Conference koolit::disney

as an side, there's a certain irony in this latest (rumoured) development,
in that Walt started Disneyland in reaction to the somewhat sleazy style of
the 1920s amusement parks.

					Nigel

    This is not a rumor.  When I was there in Sept 90' the tram driver told
    us that the area behind the fence we would pass ever day on the way to
    Epcot from the Dolphin and the Swan, was going to be a new resort with
    an turn of the Century Boardwalk theme.

    This was discussed in the notes on the "Disney Decade" expansion plans. 
    See notes 159 & 170.

         Has anyone see "The American Experience" on PBS about Coney
    Island?  I've never really known much about this park except the name,
    but what they showed was amazing for its time.  It had three theme
    parks known as Steeplechase, Lunar Park, and Dreamland.  Three unique
    parks all on Coney Island that made millions and kept people fascinated
    for years.  My point here is, does anyone think that Walt copied or used
    Coney Island to influence him to build Disney Land and then Disney
    World?  I think Coney Island matches up to Disney World for its place
    in time.  Some of the things they had going on would seem outrageous
    for todays standards, ie. they had elephants going down these huge
    slides into the water, horses jumping off 15ft platforms into water,
    they had huge fires for movie sets,etc.  Simply amazing!  When I saw 
    this, it must have been like magic to the people of the time like Disney 
    World is for us today.  
        Does anyone know what happened to Coney Island?  I think maybe with
    the 2 World Wars and the depression, may have been its demise, but that's
    just my opinion.     
    
    
    Steve

    Hmmm...one of the bus drivers mentioned that WDW had another park on
    the drawing board and that it was going to be a Coney Island type park.
    Whether it actually comes to fruition is another matter.  He said that 
    they have all kinds of ideas that they play with and discard. 
    Apparently they have periodic meetings so everyone gets updated with
    what's going on and what's being considered.
    
    George

    As far  as  what  I  remember  when I visited COney Island when I was a
    little lad, was that if  it was used to inspire Disney when doing DL or
    WDW, it was used as an  example  of what not to do.  I remeber Coney as
    being  a  dirty  and somewhat rundown park (early 60's), and  what  led
    Disney  to  build his DL was so that Families go someplace and  have  a
    good  and clean fun without the trapping of the Amusement parks of that
    time.
    
    However Disney  is in the works of designing a new amusement style park
    styled after Coney Island and others,  to  be  called Disney Boardwalk,
    which has been in the planning stage  for quite some time now.  It will
    be located (according to my new 1992 Edition  of  the Unofficial Guide)
    Between  the  Swan/Dolphin  and  Intenational  Gateway at Epcot.   It's
    supposed to  contain  a wooden Roller Coaster (I believe), and a midway
    along with other amusement park type rides.
    
    Based on the location given by the Unofficial guide, I  not  sure  I'll
    like  this,  sounds  like  something  else  that  encroach on the Epcot
    experience, ala Swan/Dolphin Hotels.
    
    Claude
    
    PS I'm changing the title to be something more appropriate

    In response to the noter asking about Coney Island:
    
    I'm assuming you're referring to Coney Island in New York since that's
    the only one that I've ever heard of.  Anyway, my younger sister had
    the privilege of visiting Coney Island in the early-mid '70s while she
    was still in grade school and, although I'm sure it was nowhere near as 
    grand as it once was, she fell in love with the place.  Unfortunately,
    in spite of having made several trips to New York, it wasn't until 
    the summer of 1988 that I had a chance to visit Coney Island.  After
    having heard so much about it and having read about it also, I had
    built myself up for a big letdown.
        There were various indications of what the place must have been "in
    it's day", crumbling billboards, rusting rides, etc. but the part of
    Coney Island that we visited was badly in need of a facelift.  There
    was one small section that still remained as an amusement park but most
    of the rides looked old and unsafe.  The boardwalk itself was in really
    bad shape, with boards rotting or missing.  There were only about two
    or three shops open on the boardwalk, everything else was boarded up.
        At that time I remember wondering why some well-to-do person hadn't
    came along to resurrect the place. Considering what Coney Island once was 
    to that area and the fact that there's nothing else like it nearby, it
    seems like it would be a worthwhile, not to mention profitable,
    project.  Needless to say, after waiting so long to visit THE Coney
    Island, I was very disappointed.
                                    

    re .2
    
    One of the people I talked to on vacation said that the roller coaster
    would be the largest wooden roller coaster in the world.  He said he's 
    been seeing them putting up and taking down scaffolding to test different 
    structural things.
    
