A 2 Week Grand Villa Extravaganza! 2.5 Years Late... FINAL DAY!!

[Duffy Lover]

Perfect post for a perfect day...and a nice ending to our beach club stay!

It was a great day, wasn't it? Sigh...

Oh how I am loving your trip report!!!! I have dreamed of doing a trip like this, but my brother refuses to go to disney world I know, he has no idea what he is saying haha

He refuses! What?!?! He doesn't know what he's missing. Yeah, WDW can be hectic, crowded and hot, but the memories are priceless. Oh well, perhaps you don't want to drag someone along to our happy place. They may cause more misery than joy!

 

[Leleluvsdis]

He refuses! What?!?! He doesn't know what he's missing. Yeah, WDW can be hectic, crowded and hot, but the memories are priceless. Oh well, perhaps you don't want to drag someone along to our happy place. They may cause more misery than joy!

I know!!! It it horrible!!! He went with us in July 2004, and their family was miserable the entire time His wife would complain and throw a fit when anyone touched her, he would complain because there was only one way in and one way out and he was tired of seeing people everywhere, and their kids just wanted to stay in the pool ugh!! It was so annoying!!!

 

[Lisa29]

A great day today. Love the photo shoot photos.

I didn't realise you could use the BW pool too, though that clown also freaks me out!

 

[Duffy Lover]

I know!!! It it horrible!!! He went with us in July 2004, and their family was miserable the entire time His wife would complain and throw a fit when anyone touched her, he would complain because there was only one way in and one way out and he was tired of seeing people everywhere, and their kids just wanted to stay in the pool ugh!! It was so annoying!!!

Yep, I think you are far better off taking vacations without your brother... What a shame. It's never 100% smooth sailing when you travel with family, but it sounds like his family just isn't a Disney vacation kind of family. Maybe try again with a different vacation concept?

A great day today. Love the photo shoot photos.

I didn't realise you could use the BW pool too, though that clown also freaks me out!

Yep, that clown is totally freaky... As DVC members we can pool hop to specific pools. I really love that perk - my mini-trip I took with my Mom last month had us lounging at the Grand Floridian pools on our departure day, despite the fact that we stayed at SSR. It was so glorious!

Thanks for the compliment about the photos. Those professional pictures were amazing, right?

 

[Angeejoe]

"Don't judge me," but I'm loving your update! That story cracked me up, I can totally picture mini snow white in full tantrum mode!

Yachtman is one of our all time favorite places to dine! You've got me hungry for it

 

[Duffy Lover]

"Don't judge me," but I'm loving your update! That story cracked me up, I can totally picture mini snow white in full tantrum mode!

Yachtman is one of our all time favorite places to dine! You've got me hungry for it

It was hilarious - one of those moments that will crack up our family for years...

I agree about the Yachtsman. It is now one of my favorite restaurants. Yum yum!

 

[Duffy Lover]

Day 5: Wednesday June 4– Resorts: BCV & OKW – Park: MK

When we last parted I was super duper full from our amazing meal at the Yachtsman Steakhouse and was slipping into a food coma… When I woke on Wednesday morning it was already ten to seven, and a busy day lay a head of us. We were moving to our grand villa at OKW that morning, and Papa was in charge of the transfer, and our piles of luggage. The kids enjoyed a leisurely morning in the sun (the weather was spectacular - thank goodness) while the adults rushed around, feeling slightly stressed (packing always makes me a little wacky).



We got out the door by 8:20, not too late but we were aiming for an 8 am departure. We were rushing to catch the bus (not quite running) and poor Brie who was quite a ways behind us took a pretty good tumble. If you recall she fell the previous day as well. This one was a bit more serious and she really tweaked her ankle. It put a damper on our travels and Brie was sad for a good chunk of the morning. She wasn’t enjoying feeling rushed. I totally get it - we did have almost every moment planned. Sorry Brie-Brie!

