means...save the money. It sounds like you've really made up your mind already.

Yes you did! But I appreciate it. Your post got the momentum going and really made me think how I would feel if not pleased with the room. I would be really upset spending that amount of money, even with a pin it was a good bit.....So I THANK YOU!!!

 

[scottmel]

In reading your post, two things jump out at me...
1) you really enjoyed POFQ last summer.
2) you love split stays, so it's not a big deal for you to move resorts.

i know i tend to think of coupon savings as free money to spend elsewhere. so taking it a step further, choosing the resort with the lower final bill would mean I had extra $ to spend guilt-free!

If the front-end of your trip was going to be resort-oriented, then my WWYD response would be different, but given that the plan is to be at MK and off-site for two of those three days, I think I would go for POFQ for the first three and BC-CL for the second three.

LOVE that you have a 35% off pin. Good for you!!

Thanks Shelly! THat is my reasoning too but my sad part is there was no availability under POFQ/POR with my pin. I booked with a AAA discount but check back with the pin daily to see if it opened. STILL A 450 savings from Poly but if I could use Pin it would be 600 savings! I think room will open up as time draws near but I think I might use some of my found money to see Blue Man Group at Universal and Flying Fish! Thanks again.

 

[janinev7]

We will be making our dining reservations in a few days! Sooo exciting! Back in November when I first made our reservations for BC, April seemed so far away.

 

[smillerguy]

Park Hours for April 6-14 are different at different places. Anybody know what the hours are for any of those dates??

 

[jcondrad]

Ok do you NOT love those little pumpkin smidges or what...Love the peanut butter or caramel ones. either work for me!!!! I need to bring you some of those too Teena!!!

They have an Irish Cream smidgen out that is to die for!!

 

[jcondrad]

Just got through the whole thread! I probably won't be able to keep up but will pop in and out.

We will be staying at the BC August 25 through September 3. Probably spending one day at Typhoon Lagoon. Have ADR's for Rose and Crown dinner, Cape May breakfast, Le Cellier lunch, California Grill dinner, Boma dinner, Brown Derby dinner, Marakesh dinner. Also planning to do the Garden View tea at he GF and dinner one night at Big River Brewing. Would love to hear everyone's favorite CS choices. Esp from the foodies out there. I haven't really found great ones I like.

We are me, Husband, 9 year old daughter and SIL. We usually go at least every other year but haven't been since Jan 2010. We took a 3 week European vacation last year instead.

Also have a cruise Jan 13 scheduled on the Dream

A (dreaming about CL making next trip)

We are huge foodies...and don't typically do CS for that reason! LOL. Of the ones we did try, we really had a great meal at Cantina de San Angel. Limited selection but if you like Mexican styled food you will like it. And surprisingly my second favorite CS was Hurrican Hannah's, I had a grilled veggie wrap that was out of this world!

 

[skepace]

So, it's been almost 4 years since we last went. Our day to make ADR's is coming up and I am looking for some opinions. Here are the resetaurants:

Big River Grille (Arrival Day), Bistro de Paris, The Wave, Coral Reef, Ohana, and Kouzzina. These will all be for dinner and not lunch.

Thanks!

 

[LuvLuvLuv]

Hi all

We're planning on returning to YC/CL for our split stay in May. We haven't been to YC/CL since May 2010 and are excited to go back!!

I was wondering if anyone knows what offerings the CL offers per day. I know what they normally have for breakfast, etc... but the other CLs seem to have a schedule on what Hot Appetizer they put out on what nights. Just trying to plan around what days we may want to snack up there. Thanks!!

 

[BLTtinkerbell]

Bob, Jeanne and I are heading to Typhoon Lagoon in about an hour. Can't wait to have some Disney fun!!!! We rented one of the private areas where you get four chairs, four towels, an umbrella, all in a reserved spot where nobody can mess with your stuff and chairs!!! And it's very reasonable. Only way to do the water parks!

Have a wonderful time!
We are considering renting a spot for our upcoming trip. Have you done it before or is this the first time?

