starbox
"There is more treasure in books than in all the p
- Joined
- Jul 4, 2006
- Messages
- 3,528
Just returned from a really amazing trip - it started off with snagging the Peabody for Easter Sunday (our arrival day) for 60$. We left after attending church, so wanted an offsite hotel for the late arrival. We've stayed at The Peabody before and LOVED it (the kids love the flatscreen TV in the bathroom and the ducks!) When we checked in, our bell service valet told us that there was a shuttle launch in the morning, so we woke up at 6:00 am and went to view the launch from the recreation deck. It was SO cool and it got us up early.
Monday morning, we checked in at AKV at 7am. I had done a value room because of the points at Easter, and the CM when I reserved encouraged me to note a request of a savanna view - (at the time I laughed and said we'd done values at spring break since AKV opened and I thought the chance of a savanna-view was slim-to-none). Well, we checked in and the CM showed me the area our room would be in and it looked like sunset savanna!! I asked if it was savanna-view and she said YES! and I LITERALLY did a happy dance at the check-in desk.
It was still early enough to get to AK by park opening, so we checked our bags and headed to the park until our room was ready. As soon as we arrived, DH got a call from the front desk saying that there was an unforeseen problem with the room, and we were being UPGRADED to a regular-size SAVANNA-VIEW room!!!!!!! Crazy!!!! Savanna-view during Easter Week at value points! Like I said, I think I have used up all my pixie dust for LIFE. 
AK was amazingly un-crowded for the day after Easter. We had give-a-day get-a-day vouchers to use for fastpasses, but we ended up not needing them that first day.
Weather was perfect - no rain and lovely warm temperatures. We used our vouchers for fastpasses twice and managed to navigate the MK and DHS with no lines.
On the second day, DS stopped to pin trade at a DVC kisok and the CM asked us if we would like to attend the invitation-only event at BLT. Of course we said yes! LOVED the event - it was very intimate with really refreshments, and we received nice gifts for attending (a lovely leatherish portfolio with a pad of paper and pen, tradeable DVC pins for all 4 of us, 2 DVC lanyards with ID holders, DVC celebration buttons, magic fastpasses (good for three rides) for all 4 of us, and a DVC reusable eco-tote). We had the option to stay and tour BLT and speak to guide (which we did). Seriously talked about doing an add-on with the awesome cruise incentive, but decided it just did not make sense with our kids reaching the ages they are reaching - (we have a very limited number of family vacations left and we'd like the disposable $$ to do once-in-a-lifetime trips involving airfare and etc for the immediate future). If our kids were 5 years younger, I think we would have gone for more DVC points.
I HIGHLY recommend this event if you receive an invitation!!!!!
We loved the GAD promotion - those fastpasses are AMAZING. Also, loved the QS dining plan - this was our fourth time using it and we have learned how to eat very well with the QS dining. I did not eat a single burger or pizza the entire trip.
My only slightly negative observation is that DH and I spent a day in the WS at Epcot while our kids hit DHS on their own and we saw several really, really, really drunk teenagers/young adults there with groups on spring break. As a HS teacher and parent of a teen, this concerns me, because drinking can be really dangerous for teens - especially combined with 1) Florida sun/heat 2) lack of adult supervision 3) being surrounded by other teens that do NOT know what to do with someone that has had too much sun + alcohol.
I really wish that EPCOT would put wristbands for drinking in place. If everyone planning on drinking could simply show ID upon entering the WS and receive a wristband it would really help mitigate the dangerous drinking. I know adults are just as capable of drinking too much as teens, but I've never felt worried about drunken adults at F&W and I did feel worried about the spring break-ing teens I saw that were being drug around the WS by their buddies.
Monday morning, we checked in at AKV at 7am. I had done a value room because of the points at Easter, and the CM when I reserved encouraged me to note a request of a savanna view - (at the time I laughed and said we'd done values at spring break since AKV opened and I thought the chance of a savanna-view was slim-to-none). Well, we checked in and the CM showed me the area our room would be in and it looked like sunset savanna!! I asked if it was savanna-view and she said YES! and I LITERALLY did a happy dance at the check-in desk.
It was still early enough to get to AK by park opening, so we checked our bags and headed to the park until our room was ready. As soon as we arrived, DH got a call from the front desk saying that there was an unforeseen problem with the room, and we were being UPGRADED to a regular-size SAVANNA-VIEW room!!!!!!!
Crazy!!!! Savanna-view during Easter Week at value points! Like I said, I think I have used up all my pixie dust for LIFE. AK was amazingly un-crowded for the day after Easter. We had give-a-day get-a-day vouchers to use for fastpasses, but we ended up not needing them that first day.
Weather was perfect - no rain and lovely warm temperatures. We used our vouchers for fastpasses twice and managed to navigate the MK and DHS with no lines.
On the second day, DS stopped to pin trade at a DVC kisok and the CM asked us if we would like to attend the invitation-only event at BLT. Of course we said yes! LOVED the event - it was very intimate with really refreshments, and we received nice gifts for attending (a lovely leatherish portfolio with a pad of paper and pen, tradeable DVC pins for all 4 of us, 2 DVC lanyards with ID holders, DVC celebration buttons, magic fastpasses (good for three rides) for all 4 of us, and a DVC reusable eco-tote). We had the option to stay and tour BLT and speak to guide (which we did). Seriously talked about doing an add-on with the awesome cruise incentive, but decided it just did not make sense with our kids reaching the ages they are reaching - (we have a very limited number of family vacations left and we'd like the disposable $$ to do once-in-a-lifetime trips involving airfare and etc for the immediate future). If our kids were 5 years younger, I think we would have gone for more DVC points.
I HIGHLY recommend this event if you receive an invitation!!!!! We loved the GAD promotion - those fastpasses are AMAZING. Also, loved the QS dining plan - this was our fourth time using it and we have learned how to eat very well with the QS dining. I did not eat a single burger or pizza the entire trip.
My only slightly negative observation is that DH and I spent a day in the WS at Epcot while our kids hit DHS on their own and we saw several really, really, really drunk teenagers/young adults there with groups on spring break. As a HS teacher and parent of a teen, this concerns me, because drinking can be really dangerous for teens - especially combined with 1) Florida sun/heat 2) lack of adult supervision 3) being surrounded by other teens that do NOT know what to do with someone that has had too much sun + alcohol.
I really wish that EPCOT would put wristbands for drinking in place. If everyone planning on drinking could simply show ID upon entering the WS and receive a wristband it would really help mitigate the dangerous drinking. I know adults are just as capable of drinking too much as teens, but I've never felt worried about drunken adults at F&W and I did feel worried about the spring break-ing teens I saw that were being drug around the WS by their buddies.
