colleen costello
DVC Fan
- Joined
- Jul 23, 2002
- Messages
- 3,229
We just returned from a wonderful holiday at OKW. I know I must sound like a broken record, but every time I visit OKW I am amazed at how beautiful it is, and how I never tire of it. I am starting to think that heaven must look like that little corner of Florida...
We drove down and I was darn lucky I got to go... Had a nasty little surprise (kidney stone!) that almost made me unable to travel. I was very lucky with the timing and the doc fixed me up so as not to miss Mickey. I sent him a postcard! We arrived Friday afternoon around 4pm for our first night at Riverside. My parents had already arrived so we got to skip check-in. We had adjoining rooms in building #36, rather far from the food court but very nice. One of the rooms was a corner room and the view out both windows was lovely, flowers everywhere. Traveling to Florida in March is a joy, because everything back home is gray. The greenery sort of puts me into a wonderful trance. Our rooms at Riverside were clean and nice, and the grounds, as always, were beautiful. We ate at the food court, fed pizza crusts to the locals (ducks) and relaxed in the room before passing out from exhaustion.
I got up at 6 the next morning, thanks to my post-surgery alarm clock (bladder). I showered and rushed over with excitement to OKW by around 7:30. The nice CM said "The room you are assigned to is not ready, would you like to pick another that is ready?" Magical words! He showed me the map and I was thrilled to see there was a room in #35 where I have stayed before. Check-in was fast and I went back to Riverside to collect the family. We had a nice breakfast at Boatwright's (they have their own version of Tonga Toast, which I ordered and shared wiht the group -- yum!) and we packed up and drove down to OKW.
There is no feeling in the world for me like driving up to OKW. Truly feels like "coming home." The guard gave us a "welcome home" and we unpacked in 2-bedroom room #3519. I spied around to report back here. The room was great. Everything was pristine and in great order. There were new appliances and new Corian countertops and I think the room was recently painted -- there was the faintest smell of fresh paint. The bus stop was literally right across the street and the water out back was full of ducks, including 7 or 8 fluffy babies -- my kids were thrilled. The furniture was fine but didn't seem to be new and the pullout couch had the mattress, not the new "foam." Nothing was missing from the room and the only "dirt" I found was a dead mosquito in the bathroom.
We had a wonderful week. The weather was lovely most days, sunny and high-seventies/low eighties. Flowers were blooming everywhere, and at times I could smell their beautiful springtime smells. In the warm afternoons we would see the tiny lizards. Our room was near Turtle Pond pool and we swam there. I love this pool and enjoy the snack bar because the no-booze pina coladas are my favorite. No refill mugs available this trip; the CM said they'd have them again soon for the summer season.
We visited the MK, AKL and Epcot. Had a great dinner at Chef Mickey's and another at the Crystal Palace. My husband got pulled out of the crowd to make "warthog" sounds in the "Festival of the Lion King" show; he was a good sport and the kids and I loved it! Every park was quite crowded and we enjoyed having annual passes because we could just leave when we'd had enough. We went back to parks some evenings right before closing. My kids rode Space Mountain for the first time and loved it. They also tried Dinosaur and Primieval Whirl and enjoyed those too. My parents enjoyed watching the grandkids experience all this, and we never fail to say out loud how wonderful DVC is!
We visited the Poly and rented boats and swam. Also did the same at the Lodge. Checked out Carribean Beach and had lunch and that resort looks great, clearly rehabbed. The colors and grounds were lovely. Spent an evening at the Contemporary after our meal at Chef Mickey's. Visiting the resorts is my favorite thing to do at WDW. Overall, most places looked good. My hubby noticed that Epcot needed some paint and said that the cars on Test Track needed work; the display screens in the cars were not working. The only thing that really bugged me was the lack of air conditioning on lines. When I was a kid the AC would knock you over as you entered a building, it was so strong and cold. We had a 20-minute wait for Space Mountain and Buzz, and I kept saying "Didn't Eisner pay the darn electric bill?" because it was so stuffy and warm in the lines..." This is NOT good and I plan to call and gripe. For $50 admission we deserve air conditioning!
This report is way too long, there's just so much to tell. Leaving for home was a bummer as always but on May 31st I check into the Polynesian, so I guess I can make it. When we visited the Lodge my son said "I want to stay here" and I was glad we are headed to the Villas after the Poly in June. Planning the next trip is great therapy! And as always, I am thinking of my retirement in Florida!
