How to Vacation in Vacation Land
When we lived up north we would look forward to our trips down to Disney. These trips were an escape, a chance to get away from the day to day hustle and bustle and an opportunity to become immersed in the world of Disney. I relished in the shameless commercialism and micro-environment that Walt Disney created. When you are in this world you feel like you are truly in another world which makes purchasing clothing emblazoned with an anthropomorphic Mouse not only acceptable, but lauded by fellow Disney denizens of this fantastical place. Things have changed. Now the day to day toil of work, bills and responsibilities remain. Our family is still adjusting and adapting but Disney, Universal, hundreds of entertainment spots are outside our door and beaches are nearby. There is no longer a ritual sixteen hour drive or cramped flight needed to transition over and into the vacation land. The ritual would in some ways convince the mind that it was time to switch into vacation mode. So while we live in vacation land daily, the mind does not switch into vacation mode.
Yet the move, months living apart and the continuing burden of selling our northern house had left us dispirited. The family was still adjusting but missing their home. The house was still in shambles from unpacking. We were still discovering other issues with the house that were frustrating. The refrigerator refused to dispense water or ice; oven door became completely detached and amenities promised had not materialized.
So how can we take a vacation when we are living in our vacation spot? Well I decided to take us all to Disney World. This sounds crazy, but given our past vacation history we had points from the Disney Vacation Club (DVC) and annual passes, going to stay at Disney had already been paid for by a past version of me. Currently stressed out and two home burdened me wouldn't have to pay a dime. I booked us two rooms, one night at Bay Lake Towers and one night at the Beach Club. We were going on vacation.
Bay Lake Tower
Katie and the kids headed over to Bay Lake Tower while I was still at work. Bay Lake Tower is the DVC version of the Contemporary. The rooms have a very nice modern design with features that pay homage to the original Contemporary Hotel. We had a studio which can be slightly cramped if you have a decent sized family. There is a pack and play in the room so you don't have to bring that along. The hotel is within walking distance to the Magic Kingdom so that is a plus. There is also the Top of the World lounge where you can watch the Wishes fireworks display (with music piped in). After work I headed over, parked the car and lugged in a variety of food and drinks. Once up in the room we were able to look out over the lake and the pool area from our balcony. Bay Lake pool overlooks the lake with a large Mickey shaped pool with smaller pools surrounding it. We had hoped to head to the pool that afternoon but the traditional afternoon Orlando thunderstorm squashed that idea. Instead we headed to the shops in the main area of the Contemporary. As the time for Wishes approached we made our way back to Bay Lake Tower and then to the Top of the World. Getting to the Top of the World is similar to going through customs as you have to be first vetted to insure you are staying at the hotel. After making it to the top we enjoyed the fireworks and called it an evening. The next morning we took the kids to the pool at the Bay Lake before heading to the Beach Club.
The Beach Club
We made our way over to the Beach Club, which is located near Epcot. The Beach Club is similar to the Boardwalk, but with different themes and a cooler pool and slide. The DVC part of the Beach Club is really cool and reminiscent of the DVC villas in the Wilderness Lodge with special sitting rooms and game rooms near the lobby. The whole resort has a mid-atlantic feel to it, which is comforting for us since we traditionally would spend time in the summer heading to Ocean City MD, Rehoboth or the Jersey Shore. The Cape May buffet is the best at this resort! Our kids love it and so do we but we had to pass it up for the time being. The rooms are bigger and we had a one bedroom so there was plenty of space. After unloading we head to Stormalong Bay, the mega-pool that is shared by both the Beach Club and the Yacht Club. There is a sand bottom to the pool that the kids enjoyed. There is also a lazy river that we all enjoyed. The slide, called the Flying Jib, is pretty cool as well, but if you lay down versus sitting the ribs will make your back suffer. We enjoyed the pool along with our own drinks and food the rest of the afternoon. We contemplated heading over to Epcot, but storms threatened so we made our way back to the resort. The kids had some ice cream from Beaches and Cream then we made our way back to the room to relax. The next day we spent the morning and afternoon at the pool. Afterwards, we headed to Epcot to ride Spaceship Earth and stopped at the soda shop for some international free soda. Such a great place for a quick free drink. Our mini-vacation was over (of course we were headed to the beach the next day).
Yet the move, months living apart and the continuing burden of selling our northern house had left us dispirited. The family was still adjusting but missing their home. The house was still in shambles from unpacking. We were still discovering other issues with the house that were frustrating. The refrigerator refused to dispense water or ice; oven door became completely detached and amenities promised had not materialized.
So how can we take a vacation when we are living in our vacation spot? Well I decided to take us all to Disney World. This sounds crazy, but given our past vacation history we had points from the Disney Vacation Club (DVC) and annual passes, going to stay at Disney had already been paid for by a past version of me. Currently stressed out and two home burdened me wouldn't have to pay a dime. I booked us two rooms, one night at Bay Lake Towers and one night at the Beach Club. We were going on vacation.
Bay Lake Tower
Katie and the kids headed over to Bay Lake Tower while I was still at work. Bay Lake Tower is the DVC version of the Contemporary. The rooms have a very nice modern design with features that pay homage to the original Contemporary Hotel. We had a studio which can be slightly cramped if you have a decent sized family. There is a pack and play in the room so you don't have to bring that along. The hotel is within walking distance to the Magic Kingdom so that is a plus. There is also the Top of the World lounge where you can watch the Wishes fireworks display (with music piped in). After work I headed over, parked the car and lugged in a variety of food and drinks. Once up in the room we were able to look out over the lake and the pool area from our balcony. Bay Lake pool overlooks the lake with a large Mickey shaped pool with smaller pools surrounding it. We had hoped to head to the pool that afternoon but the traditional afternoon Orlando thunderstorm squashed that idea. Instead we headed to the shops in the main area of the Contemporary. As the time for Wishes approached we made our way back to Bay Lake Tower and then to the Top of the World. Getting to the Top of the World is similar to going through customs as you have to be first vetted to insure you are staying at the hotel. After making it to the top we enjoyed the fireworks and called it an evening. The next morning we took the kids to the pool at the Bay Lake before heading to the Beach Club.
The Beach Club
We made our way over to the Beach Club, which is located near Epcot. The Beach Club is similar to the Boardwalk, but with different themes and a cooler pool and slide. The DVC part of the Beach Club is really cool and reminiscent of the DVC villas in the Wilderness Lodge with special sitting rooms and game rooms near the lobby. The whole resort has a mid-atlantic feel to it, which is comforting for us since we traditionally would spend time in the summer heading to Ocean City MD, Rehoboth or the Jersey Shore. The Cape May buffet is the best at this resort! Our kids love it and so do we but we had to pass it up for the time being. The rooms are bigger and we had a one bedroom so there was plenty of space. After unloading we head to Stormalong Bay, the mega-pool that is shared by both the Beach Club and the Yacht Club. There is a sand bottom to the pool that the kids enjoyed. There is also a lazy river that we all enjoyed. The slide, called the Flying Jib, is pretty cool as well, but if you lay down versus sitting the ribs will make your back suffer. We enjoyed the pool along with our own drinks and food the rest of the afternoon. We contemplated heading over to Epcot, but storms threatened so we made our way back to the resort. The kids had some ice cream from Beaches and Cream then we made our way back to the room to relax. The next day we spent the morning and afternoon at the pool. Afterwards, we headed to Epcot to ride Spaceship Earth and stopped at the soda shop for some international free soda. Such a great place for a quick free drink. Our mini-vacation was over (of course we were headed to the beach the next day).
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