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

[Lives4Disney]

Yes they will ship it home for you.....just an FYI we bought lots of stuff from basin and put it in our checked baggage and all of our baggage was searched by TSA. From now on I will only carry it on with me.



PS....if you sign up on the Basin and Basin White website they will send you special offers and codes

They DO?!?? I am signed up.......hmmm......cool to know though!

they sell that stuff at TJ maxx soemtimes? my mom works their part time, I will have to have her be on the lookout for me!

less than 5 months until my GF trip and a week and a 1/2 till my weekend cornado trip. we are eating breakfast at 1900 PF so I will at least get to GO to the GF!

SOMETIMES I have seen it at ours...and Marshalls....I rarely see the spa GF line....there's lots of others there often though at ours.

I will agree with Channing about LeCellier. We ate there on DF's first trip and were not impressed. It was okay, but that was all. We did like the soup and pretzel bread, though. We have had as good or better steaks at chain steakhouses even, and for far less cost. I don't mind paying for Disney food but I felt ripped off for what I got there, if that makes sense. I think it is the difficulty of making an ADR there that makes people so excited about it. Or maybe we just hit an off day...

GF Cafe is good for lunch and breakfast. We have never tried dinner there. We've eaten there many times and have never needed and ADR.

Ya....I don't get the big tadoo .....it's OK but seriously I don't evne like the atmosphere there ....and some people LOVE that too. To each their own.

Happy day!

Channing

 

[VBsHustla]

Thanks everyone for the H2O product recommendations! I may have to place another order soon... And I'm certainly signing up with Basin White - if I happen to get discount codes, how could I not place an order!

I also prefer Yachtsman Steakhouse and Narcoosee's to Le Cellier, but agree that Le Cellier would be best with kids. Good luck getting in, mom2princessj! Coral Reef might be another fun Epcot restaurant to take the kids to if you can't get into Le Cellier, although I'm not sure how hard Coral Reef is to get into. I've never eaten there, but I've heard/ read good things about it, and everyone seems to rave about their steak.

 

[mom2princessj]

Thanks everyone for all of your suggestions!

I think I may carry a sandwich on the plane...I did it last year on our Florida trip although we stood in line forever to get the sandwich which always makes dh nervous if we aren't at the gate waiting to get on the plane This year with the kids in tow he'll probably be even more neurotic...oh I can't wait to fly

I'll look into some of the other restaurant suggestions too. I'm always up for a good steak! Seafood is a definite NO for me...can't stand it so whereever we go as long as I have a steak or chicken option (as well as the kids...i try hard to get them to eat seafood and so far nothing doing ) it's all good!

 

[BCV23]

Yes, we like Narcoossee's and Yachtsman's better too. Jiko, Citricos and California Grill all serve amazing steak. Children are the norm at all of them. If they won't sit for a three course meal, perhaps order an entree and then maybe a dessert to go. When our children were little, I was always amazed at how well WDW servers paced the meals.

 

[triplefigs]

John said the steak he had a WCC (great service and food this trip- had skipped it past 2 because of bad reviews) was the best the entire trip. We also ate dinner at 1900PF. Characters were AMAZING again, especially Anatasia. She even covered herself in blinking Christmas lights and threw a tantrum on a chair. Pretty funny. Food was ok, but we weren't really impressed with it. Same menu as it has always been.

 

[goofygal531]

John said the steak he had a WCC (great service and food this trip- had skipped it past 2 because of bad reviews) was the best the entire trip. .

That's good to hear. The reviews have been horrible lately. Did they still have all the antics?

I don't get the hype for Le Cellier either. DH said it's steak, nothing special. He also wanted to know why steak is canadian

 

[mmmears]

Yes they will ship it home for you.....just an FYI we bought lots of stuff from basin and put it in our checked baggage and all of our baggage was searched by TSA. From now on I will only carry it on with me.



PS....if you sign up on the Basin and Basin White website they will send you special offers and codes

Thanks for the tip! I'm signing up now!

 

[goofygal531]

I have a question :

We're having breakfast at 'Ohana one morning. Does anyone know the boat schedule?? I think it goes GF to Poly to MK, is that correct? Does it ever change?