The bus was packed- it was standing room only and we arrived at the MK at 8:44. I was so disappointed to see that the Welcome Show was already over. When did the Welcome Show shift its opening so early? The kid’s spirits were still high, especially Josh who lost a tooth that morning:


When my mom and I were planning our days, I made sure that we had two rope drop mornings at MK- one for the New Fantasyland side of the park, and one in the Frontierland/Adventureland part. Since today was the “east” rope drop day, I had what seemed to be a great idea - to take the train to the new Fantasyland train station by the Barnstormer. We were on the train at 9:01 and we waited, and waited and waited…






When we arrived in Storybook Circus it was 9:29. So much for maximizing our first hour. Oh well, you can’t be too upset when you’re at the Magic Kingdom and the weather is this fantastic:



As soon as we got off the train we headed to the Barnstormer. It was a huge hit! We then headed over to ride Winnie the Pooh and to our surprise there was already a 35 minute wait. At 9:40 in the morning. What?!?! FP+ strikes again. Not to worry, there is plenty more to do without waits. Like the Tea Cups!





Auntie Brie-Brie was feeling better by now (as you can see by her smile) and while most of the family was riding (I can’t handle spinning) Papa texted us to let us know we got our room at OKW. The term “room” was quite insufficient, we were actually in 2523, one of only two Grand Villas in the Hospitality House area of OKW. I was relieved that there was no problem, as my mom had been worried they would try to put us in a different part of the resort, despite working hard to get that booking category. I’ll write more on the villa later when we return "home" later in that evening.



After the tea cups we wandered over to Dumbo, and the kids had a blast playing under the big top:



It was very refreshing to be in the A/C as it was already super hot out. I was not complaining though - this was exactly the kind of weather I was hoping for. As usual, Dumbo was lovelyl:







When we got out of Dumbo we decided to visit Daisy and Minnie, only waiting a few minutes. The kids enjoyed their time with the characters- Minnie and Daisy were engaging and spent a fair amount of time with the kids:









While we were at the meet and greet, Papa was making his way through the park and took a moment to yank the chain of a Photopass photographer. He told her he wanted a picture like the one in the Partners statue and inquired if Disney was capable of photo shopping Mickey into the picture:



The photographer was flustered when Papa acted all disappointed that it couldn’t be done. Shame on you Papa! We wandered the Big Top Shop while we waited for Papa:



Clara had a magical moment with a cast member when she was asked to help feed Dumbo, and the CM played a game with her and then gave her an I’m Celebrating button to commemorate the experience.



When Papa met up with us we decided to to take a ride on the Happiest Cruise on Earth, which had a 20 minute wait (we only waited 13 minutes).









At this point we were all starving, and we headed for my favorite (but one of Buszia’s least favorite) CS location: Columbia Harbor House. We lucked out and got a spot in my the best location- the “bridge” between Fantasyland and Liberty Square:





That maxes out my photo allotment for this post… What a great morning, right? We still got a lot done even with the half hour delay on the train: Five rides, a character meet and greet and lunch and it wasn’t quite noon! See you real soon!

 

[Pirate Granny]

What a great morning!

 

[THiiNKTiiNKx0]

"Dont judge me" hahahha I would have died. I say that all the time lol. And your photo shoot pics turned out AMAZING !!! I cringed at the pricing of them when I looked into it for our next trip but I may just have to suck it up and do it because they are adorable!

 

[Angeejoe]

Bummer about getting there early & having to wait on the train to go!

I leave for my cruise today!! I've been up since 5a, I can't sleep. We don't have to be up until 8a, so I'll be regretting this early am later!

