Most Recent Reviews
Review of Pizzafari
Reviewed by peytonshea02 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (5) Not Recommended
Had lunch here last week. I was so looking forward to my favorite Antipasto Salad - but sadly, it is gone. 🙁 It has been replaced by a chicken and veggie pasta salad. I gave it a try and it was terrible! Dry chicken, a few veggies, tons of chewy pasta and no dressing to save it all. Really a tasteless bowl of stuff. DH had the Italian Sandwich and thought it was fine. DD had the breadsticks, which she loves and DS had the pizza..which is what it is. The cheesecake in a glass has a very weird clear jelly on the top of it which doesn't make it the most appealing of sweets. While it is in the AC, this is definately not our favorite CS in the World - may pass on this one next time around. After that salad I may seriously consider eating BBQ in the heat with agressive birds. :/
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AC and breadsticksCons:
new chicken and pasta salad ....Reviewed by peytonshea02 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
We just returned from our third stay at AKL. (5/22-5/30). Like the past 2 trips we booked a Pool View room. When we checked in we were SHOCKED to find out that we had been upgraded to a savanna view! We were in room 3136 - same floor as the lobby facing the sunset savanna.
The room was ready at 9:00am and immaculate. We love the theming of the rooms at AKL. There are only 2 small details that are not perfect. 1. The lighting in the bathroom/vanity area is terrible. and 2. There are only 2 drawers for storage. The first point is not a huge deal. But the second....We are a family of 4. One drawer went to my daughter, the other to my son...so hubby and I spent 9 days living out of our suitcases. I am an organizer and never feel settled until I unpack and put everything away...this made me a bit nuts!
While we very much enjoyed the beautiful view (we saw giraffes and a few other animals 5 or 6 days during our 9 day stay) - I would never pay the significant price difference for a Savanna view over a Pool View on our future stays there.
AKL never ceases to amaze me. It is such gorgeous resort - the attention to detail is like no other. There is nothing like stepping out of the HOT FL. sun into that cool, breathtaking lobby and hearing "Welcome Home.".
The pool is beautiful - an oasis! Our kids loved the poolside activities. One night they watched Wreck It Ralph while swimming - magical!
We ate several meals at the Mara. We had different flatbreads, the African inspired breakfast, Mickey waffles and different pastries (strawberry scone was exceptionally yummy!) Everything was tasty and well prepared.
We had dinner at BOMA one night and all LOVED it.
The CM's at AKL were fabulous. Very friendly and super helpful. They truly make the resort feel like home.
We visited a few other resorts during our stay and we still have not found one that feels quite as beautiful and unique as AKL.
And one final thought: One of the most common concerns I hear about AKL is how "far away" the resort it. After staying 3 times I can honestly say that should NOT be a concern! No, it is not on the monorail or steps away from Epcot - but that is part of the beauty. It may be an additional 5-8 minutes on a bus, but you avoid the masses of vacationers. When you go home to your resort you feel like you are on vacation! If you are considering AKL - you MUST try it. You may very well never want to stay anywhere else.
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—Review of Yorkshire County Fish Shop
Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
Best place to get fish at Disney. We eat here at least once every trip. Reasonable Disney prices without dining plan. Simple and limited menu make the line go quick. Only thing keeping it from a 10 rating is the lack of seating.
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good fishCons:
—Review of Yacht Club Resort (Deluxe Resort)
Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Stayed 2 nights June 1-3. Small issue at check-in. Clerk appeared to not be able to find my reservation, but it was quickly resolved. We were in the 5th floor Regatta Club. I was not told at check-in that I would need to swipe my room key in elevator to reach 5th floor. I looked like an idiot for a few seconds before I figured out why the elevator would not go to 5th floor. That is it for the cons.
Our room was ready when we checked-in around 12:45 pm. This resort is located at the perfect spot in my opinion. 5-7 min walk to Epcot and 15-20 min walk to HS. The interior of the resort looks new and fresh. The Beach Club shares space, but the Yacht Club is a definite level above Beach Club. The rooms are very clean and we had no problems with room. The pool is the best in Disney. Entry is strictly controlled and the cast members are super-friendly. The pool area is actually 3 different pools, but it is blended to make it look like one big pool. Having a refill drink mug station at pool is a step above what the Boardwalk offers. I have stayed at Boardwalk twice and was a big fan. Yacht and Beach Club blow the Boardwalk away in my opinion. If all cost the same I would pick Yacht Club first every time.
