Greetings from the BCVs. Yesterday was a day where it was supposed to thunder storm and it didn't. My family doesn't like to plan that much (I'm the planner and it is very frustrating) but we were pretty sure we didn't want to go to the parks early the day after we arrived. When you stay for 11 nights you have the flexibility to have a few down days. We had previously booked fast passes in the evening at Magic Kingdom as there was a 7DMT available at 8:15.
We finally unpacked our bags yesterday morning and I asked DD18 what she wanted to do for the morning. At 8:50 she said she wasn't feeling Magic Kingdom that day and the 7DMT was cramping our dinner hour. She wanted to do Hollywood Studios! A 9:05 TSM fast pass came up, I grabbed it and we hightailed it to HS. Couldn't book ToT until much later but I did. We had no idea what we were going to do. We were going with the flow. We drove for expediency purposes (and because the forecast was for thunderstorms and we figured we would do our grocery run). On the way, I pulled up available dinner reservations and a CG popped up at 7:30. We looked at each other, said yes and bam! We had plans for the evening. We arrived at HS in time for our TSM fast pass, which we did. We had just arrived back at the unloading area when the ride was shut down. They escorted us off the ride and gave us a "any attraction fast pass " for our inconvenience! Inconvenience? We got to ride. I wasn't so inconvenienced! We used it to hop on RRC which was posting a 70 min wait. Got off it and were stopped by a cast member. Were we interested in participating in a survey? Would take 15 mins. We said sure. We were going with the flow. It was an extremely interesting survey about our transportation experiences at Disney. Very interesting. Another freebie fast pass which we used to do TOT. Walked thru some shops, watched a show and we decided it was time for the pool. We had been at the park a total of 2 hours.
We were going to hang at the pool until the weather turned. It never did. We finally left the pool at 6:00 to get ready for our dinner. Of note at SAB...they have closed the two entrances at either end of SAB on the hotel side and instead had one entrance in front of the spa. I'm sure it is a cost cutting measure. At some level it is a little annoying but at another, I always used to hate walking in front of Beaches and Cream in my bathing suit to use the rest room so it's all good.
CG was wonderful. DD and I had a great experience. We had the most amazing soft shell crab appetizer and filet, topped off by a complimentary celebratory creme brûlée with a fresh peach bottom. We weren't celebrating anything but our waitress was fantastic and decided we needed to try it. Love those magical moments! We watched the fireworks from our table. A perfect evening. DD said on the way home..."See mom, sometimes going with the flow just works out better than anything you could have planned." What a great day!
Some housekeeping items...
Hello!
If you end up staying in a renovated studio, can you make note of the size of your coffee maker (and if it is still a drip machine)? There are conflicting reports that the updated studios now have a 10-cup machine instead of a 4-cup.
Enjoy your trip!
Hopefully this will end the confusion. The coffee maker is 12 cups. There were two packs of coffee in the studio along with sugar and creamers. I did not see filters. Not sure if you need them. I'm not a huge coffee person. I get my morning caffeine from Diet Coke ( though I won't say no to an iced mocha or flavored latte from Starbucks).
Thank you for your contribution!
Yes, there is one question I'd like to have a firm answer for: If you happen to be at the Marketplace during the breakfast hours, could you please ask if they are able to make the Mickey Waffles Gluten Free?
Thank you!
The marketplace definitely has Mickey waffles. They are served with bacon. So I spoke with one of the cast members who told me that they can do gluten free Mickey waffles, but to be aware it will take a little longer if you are in a hurry. They get them from Cape May Cafe. Hope that helps!
The layout for a dedicated studio vs. a lock-off studio are virtually the same. The only slight differences with the lock-off are that you have the connecting door which is in the foyer [front] area of the room and the foyer area is slightly roomier in a lock-off than a dedicated studio. And by slightty I mean slightly. I recall a small shelf with coat hooks in the lock-off foyer area which a dedicated does not have.
So this is the shelf to which PCFriar80 referred. Sorry all our stuff is hanging there. There are three pegs for hanging. I will say I miss this shelf in the dedicated studio.
Promise I will post more pics of renovated studio. I was just having trouble with this post and decided to post them separately.
