HAVING A GRAND OLD TIME! The 2013 Grand Floridian Resort & Villas FAQ

[grannyminnie]

That is awesome that they did that!!!! That's one of the many things I love about RPC....the CMs are amazing and are always there ready to help with anything you may need .



Hi grannyminnie . I think I did give you some instructions before, although I'm not sure how easy they were to follow ......but I'll try again . This if for *********************** :

1. Under "ticker types", click on "vacation countdown"

2. Choose your background, then scroll down to bottom of page and click on "step 2 to select your slider"

3. Choose your slider/marker, then scroll down to bottom of page and click on "step 3 to input text"

4. Follow instructions there to input dates, etc., then click on "create ticker"

5. Copy and paste the PseudoHTML, UBBCode™ or BBCode into your signature.

Hope this is easy to follow, if not, let me know and I'll try again .

Thanks, my friend! I'll go try when I've had enough coffee! And if I need to, I'll ask for the kindergarten version...

 

[mommyrosa2]

For those of you who have been to Disney in the summer, I need some advice as we have only traveled to Disney in the spring and fall. I am trying to plan a cabana rental at GF during our July 23-30 vacation. I do not want to spend the money on a whole day as it is not our style to stay at the pool ALL day. With the hot weather and storms I am in a dilemma. Should I schedule a morning 10-2 on a day we are sleeping in and only going to a park at night OR should I schedule for an afternoon 3-7 when we have a day we are not going to a park at night? Are storms more typical in early or late afternoon? I would hate to schedule our one cabana day and be rained out after an hour. Do they give any compensation if you are kicked out because of weather after less than half of your rental time? I think I read you are not charged if it rains you out of the whole rental but are there partial refunds? And how far in advance can you cancel? Is it going to be like the new ADR timeline of minimum 24 hr notice? I am thinking of making two rental days and canceling one while we are there but A--I do not want to take some one else's chance to reserve the cabana and B--I do not want to waste the money if I can't cancel in the needed time frame.

Any thoughts?????

This is our 3rd Summer trip with the last two trips in a row being in August. I would recommend that you rent the cabana earlier in the day (10-2). It's been our experience that every afternoon those clouds roll in, followed by rain and t-storms and it always seemed to be like like clockwork (right around the same time, 4:00ish).

 

[mommyrosa2]

Are the cabanas strictly on the beach or do they have them poolside?

 

[phyllis1966]

Are the cabanas strictly on the beach or do they have them poolside?

We rented one during our last trip, and they were only poolside. It was our first time renting a cabana and we really enjoyed it!

 

[mickeynut1]

Thanks, my friend! I'll go try when I've had enough coffee! And if I need to, I'll ask for the kindergarten version...

You are very welcome . I hear ya on the coffee......I sometimes need at least 1 cup to get going too .

 

[mommyrosa2]

We rented one during our last trip, and they were only poolside. It was our first time renting a cabana and we really enjoyed it!

Perfect.... I'm actually trying to think of a couple of little "extras" to celebrate my baby's sweet 16 and thinking she might just like that. Plus my oldest has informed me that she absolutely needs this trip because she's very depressed about turning "20" next year! At first I thought she was kidding and couldn't help but laugh but apparently she wasn't and really is upset about losing her "teen" years . Girls can be soooo dramatic

 

[BlueSkies]

Blueskies, thanks for following up on mine, what a wonderful suggestion!!

Tom

You're welcome Tom While just being at the GF is so wonderful..we enjoy doing different things and getting new ideas to make those stays even more memorable!

Just wanted to pop in and write a mini review of our Halloween stay.

k&a&c'smom : I did get photos of the courtyard pool area and will add those as soon as I get the photos downloaded.

Looking forward to your pics!

We had a nice stay in RPC, I believe our room number was 4428 (not very good with the numbers ? Anyway it was one of the slightly odd shaped rooms (that we request and like, no connecting door) when we are unable to book the queen deluxes. It is next to the turret room overlooking the beach pool. We booked the trip the week before so I was happy we got our request and fastpass+ reservations.

The CL offerings and staff were as fabulous as ever. Our room was very clean but our furniture looked like it had been through a tornado, large gouges and general disrepair. No complaints because we knew this would likely be the case as has happened with other rooms.

Our experience in some of the rooms recently too...

