Darcie and Judith Vs. BWV/WDW

[DVC Judith]

DAY ONE


Donald and Daisy’s, Mickey and Minnie’s,


Before we get started, we want to take a quick minute to introduce ourselves. Judith and Darcie here, A.K.A. Julie and Dorothy. We are Senior Vacation Club Coordinators at David’s Vacation Club Rentals and we are about to spend 6 nights at Boardwalk Villas!



Judith, Melissa and Darcie outside of Beach Club on Day 1


Early Monday morning, as in 4:00 am earlier, we had to put on our big girl faces and say goodbye to our beloved cats. A few belly rubs and kitty kisses later and we were on our way.

We flew out of London, Ontario and had a connecting flight from Toronto to Orlando.


When we arrived at MCO, Orlando, our Director of Operations, Melissa, “encouraged” us to leave her guidance behind and find Disney’s Magical Express Services on our own. As a couple of newbies to Disney, let us assure you, Disney’s Magical Express is a service designed to assist any guest of Disney with quick and painless transportation to their resort. If this is something you have been anxious about for your upcoming Disney trip, please leave those worries behind.



Our Magical Express Bus and Driver Carl.


We checked in, and just like we always assure our own guests, it was flawless. Some quick and helpful tips from the lobby Cast Members and we were off to check out our studios. As many of you may know, Boardwalk has been undergoing some refurbishments to upgrade their studios include a single pull down bed so that there is sleeping accommodation for five guests. We are happy to report that these refurbishments have been completed and all three of our studios are beautifully renovated.







The new Murphy bunk sized beds to accommodate the fifth guest.


After check in we had a chance to walk along the boardwalk and explore the other Epcot resort, Beach Club.






Beach Club is a beautiful resort and on a super hot day it isn’t hard to see why this resort is so popular. The pool is AWESOME!



Stormalong Bay


After doing some exploring we realized that it had been approximately 6 hours since we had eaten a real meal. And we don’t want to speak for anyone else but that is a long time to survive on a tiny pack of Airplane cookies. So we went to the ESPN Club on the Boardwalk for an early dinner.



Darcie's Chicken and Waffles



Judith's Seafood Mac and Cheese


After Dinner we met up with Dave and Kathy (And yes we mean the David and Kathy). They are staying at the Grand Floridian and wanted to show us around the resort including their One Bedroom-Standard View Villa. All we can say about the Grand Floridian is wow! It truly is breathtaking and has always been one of our favourite resorts since we started working for David’s.





The living area in the one bedroom at Grand Floridian.


We got to explore both the Disney and DVC side of the resort and in the main lobby there was a Pianist taking requests at a Grand Piano as well as a live Jazz band that sounded great perched above the hotel guests on the second floor.




And lastly we rounded out the day watching Illuminations from the Bridge that separates Boardwalk and Beach Club.

It was been a super long day but we are so ready to do it all again tomorrow with fanny packs and visors and a whole lot of Disney Magic. And just as an FYI Darcie has already broken her fanny pack so it is a good thing Judith came prepared with multiple spares.



Our favorite Boardwalk performer A.K.A. Mr. Rat Trap.



Thanks so much for following along with us and we are excited to share with you what we learn tomorrow for Day 2!


DAY TWO


We started off the day by picking up our rental car at the Swan and Dolphin A.K.A. The Swan and Fish which is across the bridge from the Boardwalk Villas.

Once we picked up the rental car we went right over to the Grand Floridian for our Character Breakfast reservation at 1900 Park Fare. We arrived a bit early for our reservation but luckily we were seated right away.

If you are interested in meeting characters, we highly recommend 1900 Park Fare. And here is why:

- Guests are able to enjoy a great buffet while they wait for the characters to approach their table. This is much more relaxing and comfortable then waiting in a long line inside one of the parks.

- The characters will be sure to approach each table and are very friendly and funny.

- Guests are able to watch the characters interact with all tables and the wait time is very minimal as there are multiple characters walking around at one time.







After breakfast we took Mermaid 1 (the ferry) from the Grand Floridian to Magic Kingdom.








Street Performers on Main Street USA (We were in the right place at the right time to see this)


And just so everyone knows this was Darcie’s first time in the Magic Kingdom EVER! So obviously we had to go on the Tea Cups, a Disney staple. Then we went on the Prince Charming’s Carousel and after the ride we all felt a little woozy.

After a couple more rides we left the park and took a boat over to Wilderness Lodge. A few things that we noticed about seeing this resort first hand is:

- The Gift Shop is amazing. It was huge and offered such a large variety of merchandise.

