Hi - Long time lurker, rarely posts though. Since these boards are so helpful to me, I thought I would take a moment to convey some thoughts on our most recent trip. I'm joined by my wife, my MIL, and wife's sister, and of course our DS who is 2 years old.
We stayed at the Grand Floridian, Boca Chica room 8523 Theme Park view. I read a lot about which building to stay in for the best view and most said the smaller two that face the marina slip, but I have to say that for us, this was a fantastic view. In a later report, I'll post pictures. We had a great view of the castle, the contemporary, fireworks (especially the Very merry Christmas party. wow, what a show!), and the water parade each night. We were in a dormer room, which we also loved because we have a two year old. All kids our different, ours happens to have a little additional energy and likes to climb, so we liked having a solid balcony that he couldn't get a foothold on, but I could see how some might not like that feel. I've never stayed in another room there, so the size was fine by me. The only thing that dissapointed me about the room was the size of the toilet / shower closet area. Too tiny.
It was a bit of a walk to get from our room to the main lobby, but really only 5 minutes or less, with a toddler. Gaspirillas is open 24 hours a day for those refillable mugs, and that's a 5 minute walk away too. We ate at Citrico's one night, fantastic meal and service. I snagged a 6pm reservation, so it was still quiet. We had the short ribs and the blackened grouper. Really great meal, worth the two table credits IMHO.
Regarding food, we had the dining plan. For someone who eats dessert after just about every meal, I have to say it was too much food for us. I wish they would offer an alternative of a side salad or an appetizer instead. I don't know if I would pay for that plan again. I read all about how to maximize the credits, but in the end, with a toddler, that's pretty challenging. Any reservations at all are challenging due to the potential for meltdown city. I think it might be easier when he's a bit older.
Ok, I'll post more later, if anyone is interested in one person's view of the Kingdom!
We stayed at the Grand Floridian, Boca Chica room 8523 Theme Park view. I read a lot about which building to stay in for the best view and most said the smaller two that face the marina slip, but I have to say that for us, this was a fantastic view. In a later report, I'll post pictures. We had a great view of the castle, the contemporary, fireworks (especially the Very merry Christmas party. wow, what a show!), and the water parade each night. We were in a dormer room, which we also loved because we have a two year old. All kids our different, ours happens to have a little additional energy and likes to climb, so we liked having a solid balcony that he couldn't get a foothold on, but I could see how some might not like that feel. I've never stayed in another room there, so the size was fine by me. The only thing that dissapointed me about the room was the size of the toilet / shower closet area. Too tiny.
It was a bit of a walk to get from our room to the main lobby, but really only 5 minutes or less, with a toddler. Gaspirillas is open 24 hours a day for those refillable mugs, and that's a 5 minute walk away too. We ate at Citrico's one night, fantastic meal and service. I snagged a 6pm reservation, so it was still quiet. We had the short ribs and the blackened grouper. Really great meal, worth the two table credits IMHO.
Regarding food, we had the dining plan. For someone who eats dessert after just about every meal, I have to say it was too much food for us. I wish they would offer an alternative of a side salad or an appetizer instead. I don't know if I would pay for that plan again. I read all about how to maximize the credits, but in the end, with a toddler, that's pretty challenging. Any reservations at all are challenging due to the potential for meltdown city. I think it might be easier when he's a bit older.
Ok, I'll post more later, if anyone is interested in one person's view of the Kingdom!
