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

[BlueSkies]

Thanks k&a&c'smom! Waiting for an email now from our TA as to what our options might be (we booked on BB, so are worried about availability, but are hoping they take pity on us because of the Poly construction!)

maia Hope that you are able to switch resorts and get the dates that you want...I booked a BB during our recent trip...and checked several fall dates at the GF and they were all available...

You know me too well, Blue ..... as always, my flip flops are handy and ready to go .

I have to agree about the GF and loving it once you stay there . You know I am a Poly gal as well, but I also love the Grand . It's such a beautiful resort that no matter what room type you have or what building you're in, it's just an overall great place to stay .

I know that you are a Poly gal at heart...which is even more of a testament to how lovely the GF is...

Ohhhhh to smell the lobby now would be wonderful after all this lousy weather in the northeast!!!!
Does anyone know if they make the candles that smell like the Grand Flo lobby anymore?

Have never seen candles that have the GF scent...but as k&a&c'smom has said Bath and Body has a very similar scent that comes in a hand cream and also a body mist... I have sprayed our dried floral arrangements with it...It is so nice to walk into a room at home and have it smell GRAND!

Good morning!

Today is my 180 day mark for ADRs and I received an email from GF IPO at 7:28am confirming my ADR requests. I didn't expect to hear from them this early!

This is going to be a long 180 days!

That's great..as I have said before..and will gladly say it again..IPO at the GF is terrific!

Good morning everyone .

Regarding the wood flooring...could it be tile?? I have two siblings who live in Florida and both have what appears to be wood flooring throughout their homes but it's actually tile and it comes in different colors just like hardwood. I wonder if that's what it really is .

If the flooring is the same as it is in the VGF..its definitely not tile...although I have seen that wood look tile...and its very nice..and I do believe that is what they have on the balconies at the VGF....the wood like flooring that I did see looked so authentic that I questioned what it was...lol...thinking that actual wood flooring wasn't likely to hold up for long... Looking forward to our future stay in a renovated room to find out in person!

mariamouse Thank you for sharing your very lovely photos.... You sure do have an good eye... Love the angles that your chose for many of the shots..really captures the beauty of the resort!

grannieminnie The rooms in SL are scheduled for rehab in June...so if your dates haven't changed you will get one more opportunity to stay in a room with current rooms decor ...

k&a&c'smom So are you here posting?? I am taking forever to compose my post...as usual..lol... You might have been here and gone by now...... lol...

Hope that all of my fellow GF fans are having a terrific Thursday!

 

[BlueSkies]

k&a&c'mom We were indeed posting at the same time... Glad to see that we are back in sync with each other....

 

[mickeynut1]

Good morning!

Today is my 180 day mark for ADRs and I received an email from GF IPO at 7:28am confirming my ADR requests. I didn't expect to hear from them this early!

This is going to be a long 180 days!

Congrats on getting all of your ADRs . Your trip will be here before you know it .

They do seem to be keeping to the schedule, if you consider Conch Key's finish.

I agree. It looks like they are keeping things on schedule so far .

YAY for your snow melt, hope you get more today. We are supposed to have thunderstorms, ugh. Our extremely warm weather this week means we have NO SNOW on the ground.

More snow is melting away today as we had rain all night with more throughout the day today, so I'm hoping by the weekend it will all be gone . Glad you don't have any snow. Now all we need is spring to get here .

I know that you are a Poly gal at heart...which is even more of a testament to how lovely the GF is...

Very true . The Poly will always be my favorite, but the GF runs a very close second .

 

[Candy Orlando]

It's finally sunny here and in the 40s so some snow is melting.
The birds are singing and spring is in the air.

The floors in VGF do look like wood because they have a wood grain you can feel. They are not real wood but they are beautiful.

Have a magical day my Grand friends!!!

 

[Mousemommy1]

It's supposed to get to 45 degrees here, but I think once the snow starts melting, we are going to have some flooding problems.

I took these pictures while sitting at the end of my driveway this morning...a peek to the right and left....and I'm supposed to be able to back out safely...

 

[BlueGiraffe]

If I wanted to visit the Contemporary Resort from the Grand, would it be quicker to get the monorail there, or go via MK and walk...?

I wasn't sure if the resort monorail went to the gate or the TTC.

