The Specifics
May 17-19: Pop Century (me and sister)
May 19-23: Yacht Club (me, sister, parents)
Flew out of Atlantic City 7am.
Weather: This was our first Disney trip in 4 years that was not over the Christmas/ New Years Holiday. The weather in May was extremely warm (borderline hot-high 80s, low 90s) each day. The sun was bright, and there were no afternoon storms or constant clouds. There was one evening of drizzle for about 90 minutes, but then the sun came out again. The weather was perfect—hot and dry. Ahh, the lusty month of May…
Magical Express: It was okay. The skipping baggage claim was nice and saved maybe 15 mins tops. The Disney Reps. in white gloves were everywhere in Orlando International and were very helpful. There was no line at check in and our bus was ready to go. It was great. The video on the bus was fun too. (Afterwards we watched A Shark’s Tale, haha.) From the time my sister and I sat on the bus, we arrived at Pop Century 1 hour 58 minutes later (longer than our flight). We stopped at (in order) Caribbean Beach, BoardWalk, Yacht Club, Coronado Springs, All Star Music, Movies, and Pop Century. To make matters worse, those HUGE busses cannot fit in the porte cochere’s and it is a whole bunch of reverse, forward, reverse, forward—it was very time consuming. We finally arrived, our room was ready at check in at 11am, and our luggage arrived after 4. No real biggie. But the ride over was bad.
My parents Magical Express took 1 hour 45 minutes and they stopped at Pop Century, Coronado, Sports, Beach, and Yacht. Their luggage beat them to the room, which was ready for 11am. Overall, we will probably use Magical Express again as long as it is a free service. When you must pay, we will look into other options. In Disney, time is money.
Pop Century: This was my very first time staying at a Value Resort. I was very impressed for what it was. My sister and I were in the 50s zone, 4th floor of building 3, room 27 (3427). It was a view directly overlooking the lake with two unfinished buildings in the background. It was nice because we love water views and the blaring pop music on the inside of the resort and all over was so annoying. We were able to see both Wishes and Illuminations nightly from our balcony, which was an added treat. The whole wing we were in had great fireworks views, I was very impressed. The food court was clean, efficient, and well staffed. Check in was super easy, yet the room was super small. The bed was almost out the door. Double sinks, a fridge, closets, storage, and hairdryers were all missed. Overall, the Resort was very nice. Pop would be the only Value I would stay at (great bus service—centrally located) but only as a “last resort.” I would stay here again. It was very fun. I liked this better than Dolphin, despite the latter's location.
Yacht Club: This was our fourth stay here in three years because it is a great, immersive experience. Just like the previous vacations, we were immediately upgraded to a water view room directly facing the lake (no right angle view) looking over to BoardWalk with Epcot towards our left. The rooms are spacious, have lots of storage, and lots of little extras. My parents are in love with the quiet pool that is so hidden and removed away from the Resort that not many people are aware of its location. It is always empty, QUIET, and we just lay there all afternoon (it is vacation, right??!) The brand new Beach Club Marketplace was a great addition because there is finally a place to get well prepared food FAST. Hope the Yacht Club side gets one in the very near future. Transportation was good b/c Yacht/Beach had their own bus and Swan/Dolphin/BoardWalk had theirs. So anytime our bus wasn’t there, we would hop on the other bus and exit at another Crescent Lake Resort. And walking to Epcot and MGM is not only great exercise (a family of pro health and physical fitness) but also convenient because you are not on Disney Transport’s clock. I love Yacht Club.
As great a time we had at Yacht Club, we were upset that so much of the Resort was under refurbishment and it had not been mentioned during time of booking or in letters leading up to the vacation, or when we directly called to verify everything. We will now be sure to ask. Refurbishment areas included the lighthouse, the outdoor breezeway from Yacht to Beach, an entire front wing overlooking BoardWalk closest to Dolphin side, the porte cochere entryway, the convention center out front, exteriors of the building facing Stormalong Bay, and the bus stop area. I literally mean white tarps and scaffolding were everywhere. But our view saw none of this (except for the lighthouse) and we really did have an enjoyable time. It was the best view we had ever been given. Stormalong Bay is great, the CMs are wonderful, and the Resort always looks its best. We really believe that Yacht Club is the best for our own likings and expectations.
Weddings were all over Crescent Lake area in the gazebos and beaches. Because our room was in the YC Wedding Gazebo vicinity, we watched parts of several weddings, including one with a horse and carriage. Each wedding was so beautiful. The landscaping was great and we have always lucked out having a water view/ Epcot view/wedding gazebo view upgrade.
