Home sweet home`

We got home last night from our 7 night stay at WDW. I am sad to see it end, but happy to be home! Not quite a trip report, but here’s some notes -

Our girls are 6 and 2. My husband and I brought them and stayed for 7 nights renting DVC at AKL.

The hotel: Savannah view was great! We had a studio with a queen and a pull out. Perfect for our family of 4. Our room location was good, but some of them were a hike! Lobby was awesome. Pool at Kidani was better for the kids than the pool at Jambo, but we did not have a lot of pool time in the cool temps anyways. The QS restaurant was meh. I was excited to see the different foods at first, but it got old quick. Breakfast was always good, and so were the baked goods.

The food: Boma was good, but overrated. Chef Mickey’s was great as always, but my 2 yr old hated the characters and I had to leave with her after just a few bites. CRT was great! The princesses were so sweet to my girls and the food was good. Hollywood Brown Derby was a pleasant surprise. The burger was really good and my husband was happy with the seafood stew. La Hacienda was super salty. I didn’t even make my kids eat their vegetables. I will never go there again. Tinkerbell’s lime ice cream was a game changer. MOVE OVER DOLE WHIP!

I will never ever bring a 2 yr old again (not that I am planning on having another 2 yr old ever). She was overstimulated, over tired and we only saw a fraction of what we saw a few years ago. There were a few magical moments but a whole lot of not so magical moments.

The crowds were not bad at all! This is our second time going the last week in Jan. We love it for lower crowd levels, but it was chilly this time.

I am still processing the trip but overall it was fun! Planning to go again in 2 years :slight_smile:

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Thank you for sharing. I am glad that the good balance sheet outweighed the not so good. …and I think that, in a few months only the good memories will linger, just in time for some earnest planning for the next trip.:slight_smile:

Was your DVC room in Jambo? Did you stay in a studio?

Yes, it was a studio in Jambo. My in-laws got a DVC studio in Kidani and my parents had a 1BR for 1 night at Kindani, so we got to see a few options! The pool at Kinadi was way better for my toddler, but the food options were better at Jambo.

The good definitely outweighed the bad! Just trying to keep it real lol. We are already thinking about the next trip, but not until my littlest one is at least 4.

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4 is the best!–Disney is still completely magical in their eyes, but no diapers and they are tall enough to ride almost everything! 2 is probably the hardest for traveling IMO (although free is nice :slight_smile: ) so it’s great that you had a mostly good time. Sorry you were unlucky with the “cold” weather in FL. Thanks for sharing your take aways.

It’s not a tip for everyone, but bringing your trusty babysitter is a pretty awesome thing to do if you can swing it. You get to ride more rides that way, too.:grin:

We figured we were already in it for a few grand, for just a little more we could actually have a really great time, as opposed to a fun but stressful time.

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I used to take the children’s nanny on holiday with us. Sometimes people thought I was the nanny and she was the Mother. Maybe one of us wasn’t working sufficiently hard?:joy:

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Well, that’s what we did, too. I had more than one of my colleagues offer to send their teenager with us instead- or themselves. :joy:

It is a pretty great gig.

One time we were at Busch Gardens on a horribly crowded day, it was the first day they had ever sold VIP tours (they literally had a little sign on a card table as you came in the front gate). Out of desperation we said “Sign us up!!” And not even the nanny had to watch the little ones that day- the tour guide did! :joy:

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I definitely want to bring grandma next time!

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Grandmas are even better! You (usually) don’t have to worry about how late they stay out at night!

…or ( usually) pay them AND worry about how late they stay out at night!

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