Total Boardwalk newbie needs tons of info!

[GEM]

I am so excited! I thought I had most of the planning done for our trip in December, but now I need more help!

Originally, we were planning on ten nights at the Wilderness Lodge. However, we are now going to do six nights there and four at the Boardwalk Inn. I am so excited about staying at the Boardwalk! We have always wanted to stay there, and we ended up with a great rate. We wanted so much to try the Boardwalk, but we couldn't stand to miss out on our beloved Wilderness Lodge during the holiday season - so this seems like a good compromise!

If anybody can give me any tips or advice regarding the Boardwalk Inn, I would really appreciate it.

I do have some specific questions.

-Do they have refillable mugs at the Boardwalk Inn? If so, where do you get them, where can you get them filled, and what are the choices for drinks? Are the refills free with the mug?

-We have reserved a water view and we really want to have a room overlooking the Boardwalk - maybe something over the Bakery or Spoodles, etc. Does anybody have any specific suggestions on what to ask for? We would love a king bed, but we are really more concerned about overlooking the Boardwalk. I love the idea of being able to sit out on our balcony and watch the Boardwalk hustle and bustle in the evenings. I've heard that some of the rooms only have little balconies - not big enough to sit on. Is that true? What can we request to try and make sure we have a larger balcony?

-Are there any special little things we should make sure to see or do while we are staying at the Boardwalk? We plan to spend lots of time just hanging out and enjoying the resort and soaking up the atmosphere.

-Our stay will be December 18th-22nd. Will there be any special stuff going on for Christmas? What are the decorations like?

-What kind of stuff do they have at Community Hall? I read something on another site about croquet. Does anybody know anything about that? My husband loves that game!

-We are saving our Epcot and MGM days for when we are staying at the Boardwalk. Is it faster to walk to those parks or take the boat?

-Can we get turn down service if we call and ask for it?

-I think I read that guests of the Boardwalk get in free to Atlantic Dance. Is that true?

I know that is a lot of questions. I apologize for taking up so much of your time. If you can help me out, I would truly appreciate it! We can't wait!

 

[montessori]

You will love the Boardwalk Inn!

I'm not real sure about the size of the balconies. We had a nice balcony in a corner room right above Flying Fish once. That was very nice! We had an Epcot view last time we stayed there. We really enjoyed watching Illuminations from our balcony. We have also had a few less than desirable views at the Boardwalk.
I've seen people get their refillable mugs filled in the bakery on the Boardwalk, I'm not sure where else you can fill them.
Your plan to hang out and soak up the Boardwalk atmosphere is a good one! You can also wander over to the other area resorts and check out the Christmas decorations and activities. We were at the Boardwalk last Christmas week, the decorations didn't seem as impressive as in previous years but beautiful just the same. We'll be there for Christmas this year too and we'll be hanging lights on our balcony.
We enjoy the walk to Epcot and MGM. If we do take the boat to or from MGM, we get on or off at The Swan and Dolphin and then walk over to BW.
We love Atlantic Dance. We aren't crazy about Jellyrolls, the dueling piano bar. Most people love it though, so you should try it. For some reason, Atlantic Dance is poorly promoted and managed. They don't even mention it on Disney TV there in the resort when they are showing all the wonderful things to do at the Boardwalk. We have seen many tremendously talented bands at Atlantic Dance. The DJ's are good too. The band we have seen there lately is, "The Drive". When it's just the guys playing, they do songs by the Stones, ZZ Top etc... When the female lead singer joins them, they play more dance songs, all kinds of popular music. They are really really good! They haven't had a cover charge the last few times we went there. There are a few nights a week when Atlantic Dance is closed.
Flying Fish has become one of our favorite restaurants in the world! Spoodles is great too, for breakfast and dinner. The flatbreads at Spoodles are to die for! Yum!
The Belle Vue room is the lounge in the Boardwalk. It is like an old gentlemen's club. There are old radio shows playing in the background, the atmosphere is lovely. You can play board games there, we usually play a game of Scrabble. The bartenders are great and we always meet nice people there. You can sit inside or outside on the balcony.
I always wanted to stay at the Wilderness Lodge. We make it a point to visit there quite often, especially during the winter. It's a gorgeous resort. We are hooked on the Boardwalk though! There's just so much to do right there and the location can't be beat!
Enjoy your vacation, I look forward to hearing about it!

 

[josierac]

Refillable mugs at the Boardwalk are $9.99 and can be refilled for free at Joe's coffee cart and the Boardwalk Bakery.

I will be staying at the Boardwalk Inn in 2 weeks. I will let you know how it was when I get back. I have stayed on the Villas side but this is the first time at the Inn side.

 

[CarolMN]

Originally posted by josierac
Refillable mugs at the Boardwalk are $9.99 and can be refilled for free at Joe's coffee cart and the Boardwalk Bakery....(snip)...

You can also refill the mugs at the Leaping Horse Libations Pool Bar (snack/drink spot by Luna Park, BWI/BWV feature pool).

Originally posted by GEM
What kind of stuff do they have at Community Hall? I read something on another site about croquet. Does anybody know anything about that? My husband loves that game!

According to the Boardwalk Bugle, at Community Hall, "you can rent bikes, videos, books and fun noodles for playing in the pool. Equipment for fishing, tennis, ping pong and fooseball is also available". I don't recall any area for croquet on the BWV/BWI grounds. However, IIRC, there is a croquet lawn somewhere on the YC/BC grounds.

 

[Lewisc]

Walking will be faster. There aren't that many rooms with a boardwalk view. Don't count on a free upgrade, request it with your reservation and try to check in early.

 

[Calcio]

In my experience the balconies at the Boardwalk are not huge, but they are plenty large for sitting and relaxing. This is in contrast to the higher up balconies at the GF, which were very small, and had very high solid panel railings which were difficult to see over.

My favorite BW balcony activity is to sit with a cold bottle of champagne at my feet, reading, relaxing, watching the activity, watching the boats come and go, generally contemplating life. After illuminations ends, the guests flow out of EPCOT and come underneath you, which is again fun and relaxing to observe.

Enjoy your stay. I'm waiting for some discounts to appear at BW for this January 5-9.

 

[GEM]

Thanks so much for all the wonderful replies! We are very excited about our Boardwalk visit. I had them note on our reservation that we would like to have a room overlooking the Boardwalk, if possible. We do have a water view reserved, so maybe we will get lucky. I plan on faxing in another request a few days before we arrive. We will also be arriving there to check in around noon, so maybe that will help. If we don't get a room overlooking the Boardwalk, what kind of "water" view will we have? Something overlooking one of the pools?

 

[LvsTnk]

If you don't get a BW view you could have a view of the quiet pool. Hopefully if you get that view you will be able to see some of Illuminations.

You might want to post the Community Hall ? on the DVC board, I thought it was closed for refurbishment.

 

[montessori]

Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought the Community Hall was only for vacation club members. ??

 

[GEM]

All the information I've read over the past few days says that Community Hall is for anyone staying at either the Boardwalk Inn or the Boardwalk Villas. I hope that's right because it sounds like a neat place.

 

[LvsTnk]

It is for everyone I believe, my kids have used it on 2 past visits. You all know policy changes all the time lol! I am sure the it was closed on our last visit.