kboo
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2014
- Messages
- 4,732
... with a 6yo and a 2yo who still napped. We just got back from a Friday-Saturday 8 night stay, split 3/5 Dolphin/BLT. Here's a few things I learned from the trip.
My concerns when planning:
1. No DME to Dolphin
2. How to handle the toddler's nap, especially on the split stay day
3. Luggage transfer
What happened:
1. We used FL tours, which sent an Escalade with a car seat and booster seat for us, and a lovely driver who had young kids of his own so he UNDERSTOOD. We had been up since 3:30am for a 6am flight. Went to Epcot while we waited for our room to be ready. Our stroller rental was waiting for us at checkin. We changed into shorts and off we went. (Remembering to bring a credit card +TIW since no MB room charges.)
We still got a room ready text while we were riding Soarin' at 11 am. Came back, had lunch and took a nap. (+1 Dolphin, as we have not gotten into our Disney room before 4pm in our last 4 trips)
2. This was both the best and worst. The worst: we had "made a green choice" (declined housekeeping) but had been told there would still be daily trash service and we could always just call. First 2 days we called and it was not done (or if there was a room check done while we were out they didn't take the garbage - stinky diapers - which I'd been told explicitly wouldn't be a problem even if we had declined housekeeping). Couldn't find a trash room, ended up taking the garbage bags and either leaving them outside our door or in a housekeeping area (that had no garbage bins). The one time my DH called again, the person on the phone argued with him that since we had declined housekeeping we couldn't ask for trash service, which was the opposite of what we'd been told at check in. Shrug. Sorry to the people on our hallway who had to walk by the garbage we left outside our room. (+1 BLT - trash service/room checks there were super nice and easy and unobtrusive)
The best: I'm an SPG elite member and we had booked the stay on points (so now, plans to buy a BCV/BWV are on indefinite hold - although we like villas much better, my SPG points are already in my account to spend), and that also entitled me to a 4pm checkout. So, baby's nap wasn't an issue at all. She napped in the room while I packed us up. Between staying on points and having a guaranteed late checkout on transfer day, this was an EASY EASY split! The only potential downsides - we'll always have to do our Swolphin stay in the first half, because we simply cannot go from a 1br villa to a hotel room! The horror!! Also, it means we likely aren't going to ever use the complimentary grocery stop with FL tours because we are going first into a hotel room, not a villa with a kitchen. (+1 Dolphin)
3. Luggage transfer was a little nerve wracking but turned out fine. Because of our late checkout, the bell desk guys were like, "we might have sent our MK luggage truck out for delivery already..." (since regular checkout is also 11am). But they hadn't, they checked, and they were open about what they did and didn't know. Fallback would have been uber to BLT instead of taking Disney bus to MK, but it would have been fine. Instead, we never got a room ready text at BLT despite OLCI, so we got to BLT to do in-person check in after our BOG dinner, which was late and the girls were pretty tired. But we walked into our 1br villa and our 6yo was beside herself over how much space we had (especially compared to the Dolphin room, with 2 full size beds, a crib and a double stroller squashed into it).
What I learned for next time:
A. Despite only having hotel rooms (may look into using points for a suite next time), the overall experience at the Dolphin was great. They gave us a room on the 3rd floor with a balcony. It was lobby level but quiet, and very close to the bus transportation (no elevators to get there) and a QS food outlet. There were tons of activities, it was a little Disney but not too Disney, and it was great walking to 2 parks. Given prices for BCV and BLT, and 4pm checkout at the Dolphin, our plans to buy at an EP resort are on hold indefinitely or until I run out of SPG points (which is never gonna happen).
B. If the fire alarm goes off at 7:15am and you are told to evacuate the hotel, and you had a 7:45 Cape May breakfast reservation and FPs at Epcot, at least throw a hairbrush and hair elastics into the park bag, and haul the stroller down the stairs. Luckily we were pretty much ready to go anyway - we were walking down the stairs with people in PJs and helped a lady down the stairs while someone else carried her wheelchair. We went to breakfast with unbrushed hair and teeth and DH went back later to get the stroller (we were well on our way to Cape May when we saw people walking back into the hotel), got some great pics of the girls in a very empty WS, pin traded, took it easy while DH ran back alone to get the stroller. (-1 bad breath most of the day)
C. With little kids and a big double stroller, I would probably only do this split stay with an MK DVC for the second part. We never got a room ready text, so it would have been harder to go to a park and then check in later if the resort and park were not close to each other.
D. I would do a quick walk around the room in the villa to make sure everything was working. We didn't notice the bench on seating in the dining area was broken, making it unusable, until the 2nd day, and since we were in the room a lot later in the day, it took until the 4th day for them to fix it. In the future we'll do more meals in the room, I think.
E. The Wave for a no-reservations breakfast or lunch is SO much better than Contempo Cafe, and not much more $$ (ie totally worth it) with TiW. If we do more meals in the room next time, though, not sure TiW will be worth it.
We had a GREAT trip. The staff at the Dolphin and BLT were so friendly and helpful (except for that one person on the phone who told DH they wouldn't take the trash... huh???). We loved the pools at the Dolphin and made so many great memories there and at BLT (first stay on our own points). We would definitely do a split with Swan/Dolphin again, for a trip 7 nights or longer.
Our family's must-do restaurants for future trips:
Me: Tiffins (our vote for best in-park restaurant)
DH: California Grill
6yo: Cinderella's Castle!!!
2yo: PRINCESS!!!!!
(Also, the 2yo was not a huge fan of BOG dinner, as she asked, "Beet eat you?" many times. No, the Beast is not going to eat you...)
I guess it's a good thing our home resorts are at MK...
