The *New* Grand Floridian Resort and Spa FAQ thread (NOV 2008)

[BunnieGene]

We always go in December and book by June. That month seems to get more crowded every year! It also depends on which week you are going. The second half of December fills up quickly , although with the economy this year, who knows?

I also remember that I needed to change my RPC dates in August for our December trip. I had a standard RPC room booked. I had to move my trip up a week and I was only able to get a Deluxe RPC room . All standards were booked.
Not sure if I'm helping much, but I would book by summer and then cancel later if you need to, just in case!

I agree with this advice....we've already booked our trip for December...there is truly no place like the GF for the holidays

 

[MelissaFromRI]

Hi! I have a question for anyone who is going this December. Were there alot of rooms to choose from when you booked or was space limited? My DH wants to go over the holidays and would love to stay in the main building. Thanks!

We always book our room as soon as we know when we want to go. The RPC rooms go fast

 

[IWISHFORDISNEY]

I was just lookig over the private dining menu for the chocolate treats you can send to your room. I was thinking the chocolate Mickey but I dont know weather to do it with cookies or with the strawberries for my sons half birthday. I know that probably sounds crazy be we can never go when our actual birthdays are because we are both so close to Christmas. I think a 4year old would like cookies better than the strawberries. Has anyone had these??

 

[IWISHFORDISNEY]

The Wii cart is a big thing with four side and it is on wheels and they have 4 Wii video game systems set up for the kids to play!

Last month it was set up in front of the bathrooms/changing house...... kinda in the vicinity if the hair wrapping area.

Is this something they sit in or stand up and play? sounds really cool for the kids!!!

I still have not gotten over your story about the man trying to steal your daughter from the playground. It hit home since my son got trotted off by somone also but ours was totally accidental and the mom returned him to me within 2 minutes.

 

[Tinker*Shell*Bell]

Is this something they sit in or stand up and play? sounds really cool for the kids!!!

If I understand the question I think you have it all wrong.
The Wii cart is just a CART used to keep a video game system and the tv's for it together. There is no sit on or stand up about the cart. The kids could pull up a chair or two- they could sit on towels on the pool deck...but the cart is nothing more that a way to move the video game system.
If I misunderstood I am totally sorry. I just don't want you to get the idea that this wii cart is more than a piece of furniture on wheels.

 

[Belinderella]

Don't forget in the afternoons they have fun activity's and even crafts by the pool! I bet your kids might want to get involved with those instead of watching a DVD! Here's a picture i took of the activity's one day!

This is going to be the best vacation...after viewing this picture we are changing our plans around...my kids will love these kind of activites! My DH is not much on lounging so he can supervise while me and DH20 relax...THANKS

 

[Tink rules]

Has anyone used in room babysitting at the GF???

 

[JediGFRMickey]

Mandy _Thank you very much I think it would be fun If we are tired from the parks. A movie on the beach.

 

[JediGFRMickey]

I was told there are at least 3 in room baby stting services , Kids night out, Fairy Godmothers and I think All about kids. If you contact the resort front desk or concierges they can give you the phone numbers. My sister used Kid's night out. All are professional and certified. My nephew said "Miss Carol (the sitter) had a whole bag of toys he played with. The sitter brings a bag of toys smart.

 

[Tink rules]

That sounds great!!! thanks!!!

 

[johnsonet]

Has anyone used in room babysitting at the GF???

We have used Kids Nite Out several times - I think once when staying at the GF but they go to any resort. We had a great experience. The woman was VERY sweet and grandmotherly

Anyway, KNO has always been great. VERY professional. The only thing I would say is request someone "active" if you think your kids would prefer that. A friend used them for her three daughters one night so that she and her DH could have some rare alone time on their vacation and her kids thought their sitter was nice but not very "fun" (she was older). Just a thought...
They bring age-appropriate activities for the child/ren and take notes on what happens while they are there that they show you when you return. They cannot bathe the children or take them to the pool, but they can take them to get supper or walk around the resort, playground (if the resort has one - GF doesn't), etc. I have had good experiences with KNO

 

[3prettyprincesses]

We were just at the Grand Floridian last week, sniff-sniff! We'll never stay anywhere else again! Anyhoo, I saw the little sea raycer boats and was curious how much they are to rent? They look like 2 seater boats but how old does the passenger have to be? I know my hubby would love to cruise around the lagoon in one of those bad boys and want to be sure my 9 year old could go with him. Thanks and can I just say how much I love this thread! The Grand Floridian rules!

