Just returned from 11 day BCV stay 06/16-06/27..UPDATED 04/09/10 -COMPLETE FINALLY !

[Brian Noble]

I think we may even get hoppers next time so that we can eat more dinners in the World Showcase

A friend of mine almost always recommends skipping the hopper option. Waste of money, he says. Just visit one park each day, you'll have plenty to do. The exception? If you're staying at BCV/BWV, you must have hoppers for dinner!

 

[Cyndibear]

My mother was the reason I feel in love with Disney.... she even took me and my sister on the Disney Cruise for Christmas one year (I was 14.) I also felt it was a way that my whole family would benefit for years to come. And I knew in my heart it was something my mother would have been so proud of me for doing.

Just love your report so far! So nice that you were able to honor your Mom like this! Brought a tear to my eyes!

Can't wait to hear more......

Cyndi

 

[mommyoftwinfants]

I will go and be your personal tour guide - just let me know !!

Do you have any BWV tips or secrets?

 

[Turtle31]

Day 1 cont'd

We are at the pool for about 30 minutes and the wind starts to whip up and then thunder. Uh- oh ... the lifeguard calls out that electrical activity has been reported with in close proximity and they must clear the pool.

At this point I am happy that the lifeguard is making everyone get out of the pool - because now I don't have to be the bad guy! As we walk back to the table where we had put our stuff, here comes DH, he is clueless. I tell him they have cleared the pool and we should go back to the room to change into nice clothes for our Flying Fish adr. He seems to have chilled out a little bit, and I was grateful for that.

When we got back to the room I began taking some pictures of the room and our view from the balcony :

Eiffel Tower in the distance:

Looking Downward:

The kids and I then begin to quickly change into dry clothes. As we walk back through the lobby towards the boat we realize we better hurry - we are about to become wet in our dry clothes !!

We get outside and start running for the lighthouse

There is a boat - people are getting off and running our direction. It is just drizzling barely, the people who are running down the plank say " The boat is stopped ! It won't be going anywhere. " My DH starts yelling - run, run for the hotel !! The kids and I turn and run straight for The Yacht Club lobby. We are inside two seconds and rain and wind like we don't ever see in Colorado breaks lose.

Then it hits me - no boat - no Flying Fish I go to the desk at The Yacht Club and they say "Maybe a bus will start to run to the boardwalk." But they seem really unsure. My DH says even if they send a bus by the time we get there we will be soaked. My DD is terrified of weather and begins freaking out. She is very concerned about funnel clouds. (I should have NEVER let her see Wizard of Oz.) I spend the next ten minutes trying to calm her and myself down. And then it hits me - We are stuck in The Yacht Club people - at The Happiest Place on Earth ! So I walk around the hallway and up to the desk at The Yachtsman Steak House. A very nice man there saves our evening. They can seat us within 30 minutes.

We are seated at about 9:15 (which thankfully is only 7:15 to us due to time zone issues) -

Our waiter was a very funny man I think his name was Roberto. He brought us Diet Cokes and a basket of warm bread and left us to look at the menu. When he returned our bread and drinks were gone. He makes a frown and says " What you no like the bread?" He says let me go talk to someone to see if they can bring a better batch. He then turns on his heel and says " I will find you better drinks also !" We just laughed.
He came back with more bread and drinks right away.

For the Appetizers we ordered the Chilled Seafood Salad and Lobster Bisque. The Shrimp was huge and DH finished the Bisque.
The kids got Chicken noodle soup,which my DS said was "the best soup he ever had" - I think he was really hungry !

For our Entrees we both ordered New York Strip Steak with Peppercorn Brandy Sauce and Potato Gratin with Diamond White Cheddar

I am going to have to be honest and say that the steak was way fatty. It did melt in your mouth and the taste was great, but alot of fat. The potatoes were very creamy - perfect.

For desert because of my Birthday button I was brought this lovely desert, and everyone sang Happy Birthday to me for the first time ! ( I think it is sung about 100 times before we leave for home !! - and I loved every minute of it !)

Then Roberto posed for a picture with me - What a nice man he was to us.

Then as if we haven't had enough food already --- because of deluxe dining we all order more desert of course. I decide that since the kids had such fun painting puzzles last year, I will get a puzzle too. They all think I am joking, but I am not ! So here is our desert puzzle.

The desert comes with one brownie and a cupcake - my daughter threw her brownie on my platter immediatly. We sat there together and painted masterpieces

It ended up being a perfect evening...

