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

[burnetta696]

Joining you guys over on this thread! I switched us from a CR GW room to a GF GV room for the 35% discount this morning! Sooooo excited!!! Can't wait for July!! dde03

What are the dates for the new promotion?

 

[WishesQueen]

What are the dates for the new promotion?

The dates are July 15th - to August 28th!!

I just saved $1,100 on my six night stay at the Grand!!!

 

[cinmell]

The dates are July 15th - to August 28th!!

I just saved $1,100 on my six night stay at the Grand!!!

Congrats!

 

[mommyrosa2]

The dates are July 15th - to August 28th!!

I just saved $1,100 on my six night stay at the Grand!!!

Very nice savings, congrats!!!!!!

 

[happymomof1]

With summer discount coming out soon, I'm considering GF. (usually stay at BC, AK or CBR) Regarding garden view rooms, do they all have balconies, or would I need to request that and then keep my fingers crossed?
thanks!

 

[grannyminnie]

The dates are July 15th - to August 28th!!

I just saved $1,100 on my six night stay at the Grand!!!

Yay for you!!!! What a great savings!!

 

[stazmatic]

Thanks for the replies! My kids have been playing about a year. My 7yr old is working on learning Let it Go. I thought it would be a great experience to hear it on that piano filling the lobby.

 

[Ferrentinos]

Hi all! We just took advantage of the new summer discount and switched to GF! We are staying in the outer building club level! Super excited!!! Now to book lots of new experiences! Just thought that I'd say "hi" and "thanks" to this thread!

 

[yce22princess]

Hi all! We just took advantage of the new summer discount and switched to GF! We are staying in the outer building club level! Super excited!!! Now to book lots of new experiences! Just thought that I'd say "hi" and "thanks" to this thread!

Yay! So did we!

 

[Ferrentinos]

Yay! So did we!

Now it's time to investigate SL and the rest of the property as we have never stayed at GF before! I feel like I am planning a whole new vacation!

Silly questions I'm sure...
1. Can I request ground floor in the SL building? We would love an open patio environment.
2. We rented a cabana already for one morning... which pool would it be at?

Thanks for indulging me... I'm sure I'll have lots more... I'm trying to read through this whole thread but it will take me a while!!

 

[Diamond_Girls]

Hello! I requested BC room for upcoming trip in May. Are or will the rooms in that building be refurbished by then? Thanks!

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

Joining you guys over on this thread! I switched us from a CR GW room to a GF GV room for the 35% discount this morning! Sooooo excited!!! Can't wait for July!! ��

The dates are July 15th - to August 28th!!

I just saved $1,100 on my six night stay at the Grand!!!

Hi all! We just took advantage of the new summer discount and switched to GF! We are staying in the outer building club level! Super excited!!! Now to book lots of new experiences! Just thought that I'd say "hi" and "thanks" to this thread!

Yay for us So needed at those rack rates

MommyGina I am keeping my fingers crossed for you on Monday

 

[DisneyDreamingInMI]

Hello! I requested BC room for upcoming trip in May. Are or will the rooms in that building be refurbished by then? Thanks!

The refurbishment schedule is at the top of the first post of this thread. I saw the crew starting work on Boca Chica when we were there the first week of February. They were supposed to start Big Pine Key on 3/9 and have been running on schedule. So we are probably safe to assume that the rooms in Boca Chica have been completed! Were you hoping for a refurbished or non-refurbished room? Have a wonderful trip!

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

With summer discount coming out soon, I'm considering GF. (usually stay at BC, AK or CBR) Regarding garden view rooms, do they all have balconies, or would I need to request that and then keep my fingers crossed?
thanks!

Someone will correct me if I am wrong but I believe all regular GV rooms have a balcony. There are only a few oddball rooms without a balcony and they are in a different room category.

Hello! I requested BC room for upcoming trip in May. Are or will the rooms in that building be refurbished by then? Thanks!

If they are on schedule, Boca Chica was just finished this weekend so you should be good

 

[Candy Orlando]

How are a my Grand friends tonight?

I miss the Grand so much, I've been watching You Tube videos of the piano players in the foyer on my iPhone.

I love relaxing at the Grand!!!

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

DisneyDreamingInMI Yes--those pictures from CircusGirl did show a nesting table labeled on the box so I am hoping they get those loaded into the rooms. Otherwise....where did they go???? Hoping to get more refurbed room pics to scope out any new touches added...... (thought I would add the praying angel for a little help)

Ferrentinos The ground floor rooms do not have a typical open patio environment like other resorts. Ground floor rooms have a balcony railing which is great for added privacy but bad if you were hoping to walk off the patio to run for food/drinks or to let the kids play in the grass. The cabanas are at the feature pool near the villas. The cabanas are at the beach pool on the end next to the water slide. HTHs

 

[happymomof1]

GRACE & CAROLINES MOM, thanks for the balcony info!!

