Feb 2014 AKL Club and the Frozen RD DASH - Who needs a Marathon? Completed!

[smellyia]

This is just a mini trip report/review from our DD’s surprise 4th bday trip 2/24-2/27. It was Me DH, DD4 and DS4 months. We stayed at AKL Club Level – Arusha View Standard Room. We chose this because it was only $70 more than an Arusha View Room with our AP discount. I will also mention what we received and how it made the extra money worth it for this particular club level.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
AKL Club Level
Day 1 - DHS, Ohana
Day 2 - MK, AK, Sanaa
Day 3 - Epcot ANNA & ELSA DASH, Resort, Club Lounge, Boma Breakfast
Final Thoughts

 

[smellyia]

This was a surprisingly excellent experience. Our rooms were nicer than the BC deluxes we have stayed out in the past. The upgraded toiletries (toothbrushes & paste, shampoo, conditioner, soaps, mouthwash) saved me about $20 in travel products for the week, mousekeeping was great, and turn down service lovely. They left a special bag with some small toys and button for my daughter’s bday and some buttons and chocolates for our anniversary – each occasion was also addressed with a Congrats note. This truly made our DD feel special. I would estimate the chocolates throughout the trip we were given would be around $10. We loved the dedicated club level check in. I was able to tend to the business while my DH and kids grabbed drinks and snacks and rested for a few. Our room on the Arusha Savannah was fabulous. Watching zebras and giraffes from our balcony….come on. There is no way to complain about that. They were abundant and made our trip so special.

The Lounge itself at AKL is overall fantastic. A nice sitting area for kids and separate for adults. About 6 or 7 tables with chairs. Not huge, but the only time we ever had a seating issue was our last night at about 6pm – peak appetizer service. The breakfast was more than adequate. We ate full breakfast of cereal, pastries, and fruit each morning with juice, milk, coffee, and tea. They had other items like oatmeal as well. This would at least run us $20/day in parks (overall $60). We drank water, sodas, milk, and alcohol from there daily. We probably went through at least 6 beers a day in addition to all our other drinks. I purchased a case of bottled water from our stroller rental and we probably only went through about half of it at the parks. I even got counter service twice for lunch at the resort and went up to the Lounge first to get our drinks so we didn’t spend money on them at the Mara. Easily we drank through $100 worth of beverages – at least. I frequented their delicious chips for a snack. We hit appetizers each night and ate our fill. They were refilled quickly. We did this one night and hung out at the resort during a rain storm that settled in after deciding to abort our park plans and then went to dessert service after and this was more than enough for us for dinner which we normally would spend at least $100 on. We would leave and enjoy fun stuff going on at the resort like night goggles or the kids parade and story time then go back for refills on drinks. The staff was excellent, helpful, and polite.

I would do AKL Club again in a heartbeat. We probably utilized at least $300-350 worth of services and made our vacation so much easier not doing something like Garden Grocer.

Negatives to club: Mainly it’s the actual concierge part. I found the pre-planning pretty much useless as I care to take care of my own ADRs. Last minute booking was nice to have however as that kept me from staring at MDE app while in the parks. I think when you check in there should be a bell hop to tend to your bags or they should call one as ours were heavy and with two young ones I definitely would’ve utilized them downstairs. We rented a stroller and it was at bell services. I called down to get it delivered and they said I had to come down to get it – which was okay, but again this is a minimal service thing that club level should have included to make the money seem better spent. So DH goes down and then they bring it up with the signing binder while he’s gone. That was odd. Also, my package was sent to the shop rather than room delivery which may or may not be what they do but I thought Club could get sent to room. Really I think if they just went that tiny extra effort with bell services this would have made this a 5 star experience for me rather than 4.5.

 

[smellyia]

Parks & FP+ DISCLAIMER

I am going to put in a caveat here now. I basically had to avoid the Disboards’ theme park thread because you’d swear FP+ was the coming of the antichrist, four horsemen of the apocalypse, and Maleficent’s dragon all rolled into one. All that noise making seriously was chafing at my cool so I put a moratorium on any FP+ threads unless I had to find out something specific and then I went elsewhere to look generally. In addition….all the noise about how crowded the parks are….I’m not sure when or where these people were but we were THRILLED to see them so light compared to our regular Memorial Day weekends. Our FP+ experience and crowd levels were quite good.

Also, since this was our third trip and we are planning 4 this year alone it wasn’t imperative for us to try to do every little thing. We plan to hit the highlights for our DD as it’s her bday and some things we have missed in the past.