    George

    PBS (Ch2 Boston) last night ~11;30pm had a program on about
    Coney Island that my wife watch while tried to sleep. The three
    theme parks were huge for the era (pre-WWI, 1900-1915?). There
    were railroads and future world amusements and attractions as
    well as the ones described in .0. For example, in dreamworld
    there was a premature baby clinic run by a doctor with ideas
    unacceptable to the medical profession of the day. The show claimed
    that of the 8000 babies brought to the doctor, 7500 lived. A
    major fire destroyed at least one of the parks and 'only the 
    shifting winds' saved the rest of Coney Island. 

    
    
    	RE : Last couple
    
    		According to friends who work at WDW, construction on
    Disney Boardwalk should be well under way by this fall. Signs scattered
    around the property say that this new night-time entertainment complex
    ( Think Pleasure Island -- only with more of a family entertainment
    bent ) will open sometime in 1993.
    		Styled after Atlantic City's boardwalk circa 1930, Disney
    Boardwalk will feature a lot of carny-style games and old fashioned
    rides -- plus two and three really snazzy sounding dinner theater /
    restaurants. It'll also be the home of WDW's only all suite hotel ...
    		But coaster fans shouldn't get their hopes up about
    these rumors concerning Disney Boardwalk having a wonderful wooden
    roller coaster. Though the original plans for this new area for the 
    park did include an old fashioned coaster, they've since been scaled
    back -- both physically and financially.
    		But you wanna know the * real * reason Disney's decided
    not to put a wooden coaster in at Disney Boardwalk ? The construction
    mentioned earlier in this file was structure size testing done by
    Disney engineers. They were determining how big the Disney Boardwalk
    buildings could be before they could be sighted from EPCOT Center.
    ( Disney's taken a lot of heat from guests about the size of the
    Dolphin and Swan Hotels and how they intrude on the illusion of the
    that park. So -- this time around -- they're being extra careful
    about building structures that can't been seen from inside EPCOT.
    Anywho ... ) These structural tests showed that -- in order to build
    a wooden roller coaster that would be worth riding -- the coaster 
    would have to be tall enough to be easily seen from EPCOT's World 
    Showcase. Then you add in the noise associated with operating a 
    " woodie " and -- well -- France would seem a whole less lot French with
    all that constantly rumbling in the background.
    	So -- when Disney Boardwalk debuts in 1993 -- don't expect to
    see a coaster ringing this new night-time entertainment complex.
    However, there is a strong possibility that the Disney-MGM Studio
    Theme Park might get a wooden roller coaster within the next few
    years. The Imagineers -- who are always looking for new ways to 
    fold themed thrill rides into the Disney parks -- have come up with
    a concept that they think might work. 
    	Among the proposed additions to the park is a section that'll
    celebrate the very roots of film-making : Keystone Corner. This new
    area would be a recreation of Southern California's historic seaside
    play area -- Venice Bench -- where Mack Sennett filmed many of his
    Bathing Beauty comedies circa 1915.
    	The big centerpiece of this part of the park -- which would feature 
    old style amusement park attractions like " Fatty's Fun House " as well
    as a slapstick stunt theater show -- would be Roger Rabbit's Roller
    Coaster. A huge old fashioned wooden roller coaster modeled after the
    coaster Roger and Baby Herman rode on " Roller Coaster Rabbit, " the
    gimmick here is that -- at various points along the way -- you'd pass
    audio animatronic ' toons ' ( Much like the billy goats, coyotes and
    such you see while riding " Big Thunder Mountain Railway " ) doing all
    sorts of crazy things. Sounds kinda fun, don't you think ?
    	Well - as usual -- I think that's probably more information than
    any of you needed ... But -- if there are additional questions about
    " Disney Boardwalk " or planned additions to the studio theme park --
    I'd be glad to answer them. 
    	    
        

    I too saw the PBS special about Coney Island.
    
