Shades of Green ????s

[Smbmoyers]

So I know December of 2016 is a long ways out but my family will be booking Shades of Green this December when next years rooms become available. It will be me? my husband, my mom, my army brother (hooah!), and my then 3 year old son, We're planning on 2 rooms cojoined I have a couple questions though.

1. Are there any rooms at Shades that I could ask for that would make the walk to the Polynesian for monorail access a bit shorter?

2. Has anyone done the Sunrise package where you get breakfast included? If so how was the food? I've been reading about it amd some say its great, others say stay away?

3. Has anyone driven to Universal Orlando from Shades? How long was the ride?

4. How does the buy your tickets early and get the ticket #s thing from SoG work? This process seems confusing to me.

5. Has anyone tried out the new pool yet? I'm sure that will be one of the highlights of ds trip.

Thanks in advance!

 

[wdwrich]

2. Food at SOG is mediocre. When we stayed there, we ordered breakfast items, drinks and snacks from Garden Grocer and had breakfast in our room almost every day. It saved time and a bit of money.

4. We recently purchased tickets from our local base ticket office (just before the price increase) and have already linked them in our MDE account for our December trip.

 

[deannaf87]

1. You could just ask for close to the lobby area? Most areas of the resort won't be that far away. If I remember correctly, you'll nee dto walk to through the lobby to get out to the front anyways.
2. Sunrise package isn't worth it IMO. Shades food is mediocre at best. Use your mornings to get to rope drop or a breakfast at a restaurant that isn't terrible.
3. We drove from Shades to Universal. Took about 15 minutes with light traffic.
4. Last time we went FP+ wasn't around, so can't help you there.
5. No pool help either.

 

[shellmurray]

So I know December of 2016 is a long ways out but my family will be booking Shades of Green this December when next years rooms become available. It will be me? my husband, my mom, my army brother (hooah!), and my then 3 year old son, We're planning on 2 rooms cojoined I have a couple questions though.

1. Are there any rooms at Shades that I could ask for that would make the walk to the Polynesian for monorail access a bit shorter?

2. Has anyone done the Sunrise package where you get breakfast included? If so how was the food? I've been reading about it amd some say its great, others say stay away?

3. Has anyone driven to Universal Orlando from Shades? How long was the ride?

4. How does the buy your tickets early and get the ticket #s thing from SoG work? This process seems confusing to me.

5. Has anyone tried out the new pool yet? I'm sure that will be one of the highlights of ds trip.

Thanks in advance!

1. Only to ask to be close to the lobby. The walk to the Polynesian is not long.
2. It has been a while since we did a package, but when we did it was the one with breakfast and dinner included. We found it to be a good value with a large family compared to what you will pay in the parks. Honestly, you pay for the experience not the food. We did the package when our children were young and you will love the buffet because you don't have to wait for the food. We also liked it because you eat before you leave for the parks, take a few snacks with you, then by the time the little one is ready for some down time you come back to rest eat an early dinner then go back out for the evening.
3. Already answered 15-20 min.
4. You have to purchase at your local base ahead of time. Then create a My Disney Experience account and link the tickets through that. You can buy wristbands when you get to Disney which I recommend for convenience.
5. The new pool is really nice for the little ones with the zero entry.
The great thing about the Shades of Green is that it's so close to the Magic Kingdom. With a 3 year old, you will be spending most of you time there.
Hope this helps- have fun!!

 

[Smbmoyers]

Thank you all so much! we'd book sooner and go but with my brothers schedule we almost have to book that far out (ocs and ait) itll be a nice boost for him to think about

 

[CaLuCa]

I just got back from Spring Break at SOG and was typing up a review on the other thread, but my 4yo DS deleted before I finished and I haven't had a chance to redo it.

1. Room placement would pretty much be a negligible amount in walking to the Poly. That said, being near the lobby is better. If you want to be near the pool, specify Magnolia wing. BTW, walking is faster than the bus.

2. Never done the package but have eaten at GG and Mangino's. Always have had to wait to be seated at GG, even when there were lots of empty tables. Food was okay...nothing outstanding (other than some really good eggs benedict one morning, but I had very low expectations for eggs benedict on a buffet, but they were good.) Mickey shaped pancakes, and everything tastes better in mickey shape. Decent selection of fruit and salad (only salad at dinner). I personally wouldn't do a package and just pay out of pocket. Your son will be free as anyone under 4 is not charged for. Depending on when it is in December you might have room only discounts offered too.

3. nope...die hard disney fan.

4. About 45 days out from your arrival date, you will receive an email asking if you want to pre-purchase tickets. You reply back and pay for them and they email you the ticket numbers to enter into MDE, then you could make your FP+ at 30 days (really wish it was 60). I didn't not do this but instead bought at our local MWR.

5. Pool! We did the new splash pad area and it is fantastic. My 4 yos loved it! The water was cool, but they had so much fun on the slides and running around...I don't know where they got the energy! There are two small slides and then a tunnel slide that is larger. There is also the big slide in the pool, but you have to be 48" I believe. I will caution you that in December you might find it too cold to do much swimming/water play.

