Mynde's last day

[Esmerelda]

Day 8 ? May 17th

Today was bitter sweet. We were ready to come home, but didn?t want to leave! We had breakfast at the hotel and checked our luggage at the front desk. We walked around the hotel and took a few more pictures. Then it was time to catch the Disney?s Magical Express back to the airport. We had lunch at the airport. The plane was a bit late getting going and we had strong headwinds which put us in 45 minutes late. The flight went ok and Joshua made a friend on the flight. The two of them were having a grand time screaming during take off and causing quite a commotion. We were glad to be back home and I began uploading my 1087 pictures!!!!

Overall our vacation was awesome! We all had such a fabulous time. The consensus between the four of us is that we like Disney World better than <st1:place>Disneyland. There is just SO much to do and see. It?s beautiful. Next time we?re staying at a nicer hotel, not because our hotel was bad or anything, it was great, but because the more expensive your hotel, the closer you are to the parks, the shorter the bus ride!

[34Angels]

So that's how it works, more money = less crowded bus time. Oh man, we're in trouble then because we are staying at the cheapest place possible in the World. Oh well, at least we have a boat that will take us to MK!

[Esmerelda]

Yes, lucky you! The ferry was really quick!!! To be honest I only saw one bus going to the campground. You'll have to check to see what the bus schedule is there! Ok, what I'm reading says there are buses...MK take a boat (10 min), Epcot-direct bus (25 min), HS-Direct Bus (30 min), AK-Direct bus (30 min) and Downtown bus (35 min)....

[IluvKingLouis]

Thanks for the trip report! I really enjoyed reading it! I would say that unless you stay at the Premium Monorail hotels (Contemporary, Poly, and Grand Floridian) you won't get much of a location benefit from an upgrade. Although the pricier the hotel, the closer the bus is to the park entrance. That's nice at the end of the day when you are exhausted.
We stayed at the Caribbean Beach Club which was a stones throw from Epcot, but quite a drive to MK. Once we stayed at the Dolphin, which is a 10 minute walk to Epcot, and a 20 minute walk (or 10 minute boat ride) to the studio's. Oddly, the Swan/Dolphin (which is not a Disney hotel but comes with all the perks) might have the best location.
I find that what I can save at the Value hotels, allows me an extra few days, which makes up for the few extra minutes I might experience on a bus ride.
If money were no object, I would most definately be staying at one of the monorail hotels! ;)

[Tink]

I was going to ask that very important question and you answered it. So you really liked WDW better? Wow!
Andy and I both want to try the Contemporary next time we go. It will be interesting to see what we decide.
Mynde - thanks for the reports. I am so happy you had a wonderful trip!
Leanne

[Esmerelda]

I'll eventually get to my reviews of the whole <[i]World</[i] but I'm still working on the restaurants!! It'll be done soon I promise!!

[kristisomer]

Mynde how early did you have to leave to catch the Magical Express to go back to the airport? I have heard you have to leave 3 hours before your flight is this correct?
Sounds like you had fun.

[kristisomer]

Oh and when we stayed at AKL the buses were hardly crowded at all. When we priced the monorail resort for that one night it was $325 for Contem. $375 for Poly and $400+ for Grand Floridian. That is one night.

[Esmerelda]

I know....sniff sniff it's WAY expensive to stay on the Monorail route.
Our time slot to leave for the airport on Disney's Magical Express WAS 3 hours before. We ended up leaving 3 1/2 hours before (I'm obsessive). But you really don't need to! It only takes about 30 minutes to get to the airport. We had already checked our luggage at the hotel so all we had to do was get through security. We were at the gate 2 hours before. I see why they recommend 3 hours though, the buses were full and it takes a while to load and unload. If there is traffic...etc etc etc.

[kristisomer]

That is good to know. I am looking at flights and I would hate to have an early one and have to leave 3 hours earlier.
Are you doing a review on the magical express?

[Esmerelda]

I know I wrote it already just not sure if L put it up yet...but I think she did?! I recommend it! It was so smooth and easy to use. Our flight home was at 2:45. That was a good time..enough time to get up when we wanted to, pack, eat, mosey over to catch a bus. Oh, but we did end up checking our bags at 9:30 or so....before we ate...I'm glad we did, after that the line for airline check in was WAY long...so long I would have just checked in at the airport!

[IluvKingLouis]

kristisomer (5/25/2008)[hr]Oh and when we stayed at AKL the buses were hardly crowded at all. When we priced the monorail resort for that one night it was $325 for Contem. $375 for Poly and $400+ for Grand Floridian. That is one night.
That's just too expensive for my taste. I can stay at a nice, clean Value for $59.00-89.00/night. So for the cost of spending one night in a WDW luxury, I can spend 4-6 nights at ASMu. We usually just sleep at the hotel, and maybe spend a little time at the pool. But we also love the pool themes at the Values.
We did stay at a Moderate once,...got a really good Annual Passholder price on it, and I found myself preffering the Value.

[kristisomer]

I am with you Elaine, the ease of having the monorail would be nice but I like having the extra money to spend. We normally stay at a value resort we are staying at the All Star Music this time and I can't wait. The only thing the kids liked about the AKL was seeing the animals and the waterslide at the pool.

[IluvKingLouis]

You will LOVE the All Star Music. They have special activities there (none of the other hotels are doing this since it's experimental). They show movies on an inflatable screen by the pool in the evenings. There are trivia games and other contests (Hula hoop, bingo, water baloon toss) also by the pool in the afternoon. The activities were a big highlight of our last trip.

