Trip Report We did it!

What a wonderful experience! After a long hiatus, we have visited WDW again.

Beach Club Resort back entrance - view from our patio

When: August 8 to August 14
Where: Beach Club Resort
Who: Me, my wife and our daughter Sophia (6)

I wouldn't call myself a big Disney fan, but I sure like the World Disney World. Before our daughter was born, we visited parks several times, but for Sophia, it was the first trip to Florida. This was also my first experience staying on property, and we selected the Beach Club Resort for its most convenient access to Epcot, as well as reasonably quick access to all other parks. We decided to forgo rental car, and fully immerse ourselves in WDW life for six days.

Beach Club Resort we loved totally. It may be not the most luxurious hotel in Orlando, and it's not Disney themed (AFAIK only Value hotels are Disney themed), but our stay was wonderful.

• Housekeeping is only every other day (August 2022), but cast members do knock the door every day asking if guests need anything;
• We liked Cape May Cafe very much, it is a high quality buffet, and reasonably priced (by WDW standards). However, food selection is limited and remains the same, day after day;
• Beaches & Cream has delicious, very creamy ice cream with is hard to find anywhere else;
• There is a parking charge ($25 a night). If you don't have car, watch your room charges (you can ask at the reception or use Disney app);
• Hotel has a large famed "Stormalong Bay" pool (this was one of the factors why we chose it). However, our daughter come to like a smaller quiet pool much more - and that is where we spent a lot of time. One important difference - Stormalong Bay has a lot of lifeguards who watch not only the pool, but the sky as well. As it often happens in Florida on a hot summer afternoon, clouds gather and thunderstorm may start at full strength. At the slightest risk of that, lifeguards would evict all people from the pool - and not just the pool but the pool desk. On the other hand, quiet pools have no lifeguards and no one would tell you that thunderstorm may be coming. So people can keep swimming in the pool under torrential rain, if they like;
• MagicBand can be used virtually everywhere. One night, I got a call from the reception - my bracelet was lost, and someone returned it to the there. And I had no idea that I lost it. Uh-uh, I thought bracelet fastening is secure enough, but not so much;
• You can order items from Amazon, but I had to pick up my package at the Business center, which is a bit of a hike;

Beach Club Resort bus stop

• Hotel is the closest one to Epcot, and arguably the closest one of any WDW hotels to a park. Technically, you can use watercraft to get to Epcot, but that would take a much longer time than just walking;
• Hollywood Studios, on the other hand, is most conveniently accessed by the Friendship boat. During our stay, first boat was leaving at 7:15 AM. We took the second boat about 15 minutes later. Despite coming from Boardwalk Resort, that second boat was empty, and guests from Beach and Yacht clubs filled it almost completely. We were scheduled to stop at Swan/Dolphin, but because we were full, the boat skipped that stop;
• One morning at Magic Kingdom (which is best accessed by bus) we executed all steps of "rope drop" process almost to perfection. Bus left at about 7:30 AM, and well before 8:30 we stood next to the "Starlight cafe" with not too many people in front of us, anticipating quickly getting on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. Then the unexpected happened - our Sophia noticed the swirling cups of "Mad Tea Party" and stated that she is not interested in riding trains that much. Spinning rides are her favorite. So we had no other choice but to join a small club of people who "rope dropped" Magic Kingdom for Mad Tea Party;
• Disney World may be the happiest place on Earth, but in August it may also be the sweltiest place on Earth. Every day there was 90+ degree heat, suffocating humidity and sunshine, which in the afternoon may (or may not) give way to clouds and thunderstorms. I discovered that this was definitely not as nice as our previous visits years ago. Before, just strolling around Epcot was my favorite pastime. This time, we had to strategically plan how to minimize our time in the open;
• Small, pocket sized electric fans (which we used to have in the past) were nowhere to be found in the parks. Only large, $19.99 fans with bottles are available;
• Girl clothing in size "M" is in short supply. Time and again, we were excited to see a design that we liked, only to find that there is no size "M" for that design. Interestingly, we found one of the M-sized shirts that we were looking for at the Orlando airport when we were about to leave.

Line to Remy's Ratatouille Adventure over the bridge to France at 7:54 in the morning (6 minutes to Early Entry time)

• During attraction opening time, posted wait times can be wildly inaccurate. For example, it took us just 20 minutes to get boarded for "Frozen" while the sign was showing "50 minutes";
• "Guardians of the Galaxy", in my opinion, is a blast. It's more intense than lower body restraints may suggest. I may compare it to the "Aerosmith" ride - only done with 2020s technology.

Beverage selections at Club Cool

 

[ceecee101]

Following!

 

[Swissmiss]

I was there at the same time and noticed that wait times were frequently inaccurate.

 

[Wicked Sisters]

Looking forward to seeing what Sophia thinks to the characters. So exciting for her.

 

[We love Edna Mode]

Loving your report and the beach club, going in October, can’t wait. Keep the report coming.

 

[Bullseye1967]

Following along!!

 

[LeighM]

Following along. During my December trip, I also though women's size M were hard to come by - most designs I liked were either XS or XL

 

[MagicalMaci]

Great overview so far! That line for Remy was crazy long in the morning!