On the walk back to the room I tell DH I am very impressed with his rapid attitude improvement and hopefully tomorrow will be a little easier for him in the struggle to quit smoking. He smiles and says .... cigarettes were 9.25 a pack while you guys were swimming.... I spent my souvenir money for the day..... my jaw drops... and then I just laugh. Love him to death... he tried... but someone could have been killed had he not smoked this afternoon....

We head back to the room and get ready for bed. My DH quickly pulls out the couch and I begin to search the room for pillows and blanket for the pull-out. Nope can't find any.... ( anyone laughing yet.) I call down to mousekeeping.... Umm... can't find pillows and blanket for pull out couch. The nice lady says.. is the couch all the way out already... yes.... she says fold it half way back up and you will reveal a secret compartment that houses the two pillows and a blanket.... I laugh.. now I know I am at Disney World !!! How come no-one told me this !!

Goodnight !


Day 2: Hollywood Studios - and our first trip of many to Beaches n' Cream

 

[Dreaming of Main St]

Thank you for sharing your trip with us. We are very close to purchasing DVC and trying to decide between BLT and BCV resale. I'm really enjoying all of the BCV pictures...even the hallways! Love seeing all of the little details. Looking forward to reading more!

 

[rkwier]

Your report just makes me smile. I can't wait for more!

 

[Sandy321]

Aww, so sorry your dh had to get a pak - altho I completely understand - I was hoping he found a patch or some nicorette gum!! Better luck to him next time!!

enjoying your report - I cant imagine how frightening that storm must've been - and the exercise you got going out to the boat and back!! Good thing Yachtsman got you in!! I love those au gratin potatoes - I didnt know it was a white cheddar cheese - I thought it was the greyere!!

 

[kid-at-heart]

Have to admire your husband for trying to quit during vacation. I hope I am not posting a taboo topic. I am an ex-smoker and a psychologist; I say, never try to quit during vacation (unless you are on vacation by yourself). Once the family is back home (now?), your hubby might want to visit your GP and discuss ways to quit smoking. Different folks need different techniques. For me the patch worked great, not so for my husband. He eventually went cold turkey but it was rough (for all of us). A friend of mine was able to get a Rx for Prozac and the patch. She swore by the technique.

I am really enjoying your report. Keep it coming. Your kids look like they enjoyed the "rain night".

 

[ShuisFan584]

It's nice to hear you had such a great trip. I can't wait to see some more pictures.

After our next trip in August, BCV will be one of two DVC resorts in WDW we haven't stayed at yet. I'm hoping to stay there for my honeymoon next year (mostly because I've been dying to use that pool!)

And it's funny how you talk about already borrowing from next year. When my parents first joined, we borrowed pretty much all of the points from the next year for our first trip! My parents have never had to bank points because we always need to borrow. And yet they still think they have enough points. Luckily, I bought my own membership this past October so that we have more points to use.

 

[Mahusky]

Great popst cant wait to read the remaining 10 days.... I have pulled down the hand rail and am waiting for a crazy ride!!!!!

 

[ccigliano]

Enjoying the trip report and looking forward to hearing more. Hopefully - your husband will quit soon if he hasn't already.

 

[Turtle31]

Do you have any BWV tips or secrets?

Going to have to be honest .... not any secrets that will make you bring me on your trip I am sure !

Thank you for sharing your trip with us. We are very close to purchasing DVC and trying to decide between BLT and BCV resale. I'm really enjoying all of the BCV pictures...even the hallways! Love seeing all of the little details. Looking forward to reading more!

I have alot of pictures - the place is so beautiful though - pictures just don't do it justice.

Your report just makes me smile. I can't wait for more!

I am glad so many are enjoying it !!

Aww, so sorry your dh had to get a pak - altho I completely understand - I was hoping he found a patch or some nicorette gum!! Better luck to him next time!!

enjoying your report - I cant imagine how frightening that storm must've been - and the exercise you got going out to the boat and back!! Good thing Yachtsman got you in!! I love those au gratin potatoes - I didnt know it was a white cheddar cheese - I thought it was the greyere!!

Yeah it would have been nice if he would have told me in advance he was going to quit and I could have bought the gum or patch. At the gift shop it would have probably cost a million dollars !
Since we ate so much desert - I am thankful for the pre-dinner run now I would have never know what kind of cheese it was on the potatoes except that I looked on allears. They are so good !!

