Just back from a six night stay at the Boardwalk and have some observations to share ... for what it is worth.
1. There is still Disney Magic! We arrived at the Boardwalk via the always fun Disney Magical Express and noticed three CM's standing between the doors with a bunch of balloons. I commented (sarcastically) that they had the welcoming committee ready for our arrival. My daughter suggested that they must be expecting some VIP or something. Well as a matter of fact they were waiting for us! We were selected as the "Family of the Day" at the Boardwalk! It was all silly fun but included a framed picture of us with the balloons at the entrance of the hotel and it included an upgrade to a water view room. A nice little bit of pixie dust to start our stay!
2. We spent time in every park and after reading some lengthy threads about the abysmal conditions of the bathrooms we made it a point to pay close attention to their condition as we toured. I saw nothing but clean and well maintained facilities ... at all four parks and at all different times of the day ... and night. There was always soap, towels, toilet paper and frequently found CM's present and attending to details. There was one at HS that was a little bit of a "stinker" but the plethora of mothers with babies needing a diaper change suggested that the diapers were most likely the source.
3. The CM's we encountered were, for the most part, as nice and helpful as we could have wanted. Disney may have done some cutting back in staffing but we didn't notice any obvious cutbacks in service.
4. The Boardwalk was as lovely as ever ... despite the renovations which were certainly underway but never interfered with us or our plans and never inconvenienced us. Disney was very good at notifying us of anything that might be an issue and appeared to schedule these at times when they were less likely to be an inconvenience to the guests. For example one day they were planning some work on the water system and no hot water would be available from 11:30 AM and 1:00 PM. This was communicated through a message on our phone and they emphasized that if this would cause any problems or anyone (eg: for medical reasons) to let them know and they would be happy to assist in any way they could. We returned to our room at 1:30 and the hot water was back so I am guessing they were right on schedule.
5. Despite the difficulty I think we all had adjusting to the new FP+ system I think I like it. This was our second trip with the system and we found that it works pretty well ... especially with the MDE app! I also think it has "forced" people to ride some of the less popular rides and I did hear several people comment that they actually enjoyed them ... come on ... isn't it time Figment got some love!
6. The Disney restaurants were great! We tried some new ones this time and enjoyed them all. There was an issue at Narcoosee's (more on that later) but the others were completely fabulous! We had dinners at Garden Grill, Beaches and Cream, Narcoosee's and Jiko. We had lunch at Mama Melrose and breakfasts at Captain's Grill, Tusker House and Trattoria al Forno. Loved them all! Narcoosee's was running significantly behind the night we were there. We had a 9:00 PM reservation and weren't seated until almost 9:45. We were about to give up and grab a pizza at the Boardwalk when they called us to our table (we were really hungry by that time!). They were very apologetic and seated us at a table with a great view of MK and refilled our wine (twice) at no extra cost. The pork chop my daughter order came out with two chops (the extra one was delicious the next morning ... even cold!).
7. Disney has indeed gotten more expensive but then what hasn't. Unlike the groceries and medicines we pay more for every time I turn around, going to WDW is a choice we make knowing it will cost a great deal of $$$. I didn't see any significant decrease in the quality of the experience. We had a great time and will likely be taking another trip soon!
1. There is still Disney Magic! We arrived at the Boardwalk via the always fun Disney Magical Express and noticed three CM's standing between the doors with a bunch of balloons. I commented (sarcastically) that they had the welcoming committee ready for our arrival. My daughter suggested that they must be expecting some VIP or something. Well as a matter of fact they were waiting for us! We were selected as the "Family of the Day" at the Boardwalk! It was all silly fun but included a framed picture of us with the balloons at the entrance of the hotel and it included an upgrade to a water view room. A nice little bit of pixie dust to start our stay!
2. We spent time in every park and after reading some lengthy threads about the abysmal conditions of the bathrooms we made it a point to pay close attention to their condition as we toured. I saw nothing but clean and well maintained facilities ... at all four parks and at all different times of the day ... and night. There was always soap, towels, toilet paper and frequently found CM's present and attending to details. There was one at HS that was a little bit of a "stinker" but the plethora of mothers with babies needing a diaper change suggested that the diapers were most likely the source.
3. The CM's we encountered were, for the most part, as nice and helpful as we could have wanted. Disney may have done some cutting back in staffing but we didn't notice any obvious cutbacks in service.
4. The Boardwalk was as lovely as ever ... despite the renovations which were certainly underway but never interfered with us or our plans and never inconvenienced us. Disney was very good at notifying us of anything that might be an issue and appeared to schedule these at times when they were less likely to be an inconvenience to the guests. For example one day they were planning some work on the water system and no hot water would be available from 11:30 AM and 1:00 PM. This was communicated through a message on our phone and they emphasized that if this would cause any problems or anyone (eg: for medical reasons) to let them know and they would be happy to assist in any way they could. We returned to our room at 1:30 and the hot water was back so I am guessing they were right on schedule.
5. Despite the difficulty I think we all had adjusting to the new FP+ system I think I like it. This was our second trip with the system and we found that it works pretty well ... especially with the MDE app! I also think it has "forced" people to ride some of the less popular rides and I did hear several people comment that they actually enjoyed them ... come on ... isn't it time Figment got some love!
6. The Disney restaurants were great! We tried some new ones this time and enjoyed them all. There was an issue at Narcoosee's (more on that later) but the others were completely fabulous! We had dinners at Garden Grill, Beaches and Cream, Narcoosee's and Jiko. We had lunch at Mama Melrose and breakfasts at Captain's Grill, Tusker House and Trattoria al Forno. Loved them all! Narcoosee's was running significantly behind the night we were there. We had a 9:00 PM reservation and weren't seated until almost 9:45. We were about to give up and grab a pizza at the Boardwalk when they called us to our table (we were really hungry by that time!). They were very apologetic and seated us at a table with a great view of MK and refilled our wine (twice) at no extra cost. The pork chop my daughter order came out with two chops (the extra one was delicious the next morning ... even cold!).
7. Disney has indeed gotten more expensive but then what hasn't. Unlike the groceries and medicines we pay more for every time I turn around, going to WDW is a choice we make knowing it will cost a great deal of $$$. I didn't see any significant decrease in the quality of the experience. We had a great time and will likely be taking another trip soon!