[Tink]

No kidding - those are high prices! But then again, for the All Stars for our trip next week they were close to 150 per night so 300 doesn't seem so unreasonable. lol
Mynde - nope you had not sent the DME review before - if it doesn't go up, or you didn't get a reply from me, then I did not get it. Until coming home from the cabin and seeing that one (and yes it is already up and we have only been home an hour) I had not had a new review from you in several days. So if you have been sending them, I am not getting them! That is why I make it a habit to reply to each email to let you know I get them!
And Mynde - I am LOVING the reviews. THANKS.
Kristi - it doesn't matter which service you take back to the airport unless it is a taxi. Any bus or shuttle will do 3 hours before your flight - just to be safe. I have found that out in all of our checking with different companies.
Leanne

[IluvKingLouis]

Tink (5/26/2008)[hr]No kidding - those are high prices! But then again, for the All Stars for our trip next week they were close to 150 per night so 300 doesn't seem so unreasonable. lolWow....I can't get over $150.00 for a Value. I wonder if they have a marathon or golf match, or something major going on. Then again, we never go in the summer months, so maybe it's a summer thing. If the Value's keeping charging this kind of rate, we will have to consider off property for our next trip :crying:

[kristisomer]

I think we paid $125 last June. Which is high for a value resort. When we go in Sept I am thinking it's close to $80 a night. It figures to $57 a day per person for room and tickets &amp; food.

[Esmerelda]

We opted for the value for our first trip. I loved the hotel. But next time we'll go for moderate only for the pool! We wanted a slide. But we though how often will we actually use the pool! But we used it every day...so..yup..next time, slide it is! :)

[Tink]

We never use a pool, so for us it is proximity and amenities that are important. I do like the food court at the All Stars - it looks like it has many offerings based on your review Mynde.
Leanne

[Esmerelda]

We never usually use the pool either. But this trip!!! We sure did!! Everyone needed to re-energize after a long day to have the pep and energy to go to the EM late H's.

[IluvKingLouis]

This link shows a map of all of WDW and their hotels: <A href="http://www.bestfloridaresorts.com/maps/wdwmap.jpg">http://www.bestfloridaresorts.com/maps/wdwmap.jpg
You can see the Contemporary (1) is closest to MK but really far from all the other parks. Although the Contemporary is on the Monorail line, it first stops at the Transportation center, the Poly, then the Grand Floridian, before arriving at MK. When you leave the MK, you are the last stop (it follows the same route in reverse).
The Contemporary was the first hotel on property, and having the monorail running through the hotel is super cool. But I just wanted to let you all know that the location is just "eh"....and the price is :w00t:
If you have a car, it looks like Coronado Springs is the most central. I really liked the Dolphin. From there you can walk to Epcot, or take a boat to MGM. You can also take the monorail (after walking to Epcot) to MK. You could essentially avoid the busses except for AK and DD. Swan and Dolphin are not owned by Disney but qualify for all the perks (extra magic hours, etc). They are priced like moderates, but the amenities are that of Superiors (spa, work out centers, lots of restaurant options, spacious rooms, etc).

[Esmerelda]

Wow thanks Elaine! Good to know that the Contemporary might not be all we've envisioned!! :) I didn't realize the Swan and Dolphin aren't Disney hotels? You can book them through Disney?! Maybe they've been added recently as WDW hotels? Anyway! Next time we are thinking of staying at the Coronado!

[34Angels]

Wasn't the Dolphin and the Swan at one time owned by Disney but sold to another chain but because they were once Disney they just kept them as Disney hotels? Does that even make sense?

[IluvKingLouis]

I believe Swan/Dolphin have always been Sheratin properties. Because they are right smack next to Epcot it would cause too much confusion to not give their guests the same Disney privileges. They do not have any of the Disney theming (no Disney art in the rooms and no Mickey soaps etc). It is an excellent location and is very upscale. If you get a chance you should walk through the Dolphin's lobby on your way to Epcot (from the MGM boat).

Once Disney found out that the hotel market is so lucrative and they mastered the concept of various price levels, they will no longer let an outside chain build on Disney property.

[IluvKingLouis]

I have walked around the Coronado Springs hotel, and I think it is my favorite Moderate for the theming. The pools are beautiful!

The only complain I have ever heard is that because it's used for conventions you will see a lot of folks in business suits, and some people feel that kills the Disney mood. I would have no problem with that, and the gournds are just beautiful.

[Esmerelda]

I wouldn't mind people in business suits either. In fact, I didn't really notice anyone at our hotel except when we were in the pool!!!
So Elaine, you really can walk down the Boardwalk on to Epcot and it's not long? We took the bus to Boardwalk then took the 4 minute boat ride to Epcot. Someone told us we could walk if we had time so we thought it might be a little hike?! Next time I'll have to walk it!!! We are considering staying at Boardwalk sometime too. The boardwalk portion looks neat and there are plenty of dining options (instead of the one cafeteria at All Stars).

[IluvKingLouis]

Mynde, I would say it's a 5-10 minute walk. And we usually "stroll" since there are often things to look at. I love the atmosphere (especially at night).

Have you ever checked out the Google satelite maps to get an idea of distances? When I really need a WDW fix, I visit it via google maps LOL!

Oh....and yes there are a lot of Dining options there. We've eaten at Spoodles, and ESPN. ESPN is more casual. There are a couple of restaurants in the Dolphin that are overlooked by most folks. They're pretty good, and are never crowded. ;)