Magic Kingdom
The park was relatively empty on all days. Longest posted wait was Space Mtn. at 45 minutes but it was less than 15 mins. Got to ride all the high profile rides many times, and even some we never had before, like Astro Orbiter. We saw Wishes for the first time from Main Street while sitting, beautiful. The park was very clean and everything was in bloom. We rode one night Big Thunder 8 times in a row at closing, and it was so empty we never had to leave our seats in the back row. The next night we did the same thing, and did not have to exit the ride. Big Thunder at night is great. Everything on Splash that was not working in January was fully functional, including the hopping Brer Rabbit and the Leapfrog Fountains (though their aim was way off). Jungle Cruise at night is kind of scary. It was great having short wait times, walk-ons, and FastPasses available after 11am, telling you to come back in about an hour, instead of after dinnertime. Cinderellabration looked fun with fireworks, but I never officially saw it. To us, it’s another stage show in the vein of all the others.
Epcot
The International Flower and Garden Festival was beautiful. My parents are green thumbs and enjoyed the place and bought lots of flowers. The park was beautiful and just not crowded. It’s amazing that these rides can have only 20 minute and less waits and still have Fastpasses available past 10am, lol. I met our very own wannabebelle here rocking out to Off Kilter and that was a lot of fun. I also hung out with MicBat Jonnie again and that was lots of fun too. (Missed ya Aimee, and Dan too.)
Soarin’ was the greatest ride. It is my dad’s favorite, and ranks up there with Tower and back-seat-at-night-Big Thunder with the rest of us. It’s an amazing experience, extremely peaceful, and absolutely beautiful. (Anyone have the music for me??)
MGM
Again, empty. We avoided the mornings because of Star Wars hoopla. We never saw the new Stunt Show, it just did not appeal to us. When a show is in progress, the park vacuums out and all attractions are walk-ons. We could not pass up that opportunity so we passed on the Stunt Show. And whereas Soarin’ was the talk of Disney Guests in any park, the stunt show I never heard mentioned. And Streets of America is a mess—not nearly finished, way faded, and not too much entertainment back there. I hope Osborne Lights are moved from there, as said before it is not the same effect. I hung out with our own Kenan here too, and we had a lot of fun.
Animal Kingdom
I enjoy this park so much more every time I come here. Kali was fun—but short. Everest looks amazing. Dinosaur is one of my favorites, and I enjoy the ambiance of Dino-Rama. First time on Triceratop Spin and the E-break went on and the dinosaurs suddenly dropped straight down so fast and we bumped at the bottom for a good 30 seconds. It was kind of freaky. Lucky was neat, and the performer with him was really funny.
Blizzard Beach & Typhoon Lagoon
First times at either park in 4 years because of the whole chilly weather during Christmas time. Blizzard Beach was just as I remember it and we had a really good time. Everything was a literal walk on if you timed it right, except for Summit Plummet, which had a 15 minute wait. Goofy was at the park.
Typhoon Lagoon was a tad let down. They toned down a lot of the slides with modifications, and in my opinion, ruined Mayday Falls. Back in the day, that thing was the fastest, most out of control crazy tube ride ever. Now all those bumps and slow down points ruin the ride, and so do the inner tubes that are not round, thus not allowing you to spin around naturally. Storm Slides are fun, and snorkeling is great. We enjoyed our water adventures.
Crush n Gusher was incredible amounts of fun even though each slide is short. But we got to the park at 10am and rode an even 12 times without any waiting. It made the slide seem longer when we ran from the pool to the top without waiting. I think our favorite was the middle one, or whichever one had a series of bunny hills and humps at the end. The slides were very powerful, out of control, bumpy, but hysterically fun and funny. They were big hits!
Sit-Down Restaurants
Hollywood Brown Derby: Great atmosphere, great service. My steak was delicious, my dad enjoyed his chicken, my mom and sister hated their Cobb Salad. It was a running joke on the vacation. I tried it and it was quite bad. We’d like to try the place again.
50s Prime Time Café: The food was great all around, as usual. Our waitress was beyond mellow and not fun, which led to a lackluster experience. She was efficient, but not playing the part.
ESPN Club: The bucket of wings is the best you will ever eat. We go here, order two buckets, sit back, eat wings, talk, and watch the entertainment. This is a really fun place with delicious wings.
Beaches & Cream: Always have a fun time here, with really good burgers.
