There is a new thread:* Don't post here* 2014 BC&YC FAQ *MAY-SEPT 2014

[TeenaS]

I was hoping Teena would jump in! Thanks for your input!! The YC/BC are such great resorts, our best CL experience was at BC and I would hate to have a bad experience during the changes and have it tarnish our opinion of the resorts! The differences in my personal exchanges with the CL staff through email between last trip and this trip are huge...and I'm hoping it's just during this trial period of changes

Here's the thing with the IPO. From what I understand (and I don't work in that department obviously), there's one that handles YC, BC and Boardwalk and another one that handles the other resorts. When the one at the Y&B is busy, a YC and BC guest could get sent to the Polynesian's IPO. So, my answer to all IPO communication questions is email or call them if you don't hear from them when you think you should have heard from them. Most of the time it works really well but you have the power to send out an email or call them to get answers. And you should never hesitate to do that. I know I've heard numerous times that emails are never received there so I personally would send an email and if I don't get a reply within 24 hours, I'd call. That's just me.

The CMs I know that work in IPO do an amazing job and really really care about our guests. Unfortunately they don't work that job each and every day and sometimes they don't get our guests ... their calls get sent to another resorts' IPO office.

The thing to remember is that you have paid for this service and are entitled to it. For sure use your phone and call them with whatever you need from them. Don't wait to see if they are going to contact you ... call them!

 

[ToyStory3]

Just like the menu at Cape May (dinners) has changed drastically in the last year. Cape May was always one of my favorites but I really am not happy about it now and lots of guests are complaining about the changes. But when the head chef changes again, the menu hopefully will change for the better again.

Hi Teena,

Oh no. Wondering what changed at Cape May that you are unhappy with. We ate there in 2011 and loved it. We have ADR there in September and I've been looking forward to it. We will keep the ADR but want to be prepared if there have been big changes. Anything particular? Thanks!

 

[GoofyJen]

I have not posted for awhile but I wanted to give an update. My dh, ds, and dd went to Adventureland this weekend. It is a local amusement park in Iowa. We called it our test run.

We now know DD, 5 and DS, 12 will survive all rides. Still a little worried about RnR. All others should be fine!

DH will also be loving the resort. I think he will not make it to the 1am closing time at MK. Lol

Sunday, DD and I went on our first water slide! Bring on that pirate ship! Does anyone know how deep the landing area is? DD is exactly 48 inches tall will she be able to touch?

 

[Wood Nymph]

And thank you to two of our regular posters.

Thank you Wood Nymph for all the great, spot on, advice you give posters on this thread. I know you've helped countless numbers of families have better vacations.

Thanks, MickeyT. That's very nice of you to say that.

 

[natebenma]

I have not posted for awhile but I wanted to give an update. My dh, ds, and dd went to Adventureland this weekend. It is a local amusement park in Iowa. We called it our test run.

We now know DD, 5 and DS, 12 will survive all rides. Still a little worried about RnR. All others should be fine!

DH will also be loving the resort. I think he will not make it to the 1am closing time at MK. Lol

Sunday, DD and I went on our first water slide! Bring on that pirate ship! Does anyone know how deep the landing area is? DD is exactly 48 inches tall will she be able to touch?

I do! I do!!!

According to the picture below, landing area is 4 feet deep- exactly the height of your daughter.

Did you see this that I posted recently?


Let's Take a Ride on the Slide

.

 

[natebenma]

p. 97-102

Quick question--- my fam and I are staying at the yacht club in August. My sister doesn't know it but her boyfriend is going to propose to her on vacation. He wants to do it the first night we are there but we aren't planning on going to a park that day. His idea was to get a photo pass photographer to capture the engagement when she thinks they are just getting their pic taken. I've read there is a photographer at the beach club. We are already going to purchase the memory maker. How does this work? Does it cost extra money? Does he set it up now? Any info would be great or a number to call.

Afterwards he wants to have a surprise dinner with both families at either Il Mulino or Captains grille. Any recommendations?

Thanks!!!!!!

I'll add you to the Be Our Guest list.

The engagement surprise sounds very exciting. But they aren't usually any Photopass Photgraphers at the Beach Club. I think you can arrange a photographer to come out for a special session, though.

What she said!!!

I have the phone number for special photo sessions around here somewhere- I'll post it later today.

