Most Recent Reviews
Review of Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria
Reviewed by slpayne Review Date: 04/01/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
We ate here 3 times during our 10 day trip. The first 2 times we had an ADR and were seated within 5 minutes. The last time was a Friday night about 7:00. We got in the standby line and waited about 15 minutes. The pizza is our favorite and I love the iced tea. We got the salad twice and it was very good. Service was great every time. Love to talk to the servers about their hometown and disney experiences.
Pros:
Fabulous pizza!Cons:
NoneReview of Garden Grocer
Reviewed by slpayne Review Date: 04/01/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
This was our fourth time to use GG and as usual everything went smoothly. We will continue to use them!
Pros:
Right on timeCons:
NoneReview of Walt Disney World's Magical Express
Reviewed by bellebookworm9 Review Date: 03/31/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
I've used Magical Express many, many times. I called a few days before arriving in Orlando to add two travelers to my hotel reservation. We did not receive their yellow tags before arriving, which I expected. Thankfully their bags showed up very quickly at baggage claim and we made our way over to B side.
They did not show up on the reservation but the agent was able to add them quickly. My Magic Band worked at ME, which was great! Our bus was pretty full, and it stopped at Coronado Springs, All Star Sports and Music, before continuing to All Star Movies.
I used Resort Airline Check In on Saturday morning with no problem. Then I discovered my flight had been seriously delayed. Magical Express said they wouldn't change pick up times due to delayed flights since "the flight could go back to it's original time at any moment". A friend agreed to take me to the airport instead so I wouldn't have to sit there for hours. As it turned out, I ended up changing my flight to the next day. ME gave me a new pick up time at another resort with no problem, 9:45am. Of course, at 9:40 I received a text that my flight was delayed again, and I ended up sitting at MCO for six hours anyway.
I will use ME in the future for sure!
Pros:
Free, easy to adjust travelers, luggage arrived as it shouldCons:
Many stops, unable to adjust pickup time for delayed flightsReview of Boardwalk Villas (Disney Vacation Club)
Reviewed by bellebookworm9 Review Date: 03/31/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
I have always wanted to stay at the Boardwalk and through a random series of events and delayed flights, my friend and I were given the opportunity to stay in a villa for one night, 3/29-3/30, courtesy of a DVC member friend.
The reservation was booked and transferred to my name about an hour before we arrived. Upon arrival to the resort around 8pm, there was no line at the check in desk. Christine at the front desk was very friendly and helpful, despite battling a case of the hiccups! She printed us a rare Key to the World card, since our Magic Bands could not be linked to the hotel reservation, as it had originally been booked by someone else.
James at the Lobby Concierge desk tried his best to link my current Magic Band to the reservation, but eventually I deemed it too much of a hassle for a 14 hour reservation and told them we'd just use the KTTW card. James was able to print my Magical Express voucher with no problem.
We were assigned studio 4050. Thankfully it was not too far from the elevator bank-I can't believe there's one bank for the entire villas building! This turned out to be a wheelchair accessible/hearing impaired room, so it was larger than usual, which I originally attributed to it being on an angle in the building. It was certainly larger than similar studios I've stayed in at Kidani Village and the Beach Club Villas. We had an amazing view of Luna Park Pool, with Tower of Terror and the Earful Tower in the background.
I slept in the bed and found it very comfortable; my friend took the pullout couch and had no complaints. I went out to the pool, and could hear Fantasmic. There were maybe five other people swimming at that time. Alice in Wonderland was playing on a blowup screen. I love the slide at the Boardwalk, and I also indulged in the hot tub for a few minutes.
I really appreciated the little things, like a soap dish for hand soap in the vanity area, which was not available at All Star Movies. I didn't like the low hanging light above the table; it was so low that I (and room service) hit my head on it when standing up.
The lack of breakfast options was disappointing. I ended up ordering room service, and the continental breakfast was very good. I loved sitting on the balcony, sipping hot chocolate and watching the resort wake up.
I left my bags with bell services for a short while before my Magical Express pick up. Mousekeeping was so patient with me when I ran back up to the room twice: once because I forgot my bag of confectionary treats in the fridge and once because I realized I'd left my treasured Mickey ring on the nightstand.
This resort was everything I hoped it would be and I would not hesitate to stay there again.