Have to admire your husband for trying to quit during vacation. I hope I am not posting a taboo topic. I am an ex-smoker and a psychologist; I say, never try to quit during vacation ](unless you are on vacation by yourself). Once the family is back home (now?), your hubby might want to visit your GP and discuss ways to quit smoking. Different folks need different techniques. For me the patch worked great, not so for my husband. He eventually went cold turkey but it was rough (for all of us). A friend of mine was able to get a Rx for Prozac and the patch. She swore by the technique.

I am really enjoying your report. Keep it coming. Your kids look like they enjoyed the "rain night".

AMEN to the Bold part in the quote !! If he would have tried to continue to cold turkey it while we were on vacation I may have needed prozac !! And thank you so much for the wonderful tips - I will for sure ask him to talk to our doctor about it. His health of course is something that is very important to all of us as a family. I also have asthma really bad, so him smoking puts a whammy on both of us. He smokes outside and I have to insist he showers before coming to bed otherwise I can't sleep properly. I also think that his little experiment helped to show him how much it affects his own body, I don't think he realized how hard it would be.

It's nice to hear you had such a great trip. I can't wait to see some more pictures.

After our next trip in August, BCV will be one of two DVC resorts in WDW we haven't stayed at yet. I'm hoping to stay there for my honeymoon next year (mostly because I've been dying to use that pool!)

And it's funny how you talk about already borrowing from next year. When my parents first joined, we borrowed pretty much all of the points from the next year for our first trip! My parents have never had to bank points because we always need to borrow. And yet they still think they have enough points. Luckily, I bought my own membership this past October so that we have more points to use.

The pool is unreal, the sand beneath your feet is so nice after a long day on the pavement at the parks. It had watervolley ball for my son. They used a rope - strung funoodles across the whole rope and used a large beach ball. Making it fun and possible for kids of all ages to play. My daughter loved the smaller slide at the back of the ship and she made so many sand castles.
Next year we will go in October for our 11 days, which help some since the nights are less points. And if I have to I will buy more !

Great post cant wait to read the remaining 10 days.... I have pulled down the hand rail and am waiting for a crazy ride!!!!!

Glad you are enjoying it !

Enjoying the trip report and looking forward to hearing more. Hopefully - your husband will quit soon if he hasn't already.

Not yet but hopefully soon. Now that he back to the "real" world he needs a few days to recover before getting hit over the head again

 

[Turtle31]

Day 2 : Hollywood Studios

Today we are heading to Hollywood Studios. We have a 10:05 adr for Hollywood & Vine Play n' Dine Breakfast. Everyone (except for me ) is slow to rise this morning. My DH then tells me that even though it is now 9:00am, at home it is only 7:00 - it will take him days to change to Florida time. Of course my DS hears this and continues to use it every morning....

We leave the room and head for the boat :

The boat ride takes about 12 minutes and is very enjoyable. The properties along the way are very nice.

Boardwalk:

The Swan & Dolphin
I loved the clam shell water fountain :

We arrive and head into the park. My Dh leaves us to run and get fastpasses for Toy Story Mania. We check in at the resturant and hang outside taking a couple more pictures.

Once we are inside we see Leo :

He immediatly notices that everyone in our family is wearing Orange he points to the stripes on his shirt and his shorts and gives a big thumbs up. It was very cute. My kids (and my hubby) were so impressed that we all matched.

Next June heads over our way : She also notices we all match - it was funny. Usually I don't know what to say - But I tell June that the month of "June" is my favorite month because of my birthday and a girl loves presents. She puts her hand to her mouth like she is laughing and comes over to give me a hug.

Next we meet Jo-Jo and Goliath :

The breakfast had all of the normal breakfast goodies. Nothing really sticks out in my mind as wow as far as the food. But I think breakfast is really hard to mess up. The characters danced around the resturant. And a guy with a headset representing "Johnny and the Sprites" had the kids dancing everywhere. That was fun.

After breakfast we head straight to see the Indiana Jones Show - last year for some reason it was the only show we missed, so this year it was first.

As we sit here dripping sweat, I realize we ain't in Colorado anymore !!

As soon as the show ends we all agree to find A/C -

Two hours has long since passed and DH runs down to get fastpasses for Rock n' Roller Coaster.

We meet back up at The Animation Station. We watch this funny little show about The Mulan Dragon and see some clips of characters being made. Afterwards we walk through and look at a display of all our favorite characters from the movie UP.

Little Russell:

Storyboard:

Dug:

The kids then play around on the screens making their own designs:

I notice that at the top of the room is Fro-zone and he is all alone. We run up the stairs and get a pic with him.