All of our counter service places had no complaints either. That’s Disney though, any food you get will be in abundance and delicious. We don’t usually have any complaints at Resort or Theme Park food courts. Worth mentioning--the spaghetti and meatballs at Pop were delicious, I had 3 bowls in 2 days.
*NEW Beach Club Marketplace Grab and Go: Delicious already made food. Bakery section was good, omelet on croissant was delicious for breakfast, gelatos were quite good, and the ability to finally self serve mug refills was appreciated. Bring this idea to Yacht Club!
PhotoPass: The service was much improved over last January. The photographers are not only at the park’s landmarks, but are now scattered in off the way places. On our account, we do not have any MGM pictures uploaded yet, but pictures taken on the last day are already up. Hmmm. Use PhotoPass, but always bring your own camera.
Resort TV: Yes, Kryssa was gone and Stacey was in. It is essentially the same script down to body movements and expressions. I believed Kryssa was having fun, but Stacey is clearly acting over the top. Have no fear; Kryssa is still on Resort TV at the Magic Kingdom bus terminal. It was refreshing to have her back.
Evening Extra Magic Hours: We avoid like the plague. The parks were more bumpin' you could tell, and the lines were longer than you should have had to wait (so saith those we spoke with on the busses and the friendly CM I spoke with at MGM). Because not every ride/show is open and not every restaurant is open and more people rush to the park, the place is real crowded. We have always avoided Early Entry and continue to avoid Evening Extra Magic. Go to a park that not everyone is heading to.
Overall, this was the most relaxing, most beautiful vacation we have ever had at Disney World. Soarin’ was a hit, Yacht Club relaxation poolside under the hot sun was tremendous, food was delicious, CMs were friendly and efficient, and wait times for rides were fairly non existent. I also cured my fear of flying and will no longer be driving. The entire WDW Resort was pretty, exciting, fun, and best of all, relaxing and hot.
Thanks for reading my report, if you want any more specifics about anything, seriously just let me know. I know a whole bunch about Caribbean Beach (12x) and now Yacht Club (4x) and vacationing during Christmas, New Years, Easter and July 4th. (May was Grrrrreat!) I hope that all of your upcoming trips are just as phenomenal as mine, and that we all get to go back to WDW real soon. Rumor has it that I may be back sometime in October or November, and then potentially for a night or 3 over the New Year.
--Donnie
May 17-19: Pop Century (me and sister)
May 19-23: Yacht Club (me, sister, parents)
Flew out of Atlantic City 7am.
Weather: This was our first Disney trip in 4 years that was not over the Christmas/ New Years Holiday. The weather in May was extremely warm (borderline hot-high 80s, low 90s) each day. The sun was bright, and there were no afternoon storms or constant clouds. There was one evening of drizzle for about 90 minutes, but then the sun came out again. The weather was perfect—hot and dry. Ahh, the lusty month of May…
Magical Express: It was okay. The skipping baggage claim was nice and saved maybe 15 mins tops. The Disney Reps. in white gloves were everywhere in Orlando International and were very helpful. There was no line at check in and our bus was ready to go. It was great. The video on the bus was fun too. (Afterwards we watched A Shark’s Tale, haha.) From the time my sister and I sat on the bus, we arrived at Pop Century 1 hour 58 minutes later (longer than our flight). We stopped at (in order) Caribbean Beach, BoardWalk, Yacht Club, Coronado Springs, All Star Music, Movies, and Pop Century. To make matters worse, those HUGE busses cannot fit in the porte cochere’s and it is a whole bunch of reverse, forward, reverse, forward—it was very time consuming. We finally arrived, our room was ready at check in at 11am, and our luggage arrived after 4. No real biggie. But the ride over was bad.
My parents Magical Express took 1 hour 45 minutes and they stopped at Pop Century, Coronado, Sports, Beach, and Yacht. Their luggage beat them to the room, which was ready for 11am. Overall, we will probably use Magical Express again as long as it is a free service. When you must pay, we will look into other options. In Disney, time is money.
Pop Century: This was my very first time staying at a Value Resort. I was very impressed for what it was. My sister and I were in the 50s zone, 4th floor of building 3, room 27 (3427). It was a view directly overlooking the lake with two unfinished buildings in the background. It was nice because we love water views and the blaring pop music on the inside of the resort and all over was so annoying. We were able to see both Wishes and Illuminations nightly from our balcony, which was an added treat. The whole wing we were in had great fireworks views, I was very impressed. The food court was clean, efficient, and well staffed. Check in was super easy, yet the room was super small. The bed was almost out the door. Double sinks, a fridge, closets, storage, and hairdryers were all missed. Overall, the Resort was very nice. Pop would be the only Value I would stay at (great bus service—centrally located) but only as a “last resort.” I would stay here again. It was very fun. I liked this better than Dolphin, despite the latter's location.
