OK, I can't really do the trip report thing, so I'll just stick to bullet points as things occur to me.
* I don't want to beat this one into the ground, but here it goes. BWV was nice, but all you owners can sleep soundly that we won't be back terribly soon. The room was ready when we checked-in around noon, and it was in very good condition (although dish soap and extra trash bags were missing--housekeeping delivered promptly after we called). It was also nice being able to walk to the bakery for breakfast a couple of times. But staying there with two toddlers makes it just too hard to get around. Pushing that stroller 20min in both directions to Epcot or MGM (with 60 pounds of kiddie on board) gets old quickly. The boats were a nice alternative, but just take too long when you're desperately trying to get back to the room before the kids fall asleep. There were at least two occasions where we walked from MGM to our room and didn't pass a single boat.
We were in room 3002, the last one down one of those looooong hallways. We did have a stairwell right next to our room, which would have been great except that it was closed at the ground level due to construction on the new croquet green. Near as we can figure, about the only room further from the parking lot and bus stop would have been 5002--only because it was two floors above us.
(Incidentally, as of Friday it appeared they had finished the croquet green. When we arrived, the sprinkler system was in and planting had begun. By mid-week they were laying sod and had finished the planting and laid mulch around the area. Late Friday the construction barriers came down.)
In truth, everything about BWV was top-notch. Prompt, friendly staff. Good condition room. But as long as we're traveling with our young kids, we're going to stick to SSR and OKW. At risk of offending others, I just don't see how BWV and BCV can be considered so much more "convenient" for big families than a resort that allows you to walk 2 minutes to a bus stop and then ride the rest of the way in air conditioned comfort.
Different strokes.
* DVC AP Upgrade - Always a popular topic, so here's our experience. First, the setup: Myself and DW had APs purchased at the end of '03 in the waning days of the Disney Club, and then activated in May '04. DS (4) received his AP in December '04.
We went to the International Gateway to upgrade. I explained to the CM what we wanted to do and also quickly mentioned that I traded messages with DVC (which I did) and they confirmed that we should be able to upgrade and that it would probably end up being a virtually free upgrade. The goal was for DW and I to have PAPs that expire later in May '05 and DS would have a PAP that expires in Dec '05.
The CM seemed to understand everything that we wanted to do, asked a few more questions, checked our ID, and set off punching her computer. It was sort of a weird experience. The CM didn't have a "oh, sure, I've done these a hundred times" attitude, but she asked me a lot of questions just to clarify what we wanted to do. I also never saw her pick up the phone or ask another CM for help, so clearly she knew what she was doing.
In the end, we had 3 PAPs in our hands AND a cash refund for $14 and change. But wait, there's more! When I looked at the passes later in the day, DS' pass still had his Dec '05 expiration date, which was correct. However, DW and myself ALSO had a Dec '05 expiration date on our new passes.
Strangely enough, the December dates on our passes were different--DS' pass expires something like 12/10 while mine says 12/16. Nevertheless, it appears we just got about 7 months free on our AP. Unfortunately we probably won't take advantage, so it's something of a no-harm situation. We're out of points and hadn't planned to return until the spring of '06. Interesting story nonetheless.
OK, now for the fun stuff:
* Crowds were just fine for the Celebration kick-off. No excessive waits, IMO. For example, on 5/5 (the day Epcot was closing early for the big press event) we did Turtle Talk with no wait (first in queue for next show) and our FastPass return time for Soarin was only about 45 minutes from receipt.
* There were a lot of tents set-up in all of the theme parks (even saw them at Typhoon Lagoon) apparently for media interview sessions and radio program remotes. I know it's a necessary evil, but it really kinda bothered me having to look at those tents and even large stages and lighting assemblies all week long. My mother did get a pic of Paige Davis doing a radio interview at some point. I wonder what other celebrities might have been spotted--I usually don't recognize "famous" people without an introduction.
* Soarin' was fantastic. Get row #1 if you can. On our first ride we got the top row, middle gate, and it really took my breath away. Whether I looked up, down, left or right, all I saw was the video screen. Second ride was from the middle row and seeing the feet dangling from those above took just a little bit off of the experience.
* We also did Lights, Motors, Action!, Turtle Talk and Crushin Gusher for the first time. All are excellent Disney attractions. I had read a review of LMA written during the testing period that described the show as being a little choppy and disorganized. We saw it on 5/6 and apparently they've worked out the glitches. It was really fun. We did all 3 of the Crushin Gusher slides (with about 2 min wait time for each) and they were a blast. DW giggled all the way down each run.
* Due to a couple of Fantasmic rainouts we didn't get to Illuminations this time. Bummer...that's one of my faves.