Here we are the Orange Family

Next, I decide it is time to get in line to meet the characters from UP :
Just as we go to enter the line- it is a 30 minute break... crap... I know that if we leave this building now we will never come back... so I urge my DH to hang out and wait. We then end up getting in to a drawing session. We end up drawing a sleepy Donald Duck. At the end - I don't know what my kids drew - My Donald Duck looked like he had smoked crack.... And my DH's looked awesome.... (geeky engineer )

When we get done drawing the line has begun again for Up.. We get in line and wait and wait.... about 90 minutes... I can't believe I am doing this....
We get up and HOORAY.... all three characters have stayed !!!

It is now 3:00 - Oh my gosh .... we are starved... and where did the afternoon go ? We decide to get back on the boat and head back to the beach club for Beaches n' Cream.

We arrive and only have a 15 minute wait for a table.

For my appetizer Onion Rings, DH gets the chili. Both are great - we are so hungry at this point. The kids eat crackers while we wait for the main course.
DH orders the burger and I order the Beef sandwich. Both kids get a boring hot dog. Everything was great.

Here are some pictures of the inside :

I loved the lights:

For desert ( the most important part !!)
Dh ordered a brownie sundae:

I ordered a No Way Jose'- this is my reason for life !

And my kids ordered the mickey mouse sundae : It was very cute, they even took the stem from the cherry and stuck it in the back to make a tail !!

After we finish our sugar high, my DH says he will head back to the room with my DD and let her rest for a little while. My son and I stay behind, to settle up the bill. We get back to room and both DH and DD are crashed out... snoring and everything... I can't believe it ! It had only be 20 minutes maybe. I then convince DS that he needs to rest a little too. Once they are all quitely resting I leave the room to take a stroll around the property.

cont'd - property pics........

 

[Turtle31]

I head slowly out the door taking it all in : I still can't believe we own a part of this. As I begin my walk, I take a picture of probably one of the most photographed spots.

Looking to my left : This is the Solarium from the outside:

Inside the Solarium: ( This is inside the main building.)- The TV is huge

This is the hallway that leads from the Solarium to the greater part of the Main Buliding:

When you make a right off of the long hallway you end up in the Grand Lobby :

Here are random shots taken of the outdoors:

After I am done with my relaxing walk I head back to the room to wake them back up !! Moaning and groaning they get up and we head back to Hollywood Studios for extra magic hours !!

No one is hungry at this point so we decide we are going to wing it with dinner. Eating late at Beaches n' Cream has made us a little off on the dinner.
We immediatly ride Toy Story Mania and Rock n' Roller Coaster with our fastpasses from earlier. My DD can't ride Rock n' Roller Coaster so this takes a little more time. But my son gets to ride it twice - he is a little nervous but ends up loving it just like last year.
On the way back down the street we stop at the outside counterservice place and eat nuggets and fries - I make a mental note - we are deluxe dining and eating nuggets ( we will try to avoid this at all costs in future !)

After eating we head over and watch The Journey of The Little Mermaid. One of my favorites. Just across the way at Play House Disney on Stage we notice - there is a party going on !! They are pumping the music loud and all kinds of characters are in there dancing. This was a pleasant surprise.

Streamers and bubbles are dropping from the ceiling :

Characters we missed throughout the day are here too :

Over in the far right corner they have three Cast Members making balloons for everyone - FREE !!

I decide to get this lovely Mickey Hat : Minnie dances the chicken dance with me !!

My dear kids decide to get Swords:

We stay here dancing until after midnight : Mickey and Minnie close down the party... Another wonderful day !!!

Day 3 : Epcot

 

[kid-at-heart]

Love the orange shirts! I think it is great that your shirts are all the same color but they do not match. I have seen family groups all wearing the same shirts and on some of the folks the shirts look good and on other family members, not so. I do believe you may have hit upon a perfect solution to identify you as a family, same color, different styles.

 

[mom2rb]

I'm having a love/hate thing with your trip report. I love it because I can't wait until my next trip. I hate it because I have sixty-three more days until my next trip. Seeing all your pictures is making me want to go NOW.

 

[JFrey4240]

I am really enjoying your trip report! We'll be at BCV on Tuesday and can't wait. Can't wait to read more!

 

[Maribel]

I'll be in BCV from July 12th to the 19th in a 2 bedroom villa. I'm enjoying your report in anticipation of things to come. I haven't seen recent trip reports on BCV so thanks for sharing.

 

[Ciciwoowoo]

What a fun trip report to read!

 

[wdwlver]

Love your trip report!!!

Can't wait to get there!