- The construction that is taking place on the Villa side of Wilderness Lodge is quite extensive. And we can only imagine how fantastic this resort will be once it is completed.






A corner of the lobby where guests can lounge on a rocking chair in front of a warm fire. Not that you need that in June.




A section of the construction as seen from the ferry leaving VWL


Next Stop Bay Lake Tower. We took a tour around the resort and found it to be well suited to the theme that it shares with the Contemporary. Another first for both us was taking the monorail from the Contemporary over to the Polynesian for our bungalow tour.




A nice lounge area above the main lobby at the Polynesian.


The Polynesian Bungalows are incredible. And if you are a guest that is looking to go to Disney World for a relaxing get away vacation we definitely recommend considering this option. The only negative thing that we can say about this guided tour is that we had been hoping to interact and collect more information about the Bungalows from our guide. However, we found that our knowledge of DVC’s Polynesian villas to be greater.


After the tour we walked from the Polynesian over to the Grand Floridian to have a late lunch and say hello to David and Kathy. The walk was mostly in the sun but with a great view of 7 Seas Lagoon however, if you are not used to extensive walking it is great that Disney provides the Monorail service that goes from Polynesian to the Grand Floridian.


Disney does an amazing job of keeping their parks clean and if there is litter on the ground it does not stay there for long. It really opened our eyes to see how much garbage is left on the ground after Celebrate the Magic and Wishes is done. Those Cast Members really hustle to get everything back in order and it is much appreciated.





Day three to come soon!

 

[DVC Judith]

DAY THREE


To start Day three, we drove on over to Saratoga Springs and toured the Aulani Villas at the Home Preview Centre. They have a marvelous built-to-scale double of the Aulani Resort that gives you a realistic impression of the resort grounds. We were also able to get a hands on feel for the Deluxe Studios and One Bedrooms there (which combined can also be considered a “Two Bedroom Lock-Off”. The décor is perfectly Hawaiian with a distinct Disney touch.




Outside of the Disney Vacation Club Home Preview Center




We decided to rent bikes to tour Saratoga Springs as it issuch a large resort.




SSR main lobby


After SSR, we did a driving tour of the Old Key West Resort grounds. The cute pastel colours of the Villas were very in tune with the theme of the Florida Keys. We did pop in for lunch at the quick service “Goods Food To Go” which put some much needed fuel in our engines for our day at Epcot!







Main feature pool at OKW


We wanted to get feel of a Moderate Resort and chose to visit Port Orleans – French Quarter. We experienced a wonderful Cast Member with a fondness for Canadians who made us feel very welcomed. However, we found the Disney Bus Transportation spots to be very dispersed as compared to a Deluxe Resort.





It was then time for a theme park – Epcot!! As we entered the park, we were greeted by Sleeping Beauty herself, who asked us if we would like to take a walk with her through the woods…… um…… YES!



This was another right place – right time occurrence as she was heading to start her scheduled meet and greet on the bridge. We did a few indoor rides and were able to visit a couple country pavilions. On 90+ degree day, we found that Epcot could use a few more shady areas to rest.








To wrap up our Epcot experience we had reservations at Biergarten, which is a German themed buffet with live entertainment. (And beer, of course!)








We rode the Friendship VI all the way from Epcot to Hollywood Studios – which was about 40 minutes with all the stops (Epcot – BWV – BCV – Swan – Hollywood Studios).





At Hollywood Studios, two fantastic things happened:

1) We met up with THE “Big Fat Panda”! John is a fellow employee who posts the best Disney videos/pictures and podcasts around! Because we reside in Canada and John works from Orlando, this was our first meeting.


2) We caught the new Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular, which is a light/laser/fireworks show that uses the stage of The Great Movie Ride. This show was INCREDIBLE! Even those of us who aren’t huge Star Wars fans found the show magical. This has been our favourite fireworks show thus far – by far!






To end the night we walked back to BWV from Hollywood Studios – which took exactly 15 minutes. We found the walk much easier than waiting for transportation as there were a lot of people and congestion funneling out of the park.


Stay tuned tomorrow for more on our Typhon Lagoon DVC Party!


DAY FOUR

This was the day that we finally got to visit the Animal Kingdom Lodge and Villas. We have heard a lot about the Grand Lobby at Jambo House however seeing it in person was extraordinary.



Jambo’s Lobby


Kidani also has a nice lobby however it is not as large as Jambo’s. We had a preconceived notion in our head that Kidani was a lot larger then Jambo however that is not the case. Although Kidani has a lot more DVC villas available then Jambo there are a lot of Disney room’s available at Jambo House that make it quite a bit larger.