Thanks

 

[maiapapaya]

maia Hope that you are able to switch resorts and get the dates that you want...I booked a BB during our recent trip...and checked several fall dates at the GF and they were all available...

Thanks! Still waiting to hear back from my TA (she was out of the office yesterday). We are sad leaving the Poly, but it sounds like it's going to be a mess by October. However, we spent some time taking a good look around the GF grounds in December when we went to look at the model suites at the VGF. With the room refurbs (much more our style, no offence GF purists!) we are now excited to be switching.

WRT all the talk of a melt, we are anxiously awaiting the rain here!

This is our street ...



And this shot was taken by a local garage a few weeks ago after one of the recent storms ...



We could stand to lose a bit of the white stuff!!

 

[davale4]

Good morning!

Today is my 180 day mark for ADRs and I received an email from GF IPO at 7:28am confirming my ADR requests. I didn't expect to hear from them this early!

This is going to be a long 180 days!

Congratulations! We hit the 180 day mark 2 days ago but I've never used IPO. I change so much, I would drive them crazy!

 

[Mousemommy1]

maiapapaya YOU WIN!!!

 

[maiapapaya]

maiapapaya YOU WIN!!!

Uh, thanks A bit of a dubious honour I've been procrastinating and hanging out here on the DIS, dreaming about warmer days. So done with this winter!!

 

[Mousemommy1]

Uh, thanks A bit of a dubious honour I've been procrastinating and hanging out here on the DIS, dreaming about warmer days. So done with this winter!!

I can certainly understand!!!!

 

[k&a&c'smom]

k&a&c'mom We were indeed posting at the same time... Glad to see that we are back in sync with each other....

I laughed out loud when I read "maybe you've been and gone already" - I can certainly relate.

Thanks for the flooring info.

More snow is melting away today as we had rain all night with more throughout the day today, so I'm hoping by the weekend it will all be gone . Glad you don't have any snow. Now all we need is spring to get here .

Very true . The Poly will always be my favorite, but the GF runs a very close second .

Spring, yes - I'm ready!!

It's finally sunny here and in the 40s so some snow is melting.
The birds are singing and spring is in the air.

The floors in VGF do look like wood because they have a wood grain you can feel. They are not real wood but they are beautiful.

Have a magical day my Grand friends!!!

Thanks for that, sounds like the VGF floors are nicely done, too.

Yay for the sunny day and the melting snow.

If I wanted to visit the Contemporary Resort from the Grand, would it be quicker to get the monorail there, or go via MK and walk...?

I wasn't sure if the resort monorail went to the gate or the TTC.

Thanks

The monorail runs right through the CR building, so it's the best way to get there from the Grand. Hop on, the monorail runs to the MK and stops for a moment; heads on to the CR. Easy, peasy!

It's supposed to get to 45 degrees here, but I think once the snow starts melting, we are going to have some flooding problems.

I took these pictures while sitting at the end of my driveway this morning...a peek to the right and left....and I'm supposed to be able to back out safely...

Thanks! Still waiting to hear back from my TA (she was out of the office yesterday). We are sad leaving the Poly, but it sounds like it's going to be a mess by October. However, we spent some time taking a good look around the GF grounds in December when we went to look at the model suites at the VGF. With the room refurbs (much more our style, no offence GF purists!) we are now excited to be switching.

WRT all the talk of a melt, we are anxiously awaiting the rain here!

This is our street ...


And this shot was taken by a local garage a few weeks ago after one of the recent storms ...


We could stand to lose a bit of the white stuff!!

That's a lot of snow, ladies!! I'm glad we aren't digging out of that, good luck with your melt.

 

[Scott MC]

Ohhhhh to smell the lobby now would be wonderful after all this lousy weather in the northeast!!!!
Does anyone know if they make the candles that smell like the Grand Flo lobby anymore?

I haven't seen the Green Clover/Aloe in years. They do have another scent called "Rainkissed Leaves," or sometimes they just call it "Rainkissed," which I believe is similar. I don't know about the GF, but it smells eerily (in a good way!) like the lobbies at BC/YC. They also occasionally sell shower gel and lotion in this scent during their semi-annual sale...and it's usually very cheap.
They also have a current scent called "Beach Cabanna," which while not identical, always makes me think of my 4 favorite WDW resorts (GF, YC, BC, BWI). I can't put my finger on it, but it's lightly floral, very clean and cottony, mixed with a hint of sunscreen. I burn the candle in my house from May right through the end of August.