Pros:
Extremely friendly and helpful staff, amazing room location, huge villaCons:
One elevator bank, lack of breakfast options, light over the tableReview of All Star Movies Resort (Value Resort)
Reviewed by bellebookworm9 Review Date: 03/31/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
This was my first stay at All Star Movies, which was the only value resort I had not stayed in. My friend and I stayed on a cast member 50% discount in a preferred room from 3/25-3/29. I had requested third or second floor, preferably in Fantasia, with more specific locations noted.
We arrived at the resort around 12:30pm. There was no problem getting MagicBands for two additional friends who were added last minute but did not end up staying with us. We were able to set up credit cards on different bands. Our room was not ready but I was told we would be in Fantasia building 5 on the second floor. Around 2:45 I received a text that our room was 5836. This was overlooking the Love Bug section, and one of the locations I had asked for. On the whole, I was pleased that my requests were met overall.
The room was clean and fine for two adults to use as a place to shower and sleep. There was plenty of drawer space, though I do wish more hangers were provided. Beds were very comfortable. I thought the lighting was adequate, but wished there was a way to dim the headboard lighting, as it seemed a little bright for just reading before bed. Although the room seemed like it would be in a quieter location, I could hear the people upstairs and to the side, as well as people walking down the hall. Cheerleaders practicing in the Love Bug courtyard was also an unexpected noise source. Mousekeeping was very good, always leaving a good supply of towels and toiletries.
One day I walked around the resort and took pictures of everything; it really is a cute hotel. Lobby concierge was very helpful in printing out our dinner show tickets. The gift shop had a decent selection. Food court was great for breakfast, even though it was difficult to find a seat during the breakfast rush. My friend raved about the Penne Alfredo with Chicken.
Transportation was very hit or miss. We had particular difficulty with Downtown Disney buses and Epcot buses. Most nights it seemed everyone got a seat, though we did stand on a few occasions.
This resort was fine, but as far as value resorts go, I prefer Pop Century or Art of Animation. Transportation was better at those resorts, food courts were bigger, and they just give me a more "homey" feeling.
Pros:
Clean room, cute resort, good food court, very friendly staffCons:
Noisy, so-so transportationReview of MagicBand
Reviewed by bellebookworm9 Review Date: 04/02/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
In early January I had written a review about how it took the front desk staff 2.5 hours to activate our MagicBands. I'm happy to say that this time there were no problems at all!
From the beginning at Magical Express, they pulled up our reservation right away. We had no problems charging to the room (on separate credit cards), opening up the room door, and I was even able to attach my Annual Pass almost instantly after exchanging the voucher for the real thing. Once I got FP+ set up, it worked for that too, no problem. I took the leap and bought a couple of the Mickey head MagicBandits because I plan to use this band for the rest of my AP year. I only wish they had purple bands, but I'll settle for pink.
There was a slight problem when we switched over to the Boardwalk unexpectedly for an extra night. The reservation had been made by someone else and then transferred to me, so I couldn't link it in my MDE account. As such, my current band couldn't link up. We were given a KTTW card (and told to guard it with our lives!) for the night. Lobby concierge said they could give us new gray bands, and did try to link the reservation to my current band, but it was not working and we said the KTTW card would be fine.
Pros:
Easy to use, actually worked this time aroundCons:
Minor glitch at second hotelReview of Outdoor Kitchens
Reviewed by bellebookworm9 Review Date: 04/02/2014
Rating: (8) Recommended
I tried at least one item from almost every booth, with the exception of Morocco. Disappointed to find out that the booths do not stay open for Evening Extra Magic Hours but was able to come back another day to finish eating!
Ghost Pepper Tilapia was very good but definitely spicy. I liked the Sweet Potato Cinnamon Waffle with Pineapple Dole Whip. Loved the non-alchololic Frozen Desert Violet Lemonade (a return from last year) and the Watermelon Passion Fruit Slush (previously alcoholic). The Pineapple Dream Sake slush from Japan was very good as well. Appreciated the return of the Pulled Pig Slider at USA.
Did not care so much for the Bubble Tea, the Watermelon Salad, or the Salmon Tartare from UK (though the actual cheddar and potato biscuit was heavenly).
Items that were just so-so were from booths in Mexico, Italy, and France.
I'm glad that F&GF serves food now; it's like a mini Food & Wine Festival for those of us who can't make it down to WDW during the fall.
