The VWL Groupies & Trivia Thread

[wildernessDad]

Merry Christmas (belated) to all VWL Groupies!

We got back last night and I must say, we had a wonderful cruise and a great stay at WDW. The weather at each could not have been better. I plan to give a full report when I get settled, but just wanted to stop by and say Hi.

PS I too was saddened by the news of the death of Dan Fogelberg. I loved his music and his will be the next CD that I buy. Thanks for that link Granny, brought a tear to my eye.

Welcome home! Oh wait....

 

[MiaSRN62]

We got back last night and I must say, we had a wonderful cruise and a great stay at WDW. The weather at each could not have been better. I plan to give a full report when I get settled, but just wanted to stop by and say Hi.

Welcome back Muushka !
Glad u all had a great time. Looking forward to your report !

 

[Granny]

Muushka...nice to see you have returned safely and it sounds like a great trip. Looking forward to hearing the details!

 

[blossomz]

HI Muushka! Glad you are home safely, can't wait to hear all about your trip!

 

[50 years Too!]

Yea! Muushka is back!

 

[wildernessDad]

Some of us are missing our VWL Groupies pic...

 

[mickeymorse]

Welcome back Barb. Glad to hear you had a good vacation and looking forward to hearing all about it.

Signed and faxed our contract back. Now the process is in motion.

Where is the groupie pic?

Rob

 

[mickeymorse]

Here is a family pic from Halloween night.

Just got the photopass CD. Now I can share some photos.

 

[wildernessDad]

Need help. Something is bugging me about the VWL pdf file showing the layout of the villas. Please look at the below link and reply there. Thanks!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1670727

 

[Muushka]

Welcome back Barb. Glad to hear you had a good vacation and looking forward to hearing all about it.

Signed and faxed our contract back. Now the process is in motion.

Where is the groupie pic?

Rob

WooHoo!! That is great news!

Need help. Something is bugging me about the VWL pdf file showing the layout of the villas. Please look at the below link and reply there. Thanks!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1670727

Sorry WD, no can help on that.

Thank you all for the warm welcome backs. The Groupies are the best!

I just fixed a few pics and will write a report soon.

 

[Muushka]

I swear I had this done last night but I could not post!

This was a vacation in the planning for 14 months! Our original cruise was supposed to be last Dec 10, 2007, but got cancelled. So they refunded our $$ and gave us a credit towards another cruise, so this one was a freebee. So nice!

We drove down to Jupiter FL on Sat and had breakfast with 8 of our friends on Sunday just hours before the cruise. It was so great to see them. Old friends are the best, aren’t they?? Then we drove down to Fort Lauderdale and boarded the Celebrity Millennium.

It is a beautiful ship, but I think I liked the Celebrity Century that we sailed on last year a little bit more. But we had a wonderful cabin with a pretty big balcony (large enough to hold 2 chairs, 2 chaise lounges and a large table and a small one). This is my favorite picture from this cruise:

We visited 4 ports. We didn’t do any excursions, but enjoyed getting off the ship. The weather could not have been more beautiful. Blue skies, warm air and calm seas. Who could ask for anything more??

We got off the ship on Sunday, 12/23 and drove straight to WDW. We checked into VWL at around 1 and the room was ready! We got a first floor, woods view. Half way down that looooong (NOT) hallway. Not too much work being done, just some landscaping things, no biggie for us.

One noticeable thing for us was that WDW is switching over to the LED lights. It was very evident on the large on in the WL lobby. They have that fake, grayish tinge. I know I will get used to them, but it was a little deal (as opposed to a big deal!) for me. The ones in the VWL atrium are still the good old fashioned incandescent type! Don’t get me wrong on the LED lights, we just bought 300 of the C7, but they are multi-colored. Enough of that! Sorry…..

We went over to MGM at around 2. We were able to just walk onto the Lights, Camera, Motors (?is that what it is?). What a great show that is. Then we met up with one of the ladies in an ESL class that I volunteer for. She is from S. Korea and was with her husband and daughter. What fun to meet a friend at WDW!

After we talked for a while we headed over to a surprise that was one of the best shows we have seen at WDW. It was the Harlem Gospel Choir and they had a great performance. Very uplifting.

Then we went to the Osborne Family Lights and caught 2 performances of Manheim Steamroller’s Christmas songs to the lights. We love that. We took tons of pictures of this event last year so we didn’t drag the camera to it this year.

Monday, Christmas Eve. I actually got my husband up early to go into MK. Got there at 8:30 (that is a miracle, you don’t know my husband!) and did all necessary rides including Peter Pan’s Flight. We love that ride! Left and went back to our beloved for a nap.

Then we headed over to Epcot for CP with Lieutenant Dan! We had dinner at the new Tutto Italia. We enjoyed the restaurant and then went to the CP. As usual, the line was huge, thank goodness for priority seating. The 8:15 performance was one of the best. The audience was so attentive you could hear a pin drop. All the performers, as usual, were wonderful.

