Got the call from AKL - Bit New Story Given

[Jalva22]

I find this statement strange. From my undertanding, you enter the resort on the third floor and there is still two floors above that.

Yes, this is correct and I think the OP realizes that as well. I imagine this explanation was given because it's simpler than trying to explain the conversion that is actually going on. I'm sure they are getting tired of going over the conversion explanation day-after-day when most people will never know the difference. Not saying it's the right thing to do, just saying that's what I think happened here.

 

[Tink3Belle]

I am glad you got to stay where you wanted.

 

[momtoPrincessA]

Ok, so I got the dreaded call this morning. My iPhone began to ring, I saw it was the 407 area code, and I got nervous!

I answered, and the lady immediately said she was calling about my stay at the AKL - Oh no!! This nightmare is happening to me too I thought.

She said they were *adding* a third and fourth floor to the resort! ha-hahaha Who knew the AKL was only two stories?

I then told her it was my mum's first trip to WDW, and she really wanted to stay at the AKL. She then told me "let me tell you something about AKL." This is one big building in how it was designed and when they are doing drilling it resonates throughout the entire resort, and your mom won't be able to get any rest. Also, *IF* they have to move you when you get here, you might not have a choice where you're moved to.

I then said well we're very aggressive in our planning, so we won't be resting very much.

I then said where were you going to move us, and she said the option was to go to the 1 bedroom villa at SSR and get a partial refund. I said I do not like the DVC resorts, and she said "ok, I'll make a note on your reservation that you do not want to move."

Then we wished each other a good day and hung up!

Cool huh? I mean, I hate that I was called, but at least she didn't force me out. She also said those staying at the resort now are asking to leave!!!!

Yeah but I was happy because besides saying they are adding floors, she didn't try to lie and say the entire resort was shutdown. She was pretty nice, a bit forceful on trying to make me leave, but not too much. One time she even worded it as an "option," to leave. Overall, I thought she did a good job, and it was a better experience than some have described here.

I really hope I get to stay!

Sorry you got the call, it was an exact quote of what they said to me a week ago! They were a little more forecful with me, telling me that if I didn't move now, I would be moved upon arrival. If it were just me and DH, I'd risk it, but after a long travel day with the kids, we don't want to be told we don't have a room when we get there. So, WDW won the round with us (eventually, after 3 days of haggling) and we are moved to Poly.

Good luck, I hope you truly get to stay!

 

[mrs. sparrow]

good luck to ya. I got the call from my AAA travel agent today. we will be there 8/15-8/22, had the savanah view,but no more. they offered the poly, bc, okw, and yc. i called back my agent an hour later to take the poly and there was no more room. soooooo disappointed i want to cry. we got offered the WL and took that, I know it is nice but my DS was looking forward to seeing the animals he was so upset. I just don't get it, did they just decide to do construction? I booked my reservation, and probably everyone else did too in January and they call 3 weeks before i'm going to leave. now i have to change some dining reservations and good luck there. please don't mind me i'm just sooo angry i have to vent.

 

[angelmav]

Construction is a tough thing to figure. Could be they thought they could still have people occupying the buildings during certain phases then had the building engineers overule saying it wouldnt be safe. Having occupied a home during 3/4 of a remodel, its a pretty miserable experience and I cant imagine, no matter how much I wanted to stay somewhere , choosing to pay to put up with that on vacation. Hopefully the the OP will be going when those phases of construction are completed and it will be more finish work rather than all the banging, sawing and mess everywhere.

 

[TxRabbit]

I come home everyday, and am very glad that I don't see I have a message blinking from my TA. Since we booked a room with bunk beds, I need a room with three beds, and a 1 bedroom DVC doesn't do that, it has 2 beds. So my options are more limited. Poly would work, or a 2 bedroom DVC, which I doubt they will give me. I don't want to stay at WL. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I don't get that dreaded call. We are there in just under 5 weeks.

Just one option to research...just in case...are YC/BC. They have two queen beds and a day bed in many rooms. I don't know how old/big the people in your room are and if they would fit on the day bed...but it may be something to look into.

But I hope you get to stay at AKL.

