papertraveller
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 14, 2009
- Messages
- 1,457
Hi All,
We just returned from another wonderful trip to Bay Lake Tower, our home resort. We were in residence from August 30 to September 7. It was a wonderful vacation. Herewith 25 observations in truly random order:
1. The WiFi at BLT, as advertised, was really poor until halfway through the trip. And we mean, can’t connect at all poor.
2. I know people are commenting about the condition of the rooms, and yes they are looking a bit worn down. I consider this a legacy of the individual who ran DVC at the time – poor quality selections in everything from carpet to the pullout couches (where all the sofa cushions had to be replaced) to the placement of the toilet roll holders, which have ALL come out from the walls. We had a Lakeview Studio, looking straight out on the pool. Our preferred view is actually over the marina, but this was pretty fine too!
3. Crowds at WDW were low. This was wonderful, since it meant a return to the ‘good old days’ when you could take the standby lines.
4. FastPass + has definitely changed the way we tour, but it did work for us. For example, on arrival day we booked our three for later in the day. We did this again on another day when we rented a car so we could do some shopping offsite.
5. We used Garden Grocer to stock up the fridge. We’re Canadian, and our low dollar means that everything costs us one-third more. We ordered beer and wine, eggs, yogurt, English muffins, cream cheese, bagels, cheese strings etc. We brought additional snacks and some cereal. We did have leftovers, but it meant that when faced with the $7.50 hot dog (that’s $10 Canadian!!!) at the BLT pool bar, we had options.
6. We bought one mug (see aforementioned low Canadian dollar). For length of stay, still excellent value.
7. The Contempo Café has dispensed with the kiosks for ordering food. This has messed up the system horrifically. One CM told me that they had gone through 11 different service variations since Christmas (with accompanying visits from the admin staff evaluating every step we take, of course). At present, one Cast Member stands at the entryway and gives you a menu. You place your order at the cash – if you are dining in, you receive a number for your table, and if you have a ‘to go’ order you are given a buzzer. The problem is in the line, and the many options people have to make in placing their order – did you want fries, apple slices, grapes, how many credits are you using, etc. This is a big fail in my view – it’s probably made life easier for them, but it means that we spend more time in line.
8. Newfound delight: sitting at the Brown Derby in Hollywood Studios and watching the crowd go by. We ordered the charcuterie board and a couple of glasses of wine, and enjoyed every minute.
9. Side observation on HS: we enjoy Frozen, but at risk of drawing criticism, I think there might be just a little too much Frozen. That said, we thought the sing along was fun (and I love to see some of my favourite comedy players get mainstage treatment), and the fireworks were absolutely amazing.
10.Fantasmic. First trip to see it in a number of visits, and it really is impressive.
11.DVC Friends. We were lucky that five years ago, on an evening swim, our daughter met another girl and hit it off. Ever since we have vacationed at the same time as this other family, and count ourselves fortunate that DVC brought us together.
12.Guest encounters. This is always a fun category.
a) There was the dad so intent on pushing his kid in the stroller up Main Street that he ran completely over our daughter’s backpack, which was placed to the side as she and her DVC BFF had their picture taken in front of the castle. Lucky her glasses weren’t inside. He was oblivious, and didn’t notice even after he had passed by.
b) Then there was the other dad who had an empty water bottle at Club Cool at Epcot, and filled it from those little paper cups. It took him awhile.
c) And there was the lady who met her friends at the park and used her son’s disability pass to get her friends on Star Tours. The friend misunderstood the system and used her FastPass + at the second checkpoint. Once the lady discovered this, she was determined that they would go back and get those FastPasses restored. I would add that her son was not happy at all, since she kept loudly repeating the phrase "Disability Pass".
d) And my favourite, the lady who took my seatbelt on one of the rides. I just waited patiently until she realized that it wouldn’t work from left to right – she gave it back to me, and before I could say a word, said “No speaka the English?” And truth be told, I was speechless – in any language.
13.Top of the World Lounge. We had a reservation at The Wave, but when we arrived they said they were running 30 minutes behind. We asked if we would be penalized for cancelling at that point, and were told that this is okay and we’d be marked as “Walked Away”. Off we went to the lounge where we dined on tenderloin sliders, pretzel sticks and more. By the time we left, people were lining up for seats. We’d be happy to see more menu items. CMs were trying out new dips for the pretzels, as well as some wings.
14.Via Napoli. We love this place. Great meal of family size salad, pizza, and some amazing sangria. If you haven’t ventured in, it’s definitely worth a trip.