 

[ln629]

In629, I just wanted to offer a few thoughts. We also have three boys, ages 5, 11 and 12. I do lots of things solo with our boys when my husband is working or we're going with him to a conference destination, including park days at WDW.

I really believe that BC is an outstanding location for the solo mom with kids. It's just so easy to get to Epcot and DHS, and with a good park plan and an early morning arrival at the parks, you can do so much without long waits. If you go to MK with the kids on your own (I've done that solo with kids, too) then early morning is particularly key!

Next Tuesday, my husband is heading home from the beach so I'll be a solo mom w/o help during our 4-night/5-day WDW visit. I plan to be up super early, try to take everything at a slower pace (we'll see about that!) and bail when the parks get crowded. I have ADRs for both lunch and dinner every day, but if I was doing CS lunches, I'd get there no later than 11:30am to avoid the crowds.

As for SAB, we stayed at BC during a slide/partial pool closure last year. Yes, the slide is a selling point for our older boys at BC. But even when the slide is open, our boys go down it 3-4 times and then use other areas of the pool the rest of the time. Our 11 and 12-year-old actually spend a ton of time in the kiddie pool with the slide (they go down that one too!) and in the zero depth sandy area with their little brother. While they don't use the circular part of the lazy river much, they like that 4 ft deep area at the base of the lazy river. And they've also had lots of fun in the quiet pool. We've stayed at BC four times in the past two years (and some other WDW resorts in between) and logged lots of time at SAB - with and without partial closures. In the end, even our almost-teen said he wouldn't give up BC/YC, even after seeing the extent of the closure this month.

Just wanted to share our personal experience, in case it helps you feel any better. I really hope you have a wonderful trip!!!

Thanks for that, pixarmom! I'm sure it will be just fine. I'm just worried about park days because of the baby (rides will be more limited on days DH isn't with to do a child swap) but even so it's fine. Question though - isn't the kiddie slide area part of what's closed? I've never stayed at BC/YC before and have just been reading up as much as I could (this was a fairly last minute trip, just came about a few weeks ago) so there's a very good chance I'm wrong but wanted to check on that. If that's open it will really help!

Need to start my park plans - I'm way behind since both the oldest and the baby had birthdays this past month.

 

[MickeyT]

Park Hours for April 6-14 are different at different places. Anybody know what the hours are for any of those dates??

This is the site I trust the most. It is posted by Disney. To get to the correct month just change the date of the month in the web address bar. (ie...may_ : Aug_

http://media.disneywebcontent.com/S.../pdf/ParkHours/WDW_Operating_Calendar_Apr.pdf

Hope this helps

 

[smillerguy]

This is the site I trust the most. It is posted by Disney. To get to the correct month just change the date of the month in the web address bar. (ie...may_ : Aug_

http://media.disneywebcontent.com/S.../pdf/ParkHours/WDW_Operating_Calendar_Apr.pdf

Hope this helps

THANKS!!

And I must ask... Where is Flopeye SC? Born and raised in SC and never heard of it.

 

[ln629]

Sorry, but I have another newbie question! When we last visited we had a case of water shipped from costco but reading a few other threads it looks like we can't do that at BC/YC without incurring a $10 fee to have our package delivered to us? I know I can use garden grocer but I just want a case of water and they've got a $40 minimum plus $12 delivery. I hate the FL tap water! Plus all I drink is water and don't want to pay the crazy high prices at the park. Any other options for saving money on bottled water when staying at BC or YC?? (Sorry I am not sure which side we're staying on! I thought it was YC but dh made the ressie with his convention and thought it said BC. It probably doesn't matter for this question though?)

 

[ChildAtHeart82]

So, it's been almost 4 years since we last went. Our day to make ADR's is coming up and I am looking for some opinions. Here are the resetaurants:

Big River Grille (Arrival Day), Bistro de Paris, The Wave, Coral Reef, Ohana, and Kouzzina. These will all be for dinner and not lunch.

Thanks!

We've only tried Ohana and Kouzzina. Ohana is really good, especially for meat lovers. and the bread pudding dessert is delicious. Kouzzina is pretty good.

