JUST back from POFQ & GF

[Misti]

Hi guys! I JUST got back (barely) from MCO! After 3 hours of delays in the airport, we finally took off only to be diverted to Albany, NY (no where near Baltimore!). Southwest then had us board a bus from Albany to BWI for 8 hours in snow and sleet. It was like a scene out of Planes, Trains & Automobiles! LOL

Anyway, we truly enjoyed our stay at both resorts. We only spent one night at the POFQ but found the CM's wonderful and accomodating. We checked in close to 12:30AM, yet they had our requests met (NS, close to food court) and for a Standard View, we had a nice view of the Courtyard in BLDG 5. When I was checking in, a frantic dad was at the front desk needing medicine for his ill son. The front desk manager quickly came out with a key to the resort shop, comforted him and asked if there was anything else they could do for him. Great service! The resort is beautifully decorated at xmas and I was impressed by the resort in general. The only thing I noticed was wear and tear in the actual room. The grout in the bath area was discolored, chips in the tub, and the shower curtain was a bit mildewed. Not a big deal considering we got a great rate and it was for one night. But, it may have been something that would have bothered me had I paid full rack rate and was there for a longer stay. The theming, landscaping, service of the resort won me over despite the few things I mentioned about the room.

We were at the GF for 4 nights and it was great as usual. The decorations are nothing less than breathtaking. A must see for everyone if you can swing traveling this time of year. We were awestruck every time we walked into the lobby. They have a wonderful gingerbread house that they made into a gingerbread shop (gotta love Disney and the moneymaking ideas lol). The gingerbread cookies were $3.50 each! Yummy but VERY expensive. One disappointment was that the GF Cafe is still not open for dinner. So, you don't have a casual sit-down option past 3PM at the resort.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

 

[Walts Buddy]

Misti,...will the GF still be decorated for the holidays when our family arrives on Jan. 1st? Anything else you could share from your stay at the GF will be appreciated. Can't wait to arrive...

 

[Misti]

Yes, they usually leave the decorations up until at least Jan 4. The only thing that may be taken down more quickly is the Gingerbread House. But, I'd imagine even that will be up on Jan 1.

I'm not sure how long you are staying at the GF but if it is more than 4 or 5 days, I'd recommend buying the refillable mug. The refills are FREE so the mug pays for itself with longer stays. You can get the mug at Gasparilla or in your mini-bar.

I have room pix up from past trips. It will take me a few days to get my latest pix up:

Misti's GF pix

If you have any other questions, just let me know!

Have a great trip!

 

[SeaSpray]

Welcome back, Misti! I'm glad you had a good trip! Sorry to hear about your roundabout trip home, though.

While you were gone, DH and I have decided to postpone the cruise we were going on next June, and instead, go to WDW mid-July!!!!! Gee, can you tell I'm disappointed about postponing the cruise?!?!? heheheh

The Gingerbread House at the GF sounds wonderful! I love gingerbread, I would've spent a fortune on those cookies.

Can't wait to see your new pics!

 

[susy]

Misti, so glad to hear all the good things about GF and POFQ.


Well, while you were gone, Dh convinced me to stay at WL next Thanksgiving instead of GF!!!!!!!!!!!!!He is so sneaky! How can I refuse my son, who wants to stay at the Lincoln logs hotel?
We will definitely have to see the decorations at GF, though!

Seaspray,
Ha! I knew you couldn't stay away that long! We were considering a Royal Carib. cruise also, but after hearing about my step mom's cruise and all the eating that went on..... I have to say "NO WAY". I worked too hard to lose my weight!

can I suggest considering AKL????????????? It is so wonderful, I keep having dreams about it!

 

[DisOrBust]

Welcome back Misti! We are planning GF this Jan and I have to say I am a bit nervous because of all the negative posts I have read in the past. I know you were dissapointed by your concierge stay was this time better? I am thinking of requesting Boca Chica or Big Pine key? Which do you prefer? I thought my DD would love and Alice room but maybe it isn't worth it if Boca Chica is that much better? would love your opinion.

 

[Misti]

Originally posted by SeaSpray


While you were gone, DH and I have decided to postpone the cruise we were going on next June, and instead, go to WDW mid-July!!!!!

Can't wait to see your new pics!

Well, it will be great to start a new WDW countdown! Where will you be staying this time? Have you decided?

I took pix and I'll have them up soon. Most of them are of the holiday decorations. But, I did get some pix of the new room decor at the BC, too.

 

[Misti]

Originally posted by susy
Misti, so glad to hear all the good things about GF and POFQ.


Well, while you were gone, Dh convinced me to stay at WL next Thanksgiving instead of GF!!!!!!!!!!!!!He is so sneaky! !

The WL is wonderful! In fact, I went over with my mom and she absolutely fell in love with the resort! She thought it was the perfect spot for a holiday stay. The tree in the main lobby is gorgeous! And, they did have the fireplace working when we were there (there was a post a few weeks back that it wasn't lit). Have a GREAT trip!

 

[Misti]

Originally posted by DisOrBust
Welcome back Misti! We are planning GF this Jan and I have to say I am a bit nervous because of all the negative posts I have read in the past. I know you were dissapointed by your concierge stay was this time better? I am thinking of requesting Boca Chica or Big Pine key? Which do you prefer? I thought my DD would love and Alice room but maybe it isn't worth it if Boca Chica is that much better? would love your opinion.

