Sue's Hot Hot Boulder Ridge Trip (June/July 2023)

Late August - leading up to & including Labor Day weekend at Jambo House club level.

DAY 6 – Tuesday 7/04/23
Who: Sue (64), DVC Member

Plan: Possible Gideon’s, Drive to Gainesville

Actual: Last night I discovered my 90 Day Fiance show ended at 9 rather than 10 so that was perfect timing. I gathered up my phone and an umbrella (just in case) and headed out to the area behind Geyser Point Grill & Reunion Station. Lots of people were there – way more than any other night. Unfortunately, mosquitos were also out and snacked on me.

At 9:20 the music/soundtrack came on and the fireworks began. These are the big ones that are shot off to basically encircle the Magic Kingdom. We could see the usual spot clearly, but the building blocked the extra ones. The view from Top of the World would have been great! I have no idea if they were doing something special ($$) up there tonight and tomorrow night.

It wasn’t even 15 minutes into the fireworks when they ended – with a rather lackluster “finale”. The music stopped and people started leaving. It was so odd, and disappointing that the much-hyped 4th of July fireworks was short & not real special. Watching them from Top of the World or Poly/GF beaches would have been better because I’d have been able to see the whole 360 degrees. From Wilderness Lodge/Boulder Ridge they’re almost not worth the bother. Because they ended earlier than the regular fireworks there was a wait until Electrical Water Pageant started, and I stayed to watch that as well. Once it ended, I went up to the villa and watched a little tv before going to bed.

I slept well and got up a little after 5. Once the cappuccino was made, I took it back to bed to enjoy while doing online stuff and watching the local news & weather. Today will be even hotter, with the “feels like” at 112.

Just after 7 I put everything except the laptop into the suitcase and went out to the kitchen/living room to heat up the rest of the cinnamon roll. It was still very good! I stayed in the villa until just after 8:30. If I get to Disney Springs too early, I’d be standing in line inside the garage (by the security screening), so I took my time. At this resort parking is fairly distant (like Boardwalk), so that ate up some of the time.

I parked on level 3 and walked down to level 2 to join the line waiting to be let through security. It was 8:56 so I only had 4 minutes to wait before they let people in. The line moved very quickly (if you don’t have a stroller or wheelchair) and I walked directly over to Gideon’s. The line had formed, and it was about where I expected. It’s unfortunate the sun beats down on this queue in the morning. Several people (including me) had brought umbrellas and used them to obtain a bit of shade, but it was still very hot & sweaty out there! I had my Kindle with me so reading helped pass the time.

They opened the doors just a couple minutes before 10 and most of the line ahead of me was let inside the building. I missed the cut by 2 parties but didn’t have much longer to wait. The a/c felt great! I got the July coconut caramel chocolate chip cookie for Holli and me (SB didn’t want anything), plus a bag of the bites for the office. I was walking back to my car by 10:15. The queue at this point extended down the road and around the Morimoto Asia corner a short way.

The drive home was easy – no traffic or accidents. I assume today everyone is where they’re going to stay until after fireworks tonight. SB is working the later shift today and he did all the laundry this morning – what a nice surprise!

I wasn’t sure how I’d like this trip, having not ever been a real fan of Boulder Ridge and knowing the boat transportation between resorts wasn’t back, but I absolutely LOVED it! The lack of resort-to-resort boats was definitely a pain, and it was made worse by the brutal heat & humidity every single day! However, everything else was better than expected.

I loved the refurbished villa! Our room location was perfect – very close to the elevator, so not much walking to make SB grumble. Holli slept in the living room, and she never heard any noise from the studio next door (the connecting door is next to the tv, across from the murphy bed). The cabanas out by the pool were such a pleasant surprise! There are six of them, three on either side. I still can’t believe Disney doesn’t charge for them, but then again, they don’t come with any amenities so hopefully they won’t start! The pool has been redone and is a nice size and well laid out.

Geyser Point Bar & Grill is a nice addition, although it’s 100% open (no walls, no a/c) so I’m not sure how comfortable it can be when the heat index is 112 degrees. It was fine after dark, or at dusk. The cheesy brisket was really delicious! I’m glad we got to Trader Sam’s and Holli really loved that. It’s a shame it’s such a pain to get in. Since we had to wait almost 2 hours, we consoled ourselves with dole whip <g>.

Hoop Dee Doo Revue was fun, and it wasn’t bad sitting upstairs. The cast still circulated up there, just as they do downstairs. Next time we come I might go for the upstairs again – I’ll definitely do the 4pm show again. At Wilderness Lodge the scavenger hunts were fun. They were both challenging and we did a lot of steps while completing the 13 colonies one (this was one of the “patriotic” activities for this week). It would have been more comfortable in cool weather, but July 4th will never be cool in Florida!

The architectural tour did not meet our expectations – it was too long. We were willing to take an hour away from the pool, so when it became clear it would be 1.5 hours (or longer) we bailed out after an hour & 15 minutes. Had it been limited to Disney/resort information we might have hung in there, but I really didn’t want a lengthy history lesson on railroads and life in the 1800’s.

We loved Territory Lounge, and that charcuterie board was amazing! We were going to get the board at Geyser Point but when I could see the photo of it in Mobile Ordering, we both said “yuck”. The one at Territory Lounge was either the same price or maybe $3 more, and it was so much nicer! It’s a bit too much for 2 people but would be perfect for 3. We’ll definitely do that again.

I do want to return to Boulder Ridge and book a villa for the 3 of us in the future. I might try for next 4th of July or perhaps leading into Labor Day weekend 2024 instead of Jambo House (save those points). Wish me luck!

For now the next trip is this coming Labor Day weekend – we arrive Thursday 8/31 to Jambo House (club level), with Chris/Amanda/Ari arriving Friday night.

There is no photo album this time – those of you on Facebook with me saw them each day and I’m not taking the time to send them to myself & repost them on Snapfish or Shutterfly. Call me lazy if you will – sometimes it’s true <g>.

Thank you!