Grand Floridian Resort restaurants, shops and courtyard pool to close for refurbishment this year

rudyjr13

rudyjr13

Well-Known Member
kane47 said:
Does anyone have any updated pictures of the GF Courtyard Pool? I was wondering how it is progressing.
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I am at GF now. Checked in yesterday and in a room in Boca overlooking the pool. I'll grab some pictures today. No work was being done yesterday. New splash area is great for the kids, 3 year old loved it and the refil mug station at the beach pool is a great addition. Not having Gasparilla open is annoying. CM at Mizners said they moved the video games to another spot in the main building and they were working on making a new game room somewhere.
 
kane47

kane47

Well-Known Member
Thanks for the great pictures. It nice to see that they might be keeping the deep end!!!



As for the video games. I am not anti video game at all. I enjoyed arcades very much as a teen. My question to everyone is there still a market for video games. They take up a significant amount of space that could be used for other purposes such as a store. In this day and age with Smartphones, Tablets, Sony PSP, Nintendo DS, and other hand held devices that can be used for gaming, is there that great of a demand for the traditional arcade?
 
rudyjr13

rudyjr13

Well-Known Member
kane47 said:
Thanks for the great pictures. It nice to see that they might be keeping the deep end!!!



As for the video games. I am not anti video game at all. I enjoyed arcades very much as a teen. My question to everyone is there still a market for video games. They take up a significant amount of space that could be used for other purposes such as a store. In this day and age with Smartphones, Tablets, Sony PSP, Nintendo DS, and other hand held devices that can be used for gaming, is there that great of a demand for the traditional arcade?
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You are very welcome. If you want to see anything else let me know.

The CM indicated that they were doing minor construction (knocking down a wall) to make a lounge area or game room. I'm sure other people closer to the situation can chime in. I forgot how nice everyone is here. The CMs all say hi and are super friendly.
 
rudyjr13

rudyjr13

Well-Known Member
Just ran into an Imagineer on my way to refil mug at pool bar. He was observing the new splash area. I stopped and asked what project he was working on. He said it is all tied together due to the new DVC wing which we pretty much know already on here.

Then he started naming all the improvement projects going on here right now in preparation for the DVC. I asked him why no one had been working on the Courtyard pool since I arrived Friday. He said there was a last minute change/question on the water jets so the project is in a holding pattern right now.

He also mentioned something I found interesting since I am an IT Director. They have their own closed wifi network on the DVC project site so they can use their iPads, etc to help with construction. He seemed like he has been working construction for years so this was the first time he experienced the project wifi. I thanked him and he said nice talking to you which was pretty cool. Love how friendly everyone is here.

And just to add some proof, I snagged a picture from my iPhone.

http://i1282.photobucket.com/albums...4572230-4012-00000149566CB266_zps4e1f9290.jpg
 
71jason

71jason

Well-Known Member
Somewhat related, new Wedding Pavillion parking lot is open, to the right of pavillion (presumably freeing up the old lot to be the new DVC parking lot at some point). It looks much nicer than the old one, actually has themed lighting, and is much brighter.
 
R

runskimom

New Member
rudyjr13 said:
Just ran into an Imagineer on my way to refil mug at pool bar. He was observing the new splash area. I stopped and asked what project he was working on. He said it is all tied together due to the new DVC wing which we pretty much know already on here.

Then he started naming all the improvement projects going on here right now in preparation for the DVC. I asked him why no one had been working on the Courtyard pool since I arrived Friday. He said there was a last minute change/question on the water jets so the project is in a holding pattern right now.

He also mentioned something I found interesting since I am an IT Director. They have their own closed wifi network on the DVC project site so they can use their iPads, etc to help with construction. He seemed like he has been working construction for years so this was the first time he experienced the project wifi. I thanked him and he said nice talking to you which was pretty cool. Love how friendly everyone is here.

And just to add some proof, I snagged a picture from my iPhone.

http://i1282.photobucket.com/albums...4572230-4012-00000149566CB266_zps4e1f9290.jpg
Click to expand...
Thanks for this report! Too bad work is delayed on the courtyard pool. How is construction shaping up at Gasparilla's?
 
rudyjr13

rudyjr13

Well-Known Member
runskimom said:
Thanks for this report! Too bad work is delayed on the courtyard pool. How is construction shaping up at Gasparilla's?
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You are welcome. Haven't seen anything at Gasp. yet, haven't even gone over there. I miss it though especially the ice cream machine. They did their best to accommodate with Mizners but it's no Gasparillas. The pool bar grill is a huge improvement though especially the mug refill station.

I'm going to Citricos Thursday night but it is our first time so I wouldn't know what changed.
 
rudyjr13

rudyjr13

Well-Known Member
Amusing note from the Grand I just witnessed. Sometimes the Mad Hatter's hat at the new splash area gets stuck and a bell keeps ringing until the lifeguard on duty grabs a long pole and forces the hat to tip over and spill the water.

New things are pretty. Maybe that's what the Imagineer I saw the other day was looking at...
 
rudyjr13

rudyjr13

Well-Known Member
runskimom said:
Thanks for this report! Too bad work is delayed on the courtyard pool. How is construction shaping up at Gasparilla's?
Click to expand...

I walked by Gasparillas the other day. Everything was boarded up, couldn't see a thing. No signs of workers. I did see a few construction workers going in and out of Sandy Cove a few times.
 
kane47

kane47

Well-Known Member
Does anyone know if there will be any beach at all left at the Grand Floridian when the construction is totally complete?
 
Innkeeper's Club

Innkeeper's Club

Well-Known Member
Scuttle said:
Gaspirillas has amazing food. Its a toss up to me between roaring forks and Gaspirillas for best counter service on property.
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When I use to stay at the Contemporary I would take the Resort Monorail to the Grand Floridian just so I could eat at Gasparilla's, because back then I thought they had a great menu. However a few years ago I thought their menu started to decline. They got rid of my favorite item which was the Southewestern Chicken Sandwich and they started serving their Soups in smaller containers.
 
kane47

kane47

Well-Known Member
I noticed it about five or six years ago. They defiantly truncated their menu. I understand why most Disney restaurants have reduced the number of offerings on their menus. I have a couple friends who own their own restaurants and it boils down to food cost and spoilage. As a customer however it is always good to have as many choices as possible, especially if you are lucky enough to spend more then a week in Disney.
 
kane47

kane47

Well-Known Member
Trotsky said:
We attended both the week of Nov 8-16. No major changes that we saw... in fact, I'm not sure they WERE rehabed this year? Could be wrong, but I thought they got their facelifts earlier :).
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DiningThe following restaurants will be closed for refurbishment:

Narcoosee's - July 9 to July 22 2012
Citricos - July 23 to August 4 2012
Beach Pool Bar - Currently closed through August 24 2012
Mizner's Lounge - July 9 to July 14 2012
Gasparilla Grill quick service - August 24 to December 2012

They were both supposed to be down during the summer for short rehabs.
 

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