Pros:
—Cons:
—Review of Boardwalk Inn (Deluxe Resort)
Reviewed by rpayer Review Date: 03/31/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
My mom (uses a wheelchair), my DD (celebrating her 16th bday) and I checked in to the Boardwalk Inn on March 15th and checked out on March 24th. I did online check in before we arrived, so we only spent a few minutes at the front desk. We had our magic bands in hand and were ready to go. We were in room 1292 which was handicapped accessible with a roll in shower on the 1st floor. The room was in excellent condition, was quite large, had a patio with a view of the interior courtyard and was very close to the elevators. We did not hear any noise from the rooms on either side or from the hallway. We arrived on a Sat night and the covered entrance area in front of the Boardwalk was quite busy. We received luggage assistance immediately (we had driven from NJ, so we had tons of luggage and two wheelchairs) and valet parked our car. Since my Mom has a handicap placard we received free valet parking at all disney resorts. This was quite a savings since valet parking is $15. We used valet parking our entire stay which was quite convenient since self parking was a short walk away. We purchased two refillable mugs which we used numerous times. The only slight inconvenience was that we had to go outside the hotel to the bakery to refill them. Too bad there isn't a refill station at the Belle Vue Lounge or the small store that is inside the hotel. We used the quiet pool and hot tub a few times and found it to be quite nice. Pool towels are provided at the pool. The only problem we had during our stay was when we arrived. We had only lukewarm water in our shower, but we called maintenance and they fixed it by the next day. We then had hot, hot water in our shower which was great. Since we were celebrating my DD's 16th bday, there was a bday balloon in our room upon arrival. I also had a bouquet of flowers and balloons delivered the next day which arrived without problem. We loved having the college size refrigerator which we filled with drinks, milk and breakfast stuff. We mostly ate breakfast in our room to save time. We found the store on the boardwalk to have all we needed. We also ate at the bakery, pizza window and the Big River Grille which were all excellent. Walking along the boardwalk was always fun and walking to Epcot and Disney Studios was quite a time saver. That was one of the big reasons for staying at the Boardwalk. We received assistance from the Concierge and all cast members were very helpful. A big thank you to all the valet members. We received help from them every day. I believe that Disney uses a third party for valet services and they were all excellent. We never waited long for our car and they were always offering assistance to my Mom who was in a wheelchair. We had an amazing time at the Boardwalk Inn and I would highly recommend staying there and can't wait to go back again some time soon!
Pros:
beautiful resort, large handicap accessible room, valet parking, helpful cast membersCons:
rapid fill refills only outside, no quick serviceReview of Keys to the Kingdom - Magic Kingdom
Reviewed by ruthann Review Date: 03/31/2014
Rating: (10) Recommended
My husband and I are seniors, age 63 and 66, when we took the Keys to the Kingdom tour. We have never gone a tour before, but wanted to try something different. The 5 hours long tour was broken up in some rest areas not listed, but still a lot of walking. It was worth it though. Our tour guide made the tour for us. He was enthusiastic, entertaining, and seemed like this was his first time giving the tour, that is, he was as awestruck as the rest of us. The info and behind the scenes tours were great. The food was really good too, and the special gift at the end was a nice surprise! I would recommend this tour to anyone who can keep up, but if you are at WDW you do a lot of walking every day. One of my favorite parts of the tour was not on the tour! Before the 8:30am tour, we were able to walk about the empty park (main street area only and the castle area) before the tour and before the park opened. It was a real treat to walk about practically alone and to actually see the store window displays all spruced up for Christmas. It was awesome! Would we do it again? Probably not but only because we have done it once. It is well worth the money and the experience is unforgettable. If you have health, walking issues you should probably take a shorter, easier tour. One older couple had a difficult time with the walking, heat, etc. I would recommend this tour to anyone, and would definitely take another WDW tour!
Pros:
fun! great tour guide, lots of infoCons:
just the amount of walking on a very hot day!Review of ESPN Club
Reviewed by HFW Review Date: 03/31/2014
Rating: (7) Recommended
Waitress was excellent. Our drinks never went empty. I ordered nachos for 2 they were delicious, I'm almost ashamed to admit I cleaned the plate of them by myself. DW had cheesesteak which she thought was dry, and lacking cheese and onions, plenty of meat though. We would go back, she'd just try something else next time.
