On 6/17/2021 6:05 PM, Sue/WDW1972 wrote:
>
> After entering I ended taking a wrong turn and took a very roundabout
> way to get to Gideon’s. When I passed Planet Hollywood a huge tour
> group (50+ people) was waiting to go inside, but I was just planning
> to sit at the bar so it wasn’t a big deal. At Gideon’s I joined the
> virtual queue, which was 100 minutes at that time. I figured they
> overestimate it a bit, based on last time. It was 1:20 so 100
> minutes later would be 3pm.
OK, so you won't wait an hour to ride an attraction, but you'll wait
100+ minutes for a cookie?!?!?
> The bartender was very nice too, so no complaints. After settling
> the check I was on my way down the stairs to exit when I got the
> text from Gideon’s that my time had arrived – at 2:28, so 68 minutes
> rather than 100.
Still more than an hour. But I guess an hour eating at the bar is
better than an hour standing in a queue. :-)
> At Riviera I parked in the west parking lot since that’s where the
> Tower Studios are located and brought my stuff up to the room. Tower
> Studios are something new and only at this resort. If you’re
> familiar with Riviera, the rounded portion is where the tower studios
> are – there are 3 on each floor in the little round part. They’re
> quite a bit smaller than a regular studio, and the maximum occupancy
> is 2 people. Personally I think it would be pretty miserable with 2
> people, but that’s just me. Even as a solo, this isn’t likely to be
> what I’d pick very often. It’s really small. The only bed is a
> murphy bed, and the only seating is the sofa the murphy bed folds
> down over and a desk chair. The bathroom is almost as big as the
> room, lol – that’s very nice. There is plenty of storage space,
> especially since only 2 people can be in here.
Honestly, I think I'd rather have a compact room and a large bathroom
rather than the other way around. Other than sleeping, I probably spend
more time in the bathroom than just hanging around the room.
> I was curious how long the walk to Caribbean Beach was from this side
> of the resort, so I walked past the white sand beach (left over from
> whatever island this was before Disney knocked it all down to build
> Riviera (I think they knocked down 2 of the islands in Caribbean
> Beach). It was a short walk to Martinique, and since the main area
> (Old Port Royal) was the next section I continued over to there. I
> am still completely unimpressed with this resort – it just screams
> cheap/tacky to me, but Disney’s prices are anything but cheap, lol!
> It looks like a motel, which is huge turnoff. Oddly, I’m not as
> turned off by either Port Orleans resort, even though it’s the same
> type of buildings.
I agree about CBR looking tacky. It's really not Caribbean themed.
Well, cheap tacky 1980's Caribbean, maybe. PO does look nicer, but I
really don't care for moderates. Paying that much more for them than a
value resort, you should get inside entrances instead of noisy, shared
outdoor balconies.
> I sat out on the balcony for a little while, but it quickly got
> uncomfortable with the humidity so I came back inside. There was a
> pair of pillows in a case above the kitchenette stuff (behind closed
> doors – not visible), and another case with a 3rd pillow and extra
> blanket on the top shelf of the closet. Thank goodness I have an old
> pair of little scissors in my toiletry bag, since they use those
> plastic zip tie things.
I always carry a Leatherman tool, but I am sure not everyone would have
something to cut the zip ties with. But I guess they do this to make
people feel better about their sanitizing and cleaning routines. Zip-
tied bags must make the contents safe from COVID.
--
- RODNEY
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