Been There, Done That and ThenSome:Timandlesley Do Disneyfor18days!11/2 TR IS UP!pg79

[LISAMWDW]

What a fun day!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sounded like a perfect Disney day! The pic of Lauren out cold is so funny!


Coral Reef is on my too do list but maybe I'll think twice about it. You are right, there are so many good places to go! Sorry you had a bad experience!

 

[caralyn817]

I'm loving your trip report so far. Your kids are so cute! Can't wait for more! I'm sorry about your waiter at Coral Reef, but look on the bright side at least you got your food. We had a bad experience once at Ohana. We had reservations for 8:30pm (since we got in late). We were seated and our server came over right away. Then, we never saw her again. Really we never saw her! We kept asking other servers and they would say "We'll check for you!" or "I'll go get her!" Finally, we asked for the manager. The manager came out and said she left for the night. Apparently, she told the manager that she didn't have any more tables for the night. Well, we got a new server who was great, but we didn't get out of there until after 11:30pm.

 

[wigdoutdismom]

Lesley,
Ok, just to start with in the 1br, you have a full kitchen, not that you want to cook on vacation but it's nice to have that full size fridge and freezer to well freeze things like capri suns and water bottles for the parks. Plus we did a little cooking for snacks. You also will have a dining table and possibly a breakfast bar.
Then you have your own bedroom with a king size bed. The bathroom is amazing...
From the master bedroom there are shutters that you can open or close while using the jacuzzi tub, your own dressing area, full glassed in stand alone shower, another sink area for the kids and a potty room...
Then there's the washer and dryer, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. If you are staying at AKV you will have a pull out sofa and a pull out chair in the living room for the kids. At Beach Club we just had the pull out sofa for Baylor but it was soooo nice to have our own space.

If it came down to staying in a studio or not going, well, I'd stay in a studio, but I'll sacrifice a few days to use more points for our 1br.

Hopes this all makes sense!
We are staying in a 2br at Kidani in December, I'm sure it will knock my socks off but there will be 7 of us on that trip, so we will fill the place!
Anita

 

[Charleston Princess]

Loved reading this update! Another wonderfully relaxing day for you with the pool and Epcot! What a shame about Rico . Was that yellow stuff coming OUT of Tim's Chocolate Wave? I am pretty sure there wasn't anything yellow in the one I had in 2007. Yick! Lauren must have exhausted herself with all of that dancing she did -- she was definitely out cold!

 

[Lil'DisneyMom]

Great update!! What a nice and relaxing day! Those pool mornings really help sometimes.

We had a very simialr experience at Coral Reef before, and haven't been back since!!

 

[CW4DW]

I'm late but finally here - gotta get caught up on the entire trip report! You have a beautiful family!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

I'm finally caught up! I've been reading and trying to catch up, but too tired to comment.

Your last couple of days were so magical!

- I love that Luke got picked for HDD! He did such a good job We had those seats in the back, too - great seats since the table is taller, and there is action in the back.

- It is so fun that you've become such good friends with Diane and family! I'll bet you have many years of fun trips together!

- I'm sorry you were underimpressed with SSR. I think AKV is definately more "deluxe" - they tagged on to an awesome resort. I have enjoyed SSR because it is quiet and away from everything, yet close to DTD, but I loved AKL also! I put the suitcases in the back of the closet, and didn't really feel a lack of space, but we didn't have 4 people in the room, either.

- Yuck! Too bad about your Coral Reef dinner. I don't think we'll be doing that one anytime soon. I love Luke's positive attitude!

- your KP missions look so fun - I think I want to do one next time!

Thanks again for sharing.

 

[Sooze]

Lauren loved the Donald Duck Splash area

As you recall from my Facebook pics... Shae LOVED this area too!!

Lauren LOVED this:

Go figure, Shaelyn did too!!

You had to wait forever in a line to order (it literally wrapped around into the gift shop) and then you order, they give you a pager, you have to stand in another line to pay for it and then your buzzer goes off and you go BACK to get your food – crazy system if you ask me.

I completely agree... and there are no marking or guides as to where the lines should go... so it's a lot of crabby people trying to maneuver their way around.. and the rude ones who cut!!

I had a yummy roast beef and bleu sandwich, it was very good, Tim had the "smithstack" which he enjoyed.

If you are a fan of chicken/artichokes, and IF you ever return to SSR... the artichoke chicken flatbread is AH MAZ ING!!

FUNNIEST thing, guess who else was at the bus stop

I'm so happy for you guys that you got to spend so much time together. How FUN!

Here is a happy Tim entering the park with his MASCULINE Minnie Mouse Annual Pass

Ha! That's the same as Tyson's.. and Matt has TINKERBELL

How funny that you and Diane kept ending up in the same place! DisFATE!

 

[Sooze]

I was bummed because we were in the VERY back row, we’re spoiled by always getting tank side in the past. My wonderful Luke (this is his favorite restaurant) said “well, this isn’t bad, look at the great view of the tank from up here!” Gotta love it!

How sweet!

