Travel Plans in My Hands

Travel, Food, Family and Home are what make me tick. Follow along on the adventures of my family circus.

Grand Villa at Bay Lake Tower: “Grand” indeed!!

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This Grand Villa at Bay Lake Tower feature originally appeared on the The Disney Driven Life website on September 4, 2011. Only this time, I am including the video we filmed (spur of the moment) to capture all the wonderful details of this MAGICAL space! Let me know what you think! I am not surprised that of all the videos I have posted on youtube, this one has had a whopping 15,942 views. Well, it’s no Travel Channel host or video quality by any means, but I think people are simply curious about the Grand Villa and want to see it in all its splendor! So here’s how this happened for us:

A grownups only getaway to Walt Disney World turned out to be quite memorable thanks to a lucky upgrade of EPIC proportions! My husband was in Orlando for work and after leaving my kids with the grandparents, I hightailed it down there. We check into the FABULOUS Bay Lake Towers, where I had booked a studio. Here’s where it gets interesting: at check-in, the lovely Dorothy notices we are celebrating our anniversary and tells us to expect a text when our room is ready (since it was only 10AM). Having never received a text, we return at 3PM to get our room number. OK, arriving at Room 8430, our key doesn’t work. So we call them and wait. Then after 15 minutes, hubby heads back to the front desk. A bit frustrating when you are tired and just ready to kick back and relax. Then, you guessed it, a CM shows up to open the door. And voilá: Holy Moly! I am stunned! Speechless! It’s the Grand Villa…

  • Sleeps up to 12
  • 1 king-size bed, 4 queen-size beds, 1 queen-size sleeper sofa & 1 double-size sleeper sofa
  • Full kitchen
  • Washer/dryer
  • 4 full bathrooms, including master with whirlpool tub

Oh my goodness, we have won the Disney lottery! I was like one of those people on the home makeover shows that is simply going nuts over everything! And you can see why.

 grand_villa-bay_lake_tower-disney
So how do you replicate such an upgrade, you might ask? There is no formula, but I will say I think a few factors combined to make the pixie dust sprinkle down on us. My advice? First, always tell the CM when making a reservation or at check-in if you are celebrating a special occasion! We are proof that it can definitely work out in your favor. (And even ask for a room upgrade-all they can do is say no, right?) Second, be friendly and chatty with the CM-they are working hard to make your Disney experience magical, but even CM’s have less than stellar days (unimaginable thought that might be) and may need a smile and some kind words.
 And a final tidbit: take tons of pictures, video, and document this most momentous occasion so your friends and family actually believe you! And hopefully you have a better camera on hand than we did (we have since purchased a much nicer camera that ensures awesome photos!) The villa has two separate entrances on two different floors! Every bedroom has its own balcony, plus the kitchen does too! AND we had a Magic Kingdom view. Too much, truly, but we relished every moment, believe me. Hoping for another lucky experience on our next Disney adventure :) And wishing all of you the same!