2014 Grand Floridian Resort & Villas FAQ: Vacationing in Grand Style!

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Ninafeliz...I'll jump in and comment on your question re: Wishes as viewed from Narcoosees: we have seen the fireworks from the porch there many times, and can hear the music very well. :thumbsup2 Assuming you and your party are not blocking the view of a seated guest in the restaurant while you are on the porch, it is, in my opinion, one of the best places to see the fireworks without being in the park! (the only better place to us is on the water in a pontoon boat in front of MK :goodvibes ) As an aside, we have not ever watched them from in front of Gaspy's so I can't comment on whether or not there is always music there.
 
Ninafeliz...I'll jump in and comment on your question re: Wishes as viewed from Narcoosees: we have seen the fireworks from the porch there many times, and can hear the music very well. :thumbsup2 Assuming you and your party are not blocking the view of a seated guest in the restaurant while you are on the porch, it is, in my opinion, one of the best places to see the fireworks without being in the park! (the only better place to us is on the water in a pontoon boat in front of MK :goodvibes ) As an aside, we have not ever watched them from in front of Gaspy's so I can't comment on whether or not there is always music there.

Thanks for jumping in! :goodvibes I didn't actually mean the porch, I more meant that general area. I assumed the porch was for those dining there that evening. We do have an ADR there an hour and 10 min before Wishes one night during our stay and are hoping to get a good seat and draw dinner out until wishes. Will we be able to see from the restaurant if we do get good seat or have to go to the deck anyway?
 
Thank you so much! Now I just have to call tonight and see if anything is available under the BB rate. I don't want to drop down to a lesser discount, we'll just keep SL if there isn't availability. I have hope that they might be available, as they are available online with the regular RO discount, both standard and deluxe king. So we'll see :cool1:

You're welcome :goodvibes. I can't remember when your trip is, but if what you want in RPC isn't available right away, keep checking as sometimes availability does change. Good luck and I hope your are able to switch because everything about RPC is amazing :cloud9:.

This photo is from the 5th floor (lounge is on the 4th), where there is not technically an area to sit and watch. There's a walkway around the lobby atrium, with a couple wing backed chairs, but not the lounge seating such as on the 4th floor. But you get the idea of what is seen from the lounge below, and you can certainly go up to the 5th and stand there, if you prefer that higher view.

Fourth floor seating around lobby atrium - same windows and view as the previous photo, simply one floor down

I think this is taken walking out of the pool elevator door near Gasparilla's, looking at marina landing (castle in distance) - or it might have been taken as we walked out of Gasparilla's! lol

Another landing photo

Looking from courtyard area towards Gasparilla's seating, marina landing on the right of the photo

Awesome photos (as always ;)), although they are making me want to be at the Grand right now :(, especially the one of the lounge seating overlooking the courtyard as that's my favorite place to sit while in the lounge :cloud9:.

This is getting to be a bit much, SL was so easy. Either marina or pool view, no other main options other than floor, dormer, and the 3 turret rooms! :goodvibes

Does anyone have any thoughts or opinions on the different king rooms? I suspect I am overthinking this!! :rotfl:

I agree...SL is easier with only 2 options as far as view, while RPC has many choices (all of which are great), so it is sometimes hard to decide.

I can't give an opinion on the king rooms as we've never stayed in one, but I wanted to say that RPC is amazing no matter what room type you have (IMO). The whole lounge atmosphere and just being in the main building is great, so I think you'll have an amazing stay no matter which room type you choose :goodvibes.

Arrived safe and sound and enjoying the pools until our room is ready. This resort is absolutely lovely! Had a late breakfast in the SL lounge. Amazing pastries!!! Going to go to MK after our room is ready and we have a bit of a rest. Any questions? I'm here for 9 days!!!! :)

Glad you are happy with the resort. Enjoy MK and have a great 9 days at the Grand :wizard:.
 
Gitts2008 - I found the response from BCV23, here is the link to that post.:flower3:

Thanks :) I was looking FAR back in the threads....

I can't keep secrets very well either :) If my DD13 doesn't stop complaining about "living" on her allowance, I might just YELL "No club level for you!"

The pictures what you took from the main bldg are great! We are in SL, but are we allowed to go to RPC to see the firework?
 

I can't keep secrets very well either :) If my DD13 doesn't stop complaining about "living" on her allowance, I might just YELL "No club level for you!"

The pictures what you took from the main bldg are great! We are in SL, but are we allowed to go to RPC to see the firework?

LOL on your DD :laughing:.