    First, some (perhaps inaccurate) background.  If I remember correctly,
    the idea of taking vacations came about as a result of the industrial
    revolution.  Until then, people didn't have free time available. 
    Although common workers couldn't afford lavish vacations, they did find
    the means to take day trips.  Trains and trolleys were available for
    transportation and were fairly affordable.  Places like Coney Island
    flourished during this time (late 1800's to early 1900's).  Apparently
    many people had easy access to Coney Island, the special gave an
    attendance figure of 1/4 million for some date around 1900!
    
    I've never been to Coney Island but the special made it pretty clear
    that it's popularity began to wane after World War II.  The fire that
    wiped out Dreamland seemed to be the start but the rest was due to
    changing times.  This week's "The American Experience" is about
    P. T. Barnum.  It mentions how the advent of motion pictures
    contributed to waning interest in the circus.  I suspect this affected
    amusement parks too.  I guess people had found new ways to spend their
    money.  By the way, Coney Island had more than amusement parks.  There
    were also resort hotels (which came before the parks).
    
    The special mentioned a few things that I found quite interesting:
    
        One thing they noticed was attractions which allowed the men and
        women to hang on to each other were most popular.  Apparently
    	physical contact in public wasn't acceptible (Victorian attitudes
    	and all).  It was this sort of terrible behavior which led to Coney
    	Island being called Sodom by the Sea.
    
        Initially, Coney Island was snubbed by the "upper crust" folks but
    	eventually they joined in on the fun.
    
        On a typical day, you could see folks from all levels of society
    	and of multiple races bathing (swimming) together at Coney Island's
    	beaches.
    
    I know Walt Disney studied many amusement parks and other public
    attractions before he designed Disneyland.  In addition to noting the
    negatives (poor crowd management, filth, etc.), I believe he borrowed the
    good ideas.  For example, there are just too many similarities between
    Coney Island attractions and Disney attractions.  One of the parks had
    a roller coaster which rode through mountains (the Alps?).  To add to
    the effect, cold air was blown on the passengers.  I got the impression
    that a lot of the Dreamland disaster recreations were similar to
    Disney's The Pirates of the Caribbean but used real actors, not robots.
    
    If anyone has any other information about Coney Island, I'd love to
    hear it.  I'd love to find a book or two or three about it.
    
    Ruth

    
    	Okay -- if you're looking for definitive info on Disney's
    forthcoming Boardwalk project -- this is it ! The following is a
    press release from Walt Disney World's Press & Publicity Department.
    It is reprinted here without permission :
    
    	DISNEY'S NEWEST WATERFRONT RESORT COMBINES SPECIALTY RETAIL,
    				ENTERTAINMENT
    
    	LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- The exuberance of the Northeast's
    early-century seaside playgrounds will be recaptured at Boardwalk,
    Disney's new waterfront specialty retail and entertainment area.
    	Noted architect Robert A.M. Stern's kaleidoscopic creation includes 
    a 500 room, all-suite luxury hotel, 50,000 square feet of eclectic
    shopping and family-oriented entertainment. Planned on 82 arces on the
    shore of Crescent Lake in the Epcot Center Resort Area, construction is
    expected to begin fall 1992 with opening summer 1994.
    	The 6-acre Boardwalk borrows from seaside resorts of the 1920s and
    1930s with a vibrant palette of colors and cozy, picturesque
    architecture. The hotel, for example, is designed as a series of
    smaller inns with shingled rooftops, dignified gables and nautical
    flags.
    	An antique carousel and lighted ferris wheel will be the focal
    points of an action packed " Midway, " with the best of the classic
    arcade games and futuristic videos to challenge players.
    	More than 23 lively retail shops and restaurants will line the
    quarter-mile-long boardwalk, including the premier 13,000-square-foot
    Disney Department Store. Vendors along the water will add to the gala
    ambiance, with everything from slat water taffy to removable tattoos.
    Jugglers, mimes and other streetside performers will entertain.
    	Two dinner theaters with offer evening family entertainment : the
    900-seat " Under the Sea, " starring the famous animayed characters
    from the Disney hit movie, " The Little Mermaid, " in a real life
    adventure; and the 350-seat " Family Reunion, " a spoof on
    get-togethers that involves the audience with a cast of zany actors.
    	Restaurants will include Walt's Attic, decorated with Disney
    memorabilia ; a seafood house, and other themed restaurants with
    outdoor waterside dining. Two nightclubs are planned, including a
    " dueling pianos " show with audience participation.
    	A promenade connects Boardwalk to four other Epcot Resort hotels
    on the shores of the lake : Disney's Yacht and Beach Club Resorts, also 
    designed by Stern, and the Walt Disney World Dolphin and Walt Disney World
    Swan. Shuttles and walkways connect the hotels to Epcot Center ; water
    taxis, to the Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park.
    