 

[Tinkaroo]

We were just at the Grand Floridian last week, sniff-sniff! We'll never stay anywhere else again! Anyhoo, I saw the little sea raycer boats and was curious how much they are to rent? They look like 2 seater boats but how old does the passenger have to be? I know my hubby would love to cruise around the lagoon in one of those bad boys and want to be sure my 9 year old could go with him. Thanks and can I just say how much I love this thread! The Grand Floridian rules!

I'm glad to hear you had a great trip! The GF is a special place!

Check out this great GF site for information on the Sea Raycers: http://www.wherethemagiclives.com/marina.html

I'm not aware of any age minimums for being a passenger of the SR's, although I'm sure the marina staff would be slightly concerned if the passenger was very, very young, i.e., infant-age. I'm sure they need to be big enough to wear one of the life vests, as all kids below 12 have to. Your 9 year-old would definitely be able to accompany your husband, as long as they wouldn't exceed the weight limit. (I want to say the limit is somewhere in the neighborhood of 350 lbs., but I could be off.) Kids 12 and over can even pilot one on their own.

 

[magical4us4]

Tinkaroo, thanks for the link...I too wanted information on this but overlooked it!

 

[Tink rules]

We have used Kids Nite Out several times - I think once when staying at the GF but they go to any resort. We had a great experience. The woman was VERY sweet and grandmotherly

Anyway, KNO has always been great. VERY professional. The only thing I would say is request someone "active" if you think your kids would prefer that. A friend used them for her three daughters one night so that she and her DH could have some rare alone time on their vacation and her kids thought their sitter was nice but not very "fun" (she was older). Just a thought...
They bring age-appropriate activities for the child/ren and take notes on what happens while they are there that they show you when you return. They cannot bathe the children or take them to the pool, but they can take them to get supper or walk around the resort, playground (if the resort has one - GF doesn't), etc. I have had good experiences with KNO

Thanks!!!

 

[3prettyprincesses]

I'm glad to hear you had a great trip! The GF is a special place!

Check out this great GF site for information on the Sea Raycers: http://www.wherethemagiclives.com/marina.html

I'm not aware of any age minimums for being a passenger of the SR's, although I'm sure the marina staff would be slightly concerned if the passenger was very, very young, i.e., infant-age. I'm sure they need to be big enough to wear one of the life vests, as all kids below 12 have to. Your 9 year-old would definitely be able to accompany your husband, as long as they wouldn't exceed the weight limit. (I want to say the limit is somewhere in the neighborhood of 350 lbs., but I could be off.) Kids 12 and over can even pilot one on their own.

Thanks so much!! That website is awesome and way better done than the official Disney GF page! It's exactly what I was looking for too. I didn't realize you could rent the Grand 1 either. My hubby saw it (we stayed at Conch Key last week) and was drooling! Now the only bummer is that I have to wait 11 more months to go back If only we lived closer to Disney...sigh.

 

[magical4us4]

Thanks so much!! That website is awesome and way better done than the official Disney GF page! It's exactly what I was looking for too. I didn't realize you could rent the Grand 1 either. My hubby saw it (we stayed at Conch Key last week) and was drooling! Now the only bummer is that I have to wait 11 more months to go back If only we lived closer to Disney...sigh.

I agree, that website is incredible! It just makes me want to go back again and again!

I miss that place!!!!!!!!!!

 

[mandymommy4]

Is this something they sit in or stand up and play? sounds really cool for the kids!!!

I still have not gotten over your story about the man trying to steal your daughter from the playground. It hit home since my son got trotted off by somone also but ours was totally accidental and the mom returned him to me within 2 minutes.

I think Tinker*Shel*bell clarified the Wii cart, Thanks Shel!

Actually, we went back today with the kids for the first time since that happened and boy was i a nervous wreck, DH had to tell me a few times to relax ...... At the Barnstormer the people in front of us all the sudden could not find their little boy and they began looking and we all looked around and then the parent split up going through the line looking for him and finally the dad kinda stepped up on the fence and told every one to look for a little boy dressed in a orange shirt that they could not find his son ect....... he was at the very front of the line and the CM were asking around for his parents. I will tell ya' I was in tears almost and the whole ordeal took only a few min.

