Trip Wrap-up
We had a wonderful time on this trip. It was our first ever split stay, four nights at AKL Jambo and four nights at BC. We did seven park days, one and a half days at each park, plus half a day at Typhoon Lagoon. We had Genie+ for every park day and bought ILLs for FOP and GOTG (once each) and ROTR (twice). We also got boarding groups for GOTG twice, once at the 7 am drop and once at the 6 pm drop for extended evening hours. We made use of BG1 extensively.
AKL Jambo
We had a savannah view on the second floor of the zebra trail section, room 2519. It had an incredible view. There was a watering hole nearby that frequently had many of the antelopes around it. Just off our balcony there was a tree with a feeder that often had giraffes. We also saw zebras many times. It was great to sit on the balcony and watch the animals.
The room was not huge but had plenty of space for the four of us. I liked the way the bathroom was set up, shower and toilet in one room with two sinks separate. There was a sliding door which could close off the sink area from the rest of the room. Worked well for multiple people getting ready at the same time. Housekeeping was every other day which was fine. We just made sure to hang up towels to reuse on the second day.
We ate dinner one night at Sanaa, my favourite meal of the trip. We got breakfast (grab and go) from the Mara each day. It opens at 6:30 so we could pop in before heading to the parks. Very good muffins and croissants. We also had lunch at the Mara once. There are quite a few good options on the menu.
We spent one morning at the pool. There are a huge number of comfortable lounge chairs with a lot of shade around the pool. It was very relaxing.
We took the buses to MK for rope drop twice, caught the bus about 7:10 and were near the front of the crowd. We also took an early afternoon bus to AK on one day. We did not have any issues with the bus transportation.
Beach Club
We had a wood/garden view on the fourth floor, room 4548. Definitely a wood view, all we could see from the room were thick trees. The room was rather far from the lobby but very close to an exit which brought us out by the bridge to Boardwalk. We could be at Epcot in just two or three minutes.
The room was a similar size and set up to AKL. Only differences were that the BC room had a couch and there was no door to close off the sink area from the rest of the room. Housekeeping was again every other day but at BC they gave us eight bath towels so we could use a new towel on the second day. We did have to call for more coffee and cups since there was not enough to last two days even though only two of us drink coffee.
We bought breakfast from the Marketplace to eat in the room each day. It doesn’t open until 7:00 so we bought food the night before. The yogurt parfaits were delicious. We got ice cream sandwiches from the Beaches and Cream takeout window one afternoon. We also walked over to YC and had one dinner and one breakfast at Ale & Compass. We really enjoyed both meals there.
DH and DD15 spent one afternoon at the pool. They thought the slide and lazy river were great.
We walked to Epcot several times. For HS we had a pleasant walk there for rope drop while the temperature wasn’t too bad. We took the skyliner back from HS. Took the bus to AK at 6:15 one morning. You can’t beat the location of BC for Epcot. Super convenient.
Genie+/BG1
This worked like a charm for us all week. Thanks @joelbruick for BG1! It made it so easy to book boarding groups and Lightning Lanes. Knowing the drop times was so great. We got Splash for 11:05 at the 10:47 drop at MK. I actually felt a bit guilty as we sped past everyone in the huge standby line. We also got both FEA and Remy on separate days at the 6:47 drop while eating dinner in Epcot. At Epcot, AK and MK we pretty much went from LL to LL all day. HS was a bit tougher but we planned for shows between rides which worked well.
The Parks
We rode practically every ride in the parks during our trip. GOTG was our favourite of the new rides. We rode it three times and loved it. Remy and MMRR were both a lot of fun. I didn’t love ROTR and MFSR as much as I thought I would but still enjoyed them both. Galaxy’s Edge was confusing. We had a terrible time finding anything there.
FOP is still my favourite ride in all of the parks and AK is my favourite park. I could spend the whole day on the safari!
Restaurants
We ate at Sanaa, Skipper’s Canteen, Yak & Yeti, La Hacienda de San Angel, Via Napoli, Teppan Edo, ‘Ohana and Ale & Compass. Every meal was delicious and greatly enjoyed.
For Quick Service, we went to Satuli Canteen, Docking Bay 7, Les Halles Boulangerie and Captain Cook’s. Used mobile order for Satuli and Docking Bay 7 which worked really well.
Summary
Overall a fantastic trip. Thanks to everyone who provided help and support during the planning. You all are so welcoming here on the forum.
I’m so glad you came up to say hi. Sounds like you’re also having an amazing trip! Thanks for sharing it!
We are actually pretty ready to head home so it’s not too bad. Today was HS. We had a small number of rides that we wanted to do and a few shows. Walked from BC to HS arriving just before 7:00. It’s a pleasant walk early in the morning. I think it would be quite hot later in the day. Booked ILLs for ROTR as I walked through security! The wifi cut out and I lost my 1:00 booking but I got 1:15 a few seconds later. DH grabbed LLs for TOT for 8:30 at the same time.