 

[Duffy Lover]

Day 5: Wednesday June 4– Resorts: BCV & OKW – Park: MK

I’m sorry I missed last week’s update… I was in Tennessee for my cousin’s wedding. It was a lovely mini-vacay, complete with a trip to the Parthenon (in Nashville) and one of the most wonderful children’s museum I’ve ever seen (but not as nice as the one in Indianapolis). As for the report, we are picking up after lunch at CHH on a spectacularly sunny and hot Florida day. We didn’t have another FP+ until a bit later in the afternoon, so we headed out to an attraction many of us had not yet experienced: A cruise on the Liberty Belle…







It was so hot on that top deck, but to be honest it felt wonderful! Ryan disagreed and stayed in the shade with his auntie and mom. After our three hour tour (perhaps not quite so long) we headed to our first FP+ of the day: The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train! I saw it caught fire yesterday, but it seems all is well with it now… I felt sort of gluttonous today, as we not only had that hard to get FP+ (for 9 people) but also one other hard to get FP+. The ride itself was fabulous. Amazingly well themed and fun. We were sat near the front of the train and although it was about two minutes long, it seemed so short. Everyone loved it though:





I really wish they had the video Memory Maker thing ready when we were there. I thought it was so strange they had all those lights, with no pictures to go with them. Oh well… Overall, an amazing ride. I felt bad for those people waiting 90 minutes in the sun, though.

We still had a whole afternoon ahead of us, so onto the park we went. The kids tried their hands at the sword:









None were the next king or queen of Camelot, so we moved on to the Carousel. Brie and I headed off to get gifts for Ryan, who was turning five the next day. The kids had fun riding their regal mounts:







We caught up to the group and decided to check out Philharmagic, which was a big hit not only for its content, but for the A/C. After our 3-D journey, we had some time before the Festival of Magic Parade begun. My Mom graciously offered to save a curbside seat for us using her body and the stroller. Brie or Drea might have been with her, but that isn’t in my journal, so I can’t quite remember. In the mean time we enjoyed yet another attraction that was new to me and the kids: The Hall of Presidents. It also went over quite well.

When we exited we found Pirate Granny camped out just outside the entrance to the Hall, under the shade of the awning. It seemed a perfect spot - shaded with a ledge for the kids to stand on. I went off and purchased misting fans for the kids, which were a big hit:


Although our spot seemed ideal, the CMs starting policing the area and let us know that the kids couldn’t stand on the ledge. Really?! This is your biggest concern? Okay, I get it rules are rules… On top of that the people on the other side of the planter felt that sitting on the ledge wasn’t good enough even though there was no one standing in front of them, and proceeded to stand up. Oh well. In the end it worked out and the kids had a good view of the parade.



And what a parade it was! Fabulous doesn’t even begin to describe its scope…







The dragon was particularly spectacular:



After the parade it was time for the most sought after meet and greet in the land: Anna and Elsa. When I got our FP+ I used the technique where I got one FP+, the added the rest of the family one at a time. In the end it seemed almost wrong to have nine (yes 9) FP+ to see the ladies. We strolled up to the FP+ queue and noticed the over 2 hour stand-by line. Eek. We were so jazzed we were already in the meet and greet room when I realized I left the autograph books in our mule (aka sit and stand). Really!?!? How does that happen? CMs to the rescue though and they provided index cards and pens for Anna and Elsa to sign.

On the flip side, I was not happy with CMs when they denied my girls and the boys an opportunity to meet the sisters on their own. My plan was to have each child meet Anna and Elsa on their own, then as a sibling pair and then as a foursome. I was shut down. The CMs told us that they could only do sibling pairs. WHAT? I’m sorry, what? I’ve seen pictures of grown adults getting solo pics with the Frozen ladies, and then their children, but I can’t. Uh no. Regardless, that is what we were allotted. Grrr. And to top it off, Anna and Elsa could care less about interacting with my children and nephews. I know it is such a first world problem, but come on! My girls were wearing adorable Frozen dresses (that I bought at 2am one sleepless night - coincidence, but still), and neither girl commented on it. It honestly was not great interaction. Oh well, perhaps they were due for a break. Either way, we got some good pics:









And this gem:


That last one really cracks me up. After we left Fairytale Hall, it was time to head to our ADR at BoG. Lunch was so good there the other day, we were all looking forward to dinner. Especially with wine and beer! You’ll have to wait for that review until next time. I’ll wrap up with this post with a couple photopass pics during our wait for dinner:






Aren’t the kids just adorable? I know I'm biased, but... So between noon and four pm, we enjoyed seven different attractions, parades and meet and greets, including two very hard to get FP+ experiences. Not too shabby!

