lklasing 16 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Just as an explanation of why someone with so few posts is posting a TR on FF.net, when we didn’t even go to FW this trip: I’ve been primarily lurking since the big shakeup at that former site, though I’m happy to be FB friends with several of you, and also have actually met more Fiends at the Fort. So, even though this report isn’t one from staying at the Fort, and even though even though I’m a cabin girl (gasp!) rather than a “real camper” :shh:, I decided to go out on that limb and post this report here. So, I’m hoping for some readers! Anyway, with some encouragement from my favorite trip reporter TCD, here goes:With our last trip over a year ago, it was time to head back to the World again. So, from May 27 to June 1, we went back! :banana: We had a nice sized crowd again on this trip, which is the way we love to do Disney. Here's my immediate family:Leslie (me) (with Jodi and Lynn):Ray (DH):DD Danielle (14):DD Jodi (12):Many of our recent trips have been with my dad and step-mom and a variety of family members on that side. But a trip with that crowd isn't planned again until March 2012, so we were on our own this time. The last 4 of our trips have been to the Fort Wilderness cabins, with other family members sometimes staying in a camper nearby. But this time, as much as I absolutely love the cabins, we were ready to try something different. Before we discovered FW, we were Poly people - always stayed GVC. But now that the girls are bigger (much bigger than the last time we were at the Poly), we have a hard time all fitting into one regular hotel room, even a larger one. Ray just can't sleep in a room with so many other people, and the girls accumulate so much stuff and scatter it everywhere, making any one room just not workable for us. So, after a good bit of research, I decided to try something completely different - staying in a one bedroom unit at Bay Lake Tower. That would allow us to have plenty of room, which we've grown accustomed to by staying in the cabins so many times. I wound up renting points from someone I met online, which worked absolutely perfectly. We had some issues with the keys to the room (to be discussed in a little bit), but the points thing was great. It saved us a ton of money and couldn't have gone any more smoothly. :cheers:Once we settled on getting a 1BR at BLT (lake view, which was fabulous - pictures to come), we realized had room for five. That's how my niece Lynn (11 years old) came to join us on this trip. We couldn't let that extra bed go unused, but also couldn't let both girls bring a friend as there was only room for one more kid. Lynn fit the bill perfectly. She is so tight with both my girls and everyone is always in a good mood when she's around. Plus, she used to live about an hour away and we would spend most weekends together at the lake, but since our last WDW trip with Lynn and her family, they moved about 8 hours away, so we figured this would be a great way to get to really catch up with her again. Here's Lynn:Also coming on this trip are some close friends of ours from home, the Smiths. This sweet family consists of the dad Dave and his three kids, Katherine (14), Michele (12) and Dave Jr. (10). Katherine and Danielle are great friends, Michelle and Jodi are BFFs, and Dave Jr. and Lynn are the almost same age (even though they had never met before this trip), so they were a perfect compliment to our family. Dave's wife (and mom to the kids) passed away last spring after a brief illness. Without going into any details, suffice it to say that this is a family who really deserved to have a wonderful vacation and I was just so thrilled to be able to go on that vacation with them. They all stayed at the Contemporary in a tower room (they had booked a wing room but apparently were upgraded at checkin), so it was really perfect getting to be so close to them. We didn't spend all our waking hours together, but we did a bunch as a group, and had an absolute blast with them. Here's Dave's family:Dave:Katherine:Michele:Dave Jr.:Finally, my best friend from college and her husband live in Tampa and just recently bought into DVC. Anxious to start using their new points, they booked a stay for two nights at SSR while we were there. We got to have fun touring and having a few meals together. Here is Claire (and me):Lynn's mom drove her in to town on Thursday night before we left, at which time the fun began (tiny pic, but we were having a great time):Next up: First day - travel, Magic Kingdom, some serious key issues , but more serious fun Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Roller ... aka Ed 351 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Nice start ... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
rdancemom... Pam 113 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Awesome! A BLT report, I've been wanting to go check in there for a few days to look around so badly. Anxious to hear what you thought... :popcorn: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ok Grumpy AKA Cindy~~ 9 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Awesome Start! :popcorn: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stacktester 78 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 I say off with her head. A trader she is. No really I'm glad you had a good time. Hope to read more and I hope to see you again soon. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
doodlebug....Cherie 461 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 I'm really glad to see this report. My daughter wants to buy into DVC she fell in love with BLT. Can't wait for more :banana: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kampfirekim 260 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Yay Leslie! Great to see you kick of your TR!!! I love that you took your niece. My cousin went with us a couple of times. She was hooked and still is to this day. I'm really looking forward to hearing more about BLT!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Total Joker ... TJ 203 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 :popcorn: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
H in SC 85 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Loving the BLT Trip Report. What a good looking group of family and friends. Can't wait to read and see more. :popcorn: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PureTcrazy...rita 380 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 It looks like it's gonna be a fun trip! I can't wait to hear more. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
disney4dan 68 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 I'm in! Plus, I am also happy that someone else will be posting a non-Fort TR so that I won't get flamed as bad when I try posting my non-Fort TR later this summer. Great photos so far, looks like a fun group. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stefa70 205 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 :popcorn: Looking forward to more! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
