A longish Disney recap from a MOOK

[stephm0188]

So here's my recap:

Flew in Tuesday night and took DME over to Pop. I did online check in, so we skipped the desk and headed to our room after asking luggage services to hold our DME bags and transfer them to Beach Club the next day.

Wednesday: We woke up early and took a cab over to Beach Club to check in. Our room was ready, so we dropped our carryon bag in my he room before heading downstairs to have breakfast at Cape May at 7:30. The room was nice. I had requested a full balcony and we did get one.

Breakfast was good. Characters came quickly and we were done in about 40 minutes. Took the bus to AK and arrived in plenty of time for rope drop. While we were waiting in line to meet Flik, a cast member approached us to talk about the kid's unique autograph book. She flipped through it and observed how it was almost full and then said "I can make sure you get three more really rare signatures if you wait by that rock over there in five minutes." We waited, and out came Brer Rabbit, Fox, and Bear. So cool!

Went back to the hotel to swim, then headed to MK to catch MSEP and Wishes.

Thursday: HS. As always, they opened the turnstiles early. We headed straight for Jedi Academy to sign up, then waited for rope drop so we could head to TSMM. Launch Bay at WDW was a bit of a letdown after visiting DL's last month, so we didn't stay long after getting our Kylo Ren picture. We were also bummed that you no longer get a printed photo from the Chase meet and greet. We stalked Character Palooza and finished that in less than 10 minutes. Stayed for Fantasmic and SW fireworks then left for the night.

Friday: 8:20 breakfast at Akershus. We were seated early and finished in time for rope drop. Had a small hiccup with FP+ that took a bit of time to resolve, but it worked out. Left around 1:00 to swim, then returned for a 6:20 Biergarten ADR. We walked over to HS afterward and arrived in time to see the fireworks again, then rode a few rides during EMH.

Saturday: 8:00 am rope drop at MK. we were first on Peter Pan then waited 10 minutes for Anna and Elsa. We went to get a couple cinnamon rolls at Gaston's and the cast member told us they were compliments of Mickey Stayed at MK til 3:00 then headed to GF for an early dinner at 1900 PF.

Dinner was awesome. We were seated early and wound up being the third party seated. Anastasia loved the kid. She called him her Princeypoo and came back to dance with him during the waltz, then planted a big lipsticky kiss on his cheek. She even stopped what she was doing when we left to call out "Bye Princeypoo!" We finished dinner and boarded the monorail to head to Epcot.

The monorail broke down just before Contemporary. I was annoyed to be stuck, and then the phone rang. It was Beach Club, upgrading us to club level for the next two nights. YES!

Sunday: Back to MK. We were first at the turnstiles and wound up chatting with a cast member from England. I could sense that he was the guy who got to choose the family of the day and I kept hoping he'd pick us. Another CM snagged him to ask him a question and he walked away. He came back to us, got pulled away again, and then the turnstiles opened. I tried to stay in his area but he lost track of us and asked another family. SO CLOSE! Argh. So jealous watching him escort them in. Oh well!

Ate lunch at Skippers Canteen, then headed back to spend the afternoon at the pool. Ate dinner at Cape May at 7:00, then went to Epcot and MK for the evening.

Monday: Ate breakfast in the club lounge then took the kid down to the pool to swim. We arrived early and waited on a bench by the gate. A cast member approached him with a treasure map and asked if he would help solve the pirate clues and open the pool. He went on a little treasure hunt and unlocked a chest full of goodies before sliding down the slide.  It was cool.

Couldn't stay long at the pool. We had 11:00 ADR at Beaches and Cream. We were the first family seated. They announced our name and cheered for us while strobe lights were going off. Pretty fun way to end the trip. Boarded DME right after.


All in all, a great trip!

[frlcb]

There are so many initials in this post that I understood like 35% of it

[lauren170]

Ahh we loved the Beach Club! Glad you had a great trip.

[ribollita]

Sounds like you had a great time!!

[Deleted]

Wow sounds like a great trip!

[sent]

Wow, that sounds like it was a lot of fun!

[mmmomof2]

This is an old post, but I'm fascinated you were upgraded to club level for free in the middle of your stay. I'm guessing someone made a stink about not having a full balcony. I can't say that I would switch mid trip with kids even for club level. But since I'd probably never pay for it I'd be tempted.

What did you think of club level?

[curbsideprophet]

Sounds like an awesome trip!

[stephm0188]

Mar 2, 2016 22:50:35 GMT -5 mmmomof2 said:

This is an old post, but I'm fascinated you were upgraded to club level for free in the middle of your stay. I'm guessing someone made a stink about not having a full balcony. I can't say that I would switch mid trip with kids even for club level. But since I'd probably never pay for it I'd be tempted.

What did you think of club level?

We had a split reservation because of a promo offer and would have needed to check out and check back in midstay, but we wouldn't have needed to switch rooms.  I assume they probably needed the room for another party coming in for a weeklong stay and offered us the upgrade.  Switching rooms was not a big deal for us. I had everything packed in 10 minutes, and they sent a cast member down to help us with our bags. 

Club level was nice. There was a concierge desk and the people there were always super friendly. I liked that we could text them and have them make FP selections for us. It was nice to be able to do that to get additional FPs after we used our original 3 instead of waiting in line at a kiosk.  The lounge was pretty nice, and we took advantage of being able to grab bottles of water and fruit. The only room difference was different soaps and bathrobes. Our original room was actually a smidge bigger and had a daybed. Our club level room did not.

It's not something I'd pay for though, not for the way we usually do Disney. I'm okay with planning my own trips and we typically wouldn't have been in the hotel during the hours the lounge is open.  I wouldn't turn it down if offered, but I wouldn't pay for it. 

[bexporter]

That sounds like a great trip!

[bronxgirl]

This sounds awesome!!

[taratru]

You had awesome freaking meals. Sounds like a great trip!