Then we headed back over to MK to see the castle all pretty. We loved it and stayed there until about 11:30. And that concluded our park visits. We had a plan and it worked wonderfully. Minimal lines for when we went and very crowded for when it didn’t matter. All was well. And again, great weather.

Christmas day. Breakfast and dinner at WCC. Both were pretty good. We loved just hanging around the lodge all day. That was all we did! Our friends from S. Korea visited us there that night and they stood with their jaws hanging looking at the Lodge.

Then we had some more guests!!

We just love them!!!

Wed Dec 26. Another non-park day. We are really enjoying these days! Today we went to Downtown Disney for breakfast at Wolfgang Puck Express. I love this place. Then we got my husband one of his gifts of:

Interactive, sci-fi fun flourishes at the new Build Your Own Lightsaber area at the Once Upon a Toy store at Downtown Disney Marketplace. The Star Wars-themed kiosk gives guests of all ages step-by-step instructions to build an electronic lightsaber from their own imagination -- or they can replicate designs used by Star Wars characters like Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker. The toys come complete with lights, sounds and vibrations, and no matter how elaborate the completed creation, the cost is just $19.95 (which includes batteries). As an added bonus, guests also receive a store-exclusive Jedi or Sith-themed collector pin with their purchase.

In the afternoon we went to the pool. I am so embarrassed to admit this, but we are Groupies, we understand these things, right??

I got a Zune for Christmas (Microsoft’s answer to iPod). I went into the Jacuzzi with it. First mistake. Then I shifted a little and the current was very strong and my Zune drowned. Sigh.

Then we had to wait till it was dark to take some really cool pictures!

And I also took one of this strange little girl

That night we went to the Hoop De Do Review. I had been many years before, but it was my husband’s first time. We enjoyed it.

We left on Thursday. The traffic we saw coming into WDW and down 95 southbound made me very grateful that we had done our trip the way we did!

Thanks for reading if you made it this far!

 

[mickeymorse]

Thanks for the post Barb. Loved hearing about your trip. Sorry to hear about the Zune though. The pics are wonderful. Especially the 2 with Mickey and Minnie. Love the light sabre shot.
We have never done Hoop-de-doo. Will be on the must do list for our first trip Home.

Rob

 

[ransom]

Welcome back, Muushka! It looks like you had a fantastic trip.

We just got back as well, albeit from staying on cash at the Wilderness Lodge courtyard view, 12/9 to 12/22. It was great to have enough time to spend a couple of days just hanging out at the Lodge. It was even fun to do our laundry (tho it'll be nice to say goodbye to the $2/load cost next trip!) since we could grab a drink and sit out by the pool bar while we waited for the loads to finish.

While we were on our trip, we booked 11/9 to 11/15 in a VWL studio for my parents, plus 11/9 to 11/21 in a second studio for DW and I. We did day-by-day booking ("just in case"), and didn't have a problem.

We also toured VWL for the first time this trip. I finally saw the Carolwood Pacific room in person! The halls, entry ways, and other common areas look great. We even poked our heads into the laundry room just to see.

Anyway, we're looking forward to our first stay at VWL ... just 314 days to go!

 

[Muushka]

Wow Ransom, I didn't realize that you loved the place without seeing it! That is trust!!! Sorry we just missed you.

mickeymorse, Hoop De Do is (to me) not something that we will do again real soon, but grateful that we got the chance to do it this trip. I suggest trying to book the Cat 1 because the seats are really great. Years ago when I did it, (no cats back then) I got stuck way back in the balcony section and it was not nearly as good as it was this time.

Trivia alert:

Does anyone know where the name Carolwood comes from??

 

[Granny]

Muushka....glad that you had a really enjoyable sea & land vacation. Sounds like a really nice payoff for all your planning, and the experience was as good as the anticipation!

Thanks for sharing your trip and photos. Glad to see that Mickey made it back with his WL-appropriate attire, and Minnie is looking good too!

ransom...hang in there...you'll be back and enjoying VWL completely next year! The extra room in the studio plus the amenities will be really nice for you. It's a great feeling...you wrap up your activities at the lodge and then head over to "home" at VWL. Just be careful because if you book a 1BR or larger at some point, you will REALLY be spoiled!

 

[cheer4bison]

Thanks so much for taking the time to share the details of your trip! Sounds like you had a lovely time.

May I ask what it is like staying on the first floor? We are thinking about staying in a studio when we go next December and it seems that many of them are on the first floor. You said you had a woods view. Does that mean you were facing the back of the resort (bay side) or the front (bus side)? If you are facing the front of the building, is noise ever an issue? Which do you recommend requesting?

Also, do they still have the refillable mugs at VWL/Roaring Forks? Do they have the WL logo or are they still Year of a Million Dreams?

Your photos were gorgeous! Love that Christmas tree in the main lobby. Did they have nice decorations at the villas too?

So many questions... hope you don't mind! Glad you are back.