The food was very good, there were several (new to me) appetizers. I really enjoyed a deconstructed loaded baked potato app one evening, and a tuna app. Breakfast was basically the same but my children noticed that the cinnamon pastries had been replaced with 2 varieties of muffins that they did not care for. I don't eat muffins or sweet things for breakfast so I did not notice but they assured me it was different.

Unlike other CL drink offerings I appreciate the larger variety of sodas in the fridge. We had Ginger Ale, Diet Coke CF in the cooler without having to ask. I did not notice any changes to wines or beers.

One of the main reasons we return are the CM's and they were wonderful. They do seem VERY busy with assisting guests with FP+ reservations and problems. Seems a lot has been added to their duties with no extra concierge CM's added.

Those CMs sure were busy during our October stay too I think mostly resolving FP+ issues...

Will add photos later. We are returning for Thanksgiving and will be in Sugarloaf for the first time, a little nervous as we love the main building. My husband already commented that for a Mother/Daughter trip I did RPC but with him I booked Sugarloaf. Tried to explain that Thanksgiving was rack rate and Halloween had AP discounts.

Thanks for the review Baler Glad you had such a nice trip! and lucky you heading back so soon! SL is very different in ambience than the RPC..but still very nice and a great bunch of CMs there as well... I bet once you showed your DH the Disney math he understood the change!

For those of you who have been to Disney in the summer, I need some advice as we have only traveled to Disney in the spring and fall. I am trying to plan a cabana rental at GF during our July 23-30 vacation. I do not want to spend the money on a whole day as it is not our style to stay at the pool ALL day. With the hot weather and storms I am in a dilemma. Should I schedule a morning 10-2 on a day we are sleeping in and only going to a park at night OR should I schedule for an afternoon 3-7 when we have a day we are not going to a park at night? Are storms more typical in early or late afternoon? I would hate to schedule our one cabana day and be rained out after an hour. Do they give any compensation if you are kicked out because of weather after less than half of your rental time? I think I read you are not charged if it rains you out of the whole rental but are there partial refunds? And how far in advance can you cancel? Is it going to be like the new ADR timeline of minimum 24 hr notice? I am thinking of making two rental days and canceling one while we are there but A--I do not want to take some one else's chance to reserve the cabana and B--I do not want to waste the money if I can't cancel in the needed time frame.

Any thoughts?????

We are cabana fans during a summer trip too...its a very nice way to spend a pool day...I would most definitely recommend doing a half day from 10-2...those afternoon thunder showers almost always come rolling thru...

They have a limited menu available for lunch items...and the cabana attendants will keep you supplied with fresh towels too...

I think the cancellation policy has always been 24 hours...

Couldn't agree with you more, baler31. The CMs are wonderful. I was ill for a few days during our last trip. The day I came down with my bug, we had an ADR for Narcoossee's. I really couldn't face an evening out. Not only did the RPC CMs cancel the reservation without penalty, they also proved adept at magic moments - delivering a bunch of Mickey balloons to our door without a sound.
To them 'special' is part of an ordinary day.

So very true!

The GF had these for sale and they were selling fast. ( the pink and black sold fast and not sure if coming back)

http://www.disneystore.com/vera-bra...archTerm=Vera+Bradley&catalogFromSearch=10002


What's nice about buying at GF is that you can use your passholder discount

Thanks for posting this Trish... I wonder if the other colors will be returning ....are your going for the trifecta?? LOL... Great tip too about being able to use an AP discount at the resort... Another good reason to book another trip!

BlueSkies, a what a mouse it proved to be!

We were just discussing how nice it would be to have lunch delivered to a cabana. Care to join us? As soon as we finish those waffles, that is!

Thanks for the invite!! On my way!!!

Thanks, my friend! I'll go try when I've had enough coffee! And if I need to, I'll ask for the kindergarten version...

HI Grannyminnie Good to see you..You were missed around here! Start drinking that coffee...and get that new ticker going...You did it once and I know you can do it again...

MickeyNut Hey there Great ticker instructions for GM..I see a new ticker in her future...Ours too!

Hope that all of my fellow GF fans are having a wonderful Wednesday!!

 

[Candy Orlando]

Thank you,Blue Skies! It's cold here today but sunny and beautiful.

 

[FzesandTylersNana]

I've heard the GF has roasted chestnuts around Christmas time. If so will the have them the week of Dec 8th.