At Disney kids get lost or separated all the time, most instances it is just for seconds or minuets. I do think there are bad people that are more than willing to take advantage of a lost child and that was our case. But when a parent has a concern about a "good citizen" and try's to make their concern know it is downplayed by guest services. Sad!

I'm glad to hear you had a great trip! The GF is a special place!

Check out this great GF site for information on the Sea Raycers: http://www.wherethemagiclives.com/marina.html

I'm not aware of any age minimums for being a passenger of the SR's, although I'm sure the marina staff would be slightly concerned if the passenger was very, very young, i.e., infant-age. I'm sure they need to be big enough to wear one of the life vests, as all kids below 12 have to. Your 9 year-old would definitely be able to accompany your husband, as long as they wouldn't exceed the weight limit. (I want to say the limit is somewhere in the neighborhood of 350 lbs., but I could be off.) Kids 12 and over can even pilot one on their own.

I love that site! I go and look at it a lot!

Thanks so much!! That website is awesome and way better done than the official Disney GF page! It's exactly what I was looking for too. I didn't realize you could rent the Grand 1 either. My hubby saw it (we stayed at Conch Key last week) and was drooling! Now the only bummer is that I have to wait 11 more months to go back If only we lived closer to Disney...sigh.

True true! They should be ashamed that a fan can do better! Lives 4 Disney has done an awesome job researching and compiling all that info! She is the #1 GF GAL!

 

[loralie]

I have a question regarding home made potato chips. I just read a review of the GF Cafe and the person reviewing the meal had lunch there and mentioned that they had home made potato chips with their sandwiches. I know my DH would love home made potato chips as a snack. Can we get home made potato chips from Gasparilla Grill? We do have an ADR for Grand Floridian Cafe for dinner one day but I don't know if he would want them with dinner...more of a snack. Anyone have an idea?

TIA,

Loralie

 

[TravelinGal]

WOW --- over 100 pages since we left! Y'all have been busy. Needless to say I'm not going to read all of them. Have too much to do now. LOL

We DID get a king room for the 3 of us. It was in Sago Cay - We were to the right side of the lobby so we were far enough away from the lot/convention ctr area that we didn't have to hear any of the morning truck noises etc and, as long as we didn't look to the left , we had a nice view of the lake etc.

I don't know if it was because of all the hype here building up my expectations, but I just didn't feel the GF was all that. Yes, it is beautiful and peaceful, but the service was less than I expected.

Housekeeping was not that stellar. I felt we had better housekeeping at ASMusic last Oct. After 3 days of not having the room vacuumed (evident by the small pieces of stuff that slowly collects on the floor - especially with a child in the room) I finally had to call and talk to the manager. I wasn't rude to her and stressed that I felt training was the key (didn't want the poor gal to lose her job, but she needs to step it up!) Each day we had left a nice tip ($6 for the 3 of us - and I keep the room VERY tidy...in the cute tip envelope too...LOL) and it seems all that was done was replace towels (including ones we hung up) and straighten the beds (didn't even replace the cover a few times! Just straightened the sheets). She didn't even fold up the sleeper sofa. Just left it open all the time. Oh well...
Everyone rants about how the customer service is SO much better at GF. I just didn't see it (housekeeping and throughout the resort). I felt as if I was treated just as well at the ASMu. While it wasn't bad, it just didn't live up to the hype - or the cost.

We got too much sun the day we went to the beach and I called housekeeping to see if they had any aloe vera/sun burn gel and the lady on the phone was flat out rude to me. Something along the lines of "spend your own money and go buy some at Sandy Cove".

I was disappointed to see how worn/stained the carpets looked. The comforter/cover on the bed was rough and 'pilly'

I'm glad I took my own pillow. I would have been miserable with those tiny pillows. They were nice and fluffy, but I don't sleep with a small pillow at home and wouldn't have slept well with the ones they had. I'm sure they are wonderful for those who are used to a standard pillow though!


I remember someone was asking about the lobby areas in each building so I took a photo from the 3rd floor looking down. There was an identical set of table/chairs on the other side that didn't get in the photo. The picture was taken from the railing by the elevators:

Here is a better picture of the chair in the lobby (and an edge of the table)... DS HAD to have his picture taken but then wouldn't smile nice... go figure. LOL