We don't normally take the boat as the boys LOVE the monorail but it will be our last day and I want to get to and from the Poly fast to spend our last few hours in MK.

Thanks,
Mare

 

[mmmears]

They will ship for you. No tax on the purchase can almost offset the cost of shipping. But if you are checking bags, you can pack liquids in those.

Thanks for the info. I'm hoping to just have carry-ons this time (just tired of waiting for the bags & anxious to get to WDW asap!). I guess we could check them in on the way home.

As for the tax, sounds great! But my guess is that since there's a store in CA, I'll get stuck with the tax either way but I'm definitely going to check on it.

 

[mmmears]

Now you all have me rethinking my LeCellier reservation! We've never tried it and I wanted to see what the hype was all about. I was told by IPO that it's so hard to get in just because it's so small (plus it's good if you're on the DDP, which we aren't). Hmmm... just dont really want to mess around with those ADR requests again...

 

[VBsHustla]

I have a question :

We're having breakfast at 'Ohana one morning. Does anyone know the boat schedule?? I think it goes GF to Poly to MK, is that correct? Does it ever change?

We don't normally take the boat as the boys LOVE the monorail but it will be our last day and I want to get to and from the Poly fast to spend our last few hours in MK.

Thanks,
Mare

The boat does go from the GF, to the Poly, to the MK. To my knowledge it never changes. Every time I've taken the boat it's always come pretty quickly, so I would say it should definitely be a quicker way than taking the monorail to get to the Poly. I always take the boat to get from the GF to the Poly. I think the boat is lots of fun, too, so hopefully your boys will enjoy it!

 

[TravelinGal]

Our family LOVES Le Cellier.

RE WCC -- if you want to be a part of all the antics, specifically state you want to eat in the main dining room when you check in. They have an area in back called "the library" and it is BORING! You can hear them having fun, but you're not a part of it. I was VERY upset they put DS and me back there on our last trip. It even said on our ADR that we were celebrating his 4th birthday. Why would they put us in the boring area?! It was not a fun dinner that I anticipated at all.

 

[BCV23]

Thanks for the info. I'm hoping to just have carry-ons this time (just tired of waiting for the bags & anxious to get to WDW asap!). I guess we could check them in on the way home.

As for the tax, sounds great! But my guess is that since there's a store in CA, I'll get stuck with the tax either way but I'm definitely going to check on it.

Carryons only...good for you. I've only managed that on one short trip to WDW. Oh, interesting point about the CA tax.

Now you all have me rethinking my LeCellier reservation! We've never tried it and I wanted to see what the hype was all about. I was told by IPO that it's so hard to get in just because it's so small (plus it's good if you're on the DDP, which we aren't). Hmmm... just dont really want to mess around with those ADR requests again...

I'd keep it if I were you then you can decide for yourself. It is good IMO but not like the signature restaurants. We avoided it for years when it was a cafeteria and even after because we like daylight! Now we go every 4th or 5th trip, I'd say.

Goofygal, the boat always goes MK>GF>Polynesian>MK. Also beef is important in Canada. They raise a lot of cattle.

 

[irisbud]

I have a question :

We're having breakfast at 'Ohana one morning. Does anyone know the boat schedule?? I think it goes GF to Poly to MK, is that correct? Does it ever change?

We don't normally take the boat as the boys LOVE the monorail but it will be our last day and I want to get to and from the Poly fast to spend our last few hours in MK.

Thanks,
Mare

That's always been the order when we've been there. As far as getting to the Poly, though, you may want to think about walking too, especially if the weather is nice. It is a nice, short, easy, quick walk. You wouldn't have to go to the GF dock, wait for a boat, and then head to the GCH at Poly from the Poly dock. You also wouldn't have to load strollers onto the boat.

 

[triplefigs]

That's good to hear. The reviews have been horrible lately. Did they still have all the antics?