If you are booked in SL, you will not be allowed up to RPC. In the past, while SL guests never had access to RPC, RPC guests had access to both lounges, but I think that has changed since the MBs were implemented and RPC guests can no longer access SL. Hopefully someone with experience with the MBs/RPC will be able to confirm that or correct me if I'm wrong :).
 
Gitts2008 - no, sorry, SL guests are NOT allowed to access the lounge in RPC. If you could, who would ever pay that crazy rate?!?:lmao: ETA: - mickeynut, I see you beat me to the punch!;)

Thanks so much for taking the time to clarify! I still have a few questions, maybe since I've just never been in RPC it makes it harder to understand Let me know if I have this all correct

With the deluxe kings, we have a better chance of getting the theme park view on the second floor, because there are more rooms, but to get to them from the lobby and monorail we have to take 2 elevators?? That's so odd, and very inconvienient, but the view would be great. Also, to get to the lounge we have to take an elevator, no stairs? and the room isn't off of the lobby with the open views, orchestra, etc? They sound almost too isolated, I want to enjoy being in the RPC. What do you think?


The turret rooms sound better (to me), except for no balcony. But half of them would have a view of wishes and half would not, and it's just luck which you get? Plus luck if you get them or the 2nd floor? Are they on the same floor as the lounge, and just off of the open lobby?

I always said I wouldn't want a room without a balcony, but given the access to the 2nd floor I'm thinking I would want the turret rooms. But the odds are against me on that, just in number of rooms. Then, of the turret rooms, I would prefer one with views of wishes. I guess I'm thinking I might actually prefer a regular room - then I know I won't be isolated on the second floor and I won't have to have the stress of if I'll get a view that includes fireworks or not, b/c I'll know I won't.

This is getting to be a bit much, SL was so easy. Either marina or pool view, no other main options other than floor, dormer, and the 3 turret rooms! :goodvibes

Does anyone have any thoughts or opinions on the different king rooms? I suspect I am overthinking this!! :rotfl:

It is hard to understand until you've been there, I'll post another photo to help illustrate some of the hallways, etc. You may be over-thinking it a bit, but everyone always wants to know what to expect.:)

Yes, you have a better chance getting a castle view with the 2nd floor rooms than the turrets. I prefer the turret rooms, but we do not care about the balcony or whether we have the Wishes view, we just like the location. The 2nd floor rooms are a bit out of the way, but really, they are in the same location as the regular TPV rooms as far as the lounge goes. It's simply getting from the lobby/monorail to the 2nd floor rooms that is a little different. As I said, those who have a 3rd floor TPV room have nearly the same issue - they just don't have to go up the pool elevator, but do have to walk down the same hallway and go up an elevator or a small flight of stairs to the lounge on the 4th floor. Does that make sense?

The 2nd floor (Clarendon Level) rooms are a little isolated, it is true, which is why they have long been referred to as the "honeymoon rooms"!:teeth: One advantage to these rooms is the pool elevator is right there. You can hop on it and go right down to the door by Gasparilla's and out to the courtyard pool area. And, if you need to wash anything, the laundry is right across the hall from the 2nd floor deluxe rooms.

Very few standard rooms will be off the atrium area, most will be down the same hallway that leads to the pool elevator. Again, I'll post a photo so you can see what I mean.

The turret king deluxe rooms are on floors 3, 4 & 5, one each in the corners of the side of the Main Bldg. overlooking the Beach Pool. If you look at the map on the first page, you can see what I mean, I think. So - 2 will be on the same floor as the lounge, the other 4 you will have to go up or down a flight of stairs or the elevator.

HTH!

Arrived safe and sound and enjoying the pools until our room is ready. This resort is absolutely lovely! Had a late breakfast in the SL lounge. Amazing pastries!!! Going to go to MK after our room is ready and we have a bit of a rest. Any questions? I'm here for 9 days!!!! :)

YAY!:goodvibes Sounds like you are having a great time so far! Enjoy your MK day.

These pictures look like there wound be a better view of wishes than I had expected, thank you so much for the pictures!!:cool1::cool1: Now my DH may be more interested in changing, he doesn't really care about hanging around the lounge much, we take stuff back to the room more, but we would go and watch the fireworks from the lounge if we were around. If only they had the music like the Poly :sad: Maybe I could try to time it right from my Iphone :rotfl2:

:laughing:

PS - when you quote a post with photos, it is better to delete the text that includes the photo links. Re-posting photos uses up extra bandwidth, the mods prefer we try not to do it.:flower3:

Ninafeliz...I'll jump in and comment on your question re: Wishes as viewed from Narcoosees: we have seen the fireworks from the porch there many times, and can hear the music very well. :thumbsup2 Assuming you and your party are not blocking the view of a seated guest in the restaurant while you are on the porch, it is, in my opinion, one of the best places to see the fireworks without being in the park! (the only better place to us is on the water in a pontoon boat in front of MK :goodvibes ) As an aside, we have not ever watched them from in front of Gaspy's so I can't comment on whether or not there is always music there.