15.Sorcerors of the Magic Kingdom. We spent quite a lot of time trekking back and forth (and back and forth) to complete the first level and get all those cards. It’s fun, and a good way to fill in times between FastPass + bookings.
16.Boat trip to Wilderness Lodge. We love the Wilderness Salad, as well as all the appetizers in the bar. We always try to make time for this visit. Getting there is half the fun.
17.New DVC merchandise. It’s a brown and teal pattern, with Mickey looking through binoculars. Really not at all appealing to us. Design fail in my book.
18.Chef Mickey. After many visits, we had the misfortune to be assigned the prime table beside the kitchen/utensils gathering area near the stairway to the washrooms. We were there for dinner, and it was good but it was a stretch to find value for our (aforementioned) hard-earned (Canadian) dollars. Our friends were there for breakfast, and said that in their view it was definitely not worth their hard-earned (U.S.) dollars.
19.Crystal Palace. On the other hand, we found the breakfast value here to be consistently good. It helps that there is an omelet station (which there is not at Chef Mickey).
20.Animal Kingdom Safari had lots of new babies, which were fun to see – giraffes, rhino, even a couple of pelicans in nests in the hippopotamus area.
21.We used our Tables in Wonderland. Bought it in March to use for a Cinderella’s Royal Table visit, only to discover that it was caught in the blackout period. We got our money’s worth on this trip, but just. And honestly, if we hadn’t purchased it already I don’t think we would have done quite so many table service meals.
22. Budget cuts – this year we didn’t do the Memory Maker (and didn’t really miss it); we skipped the caramel/milk chocolate popcorn at the Werther’s store in Germany (we call it addictive popcorn); we picked up our 2015 souvenir magnet at Publix and DD’s Disney pyjamas at Target; we did dinner at Earl of Sandwich (which we love) plus Downtown Disney, er… Disney Springs had some wonderful free and talented entertainment.
23.Took a walking tour of the Polynesian renovations, though we didn’t go see the bungalows. From the water as we sailed to Magic Kingdom, however, those pools on the balcony looked more like shallow hot tubs.
24.Did the laundry, and discovered that they have washing machines that will TEXT YOU WHEN THEY’RE DONE! Of course, since we don’t have a U.S. phone plan it doesn’t work, but still!
25.Next time: think we’ll golf.
We just returned from another wonderful trip to Bay Lake Tower, our home resort. We were in residence from August 30 to September 7. It was a wonderful vacation. Herewith 25 observations in truly random order:
1. The WiFi at BLT, as advertised, was really poor until halfway through the trip. And we mean, can’t connect at all poor.
2. I know people are commenting about the condition of the rooms, and yes they are looking a bit worn down. I consider this a legacy of the individual who ran DVC at the time – poor quality selections in everything from carpet to the pullout couches (where all the sofa cushions had to be replaced) to the placement of the toilet roll holders, which have ALL come out from the walls. We had a Lakeview Studio, looking straight out on the pool. Our preferred view is actually over the marina, but this was pretty fine too!
3. Crowds at WDW were low. This was wonderful, since it meant a return to the ‘good old days’ when you could take the standby lines.
4. FastPass + has definitely changed the way we tour, but it did work for us. For example, on arrival day we booked our three for later in the day. We did this again on another day when we rented a car so we could do some shopping offsite.
5. We used Garden Grocer to stock up the fridge. We’re Canadian, and our low dollar means that everything costs us one-third more. We ordered beer and wine, eggs, yogurt, English muffins, cream cheese, bagels, cheese strings etc. We brought additional snacks and some cereal. We did have leftovers, but it meant that when faced with the $7.50 hot dog (that’s $10 Canadian!!!) at the BLT pool bar, we had options.
6. We bought one mug (see aforementioned low Canadian dollar). For length of stay, still excellent value.
7. The Contempo Café has dispensed with the kiosks for ordering food. This has messed up the system horrifically. One CM told me that they had gone through 11 different service variations since Christmas (with accompanying visits from the admin staff evaluating every step we take, of course). At present, one Cast Member stands at the entryway and gives you a menu. You place your order at the cash – if you are dining in, you receive a number for your table, and if you have a ‘to go’ order you are given a buzzer. The problem is in the line, and the many options people have to make in placing their order – did you want fries, apple slices, grapes, how many credits are you using, etc. This is a big fail in my view – it’s probably made life easier for them, but it means that we spend more time in line.
8. Newfound delight: sitting at the Brown Derby in Hollywood Studios and watching the crowd go by. We ordered the charcuterie board and a couple of glasses of wine, and enjoyed every minute.