My concerns when planning:
1. No DME to Dolphin
2. How to handle the toddler's nap, especially on the split stay day
3. Luggage transfer
What happened:
1. We used FL tours, which sent an Escalade with a car seat and booster seat for us, and a lovely driver who had young kids of his own so he UNDERSTOOD. We had been up since 3:30am for a 6am flight. Went to Epcot while we waited for our room to be ready. Our stroller rental was waiting for us at checkin. We changed into shorts and off we went. (Remembering to bring a credit card +TIW since no MB room charges.)
We still got a room ready text while we were riding Soarin' at 11 am. Came back, had lunch and took a nap. (+1 Dolphin, as we have not gotten into our Disney room before 4pm in our last 4 trips)
2. This was both the best and worst. The worst: we had "made a green choice" (declined housekeeping) but had been told there would still be daily trash service and we could always just call. First 2 days we called and it was not done (or if there was a room check done while we were out they didn't take the garbage - stinky diapers - which I'd been told explicitly wouldn't be a problem even if we had declined housekeeping). Couldn't find a trash room, ended up taking the garbage bags and either leaving them outside our door or in a housekeeping area (that had no garbage bins). The one time my DH called again, the person on the phone argued with him that since we had declined housekeeping we couldn't ask for trash service, which was the opposite of what we'd been told at check in. Shrug. Sorry to the people on our hallway who had to walk by the garbage we left outside our room. (+1 BLT - trash service/room checks there were super nice and easy and unobtrusive)
The best: I'm an SPG elite member and we had booked the stay on points (so now, plans to buy a BCV/BWV are on indefinite hold - although we like villas much better, my SPG points are already in my account to spend), and that also entitled me to a 4pm checkout. So, baby's nap wasn't an issue at all. She napped in the room while I packed us up. Between staying on points and having a guaranteed late checkout on transfer day, this was an EASY EASY split! The only potential downsides - we'll always have to do our Swolphin stay in the first half, because we simply cannot go from a 1br villa to a hotel room! The horror!! Also, it means we likely aren't going to ever use the complimentary grocery stop with FL tours because we are going first into a hotel room, not a villa with a kitchen. (+1 Dolphin)
3. Luggage transfer was a little nerve wracking but turned out fine. Because of our late checkout, the bell desk guys were like, "we might have sent our MK luggage truck out for delivery already..." (since regular checkout is also 11am). But they hadn't, they checked, and they were open about what they did and didn't know. Fallback would have been uber to BLT instead of taking Disney bus to MK, but it would have been fine. Instead, we never got a room ready text at BLT despite OLCI, so we got to BLT to do in-person check in after our BOG dinner, which was late and the girls were pretty tired. But we walked into our 1br villa and our 6yo was beside herself over how much space we had (especially compared to the Dolphin room, with 2 full size beds, a crib and a double stroller squashed into it).
What I learned for next time:
A. Despite only having hotel rooms (may look into using points for a suite next time), the overall experience at the Dolphin was great. They gave us a room on the 3rd floor with a balcony. It was lobby level but quiet, and very close to the bus transportation (no elevators to get there) and a QS food outlet. There were tons of activities, it was a little Disney but not too Disney, and it was great walking to 2 parks. Given prices for BCV and BLT, and 4pm checkout at the Dolphin, our plans to buy at an EP resort are on hold indefinitely or until I run out of SPG points (which is never gonna happen).
B. If the fire alarm goes off at 7:15am and you are told to evacuate the hotel, and you had a 7:45 Cape May breakfast reservation and FPs at Epcot, at least throw a hairbrush and hair elastics into the park bag, and haul the stroller down the stairs. Luckily we were pretty much ready to go anyway - we were walking down the stairs with people in PJs and helped a lady down the stairs while someone else carried her wheelchair. We went to breakfast with unbrushed hair and teeth and DH went back later to get the stroller (we were well on our way to Cape May when we saw people walking back into the hotel), got some great pics of the girls in a very empty WS, pin traded, took it easy while DH ran back alone to get the stroller. (-1 bad breath most of the day)
C. With little kids and a big double stroller, I would probably only do this split stay with an MK DVC for the second part. We never got a room ready text, so it would have been harder to go to a park and then check in later if the resort and park were not close to each other.
D. I would do a quick walk around the room in the villa to make sure everything was working. We didn't notice the bench on seating in the dining area was broken, making it unusable, until the 2nd day, and since we were in the room a lot later in the day, it took until the 4th day for them to fix it. In the future we'll do more meals in the room, I think.
E. The Wave for a no-reservations breakfast or lunch is SO much better than Contempo Cafe, and not much more $$ (ie totally worth it) with TiW. If we do more meals in the room next time, though, not sure TiW will be worth it.
We had a GREAT trip. The staff at the Dolphin and BLT were so friendly and helpful (except for that one person on the phone who told DH they wouldn't take the trash... huh???). We loved the pools at the Dolphin and made so many great memories there and at BLT (first stay on our own points). We would definitely do a split with Swan/Dolphin again, for a trip 7 nights or longer.
Our family's must-do restaurants for future trips:
Me: Tiffins (our vote for best in-park restaurant)
DH: California Grill
6yo: Cinderella's Castle!!!
2yo: PRINCESS!!!!!
(Also, the 2yo was not a huge fan of BOG dinner, as she asked, "Beet eat you?" many times. No, the Beast is not going to eat you...)
I guess it's a good thing our home resorts are at MK...
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. That plus being able to use points is a big plus for Dolphin/Swan over buying an Epcot resort.
Maybe do TOTWL one night and if it goes well, consider Main St. It is really a short walk!