* Had our first meal at Chef Mickey's. That was fun. It was nice to get all of those character photos at one time. I think the only other meet-n-greets we did were the princesses in Toontown and Lilo & Stitch at AK. Oh, and we did Sorcerer Mickey at MGM which, as usual, had NOBODY in line.
Back to Chef Mickey's--DW is still a little upset about the extra attention I got from Minnie. She came by our table three times in an hour--once while DW was gone. I think I was a little red-faced in the photo that my Mother snapped.
But, I have a feeling DW made up for it with a few excessive close-ups of Tarzan in our video of Tarzan Rocks.
* We used DDE without a problem. Called about 2 weeks before the trip to sign-up and received the letter about a week later. We used it about 6-7 times, and all places recognized the letter with zero confusion. At worst, we broke-even on DDE and will save a few bucks during our next trip.
* We did the EMH nights at MGM and the Magic Kingdom. Both were a success. Admittedly we did avoid ToT and RnR at MGM, but the other rides were walk-ons. At MK we did Haunted Mansion, Toontown (character greet + toured both houses), Barnstormer, ISAW, Pooh, BTMR (x2), SpMtn, POTC, and Buzz between 7pm and 10:30pm when the park closed at 9. I thought that was pretty darn good. And that was during the EMH on 5/4 when MGM closed at 4pm and AK at 5pm.
* If you've never ridden BTMR while the fireworks are going on, DO IT. It's really fun. The CMs were encouraging people to just stay in the car and continue to ride. We rode twice ourselves.
* Thankfully, other guests seemed to be pretty well-behaved during our trip. I really hate those parade-time confrontations and other nonsense that often seems to rear its ugly head. The worst we saw was a guy running (and pushing a stroller) for the boat at MGM who completely ignored a security guard's instructions while shouting "you'll be OK with it" (as if to say "find something else to do and don't worry about me.")
The person who appeared to he his wife looked dumbstruck. Wonder if he got an earful (or if it would have mattered.) Funny thing was the boat hadn't even docked yet!!! It's not like the guy needed to be running. He probably sat on the boat for 10 minutes before they left the dock.
That's all I can think of for now. Got any questions? Feel free to ask!
* I don't want to beat this one into the ground, but here it goes. BWV was nice, but all you owners can sleep soundly that we won't be back terribly soon. The room was ready when we checked-in around noon, and it was in very good condition (although dish soap and extra trash bags were missing--housekeeping delivered promptly after we called). It was also nice being able to walk to the bakery for breakfast a couple of times. But staying there with two toddlers makes it just too hard to get around. Pushing that stroller 20min in both directions to Epcot or MGM (with 60 pounds of kiddie on board) gets old quickly. The boats were a nice alternative, but just take too long when you're desperately trying to get back to the room before the kids fall asleep. There were at least two occasions where we walked from MGM to our room and didn't pass a single boat.
We were in room 3002, the last one down one of those looooong hallways. We did have a stairwell right next to our room, which would have been great except that it was closed at the ground level due to construction on the new croquet green. Near as we can figure, about the only room further from the parking lot and bus stop would have been 5002--only because it was two floors above us.
(Incidentally, as of Friday it appeared they had finished the croquet green. When we arrived, the sprinkler system was in and planting had begun. By mid-week they were laying sod and had finished the planting and laid mulch around the area. Late Friday the construction barriers came down.)
In truth, everything about BWV was top-notch. Prompt, friendly staff. Good condition room. But as long as we're traveling with our young kids, we're going to stick to SSR and OKW. At risk of offending others, I just don't see how BWV and BCV can be considered so much more "convenient" for big families than a resort that allows you to walk 2 minutes to a bus stop and then ride the rest of the way in air conditioned comfort.
Different strokes.* DVC AP Upgrade - Always a popular topic, so here's our experience. First, the setup: Myself and DW had APs purchased at the end of '03 in the waning days of the Disney Club, and then activated in May '04. DS (4) received his AP in December '04.
We went to the International Gateway to upgrade. I explained to the CM what we wanted to do and also quickly mentioned that I traded messages with DVC (which I did) and they confirmed that we should be able to upgrade and that it would probably end up being a virtually free upgrade. The goal was for DW and I to have PAPs that expire later in May '05 and DS would have a PAP that expires in Dec '05.
The CM seemed to understand everything that we wanted to do, asked a few more questions, checked our ID, and set off punching her computer. It was sort of a weird experience. The CM didn't have a "oh, sure, I've done these a hundred times" attitude, but she asked me a lot of questions just to clarify what we wanted to do. I also never saw her pick up the phone or ask another CM for help, so clearly she knew what she was doing.