 

[momtoPrincessA]

good luck to ya. I got the call from my AAA travel agent today. we will be there 8/15-8/22, had the savanah view,but no more. they offered the poly, bc, okw, and yc. i called back my agent an hour later to take the poly and there was no more room. soooooo disappointed i want to cry. we got offered the WL and took that, I know it is nice but my DS was looking forward to seeing the animals he was so upset. I just don't get it, did they just decide to do construction? I booked my reservation, and probably everyone else did too in January and they call 3 weeks before i'm going to leave. now i have to change some dining reservations and good luck there. please don't mind me i'm just sooo angry i have to vent.

I feel your disappointment! We had AKL booked for DS's birthday. We also had to change ADR's, etc due to the move. It was very frustrating. I didn't like what the CM kept saying "we are only affecting your accomodations so that is all we are dealing with" In other words, don't ask for assistance in changing ADR's or anything else! I was more ticked off that I had asked specifically before I made my final payment and they told me I would not have to move, so they took my money and a week later they called. The idea of the Poly is growing on me, I'm trying to be positive!

 

[marlower]

good luck to ya. I got the call from my AAA travel agent today. we will be there 8/15-8/22, had the savanah view,but no more. they offered the poly, bc, okw, and yc. i called back my agent an hour later to take the poly and there was no more room. soooooo disappointed i want to cry. we got offered the WL and took that, I know it is nice but my DS was looking forward to seeing the animals he was so upset. I just don't get it, did they just decide to do construction? I booked my reservation, and probably everyone else did too in January and they call 3 weeks before i'm going to leave. now i have to change some dining reservations and good luck there. please don't mind me i'm just sooo angry i have to vent.

We also have been moved to WL from AKL. We will be there the same time, we arrive Aug 14 with a split stay at Poly. I think WL will be just fine, I just hear the busses aren't as efficient as AKL so we will budget for a few cab rides so I won't stress about the busses. I too was very upset and spent lots of time on the phone with 3 different CM's trying to talk them into letting me stay but there was no hope for that! I have decided to keep my ADR at Bomas, originally I was going to cancel because I thought it would upset me too much to see people swimming/enjoying the resort, but I tried to change to something else and couldn't find a single thing! That is the upsetting part, after planning for months (we too booked in Jan.) we have to change some things around! Have you checked out the WL FAQ site, it will get you excited about your stay!!

Mika911, you will be fine! Just keep us posted if anything changes. I plan on bringing my laptop so I can check in with the Disboard!

 

[Cool-Beans]

How do you like your iPhone? How's the internet? Does the touch screen work well?

Oh, and I'm glad you got to stay, since that is what you wanted.

 

[mrs. sparrow]

We also have been moved to WL from AKL. We will be there the same time, we arrive Aug 14 with a split stay at Poly. I think WL will be just fine, I just hear the busses aren't as efficient as AKL so we will budget for a few cab rides so I won't stress about the busses. I too was very upset and spent lots of time on the phone with 3 different CM's trying to talk them into letting me stay but there was no hope for that! I have decided to keep my ADR at Bomas, originally I was going to cancel because I thought it would upset me too much to see people swimming/enjoying the resort, but I tried to change to something else and couldn't find a single thing! That is the upsetting part, after planning for months (we too booked in Jan.) we have to change some things around! Have you checked out the WL FAQ site, it will get you excited about your stay!!

Mika911, you will be fine! Just keep us posted if anything changes. I plan on bringing my laptop so I can check in with the Disboard!

Thanks for your words of encouragement. i just feel that they (disney) should have accomodated us a little better, like say give us our dining plan free or something, just for the inconvienience. they are giving the free dining away anyway the next week and it's not like they can't afford it. sorry still a little bitter. i'll get over it tomorrow, maybe. hahahaha:sa

 

[mika911]

How do you like your iPhone? How's the internet? Does the touch screen work well?

Oh, and I'm glad you got to stay, since that is what you wanted.

Thanks. Some of you really make me feel good about it.

Yes, my iPhone is great. I guess it isn't for everyone, but I love mine. The touch screen works perfectly.