With that being said we feel that Kidani has a much better Savannah and we were able to spot lots of animals from the designated look out points.





Fun Fact: we have learned that the same Architect that designed Animal Kingdom also designed Aulani in Hawaii. And we also found out that he does a lot of research before putting together a design plan for a resort and it really shows.

After Animal Kingdom Resort we decided to visit Art of Animation to get a feel for a Value resort. However, after an accidental left turn we ended up at the All-Star Sports Resort so we decided to visit both!

We can definitely understand why Art of Animation is a draw for families as the pool is very well themed and very large to accommodate the amount of guests that the resort can hold.



Finding Nemo Pool at Art of Animation




Lobby at Art of Animation


After being spoiled at a Deluxe villa we did find that the value resorts were extremely large and did not have all of the comforts that you would find when staying at a Vacation Club property.


After visiting the value resorts we went over to the ESPN Club for lunch. This restaurant is right on the Boardwalk and so very convenient for us.




Judith had the Cuban Burger.




Darcie had a Pulled pork Grilled Cheese…and a Margarita.


After lunch we had an opportunity to lounge by the pool before our DVC pool party at Typhoon Lagoon. The party was so fun! We were both very surprised at how aggressive the wave pool was…it was awesome…but aggressive. We got let into the Park about 8:30 pm and almost every ride was open accept for the Crushin Gusher.



Right before we got let into the water park.



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The wave pool. You can see the wave in the back ground.


There were also some complimentary snacks offered a little bit later into the night. We ate a lot of Chips and Cookies! Riding the water slides at night was a very unique experience…and slightly scary at times.



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This member party was actually to celebrate 25 years of DVC and this was projected on the ground as we left the park.


All in all being able to take part in this DVC member event has been one of the highlights of this trip.


Stay tuned for tomorrows update.

 

[DVC Judith]

DAY FIVE

On day four we had decided that we would be getting up early today to hustle our way over to Epcot for rope drop so that we could experience the new Frozen Ever After ride in Norway. And so by 8:00 am we were walking…very briskly to get to the gates before the park opened at 9:00 am. We were let into the park a little bit before 9:00 am however, we had to wait at two different rope drops for the park to officially open. There were so many people and once we were all allowed in about 90% of us all headed for the same spot, Norway.



The wait time was displayed as 10 minutes once we got into the line but with the amount of people funneling in we could tell it was going to be a lot longer than that.







Even though the queue was long there were lots of little details from the movie to look at and distract you.


All in all we only waited 37 minutes in line and it was well worth it. The ride is very well done and the animatronics were incredible.




Olaf


We had actually planned on visiting only Hollywood Studios and Disney Springs on this day so after the Frozen ride we headed back to the entrance to take the boat over to the other park. However, before we left Epcot Melissa wanted to take us to the Boulangerie in France and we had some delicious breakfast croissants.



Hollywood Studios is definitely one of our favourite parks. We had a couple of fast passes, the first of which was the Rockin Roller Coaster featuring AeroSmith. But before we could even get to the ride we were distracted by STORM TROOPERS!!!



There aren’t many places you can go now in Hollywood studios without catching a glimpse of something from the Star Wars Universe.





We also had a fast pass for the Tower of Terror which was pretty intense. Disney does such an amazing job of creating an experience and not just a basic ride.


After Tower of Terror it was getting extremely hot and so we all inhaled an ice cream cone while we waited in line for the Beauty and the Beast performance that happens a couple times a day.




We would highly recommend this show to everyone as it is extremely well done and provides you with an opportunity to sit down in the shade for about half an hour.


After Beauty and the Beast we went on a couple of indoor (air conditioned) rides and decided we should start heading over to Disney Springs in time for our dinner reservation at Morimoto. Because we have already experienced most of the transportation offered to Disney guests we decided to take a bus over to Saratoga Springs and then walk over to Disney Springs from there.



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Once we got to Disney Springs we made our way over to Morimoto for our reservation. Also, quick side note, WE SAW MORIMOTO THERE! He was in the restaurant and he walked right by our table. It was super cool.






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Beautiful chandeliers above the main dining area.



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The kitchen is completely open so that guests can watch as their food is prepared.


After dinner we walked around the Springs and did a little bit of shopping. There is a whole new section of stores that have just opened up and so we explored some of these as well as some of the live entertainment that is scattered around different areas.


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The statue of Maleficent and Prince Philip made entirely of Lego!