 

[Smbmoyers]

I just got back from Spring Break at SOG and was typing up a review on the other thread, but my 4yo DS deleted before I finished and I haven't had a chance to redo it.

1. Room placement would pretty much be a negligible amount in walking to the Poly. That said, being near the lobby is better. If you want to be near the pool, specify Magnolia wing. BTW, walking is faster than the bus.

2. Never done the package but have eaten at GG and Mangino's. Always have had to wait to be seated at GG, even when there were lots of empty tables. Food was okay...nothing outstanding (other than some really good eggs benedict one morning, but I had very low expectations for eggs benedict on a buffet, but they were good.) Mickey shaped pancakes, and everything tastes better in mickey shape. Decent selection of fruit and salad (only salad at dinner). I personally wouldn't do a package and just pay out of pocket. Your son will be free as anyone under 4 is not charged for. Depending on when it is in December you might have room only discounts offered too.

3. nope...die hard disney fan.

4. About 45 days out from your arrival date, you will receive an email asking if you want to pre-purchase tickets. You reply back and pay for them and they email you the ticket numbers to enter into MDE, then you could make your FP+ at 30 days (really wish it was 60). I didn't not do this but instead bought at our local MWR.

5. Pool! We did the new splash pad area and it is fantastic. My 4 yos loved it! The water was cool, but they had so much fun on the slides and running around...I don't know where they got the energy! There are two small slides and then a tunnel slide that is larger. There is also the big slide in the pool, but you have to be 48" I believe. I will caution you that in December you might find it too cold to do much swimming/water play.

This is such good information!!! Thank you so much! Im a really big planner!

 

[kcount]

So I know December of 2016 is a long ways out but my family will be booking Shades of Green this December when next years rooms become available. It will be me? my husband, my mom, my army brother (hooah!), and my then 3 year old son, We're planning on 2 rooms cojoined I have a couple questions though.

1. No, the walk was approx. a half mile from the Shades of Green front lobby to across the street to the Polynesian Resort Monorail. The busses, however, run like clockwork and are not crowded like the Disney busses. We traveled for Christmas last year with a 3, 2, and an infant. We stayed one time at AllStar Sports and the walk was about the same from our room to the bus stop (never again @ Valu resorts, too cramped and dirty).

2. We did do the sunrise package. Food was great, there are so many selections to choose from. Omelet station, they made Mickey pancakes for the kids, fresh fruit. We would eat breakfast there (kids 5 and under are free) and then take some small fruit with us for the park. There is a menu to order off of if the buffet is not your cup of tea. Was it 5 star, no, but very good enough for us to choose the package each year (I would say 3.5 - 4 stars out of 5). Our kids would not cooperate in order to make ropedrop, so in our minds it was a no brainer. We split half the time of doing dinner inside the parks at sit down and a few days we came back and had dinner at the Shades of Green. Dinner there was ok, about Olive Garden quality and pricing.

3. We did, but got caught in traffic. Took us 45 mins due to rush hour. Shades of Green does offer a shuttle to Universal and SeaWorld for $10 per adult. Parking at Universal is $17.

4. SoG will email you your ticket numbers. Once you get them you can link those numbers on your MDE website. We did that and upon arrival purchased MagicBands at Downtown Disney and linked those bands to our tickets (and Photopass).

5. No, it was still under construction while we were there, but it looked very nice though!

My 2 cents: Look at the offers each month on the home page of Shades of Green. They are offering 30% off standard room rates with 2 breakfasts included. There is a small golfcart that can shuttle you from the Shades of Green lobby to the end of the property, cutting the walk down by about 60% to the Poly monorail. The rooms are huge, along the lines of a Deluxe resort without the price. People there were very courteous, much nicer than the other Disney resorts that we have stayed at. The busses are bigger inside vs. the Disney busses. Shades of Green busses have direct transportation, no stopping at other resorts or parks. They leave / arrive at their parks every 30 mins (for MK and EP) or 60 mins (for AK and HS).

 

[myrtleturtle]

2. Check out the military disney tips website. He just did a great blog post about the Sunrise package. Basically, if you are going to be eating breakfast every day at shades it can be a small savings. We aren't doing it this year bc I want to take our toddlers to Crystal Palace for breakfast and eating any meals away from Shades on the package means a loss.

4. Another option is to buy your tickets in advance from either your own base or from Camp Pendleton. You can order them over the phone and they arrive via fedex. There is a $10 charge to do it. More details on the process at Military Disney Tips.

5. I haven't been since the new pool opened, but there are a couple of youtube videos to watch.

 

[Smbmoyers]

Thanks everyone! It sounds like sog is the way to go!

 

[ibelieveinmagic]

Hi every body, I have a few questions, we will have a party of 16, one of them is my grandson who will be 15 months, can 5 plus infant stay in 1 room, or will we need 4 rooms? Also,is it official that at SOG you can book fast pass plus at 60 days out?

 

[firstwdw]

Shades of Green room occupancy is 5 per room regardless of age. Yes, you can now book fast passes 60 days out staying at Shades of Green.