Anyways, what a great way to end a weekend! I’ll respond to all your kind comments later this week... See you real soon with the final day 5 update!

 

[Lisa29]

Excellent couple of updates! Some lovely photos too.

You should be allowed any pictures you want with the characters (within reason obviously) and to not let you have one with all 4 kids is not good enough!

Looking forward to the OKW grand villa pics.

P.S. I forgot you were DVC members and that is why you can pool hop.

 

[Pirate Granny]

One of the best perks ever...pool hopping! Duffy and I spent an entire afternoon at the GF pools in September.

 

[Duffy Lover]

Sorry I missed last week's update... Perhaps I'll get two in this week, though it depends on how much calculus lesson planning I need to do. Afterall, I can't use my trip report to teach calculus!

What a great morning!

It was a great morning, especially once Brie got her grumpies out on the Tea Cups!

"Dont judge me" hahahha I would have died. I say that all the time lol. And your photo shoot pics turned out AMAZING !!! I cringed at the pricing of them when I looked into it for our next trip but I may just have to suck it up and do it because they are adorable!

I still crack up over the "Don't judge me moment!" I agree about the photoshoot, but to be honest both photographers spent way more than 20 minutes with us. Though I do wonder if it would be more economical to have a local photographer come to the resort and do the shoot...

Bummer about getting there early & having to wait on the train to go!

I leave for my cruise today!! I've been up since 5a, I can't sleep. We don't have to be up until 8a, so I'll be regretting this early am later!

How was your cruise?!?! I bet it was just wonderful... I am still smarting over that faux pas with the train. I totally thought it was a genius idea. Oops!

Excellent couple of updates! Some lovely photos too.

You should be allowed any pictures you want with the characters (within reason obviously) and to not let you have one with all 4 kids is not good enough!

Looking forward to the OKW grand villa pics.

P.S. I forgot you were DVC members and that is why you can pool hop.

I just couldn't believe that we could not get the pictures we wanted with Anna and Elsa. I think it especially bugged me because I follow quite a few bloggers who as adults were able to get all the pictures they wanted with them.

Gotta love being a DVC member - both for the digs and the perks like pool hopping!

One of the best perks ever...pool hopping! Duffy and I spent an entire afternoon at the GF pools in September.

Best day ever Mom! I just wish we could've had that day when we were there with the kids. Oh well...

 

[Duffy Lover]

Day 5: Wednesday June 4– Resorts: BCV & OKW – Park: MK

I think I'll be able to wrap up day 5 with this post, marking the one-third point of the trip. Why does it seem that even the trip reports go by too fast?! When we left off we were on our way to our ADR at BoG. I think this was one of our busiest days, filled with amazing rides and hard to get ADR and FP+. While we were waiting we strolled over to Gaston’s village where the boys gave their best Gaston impressions:



Ryan was very concerned about Gaston and whether he died when he fell off the castle in the movie. We assured him that he didn’t (that’s what he wanted to hear), but he just didn’t believe us. Disney magic to the rescue! It just so happened at that very moment Gaston strolled right by us on his way to his meet and greet. Ryan was in awe and visibly relaxed knowing the Gaston was alive and well…

We had a couple Photopass shots taken on the bridge while we waited for dinner (I shared some in the last post):



And then we were escorted to our table - but not before meeting the master of the castle:





Clara was not impressed. Our lunch at BoG was so good I was really looking forward to dinner - and a glass of wine and beer in the MK! I was not super impressed by our table - way in the back by the entrance, by the doors. Oh well! It was still lovely:



I started the meal with a beer and a bowl of french onion soup:



As I recall, the soup was nothing special and the beer was very refreshing. I ordered the chicken dish (after much deliberation) and a glass of wine for dinner. Tragically the dish was overwhelmed with olives and way too salty - yuck! I hardly touched it. At the end of the meal the server brought over an early birthday treat for Ryan. It was the next day afterall!