    				-- 30 --

Re: Coney Island:

This is a bit late, as I just started to read this file in preparation
for our forthcoming trip.

Until I started reading this note, I had never even considered Coney Island to
be something to even compare with WDW, but now you really have me thinking!
(I'll have to look for the American Experience episode from PBS)

When I was a kid (1960's) my family lived in Brooklyn, NY, just a short drive
(or bus ride, or train ride) from Coney Island.  One of my grandmothers lived
there, in a high-rise, and from the balcony we could see quite a panorama.  I
might even compare it to some of the premium views from WDW resorts (well,
almost :-)).  We could see the Cyclone (largest roller coaster), the Wonder
Wheel (huge ferris wheel), and the parachute jump (wheeee!), amongst all the
other less imposing "stuff".  I wish I had been older then, cuz I was too
young for all the grown up rides, sigh.  I just have vague memories of going
on the kiddie rides, and a little bit stronger memories of "the merry-go-round",
and how thrilled I was to finally be able to reach the rings as I rode by
them!  We used to go to the beach all the time in the summer, and I remember
eating at Nathan's (I still think those were the best french fries in the world)
and sitting on old milk jugs, watching the bumper cars next door.  And get this,
we went over there every Tuesday night in the summer, sat on the balcony, and
watched fireworks over the water!!  EVERY WEEK!  Boy, when we moved to New
Jersey, they only had fireworks on the 4th of July..bummer! :-)

I can't believe how spoiled we were :-).  I had no idea this was such a
"special" place, and took it so much for granted!!  Now I want to learn more
about its history, too...I'm sure my parents can help a little, anyway.

But, as someone said earlier, things have changed a lot, even since then.  My
sister and I convinced our folks to take us back to see it a few years ago,
and stir our memories up.  My father wasn't sure we should go, cuz it wasn't
safe anymore!  This is the guy who had taken us all over Brooklyn and Manhattan
when we were kids.  We went up to the 13th floor (cough cough) where
my grandmother used to live, and looked out from the balcony.  It looked the
same from up there.  A lot of stuff was closed and run down (I'm not sure what
season it was, or whether it mattered!) but Nathan's still made the best
french fries :-)

I'm looking forward to Disney Boardwalk, anyway (gotta stay on the topic,
right?)

Jill

    
    NOthing has happened here. In one of our many hotel hopping trips
    during our recent visit, the plywood fence with the Boardwalk sign is
    still the same as when it was there several years back when we stayed
    at the Y&BC. The green color on the plywood is becoming quite weathered
    teh doardwalk is still there (thats what the tram goes over), as you
    round the corner to head for the swan and dolphin, you can see behind
    it, and it is still a grassy area... I didn't get any more updated info
    on when this will actually happen.....
    
    	- Annie
    

I saw evidence of new effort on Boardwalk.  A new green fence is going
up along the road, and there are signs of fresh survey marks and erosion
control dams being set up.

Would visitors through Feb. and March please get a look and update us?

Bill A.

    
    Currently, there is boat service to EPCOT from the Swan/Dolphin and
    Beach/Yacht, in lieu of the tram.  They said it was a trial service,
    to see if it would work, because they would "lose" the tram route once
    work started on the Boardwalk.  So, work on the Boardwalk must be going 
    to start soon.
    
    --Jay
    

There was a backhoe working the site Wednesday and Thursday of last week. But
it looked more like landscape work then building construction. Lots of new
holes for palm trees and trenches for sprinklers.

Paul.