Yacht Club: This was our fourth stay here in three years because it is a great, immersive experience. Just like the previous vacations, we were immediately upgraded to a water view room directly facing the lake (no right angle view) looking over to BoardWalk with Epcot towards our left. The rooms are spacious, have lots of storage, and lots of little extras. My parents are in love with the quiet pool that is so hidden and removed away from the Resort that not many people are aware of its location. It is always empty, QUIET, and we just lay there all afternoon (it is vacation, right??!) The brand new Beach Club Marketplace was a great addition because there is finally a place to get well prepared food FAST. Hope the Yacht Club side gets one in the very near future. Transportation was good b/c Yacht/Beach had their own bus and Swan/Dolphin/BoardWalk had theirs. So anytime our bus wasn’t there, we would hop on the other bus and exit at another Crescent Lake Resort. And walking to Epcot and MGM is not only great exercise (a family of pro health and physical fitness) but also convenient because you are not on Disney Transport’s clock. I love Yacht Club.
As great a time we had at Yacht Club, we were upset that so much of the Resort was under refurbishment and it had not been mentioned during time of booking or in letters leading up to the vacation, or when we directly called to verify everything. We will now be sure to ask. Refurbishment areas included the lighthouse, the outdoor breezeway from Yacht to Beach, an entire front wing overlooking BoardWalk closest to Dolphin side, the porte cochere entryway, the convention center out front, exteriors of the building facing Stormalong Bay, and the bus stop area. I literally mean white tarps and scaffolding were everywhere. But our view saw none of this (except for the lighthouse) and we really did have an enjoyable time. It was the best view we had ever been given. Stormalong Bay is great, the CMs are wonderful, and the Resort always looks its best. We really believe that Yacht Club is the best for our own likings and expectations.
Weddings were all over Crescent Lake area in the gazebos and beaches. Because our room was in the YC Wedding Gazebo vicinity, we watched parts of several weddings, including one with a horse and carriage. Each wedding was so beautiful. The landscaping was great and we have always lucked out having a water view/ Epcot view/wedding gazebo view upgrade.
Magic Kingdom
The park was relatively empty on all days. Longest posted wait was Space Mtn. at 45 minutes but it was less than 15 mins. Got to ride all the high profile rides many times, and even some we never had before, like Astro Orbiter. We saw Wishes for the first time from Main Street while sitting, beautiful. The park was very clean and everything was in bloom. We rode one night Big Thunder 8 times in a row at closing, and it was so empty we never had to leave our seats in the back row. The next night we did the same thing, and did not have to exit the ride. Big Thunder at night is great. Everything on Splash that was not working in January was fully functional, including the hopping Brer Rabbit and the Leapfrog Fountains (though their aim was way off). Jungle Cruise at night is kind of scary. It was great having short wait times, walk-ons, and FastPasses available after 11am, telling you to come back in about an hour, instead of after dinnertime. Cinderellabration looked fun with fireworks, but I never officially saw it. To us, it’s another stage show in the vein of all the others.
Epcot
The International Flower and Garden Festival was beautiful. My parents are green thumbs and enjoyed the place and bought lots of flowers. The park was beautiful and just not crowded. It’s amazing that these rides can have only 20 minute and less waits and still have Fastpasses available past 10am, lol. I met our very own wannabebelle here rocking out to Off Kilter and that was a lot of fun. I also hung out with MicBat Jonnie again and that was lots of fun too. (Missed ya Aimee, and Dan too.)
Soarin’ was the greatest ride. It is my dad’s favorite, and ranks up there with Tower and back-seat-at-night-Big Thunder with the rest of us. It’s an amazing experience, extremely peaceful, and absolutely beautiful. (Anyone have the music for me??)
MGM
Again, empty. We avoided the mornings because of Star Wars hoopla. We never saw the new Stunt Show, it just did not appeal to us. When a show is in progress, the park vacuums out and all attractions are walk-ons. We could not pass up that opportunity so we passed on the Stunt Show. And whereas Soarin’ was the talk of Disney Guests in any park, the stunt show I never heard mentioned. And Streets of America is a mess—not nearly finished, way faded, and not too much entertainment back there. I hope Osborne Lights are moved from there, as said before it is not the same effect. I hung out with our own Kenan here too, and we had a lot of fun.
