May 10-16: SSR and BCV

[pouncingpluto]

I'll start with brief reviews of our two DVC stays:

SSR-

Pros:
Beautiful property, including landscaping and buildings
Great short walk to Downtown Disney
Rooms with new and beautiful furnishings
Spa and golf course (neither of which we used, but which add to the appeal and value of the property)

Cons:
Not very heavily themed
Very large and spread out
Exterior corridors weaken the upscale feel

This is a lovely property, but it isn't really our cup of tea. I'm sure we could have a great time staying here, but it won't ever be our first choice of accomodations. It just doesn't feel quite special enough. We enjoy Downtown Disney, but it isn't the same draw as a theme park. And the sheer size and outdoor corridors prevent it from feeling deluxe. The rooms are definitely nicer than a moderate, though, so I wouldn't put it in that category. It feels more like a very nice condo complex.

BCV-

Pros:
Beautiful rooms and hotel
Fun beachy theme
Awesome pool(s)
Easy access to other Epcot resorts
Short walk to Epcot
Boat ride to MGM (more fun and scenic than bus)

Cons:
Desperately needs new hallway carpet

We *really* loved this place. After reading some posts about the condition of rooms, I wasn't sure what to expect, but everything was in very good shape. There were a few *tiny* things that I probably wouldn't have noticed if I weren't looking for them. The only thing that truly bothered me was the hallway carpets. They really do need to be replaced. They appear to be past the point of thorough cleaning.

Anyway, location is *amazing*. We love the beachy feel, and the pool is to die for!

[Colorado Belle]

Good start...tell us more! Pictures too!

[mssparrrow]

Hi,

We felt the same way about SSR!! Thanks for sharing!

[idratherbeinwdw]

Thanks for the report and I second CB's request--got any pictures you can post? :woohoo:

[pouncingpluto]

Unfortunately, I hardly took any pictures on this trip. I do have some nice ones of the view from our SSR balcony that I still need to upload.


Wednesday, May 10

My husband and I arrived at SSR at about 11 p.m. We were there for three nights in a studio before going to get the mother-in-law and bring her to BCV for three nights in a two bedroom.

We didn’t get the Congress Park room we requested, but no biggie. We were in Paddocks, but we never really went to Artist’s Palette except on our way to or from the parks (which we drove to), so the distant location wasn’t too big a deal. And the walk to Downtown Disney wasn’t bad at all (we were in the second to closest Paddocks building). But being so far from the main building and the pool and being right next to the main road definitely doesn’t help the condo complex instead of resort feeling.

However, I will say the view from our balcony was very nice, with the big elongated pond and the other brightly colored buildings around.

Thursday, May 11

We grabbed breakfast at Artist’s Palette, which was yummy, then on to Animal Kingdom! We were there a few minutes before park opening at 9. I needed to call MS for our December reservation right at 9, so I ended up on the phone with them while I was in a big mass of people crowding our way through the turnstiles.

We beelined for Everest, getting Fastpasses and then hopping in line. It was our first time riding it, and we thought it was great! It’s a smooth ride, and the audio-animatronic is huge but still appears huggable.

We did a couple other rides we didn’t think the MIL would have proper appreciation for, like Dinosaur and EE a second time.

Then we headed for Magic Kingdom, again concentrating on thrill rides, like Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain.

We took an afternoon nap, then headed to Downtown Disney for shopping and dinner at Portabello’s Yacht Club. The last time we had eaten there was the night we got engaged. Afterwards, I got a pretty bad stomachache, which was a bummer, because I really wanted to show Charles the Adventurer’s Club for the first time. I was feeling too cheap to pay about $20 a person to get in when I wasn’t sure whether I would be able to stay. However, when we got over there at about 8, the butler was outside yelling that admission was free until 9! I’m not sure if that’s how it is every night or if we just lucked out.

At any rate, we stayed for a couple hours, and it was fun! It’s definitely a unique Disney form of night time entertainment! We will be going back.

[pouncingpluto]

Friday, May 12
We had planned to go to Typhoon Lagoon, but it was too cold first thing in the morning, so we headed over to MGM first thing. We rode RnR, then ToT, then RnR again. Then we decided it was warm enough to hit the water park!

We *really* enjoyed our first visit to Typhoon Lagoon! We’d only been to Blizzard Beach before, but we both prefer TL. The tropical theme helps it feel more like a relaxing beach day to me.

TL favorites:
Very cool and unique wave pool
Storm Slides
Crush and Gusher
Lazy river

TL downers:
Any slide that causes painful wedgies
Shark reef (long lines, short experience; disappointing for anyone who has had other, more authentic snorkeling experiences)

We’re definitely planning to revisit Typhoon Lagoon. We just have to plan our 2008 trip for sometime warm enough for it! It has to be nearly 90 for my always-cold self to thoroughly enjoy a water park.

