Cast: Me, DH, DD7, DD4, DS2
We drove down to WDW so for our first day we had a room only ASMo. We arrived at 9:30 am but the room wasn't going to be ready until between 3-5 pm. DH wasn't happy about that but I told him it was to be expected and get over it. So we walked around the resort for a bit and explored. All three kids, DD7, DD4 and DS2 loved the playground and spent quite some time playing there. They had it all to themselves. To kill some time I drug everyone to DTD. When we got back our room was ready. We got put in the Herbie section. Very cute
DS2 loved the water squirting floor near the Herbie car. We couldn't get him out of it. Anyway, the room was very clean and although there were 5 of us and 2 double beds, we had no problem fitting or sleeping. To be honest, after sleeping in that bed, I realized what a piece of crap my own bed is 
We had girls from a dance squad in the other rooms on our floor but never heard a sound from them.
The rest of our stay was AKL concierge. I had concerns about staying concierge the whole week but DH thought it would be great. It was nice, but we've decided when we do go back, we'll only do concierge for a day or two for the sunrise safari. The breakfast offerings were good but the concierge staff just didnt' seem that friendly or anything. They never said anything to anyone unless they were at their desks. The bell men and housekeepers where much more helpful and friendly. The room was great. We had 5th floor, queen with bunks and daybed. We were on Zebra Trail and Arusha Savannah. It was nice because we had a water hole just off the balcony so you just had to wait for something to get thirsty. We saw giraffes, quite a few zebra and ankole cattle, an Eland loved to hang out in a small area near the watering hole and one day we even had a few wildebeasts. The room was clean. I didn't find it dark at all. The hotel has better lighting than our house. We never got towel animals but it was fun coming back in the evening to discover what the children's dolls had been up to while we were gone. Usually watching TV and hiding chocolates
The pool was awesome. I must appologize to all those people who have said things about their kids liking the pool more than the parks. I thought "gee,those kids are weird", but I must add my DD7 into that group. She begged to go swimming every day and would ask at the parks when we were leaving just so she could swim. The zero entry was great for DS2. He would just wade in until it was knee deep and just play. He made lots of little friends there. The food at Mara was pretty good and the room service pizza, while expensive was also tasty.
I think my biggest regret of the stay was not spending enough time at the hotel to really explore and take advantage of the activities they offered...but there's always next time, right?
We drove down to WDW so for our first day we had a room only ASMo. We arrived at 9:30 am but the room wasn't going to be ready until between 3-5 pm. DH wasn't happy about that but I told him it was to be expected and get over it. So we walked around the resort for a bit and explored. All three kids, DD7, DD4 and DS2 loved the playground and spent quite some time playing there. They had it all to themselves. To kill some time I drug everyone to DTD. When we got back our room was ready. We got put in the Herbie section. Very cute
DS2 loved the water squirting floor near the Herbie car. We couldn't get him out of it. Anyway, the room was very clean and although there were 5 of us and 2 double beds, we had no problem fitting or sleeping. To be honest, after sleeping in that bed, I realized what a piece of crap my own bed is We had girls from a dance squad in the other rooms on our floor but never heard a sound from them. The rest of our stay was AKL concierge. I had concerns about staying concierge the whole week but DH thought it would be great. It was nice, but we've decided when we do go back, we'll only do concierge for a day or two for the sunrise safari. The breakfast offerings were good but the concierge staff just didnt' seem that friendly or anything. They never said anything to anyone unless they were at their desks. The bell men and housekeepers where much more helpful and friendly. The room was great. We had 5th floor, queen with bunks and daybed. We were on Zebra Trail and Arusha Savannah. It was nice because we had a water hole just off the balcony so you just had to wait for something to get thirsty. We saw giraffes, quite a few zebra and ankole cattle, an Eland loved to hang out in a small area near the watering hole and one day we even had a few wildebeasts. The room was clean. I didn't find it dark at all. The hotel has better lighting than our house. We never got towel animals but it was fun coming back in the evening to discover what the children's dolls had been up to while we were gone. Usually watching TV and hiding chocolates
The pool was awesome. I must appologize to all those people who have said things about their kids liking the pool more than the parks. I thought "gee,those kids are weird", but I must add my DD7 into that group. She begged to go swimming every day and would ask at the parks when we were leaving just so she could swim. The zero entry was great for DS2. He would just wade in until it was knee deep and just play. He made lots of little friends there. The food at Mara was pretty good and the room service pizza, while expensive was also tasty.I think my biggest regret of the stay was not spending enough time at the hotel to really explore and take advantage of the activities they offered...but there's always next time, right?
) Anyway, while I don't expect them to cut cartwheels for me, a smile or "Good morning" would be nice - and it really wasn't happening. They always seem to be staring down at their computer monitors and I felt timid even asking for any help. Or I'd sit down in the chair and wait and wait while they worked on the computer - without even saying they'd be with me in a moment. I hesitate to complain but to be honest I find it pretty poor.