Overall, dinner was nothing special. The server was barely around, the food was meh (all around) and it took a while if I recall correctly. I recommend going to BoG for lunch, though. I actually preferred the music box room to the ball room. After dinner we strolled over to Enchanted Tales with Belle. The kids were sufficiently awed by the special effects and all wanted to participate. My Dad was a knight, Clara was the wardrobe, Ryan was Chip, Eme was Mrs. Potts and Josh was a footstool. It was adorable, and I really appreciate the Photopass people at this location:














Everyone was bushed at this point. Just exhausted. But before we could grab a bus to our new home for the next eight nights, a certain birthday boy needed to get his balloons:



All that precious little guy really wanted was Mickey balloons! What a sweetie.

It was a wonderful feeling to pull into OKW:



I loved our time at BCV, but there is just something so special and laid back about OKW. It is very relaxing yet has a subtle Disney flair. it is a true vacation resort and a great escape from the chaos of the Parks. We were all excited to check out our grand villa and no one was disappointed. It was bright, clean, airy and ginormous, just as I remembered it to be from our 2011 trip.









The girls, Brie and I had the larger upstairs bedroom:



The boys and Drea were across the hall in the yellow room:





And my parents had the main floor master bedroom:



The view was lovely as well:





Sleeping arrangements did get a bit tricky once Caz arrived, as Brie was kind of floating between the sofa bed, Drea’s room and my parent’s room… The kids had a blast just playing away in their new digs. The girls took a bath in the big tub in the master while I unpacked, then all the kids were sound asleep by 9pm. We decorated for Ryan’s birthday and then lounged around watching the Stanley Cup finals. Nothing like family time at Disney while watching hockey! I love DVC!

I loved the location of our Villa so much. Those of you who read my pre-trip report will remember how hard we “worked” to get one of the two Hospitality House grand villas. I called member services once a day for a week to walk the reservation and it was well worth it! We could walk to the Hospitality House to catch the bus (and avoid a ride around the whole resort) and get off the bus at the first stop and walk about one minute to the villa. The only downside to this resort is the lack of sidewalks. You have to walk in the parking lot to get to the bus stop. Not the safest when you have little ones. Luckily there is very little traffic.

So there you go… One more day in the books. Up next a fifth birthday party, AKL, MK and Chef Mickey’s. See you real soon!

 

[Pirate Granny]

I do love OKW, and the grand Villa...so relaxing. More, more, more Duffy lover.

 

[scrpbookr]

The Villa is beautiful and perfect for a big group travelling together! This latest day's adventure was fun! Thanks for continuing to share!

 

[Duffy Lover]

The Villa is beautiful and perfect for a big group travelling together! This latest day's adventure was fun! Thanks for continuing to share!

Thanks, Brenda! I can't tell you how wonderful it is to be able to stay "on campus" yet stay in a full condo. The grand villas are truly decadent and I am so, so grateful to be able to stay in them.

 

[Duffy Lover]

Day 6: Thursday June 5 – Resort: OKW – Parks: AK and MK

Welcome back people! I came through and I have written TWO, yes TWO, updates in one weekend. FYI: these updates take about an hour and a half to write (sometimes more), including getting the photos ready and what not- hey I have a degree in mathematics, not journalism, so "don't judge me!" Pirate Granny has suggested that I put in less photos, but I say why else did we take (and pay for) so many pictures?!?! I want this report to be something the girls and I (and my nephews, sisters and parents) go back to for years to come to re-live this amazing trip. So max pictures there will be! Anywho…