9. Side observation on HS: we enjoy Frozen, but at risk of drawing criticism, I think there might be just a little too much Frozen. That said, we thought the sing along was fun (and I love to see some of my favourite comedy players get mainstage treatment), and the fireworks were absolutely amazing.
10.Fantasmic. First trip to see it in a number of visits, and it really is impressive.
11.DVC Friends. We were lucky that five years ago, on an evening swim, our daughter met another girl and hit it off. Ever since we have vacationed at the same time as this other family, and count ourselves fortunate that DVC brought us together.
12.Guest encounters. This is always a fun category.
a) There was the dad so intent on pushing his kid in the stroller up Main Street that he ran completely over our daughter’s backpack, which was placed to the side as she and her DVC BFF had their picture taken in front of the castle. Lucky her glasses weren’t inside. He was oblivious, and didn’t notice even after he had passed by.
b) Then there was the other dad who had an empty water bottle at Club Cool at Epcot, and filled it from those little paper cups. It took him awhile.
c) And there was the lady who met her friends at the park and used her son’s disability pass to get her friends on Star Tours. The friend misunderstood the system and used her FastPass + at the second checkpoint. Once the lady discovered this, she was determined that they would go back and get those FastPasses restored. I would add that her son was not happy at all, since she kept loudly repeating the phrase "Disability Pass".
d) And my favourite, the lady who took my seatbelt on one of the rides. I just waited patiently until she realized that it wouldn’t work from left to right – she gave it back to me, and before I could say a word, said “No speaka the English?” And truth be told, I was speechless – in any language.
13.Top of the World Lounge. We had a reservation at The Wave, but when we arrived they said they were running 30 minutes behind. We asked if we would be penalized for cancelling at that point, and were told that this is okay and we’d be marked as “Walked Away”. Off we went to the lounge where we dined on tenderloin sliders, pretzel sticks and more. By the time we left, people were lining up for seats. We’d be happy to see more menu items. CMs were trying out new dips for the pretzels, as well as some wings.
14.Via Napoli. We love this place. Great meal of family size salad, pizza, and some amazing sangria. If you haven’t ventured in, it’s definitely worth a trip.
15.Sorcerors of the Magic Kingdom. We spent quite a lot of time trekking back and forth (and back and forth) to complete the first level and get all those cards. It’s fun, and a good way to fill in times between FastPass + bookings.
16.Boat trip to Wilderness Lodge. We love the Wilderness Salad, as well as all the appetizers in the bar. We always try to make time for this visit. Getting there is half the fun.
17.New DVC merchandise. It’s a brown and teal pattern, with Mickey looking through binoculars. Really not at all appealing to us. Design fail in my book.
18.Chef Mickey. After many visits, we had the misfortune to be assigned the prime table beside the kitchen/utensils gathering area near the stairway to the washrooms. We were there for dinner, and it was good but it was a stretch to find value for our (aforementioned) hard-earned (Canadian) dollars. Our friends were there for breakfast, and said that in their view it was definitely not worth their hard-earned (U.S.) dollars.
19.Crystal Palace. On the other hand, we found the breakfast value here to be consistently good. It helps that there is an omelet station (which there is not at Chef Mickey).
20.Animal Kingdom Safari had lots of new babies, which were fun to see – giraffes, rhino, even a couple of pelicans in nests in the hippopotamus area.
21.We used our Tables in Wonderland. Bought it in March to use for a Cinderella’s Royal Table visit, only to discover that it was caught in the blackout period. We got our money’s worth on this trip, but just. And honestly, if we hadn’t purchased it already I don’t think we would have done quite so many table service meals.
22. Budget cuts – this year we didn’t do the Memory Maker (and didn’t really miss it); we skipped the caramel/milk chocolate popcorn at the Werther’s store in Germany (we call it addictive popcorn); we picked up our 2015 souvenir magnet at Publix and DD’s Disney pyjamas at Target; we did dinner at Earl of Sandwich (which we love) plus Downtown Disney, er… Disney Springs had some wonderful free and talented entertainment.
23.Took a walking tour of the Polynesian renovations, though we didn’t go see the bungalows. From the water as we sailed to Magic Kingdom, however, those pools on the balcony looked more like shallow hot tubs.
24.Did the laundry, and discovered that they have washing machines that will TEXT YOU WHEN THEY’RE DONE! Of course, since we don’t have a U.S. phone plan it doesn’t work, but still!
25.Next time: think we’ll golf.
