Sydney2977
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 10, 2013
Just got home last evening and we had an absolutely AMAZING trip, highlighted by staying at BWI! The staff was excellent, friendly, we had an opportunity to talk to lots of them and really enjoyed that. Many gave us great tips and some were just nice to have a conversation with. I did check in online ahead of time and the request was "high floor." I didn't send in any faxes or anything, thinking we'd be happy with what we got. We were booked for a standard room. We did have to stop in Jacksonville on the drive down to exchange something I got as a Christmas present, but we don't have that store in the Charleston area. For this reason, and I didn't want to rush to get up and didn't know what traffic would be like on a Sunday, I didn't put in our arrival time. When we pulled up it was actually tough to find parking anywhere but we did find a spot on the front row near the exit by the convention center. We originally planned to check in then grab our bags to go find our room, but decided to haul everything at once and went to the front desk. There was no one waiting in line and it was about 4pm. The CM noticed on the reservation we were celebrating our anniversary and told us congratulations. She asked if we'd ever stayed there before and I said no, this was our first no kid trip and we were making it our honeymoon since we never took one to begin with. I don't know if she just saw how giddy we looked to just be staying there or if some pixie dust was involved but she pulled out a map to show where our room was, where all the dining options were, how to get to Epcot and DHS, the buses to other locations, and sent us on our way. I was happy with 5th floor being assigned, and then when we got to our actual room (which was nice to be close to the elevator without noise, but not a long walk) we were flipping out! It was #5278 overlooking the garden and looking straight out to Epcot! Aaaaah! SO pretty! For those of you asking about construction, you can see the lines for the gondolas, and to me it looked like they are building something on the back side of France- I assumed it to be the Ratatouille attraction, but could be wrong. It was not in the way at all. We watched Illuminations multiple times out on our balcony and it was beautiful- you can hear the music! The buses were prompt an two mornings we had really funny ones. Boat service was very enjoyable and relaxing. The walk to and from Epcot is so short you really don't need to take the boat. We were surprised at how close it actually is! The DHS walk isn't bad either. This was the perfect resort for DH and I for this trip. The one drawback that I could think of is the CS option Boardwalk Bakery is small with small selection. At some other deluxes, moderates, and the values there are bigger restaurants with more options. I knew this ahead of time so I only planned two quick breakfasts here and we did get desserts a couple nights and filled our mugs heading back from the parks. I remember someone asking about the smell from the Flying Fish. We only smelled it on our last night while in the actual resort building, and we thought it may have been because it was a Friday and busier, plus it was really warm. It wasn't gross or anything, you could just notice it. Overall we had an excellent stay. Depending on the type of vacation you're planning, the BWI may be perfect! Once I get photos uploaded I'll post. Thanks for all the info ahead of time from you seasoned travelers!