Just got back.....

[cpdwiz]

Ok...This will be a TR....More tommorow with pics.....For starters.....

We arrived on Wed, and took a limo to AKL....RECOMMEND THIS!! FLTours was great!! What a great ride.....We checked in at Jambo House....Now, I must say, I was disappointed at check in...NO welcome home, even though our online folder check in said DVC on it....The lady was rude and bothered by doing her job....She kept referring to our Studio Savanna as a HOTEL ROOM. At least 5-6x it was hotel, hotel hotel...Now, maybe I am being picky, but, a DVC villa should not be referred to as hotel....We checked into our room, the decor was very nice, and we overlooked the savanna, and it was a great view...We went to the gift shop and bought quite a bit....We had no DR's, so we went to Boma...They got us right in...Food was pretty good....NOW, we would not do AKL again..TO us, it was too dark, and not festive.........

More to follow tommorow on our BW Villa's experience.......

 

[DisDaydreamer]

Did you stay in AKL or AKV? AKL is in fact a hotel.

You feed my concern about AKV as far as being too dark. I am surprised by the not festive part though.

Hope your stay at BWV was more satisfying. Waiting to hear.

Edit: Now that I re-read, I see "checked in at Jambo house"... duh. I wonder if they have CMs that work both the AKL and AKV check-ins and this someone was still mentally on the other side....

 

[Disneypirate85]

Its Ok Rob, you are forgiven...lol

We have noticed that AKV/AKL is dark but it does appeal to some. We have not stayed there but are trying to get in there for Christmas, Kids want to stay there or Kidani. Hope your trip is great. Shawn

 

[cpdwiz]

Did you stay in AKL or AKV? AKL is in fact a hotel.

You feed my concern about AKV as far as being too dark. I am surprised by the not festive part though.

Hope your stay at BWV was more satisfying. Waiting to hear.

Edit: Now that I re-read, I see "checked in at Jambo house"... duh. I wonder if they have CMs that work both the AKL and AKV check-ins and this someone was still mentally on the other side....

they were villas...and she knew we were dvc, as there was mention of us winning our DVC...She was just not pleasant...NOW, as for BW??? WOW!!!

I am downloading all 487 pics.....Ill post some with the next report.....

 

[maburke]

they were villas...and she knew we were dvc, as there was mention of us winning our DVC...She was just not pleasant...

Wait, there was mention of you winning DVC and she was still cranky?! I smile every time I see your sig with thoughts of how incredibly great that is! That is just one UN-magical CM, or one having a very UN-magical day, at least!

 

[cpdwiz]

I bought a new camera for this trip, Cannon SD880....WOW!! The pics are amazing....Nightime pics of epcot that are clear, distance shots, fireworks....Amazing.....This trip was more for Jessica than me...I wanted to treat her like royalty...as you will read, it happened...This was a very magical trip...Crowds were not bad at all....Weather was nice and hot....

Stay tuned.......

 

[Tozzie]

Did you stay in AKL or AKV? AKL is in fact a hotel.

You feed my concern about AKV as far as being too dark. I am surprised by the not festive part though.

Hope your stay at BWV was more satisfying. Waiting to hear.

Edit: Now that I re-read, I see "checked in at Jambo house"... duh. I wonder if they have CMs that work both the AKL and AKV check-ins and this someone was still mentally on the other side....

Jambo House and the Lodge share the same check in . I may be in the minority but I don't see the big deal if they say "welcome home" or not. Especially when DVC and a resort share the same check in.

 

[wulfekamp]

I like it when they say welcome home. We stayed at AKL last june and didn't get a welcome home. I know its silly but I was a little disapointed. We liked AKL not as much as BCV but had a nice trip. Really liked the smoking area. Made a bunch of friends there. My non smoking better half even started coming down there to join the group.

 

[cpdwiz]

Jambo House and the Lodge share the same check in . I may be in the minority but I don't see the big deal if they say "welcome home" or not. Especially when DVC and a resort share the same check in.

The welcome home that was the real big deal, it was the constant "hotel" everytime she spoke about the villa's.......

Welcome Home is sort of a big deal for us...Thats just us....I mean, security at the gates said it....DVC Kiosks said it....Everyone but this one lady...She just did not seem into her position or her job.

 

[cpdwiz]

Before bed.....Trying to unwind after flying...Tough to imagine, only 12hrs ago, we were "soarin"

Us at the Yachtman Club.....