Here are a few pics of the view from our garden view room (8241) in Boca Chica from our trip last month. We loved this room view because of the ability to easily see Seven Seas Lagoon off to the side and the pretty view of the Narcoossee's lights straight ahead at night.

Lovely! I love Narcoossee's, and I love the CR view at night! Now I have more to think about for our room request in August! My original request was going to be "4th or 5th floor, Boca Chica please," but I'm tempted to add in "View of Narcoossee's!" I probably shouldn't though as I know that the more requests you add, the less likely you are to get them all, and for us, uppermost floors are paramount. We dislike being on the first floor, and in BC, we want to avoid the dreaded "Pool House View."

 

[grannyminnie]

It's supposed to get to 45 degrees here, but I think once the snow starts melting, we are going to have some flooding problems.

I took these pictures while sitting at the end of my driveway this morning...a peek to the right and left....and I'm supposed to be able to back out safely...

Yikes! I guess I won't mention our "big" snow (4 inches) again! That is some SERIOUS snow, my friend!!

And maia, how do you even find your house from the street????

 

[grannyminnie]

maiapapaya YOU WIN!!!

Amen, sister!!

 

[mickeynut1]

It's finally sunny here and in the 40s so some snow is melting.
The birds are singing and spring is in the air.

We had a full day of sun yesterday, but today was cloudy and rain . But on the positive side, the temps were in the mid 40s and a lot of the snow is gone. I sure hope spring is in the air because I am more than ready .

If I wanted to visit the Contemporary Resort from the Grand, would it be quicker to get the monorail there, or go via MK and walk...?

I wasn't sure if the resort monorail went to the gate or the TTC.

Thanks

I agree with k&a&c'smom that the monorail would be the best way to the CR as it stops at MK for a minute and then it's off to the CR .

Thanks! Still waiting to hear back from my TA (she was out of the office yesterday). We are sad leaving the Poly, but it sounds like it's going to be a mess by October. However, we spent some time taking a good look around the GF grounds in December when we went to look at the model suites at the VGF. With the room refurbs (much more our style, no offence GF purists!) we are now excited to be switching.

This is our street ...

And this shot was taken by a local garage a few weeks ago after one of the recent storms ...

I hope you get good news from your TA .

That is a lot of snow . We had alot, but not that much.

We hit the 180 day mark 2 days ago but I've never used IPO. I change so much, I would drive them crazy!

I never use IPO because it's fun for me to make my own ADRs, but this gave me a chuckle as one of our past trips I changed resorts so many times that I told my DH I wouldn't be surprised if Disney blocked my number so they wouldn't have to change this crazy lady's reservation anymore . I have never changed resorts before as once we booked, that's where we stayed and were happy with our choice. However, for some reason for that particular trip, I just couldn't decide what to do .

I've been procrastinating and hanging out here on the DIS, dreaming about warmer days. So done with this winter!!

I think that's a great way to spend a snow day .

Spring, yes - I'm ready!!

Me too .

We dislike being on the first floor,

We've never been on the first floor and while it never would have bothered me years ago, after reading reports of people having snakes in their room, no way will I stay on the first floor now . I have never requested a different room on any of our trips until our December 2010 trip to the GF where we were assigned a first floor room in Sago . The CM was so very nice and within 5 minutes we were headed to a high floor room in BPK .

I guess I won't mention our "big" snow (4 inches) again!

That would be like having no snow for us .

 

[mariamouse]

Awesome pics, mariamouse...thanks for posting them .

I never get tired of seeing pics of the beautiful GF grounds .

How cool the Cinderella crew was in the lobby . We went to 1900 PF on our December 2010 trip and the step sisters were hilarious with our two boys. One of them was determined she was going to marry our oldest ......we had a great time.

No problem! Glad you enjoyed them and I agree about never tiring of the GF grounds! We couldn't believe how long the Cinderella crew hung out in the lobby-- we figured that they would just pass through to be funny, but they literally hung out and interacted with guests for at least 15 mins! Too funny about one of the step sisters flirting with your son. They were up to similar shenanigans with the men in the lobby as well, so I guess they really play the field!