We have had some great views ruined by people crowding out on the deck, lol, so I never go out there. Some guests forget there are others inside trying to see, I think.

Agreed about the great view from a pontoon boat!:goodvibes

Thanks for jumping in! :goodvibes I didn't actually mean the porch, I more meant that general area. I assumed the porch was for those dining there that evening. We do have an ADR there an hour and 10 min before Wishes one night during our stay and are hoping to get a good seat and draw dinner out until wishes. Will we be able to see from the restaurant if we do get good seat or have to go to the deck anyway?

If you get a window seat, you should have a pretty good view of Wishes from most and an excellent view of the EWP.:thumbsup2 Unless, of course, someone stands in front of your table on the outside deck.;)

....

Awesome photos (as always ;)), although they are making me want to be at the Grand right now :(, especially the one of the lounge seating overlooking the courtyard as that's my favorite place to sit while in the lounge :cloud9:.
....

Aww, thanks!:goodvibes I know, whenever I search through my photos and post, I want to be there right now!!:sad:
 
Looking from the seating area in RPC to the food service area (behind TV cabinet - ignore the decor, lol, this was 2 renovations back, I think)
IMG_1015.jpg

Standing about the same spot, turned and looking from seating toward kids seating area; doorway to hall leading to std. rooms, pool elevator and TPV rooms beyond
IMG_1017.jpg

This photo was taken just after you exit the pool elevator, as you look down the hall you can see the door leading to the child's seating area of the lounge; most std. rooms are located on these halls as you walk toward the lounge; behind me is the hallway leading the opposite way, to the TPV rooms
IMG_1312_zpsc67365b5.jpg
 
Arrived safe and sound and enjoying the pools until our room is ready. This resort is absolutely lovely! Had a late breakfast in the SL lounge. Amazing pastries!!! Going to go to MK after our room is ready and we have a bit of a rest. Any questions? I'm here for 9 days!!!! :)
:cool1: I'm glad to hear you have arrived! Have a great time!!:goodvibes

I'm all about the pastires so I'm looking forward to having some of them soon.:)
 
We're tea fans, and I just heard about afternoon tea at GF. Unfortunately, all our dining is booked, so I'm not sure where tea would fit in. Do we need reservations? I'm wondering if it could be a last minute spur of the moment thing.
 
We're tea fans, and I just heard about afternoon tea at GF. Unfortunately, all our dining is booked, so I'm not sure where tea would fit in. Do we need reservations? I'm wondering if it could be a last minute spur of the moment thing.

This is sometimes (rarely!) possible, but I wouldn't count on it. The Garden View Tea Room is quite small, it gets booked up most days. Yes, a reservation is usually a must, and the last I heard, has to be done by phone. Not online.

If you don't want to make a reservation, you can walk up on the day of and ask if there have been any cancellations. This sometimes gets you a seat, but don't be surprised if it does not.:flower3:
 
Wow! No online reservations even? That's really good to know. Looks like I need to make a phone. Thanks!
 
k&a&c'smom, you posted this about std rms:
Very few standard rooms will be off the atrium area, most will be down the same hallway that leads to the pool elevator. Again, I'll post a photo so you can see what I mean.
What kind of rooms are generally off the atrium area? (Hoping to book RPC next year...)
Thanks!
BTW - thanks for the pics & explanations.
 
Wow! No online reservations even? That's really good to know. Looks like I need to make a phone. Thanks!

We made ours online at the 180 day mark.

Good to know! When the online dining system first opened, the tea room was not included; after awhile, they added it online, then took it away again!:headache: Our last visit, we had to book by phone, I hope it is a permanent feature this time.::yes::

k&a&c'smom, you posted this about std rms:
Very few standard rooms will be off the atrium area, most will be down the same hallway that leads to the pool elevator. Again, I'll post a photo so you can see what I mean.
What kind of rooms are generally off the atrium area? (Hoping to book RPC next year...)
Thanks!
BTW - thanks for the pics & explanations.

:wave: Most of the rooms along the atrium hallway are going to be suites and deluxe rooms. There are a few std. rooms over the Beach Pool (atrium), but the majority of std. are down the hallway toward the TPV rooms, over the courtyard.

HTH!
 