I urged Charles to apply sunscreen, but he didn’t reapply enough, and he got pretty badly burned. This made me realize I’m going to have to put my foot down from now on and force him to be better about it.

At about 3, we headed back to the hotel for showers and a little rest. We ended the day at MGM, with dinner at Mama Melrose, the tour of the new Narnia exhibit (which we were excited to see, because we’re going to a special event being held there in December), and then Fantasmic! I can’t remember the last time I saw the WDW version of Fantasmic, and Charles had never seen it. It was really enjoyable.

[Ginger]

Great trip report. Can't wait to read the rest.

[Muushka]

This past visit we went to Typhoon Lagoon also. We had not been in 4 years and what a treat it was. I liked the new 'coaster' and of course the Lazy River and the Wave Pool. Glad you enjoyed your stay. Thanks for the report.:sailing:

[mushu]

Thanks for the report.

[pouncingpluto]

Saturday, May 13

Well, it was the day Charles was dreading. I wasn’t dreading it in advance, but once the day came I would much rather have stayed at WDW!

It was time to go pick up the mother-in-law.

We checked out of SSR at about 8 a.m. and headed over to BCV to check in. In front of the hotel, I heard someone call my name unexpectedly! It turned out to be a friend of ours from Disneymooners, a message board for people getting married at WDW. We had had dinner with her in November, during our wedding trip, and she had also come and visited with me on our wedding day, while I was getting dressed. She’s British, but I swear she spends as much time in Florida as she does at home! It turned out she and her husband were staying at BCV, celebrating their second anniversary.

After chatting for a little while, we went inside and got our room keys and the little card giving us the number to call. Then we headed out to Lakeland, about a 45 minute drive away.

I’ll spare you the gory details of our day in Lakeland, since one should probably not post negative or potentially embarrassing things about a family member on the Internet. But you wouldn’t believe half of it.

At about 4:00, we got MIL packed up and in the car. I drove our rental car, while Charles drove his mom in her car, so that she would have the car to drive herself home, but so that we wouldn’t lose her on our way to WDW.

We had a two-bedroom villa, facing the wooded courtyard area. Not the pool view I requested, but really the only reason I requested that was in an attempt not to get a view of the road, so really it didn’t matter. The room was great! Spacious and in great condition.

We went to dinner at Yachtsmen Steakhouse. As a semi-vegetarian (eat poultry and seafood, but no mammals) who also dislikes mushrooms (which ruins the YS chicken and vegetarian dishes for me), I knew there wasn’t much on the menu for me, but I was going along with it as a nice thing for the two of them. But when we sat down to eat, MIL was in such shock over the prices on the menu that we decided to leave. This was a little embarrassing for Charles, but I just thought that if two of the three of us weren’t going to enjoy it, we shouldn’t stay. We had a cheaper, but still yummy, meal at Beaches and Cream instead!

Afterwards, we spent some time in the gift shop. I borrowed Mr. Holland’s Opus and bought a few DVC Member luggage tags and a DVC Christmas ornament. There was a woman with a little boy and a little girl looking at the pins, and she was telling them about pin collecting. She asked if I’d show my pins to the kids. So, I did, and I asked them if they’d like to have one. I gave them one that looks like a postage stamp. There was this whole series, with different characters, each one in a different country. I collect Pluto pins, but I had a duplicate of this one (which was France), so I gave it to the kids. Well, it turns out that the little girl’s favorite character is Pluto, and she was born in France. :) The mother seemed completely blown away by this, and they thanked me. Then, later, when I was over in the other side of the store buying donuts, the little girl came over to me and thanked me again. It was really sweet.

Next, Charles and I tried to go to Stormalong Bay, but we didn’t realize it closed at 8. So, instead we relaxed in the room and watched Mr. Holland’s Opus until bedtime!

[CRSNDSNY]

I'm loving the reading! Thanks for sharing with us!

Our trip overlapped by a few days....and we were at SSR (& in the Paddock) at the same time!

[Muushka]

I hope all works out with the MIL. :worried:, but glad you ran into an old friend.

We also checked out Yachtsman, and my husband just about passed out looking at the prices (out in the hall, no we didn't sit down!). He said that Checkers would be a treat for him, so we paid for dinner for 2 what half the tip would have been at Yachtsman! He is a cheap date!

Just a comment about Mr. Holland's Opus. I love that movie and it has been playing on a movie channel. I always watch it when it comes and I always cry at the end. I wonder if I will ever out-grow that???:confused:

Keep the reports coming! Enoying them :blueflowe