 

[Best Aunt]

Sorry, but I have another newbie question! When we last visited we had a case of water shipped from costco but reading a few other threads it looks like we can't do that at BC/YC without incurring a $10 fee to have our package delivered to us? I know I can use garden grocer but I just want a case of water and they've got a $40 minimum plus $12 delivery. I hate the FL tap water! Plus all I drink is water and don't want to pay the crazy high prices at the park. Any other options for saving money on bottled water when staying at BC or YC?? (Sorry I am not sure which side we're staying on! I thought it was YC but dh made the ressie with his convention and thought it said BC. It probably doesn't matter for this question though?)

If you have a package delivered, it goes to the Convention Center. The package retrieval fee is based on the weight of the package:
Up to 5 pounds: $3
5-20 pounds: $5
above 20 pounds: $10

How are you getting to the hotel?
Rental car - stop somewhere to pick up water.
Towncar - choose a company which includes a 30 minute grocery store stop.

Some people use WeGoShop for grocery delivery, but I don't remember how much they charge. They will deliver to Bell Services or your room, so you won't pay the fee at the Convention Center.

I tried to be good this trip. Every morning I started out with a full bottle of water. Call me a wimp, but I was not happy about the extra weight in my bag. (Now granted, I had my wallet, cell phone, camera, and sunscreen in there, along with various other things.) For the last two days, I gave up on carrying around the water, and it was easier on my back.

 

[nannette]

Saw this quote and was laughing as I remembered my "character out of character" story from about 20 years ago. As a favour for a friend, I suited up as Bart Simpson at a tradeshow here in Toronto, and took breaks with Mickey and several other characters. This was ages ago when the Simpsons were still new. She hadn't been able to find a "real" actor who met the height requirements (<5'2") and was stressed, so I offered. It was h-o-t and uncomfortable in that thing but I was definitely the fan favourite that year!

Anyway, as an unpaid volunteer, I didn't have to follow the union rules that I believe dictated "20 minutes on, 20 minutes off) re wearing the costume. I found it easier to just stay in costume as it was tough to get on/off.

Do not read further if you do not want to read something that is definitely a "magic killer." You have been warned!

I did take breaks in the back with the other characters and "Mickey" was none too pleased with me for being longer in the costume than allowed by union rules. And he had no problem telling me off about it. Nothing magical about him, let me tell you...don't tell the kids, but when he was on break and headless, I actually saw him taking a smoke break! Said he between puffs..."Sweetheart, you may be doing this for fun, but it's not easy being a mouse and you're not making it any easier."

Egads...what would Walt say?!?[/QUOTE]

Great story!!

~Nannette

 

[ln629]

If you have a package delivered, it goes to the Convention Center. The package retrieval fee is based on the weight of the package:
Up to 5 pounds: $3
5-20 pounds: $5
above 20 pounds: $10

How are you getting to the hotel?
Rental car - stop somewhere to pick up water.
Towncar - choose a company which includes a 30 minute grocery store stop.

Some people use WeGoShop for grocery delivery, but I don't remember how much they charge. They will deliver to Bell Services or your room, so you won't pay the fee at the Convention Center.

I tried to be good this trip. Every morning I started out with a full bottle of water. Call me a wimp, but I was not happy about the extra weight in my bag. (Now granted, I had my wallet, cell phone, camera, and sunscreen in there, along with various other things.) For the last two days, I gave up on carrying around the water, and it was easier on my back.

We're just planning to use the ME shuttle, so no grocery stop options.

 

[cindydare]

Thanks for the April info. Excited to see Muppets on there.

Anybody ever done the Tie Dye mickey shirts at the pool. I think my kids would love it and have something to take home.


Please post Easter activities if anybody sees one


So excited. We leave in 4 days!

DD8 and I did the Tie Dye Mickey shirt for her on our trip last September. She really had fun making it! I think it was $17. We did it on our last full day there and left it in the saran wrap/zip lock bag for several days afterward before I washed it. It was a fun souvenier!