SHADES OF GREEN at Walt Disney World Resort Information & Questions

[Ladyfish77]

I'd probably uber or taxi with luggage.

 

[capegirl]

I'm staying at SOG for the first time in November. My older DD and her family are flying down with me and staying at All Star Music for the first couple of nights until younger DD (with the military id) arrives. What is the best way to get both ourselves and our luggage to SOG from AsMu? This is my first split stay, we are all looking forward to SOG.
Also, does SOG have transportation to the Wine and Dine half marathon? Younger DD will be running early Sunday morning.

I think it would be well worth it to take a taxi, or Uber to SOG. This would be much easier than juggling luggage on and off the Disney bus. A one way trip to SOG probably won't break your budget.
As far as the marathon, I'm not sure where the Wine and Dine is located, but you can inquire about this when you arrive. You can also use Disney transportation from the Poly.

 

[firstwdw]

I'm staying at SOG for the first time in November. My older DD and her family are flying down with me and staying at All Star Music for the first couple of nights until younger DD (with the military id) arrives. What is the best way to get both ourselves and our luggage to SOG from AsMu? This is my first split stay, we are all looking forward to SOG.

Also, does SOG have transportation to the Wine and Dine half marathon? Younger DD will be running early Sunday morning.

We were at SOG during the Star Wars RunDisney races in April and SOG did have official RunDisney bus transportation to/from the expo and the races. The buses picked up upstairs, rather than down where the Shades park buses come and go from. This will make sense when you are there.

 

[marauder]

Not sure whether I should ask this here or in the Transportation section, but I will try here since most in Transportation probably never stayed at Shades. What do you think the fastest way to get from SoG to Fort Wilderness would be? My parents are interested in eating at Trail's End. I have stayed at Shades before but not sure how fast things will be under new security measures.

The ways I can think of going are:
1) Shades bus shuttle to TTC and take monorail to either Contemporary or Magic Kingdom and then take water shuttle.
2) Golf cart to Poly take monorail to either Contemporary or Magic Kingdom and then take water shuttle.
3) Golt cart to Poly take Poly water shuttle (not totally sure if have to go to Magic Kingdom and transfer or if there is a direct to Fort Wilderness.)

Will these ways involve multiple trips though security in order transfer from one water shuttle to another?

 

[capegirl]

Not sure whether I should ask this here or in the Transportation section, but I will try here since most in Transportation probably never stayed at Shades. What do you think the fastest way to get from SoG to Fort Wilderness would be? My parents are interested in eating at Trail's End. I have stayed at Shades before but not sure how fast things will be under new security measures.

The ways I can think of going are:
1) Shades bus shuttle to TTC and take monorail to either Contemporary or Magic Kingdom and then take water shuttle.
2) Golf cart to Poly take monorail to either Contemporary or Magic Kingdom and then take water shuttle.
3) Golt cart to Poly take Poly water shuttle (not totally sure if have to go to Magic Kingdom and transfer or if there is a direct to Fort Wilderness.)

Will these ways involve multiple trips though security in order transfer from one water shuttle to another?

It can be a bit of a challenge to get to FW, but we love Trails End, so we've made the trip many times. We usually take the monorail to the MK, and then the the boat to FW. Allow at least 90 minutes to get from point A to point B, because there could be delays. Another thing to consider... there have been times when, due to bad weather, the boats may not be running. That said, your parents will need a plan B should the unexpected occur. The fastest way to FW
would be to take a taxi or Uber. The last time we went to Trails End the weather was so bad I asked bell services at SOG to call us taxi. It arrived within minutes, and it was a very quick trip to FW. I think it cost us about $10, and it was well worth it. The taxi will drop you off by the FW bus stop where you can take the campground's ' internal bus' that stops at Pioneer Hall & Trails End. After dinner the boats were running, so we took the boat back to the Contemporary, and hopped on the monorail.

 

[sharonmickey]

We were at SOG during the Star Wars RunDisney races in April and SOG did have official RunDisney bus transportation to/from the expo and the races. The buses picked up upstairs, rather than down where the Shades park buses come and go from. This will make sense when you are there.