I am super excited to present this amazing day to you all (and to my wonderful nephew). It is a day oft dreamed of… A birthday at Disney! Precious little Ryan is turning five on this day of the report. Initially we were to be leaving WDW on his birthday (WHAT?!?) but luckily (or not depending on who you ask and when) I became a school administrator last year and my contract was extended through the week after memorial day, so the trip got pushed back into June a week. Which meant this adorable, sweet little man got to spend his fifth birthday in the most magical place on Earth (at least to us). His plan, you ask? A morning in AK, swimming and fun at “home”, a birthday party with Mickey balloons (see day 5, part 3), a dinner at Chef Mickey’s and then an amazing evening at MK. For now we will focus on AK and the party.

The night before, after spending an extremely hot day at MK and returning in the evening to our palatial grand villa, we decorated for the little man’s birthday:







We also bought him his much desired balloons. See that Mama Dumbo? He coveted it in a store one day earlier this week, but was denied, with his Mama knowing she would buy it for his birthday. He didn’t put up any fuss when he didn’t get the toy right away, but moved on… He is so sweet!

The day of Ryan’s birthday dawned bright and clear and proved to be another day of spectacular weather and heat. Extended weather report of pure rain be darned! Birthday selfie with his Mommy:



We started with a few presents and photos (his birthday outfit was courtesy of Etsy):





We were on the bus to AK by 9:20 (Papa was golfing this morning), which was really decadent. Let’s be honest, this counted as sleeping in on vacation! We didn’t plan any FP+ at AK, but saved them all for MK later in the day. When we arrived at the park the big kids headed right over to Everest. Eme, Josh, Brie, Drea and my Mom got on the ride, while I took the littles to Dinoland USA. Here’s a pick of the four of them on EE:



The littles really enjoyed the Dino Spin and the Boneyard:





Unfortunately I have no pictures at the boneyard…

We regrouped and headed over to FotLK. I loved the new location. It just made sense and really rounded out the area. As we walked in we requested preferential seating citing Ryan’s birthday. They placed us almost in the front row and it was so sweet and special:





The show was amazing as usual. I have a special place in my heart for this production, as the first time I saw it was on my healing trip of 2008 (see the pre-trip report for more details). During the finale, the performers asked ALL the kids to join in the fun. Only Eme was adventurous enough to accept the request and although she felt shy (her words, she made me write that), she had a blast! Sorry in advance for the crummy photos. Dad was golfing and the rest of us only had our smart phones, hence no high quality pics. We did get some good video, though.










What a great experience! On the way out we stopped at "It's Tough to be a Bug." It is not a favorite, and to be honest a waste of a good show space. Then we got a few more pictures courtesy of Memory Maker…





This next one is a classic and is one of the alternate trip report titles I tossed around: “Look, Yeti Piss!” You may wonder about such a crass title. Well… the Photopass person had us do a special pose, promising Stitch in the spot where we pointed. Well, no dice. No Stitch. Nothing special. So the adults had a really, really good chuckle over this photo and its lack of specialness, and came up with another reason why we were pointing. Yeti pee:



The bus ride was long and the kids were wiped out already. It was super hot and sunny after all! When we returned we had a lovely lunch and more presents:







Clara was wicked tired and attempted to nap while the birthday boy and the older kids went to the pool (another specific request of the darling five year old). The rest of this day will be left to another epic post. We headed to MK area for a wonderful birthday dinner, and some great FP+ experiences for the birthday boy.

This was one of my most favorite posts to date. I just love little Ryan, he is so sweet and special. I need to figure out how to post video soon. As I was doing some work for some Christmas presents last night, I came across the most sweet and simple video of Clara and Ryan as babies at WDW with Papa, circa 2011. I shared it on Facebook, and it is so sweet I would love to share it here. Regardless, I hope you all had a great weekend. I know I did! See you real soon!

 

[THiiNKTiiNKx0]

It seems like Ryan had an awesome birthday!!!! (I mean who wouldn't if they're spending it in Disney) I love the pictures