Jim from Jersey
9-11-01 PAPD All gave some - some gave all
- Joined
- Oct 7, 2000
- Messages
- 345
Hello all.....My family and I ( 6 of us in 3 rooms ) just returned from a 5 night/6 day stay at the dolphin. What a great trip! The Dolphin was everything everyone said it was. The rooms were very nice - we (wife and I) had an Epcot/lake view on the 5th floor - room 5017. My mother and sister shared room 5018 and had a connecting room with my grandparents in room 5020. Both these rooms had a S/D beach view and 5020 had a balcony. They were far from the elevators though. Gotta run, dinner is ready. I will finish this a little later. Ok, I'm back...let's continue. Again, we were far from the elevators and we weren't even in the last hallway! Thank god we rented a scooter for my grandfather (walker mobility - no problems) because it was a lot of walking - this place is huge! We had double beds in all the rooms which were just fine as was the size of the room. (we knew we had resort view rooms before arriving so we did not ask for an upgrade) We waived the resort fee for 1 room (2 newspapers and coffee in 2 rooms was enough for all of us) and we had originally asked for 2 mini-fridges but only one was available at check-in and we ended up only staying with one the whole trip. Now to the Grotto....one word "WOW" This pool area was gorgeous and it gets crowded quick. By mid morning, most of the lounges were taken. Lounges were still available by the lap pool which really was only about 15 - 20 ft. away. (you have to walk past it to get to the grotto) We ate lunch at the Cabana bar & grille which was good....but a little pricey - $40 for 3 of us. We also ate at Shulas, tubbies, and the Dolphin fountain & snacks. Shulas was very good but very pricey....$154 for 2 of us for dinner - but again it was very good! Tubbies was ok (glo, I took pics of the overhead menu board. I will send them to you) The pizza here was good - better than the BW. We had ice-cream and shakes at the Dolphin fountain which were also very good. Everyone (CM'S) were very nice. We used "Heidi's and Rob's Mousekeeping envelopes" and our maid loved them. Now, someone lied to me - I called about 2/3 weeks prior to leaving and asked if there would be any conventions during my stay and they told me no.....well, there was a convention during my stay. Mostly young adults - low to mid 20's. There were a lot of them, but it never bothered us. (even when there was a threat of a tornado and and about 200 of them were in the lobby because they couldn't leave the building) The lobby is soooo big that it wasn't a big deal. Now, as for the "Disney Feeling" after staying at 3 WDW resorts in the past, this still felt the same to me. In this area, you are surrounded by Disney on all sides, my wife and I really didn't feel a difference. Gotta go to bed now.... have to be up at 0400 ET. I will continue tomorrow. Ok, back again. As I stated, we did not feel like we were cheated out of the "Disney Feeling " at all. However, we did miss having our room key as our passes and super charge. That's definately one thing that would be great if they could change. Also, when we made ressies for the Hoop di doo, I was told that I could pick them up at any WDW resort (excluding the S/D) When I went to the BWI to pick them up, they told me they changed the policy and that I would have to pick them up at the show. I mentioned this to the CM at the Disney desk at the dolphin and they told me they never heard of this. They made a call over the the YC for me and I was able to pick them up there. If you are going to the hoop di doo, I would give a call and find out what to do because there seems to be some confusion. All in all, this was a great trip in which we had a lot of fun and made a lot of memories that we will cherish for years to come. If anyone has any specific questions, I will try to do my best to answer them. For anyone going to the Dolphin, I hope you enjoy it as much as my family and I did. Thanks Glo and Mr. S/D for making our vacation possible and for which in turn will leave us with memories in our minds and hearts for ever! Jim from Jersey
J from J
inkbounc You're really making me reconsider my choice to stay at the Swan. Judging by the size of the Dolphin, I think I'd still be a little better off at the Swan though. After all, I'll be traveling with a toddler and a Grandma in her 50's. Not to mention the fact that I'll be very tired after treading through the parks all day. So, when's your next trip? I just know you'll be going back soon. "The Dis" is terribly addictive isn't it?!