I haven't been to Il Mulino, but my family really likes Captain's Grille. There are a few reviews on the first page of this thread in the Dining Post (Post 7, I think)

We are back from a wonderful Disney vacation! We spent 3 nights at Art of Animation, then moved on up to the Beach Club for 4 nights. While the AoA was very nice and roomy, I couldn't wait to get to the BC. I guess I am a bit of a deluxe snob, eh?

Anyway, I am going over to Photobucket today to add my pictures of the resort and will post them here later!

So glad you had a great trip! Can't wait to see your pictures.

We have an ADR for la hacienda de san angel at 8pm with the hopes of a great view of illuminations! So glad you had success! What time was your ressie and did you request window seats? Or do window seats not even matter?

Just want to say "Lucky you!" This is our new favorite restaurant at Disney.

Hey NateBenMa, and anyone else who might travel from Yacht/Beach Club over to the dark side (Universal) in the future-- there's a special about Wizarding World of Harry Potter-Diagon Alley on NBC tonight (Monday 06/30/14) from 8:00 pm to 9:00 pm Eastern time.

LeakyCon is going to have a private event in both parts of Wizarding World exactly one month from today, after the park closes to the general public for the night. I'm about getting to walk around Diagon Alley and go in the shops without the usual crowds and lines. I'd be about going on the Gringots ride and Hogwarts Express without the lines, but I get motion sick so I'll have to skip those.

(It's not too late to register for LeakyCon. If you register for the conference, you can buy a ticket for the park event when they go on sale. The park event costs extra.)

Okay, back to my regularly scheduled reporting about BCV, cupcakes at the Beach Club, etc.

Thanks so much for the heads up on the special. I was out last night, so we DVR'ed and will probably watch this weekend.

That is awesome that you are going to Leaky Con, and I would say that I am jealous, but not this year. I'm good with our summer plans.

I, Ninja Mom, am developing a reputation for my timely and 'helpful' tips. As such I feel it imperative to pass along my sage advice to help the resort's summer vacationers prepare for a stay at our epic resort. To that end I will remind everyone that they NEED to practice important aspects of this trip.

*snip*

~NM

Classic!

Yes you are welcome to use anything!

Thank you!

OK guys ... here's my personal comments on the alcohol cart and offerings at the YC CL.

*snip*

Thanks for the input Teena!

 

[natebenma]

I will say, if one MUST go into the BC Marketplace and order food, the only acceptable place to eat it is in the Solarium. I love that not too many people know about it. Shhhhh!

"I don't always go to the BC Marketplace, but when I do, I eat in the Solarium"

 

[AThrillingChase]

"I don't always go to the BC Marketplace, but when I do, I eat in the Solarium"

LOL.

You guys have me thinking about the breakfast platter now. I would kill for one of those biscuits right now!!

 

[TeenaS]

Hi Teena,

Oh no. Wondering what changed at Cape May that you are unhappy with. We ate there in 2011 and loved it. We have ADR there in September and I've been looking forward to it. We will keep the ADR but want to be prepared if there have been big changes. Anything particular? Thanks!

The ribs are only there 3 nights a week and don't have any BBQ sauce on them. They are horrible tasting. Nobody I've met likes them.

They now have the mussels in some sort of sauce, not steamed like before.

They changed their famous clam chowder and it is now seafood chowder.

The ribs WERE my favorite.

The chowder and the mussels were Bob's.

I know other people on our thread have eaten there for dinner lately so hopefully they will chime in here and give their opinions. We had reservations at Cape May in October and changed them to Captain's Grill.

 

[jcondrad]

Here's the thing with the IPO. From what I understand (and I don't work in that department obviously), there's one that handles YC, BC and Boardwalk and another one that handles the other resorts. When the one at the Y&B is busy, a YC and BC guest could get sent to the Polynesian's IPO. So, my answer to all IPO communication questions is email or call them if you don't hear from them when you think you should have heard from them. Most of the time it works really well but you have the power to send out an email or call them to get answers. And you should never hesitate to do that. I know I've heard numerous times that emails are never received there so I personally would send an email and if I don't get a reply within 24 hours, I'd call. That's just me. The CMs I know that work in IPO do an amazing job and really really care about our guests. Unfortunately they don't work that job each and every day and sometimes they don't get our guests ... their calls get sent to another resorts' IPO office. The thing to remember is that you have paid for this service and are entitled to it. For sure use your phone and call them with whatever you need from them. Don't wait to see if they are going to contact you ... call them!

