We returned from the Grand yesterday. First Ill apologize for the lack of pictures. I spent yesterday morning before check out taking tons of pictures but neglected to put the memory card back into the camera!
The concierge staff in the main building is incredible. If you are park centric or change your plans frequently, the text service is mandatory. Simply text your request and within minutes (assuming it is in their operating hours of course) it magically appears! Definitely a plus for Club Level.
Our room was on the 2nd floor, a deluxe king. The view of the castle and fireworks each night from the balcony was breathtaking. I wish they would pipe the music to the Gaspy area as well as the docks. They did for one night for an event on the terrace so it CAN be done.
The main building Club Level is so different from Sugarloaf. It was always quiet and not crowded in the least when I was there. Breakfast exceeded my expectations for offerings. I loved making sandwiches from the salmon spread or ham. There was always a healthy choice available. I loved the scones at High Tea but the trifle was absent all days I visited except 1 which was disappointing. It was replaced with breads. I was told they serve seasonal offerings so the Chocolate Covered Strawberries would only be in the spring. I will go into more detail further down on the food offerings. Never once when we asked for something not out did we get any bad vibes!
DH and I both visited the spa for reflexology. I recommend this for sore feet! It was INCREDIBLE and actually saved the trip!
We visited every restaurant at the Grand. DH and I both felt Citricos was not AS good as it was last year. Sadly my favorite (the Filet) is no longer on the menu.
Victoria and Alberts was so far beyond our expectations. I was concerned I would feel uncomfortable because it is so upscale, but the staff almost immediately made me feel at home. The Queen Victoria Room serves a 10 course meal not including 3 bread courses followed by coffee and chocolates. I managed to eat most everything except the bread courses (I tasted each but wanted to not fill up on the bread!) The way they make coffee is AMAZING. It was like an apothecary by our table and was delicious! The chocolates were beyond what I could eat and we brought them home with us.
Victoria and Albert coffee maker!
Excluding Victoria and Alberts, Narcoosee was our 2nd favorite restaurant (Artist Point won the favorite for us.) We managed to eat here twice! The first night our party was 4 and of course nothing is sacred on our table. I sampled the salmon, halibut, shrimp fettuccine and seared tuna. Appetizers were cheese and calamari. There was simply no wrong choice, it was all incredible! On the second trip, we tried the Filet and again the halibut with PEI mussels and Chilled Shrimp as appetizers. The Filet was good but not as good as Artist Point so going forward we will stick to seafood here.
Breakfast at Grand Floridian Café is my favorite and of course the Tea Room is as good as always. The Café Vanilla French Toast was crowned our winner for all breakfast restaurants! Yesterday we had our last breakfast at 1900 Park Fare and I finally got the Strawberry Soup I seemed to always miss in the Lounge.
Now to the not so awesome stuff.
I was really disappointed in the Dessert Selection in the club lounge. It was EXACTLY the same all 11 nights. While I loved the Fruit Tart, the one I remember had a very light chocolate coating brushed inside the pastry shell then had custard and fruit added. That small detail made a big difference.
With the exception of Breakfast, the offerings were on small plates and were definitely not a meal replacement but a starter but some treated it as a meal. I saw several tables with multiple stacks of the small plates 8 to 10 high.
We were on the Clarendon Level and again the view was purely MAGICAL! However I would not book this category of room again. The access to these rooms is the opposite of magical! These rooms are a perfect example of you cant get there from here. I use an activity tracker and even on our down days I far exceeded my goal of 7000 steps just walking back and forth to the lounge! The closest route to the bus stop was going behind Gaspys and between the GF and the convention center. The work vehicles dont always stop for pedestrians! The trip to the monorail involved a walk down the hall, up in the elevator to 3rd or 4th floor, walk down another hallway either through concierge or club food level, down THAT elevator to the 2nd floor and out to the monorail. WHEW!
If I didnt know these rooms were refurbished the end of July I would never have guessed it. Several of our electrical outlets were either cracked or broken off. The bathroom had some kind of access door under the sink that was hanging open. The bathroom with the tub didnt seem to have been painted and the grout around the tub was only partially redone. It was smeared all over the wall in places. The whirlpool tub didnt work. The bed was reasonably comfortable though. I do agree with everyone who has said the new common areas carpet was a very poor design choice for the GF.