We drove down and I was darn lucky I got to go... Had a nasty little surprise (kidney stone!) that almost made me unable to travel. I was very lucky with the timing and the doc fixed me up so as not to miss Mickey. I sent him a postcard! We arrived Friday afternoon around 4pm for our first night at Riverside. My parents had already arrived so we got to skip check-in. We had adjoining rooms in building #36, rather far from the food court but very nice. One of the rooms was a corner room and the view out both windows was lovely, flowers everywhere. Traveling to Florida in March is a joy, because everything back home is gray. The greenery sort of puts me into a wonderful trance. Our rooms at Riverside were clean and nice, and the grounds, as always, were beautiful. We ate at the food court, fed pizza crusts to the locals (ducks) and relaxed in the room before passing out from exhaustion.
I got up at 6 the next morning, thanks to my post-surgery alarm clock (bladder). I showered and rushed over with excitement to OKW by around 7:30. The nice CM said "The room you are assigned to is not ready, would you like to pick another that is ready?" Magical words! He showed me the map and I was thrilled to see there was a room in #35 where I have stayed before. Check-in was fast and I went back to Riverside to collect the family. We had a nice breakfast at Boatwright's (they have their own version of Tonga Toast, which I ordered and shared wiht the group -- yum!) and we packed up and drove down to OKW.
There is no feeling in the world for me like driving up to OKW. Truly feels like "coming home." The guard gave us a "welcome home" and we unpacked in 2-bedroom room #3519. I spied around to report back here. The room was great. Everything was pristine and in great order. There were new appliances and new Corian countertops and I think the room was recently painted -- there was the faintest smell of fresh paint. The bus stop was literally right across the street and the water out back was full of ducks, including 7 or 8 fluffy babies -- my kids were thrilled. The furniture was fine but didn't seem to be new and the pullout couch had the mattress, not the new "foam." Nothing was missing from the room and the only "dirt" I found was a dead mosquito in the bathroom.
We had a wonderful week. The weather was lovely most days, sunny and high-seventies/low eighties. Flowers were blooming everywhere, and at times I could smell their beautiful springtime smells. In the warm afternoons we would see the tiny lizards. Our room was near Turtle Pond pool and we swam there. I love this pool and enjoy the snack bar because the no-booze pina coladas are my favorite. No refill mugs available this trip; the CM said they'd have them again soon for the summer season.
We visited the MK, AKL and Epcot. Had a great dinner at Chef Mickey's and another at the Crystal Palace. My husband got pulled out of the crowd to make "warthog" sounds in the "Festival of the Lion King" show; he was a good sport and the kids and I loved it! Every park was quite crowded and we enjoyed having annual passes because we could just leave when we'd had enough. We went back to parks some evenings right before closing. My kids rode Space Mountain for the first time and loved it. They also tried Dinosaur and Primieval Whirl and enjoyed those too. My parents enjoyed watching the grandkids experience all this, and we never fail to say out loud how wonderful DVC is!
We visited the Poly and rented boats and swam. Also did the same at the Lodge. Checked out Carribean Beach and had lunch and that resort looks great, clearly rehabbed. The colors and grounds were lovely. Spent an evening at the Contemporary after our meal at Chef Mickey's. Visiting the resorts is my favorite thing to do at WDW. Overall, most places looked good. My hubby noticed that Epcot needed some paint and said that the cars on Test Track needed work; the display screens in the cars were not working. The only thing that really bugged me was the lack of air conditioning on lines. When I was a kid the AC would knock you over as you entered a building, it was so strong and cold. We had a 20-minute wait for Space Mountain and Buzz, and I kept saying "Didn't Eisner pay the darn electric bill?" because it was so stuffy and warm in the lines..." This is NOT good and I plan to call and gripe. For $50 admission we deserve air conditioning!
This report is way too long, there's just so much to tell. Leaving for home was a bummer as always but on May 31st I check into the Polynesian, so I guess I can make it. When we visited the Lodge my son said "I want to stay here" and I was glad we are headed to the Villas after the Poly in June. Planning the next trip is great therapy! And as always, I am thinking of my retirement in Florida!
Thanks for the great report.