We've been getting responses just not answers we've wanted to hear. Almost all responses have been wait until check on and we'll talk/plan then. Other times I have requested to purchase a special beer or lactaid for my son to have in our room...and it was there upon checkin. This time I've been told no, At check in tell them and they'll send a runner when they can. If IPO and concierge can't do that type of thing at YC, why can they at other CLs ? I said before, we loved our last CL stay and talked so highly about it but our experience with the YC so far hasn't been as magical. I understand people are busy or whatever their reason but I can't chance having missed the runner at check in and have to wait until the next day for milk especially (he's 2 and still drinks it at every meal and before bed).

 

[DisneyMomx7]

We've been getting responses just not answers we've wanted to hear. Almost all responses have been wait until check on and we'll talk/plan then. Other times I have requested to purchase a special beer or lactaid for my son to have in our room...and it was there upon checkin. This time I've been told no, At check in tell them and they'll send a runner when they can. If IPO and concierge can't do that type of thing at YC, why can they at other CLs ? I said before, we loved our last CL stay and talked so highly about it but our experience with the YC so far hasn't been as magical. I understand people are busy or whatever their reason but I can't chance having missed the runner at check in and have to wait until the next day for milk especially (he's 2 and still drinks it at every meal and before bed).

If I were you I would just order the milk from garden grocer. Less stress and less things to worry about.

Teena - you are so right - no CL stays the same with their food offerings.
To be honest, GF had the best food offerings but we liked BC/YC CL lounge better. Even though smaller - way more cozy and homey!

Like Teena said - no problem with asking for something (as long as it's reasonable)!

 

[SillySallySews]

We just returned from our Florida adventures! We stayed at BC from 6/22-6/28. This was our first time staying deluxe and on CL. We were in a GV room that overlooked the back entrance/gardens, the lake, the BW, and even SAB. We could even see ToT from our balcony (but it was tiny and took us two days to realize it was there lol)! I can't recall our room number, but if you were standing at the concierge desks and went down the hall to the right, it was the second room (I think) on the right. If we opened our door and looked out the windows in the hallway at night we could see illuminations! We are definitely in love with BC and will be back again next year. SAB was wonderful and a big hit with the kids. The staff was all fantastic and sweet. If we ever go CL again we will skip the DP because the food in the lounge was enough to make meals (and we are big eaters). We had a ton of snack credits left over at the end of our trip and we also had enough QS meal credits that we took a QS meal with us on our last day (we were not going home, but driving to my parent's house about an hour away). Being able to walk to Epcot in five minutes was great and the BW Bakery is our new favorite place to grab a quick bite. Thank you all for the wonderful information that helped us plan our stay! Next year's trip can't come soon enough!

 

[TeenaS]

Jen ... sending you a PM

 

[Ninja Mom]

Thank you Wood Nymph for all the great, spot on, advice you give posters on this thread. I know you've helped countless numbers of families have better vacations.

I second this thanks to Wood Nymph! She Always provides such fabulous advice. Thanks for helping everyone out!

While I normally try not to encourage NMs ramblings (she gets enough encouragement from insider her own head).

SNIP! this one resembled me and my experience a little more than I'd like to admit.

When we were at SAB I was gracefully floating around the lazy river on a tube and when I was near done there was a father that wanted my tube for him and his kids. I got all princessey and told him I'd meet him at the ladder to get out of the pool, thinking I'd continue my grace by successfully stepping off my tube right onto the ladder and getting out of the pool as the wind gently blew through my completely dry hair.

Instead I wound up with a toe-tapping dad disgustedly waiting for me to hurry up and get to the ladder, and when I did reach it, I gently reached out my toe just a tad too far and the whole tube upended and I plunged 4 feet under and surfaced looking like a sputtering drowned rat.

The father just looked disgusted, but I thought it was hilarious.

I encourage all to follow NMs advice and practice all of her points at home, prior to heading out to SAB.

You are exactly whom I was concerned about when I wrote this post.

Being such serious people, we must maintain decorum at all times and going whoopsie on a pool tube is not to be encouraged!

Ha ha...I'll see your video and raise you a new one. Beware...this is what happened the last time I was forced to go into the overcrowded BC Marketplace...(This is also likely to happen to in the YC CL Lounge if the bevvys aren't available when I want them....)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxgoMABHytA

Are you sure this wasn't your experience at Fort Wilderness's Club Level? The tent and the forrest have me thinking that. Also, the beverage chuck wagon is not out yet in this video so that's another clue that your location (and your boots!) might be off....

