Eeyore1954
<font color=purple>A smart man who realizes that p
- Joined
- Apr 5, 2002
- Messages
- 5,327
My DW and I decided to do a Discovery Magic package at the Beach Club Resort. We just returned from a very magical week of fun, sun, some rain, and a whole lot of magic.
We arrived in Orlando on Sunday around 10:30 a.m. from a rather warm Chicago (64 degrees). The flight (United) was somewhat empty, so we got moved to Economy Plus. There was no one in the 3rd seat, so we go to spread out a little and nap some on the flight.
We used Avis on this trip and they were terrific. We used a Mousesavers code and wound up with an upgrade to a Buick LeSabre for the week. Avis really does try harder and their staff at MCO were wonderful.
Traditionally, we head to Haines City, FL on every trip to Orlando to stop at the Orange Ring. They make some wonderful fresh squeezed OJ. It's about a 25 - 30 min. drive west of WDW. We loaded up the OJ, grabbed some lunch at McDonalds and decided to try our luck at an early check-in at the Beach Club.
We arrived at BC around 1:30 p.m. and were amazed that check-in was SWAMPED! I thought I'd be standing there for awhile, but I think I stood there less than 3 or 4 minutes. Michelle (CM) checked us in and she was terrific. She explained the layout of the BC/YC, how to get into Stormalong Bay, where the restaurants a located, transportation, etc. I explained it was our 1st stay there so we needed a little help.
Alas, our room was not ready yet, but she told us to wait in the lounge on the 5th floor and someone would call us. I was a little puzzled, because I knew the 5th floor was concierge and we had not booked that.
Michelle checked her screen again and said we were assigned to the 5th floor, so enjoy!
We arrived on the floor and Josh (concierge CM) took our luggage and showed us around the lounge area. We grabbed some snacks and began watching Monsters Inc. on the TV. Unfortunately, before the movie was over (gasp -- I really got into that movie!
) our room was ready -- 5702. Nice view of the "moat", but we're not "view" people, so we didn't much care. We could see the geosphere at Epcot easily and check out how busy valet parking was before heading out. 
We changed from Chicago-gear to Orlando clothes and headed to explore the Boardwalk area. We decided to have dinner at Beaches and Cream. The burgers were good, but I didn't care for the fries. My DW got their chicken noodle soup -- we both tried it and decided it was basically inedible (bad taste -- maybe we just got a bad batch?). We were pretty full, so we skipped dessert.
We wandered over to Epcot to snag a place for Illuminations -- a first night tradition. Of course, the show as always was terrific. Love that music! Then we tried for a casual walk back to BC -- despite the crowds rushing to Beaches and Cream!
Back in the room and finish unpacking. Suddenly, for me, the magic stopped. My stomach turned upside down and I ended up hugging the toilet for what seemed like hours. DW says it was just 10 or 15 mins. Anyway, I lost everything -- we decided we chose a bad batch of OJ from the Orange Ring and tossed the remaining bottles.
Despite the rough start, I slept like a log and was ready for Day 2 -- which I called "Disappointment Turns into Magic". But that's another thread!
We arrived in Orlando on Sunday around 10:30 a.m. from a rather warm Chicago (64 degrees). The flight (United) was somewhat empty, so we got moved to Economy Plus. There was no one in the 3rd seat, so we go to spread out a little and nap some on the flight.
We used Avis on this trip and they were terrific. We used a Mousesavers code and wound up with an upgrade to a Buick LeSabre for the week. Avis really does try harder and their staff at MCO were wonderful.
Traditionally, we head to Haines City, FL on every trip to Orlando to stop at the Orange Ring. They make some wonderful fresh squeezed OJ. It's about a 25 - 30 min. drive west of WDW. We loaded up the OJ, grabbed some lunch at McDonalds and decided to try our luck at an early check-in at the Beach Club.
We arrived at BC around 1:30 p.m. and were amazed that check-in was SWAMPED! I thought I'd be standing there for awhile, but I think I stood there less than 3 or 4 minutes. Michelle (CM) checked us in and she was terrific. She explained the layout of the BC/YC, how to get into Stormalong Bay, where the restaurants a located, transportation, etc. I explained it was our 1st stay there so we needed a little help.
Alas, our room was not ready yet, but she told us to wait in the lounge on the 5th floor and someone would call us. I was a little puzzled, because I knew the 5th floor was concierge and we had not booked that.
Michelle checked her screen again and said we were assigned to the 5th floor, so enjoy! We arrived on the floor and Josh (concierge CM) took our luggage and showed us around the lounge area. We grabbed some snacks and began watching Monsters Inc. on the TV. Unfortunately, before the movie was over (gasp -- I really got into that movie!
) our room was ready -- 5702. Nice view of the "moat", but we're not "view" people, so we didn't much care. We could see the geosphere at Epcot easily and check out how busy valet parking was before heading out. We changed from Chicago-gear to Orlando clothes and headed to explore the Boardwalk area. We decided to have dinner at Beaches and Cream. The burgers were good, but I didn't care for the fries. My DW got their chicken noodle soup -- we both tried it and decided it was basically inedible (bad taste -- maybe we just got a bad batch?). We were pretty full, so we skipped dessert.
We wandered over to Epcot to snag a place for Illuminations -- a first night tradition. Of course, the show as always was terrific. Love that music! Then we tried for a casual walk back to BC -- despite the crowds rushing to Beaches and Cream!
Back in the room and finish unpacking. Suddenly, for me, the magic stopped. My stomach turned upside down and I ended up hugging the toilet for what seemed like hours. DW says it was just 10 or 15 mins.
Anyway, I lost everything -- we decided we chose a bad batch of OJ from the Orange Ring and tossed the remaining bottles. Despite the rough start, I slept like a log and was ready for Day 2 -- which I called "Disappointment Turns into Magic". But that's another thread!