Animal Kingdom
I enjoy this park so much more every time I come here. Kali was fun—but short. Everest looks amazing. Dinosaur is one of my favorites, and I enjoy the ambiance of Dino-Rama. First time on Triceratop Spin and the E-break went on and the dinosaurs suddenly dropped straight down so fast and we bumped at the bottom for a good 30 seconds. It was kind of freaky. Lucky was neat, and the performer with him was really funny.
Blizzard Beach & Typhoon Lagoon
First times at either park in 4 years because of the whole chilly weather during Christmas time. Blizzard Beach was just as I remember it and we had a really good time. Everything was a literal walk on if you timed it right, except for Summit Plummet, which had a 15 minute wait. Goofy was at the park.
Typhoon Lagoon was a tad let down. They toned down a lot of the slides with modifications, and in my opinion, ruined Mayday Falls. Back in the day, that thing was the fastest, most out of control crazy tube ride ever. Now all those bumps and slow down points ruin the ride, and so do the inner tubes that are not round, thus not allowing you to spin around naturally. Storm Slides are fun, and snorkeling is great. We enjoyed our water adventures.
Crush n Gusher was incredible amounts of fun even though each slide is short. But we got to the park at 10am and rode an even 12 times without any waiting. It made the slide seem longer when we ran from the pool to the top without waiting. I think our favorite was the middle one, or whichever one had a series of bunny hills and humps at the end. The slides were very powerful, out of control, bumpy, but hysterically fun and funny. They were big hits!
Sit-Down Restaurants
Hollywood Brown Derby: Great atmosphere, great service. My steak was delicious, my dad enjoyed his chicken, my mom and sister hated their Cobb Salad. It was a running joke on the vacation. I tried it and it was quite bad. We’d like to try the place again.
50s Prime Time Café: The food was great all around, as usual. Our waitress was beyond mellow and not fun, which led to a lackluster experience. She was efficient, but not playing the part.
ESPN Club: The bucket of wings is the best you will ever eat. We go here, order two buckets, sit back, eat wings, talk, and watch the entertainment. This is a really fun place with delicious wings.
Beaches & Cream: Always have a fun time here, with really good burgers.
All of our counter service places had no complaints either. That’s Disney though, any food you get will be in abundance and delicious. We don’t usually have any complaints at Resort or Theme Park food courts. Worth mentioning--the spaghetti and meatballs at Pop were delicious, I had 3 bowls in 2 days.
*NEW Beach Club Marketplace Grab and Go: Delicious already made food. Bakery section was good, omelet on croissant was delicious for breakfast, gelatos were quite good, and the ability to finally self serve mug refills was appreciated. Bring this idea to Yacht Club!
PhotoPass: The service was much improved over last January. The photographers are not only at the park’s landmarks, but are now scattered in off the way places. On our account, we do not have any MGM pictures uploaded yet, but pictures taken on the last day are already up. Hmmm. Use PhotoPass, but always bring your own camera.
Resort TV: Yes, Kryssa was gone and Stacey was in. It is essentially the same script down to body movements and expressions. I believed Kryssa was having fun, but Stacey is clearly acting over the top. Have no fear; Kryssa is still on Resort TV at the Magic Kingdom bus terminal. It was refreshing to have her back.
Evening Extra Magic Hours: We avoid like the plague. The parks were more bumpin' you could tell, and the lines were longer than you should have had to wait (so saith those we spoke with on the busses and the friendly CM I spoke with at MGM). Because not every ride/show is open and not every restaurant is open and more people rush to the park, the place is real crowded. We have always avoided Early Entry and continue to avoid Evening Extra Magic. Go to a park that not everyone is heading to.
Overall, this was the most relaxing, most beautiful vacation we have ever had at Disney World. Soarin’ was a hit, Yacht Club relaxation poolside under the hot sun was tremendous, food was delicious, CMs were friendly and efficient, and wait times for rides were fairly non existent. I also cured my fear of flying and will no longer be driving. The entire WDW Resort was pretty, exciting, fun, and best of all, relaxing and hot.
Thanks for reading my report, if you want any more specifics about anything, seriously just let me know. I know a whole bunch about Caribbean Beach (12x) and now Yacht Club (4x) and vacationing during Christmas, New Years, Easter and July 4th. (May was Grrrrreat!) I hope that all of your upcoming trips are just as phenomenal as mine, and that we all get to go back to WDW real soon. Rumor has it that I may be back sometime in October or November, and then potentially for a night or 3 over the New Year.
--Donnie