Day 1 Mon 2/24 DHS Evening

We arrived at MCO about 1:30, picked up our baggage (didn’t use the ME stickers) and hopped on an ME bus. They had two stops at AoA and Pop prior to AKL Jambo & Kidani. This is a beef I have with WDW. I think Deluxes should have better ME service just because of the higher price point, but it’s a moot point as this wouldn’t be something that effects peoples’ decision to stay at a Deluxe. We arrived at Jambo at about 2:30. We were relaxing in our room for a minute by 3pm.

We headed to the AKL bus stop and got to chatting with a family about the bus system. We had been there 10min, but they said they’ve had to wait at least 30min for every bus at AKL. They were picking up the phone to call when the DHS bus pulled up. Honestly, we never waited more than 15-20min at worst. I grew up in NorCal. This is NOTHING for a wait on public transportation. I will say I found the waits a little longer and commuting longer from AKL, but I’m used to BC and walking to DHS or Epcot with only bussing to AK or occasionally MK if we choose not to walk through Epcot to the Monorail – we like to walk. So if you are of the impatient ilk, then car rental may be something you may want to explore if committing to an AKL experience.

We got to DHS by 4:15. Had to stop by the window to activate our Aps – took hardly any time and the CM was great. Went straight to TSMM for our first FP+ (4-5). DD and DH (who used my band as DS was sleeping and I think the ride too jerky to bring an infant on) were in and out by 4:45. DH had a RnRc FP+ at 4:15-5:15 which he made barely followed by a ToT FP+ at 5:15. I don’t care for either ride and so I took DD (only 38”) and DS to VotLM, meet Jake, and get a unicorn face painting. We met up at the beer and popcorn cart for a snack and libation then went to Star Tours where DH and I rode separately. DD pin traded while waiting – best time consumer ever! DD didn’t want to see DisJr again (she saw last June) and so we decided to leave at about 6:45pm.

We caught the bus from DHS to Poly for an 8:15 rezzie at Ohana I had scored randomly two days before this trip. We took our neighbor’s daughter who is doing the DCP to dinner with us. Ohana – as always for us – was DELICIOUS. The meat was tender and our favorites always end up being the chicken and pork. The salad, bread, veggies, noodles, and dessert were all delish. We had to wait about 20min after our ADR to be seated and the dinner took about 2 hours total. At the end we were pooped so decided to get a cab back to AKL rather than take the monorail to MK and get a bus at 11pm. We waited about 10min for a cab with car seats. The driver just pulled them out and threw them on the seats without attaching and stood by the door. In the past the driver has always put them in for us so this was a surprise. It was too dark to see and neither DH nor I were familiar with seat type. The driver then let us know – not so nicely that he did have other fares. We felt sort of pressured and ended up going with the kids in our laps which was a horribly scary experience. In hindsight, I wouldn’t do it again and just tell him to move on and make our way to the monorail no matter how tired we were. We didn’t give him a tip because of his comment about fares. This is really the only “issue” we had which could have been avoided if we just stuck with our original monorail/bus plan.

 

[smellyia]

We (I) woke up bright and early and headed up to the lounge and got us coffee and tea then got dressed prior to getting my family up. The animals greeted us as the sun started to come up. We all went up to breakfast park-ready after showers and then headed to MK. We got the bus at about 8:15. I was very impressed with CMs here as it was evident the MK bus would be overflowing so they immediately called and got a second one right behind to accommodate us all. We got to MK at about 8:50 and they had already done RD.

We headed straight to Merida and got in line. For missing actual RD and the entry dash we were in a good spot. She started at 9:15 and we were at her by 9:45. She was DELIGHTFUL. I got to sit on the bench next to her podium because DS was sleeping in the stroller and she came over and used me as her accomplice to tease the “troublemakers” in line. When DD got to her they hugged, tickled and had a blast. We got some of the most precious pictures from this meet.

After Merida DD wanted to head to Barnstormer and Dumbo – about 10 minutes wait at each. She then went in line to meet Daisy & Minnie (15min wait). I took this time to feed DS and enjoy the SUN in this neverending winter.

I had a Be Our Guest FP reservation for lunch and we headed there after at 10:45. We got to bypass the line and head straight into the castle – if you have this FP+ reservation via the backdoor link bring a printed copy of your res just in case – and placed our order and paid. If you have a MB the system reads it and you don’t even need a rose for locator. I thought was pretty convenient. I ordered the steak sandwich and fries, DH had the ham and gruyere cheese sandwich and fries, DD had the mac n cheese. We all loved our meals and killed our cupcakes – strawberry (voted best) and the grey stuff chocolate. I avoided the French Onion soup as I’ve had it there for dinner and found it the most lacking dish I’ve ever had on Disney property.