Arrived safe and sound and enjoying the pools until our room is ready. This resort is absolutely lovely! Had a late breakfast in the SL lounge. Amazing pastries!!! Going to go to MK after our room is ready and we have a bit of a rest. Any questions? I'm here for 9 days!!!! :)

So happy you arrived safely :goodvibes Enjoy your vacation:beach: Maybe we will run into you before you leave. We arrive on the 23rd. I will be the lady hobbling around on a boot with 2 teenage girls and my DH walking ahead forgetting I can't walk so fast!!


Well, I caved in and called Walker Mobility. I have reserved a wheelchair to take with us to the parks. DH and DD16 have said they will happily push me around and this way we can take any form of transportation by easily folding up the chair. I also will not need to worry about charging an ECV,,,,I just need to keep my "pushers" fed and happy...:rotfl:
 
Most of the rooms along the atrium hallway are going to be suites and deluxe rooms. There are a few std. rooms over the Beach Pool (atrium), but the majority of std. are down the hallway toward the TPV rooms, over the courtyard.
Thanks!:thumbsup2
 
I did it, I changed our September reservation from SL to RPC! I only considered the price increase, I don't want to dwell on the price per night :rotfl: And that's with a bounceback rate:eek::eek::eek: These prices are so out of hand, yet here I am paying them, so what can we expect :confused3

Anyway, the only room type available at RPC with the BB offfer was the Deluxe King, so deluxe king it is!. (and 2 BR suite, but I didn't even get a price on that :rotfl:)I may keep checking for TPV or standard, we'll see. After all of my earlier discussion and posting I put in a request for TPV instead of the turret rooms. I just don't know, that felt right at the time :confused3 I guess as long as we can get to the lounge fairly easily,we can deal with it being a pain to get to the room from the main lobby and monorail. Plus, if I understood correctly, we have to go up and near the lounge before we go back down to the room if we end up on the second floor, so we can grab a snack which we would be doing anyway ;) if we get the other type of room it will be nice also, with more room and easier access, so it's all good :goodvibes The CM on the phone seemed to encourage requesting a MK view, but probably only because I had asked if there was availability for the TPV room and there wasn't.

I hope it won't be a problem that we have 2 young kids in the area nicknamed the honeymoon level. I try, but they are not quiet and no matter what I do they won't sleep late. I remember before I had kids being annoyed by loud kids next door at the WL early in the AM. Now I totally understand!!
 
I did it, I changed our September reservation from SL to RPC! I only considered the price increase, I don't want to dwell on the price per night :rotfl: And that's with a bounceback rate:eek::eek::eek: These prices are so out of hand, yet here I am paying them, so what can we expect :confused3

Anyway, the only room type available at RPC with the BB offfer was the Deluxe King, so deluxe king it is!. (and 2 BR suite, but I didn't even get a price on that :rotfl:)I may keep checking for TPV or standard, we'll see. After all of my earlier discussion and posting I put in a request for TPV instead of the turret rooms. I just don't know, that felt right at the time :confused3 I guess as long as we can get to the lounge fairly easily,we can deal with it being a pain to get to the room from the main lobby and monorail. Plus, if I understood correctly, we have to go up and near the lounge before we go back down to the room if we end up on the second floor, so we can grab a snack which we would be doing anyway ;) if we get the other type of room it will be nice also, with more room and easier access, so it's all good :goodvibes The CM on the phone seemed to encourage requesting a MK view, but probably only because I had asked if there was availability for the TPV room and there wasn't.

I hope it won't be a problem that we have 2 young kids in the area nicknamed the honeymoon level. I try, but they are not quiet and no matter what I do they won't sleep late. I remember before I had kids being annoyed by loud kids next door at the WL early in the AM. Now I totally understand!!

Congrats on upgrading to RPC :yay:.....you won't regret it!!

I hear you on the rates :scared1:. We are planning to try Poly CL next summer, but reading about all of these RPC stays is making me want to book that instead :rotfl::rotfl:. The Poly is our favorite resort and I've been wanting to try CL, but it's hard to beat RPC :cloud9:.
 
Can one walk from GF to Poly? What is the loop run on monorail? Trying yo figure out reissue tines TIA :)
 
Can one walk from GF to Poly? What is the loop run on monorail? Trying yo figure out reissue tines TIA :)


Yes, you can walk from the GF to the Poly. It's a lovely walk, and we don't feel that it's far at all. Maybe a 10 min stroll, less if jogging or rushing? We were starting at the middle of the Poly, so maybe add 2-3 min if starting from the far end of the Poly ( which I guess you can't do now anyway, so it shouldn't matter;)

You can also walk from the TTC to the Poly, which isn't long either.

Thus, you could walk from the TTC to the GF, which we intend to do in sept when we're staying at the GF for the first time.
 
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