I have always LOVED the GF. I was just a tad disappointed with the RPC during my stay in February. Overall, I just didn't think it was worth the extra $$ (it was over $125 more per night). It was nice to try the RPC but I think I prefer the regular rooms. Plus, I love the lodge buildings and being able to walk around the grounds each morning on our way out for the day. We stayed in Boca Chica again and I think it is now my favorite. I like being close to the boat dock and I really enjoyed the view. As a warning though, there are big pine trees in front of Boca Chica that can obstruct some of your view towards the castle. I guess that is why more people request Sago Cay or Conch Key. I have also stayed in Big Pine Key and liked that, too. I don't think you can go wrong anywhere at the GF. If your DD likes Alice, then go with Big Pine Key. That will be a nice treat for her. Keep in mind that some rooms in Big Pine Key are smoking-optional though.

If you have any other questions, please let me know. I'd be gad to help!

 

[SeaSpray]

Susy and Misti: At this point, I'm considering CBR, WL, AKL, CR, and *shhh*...don't tell my DSs...the Polynesian While we LOVED the GF, we're not interested in staying there this time. We do plan on going to the Garden View Lounge for scones and tea though!

This morning I went through several web sites and checked out pictures of the other moderates, hoping maybe to spark an interest to try a different one, but I keep coming back to CBR! I just love that resort, and I would love to go and check out the new food court and restaurant so I could update the CBR pages of my website.

As for the WL and AKL, I'm thinking those might be nice since it will just be DH and I, they seem very relaxing and laid-back. We don't plan on being in the parks every minute of every day for this trip. We want some "down" time.

I am considering CR because it's a childhood dream of mine to stay in the tower, eventually, even just for one night. The "theme" of the CR does absolutely nothing for me, however, and that's what prevents me from wanting to spend an entire trip there. One day, I will stay there though. lol

DH and I both enjoyed our visits to the Polynesian last year, and we will eventually stay there, if not this trip, then definitely for our next family trip. I love everything about this resort.

This trip will only be 4 or 5 nights, so I'm not even considering splitting our stay between 2 resorts. DH and I want this trip to be more on the relaxing side, rather than sightseeing. We want to spend one day at Typhoon Lagoon, too.

Can you tell I'm going to have a hard time making up my mind? LOL As of now I'm leaning heavily towards CBR or WL, UNLESS some really decent codes come out which could sway me towards the Polynesian (because we are planning at least 2 meals there).

I need help deciding!!!!!!!!!! LOL

 

[CaliforniaDreaming]

Originally posted by Misti
But, I did get some pix of the new room decor at the BC, too.

Woohoo, can't wait to see those!!! Did you like the renovated rooms?

 

[JulesMom]

Thanks for the review!

Glad you had a great trip!

 

[Misti]

Yes, I really liked the new decor at the BC. I'm going to post pix today. I'm a little irritated with Yahoo photos. Just spent two hours uploading pix and when I went to the gallery, they weren't there. UGH! So, I'll try to post them in the thread instead.

 

[DisOrBust]

Are Alice themed rooms only in Big Pine Key? My DH thought if we are gv room anyway why not request a "Monorail view". I thought that was the worst view possible..what do you think?

 

[Misti]

There are Alice themed rooms in Conch Key, too. As for a monorail view, most of those rooms will also be considered Lagoon View. Most of the Garden View rooms overlook the courtyard/quiet pool area. Some of the Garden View rooms in Big Pine Key will also have a distant view of the fireworks, which would be nice. You'd need a room at the end of the Big Pine Key building, closest to the beach side of the building. Those rooms would overlook the quiet pool with a distant view of the fireworks in the distance at night.

 

[Janet2k]

Misti,

Welcome home! The suspense is killing me – did you purchase a Christmas tree for your room? Spill the beans!

I can’t wait to view your photos! Off Topic: I have been battling with the Yahoo folks for weeks over the problems that I have been having with their photo website. I suggest you hit them with a few bug reports, too. Maybe between the two of us and our bug reports, their tech support folks will fix the problems (hope springs eternal ).

 

[Misti]

Originally posted by Janet2k
Misti,

Welcome home! The suspense is killing me – did you purchase a Christmas tree for your room? Spill the beans!

I can’t wait to view your photos! Off Topic: I have been battling with the Yahoo folks for weeks over the problems that I have been having with their photo website. I suggest you hit them with a few bug reports, too. Maybe between the two of us and our bug reports, their tech support folks will fix the problems (hope springs eternal ).

Hi Janet! Yes, I went out our first morning and bought a pre-lit, pre-decorated tree from Target. I brought it back and had it set up in the room while my mom was at the pool. She was really surprised. And, it made the perfect night-light each evening. I'm really glad I did it. Evening housekeeping had it turned on and ready for us each night--it was so nice.

I have the pix up, along with pix of the new BC rooms:

Misti's Pix

The Yahoo uplaod finally worked but I literally wasted about 3 hours yesterday-sigh.

 

[Janet2k]

Misti, your Christmas tree was lovely!! And I agree with you about falling asleep with it lit up. When we did that during our AKL stay last year, it just made our room glow with the most wonderful light. *Sigh*