Our waiter was HORRIBLE!!! His name was Rico, and let me tell you….. Rico NEVER made eye contact with us, he was always frantically looking around the restaurant and always rushing when he was at the table. I ordered wine and didn’t get it until I was half way through my Main course. At one point Tim said “thank you” to him and there was silence……… so Tim said “THANK YOU” again……… again, NOTHING, so Tim said “are you hearing what I am saying to you?” and he said “Yes, you are saying Thank you” and Tim said “well, wouldn’t it be nice if you would actually acknowledge we were here” to which he ignored that comment, kind of laughed and walked away, AUGH!

Oh my.. I just hate to hear about stuff like this. Now you guys have had TWO rude CM!! And not just rude, REALLY rude.

So, needless to say I don’t think we’ll be dining at Coral Reef again, way too many nice restaraunts on property.

Again, so sad! We've had so many great experiences here. Of course, once they did away with the personalized menu and divers... we decided we wouldn't be returning, either! Way to take away the things that make that place so special! (Well, other than the ginormous fish tank... but I digress....

Still being goofy once inside :

Ok, for a second, I really thought I was looking at a picture of Matt. This is SO a face he would make!

And Lauren LITERALLY danced her way outside of the living seas

Just love this sequence of pictures. Great memories!

 

[Sooze]

At the end of the mission your phone activates the German clocktower and they go round and round the clock knocking the bad guy in the head with a hammer in the clock, kids LOVED this!

That sounds hilarious! Must must do this when we go back.

Trying to get pics of the kids on this beautiful Epcot night:

These pictures are fantastic! I can't believe there aren't hoards of people crowding around the fence. IllumiNations is in the air, the sky looks beautiful... ahhhhhh... I can just imagine being there right now!

I just LOVE this show!!!

ME TOO!!!!

Shae REALLY enjoyed when “the earf opened up and THERE WAS FIRE!”

How GREAT! If only she looked that HAPPY in front of Illuminations in real life! Can you believe after all of that talk she does about "Earf" that when it came right down to it, she freaked out and didn't even watch it?!?!

That is a KEEPER!

 

[Sooze]

Don't be jealous Sooze, you should COME TOO!! How fun would that be!!!

Oh, Diane! I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to come too! Can you imagine ALL of our kids?!?! They would never want to leave each other!! We just can't go at the time of year you guys go, because of Matt's involvement with Drum and Bugle Corps. Maybe if he ever stops touring, we can work it out!!

 

[Sooze]

Lesley,
Ok, just to start with in the 1br, you have a full kitchen, not that you want to cook on vacation but it's nice to have that full size fridge and freezer to well freeze things like capri suns and water bottles for the parks. Plus we did a little cooking for snacks. You also will have a dining table and possibly a breakfast bar.
Then you have your own bedroom with a king size bed. The bathroom is amazing...
From the master bedroom there are shutters that you can open or close while using the jacuzzi tub, your own dressing area, full glassed in stand alone shower, another sink area for the kids and a potty room...
Then there's the washer and dryer, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. If you are staying at AKV you will have a pull out sofa and a pull out chair in the living room for the kids. At Beach Club we just had the pull out sofa for Baylor but it was soooo nice to have our own space.

If it came down to staying in a studio or not going, well, I'd stay in a studio, but I'll sacrifice a few days to use more points for our 1br.

Hopes this all makes sense!
We are staying in a 2br at Kidani in December, I'm sure it will knock my socks off but there will be 7 of us on that trip, so we will fill the place!
Anita

Lesley, I'm going to agree with all of the above. There is NO COMPARISON between a 1BR and a Studio. If you have the points, definitely go 1BR. HOWEVER... if it means you can stay longer, like your family usually does, stick with the studio. We have to do that for our next Spring Break trip.. giving up our 1BR so we can stay longer. Here are some pics of our 1BR from Spring Break... the ones at SSR are pretty much the same:

The view when you walk in. To the left is the full kitchen. The sofa you see pulls out to a full bed. I am pretty sure it is bigger than the sofa in the studios. The entertainment center has several large drawers. I was able to fit all of the kids' clothes in it:

If you turn to the right when you walk in, you head towards the Master BR. There are two bathrooms here that are connected. One has a toilet, sink, and stand-up shower. That connects to the other one that has a sink, walk-in closet, and jacuzzi tub. You can also see a bit of the 'kitchen table' that you walk by on your way into the MBR:

Here is the MBR. There is another entertainment center with a whole other set of drawers, where Matt and I stored our own clothes. The bed is GINORMOUS! The kids probably could've stayed in it with us with room to spare.. but.. ah.. no!

Here is the bathroom with the sink and big tub. This is connected to the MBR. Lots of storage for toiletries in here:

No explanation necessary. These are a God-send!

One last picture of the other part of the bathroom with the sink and shower. The toilet is off to the right in it's own separate little room! Nice and private!

Sorry to hijack.. just thought you'd like to see the comparison. We are going to REALLY REALLY miss our 1BR next year.. but being able to stay longer was more important to us!