After lunch we hit the Haunted Mansion, which ended up being DS’ first ride ever! We all enjoyed it as it’s a family top 3. I got the kids’ silhouettes made for us and the grandparents for upcoming holiday gifts – they’re fools for this sort of thing . We then went by my favorite WDW store – that Christmas Shop across from Presidents Hall and I dropped a Christmas Giftcard on our family’s personalized ornaments for 2014 – DS: Mansion Mickey to commemorate first ride, DD: Ice Skating Minnie (and Jasmine ears with her bday money), DH: Santa Mickey, Me: Nightmare Holiday Ears, Family: 2014 light up ears. DD was then given the option of going to PotC and Adventureland are or back to Fantasyland for LM or Ariel greet and she decided to head to AK – at this time we thought we would have another night at MK but that didn’t work out.

We caught the bus with no wait to AK and got there about 2pm. We went straight to EE where I had FP+ set up for later at (3-4pm) but thought if we could get Singles for DH and RS for me we would just go that route. However, technical difficulties prevailed and it was closed – is it just me or does that ever weird anyone out? Like with rides or on a plane? It just dampens my confidence in safety I tell you .

We went over to DinoLand and rode Triceratop Spin (15min wait). We then went to Dinosaur and decided to do that standby (I had FP+ at 5-6pm) since our EE was down and it was only 15min wait. We got a RS and I went in accidentally through the FP line. The CM was really nice as it was evident I was in the wrong line and I had already turned around, but with no one else around they just let me through. We did a RS and then headed back to EE at about 3:15. It was back up and we went right through with our FP+. By 3:50 we were at Safari where I had a FP+ scheduled at 4pm, but there was NO STANDBY WAIT so we just went on through. Was possibly the best safari I’ve ever done – all the others were at RD early morning magic hours. We saw the lions and cheetahs all laid out. The elephants were close. A rhino blocked the road and were so close I could have touched them I swear! Afterwards we headed back to AKL.

We got home at about 4:45, grabbed drinks at the lounge and went to our room to freshen up and rinse off the grime of the day. We then went to get appetizers and drinks prior to walking to our dinner reservations at Sanaa at 7. We waited about 15 minutes for our table. We ordered the naan bread service, but we only liked one of the three sauces – can’t remember the name – and loved all three bread types (regular, garlic, onion). DD ate chicken. I had the tandoori chicken and again the meat was done so perfectly. It was a large piece – not sure if it was a mutant thigh or just a breast still attached to bone, but I didn’t care and could’ve eaten five of them. The rice side was almost like a slaw, but SO MUCH BETTER. I’m drooling thinking of it. DH got the two meats in gravy type sauce – mahi mahi and chicken. His also was delightful. Definitely some curry there. His pilaf was a bit hard, but it added a nice texture. The meal was very light, tasty, and didn’t weigh us down on our walk home, but we were completely satisfied. We will definitely come back next AKL stay. After dinner we stopped by the lounge prior to tucking in for the night and got dessert service and a few drinks. We had the most wonderful sampling of desserts from Boma and just loved this last treat before bed.

 

[smellyia]

Again, we had the same morning routine with dressing and food, although we were at Epcot bus stop by 7:50 because this was the big one – ANNA AND ELSA DASH. We got to Epcot by 8:15 and were 5th in line at our gate. Once RD happened I DASHED ahead – which is a sight in my post-partum state. I made it to Norway and the first section inside the pavilion was roped off right as myself and the family who turned out to be our awesome line buddies were running up. We backed up but others got the gist and hopped in front of us which chapped my hiney for a minute. We ended up about 5 back from the start of the line at the entryway of the pavilion. I let the guy who was running next to me in front of me because he got turned around and I noticed the line had already gotten 20+ deep and I just figure we could all use good karma on days like these. DH and the kids caught up with me and hopped in. We started to chat with the family and turns out their disboarders as well so if you read this – was fun chatting!