This is definitely a personal opinion but being adults in our 20’s, early to late 20’s we really enjoyed the atmosphere and night life offered at the Disney Springs. And now we can definitely see the appeal of staying at a resort like Saratoga Springs as it is just walking distance away from the night life and shopping that the Disney Springs offers.



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Disney Springs


After we had explored to our hearts content we hopped on a bus and headed back home to the Boardwalk Villas.


Make sure to watch for the sixth and final day of this trip report!

 

[DVC Judith]

DAY SIX



On our last day, which was by far the most humid and hot day here, we drove over to Animal Kingdom Park. From a far, you can see Pandora’s Island being built, which is set to open December 2017 – can’t wait!

We started off with the Kilimanjaro Safari.





We were able to catch a lot of great animals – sleeping and beating the heat in mud pits and ponds (lucky ducks!)






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One of the Cast Members feeding the baby Meer cats baby meatballs.


We had a Fast Pass for Expedition Everest but to fight the heat (stroke) we spent as much time inside as possible.



Attractions like Dinosaur, It’s Tough to be a Bug and Festival of the Lion King are great ways to keep cool at Animal Kingdom Park. Oh and by the way, we don’t really recommend It’s Tough to be a Bug for smaller or skittish children. Between big scary Hopper and his bug spray plus the creepy crawly special effects – this show was frightening!


The Tree of Life




The Festival of the Lion King.


When it was time to refuel, we decided on Rainforest Café. Although the food was decent and the AC was on full blast, this was our least favourite dining experience of the trip. Without going into too much detail, we will just say this, we arrived at 1:45 and finished around 3:30. A near 2 hour lunch was not what we were hoping for.

We had planned on visiting Magic Kingdom one last time, however the negative effects of the heat and sun were really getting to us (keep in mind, we are Canadians!) so we decided to keep our day shorter and head back to BWV to rest up for our early flight home. To wrap up our trip report, here are some things we have learned and wish to pass along:



Keep cool like our Hippo friend here on a hot day.


-We experienced all forms of transportation including car rentals, boat, monorail and bus, plus a lot of walking and some light biking. Our personal favourite was the ferry. The cool breeze from the water and relaxed vibe made the time pass along – even on long trips like Epcot – Hollywood Studios. We found the monorail, *cough cough* slightly smelly and uncomfortable. The busses were okay, but we did happen to experience a rather long wait time for one from Hollywood Studios to SSR.

-Bring photo ID everywhere! Disney may lead you to believe that all you need is your Magic Band, however, the band readers weren’t always working 100% and at times, we were asked for photo ID.

-If travelling during peak heat season as we did, please practice safe sun! Even as younger healthier adults, by day 6, we were absolutely melting. Water – no pop! Sunscreen – no oils! Keep out of direct sunlight when possible and always listen to your body, it will know when you’ve had enough.


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We did not experience a drop of rain on this trip but looking at the forecast for next week it looks like those guests will not be so lucky/unlucky.


Thank you so much for following along! This was a trip of firsts for us and it was our pleasure to share it with y’all. Until next time!


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-Darcie & Judith

David’s Vacation Club Rentals
#dvcrentals

 

[DVC-Cassie]

DAY ONE


Donald and Daisy’s, Mickey and Minnie’s,


Before we get started, we want to take a quick minute to introduce ourselves. Judith and Darcie here, A.K.A. Julie and Dorothy. We are Senior Vacation Club Coordinators at David’s Vacation Club Rentals and we are about to spend 6 nights at Boardwalk Villas!



Judith, Melissa and Darcie outside of Beach Club on Day 1


Early Monday morning, as in 4:00 am earlier, we had to put on our big girl faces and say goodbye to our beloved cats. A few belly rubs and kitty kisses later and we were on our way.

We flew out of London, Ontario and had a connecting flight from Toronto to Orlando.


When we arrived at MCO, Orlando, our Director of Operations, Melissa, “encouraged” us to leave her guidance behind and find Disney’s Magical Express Services on our own. As a couple of newbies to Disney, let us assure you, Disney’s Magical Express is a service designed to assist any guest of Disney with quick and painless transportation to their resort. If this is something you have been anxious about for your upcoming Disney trip, please leave those worries behind.



Our Magical Express Bus and Driver Carl.


We checked in, and just like we always assure our own guests, it was flawless. Some quick and helpful tips from the lobby Cast Members and we were off to check out our studios. As many of you may know, Boardwalk has been undergoing some refurbishments to upgrade their studios include a single pull down bed so that there is sleeping accommodation for five guests. We are happy to report that these refurbishments have been completed and all three of our studios are beautifully renovated.