Happy weekend. Going to listen to your podcast today!

 

[wigdoutdismom]

Ahhhhh, Spring Break.....
IF we get to go next year we will be in a studio somewhere, because we will rent points for that one.

 

[wigdoutdismom]

Lesley, I'm going to agree with all of the above. There is NO COMPARISON between a 1BR and a Studio. If you have the points, definitely go 1BR. HOWEVER... if it means you can stay longer, like your family usually does, stick with the studio. We have to do that for our next Spring Break trip.. giving up our 1BR so we can stay longer. Here are some pics of our 1BR from Spring Break... the ones at SSR are pretty much the same:

The view when you walk in. To the left is the full kitchen. The sofa you see pulls out to a full bed. I am pretty sure it is bigger than the sofa in the studios. The entertainment center has several large drawers. I was able to fit all of the kids' clothes in it:

If you turn to the right when you walk in, you head towards the Master BR. There are two bathrooms here that are connected. One has a toilet, sink, and stand-up shower. That connects to the other one that has a sink, walk-in closet, and jacuzzi tub. You can also see a bit of the 'kitchen table' that you walk by on your way into the MBR:

Here is the MBR. There is another entertainment center with a whole other set of drawers, where Matt and I stored our own clothes. The bed is GINORMOUS! The kids probably could've stayed in it with us with room to spare.. but.. ah.. no!

Here is the bathroom with the sink and big tub. This is connected to the MBR. Lots of storage for toiletries in here:

No explanation necessary. These are a God-send!

One last picture of the other part of the bathroom with the sink and shower. The toilet is off to the right in it's own separate little room! Nice and private!

Sorry to hijack.. just thought you'd like to see the comparison. We are going to REALLY REALLY miss our 1BR next year.. but being able to stay longer was more important to us!

Happy weekend. Going to listen to your podcast today!

Sooze,
Those pictures took me right back to June, ahhhhh love the Beach Club!
Anita

 

[DevonsDisneyMom]

Hi Lesley!! I am loving the report!!! Your Children are adorable and Tim, well... He's so funny I actually LOL a few times reading your updates!!! Thanks for sharing! Cant wait to read the rest! Reese

 

[Tigger79]

We've stayed at Old Key West,The Boardwalk,Animal Kingdom Lodge and SS. We've stayed in one bedrooms,two bedrooms and studios. My personal favorite resort is Boardwalk(we arent DVC owners but have found a great couple on these boards that we rent points from everytime we go) because the Boardwalk is close to two parks plus we have the other resorts just a short distance away from us. We stayed in a two-bedroom at SS ad I thought personally that was a little small compared the Old Key and Boardwalk two bedrooms. We've only stayed at a studio at AKL which we had a view of the pool that was cool. I like AKL but I feel we are so far away from everything expect the Animal Kingdom Park. We've also ate the Coral Reef twice and had great experiences both times and I would go back in a New York minute. I love their steak! Yummy for my tummy.

Since you are DVC members,you HAVE to go to Disney sometime around Christmas. That is our favorite time to go with everything going on. We've gone other times and Disney feels and looks "naked" without all the decorations at the parks and resorts. We love it at Disney that time of the year. I'm usually lurker for your trip reports-you have one of the best trip reports on these boards(well thats just my opinion anyways) and it helps that you are also from Ohio like my family is. We live bout a hour north of Columbus and we usually drive to Disney and about once a year sometimes twice.

 

[brookelizabeth]

Sorry to hear your meal at Coral Reef was not so good! Tim's Wave looks HORRIBLE. Ick! That is not what it is supposed to look like at all. And poor service, a not so good seat on top of it all. But, like you said, there are so many choices at Epcot (and the surrounding resorts), it will be great to try other places!

The pics of Lauren passed out are so cute! Man, she was ZONKED! Good move on the cab too - sometimes it is the best choice and money well spent!

I wish I could come on the Podcast cruise, but it's right in the middle of the school year and I'm using up all of my personal days for our October trip. The purple shirt I got at Old Navy, was there yesterday and they are still selling them. : )

Ah ya...the timing just stinks for teachers! I know quite a number of people were bummed about that - I bet 3.0 will be during the summer to help accommodate the crowd who cannot go this time around.

If we get to a town with an Old Navy anytime soon I'll have to look for it! Thanks!

 

[sharonW]

Really enjoying your disney adventure once again.
Loved your pics of Wishes. Luke's shirt was terrific!
what a creative little guy!!! Lauren is the most adorable
little girl, all her pics are great!! Poor Tim with the knee
issues, thank goodness for cabs!!!!

 

[mikamah]

Hi there! I just booked a wdw trip, so it's time to start spending endless hours on the dis, and I thought I need a timandlesley trip report to get me excited, and here it is. I'm only through day one. The kids are sooo cute, getting so big. I think my first report I read of your's was before my son's first trip 3 years ago.

Congratulations on buying DVC!!!! That means there will always be plenty of trip reports!!

 

[15isto2]

loving the report