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not manyReviewed by charlemonster Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
I attended Friday, May 31 of the 3rd weekend of 2013. I got to the park early about 7:30 am and the gates were already open with storm troopers inside heckling the guests. During the entire morning, it was easy to get on all the major rides (Tower of Terror, Star Tours, Toy Story, etc.) with 10 minutes or less of waiting on stand-by! That was a first for me! The only longish line was in Darth Mall for character photos, but it was worth it! The line took longer because the characters were chatting with every guest. C3-P0 sounded exactly right! I even got right in for the animation lesson in the early afternoon. The crowd level felt just right. Lots of energy and excitement, but easy to find places to stand and watch the Hoopla and the parade. Don't miss the special shows in the Premiere Theater with Star Wars actors. I saw three of the shows in one afternoon and all were excellent. There were empty seats in the back of the theater. If you want Star Wars merchandise, do buy it in the park. I was unable to find most of it anywhere else on property (like the photo frame). I asked cast members and only very limited merchandise was sent to other locations like Downtown Disney and the other parks. Star Wars weekends are a treat and worth trying! Just be sure to get there early.
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special character photos, unique showsCons:
none!Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
This was a our second year in a row and third overall. We went in 2010, 2012, and 2013. Went this year during third weekend, May 31 and June 2. I noticed there was no banner this year out front like in years past. Storm Troopers were not on roof at entrance. Also in the past the storm troopers were patrolling near the Backlot tour area. We went two different days and did not see them. Lines for characters get long quick so get there early. Parade is hard to see if you don't camp out on curb an hour early. We went last year during the final weekend and logo pins were sold out. On Friday of week 3 this year I was told by a castmember that the logo pins were nearly all gone. Also no DVC Star Wars pin this year! Luke, Leia, R2D2, and C3PO were all in Darth's Mall. The Disney app will tell you a few hours in advance who will be out, but there is no posted schedule at location. We had to let people go in front of us in line so we could get pics with all characters at Darth's Mall. The interaction with the characters was great. It seams that Disney has downscaled this event in some aspects.
It might be time to make this a ticketed special event on at least one evening every weekend. They really need to limit the number of tickets sold to make it special. Not like the Christmas party at MK where they pack the park and call it a special event.
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—Review of Disney Dining Plan
Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (5) Recommended
This is just Disney's way of getting you to stay in resort to eat. You really don't save much, if any money. You're basically are just paying for the food in advance. How many people get desserts with QS lunches if not on DP? Not getting desserts at QS lunches and cut out 1 or 2 snacks per person and you already save money over the DP. The DP is convenient, but it is nothing more than a Disney strategy to keep you on the resort when your stomach starts rumbling. I paid $582 for 4 days of DP. I calculated we got $680 worth of Disney food. That was counting in all the snacks and desserts at QS. I broke it down and eliminated those unused snacks we used at the end to get cookies and candy. We also had 6 unused counter service meals that we used on 5th day. It was nice to have them on our final day, but not necessary. After I made those adjustment we would have saved money. It's also not worth it if your kids are in the 10-13 range and do not eat like adults. Disney considers a 70 lb 10-year old an adult. If the DP is free then great. Having to pay for it is not worth it anymore.
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—Review of Liberty Tree Tavern Dinner
Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (7) Recommended
This was our third time eating here. Had reservation on May 30. We checked in 30 min early. It was a long day at MK and we just wanted to eat and leave. I'm pretty sure they were taking walk-ins ahead of people with reservations that showed up early. We were seated late (second time in a row now). Our drinks went empty several times and our server would disappear for 5 min or more. Food was still very good. I'm not sure we will eat here next time. Worth a dining credit, but not cash.
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FoodCons:
ServiceReview of 'Ohana Dinner
Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
We had a dining reservation on May 29. We arrived really early and we were told not to expect to get in early. The check-in podium is on opposite side of second floor away from entrance to restaurant. We waited 10 min past our reservation time until our buzzer lit up. Went to the restaurant and after some confusion they claimed it was set off by mistake. First they acted like we didn't have a reservation, then they said they still showed us on waiting list. They reset our buzzer and we waited by the door. About 90 seconds later an older lady hostess showed up with our ticket. I honestly think our buzzer correctly went off, but the hostess was just really, really slow. Not very good marks on organization though. The server was efficient, but the service seemed hurried to us. All the servers ran-walk around like the place was on fire. We didn't feel hurried, it was just the atmosphere. The food was all really good. This was possibly the best quality food for one table service credit. Salad, chicken wings, noodles, steak, chicken, and pork were awesome. The kids games do take a bit too long. It pulls the kids away from their meal for more than 20 min. I really wanted to give this place a 9 rating, but the goof at check-in started to meal off poorly. If I had dining plan I would go back here.
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check-inReview of 1900 Park Fare Character Dinner
Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (5) Not Recommended
We had a reservation on May 28. We arrived 30 min early and we were seated within 5 min. I will begin by saying I was expecting more from a restaurant within the Grand Floridian. It took the first characters nearly 45 min to get to our table. The interaction was hurried. It felt like, "lets take the darn picture so I can get to the next table." The service was actually good, but the food quality was poor. The food was below average and the buffet had a limited selection. Much better food quality at Cape May. This is not worth the money or dining credits. If you want to see princesses go to Akershus breakfast in World Showcase.