The new Murphy bunk sized beds to accommodate the fifth guest.


After check in we had a chance to walk along the boardwalk and explore the other Epcot resort, Beach Club.






Beach Club is a beautiful resort and on a super hot day it isn’t hard to see why this resort is so popular. The pool is AWESOME!



Stormalong Bay


After doing some exploring we realized that it had been approximately 6 hours since we had eaten a real meal. And we don’t want to speak for anyone else but that is a long time to survive on a tiny pack of Airplane cookies. So we went to the ESPN Club on the Boardwalk for an early dinner.



Darcie's Chicken and Waffles



Judith's Seafood Mac and Cheese


After Dinner we met up with Dave and Kathy (And yes we mean the David and Kathy). They are staying at the Grand Floridian and wanted to show us around the resort including their One Bedroom-Standard View Villa. All we can say about the Grand Floridian is wow! It truly is breathtaking and has always been one of our favourite resorts since we started working for David’s.





The living area in the one bedroom at Grand Floridian.


We got to explore both the Disney and DVC side of the resort and in the main lobby there was a Pianist taking requests at a Grand Piano as well as a live Jazz band that sounded great perched above the hotel guests on the second floor.




And lastly we rounded out the day watching Illuminations from the Bridge that separates Boardwalk and Beach Club.

It was been a super long day but we are so ready to do it all again tomorrow with fanny packs and visors and a whole lot of Disney Magic. And just as an FYI Darcie has already broken her fanny pack so it is a good thing Judith came prepared with multiple spares.



Our favorite Boardwalk performer A.K.A. Mr. Rat Trap.



Thanks so much for following along with us and we are excited to share with you what we learn tomorrow for Day 2!


DAY TWO


We started off the day by picking up our rental car at the Swan and Dolphin A.K.A. The Swan and Fish which is across the bridge from the Boardwalk Villas.

Once we picked up the rental car we went right over to the Grand Floridian for our Character Breakfast reservation at 1900 Park Fare. We arrived a bit early for our reservation but luckily we were seated right away.

If you are interested in meeting characters, we highly recommend 1900 Park Fare. And here is why:

- Guests are able to enjoy a great buffet while they wait for the characters to approach their table. This is much more relaxing and comfortable then waiting in a long line inside one of the parks.

- The characters will be sure to approach each table and are very friendly and funny.

- Guests are able to watch the characters interact with all tables and the wait time is very minimal as there are multiple characters walking around at one time.







After breakfast we took Mermaid 1 (the ferry) from the Grand Floridian to Magic Kingdom.








Street Performers on Main Street USA (We were in the right place at the right time to see this)


And just so everyone knows this was Darcie’s first time in the Magic Kingdom EVER! So obviously we had to go on the Tea Cups, a Disney staple. Then we went on the Prince Charming’s Carousel and after the ride we all felt a little woozy.

After a couple more rides we left the park and took a boat over to Wilderness Lodge. A few things that we noticed about seeing this resort first hand is:

- The Gift Shop is amazing. It was huge and offered such a large variety of merchandise.

- The construction that is taking place on the Villa side of Wilderness Lodge is quite extensive. And we can only imagine how fantastic this resort will be once it is completed.






A corner of the lobby where guests can lounge on a rocking chair in front of a warm fire. Not that you need that in June.




A section of the construction as seen from the ferry leaving VWL


Next Stop Bay Lake Tower. We took a tour around the resort and found it to be well suited to the theme that it shares with the Contemporary. Another first for both us was taking the monorail from the Contemporary over to the Polynesian for our bungalow tour.




A nice lounge area above the main lobby at the Polynesian.


The Polynesian Bungalows are incredible. And if you are a guest that is looking to go to Disney World for a relaxing get away vacation we definitely recommend considering this option. The only negative thing that we can say about this guided tour is that we had been hoping to interact and collect more information about the Bungalows from our guide. However, we found that our knowledge of DVC’s Polynesian villas to be greater.


After the tour we walked from the Polynesian over to the Grand Floridian to have a late lunch and say hello to David and Kathy. The walk was mostly in the sun but with a great view of 7 Seas Lagoon however, if you are not used to extensive walking it is great that Disney provides the Monorail service that goes from Polynesian to the Grand Floridian.


Disney does an amazing job of keeping their parks clean and if there is litter on the ground it does not stay there for long. It really opened our eyes to see how much garbage is left on the ground after Celebrate the Magic and Wishes is done. Those Cast Members really hustle to get everything back in order and it is much appreciated.





Day three to come soon!

The Fanny packs totally complete your outfits! Super great trip report ladies