In the end, we had 3 PAPs in our hands AND a cash refund for $14 and change. But wait, there's more! When I looked at the passes later in the day, DS' pass still had his Dec '05 expiration date, which was correct. However, DW and myself ALSO had a Dec '05 expiration date on our new passes.
Strangely enough, the December dates on our passes were different--DS' pass expires something like 12/10 while mine says 12/16. Nevertheless, it appears we just got about 7 months free on our AP. Unfortunately we probably won't take advantage, so it's something of a no-harm situation. We're out of points and hadn't planned to return until the spring of '06. Interesting story nonetheless.OK, now for the fun stuff:
* Crowds were just fine for the Celebration kick-off. No excessive waits, IMO. For example, on 5/5 (the day Epcot was closing early for the big press event) we did Turtle Talk with no wait (first in queue for next show) and our FastPass return time for Soarin was only about 45 minutes from receipt.
* There were a lot of tents set-up in all of the theme parks (even saw them at Typhoon Lagoon) apparently for media interview sessions and radio program remotes. I know it's a necessary evil, but it really kinda bothered me having to look at those tents and even large stages and lighting assemblies all week long. My mother did get a pic of Paige Davis doing a radio interview at some point. I wonder what other celebrities might have been spotted--I usually don't recognize "famous" people without an introduction.
* Soarin' was fantastic. Get row #1 if you can. On our first ride we got the top row, middle gate, and it really took my breath away. Whether I looked up, down, left or right, all I saw was the video screen. Second ride was from the middle row and seeing the feet dangling from those above took just a little bit off of the experience.
* We also did Lights, Motors, Action!, Turtle Talk and Crushin Gusher for the first time. All are excellent Disney attractions. I had read a review of LMA written during the testing period that described the show as being a little choppy and disorganized. We saw it on 5/6 and apparently they've worked out the glitches. It was really fun. We did all 3 of the Crushin Gusher slides (with about 2 min wait time for each) and they were a blast. DW giggled all the way down each run.
* Due to a couple of Fantasmic rainouts we didn't get to Illuminations this time. Bummer...that's one of my faves.
* Had our first meal at Chef Mickey's. That was fun. It was nice to get all of those character photos at one time. I think the only other meet-n-greets we did were the princesses in Toontown and Lilo & Stitch at AK. Oh, and we did Sorcerer Mickey at MGM which, as usual, had NOBODY in line.
Back to Chef Mickey's--DW is still a little upset about the extra attention I got from Minnie. She came by our table three times in an hour--once while DW was gone. I think I was a little red-faced in the photo that my Mother snapped.
But, I have a feeling DW made up for it with a few excessive close-ups of Tarzan in our video of Tarzan Rocks.
* We used DDE without a problem. Called about 2 weeks before the trip to sign-up and received the letter about a week later. We used it about 6-7 times, and all places recognized the letter with zero confusion. At worst, we broke-even on DDE and will save a few bucks during our next trip.
* We did the EMH nights at MGM and the Magic Kingdom. Both were a success. Admittedly we did avoid ToT and RnR at MGM, but the other rides were walk-ons. At MK we did Haunted Mansion, Toontown (character greet + toured both houses), Barnstormer, ISAW, Pooh, BTMR (x2), SpMtn, POTC, and Buzz between 7pm and 10:30pm when the park closed at 9. I thought that was pretty darn good. And that was during the EMH on 5/4 when MGM closed at 4pm and AK at 5pm.
* If you've never ridden BTMR while the fireworks are going on, DO IT. It's really fun. The CMs were encouraging people to just stay in the car and continue to ride. We rode twice ourselves.
* Thankfully, other guests seemed to be pretty well-behaved during our trip. I really hate those parade-time confrontations and other nonsense that often seems to rear its ugly head. The worst we saw was a guy running (and pushing a stroller) for the boat at MGM who completely ignored a security guard's instructions while shouting "you'll be OK with it" (as if to say "find something else to do and don't worry about me.")
The person who appeared to he his wife looked dumbstruck. Wonder if he got an earful (or if it would have mattered.) Funny thing was the boat hadn't even docked yet!!! It's not like the guy needed to be running. He probably sat on the boat for 10 minutes before they left the dock.
That's all I can think of for now. Got any questions? Feel free to ask!
(Im kidding OK!)
>)
). But I can definitely understand your frustrations - sleeping kids are a priority! 
. Give it a few years when they are a bit older and the location might be more enjoyable for your family 
Good for your DW 
I had hoped to hit it on our last full night, but we gave prececence to the 6pm Lights, Motors, Action at MGM. There was just no way we could have a nice meal a B&C and still make it to MGM in time for LMA. 