Do you know how many times I've eaten at BRG? And it's never that good! Why do we keep going back? They're open late and always have a table. Now that I've unlocked the secret of Crew's Cup....no more BRG!

Oooh... I can't wait to try the Crews Cup lounge. Originally we had only 1 ADR planned for this trip (LeCellier) but now that we are stalking JanetMom we feel compelled to table hop onto more and more of her ADR's. I wonder if she has any plans for that location

~NM

 

[jcondrad]

If I were you I would just order the milk from garden grocer. Less stress and less things to worry about. Teena - you are so right - no CL stays the same with their food offerings. To be honest, GF had the best food offerings but we liked BC/YC CL lounge better. Even though smaller - way more cozy and homey! Like Teena said - no problem with asking for something (as long as it's reasonable)!

I thought about garden grocer but high fees for a small order, and if I ordered the minimum it really doesn't make sense for us to stay club level. It's just discouraging when other resorts have done this with no issue and even no additional cost. We offered to pay whatever extra for its delivery to IPO but no luck.

 

[DawnMaree]

I noticed both Home Run & Surfs Up on my online check in options this week too.. they were on all the pages I was linked to - Poly & WL as well.

They are sections at All Star Sports! lol.. Just another Disney glitch!

Still doing that today. I was trying to check in a client for POR, and they gave teh same for Home Run and Surfs up. *sigh

We just completed the Disney post-vacation survey. Give high scores for everything, except our studio in the BCV. It was old, outdated, built for a handicapped person, with very little storage space. The view and the location was great, though. On our next visit we will stay at the resort, but never again in the villas.

We stayed at the Beach Club and noticed our room was in desperate need for updating. But I kept remembering that it will be done this year!

 

[DawnMaree]

We stayed in a Garden View room on the third floor. Room 3679. It seemed to be halfway between the Lobby and the "Secret Door" exiting near Epcot. We liked the location a lot. We checked in around noon. I did online check-in and the only request was for a full balcony. While it was noted, our CM at the front desk stated that our room with a full balcony was not ready yet, but if we wanted a room right away, we could have a juliette balcony. I said that was fine as I really just wanted to get in the room and then down to Stormalong Bay.

Here are a few pictures from our room:


Looking towards the door to the room. Couch back folds down to a daybed.


Looking towards the balcony.


Vanity


Vanity with a peek into the bathroom.


Bathroom


Panoramic view from the juliette balcony.


Looking down from our juliette balcony.


Looking towards the left from the juliette balcony - able to see some of Crescent Lake and the sand volleyball court.


Looking towards the right from the juliette balcony.

 

[amg35]

Still doing that today. I was trying to check in a client for POR, and they gave teh same for Home Run and Surfs up. *sigh


We stayed at the Beach Club and noticed our room was in desperate need for updating. But I kept remembering that it will be done this year!

Can I ask what was in desperate need of updating? From the pictures you posted the room looks nice to me!

 

[DawnMaree]

Can I ask what was in desperate need of updating? From the pictures you posted the room looks nice to me!

Yes, the room was absolutely lovely. But looking in the bathroom, the vent was nearly falling out of the ceiling, and there were chips in the marble. Curtain rod "puller" fell right off (easy fix, but still). Just a lot of little things that would definitely be fixed by renovation. I am in no way complaining of the room. Just stating what we saw while staying there. Beds were very comfortable, although I would have to say that Yacht Club daybed was more comfortable for my daughter with a thicker mattress. The sofa pull-down is a nice size lengthwise, but mattress is so thin and uncomfortable.

 

[amg35]

Yes, the room was absolutely lovely. But looking in the bathroom, the vent was nearly falling out of the ceiling, and there were chips in the marble. Curtain rod "puller" fell right off (easy fix, but still). Just a lot of little things that would definitely be fixed by renovation. I am in no way complaining of the room. Just stating what we saw while staying there. Beds were very comfortable, although I would have to say that Yacht Club daybed was more comfortable for my daughter with a thicker mattress. The sofa pull-down is a nice size lengthwise, but mattress is so thin and uncomfortable.

Oh thanks! Yes, those types of things should be addressed. But I'm glad you felt comfortable in there.

I'm just nervous, we've had so much unexpected stuff happen this year, I feel like I'm too excited for the trip!