 

[Circusgirl]

Good morning everyone
I didn't think the DVC would be for us either but we go every year and two rooms was just not enough space for us . I will not be cooking or doing laundry but it is nice to know that I can throw something in the washer if I choose too. I will pay the extra for the maid service every day, but will miss the turn down service at night but that's ok, I really think we will enjoy the extra space .

The reason that DVC made sense for me was a hedge against inflation. As resort prices rise the increase in my dues is not that significant. My membership gives me 10 nights a year (depending on the time of year that I book) for 40 years. I always use some points every year at the Grand Californian as even with an AP discount the rooms there tend to be quite expensive. I have often booked a vacation with a few days at the beginning through DVC then move to a regular room booking at the Poly or the Grand. I tend to use my points up in smaller chunks over several trips over a year.

I would encourage someone buying in to buy on the resale market, as it will be less expensive and you can look to buy at the resort of your choice rather than the ones with current inventory. I bought at the lowest priced resort with the lowest dues to keep overall costs as low as possible. I've never stayed at my home resort (Saratoga Springs) and have had very good luck getting reservations at 7 months within my top two choices for any given trip.

I have now stayed at AKV, VWL, VGC and BCV and have loved them all. My first BWV stay was last fall, and the rooms were really in need of a rehab, so I wouldn't return there until things are freshened up. But now I've stayed at all the deluxes, and I don't think I would have ranged that far from the Poly without my membership.

Well....the discount roulette wheel landed on GF this morning! I was able to get a 35% discount off a GV room July 23 - 29. Was cheaper than CR and Poly which had lesser discounts or disc only on higher room categories. Go figure Anyhoo......REALLY hoping that the refurb room touches will be modified just a bit to include at least the nesting table. If not, we will make the best of it. Probably have to bring in an extra chair from the balcony...lol

Yay! Congratulations on the discount. I've been thinking about that nesting table, too, and hope it is a part of the decor. Otherwise it will be the little table and a chair from the balcony for me too.

Hi all! We just took advantage of the new summer discount and switched to GF! We are staying in the outer building club level! Super excited!!! Now to book lots of new experiences! Just thought that I'd say "hi" and "thanks" to this thread!

Yay! So did we!

Now it's time to investigate SL and the rest of the property as we have never stayed at GF before! I feel like I am planning a whole new vacation!

Silly questions I'm sure...
1. Can I request ground floor in the SL building? We would love an open patio environment.
2. We rented a cabana already for one morning... which pool would it be at?

Thanks for indulging me... I'm sure I'll have lots more... I'm trying to read through this whole thread but it will take me a while!!

You can request a floor, and which side of the building as well. SL rooms look out over the resort and courtyard pool on one side, and the marina and Sago Cay on the other. I had a marina view room and loved it.

The cabanas are at the feature pool near the main building.

 

[Tink rules]

Isn't it hitting anyone else as a little strange, that we had a few (fortunate) pics here of the new rooms... but they haven't shown up ANYWHERE else on the internet???

I wonder if they saw our reactions to some of the decor...

 

[Ferrentinos]

You can request a floor, and which side of the building as well. SL rooms look out over the resort and courtyard pool on one side, and the marina and Sago Cay on the other. I had a marina view room and loved it.

The cabanas are at the feature pool near the main building.

Thank you for the information! I think we would love a marina view and will probably request that. What floor is the lounge on? We've only stayed CL at the Poly and I'm trying to figure everything out at SL!

DisneyDreamingInMI

Ferrentinos The ground floor rooms do not have a typical open patio environment like other resorts. Ground floor rooms have a balcony railing which is great for added privacy but bad if you were hoping to walk off the patio to run for food/drinks or to let the kids play in the grass. The cabanas are at the feature pool near the villas. The cabanas are at the beach pool on the end next to the water slide. HTHs

Thank you for that information as well - I don't think that the ground floor would be beneficial then - maybe we will request higher up instead - what are dormer rooms? Are those enclosed balconies? We have a 3 year old so we would prefer not to have one of those.

How does this request for SL sound...
1 - no dormer room
2 - marina view
3 - high up in the building

Last question (for now) - is there a place in the lounge or on the beach that we can watch Wishes with the music piped in? I'm only familiar with doing that at the Poly CL so I'm not sure how GF does it.

Thanks so much!