What to do with groceries before 4pm check-in?

[Swimmergirl]

We will be arriving in Orlando around 1pm this December. My plan is to get our rental car, grab something to eat, and head to a grocery store to stock up for the week. I'm assuming we will probably arrive at OKW prior to the 4pm check-in time. If our room is not ready, what do I do with our groceries? We will have cold items.

 

[BLLB]

They have stored them for us at The Contemporary and BWV.

 

[Swimmergirl]

Do you just ask the front desk at check-in? How do they know which are yours? We usually take our own luggage (no bell service), so I'm not sure of the protocol here!

 

[rlovew]

When we arrive and have groceries that need to be stored we just bring them to bell services and then go about our day. Once we have our room we call for them to be brought up (although sometimes we have walked down and gotten them ourselves- I give a larger tip for bringing then for simply storing).

 

[DVCconvert]

At OKW there's a bell service stand curbside - speak to the person there, they'll take your cold items and refrigerate them - they'll just keep them in the same bags you got at the store and group them together and mark them with your name/room number - you can retrieve them right there when you're ready to take them to your villa.

 

[deedisneydream97]

We are cheap! We have a number of those coolers that fold up to nothing. We put them on top of our clothes in our suitcase. After our winn-dixie shopping trip, we get out the coolers right there in the winndixie parking lot and put the cold stuff in them (we sometimes will get a bag of ice from WinnDixie, depending on how warm it is that day). We have never had a problem leaving the coolers in the car until 4 pm check-in. Those "freezer tote bags" you can get at grocery stores would probably work well, also. Forget about buying a styrofoam cooler at the store....I think we paid $7 for one once. But we have also left the cold stuff with bell services in the past. I just don't like having to tip once or twice for them to store and then retrieve.

 

[Swimmergirl]

Thanks for the replies everyone! So, am I supposed to tip when I drop off the groceries and again when I pick them up, or just when I pick them up?

 

[DVCconvert]

Thanks for the replies everyone! So, am I supposed to tip when I drop off the groceries and again when I pick them up, or just when I pick them up?

typically I suspect most folks will tip when they pick them up (or have them delieverd) but it's your option to do both of course.

 

[bumbershoot]

Thanks for the replies everyone! So, am I supposed to tip when I drop off the groceries and again when I pick them up, or just when I pick them up?

We tip for both; it's two different people handling the items after all.

If you look around when you're there, you'll notice many Bell Services people going by with carts, with grocery bags hanging from the hooks on the carts, heading off to the storage area.... You won't be alone!

 

[rock_doctor]

I guess i am a little confused. You will have a car...wait until you are in your room then go shopping. There is a super walmart 15min away and a publix less then 10 min away. It does not take that long to make a quick run out. We drive so we bring 99% of what we need with us but make a run to walmart every other day. Just love to look at all of the disney stuff they have plus on the way back there is a disney outlet (prime stores) on the right side of the road. They don't have a great selection but what they do have is a good price. Picked up 4 golf shirts last year with walt disney world embroidered on them. They were $9 each and that is for a 5x size.

 

[DenLo]

We prefer to doing the grocery run on the day we check in so as not ruin another day doing chores.

We just check everything with Bell Services. They ask us to indicate which bags need to be refrigerated and which need to be placed in the freezer. Then they take everything without waiting for a tip. They add labels to everything and give you a ticket stub that shows number of bags. When we are in the villa, then we call and have our luggage and groceries delivered. At that point we tip based on the number of sacks and suitcases Bell services brings to the room.

 

[jekjones1558]

We tip the bell service people when we drop off the grocery items since they do not deliver them to the room. Then we tip when all the baggage is delivered to the room.
I think it has been stated indirectly, but if you want to drop off cold items and tip then it is to your advantage to only check the groceries that need a frig or freezer, so bag the freezer items separately and the frig items separately.
We often check in then go to eat and do grocery shopping. By the time we are finished the room is usually ready and we can just unload luggage and groceries all at once. It seems like less hassle to us this way.

 

[Euchre_U]

I believe that all of the DVC resorts at WDW have both refrigerators and freezers for guests to use - both in-bound and out-bound. We typically have only used Disney coolers in-bound (checking in). The bellman will take them, put them in the cooler/freezer, and then bring them to your room.

Yes, I would suggest a tip at least to the person who delivers the groceries (and luggage) to your room.