anolefan 8 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 As someone who just posted a non Fort TR, I say go all out and bring it on!I can't wait to read more about your trip, and hearing all about BLT!You are off to a great start. I am looking forward to more. :popcorn: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Just Whipperwhirl 24 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 I have yet to see anyone flame on this site - so happy to see a BLT report - I definately see a DVC in our future. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
North7... Jeff 2 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 If your first post is any indication, this is going to be a GREAT trip report. :banana: Can't wait to hear all about it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lklasing 16 Posted June 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Yay! Readers! So glad to have y'all along. I should have the next installment up tonight, unless I can sneak a few minutes at work today.And yes, Donnie, I certainly hope to see you next time we're at the Fort! It wouldn't be a real trip to FW if I didn't run into you at least once! :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mouseketab.....Carol 1,261 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Can't wait to read more!!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SCTigerCock 171 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 :popcorn: Can't wait to read more! 6 kids, and all of them almost teenagers? WOW! :rofl2: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ajcjmom 8 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Can't wait for more! :popcorn: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
datgrt@fw .... Doug 1 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Excellent start! Thanks for letting us share in the excitement of your WDW vacation!I am looking forward to reading the next post of your trip report! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tri-Circle-D 2,059 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Yay! Readers! So glad to have y'all along. I should have the next installment up tonight, unless I can sneak a few minutes at work today.And yes, Donnie, I certainly hope to see you next time we're at the Fort! It wouldn't be a real trip to FW if I didn't run into you at least once! :DHeck yes, you have readers!I have thoroughly enjoyed your previous trip reports, and look forward to this one.You all always have so much fun!And, you are right about Donnie. I worry about him if I don't see him at the Fort.The man is always there!I am looking to hearing all about your trip!Thanks so much for posting your trip report here!TCD Quote Link to post Share on other sites
GOBA Mom Lynn 18 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Thanks for the trip report.It's great to read about a trip to ANY resort at WDW!I'm looking forward to see how everything went for you all.We almost always have a 'group' vacation, wherever we go. Only 1 of our WDW vacations was just our immediate family. The more the merrier, we say! :banana: :banana: :banana: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lklasing 16 Posted June 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Friday, May 27Our flight wasn't early at all this time - 11:00 a.m. - so we had time to leisurely get up, get ready, pack the car and head to the airport. Even with all that time, though, somehow Jodi managed to leave the house barefoot. I couldn't believe it! When we got to the airport, I pulled an extra pair of sandals out of my bag, and she lived in those the whole trip. Crisis averted. Danielle and Lynn finishing up a healthy airport breakfast:Airplane fun:(Three girls enjoying their complimentary non-alcoholic beverage:)Can you tell how much each of my girl loves their cousin? She was the perfect addition for this trip!Happily, we had no delays at all and landed at MCO around 1:30. My favorite picture to take of every trip, since I know the fun that is to come:We used our usual towncar service Sunray, which we absolutely love, and after a trip to the Publix, we were delivered to the Contemporary right at 3:00. Our unit at BLT wasn't ready yet (we were assigned a room on the north side of the building), so we headed up to the Contempo Cafe, where we grabbed refillable mugs and had an absolutely wonderful late lunch. We all were really surprised about the quality. Granted, it was just sandwiches, fries and chips, and maybe we were just extra hungry, but it sure hit our spot. Danielle seemed to be the winner, with her sandwich with turkey, apples and brie. Mmmmmmmm.After lunch, I checked on the room again and was told it still wasn't ready, but another one, this time on the south side of the tower, was ready that we could have. Since that was exactly where I had wanted to be all along, I jumped on it. The room was great. The space was perfect and the decor was just as I thought it would be. We loved that Ray and I had a separate bedroom from the kids and also had two full bathrooms - something that the cabins don't have. And the view was exactly the one I had hoped to have - overlooking the marina, lake and WL! So the unit was really perfect. The only problem was that they couldn't, no matter how hard they tried, give us any keys that worked. Grrrrrrrr. We had two different episodes of sitting on the floor in the hallway, waiting to be let in by anyone who could open the door. Now, I try to be a very easygoing, go-with-the-flow kind of girl, but this part of the trip really stunk. We kept being told they would fix the problem, they would bring us more keys, they even tried to tell me that I just didn't know how to use the key correctly. However, after many, many discussions, both in person and on the phone, they finally fixed the issue. Apparently, when they switched us from one room to our ultimate room, their system couldn't handle the change. They were only able to fix the problem and issue us working keys by cancelling the reservation altogether and rebooking. Eventually, though, they got everything fixed. :D (Sorry – I really like smilies. :) )More shortly - I'm not sure how many pictures I can put in a post and I have lots of MK pictures on the way! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
polkadotsuitcase 12 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Fun stuff! Everyone looks so excited and happy in the pix -- can't wait to read/see more! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jrandall1972 aka Jan 0 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Can't wait to read more. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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