Thanks!!!

 

[jen7233]

I'm staying at SOG for the first time in November. My older DD and her family are flying down with me and staying at All Star Music for the first couple of nights until younger DD (with the military id) arrives. What is the best way to get both ourselves and our luggage to SOG from AsMu? This is my first split stay, we are all looking forward to SOG.

Also, does SOG have transportation to the Wine and Dine half marathon? Younger DD will be running early Sunday morning.

Hi, when we split from WL to SOG, we just asked the desk to call us a taxi when we were ready. We put the luggage in the taxi and rode with it. It came fast. It was $10 and change plus tip. This was two years ago. But, WL and SOG are a little closer in distance. Sorry, I'm unfamiliar with the Wine and Dine location so can't comment much on that except maybe calling SOG and seeing if they have any set transportation for that. If not, I guess taxi or Uber. Where is the half marathon starting at?

 

[sharonmickey]

Hi, when we split from WL to SOG, we just asked the desk to call us a taxi when we were ready. We put the luggage in the taxi and rode with it. It came fast. It was $10 and change plus tip. This was two years ago. But, WL and SOG are a little closer in distance. Sorry, I'm unfamiliar with the Wine and Dine location so can't comment much on that except maybe calling SOG and seeing if they have any set transportation for that. If not, I guess taxi or Uber. Where is the half marathon starting at?

I'm not sure of any details of the race. The trip is a birthday gift for me from DD. I'm leaning towards Uber or a taxi.

Thanks everyone!!!

 

[jen7233]

I'm not sure of any details of the race. The trip is a birthday gift for me from DD. I'm leaning towards Uber or a taxi.

Thanks everyone!!!

It sounds fun! I wish I did these races. You should have no trouble at all with transportation from one hotel to another. Taxis are everywhere there, just ask your hotel front desk to call you a cab, or some of the phones in the room may have a taxi number to call yourself, and Uber I hear works great there, though I have never used Uber yet.

 

[elovell]

Considering a SOG stay & have a few questions. We will be traveling with another couple & their 12 year old son. Can I book them a room as well? Is Uber now allowed on the property? I've read about the walk to the Poly, but is the TTC walkable or is it better to go to the Poly first? Also, are certain rooms more recently remodeled?

 

[mousehockey37]

Considering a SOG stay & have a few questions. We will be traveling with another couple & their 12 year old son. Can I book them a room as well? Is Uber now allowed on the property? I've read about the walk to the Poly, but is the TTC walkable or is it better to go to the Poly first? Also, are certain rooms more recently remodeled?

If you are the sponsor, you can book them a room.
Don't know about Uber, but it's a government resort. An Uber driver may have to wait outside the resort gates to pick you up at the least because they will not have credentials to come through the gates. I would call SoG and ask.
TTC is a good walk. It is doable, but not recommended after a long day of walking in the parks. You have to walk through the Poly to get there.
The newer side of the resort is the Palm side. However, all the rooms have been recently renovated.

Also, be cautious with the SoG buses. They do NOT run on same time schedule as the Disney transportation does. If you are not paying attention at the end of the evening, you could find yourself stranded and the resort will not send someone to get you. So just something to keep in mind.

 

[ConnecticutFlea]

Yes you can book 3 rooms. If your husband/wife has an ID you can book 6 rooms.
I don't know about Uber, but security is getting stricter.
The Poly sits on a corner lot. The lobby of the Poly is in the middle of the lot. To get from the front entrance of Poly's lobby to SOG, you would walk to the left border of the Poly's property and cross the side street that runs along the left edge of the Poly's property. The monorail boards in the lobby of the Poly. The Poly bus stop is to the right of the lobby. The TTC boarders the Poly on the right. It takes no more than 20 minutes to walk from SOG to TTC. When we are going to MK we walk to the monorail in the Poly. When we go to Epcot we either walk or take the bus to TTC. Sometimes in the evening we walk back from TTC and sometimes we take the bus. SOG's buses run on schedule and leave TTC every 20 minutes. If the bus just left we find it quicker to walk back than wait for the next bus.
The SOG buses only leave AK and HS hourly. That's great if you're punctual and plan accordingly. It's not good if you want to meander to the bus stop whenever you feel like it. Some people love it and some hate it. If you miss the bus you can always get on the Disney bus heading to the Poly and walk back from there.
There are two wings. The Magnolia wing is being remodeled this fall. The Palm wing was recently remodeled. Both pools are closer to the Magnolia wing. All the rooms are larger than any of the rooms in the Disney resorts. The mattresses are very comfortable.