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

baler31 mommyrosa2 and blueskies Thank you so much for your thoughts on the cabanas and the summer weather. I was hoping that thunderstorms were more of an afternoon issue. I think renting the cabana from 10-2 is the best plan for sure Now if those darn park hours for July were ready, I could plug more into my itinerary.......

 

[DisneyDmbNut]

Yay!!! I came home to an email from IPO saying they had secured me a BOG dinner reservation!! I am so excited! My DD and I ate there for my birthday in June, but my mother has never been inside.. I am like a little girl...squeaky and all

 

[Scott MC]

The bedspreads are already gone, there is now simply triple sheeting with a heavy, patterned white sheet on top and a navy blue bed scarf.

As far as I know, nobody has reported how extensive the renovations will be.

Is there any word on a timeline for these renovations? And does anyone else think the navy bed scarf looks really out of place in the creamy pastel palette of the room?

 

[grannyminnie]

Is there any word on a timeline for these renovations? And does anyone else think the navy bed scarf looks really out of place in the creamy pastel palette of the room?

No, it doesn't look out of place in my opinion. And contrary to past concerns about the new bedding, I never got cold at night. As for what I heard on the timing of renos, some of the buildings will be done by mid-May, while RPC and SL did not have a definite start date, according to a CM friend of ours in SL.

Hello, Blue...the new ticker has got to wait a bit...I'm headed out of town again!

 

[Scott MC]

No, it doesn't look out of place in my opinion. And contrary to past concerns about the new bedding, I never got cold at night. As for what I heard on the timing of renos, some of the buildings will be done by mid-May, while RPC and SL did not have a definite start date, according to a CM friend of ours in SL.

Hello, Blue...the new ticker has got to wait a bit...I'm headed out of town again!

Ooh! So is it reasonable to think that most gv rooms would be done by late next summer?

 

[grannyminnie]

Well, I can't be sure of that based on the total lack of info on the CL renos, but certainly, some should be done. And according to Teena, a helpful CM at the BC, they won't take all the CL rooms out of inventory at once.

 

[Mousemommy1]

Well, I can't be sure of that based on the total lack of info on the CL renos, but certainly, some should be done. And according to Teena, a helpful CM at the BC, they won't take all the CL rooms out of inventory at once.

Just a little insight...perhaps at BC they won't take all of the rooms out of inventory, but they did at the Poly. The entire Hawaii building was down for renos for about 4-6 weeks.

Now, you can't book RPC for July, and can't book Sugarloaf for June, I think. This is exactly what happened at the Poly, those rooms during that reno time period (January) were simply unavailable for months prior, so I would guess that those are the time frames for the GF CL renos.

 

[phyllis1966]

I agree that the navy blue bed scarf looks out of place with Victorian decor. It would make more sense at the YC. Sure am missing the GF, though, regardless of the new color scheme!

 

[mickeynut1]

MickeyNut Hey there Great ticker instructions for GM..I see a new ticker in her future...Ours too!

Hi there Blue . Thanks on the ticker instructions.....I try to help when I can . I would love to add another ticker.....just let me know when .

I've heard the GF has roasted chestnuts around Christmas time. If so will the have them the week of Dec 8th.

I can't be of help, but I'm sure someone will be able to answer your question .

.the new ticker has got to wait a bit...I'm headed out of town again!

Can't wait to hear the details of your next trip . Safe travels as you go out of town again.

 

[mickeynut1]

Sure am missing the GF, though, regardless of the new color scheme!

I hope you can get back to the GF again soon .

 

[Scott MC]

Well, I can't be sure of that based on the total lack of info on the CL renos, but certainly, some should be done. And according to Teena, a helpful CM at the BC, they won't take all the CL rooms out of inventory at once.

Just a little insight...perhaps at BC they won't take all of the rooms out of inventory, but they did at the Poly. The entire Hawaii building was down for renos for about 4-6 weeks. Now, you can't book RPC for July, and can't book Sugarloaf for June, I think. This is exactly what happened at the Poly, those rooms during that reno time period (January) were simply unavailable for months prior, so I would guess that those are the time frames for the GF CL renos.

I agree that the navy blue bed scarf looks out of place with Victorian decor. It would make more sense at the YC. Sure am missing the GF, though, regardless of the new color scheme!

Eek. Sorry, maybe I wasn't clear. Any word on room renovations for non CL rooms? Is there any chance those may be done by late next summer?
Thanks!

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