Gift from Andy at the BW.....

Pic from Epcot at night....Love this camera

 

[cpdwiz]

We arrive at BW around 9am....We go to online check in and its perfect...All our info is there...We meet Andy at the front desk...All I can say, Andy is what Disney is all about...He talked with me for quite a bit, I told him how I had planned this trip all for Jessica...He sent up the Mickey chocolates the following day...Guy was TOP NOTCH....Anyways, room was not ready, so we checked our bags...Andy said he would call when our room was ready, so off to the MK we went....It was hot, and crowds at MK were so-so....We walked around main street exploring...Looking around and taking in all the detail...Did some shopping....OH...Forgot...We went to DD Wed night, after Boma....Bought some Disney Crack (pins) at the DD Pin Store....We also hit the lego store, and World of Disney...Needless to say, we brought back many bags

Ok, back to Day 2 at the MK...Went for a dole whip, they ran out....Never tried one, and didn't this time either...Off to Pirates, and Splash....Crowds were heavy at Splash...Then, we got Turkey Legs...They were pretty good!! Off to Haunted Mansion....The refurb of Hall of Presidents looked pretty nice, the outside covering was pretty detailed...From Mansion, it was off to Philharmagic...Nice thing about being DVC, you can skip things, and know that in 6-8 months, you will be there again...Finished walking around MK...Andy called, room 3112 at BWV was ready...So off to our room....Very nice...EXCEPT....TV was way too small.....And bed way too hard...SSR beds are much more comfortable....We swam for awhile, then off to yachtsman steakhouse....We arrived for our reservation, and were seated with specially printed menus in our name...Very nice...Had the pan seared scallops....OMG, they were amazing...Jess had a ceaser salad, it was great....Main course...Me, NY strip with peppercorn dressing and Jess Filet...WOW...If you have never eaten there, make sure you do...After dinner, our waiter Oscar delivered Jess her Crystal Tiara from Disney Florist...Made her cry and smile...She is my princess and it was so nice....At the table next to us, was a Disney BigWig...We overheard him speaking of how he built this and that, yada yada...I am not sure who he was, but, we have seen him on the Travel Channel...Anyways, after the Tiara, he stopped his dinner, came over, congratulated us on our DVC, and took our picture....What a great night...We walked around BW, it is truly a hopping place...Went to Jellyrolls, they had a private party, so we strolled some more, then off to bed.....Day 3 tommorow......With more pics.....

 

[cpdwiz]

Wait, there was mention of you winning DVC and she was still cranky?! I smile every time I see your sig with thoughts of how incredibly great that is! That is just one UN-magical CM, or one having a very UN-magical day, at least!

It was even on our check in....She gave us buttons, for celebrating..I think my guide might have had something to do with noting it...Anways, this is what she wrote on the buttons:

07 YOMD DVC WNR

Needless to say, Andy at the BW did pins that said DVC Winner...

ANd, thanks for the kind words....We are still amazed and thankful every day for this prize......

 

[dvc at last !]

subscribing... to read tomorrow !

 

[I'mNoPrince]

they were villas...and she knew we were dvc, as there was mention of us winning our DVC...She was just not pleasant...NOW, as for BW??? WOW!!!

I am downloading all 487 pics.....Ill post some with the next report.....

It's all about what CM you get on What day.

Last July we had a God awful stay at BWV and couldn't have been happier with our AKV switch .

This is why I love Disney so many choices to fit everyone.


Enjoying the TR thanks

 

[cpdwiz]

Ok, so we wake up...It was a beautiful morning...We decided on breakfast in bed instead of chef mickeys....We ordered in, and it was fantastic....Then, off to AK....We arrive, and head for Everest...IT WAS DOWN!!! First time I have ever seen it that way, and the CM told us it was the first time she has never seen it run at opening....I felt bad for the groups of kids....So, off to Dinosaur...Had a great time there....Walked around a bit, bought some goodies, then back to Epcot....When we arrived, our white chocolate mickey and strawberries were there, compliments of BWV....Then, another knock....I ordered Jessica a surprise gift basket with snacks and the DVC members wind up clock...It was really nice....Off to Epcot by boat...We toured the worlds, and took in the Flower and Garden Fest stuff....Beautiful...Walked up and into Nine Dragons for Chinese...The General Tso's dumplings were great, and we had rice...It was ok....We wont be back...We stopped by a booth, with artist Larry Dotson...He personalized some prints we bought...We then headed back to BWV, for a swim and changed up....Back to Epcot, to take on the rest of the park...EMH, so it was nice....We did TT, Soarin, Spaceship Earth, and shopped....Strolled around, then back to BWV at around 11pm...The boardwalk was busy.......Off to sleep.....