The phone has the full Safari web browser (Apple's browser), so it works very very well. Of course it is really fast, when you're connected to a Wi-Fi network. When you're using the AT&T Edge network, things are pretty slow, but the browser is so easy to use and navigate. Laying on the couch, I reach for my phone instead of going to the computer. Edge is perfectly fine for the email too. E-mail works perfect, and Google Maps work perfect even on the edge.

As always with Apple, things are just super simple and work without much effort.

 

[Cool-Beans]

Thanks. Some of you really make me feel good about it.

Yes, my iPhone is great. I guess it isn't for everyone, but I love mine. The touch screen works perfectly.

The phone has the full Safari web browser (Apple's browser), so it works very very well. Of course it is really fast, when you're connected to a Wi-Fi network. When you're using the AT&T Edge network, things are pretty slow, but the browser is so easy to use and navigate. Laying on the couch, I reach for my phone instead of going to the computer. Edge is perfectly fine for the email too. E-mail works perfect, and Google Maps work perfect even on the edge.

As always with Apple, things are just super simple and work without much effort.

I really want an iPhone. Can't wait until my Verizon contract is up. Thanks for the info!!

 

[momtoPrincessA]

Thanks for your words of encouragement. i just feel that they (disney) should have accomodated us a little better, like say give us our dining plan free or something, just for the inconvienience. they are giving the free dining away anyway the next week and it's not like they can't afford it. sorry still a little bitter. i'll get over it tomorrow, maybe. hahahaha:sa

I agree. I don't feel that Disney was overly accomodating. They appeared to take a nonchalant approach in my opinion. I didn't care that the resorts they offered cost more money than what I was paying at AKL, although they kept pointing it out to me. For us it wasn't about the money, it was about the overall experience for our family and I don't think they cared much about that, especially since they had all my money.

 

[marlower]

Thanks for your words of encouragement. i just feel that they (disney) should have accomodated us a little better, like say give us our dining plan free or something, just for the inconvienience. they are giving the free dining away anyway the next week and it's not like they can't afford it. sorry still a little bitter. i'll get over it tomorrow, maybe. hahahaha:sa

I totally understand, I would have been happy with an all day VIP fast pass! My pastor always says the differnce between bitter and better is "I". You will get there, it took me about 3 days!

 

[racinjunkie]

Anyone have any pixie dust they could throw my way. I'm down to 12 days until we arrive at AKL. I'm really hoping they don't want to move us upon arrival.

 

[tripplanner2]

Does anyone think that they are offering the resort change so that you cannot complain upon arrival? It is a way for them to cover their bases before you get there and have the upper hand. I would think that if they are willing to incur the added expense the constuction noise must be unbearable. I agree that I would not want to deal with it on vacation.

 

[crazy_for_the_dis]

Glad you got to stay as well!

By the way, do you have any problems with getting text messages on your I-phone? My daughter got one, and can't seem to get text messages from other carriers. Other than that, it is the greatest invention ever!

 

[JoiseyMom]

Just one option to research...just in case...are YC/BC. They have two queen beds and a day bed in many rooms. I don't know how old/big the people in your room are and if they would fit on the day bed...but it may be something to look into.

But I hope you get to stay at AKL.

Thanks, I know those are options, but we don't want to stay there either. We do alot of pool relaxing, and I need to keep an eye on my kids. From what I hear that pool is too big, and very crowded, and that isn't what I want. I also hate sand.

Yes, I am very high maintenance!!

 

[Sammie]

The resort is definitely "not" completely closed because DVC members are staying there on a daily basis and been since the first of July. They were warned about the noise when they booked and are not being moved.

So the comments that the resort is closed are not accurate. The very areas they are working on are the areas that DVC members are staying in the new Villas.

 

[mika911]

Glad you got to stay as well!

By the way, do you have any problems with getting text messages on your I-phone? My daughter got one, and can't seem to get text messages from other carriers. Other than that, it is the greatest invention ever!

Thanks. No problem with text messages, from other carriers here. The phone does not do MMS though (multimedia messages) with pictures and stuff. You have to use email instead, if you want that.

Regular 'ole SMS text works fine though.