Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<OK. Once again The Spirit is right and Trippy is wrong.>> I ain't got nothing just felt that deserved repeating
Originally Posted By Mickeymouseclub Well dwlover's arrival was today. I am wondering what their accomadations are. I hope Disney is taking good care of them and we will be envious with their trip report.
Originally Posted By DWlover We have just returned from the AKL and all our worries were for not - we had a fabulous time and the construction was not even visible to us. We had great rooms on the 2nd floor with incredible Savannah views and tons of animals all the time. There was no construction noise that I heard - however some guests may have had a different experience - our experience was INCREDIBLE as far as the AKL went - I think when Disney runs into these construction and overbooking problems they must offer options to lots of their guests and hope that there are a few takers so they can accomodate the ones who refuse to leave. We played our cards right by not taking the Saratoga Springs option ( there is no comparison to the AKL!!!) and my advice to anyone facing the same situation is to stand your ground like we opted to do. Thanks to everyone for there great advice - we did call Disney (under a different name) before we went down to see if there were any other open accomodations but everything was booked. The parks were packed and it was hot,hot, hot - Magic Hours worked well for some parks - MGM was a constant sea of people and RNR Coaster had the FastPass shutdown - I will post a couple of topics another day -I need to take a nap before I go to bed! - Disney ain't no vacation when you do it right!!!!
Originally Posted By RoadTrip I didn't support your being 'obstinate' with Disney, but I'm glad it worked for you and you had a great vacation. I've always gone with the theory that honey attracts more flies than vinegar, but it appears that in some cases the vinegar is more effective.
Originally Posted By gardenrooms Going way back to an earlier post, what is the signature restaurant for Yacht and Beach Club? I'm wondering if it was the one we ate at which would mean we were there longer ago than I can believe (really need a trip to WDW!). WDlover, so glad things worked out well for you. While we love the Epcot area, my DS would love to try AKL, it is so special, and I know if we had chosen AKL over Epcot then got bumped to Saratoga Springs it really would put a damper on our plans (which would not, with time constraints and airplane tix, be easy to cancel). Glad you had a wonderful time despite Disney's lack of planning.
Originally Posted By sun-n-fun Just got through this thread (takes me longer in the summer). My SIL and family had been planning on staying at AKL since October. They were called 2 WEEKS before they were suppose to leave and told they couldn't stay there!! They were offered a Saratoga Springs Villa for $120 a night. Since we live in NYS (about 6 hours from Saratoga) it isn't really a first(or top ten) choice for us, no matter how much more it would normally cost. I think this was just inexcusable on Disneys part. Trying to find other accomadations at this point was not easy, they were leaving in less than 14 days - every other deluxe was booked except for a far away building at the comtemporaty. After much arguing my SIL finally got Wilderness Lodge for the same price they would have paid at AKL. I'm sure they will love this and hope they are right now having a great time, but after almost 10 months of planning they were given 2 weeks notice. Then had to tell their children that they wouldn't be facing the animals in the morning even though they had talked about it forever. I can't believe that this is something Disney did see(or should have) coming in early spring.
Originally Posted By DWlover I hope your SIL and family had a good time at the Wilderness Lodge - we had the same thing happen to us regarding the AKL but we were only told that it would be noisy at the AKL - we were not told that we had to change hotels - they did offer us SS but we had our hearts set on AKL - we just returned from the AKL and it is far from being shut down or having any restaurants running on limited hours. The construction was hardly noticeable to us and the animals were abundant. Wilderness Lodge would have been our next choice for accomodations but this was not offered - we are very happy we chose to keep our accomodations at AKL.
Originally Posted By VLD21 Has anyone been to AKL in the past few days. We are leaving in a week and I just got a call today and was asked to transfer to Saratoga Springs. If the construction is not that bad I'd prefer to stay at AKL, we're in a pool view room. They should give a little more notice when we've booked months in advance. Not sure what to do.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 ^^If things are that bad I'd ask for a transfer to WL or Poly or Contemp or even Grand Flo ... but that's just me. I wouldn't take an 'upgrade' to SS unless they were moving you to the Grand Villa, which I somehow doubt!
Originally Posted By nbodyhome I don't understand why they are waiting until the last minute to contact guests.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 I will be there next week and have a ressie at Boma so i will see how bad it is. It can;t be that bad everywhere inthe resort as the DVC members have been given the opportunity to attend " Summer on the Savannah" - from 3-5 pm on Thursdays -- promising entertainment, snacks surprises etc -- no doubt to get a look at the AKL DVC units ( and try and sell you more points ) --
Originally Posted By nbodyhome There are guests now staying at the DVC Villas inside the AKL (I guess they aren't done yet, but some are). So the resort isn't completely empty either.