The room and the Clarendon hallway were FREEZING. The vents in the hallway were always blowing VERY loudly. There was an odd (non Grand Floridian) smell in the hallway sometimes too. I think that is why there was also the overpowering Grand Floridian scent other times! Our first night there I ended up trying to take a bath at midnight to warm up and no whirlpool! Mousekeeping would turn the thermostat down to 68 each time they cleaned the room so it was always cold to me.
Mousekeeping was fine with the exception of taking the robe I used and not replacing it. I had to ask for robes 3 times during our stay. Our chocolate welcome gift was so disappointing to DH I ordered the box off the private dining menu.
Keep in mind that platter will hold a small turkey!
Lastly, Transportation
.Of all the things Disney does well, transportation is not one. The monorail was working normal hours during our stay. That was a plus! I dont want to even get into the strollers for 12 they seem to be making now that NEVER have children in them taking up entire cars on the monorail!
Disney has been doing
MNSSHP for a few years now and you would think they would be prepared for the exodus OUT of the park at 7 pm party nights. We were at the October 16th MNSSHP when I broke a strap on my shoe at 8 pm. I figured I would pop over to GF, change shoes and be back in 45 minutes or so. BOY was I wrong. There were lines for both the boats and Monorail but I chose Monorail since it carries more. Again wrong decision! It too me an hour and a half to get to GF from Magic Kingdom. The car I boarded had issues with the doors not closing so we had to get off and wait for the next. THEN they decided to pull the broken one out of service which shut down the monorail completely for 30 minutes while they did this. Of course Im halfway between Contemporary and TTC when they decide this and am stuck. I arrive at GF just as the fireworks start (9:30) and of course I have the hike to my room. By the time I had changed it was almost 10 pm and I decided to forgo going back. We did have another MNSSHP with the Villains Soiree later in the stay. It was one of those magical experiences for any that have one planned!
Long story longer! It shouldnt be a surprise how many people leave the park on party nights. Nor should it be a surprise how many use the Extra Magic Hours! What is a surprise is why Disney isnt more prepared for those rush times. Why would a bus that is completely full from Wilderness Lodge even stop at the Grand Floridian? Why do each of the Deluxe Resorts not have their own dedicated bus first thing in the morning to alleviate the sardine packed buses? Of the 4 cores of Disney I think Transportation fails on all 4: Safety, Courtesy, Show and Efficiency!
Even with the minor annoyances, it was still 12 days in Disney and 11 nights in the Grand Floridian. Pure Magic! The Grand was as cheerful and bright as I remember it. I cant wait to start the planning process over again!
How can it not be with views like these!
Liz
it was elbow to elbow and 60 minutes plus everywhere. We stayed at YC as we were there for just a quick F&W flyby. That was good, but also very crowded.
She continues to be the queen of them all, in my opinion. Relaxing, beautiful, quiet (even tho at full capacity, I was told) and easy to get around, what more could you want?? 
!! Thank goodness we had fastpasses for the mine train or we would never have ridden! At least a 75 min. wait every time we tried to do standby. 
Obviously the new has not worn off yet. 
Chris is back at the piano, but not as often as he has been in the past, and he does not look good at all, I'm sad to say. 
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I was glad that we were not leaving MK at the very end of the night, when the entire park was emptying out! Disney needs to plan better for these situations, as you said. 
Hi
(and dd and da)
have you ever encountered any at the Grand? I'm staying in the main building in 22 days and that thread has got me worried so bad. Maybe I should stop reading it huh....lol..I think I'm driving myself nuts.
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It was pretty much a last minute trip...and I was surprising a dear friend...who occasionally reads these boards..so I could not share my excitement here ....
... for a few more weeks...cause soon enough DD and I will be Poly princesses and we get to meet up with Trish and her mom...
...lol... Its really so nice to get to say to Dis friends in person...
...
At tea time they did put a wonderful fall touch on the trifle...pumpkin and poached apple....YUM!! is all that I have to say...some of the evening hot and cold appetizers... beef and spicy mustard on small toast triangles...tuna a la vera cruz (no idea what this is...lol...but it looked good)..buffalo chicken salad...spring rolls, pork bites, on another nite sushi, spanakopita, scallops wrapped in bacon, chipolte chicken salad,gazpacho ( in cute little bowls!)..some of the cheeses were brie, cheddar and swiss...everything is presented so beautifully too...lots of nice plates and garnishes... forget what was on the other nite that I was there...
lol....