 

[WDW 3]

If you are the sponsor, you can book them a room.
Don't know about Uber, but it's a government resort. An Uber driver may have to wait outside the resort gates to pick you up at the least because they will not have credentials to come through the gates. I would call SoG and ask.
TTC is a good walk. It is doable, but not recommended after a long day of walking in the parks. You have to walk through the Poly to get there.
The newer side of the resort is the Palm side. However, all the rooms have been recently renovated.

Also, be cautious with the SoG buses. They do NOT run on same time schedule as the Disney transportation does. If you are not paying attention at the end of the evening, you could find yourself stranded and the resort will not send someone to get you. So just something to keep in mind.

Here's the thing about SoG buses... They run on a schedule. Disney buses do not run on schedules. Also Shades is a smaller resort and you can (almost) always get on the bus. I put the almost in there to avoid arguments. We personally have never had to wait for a second bus. We've had to wait through several Disney buses coming and going quit often at closing before getting on one. You can count on a SoG bus being where they say it will be UNLESS there is a mechanical issue. Several ways to get around using a combination of Disney and Shades transportation.

 

[8caliace]

Category/Room Rate verification
I am recently retired from active-duty, and now work as a military contractor. Which room rate category would I (and additional sponsored rooms) fall under?

 

[goofynut41]

Category/Room Rate verification
I am recently retired from active-duty, and now work as a military contractor. Which room rate category would I (and additional sponsored rooms) fall under?

What rank did you retire as? That's probably your category..

 

[jeff_h]

Category/Room Rate verification
I am recently retired from active-duty, and now work as a military contractor. Which room rate category would I (and additional sponsored rooms) fall under?

"Room rate will be based on the lowest ranking occupant of the room. If an occupant is eligible for multiple rates, the lowest rate will be used."

http://shadesofgreen.org/eligibility.htm

 

[bdcp]

Category/Room Rate verification
I am recently retired from active-duty, and now work as a military contractor. Which room rate category would I (and additional sponsored rooms) fall under?

It's based on the rank/rate you retired at. DH is a retired reservist O-6 and we pay the highest rate based on that rank. It's the military retirement that counts for you and the fact you're a contractor doesn't matter. DH was (still is) a Federal contractor all during his reserve time and we always paid based on his rank.

 

[mog]

We are going to be at Shades of Green in August - have stayed many times but I always find that I have questions before we go!
1 - Has anyone purchased the military discounted Memory Maker lately? Some places it says you have to go to guest services and some places it says at the ticket sales windows....anyone know for sure?
2 - We prefer the rooms that have 2 sinks in a separate room from the toilet/shower so more than one person can use things at a time. Are all rooms like this? We haven't stayed in the old section (Magnolia??) for many years, so I know the new section(Palm??) has it but not sure about the old. If they aren't all like that, I want to put in a request for the new section.

Thanks!

 

[jeff_h]

2 - We prefer the rooms that have 2 sinks in a separate room from the toilet/shower so more than one person can use things at a time. Are all rooms like this? We haven't stayed in the old section (Magnolia??) for many years, so I know the new section(Palm??) has it but not sure about the old. If they aren't all like that, I want to put in a request for the new section.

We stayed in Palm last year and Magnolia a couple weeks ago, each one had the same setup with sinks/counter/mirrors in separate room outside of the shower/toilet.

 

[jaz0308]

Any updates on construction? I thought i heard that Shades was undergoing a big construction project in the Magnolia wing? That is where we usually request to stay and always request/receive a room very close to lobby area. We are headed there in 25 days and I'm wondering if my usual area is under construction or very near the construction area and maybe I should change my request? Anybody with first hand knowledge of the current/upcoming construction schedule?