Originally Posted By DWlover VLD21 - We were just at the AKL two weeks ago and the construction was hardly visible - Pool Views did not seem to have any visible construction - the construction is on the top floors - do not change your reservation!! SS is not even comparable in atmosphere to the AKL! We went through the same request to move as you are going through - read my previous posts - make sure you check in as early as possible on the day you arrive would be my best advice. Don't give up on the AKL, we didn't and it was MAGICAL!!
Originally Posted By nbodyhome It is amazing how quickly the work is progressing, from talking to someone. I actually hadn't realized that all the deluxe rooms were going to be DVC, so an April through September 1st construction time period seems very speedy to me.
Originally Posted By davewasbaloo They don't need to really do a lot though. I am assuming the Deluxe rooms are simply becoming Studios and therefore will just have one bed replaced with a sofa bed, some more power sockets for the microwave (as they already have fridges) and some cosmetics - voila - Studios. Now if they are going to do one, two and three beds with lock offs, then that takes longer, but I would have thought those will be going in the new building.
Originally Posted By nbodyhome I have no idea the extent of what is going on there (there is just too much going on on property to follow everything), but I would guess they'd need to refit the rooms to add the wet bar as well. I wasn't sure if all the rooms in the main building were studios, but that would make sense with such a short time frame for the work.
Originally Posted By VLD21 I talked with someone in guest relations again and told them we really didn't want to accept their offer to stay at Saratoga Springs. After a while she came up with a room at the Boardwalk--and I had to give them an answer right away or I'd loose that option. I was planning to stick to staying at the AK after reading these boards but she kept telling me that it would be noted that I refused their offer and we could very likely arrive and not have a room and than have to worry about where to go--our only option then would be Saratoga Springs. So I took the room at the Boardwalk to avoid further aggravation. I have reservations for dinner one night at the Boma - I guess that will be our visit to the AK.
Originally Posted By trekkeruss <<Going way back to an earlier post, what is the signature restaurant for Yacht and Beach Club? I'm wondering if it was the one we ate at which would mean we were there longer ago than I can believe>> There were two fine dining options at YC/BC. The Yachtman's Steakhouse is still there, the other was Ariel's at the BC, which closed in the late 90's.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<It can;t be that bad everywhere inthe resort as the DVC members have been given the opportunity to attend " Summer on the Savannah" - from 3-5 pm on Thursdays -- promising entertainment, snacks surprises etc -- no doubt to get a look at the AKL DVC units ( and try and sell you more points ) -->> Just an aside, VBDAD, the Summer on the Savannah event takes place in a large party tent structure near the International Gateway entrance to Epcot. Not at the Lodge.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<It is amazing how quickly the work is progressing, from talking to someone. I actually hadn't realized that all the deluxe rooms were going to be DVC, so an April through September 1st construction time period seems very speedy to me.>> Are you sure all deluxe rooms are being converted to DVC? I don't think this is right. I heard only rooms on the top two floors were being converted. I know my fave travel agent put me into a deluxe standard view room last year that was right above the front desk, so that would be third floor. <<They don't need to really do a lot though. I am assuming the Deluxe rooms are simply becoming Studios and therefore will just have one bed replaced with a sofa bed, some more power sockets for the microwave (as they already have fridges) and some cosmetics - voila - Studios.>> That's what's happening Dave. You can see pics on Deb Wills' site from the first person to actually stay in one earlier this month. The biggest changes are the sofa bed swap, what looks to be higher end bedding on the other bed, a flat screen TV (like all the MK deluxes have, except GF) and a tiny wet bar located where they used to have a bureau in a recess in the wall. <<Now if they are going to do one, two and three beds with lock offs, then that takes longer, but I would have thought those will be going in the new building.>> It is my understanding that only studios and one bedrooms are going in the actual lodge, I would have naturally preferred only studios. I wonder what this means for the huge suites on the sixth floor, including the one the new Price Is Right host always makes his home away from home when at WDW. I also wonder if this is the end of concierge at DAK Lodge. I can't imagine they'd operate a lounge and allow DVCers to use it, as they'd clear the place out in minutes of all food, drinks (especially alcohol) and anything else not tied down) ... and if all the deluxe level rooms truly are now DVC, there would be no purpose for the lounge. So we need someone to check things out and get to the bottom of this ... I nominate nbodyhome since she's not home anyway. ;-) Can I say again, I hate what they're doing to one of my two fave WDW resorts? OK, I just did.
