We recently stayed in a Studio room at The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, with our Disney Vacation Club membership. I thought I’d give a review on the room we were assigned, and a quick tour of it with pictures.

We were assigned a room on at the end of a hallway on the 4th floor. Because our room was at the end of the hallway, we only had a neighbor to our left. Being in a “Corner room”, or the last room at the end of a hallway is always a preference of mine, because it just feels more private, right guys?

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Our balcony view was amazing. We could watch the monorail zip back and forth, and that was pretty cool. The 4th floor is a few feet above the height of the monorail. I can see kids thinking this view is as awesome as I did! Our balcony had two chairs, but it’s so long that it could have accommodated at least 3-4 chairs. Lots of room out there!

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*Pro-Tip* The 4th floor is great, because that’s where the only on-property self service laundry room is located. We used the laundry room often on this trip, because we were there as participants of the Princess Half Marathon, and we had a ton of sweaty runners clothing, y’all! We just used some coins and bought the detergent they offered there in the Laundry room, and we were happy with it. It was nice coming home with hardly any laundry to wash. You will need a Magic band linked to a valid reservation at the resort to enter the laundry room. My only other tip is try and be courteous to the other guests staying there in a studio villa. Like I said, this is the only on-property laundry room, and it has only 2 washing machines, and 4 dryers. I think good etiquette would be only use 1 washing machine per family, and perhaps 2 dryers, instead of all 4.

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I found the decor of the room at the Villas to be a tad boring, especially compared to the per night rate rooms that are at Disney’s Grand Floridian resort and Spa. The color palette is very calm and neutral though, and there are some nice accents, such as the framed pictures and the hidden Mickey’s that are hiding in the decor. The bathroom floor tiles and kitchen wall tiles were also a nice touch. The tray ceilings make it feel all the more upscale. I did note that the bed wasn’t as comfortable as the ones over at the Grand Floridian concierge rooms, either, but it was still a very comfortable bed. The shower/bath combo was pretty standard, and because they messed up and put us in a “Hearing impaired” accessible room, our bathroom was lacking the beautiful, tiled walk in shower that we were so looking forward to. The T.V. In the mirror was a nice touch, but we found it unnecessary.

Our final thoughts on The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa are mixed. We stayed here using our DVC membership, and for us personally, we found it to be a waste based on several factors, one being that it took them an hour after check in time to actually get us in our room, and on top of that, our room was lacking the walk in shower that was an important feature to us. The cost to us as DVC members to stay at this property is also one of the most “expensive” ones, based on the DVC points system. The quick service location, Gasparilla Grill (as well as all other restaurants and food and drink spots, besides Beaches Pool Bar) is also quite the trek- way over by the Seven Seas Lagoon dock at the Grand Floridian. It should be noted that it is a really pretty walk there, as long as it isn’t raining.

While the Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa is new, prestigious, beautiful & “on the monorail”, it will probably be quite a while before we pick to stay here again. The experience just paled in comparison to our Concierge level stay at the Royal Palm Club last year, and quite honestly, just didn’t feel like the level of service, comfort & stand out decor that you would expect from an extension of Disney’s Flagship Resort, The Grand Floridian Resort & Spa.

Stand out Resort things to note:

• Magic Kingdom fireworks on the dock by the Gasparilla Grill
• Room service menu that is the same as The one in the Grand Floridian Resort rooms
• Beautiful walkway path to the Polynesian
• The wedding pavilion and Franck’s is close by the Villas for you to explore
• Lots of picture perfect moments
• Refill your Resort Mug at the main pool, which is close by the villas
• Senses spa is literally right across from the Villas
• Monorail access to the Magic Kingdom and the TTC by using the Grand Floridian Resort’s lobby
• Take a tip and try both Citricos and the Garden View Lounge for unforgettable dining experiences!

I think that everyone has a favorite resort, though! We love the Polynesian Villas & Bungalows the best. What’s your favorite Disney Resort? Did you stay at the VGF and love your time spent there? Am I being too harsh & should I give the resort another try? Leave your comments and help talk me out of the dark side!