Jeff T
07-19-2007, 03:19 PM
We just returned from our annual Disney World vacation and stay at the Beach Club Resort.
We arrived at the Beach Club Resort after spending the previous week vacationing in North Myrtle Beach. The weather at the beach was perfect - mid-80's, sunny and no rain! We were all very excited to start the second half of our vacation at Disney World.
We pulled into the Beach Club earlier than planned - 11:30 AM. To my surprise, they lobby was not very busy, and we were immediately greeted by a cast member at the front desk. I was even more surprised to learn our room was ready. Yes, before 3:00 PM! Wow! We were given a room on the 4th floor overlooking the Boardwalk and lake - perfect! The room was also next to a little known elevator near the end or the Beach Club resort rooms and next to EPCOT.
After getting our luggage delivered to our room, we walked to EPCOT. The kids wanted to see the new Nemo ride first. We were able to get on the ride with little to no wait. The queue area was well done, and the ride itself is a great addition to the park. We then went to see Turtle Talk. My 3 year-old son really enjoyed this interactive show. Our 7-year old thought it was pretty cool too, but he didn't want to admit it. Next we tried to ride Soar'n - no luck. The Fast Passes were all gone and the Standby line was 120 minutes. So we decided to ride Living with the Land. The Fast Pass system was not in use so we waited 20 minutes in the Standby line. It's been a few years since we rode this ride, and we really enjoyed it. I personally did not miss having a cast member guide on this attraction. Next we visited Figment - boy this ride needs help! Our kids enjoyed it, but Disney really needs to consider making major improvements to this attraction. The 3D movie was a big hit with our family. Everyone enjoyed it.
Next we headed over to Space Ship Earth. I wanted to make sure we rode this landmark attraction before it closed for refurbishment. Again, this is another attraction that needs help. Hopefully, the refurbishment will add life to this boring trip through time. My 7 year-old son wanted to ride Test Track, which had more than an hour wait posted (Fast Passes were gone for the day). Instead we got in the green line for Mission Space – no wait! The tamer version of Mission Space was pretty good. My son really like it. Then we went over to wait in line at Test Track. It only took 20 minutes using the Standby line. The sign was off by 40 minutes.
Finally, we headed to Canada for our dinner at Le Cellier. The food was outstanding, but the service was very slow. We spent 2 hours eating dinner, which is too long, especially when you are with young kids. Fortunately, we made it out on time to see Illuminations. Illuminations is a great show. It sure would be nice if EPCOT brought back the parade around World Showcase prior to Illuminations.
It was a very long day for us, but we accomplished much more than we had planned – and had a great time! We walked back to the Beach Club Resort, grabbed an ice cream at Beaches and Cream and went to bed. Tomorrow we are visiting Disney MGM Studios.
Just a note about the Beach Club Resort. The resort is undergoing an exterior refurbishment (i.e. paint and roof shingles). We make it a point to stay at this resort each year and love it, but the rooms need refurbished. The carpet, bedspread, wallpaper, door paint were all worn in our room. The Beach Club needs to go through an update process similar to the Contemporary and Polynesian Resorts.
I’ll post another report sometime this week.
We arrived at the Beach Club Resort after spending the previous week vacationing in North Myrtle Beach. The weather at the beach was perfect - mid-80's, sunny and no rain! We were all very excited to start the second half of our vacation at Disney World.
We pulled into the Beach Club earlier than planned - 11:30 AM. To my surprise, they lobby was not very busy, and we were immediately greeted by a cast member at the front desk. I was even more surprised to learn our room was ready. Yes, before 3:00 PM! Wow! We were given a room on the 4th floor overlooking the Boardwalk and lake - perfect! The room was also next to a little known elevator near the end or the Beach Club resort rooms and next to EPCOT.
After getting our luggage delivered to our room, we walked to EPCOT. The kids wanted to see the new Nemo ride first. We were able to get on the ride with little to no wait. The queue area was well done, and the ride itself is a great addition to the park. We then went to see Turtle Talk. My 3 year-old son really enjoyed this interactive show. Our 7-year old thought it was pretty cool too, but he didn't want to admit it. Next we tried to ride Soar'n - no luck. The Fast Passes were all gone and the Standby line was 120 minutes. So we decided to ride Living with the Land. The Fast Pass system was not in use so we waited 20 minutes in the Standby line. It's been a few years since we rode this ride, and we really enjoyed it. I personally did not miss having a cast member guide on this attraction. Next we visited Figment - boy this ride needs help! Our kids enjoyed it, but Disney really needs to consider making major improvements to this attraction. The 3D movie was a big hit with our family. Everyone enjoyed it.
Next we headed over to Space Ship Earth. I wanted to make sure we rode this landmark attraction before it closed for refurbishment. Again, this is another attraction that needs help. Hopefully, the refurbishment will add life to this boring trip through time. My 7 year-old son wanted to ride Test Track, which had more than an hour wait posted (Fast Passes were gone for the day). Instead we got in the green line for Mission Space – no wait! The tamer version of Mission Space was pretty good. My son really like it. Then we went over to wait in line at Test Track. It only took 20 minutes using the Standby line. The sign was off by 40 minutes.
Finally, we headed to Canada for our dinner at Le Cellier. The food was outstanding, but the service was very slow. We spent 2 hours eating dinner, which is too long, especially when you are with young kids. Fortunately, we made it out on time to see Illuminations. Illuminations is a great show. It sure would be nice if EPCOT brought back the parade around World Showcase prior to Illuminations.
It was a very long day for us, but we accomplished much more than we had planned – and had a great time! We walked back to the Beach Club Resort, grabbed an ice cream at Beaches and Cream and went to bed. Tomorrow we are visiting Disney MGM Studios.
Just a note about the Beach Club Resort. The resort is undergoing an exterior refurbishment (i.e. paint and roof shingles). We make it a point to stay at this resort each year and love it, but the rooms need refurbished. The carpet, bedspread, wallpaper, door paint were all worn in our room. The Beach Club needs to go through an update process similar to the Contemporary and Polynesian Resorts.
I’ll post another report sometime this week.