We had stayed at the Grand Floridian for a few days the year prior without the kids and loved the quiet and romance of the resort. This trip was one with the kids and we were looking forward to staying at a monorail resort and thought the kids would find it fun to stay at such a pretty resort. We took advantage of a great discount and otherwise wouldn’t be able to stay in such a highly priced resort – so were were concerned – would it not be comfortable to stay there as a family?
As it turns out we were quite comfortable and yes there were some fancy amenities which were fun to experience for our weeks stay but nothing about the resort or the staff made us feel in any way uncomfortable. The room and decor is charming with robes in the closet for use during your stay, a hamper for dirty towels and a Mickey Mouse shaped lamp on the desk (to name a few things). The rooms are quiet with minimal hallway noise (unlike our previous experience at a Value resort the night before) and housekeeping was always friendly and never intrusive. We would leave in the morning and return in the evening to turned down beds with little chocolate candies left on everyone’s pillows in the evening.

The monorail was convenient although we did find that we spent the majority of the time at Magic Kingdom and Epcot just due to how easy it was to get to and from those locations. We also checked out more of the resorts on the monorail line as well. Thoroughly enjoying a meal at Chef Mickey’s for dinner and a breakfast at Kona Cafe we were able to make reservation times easily and explore and shop at the Contemporary and Polynesian Resorts.

Our only complaints would be that the parking at the Grand Floridian wasn’t all to convenient. If we had opted for the valet parking this would not have been the case, but doing self parking requires a bit of walking. This was probably the reason we did stick to Epcot and Magic Kingdom areas. The other complaint would be that the food court is small with limited seating.

So overall our review of the Grand Floridian was that it was very comfortable and relaxed. With or without kids it is a resort that can meet a variety of needs in a very magical Disney way!

These prepaid dining options are a planners dream. One thing that seems to unite true Disney vacation fans is the planning aspect of the trip. Although there are some non planners out there, the ones who truly get the most out of their Disney vacations tend to be those to plan… at least a little.

The dining plan offers a basic number of meals offered per day, per person. The plan we were on included one sit down, one quick serve and one snack credit for each person per night of stay. So for our 6 night stay (4 people in our party)we started with 24 table serve credits, 24 snack credits and 24 quick serve meals that we could use for the duration of our stay. The fun is getting to use these credits, the planning part is figuring out how to get the most out of the plan and not run out of food or end up with leftover credits when you leave.

The trick for us was trying to figure out how to spread out the food so we could be full throughout the day and not just overfull after one meal. Figuring out things like, snack credits can be used for a cereal and milk will be valuable for our next visit. For this visit though we opted to mix up our sit down meals between breakfast and dinner and even went to resort food courts outside of the resort we were staying at to maximize the quick serve meals. Some food courts even offered an extra drink with the meal. Snack credits were a mystery throughout the stay. We could have the obvious – pretzels, popcorn, drinks, but we knew there had to be better options. So we were constantly looking for the snack symbol throughout our daily adventures.

We had a fabulous time using the dining plan the first time around, but we are definitely looking forward to doing it again – even better

Be sure to go to the Disney website for official park hours!

On the Marketplace end of the shopping district kids can enjoy the dancing fountains or play at the Lego store.  There is great shopping to get most all of the items you may have seen at the theme parks and even a few extras such as items in the Art of Disney and of course everyone can partake in treats from Ghiardelli’s!

The area formerly known as Pleasure Island offers some unique options as well including a Harley Davidson shop and Raglan Road Irish Pub.  New stores and restaurants are being added and will be sure to be an even greater adventure in the future.

The West End also offers some great eats and entertainment.  The House of Blues, DisneyQuest, Cirque du Soleil, and the AMC movie theaters are only a few of the options available.

Make sure to make time for Downtown Disney during your next Walt Disney World adventure!

5. Disney Dining – For many families its all about the food, or at least the characters!  Character dining options and signature dining experiences are the hallmark of many family visits.

4. New Attractions – Disney provides consistency….but also changes it up a bit.  Adding new attractions and having events such as the Food and Wine Festival or the Flower and Garden Festival gives guests something new to explore with some of the old favorites available along the way.

3. Different Resort Options/Same Location – Looking for a luxurious vacation get a way? or maybe something with a more Polynesian feel? No matter what you are looking for (or what budget) there are options for every taste, allowing guests to have a slightly different vacation experience every year.

2. Family Friendly (and more) – Disney is all about family, but…if you need a romantic night away they have you covered as well.  Disney does cater to its youngest client, but also makes a comfortable environment for everyone.  Traveling with or without kids, you will find many entertainment options.

1. Safety/Courtesy/Show – This is the big one. Feeling safe, the attention to detail and the friendliness of the staff make this a great vacation choice because of the consistency in these areas.  While there are many other places to vacation, this is the one spot you know that will have these qualities year after year and if you are going to spend you hard earned money on a vacation why not do it somewhere you know you can enjoy it!

Or… 5-night, 6-day Magic Your Way Package with accommodations at a select Disney Value Resort get a free Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan.

Booking and Travel Window:

• Booking Window: May 3 – Aug. 14, 2010
• Travel Window: Valid for stays most nights Aug. 15 – Oct. 2, 2010