Jill

 

[blossomz]

Thanks for the great trip report Muushka!! Can't wait till our next trips! We are planned for April AND for June!! I can't even believe it! Did you see Ranger STan at all?

 

[ransom]

Wow Ransom, I didn't realize that you loved the place without seeing it! That is trust!!! Sorry we just missed you.

Well, having stayed at WL all of once before buying, we figured, it's "Disney's" and it's "Villas at" and it's "Wilderness Lodge," so what could be bad about it?

mickeymorse, Hoop De Do is (to me) not something that we will do again real soon, but grateful that we got the chance to do it this trip. I suggest trying to book the Cat 1 because the seats are really great. Years ago when I did it, (no cats back then) I got stuck way back in the balcony section and it was not nearly as good as it was this time.

I know this wasn't addressed to me, but I'm glad you posted the info. We're sort of on the fence about whether to take my parents to Hoop De Doo. I guess we'll just leave it up to them, but thanks for the tip that Cat 1 is worth it if we do go!

Trivia alert:

Does anyone know where the name Carolwood comes from??

It comes from Walt Disney's Carolwood Pacific Railroad, which was a small but still rideable train in the backyard of his home on Carolwood drive (IIRC).

It was great seeing a the cars from it in the CP room at VWL, after seeing them so many times on TV!

ransom...hang in there...you'll be back and enjoying VWL completely next year! The extra room in the studio plus the amenities will be really nice for you. It's a great feeling...you wrap up your activities at the lodge and then head over to "home" at VWL. Just be careful because if you book a 1BR or larger at some point, you will REALLY be spoiled!

I've joked with DW about that already, warning her it can be addictive...but we're still hoping to do a 1 BR some time. A 2BR would be a waste with just the two of us, but a 1 BR would be nice to just 'hang out' in.

Then again, there are so many other great places to hang out in at WL, we just can't go wrong!

 

[MiaSRN62]

Muushka ! Thanks so much for the TR and pics. The light sabre photo is cool. I want to second the "sorry" on the Zune. We got one of those for my ds last Christmas and he loves his. Glad you had a nice time on the cruise and hangin' at the Lodge

Mickeymorse......just had to say what an "Incredible" pic of you and the family ! Thanks for sharing

 

[Muushka]

Thanks so much for taking the time to share the details of your trip! Sounds like you had a lovely time.

May I ask what it is like staying on the first floor? We like it, but usually feel a little guilty. People with kiddos have to schlep their kiddos on elevators. We are thinking about staying in a studio when we go next December and it seems that many of them are on the first floor. You said you had a woods view. Does that mean you were facing the back of the resort (bay side) This one, bay side or the front (bus side)? If you are facing the front of the building, is noise ever an issue? We have had this view (front of building) and noise was not an issue. Privacy yes, noise, no. Which do you recommend requesting? Honestly, I am not a big recommender of requesting any view. We figure it out when we get there. As long as we are not on the sidewalk, we don't care!

Also, do they still have the refillable mugs at VWL/Roaring Forks? Do they have the WL logo or are they still Year of a Million Dreams? I think it was the YOMD mugs only for sale, but I saw lots of people with the beloved WL logo mugs. Wonder if they all bought them from home (like we did )

Your photos were gorgeous! Love that Christmas tree in the main lobby. Did they have nice decorations at the villas too? Yes! As beautiful as ever!

So many questions... hope you don't mind! Glad you are back. Thanks, no problem.

Jill

Thanks for the great trip report Muushka!! Can't wait till our next trips! We are planned for April AND for June!! I can't even believe it! Did you see Ranger STan at all?

Yes, we saw him but he was busy with other guests.

Well, having stayed at WL all of once before buying, we figured, it's "Disney's" and it's "Villas at" and it's "Wilderness Lodge," so what could be bad about it?




I know this wasn't addressed to me, but I'm glad you posted the info. We're sort of on the fence about whether to take my parents to Hoop De Doo. I guess we'll just leave it up to them, but thanks for the tip that Cat 1 is worth it if we do go!



It comes from Walt Disney's Carolwood Pacific Railroad, which was a small but still rideable train in the backyard of his home on Carolwood drive (IIRC). Yes! I did not realize this until I read the all of the info under the pictures! Some Groupie I am!

It was great seeing a the cars from it in the CP room at VWL, after seeing them so many times on TV!




I've joked with DW about that already, warning her it can be addictive...but we're still hoping to do a 1 BR some time. A 2BR would be a waste with just the two of us, but a 1 BR would be nice to just 'hang out' in.

Then again, there are so many other great places to hang out in at WL, we just can't go wrong! I agree. I tried to get my husband to stay in a studio this past trip due to the very high points at Christmas. Nuff said. We stayed in a 1 BR. But I have to admit, for the amount of time we stayed in it, it was worth it!

We (I use the term loosely) took the Zune apart and it is sitting on the DR table, drying out. Poor Zune...