 

[cpdwiz]

I will post maybe 2-3 at a time with description....These have been reduced in size, and may be a bit grainy...

Dinosaur:

Savanna View-Jambo Studio:

DD Balloon with SSR behind:

 

[cpdwiz]

Saturday....Again, woke up to a beautiful morning at BWV...Did I mention you could see TOT from our balcony?

Again, we did breakfast in the room, and it was delicous....Then it was up and off to Hollywood.....Took the boat, its a great ride...We got to HS, and first thing we had to do was exchange the nice pocketwatch jess got me as a gift.....

Then it was off to TOT...We love this ride, the wait time sign said 13 minutes, so I knew it was quick....It was....I decided to try this...I held up a penny ride before the drop and the penny stayed suspended in air for a moment because you drop faster than gravity...It was pretty cool...We then headed to Great Movie Ride...We really enjoy this ride....

Then we decided to pin trade/buy/swap....we were trying to build the vinylmation set...What this is, you buy a box of 2 pins, and they are sealed in black, and there are 10 different ones...Hardest to get were the Yeti and Monorail pilot...Finally got them...We have doubles if anyone pin trades

From there, it was off to American Idol...If you have not seen this, you must...Its pretty detailed.....We saw 3 local girls sing, they all did a great job....As you can see, the set is amazing:

From there, it was off to Toy Story Pizza Planet for lunch..Again, if you never visited this was pretty detailed as well....We enjoy HS for the attention to detail everywhere....Then we just walked around, visited One Mans Dream, the Walt Disney Story...Very nice items there....

One thing they did, now that it is sponsored by D23, they had D23 items and an "office" of a D23 member...We had quite a few items that they had in the case, including this special pin set from the archives:

Then it was back to enjoying everything, and walking around....We headed back to BW, and back down to the pool..Met some very nice fellow DVC'rs from Ohio....Back up to the room to decide on dinner...Called Disney Dining, tried for Shula's...They said no room..So I called the main phone for Shulas and got a 730pm reservation...We walked from BW...If you have never been, again, Shula's is a must try...VERY pricey, but the food was phenomenal...Very quiet atmosphere, and you have 2 servers taking care of everything...They actually bring out a tray with all the steaks of the evening and veggies and potatoes...The double backed potato is big enough for 2...I had Surf and Turf....8oz filet with 8oz lobster tail...MMM...fantastic...Jess had NY sirloin, again, great!! Walked around the dolphin just checking it out...Then a nice stroll around the lake, stopping for ice cream and beaches and cream.....Ended up at ESPN club, where I found my idol's jersey:

Stopped by atlantic club, a fun place, then it was off to bed.....A fantastic last night....

Next morning, we were up, again bfast in the room...Then, we went down to the boat, over to Epcot for 9am, and one last ride on Soarin....

Enjoyed the worlds one last time, then back to finish packing up for our ride to MCO, and flight home...

All in all, a fantastic getaway...Much needed...We were impressed and pleased with everything!! We are already excited about our next trip, next may, when we take our 7yr old for his first time!!!

 

[jennz]

I love it - it sounds so magical (with the one exception of Maleficent-in-training). Are you posting more pics?

 

[starbox]

You feed my concern about AKV as far as being too dark. I am surprised by the not festive part though.

AKL is really dark, even mid-day. It's also very quiet, so I can understand how it could feel "un-festive". It feels like being in a wildlife reserve/museum - no bright man-made lights, no loud piped in music or bright colors - everything is in warm natural tones. I think you'd like it though because of all the emphasis on nature.

OP - sounds like you're having a very romantic trip!

 

[cpdwiz]

I love it - it sounds so magical (with the one exception of Maleficent-in-training). Are you posting more pics?

Has more, if you would like...I dont wanna crowd the boards too much...

http://webpages.charter.net/dvcwinner/

And I LOVE the Maleficent comment!!!! That was perfect!! She passed the training test!