Thank you for the fantabulous pictures!! I love the perspectives!

Thank you so much! I didn't even realize all of the perspectives until you mentioned it, but I guess I was trying to come up with unique ways to look back and remember the Grand. You come to appreciate all of the details on return visits like this one and try to capture them in any way you can.

Good morning everyone ..

Mariamouse: Thanks for the pics. I'd take that garden view room in a heartbeat..what a great view!

We loved the view and were so glad we requested it! Maybe you will end up with this same view on a future trip.

More great photos, I especially liked the Summerhouse Landing and courtyard pool photos, beautiful. Amazing they were taken with a cell!

Thanks for the details on the room location, it has a lovely view - not sure which I like better, the one in your photos or the one we had over the courtyard pool, both are beautiful.

Aren't mariamouse's photos lovely? The perspectives are nice, I agree.

Thank you for your kind words, k&a&c'smom! We had a courtyard pool view in Boca Chica during our very first GF stay and loved that one as well! We were in a dormer room, though, so it was a bit more obscured of a view than this one. We would definitely request that location again!

And isn't it amazing what cell phone cameras are capable of now?! I don't even have a real camera anymore and probably wouldn't even feel the need to have one if taking photos on my phone didn't burn down the battery so quickly! I give the camera most of the credit.

mariamouse Thank you for sharing your very lovely photos.... You sure do have an good eye... Love the angles that your chose for many of the shots..really captures the beauty of the resort!

Thank you, BlueSkies! I am glad to share them with all of my fellow GF lovers.

Lovely! I love Narcoossee's, and I love the CR view at night! Now I have more to think about for our room request in August! My original request was going to be "4th or 5th floor, Boca Chica please," but I'm tempted to add in "View of Narcoossee's!" I probably shouldn't though as I know that the more requests you add, the less likely you are to get them all, and for us, uppermost floors are paramount. We dislike being on the first floor, and in BC, we want to avoid the dreaded "Pool House View."

I initially shared the same concerns about making three requests and definitely felt a bit obnoxious when giving them to the CM on the phone, but it clearly worked for us! I don't really think many guests even think to request a Narcoossee's view, so that certainly helped. I guess the hope is that, if they look at your requests in order, it shouldn't really matter if you have two or three. Our requests were: 1) Boca Chica, 2) Higher (but not top) floor, 3) Facing Narcoossee's and we got all three! One other piece of advice is to call back at least a week before your trip to verify that all of your requests are listed on the reservation. I did that and our third request was not listed when I called (even though I had definitely provided it along with the other two), so it was a good thing I checked. Good luck whatever you decide! As k&a&c'smom mentioned, the courtyard pool views on the upper floors are great too.

 

[BlueGiraffe]

The monorail runs right through the CR building, so it's the best way to get there from the Grand. Hop on, the monorail runs to the MK and stops for a moment; heads on to the CR. Easy, peasy!:

Hi, thanks! I wasn't sure in which direction the monorail ran and didn't want be the last stop or something, and have to do the whole loop again lol. Sounds like a plan then :

 

[jojomickey]

Thanks Scott MC
When I get to the Mall I'll stop in bath and Body works and check them out. Maybe this will hold me off till my next trip it seems so far away!!!!!!

 

[mickeynut1]

No problem! Glad you enjoyed them and I agree about never tiring of the GF grounds! We couldn't believe how long the Cinderella crew hung out in the lobby-- we figured that they would just pass through to be funny, but they literally hung out and interacted with guests for at least 15 mins! Too funny about one of the step sisters flirting with your son. They were up to similar shenanigans with the men in the lobby as well, so I guess they really play the field!

And isn't it amazing what cell phone cameras are capable of now?! I don't even have a real camera anymore and probably wouldn't even feel the need to have one if taking photos on my phone didn't burn down the battery so quickly! I give the camera most of the credit.

I could sit and look at GF pics all day .

I bet it was a lot of fun watching the step sisters in the lobby. Lol on them probably playing the field .

I think your pics are great . I agree about cell phone cameras. I was thinking of getting a new camera before our next trip, but I may just use my cell phone as it takes pretty good pics. Plus not having a camera means that's one less thing on the packing list .