I don't get the hype for Le Cellier either. DH said it's steak, nothing special. He also wanted to know why steak is canadian

Yes, WCC was wonderful. Did the pony races, Hokey Pokey, ketchup, threw straws... the whole bit. Food was delicious and service was great. We had a wonderful time and I'm so glad we tried it again! Oh, and the night we were there a choir was singing for Christmas, so it was even better.

 

[mmmears]

Carryons only...good for you. I've only managed that on one short trip to WDW. Oh, interesting point about the CA tax.



I'd keep it if I were you then you can decide for yourself. It is good IMO but not like the signature restaurants. We avoided it for years when it was a cafeteria and even after because we like daylight! Now we go every 4th or 5th trip, I'd say.

Yeah -- I'm going to have to do laundry, though. But we're arriving at night and I dont want to have to wait for the luggage to arrive. We're trying out Jet Blue for the first time and I haven't checked to see what their "luggage rules" are yet.

I'm going to keep the LC ressie since I know how hard it would be to get it later if I give it up now. But with all the CL food, I wonder if we'll even make it to dinner there!

 

[DisneyMomx7]

Great - I just cancelled an ADR for WCC. I thought it might be too loud (in-laws coming this trip) and the reviews haven't been that great.

We only tried it once - 2005 and thought it was just okay. I might have to rethink this and try it again on our summer trip. DS would probably get a kick out of it.

 

[goofygal531]

Now you all have me rethinking my LeCellier reservation! We've never tried it and I wanted to see what the hype was all about. I was told by IPO that it's so hard to get in just because it's so small (plus it's good if you're on the DDP, which we aren't). Hmmm... just dont really want to mess around with those ADR requests again...

I enjoyed my Mushroom Filet w/Risotto. DH got the plain steak and didn't see what was so great about it. He did enjoy stealing my risotto. I'm glad we tried it. I just don't get the hype. It was a very nice meal just wasn't SPECTACULAR like you would expect with all the talk about it. Try it, you have to find out things for yourself especially the restaurants. I've found the service is not consistent.

Yes, WCC was wonderful. Did the pony races, Hokey Pokey, ketchup, threw straws... the whole bit. Food was delicious and service was great. We had a wonderful time and I'm so glad we tried it again! Oh, and the night we were there a choir was singing for Christmas, so it was even better.

Now I'm considering the WCC again! We had lunch there last June and it was quite boring in the main dining. Maybe they don't do the antics at Noon?? DH and DS4 love ribs so that's good to hear the food was good. There's a lot of chatter on the restaurant boards that a guest complained about the antics and they have been drastically reduced. That's good to hear you got to experience it all. Maybe with everyone's complaints they brought them back.

Thanks for all the boat tips everyone.

Amy: The walk from GF to Poly is not that short. It's great when your not in a rush, but it's not as close as some may think. I've walked to the spa and that was a little futher than it appeared to be. I think it's a great option for a stroll, but not when you really need to get some where in a hurry. Thanks for the idea though.

 

[denisekayt]

I'm going over menus (again ) as our trip gets closer. I'm seeing conflicting info in regards to Gasparilla's...Allears doesn't list french fries as an option with sandwiches (updated 8/08), instead it says either cucumber salad or coleslaw is provided. The wdwinfo menu does list fries (updated 5/07).

Can someone confirm whether or not Gasparilla's serves fries? That was one thing we found we didn't like about Captain Cook's when we stayed at the Poly last year. They serve "Polynesian chips" instead of french fries. It may be unhealthy, but we like fries with our burgers!

Thanks!

 

[Lives4Disney]

I'm going over menus (again ) as our trip gets closer. I'm seeing conflicting info in regards to Gasparilla's...Allears doesn't list french fries as an option with sandwiches (updated 8/08), instead it says either cucumber salad or coleslaw is provided. The wdwinfo menu does list fries (updated 5/07).

Can someone confirm whether or not Gasparilla's serves fries? That was one thing we found we didn't like about Captain Cook's when we stayed at the Poly last year. They serve "Polynesian chips" instead of french fries. It may be unhealthy, but we like fries with our burgers!

Thanks!

THey have fries!! Were were there in the middle/end of October. You can substitute for fries. They are real fries.

Happy dining,

Lives4Disney