As an aside let me give you some perspective on the ANNA AND ELSA DASH. At “RD” which was really at like 8:49am there is a horde of RUNNERS who haven’t ran in probably a decade (Me) all trying to get to Norway. Some folk are sprinting and I say LET THEM GO. They’re serious business and there is no way in Elsa’s cold H-E-Double Hockey Sticks you will beat them. I was in line and settled with DH and the kids by 9:02. The line was edging MEXICO. By 9:15 the line was 5.5 hours long. People were coming up, finding out and just slinking away all dejected. All I can say is that I’ve done this once and I hope DD keeps the memory in her heart forever because NEVER AGAIN. While waiting they conveniently have a nice little store conveniently stocked with Frozen merch to appeal to those waiting in the loooooong line and needing something special (expensive) to commemorate their dedication in waiting so looooong. DD ended up with the Art of Frozen Book, Frozen Story Book, Magnet doll play set (WHICH DOESN’T ACTUALLY MAGNETIZE), and a drawn picture of Elsa. Call me suckah now. Actually, DD used most of her Bday money left for all but the Elsa drawing which I got her. Oh and a Pin. We needed that pin.

We finally met them and they signed EVERYTHING. They were so sweet, but interaction was nowhere near the caliber of Merida. While I cherish the pics – even DS’ first Character Shot! – I found Elsa to be stiff like her character and I wished she was more like end of movie Elsa. They don’t rush you and really take the time as with most greets so that was great. It made my daughter’s trip and birthday. We waited about 1hr and 50minutes. At RD. After RUNNING there. PARENTS. OF. THE. YEAR.

Afterwards we walked showcase and I picked up my favorite salted caramel and caramel popcorn from Germany. We thought to eat at Fish & Chips but weren’t that hungry and the line was long in Britain. We headed to Figment and Nemo before heading back to AKL for a break.

At AKL we ended up having lunch from the Mara and drinks/snacks at the lounge. The weather turned bad with a deluge of rain pretty much straight from 4-10pm. Normally we are commando about this but with the baby and being tired, we decided to hang at the resort. We went to explore the savannah lookouts, viewed our photopass pictures, made stencil pictures from the front lobby seal, attended the kids parade and story time, used nightvision goggles, shopped, pin traded at the lounge, shops and with anyone CMs we found with a lanyard, and just explored. In between we would pop up to 6th floor and get apps, drinks, snacks, then desserts. We love spending time at our resorts and weren’t disappointed at all at missing out at MK as we will be back in May.

The next morning we got up early and watched sunrise off our deck and saw the animals come out with coffee and tea from the lounge. I grabbed a small pastry because they were too good to pass up. We went to breakfast at Boma at 8:30 which was again DELICIOUS. They’re carved turkey, made-to-order omelets, sausages, and goat cheese spinach eggs were big winners. We all had a mickey waffle because you just HAVE TO every trip. It beat out Cape May for my favorite breakfast buffet and fully plan to try their dinner service next stay. We caught ME and headed home shortly after.

 

[smellyia]

AKL was like this unexpected embarrassment of riches. We didn’t initially plan to stay there but with such a short notice trip, future plans to be back at BC/Yacht, WL, and a monorail resort, and the killer deal we got (compared to other availability), AKL became this trip within a trip for us. We wanted the animal experience and got it. I would make it an annual – or at least every few trips – to stay there. The savannah view is key to making this such a great experience and I highly recommend it. Club level there had a nice selection of food and we well got our money worth for only a $70 upcharge for our whole stay. AKL is beautiful, unique, and comfortable. I would MAYBE rent a car the next time as a trial as we do like to visit other resorts for meals and transportation time is longer due to location.

As for FP+, MB, MDE, and touring, the world did not implode. We loved our Magic Bands and their functions and DD loved hers. I was sad to take mine off actually. MDE, while buggy at home, worked fine in the parks. The FP+ selection process is tedious and could definitely be more user friendly. I don’t love picking rides 60 days out, but I know enough of what we want to do that it’s not a huge issue and I know where they would be best served for our touring style – afternoons at our evening park. Also, we are not the sort of people who will waste an hour going on one ride more than once. We like diversity and only do repeats once we cover the must-dos once and have extra time – normally our 10 day trips. With kids, we also don’t do the open to close commando and love resort downtime. So for us FP+ is a HUGE win. We had no technical issues and when we did use it, we were so pleased. I would love to be able to park hop with it, be without tiers, and be able to get 5 at MK which I think will happen in time. Otherwise it hasn’t really “changed” WDW for me. I received a survey and said as much. FP+ alters our touring in that we only see the need to get to MK at RD because there is just SO MUCH TO DO there and other than that I look foreward to many more 5pm TSMM rides in the future.

Until May!

Any comments much welcomed