It was especially nice mid afternoon yesterday, very few people. We were catching up to the sole couple ahead of us, so we replayed a few holes while waiting.
Not sure if that is a common occurrence, of course.
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My sister and I would be the ones being caught up to. 
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Back home now, DS22 is out playing a round at a course near our house today… and making some new friends.
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Real owls!?!
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We seem to be having a nice influx of owls the last few years on the north shore of Long Island!
I believe when the babies start getting closer to flying they start wandering around near the nest like the little guys in the video.
We have a mating pair living in the woods behind our house for awhile now, the male is absolutely massive and they spend the summer evenings talking. It is great. 
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I hear them sometimes at our house–took me the longest time to figure out what I was hearing! Idk what kind they are. I do love owls though–they are gorgeous creatures.
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My only wild owl encounter was when DH and I were repo’ing vehicles (of all sorts). The lot we would bring the recoveries to was just outside the towns in swamp country. One night we racked up 3 so it was close to midnight when we got to the lot.
I kid you not, there was a MASSIVE Great Horned Owl sitting on the lots gate, just above the lock. Our headlights did not disturb it and we waited it out 30s before it flew off. That thing was looking at us like fresh kills. When I opened the door his eyes shifted like a robot to where my hand was on the door frame.
No thank you. I made DH go out and undo the lock that round, lol.
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Still haven’t had time to update my trip cost tallies and put together a report, but for now: 1 week ago RIGHT NOW, I was here. My office is not as exciting.
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I love Swolphin!
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Not Disney or Deluxe It Up related, but this is kind of my active trip thread these days so ends up being my default.
Along with our family love of Disney itself, one of our big reasons for our affinity for WDW is the food allergy handling and the ability for us to find safe places for our kids to eat outside the home on our vacations. (And to find now themselves as adults.)
Just wanted to throw out there that a documentary / docudrama about food allergies is set to be released in AMC Theaters this month and it looks like it will provide a good overview of the social and health aspects of allergies.
Sadly, I’m not sure we’ll see many people who aren’t already somehow connected to someone with allergies go to see it in a cinema, but I am hoping over time it might help a few people understand the risk for others. The comment sections of most allergy-related posts online clearly show that many, many people lack any form of empathy for people with food allergies for some unnerving reason.
Warning: Watching even the dramatization of someone having allergic reaction got my emotions and alert mode running, so be aware that is in the trailer if you are the same.
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I’m sorry to admit that we have not been as knowledgeable or sensitive to this as we should be. We’ve not had to deal with it in our own family. Thank you for posting this and bringing it to our attention.
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My daughter is booked at the Swan (Standard Room) in June. Please tell me everything you love and dislike about the Swan! Are there certain rooms she should/can request? How bad is the bus service? They are visiting one park each day for 4 days. Quick trip but taking a newbie.
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Swan is very nice, I can’t think of anything I didn’t like.
Smaller than Dolphin so a little easier to get around maybe. Java coffee place is OK - thought it was really good when we stayed there a few years ago, but my recent trip I thought the coffee was better over at BW Deli so not sure if something changed.
Easy walk over to Dolphin for Fuel for more options for grab and go food.
Swan bus service was fine, but know the MK bus drops at TTC so likely worth walking over to BW or YC to take their bus to that park.
I don’t know about exact rooms to request, but probably could ask for a high floor on the east wing to hopefully get some fireworks views if that matters.
Easy to walk to HS using path by BW - which we have done. But, I’ve spied a path out back of the Swan on that side of the river that I think might also get you there and save a few minutes, but I never tested it or have seen anyone else mention it.
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Thank you!
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This is a walkable route, or at least was ~5 years ago. You have to zig zag a bit when going across the bridge at Buena Vista Dr (the triangular paths you see in the map), which probably results in the distance being identical to the other route (crossing the bridge behind Boardwalk)
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Thanks!
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Same for us! But I’m certainly aware enough that we as a society should take it seriously and we also need personal responsibility. But, really, In this world where we have so much access to things, could we not serve high known allergens in public spaces- especially the confined ones. Those are the most dangerous IMO.
So much! The list of dislike is waaay smaller than the like.
Dislikes, if you can call it that:
- The bus to MK. Well, we never took them
. I didn’t want to deal with the TCC so we walked or hopped to boat to Yacht or BW for the MK boat. YC would be my recommendation. - The lack of cheap food. We didn’t eat any TS meals there. We tried the deli which is very good! But limited in selections if you have picky people. For us 2 adults with open palettes, it works. But is it really different from some of the deluxe resorts? Probably not.
- Less Disney theming. Not that it’s a huge deal for us, the Swan is beautiful in it’s own right, but it’s less “Disney”.
That’s about it.
I love so much more. The rooms are nice for a Disney moderate price. They beds and pillows are more comfy IMO. The boat to Epcot and HS is MY FAVORITE! But I also love boats and being on the water. You are in Epcot resorts. What’s not to love. Quick transport to the Boardwalk. And if you want to hit the Skyliner up, it’s convenient. The staff there are fabulous. They have great smelling toiletries and the rooms are spacious. The Grotto pool area is great. The water has always been a little cool for us but that’s true for all Disney properties. Unless we go during summer months, we stick to hot tubs. They also have poolside service.
Ask me anything else! There’s so much I probably missed but I would always recommend these hotels. I was always under the impression they were something else. Then after COVID I got an unbelievable deal. And then I was hooked, lol. I wouldn’t pay more than $250 - $350 a night, depending on the season.
I get lost in the Dolphin but I will brave that to be in Disney.
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Thank you!
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I also meant to add that if you are planning on doing some mini golf, it’s a short walk to the fantasia golf course through the Grotto pool area
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These days I’m pretty sure they give you a free CLEAR+ trial when you order a small fries at McDonalds, but in case anyone doesn’t have access to a trial and would like to try CLEAR for their trip, you can use code CPMDPU26 for 2 free months.
That code is good for up to 5 uses, so first come first serve.
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