ESPN AND DISNEY TEAM UP TO CREATE ULTIMATE, ONE-OF-A-KIND SPORTS E-CENTER


  LAKE BUENTA VISTA, Fla., Sept. 29 /PRNewswire/ --  Walt Disney
World Co. and ESPN Enterprises, a subsidiary of ESPN Inc., will collaborate
to create "ESPN sports club at Disney's BoardWalk," a 13,000-square-foot
interactive multimedia entertainment center and full-service restaurant
within the Epcot Resort area.  The club will feature a state-of-the-art
television and radio broadcast facility as well as an arcade of
interactive sporting games.
  ESPN sports club at Disney's BoardWalk will be a part of a
major new Disney mixed-use resort, built around a turn-of-the-century
Atlantic "boardwalk" theme, scheduled to open in July 1996.
  Periodically, guests visiting the club will have the
opportunity to observe and participate in live interviews with celebrity
athletes taking place on the sports desk or in the radio booth.  In addition to
live programming, special demonstrations will be staged within the
club -- from one-on-one basketball to table tennis.
  "This club will be the ultimate gathering spot for serious
sports fans as well as casual observers," said Charlie Hardiman, general manager
of Disney's BoardWalk.  "Not only will guests find the club a great
place to watch sports, but they will also be able to sample some of the
best ballpark cuisine from around the country."  "Fenway Franks" and
"Dodger Dogs" will anchor the menu's rotation.
  Dick Glover, ESPN senior vice president, said:  "The best in
sports programming and information has joined forces with the best in
entertainment to create a unique sports entertainment experience.
 The center will encompass a state-of-the-art broadcast facility,
sports bar and interactive arcade all under one roof."
  Over 50 television monitors will broadcast throughout the
facility. The ESPN sports club will consist of three areas:  Sports Central,
The Sidelines and The Yard.
 Sports Central will house all broadcast-ready facilities
including a television studio and radio broadcast booth where patrons can
watch as well as participate in sports broadcasting.  It is designed to
originate live programming of such popular ESPN and ESPN2 shows as
SportsCenter, Baseball Tonight, SportsNight, Up Close and Talk2 as well as
popular radio  talk shows via ESPN Sports Radio.  In addition, the network plans
to use the club as a base of operation for nightly reports during Major
League Baseball's spring training.
   Guests of The Sidelines will experience the Penalty Box Bar and
have the luxury of tuning in to the sporting event of their choice.  Each
table contains a sound box enabling sports fans to switch among
competitions they see on monitors suspended around The Sidelines.
Participatory play-by-play activities allow guests to play along with the
action appearing in front of them from a variety of sports.
    The Yard, an "urban playground," complete with chain-link fence
and red-brick walls, will entertain sports fans of all ages with an
arcade full of interactive sporting games.
    ESPN sports club at Disney's BoardWalk will be part of a Robert
A.M. Stern-designed resort complex inspired by the ambiance of Cape
May and Cape Cod.
  In addition to the sports-themed club, Disney's BoardWalk will
feature a 378-room deluxe hotel, 383-unit vacation ownership resort
(subject to government approval), 15,000-square-foot convention center and a
lakeside entertainment dining and retail district complete with two
specialty restaurants, three clubs, bakery, cappuccino bar, brew pub, shops
and more.
  Disney's BoardWalk will be located between Epcot and the
Disney-MGM Studios.  The 45-acre site on the shores of Crescent City Lake
will include two- to five-story buildings with shingled rooftops
surrounding private courtyards and New England-style gardens.

Boardwalk is coming along nicely!  Here's what I could see:

The entire area is U shaped, following the curve of the waterway.  
Nearly all the space along Buena Vista Drive and Epcot Resorts Drive
(East side) is emtpy -- I assume it will be parking, landscaping,
and bus stop.  I expect that there employee and some or all self-parking
will be across the street from the entrance, which is off Epcot Resorts
Drive.

Construction has progressed to the point that almost all the steel frame
is up, with roofing and exterior work starting, and interior framing
underway.  There appears to be a large U shaped building that stretches
from the side near the Swan around to the middle of the lake (the open
part of the "U" faces into the land area.)  A second, smaller, U shape
building continues around to the edge of teh waterway that goes to EPCOT.
(The open side of the "U" faces the water.)

My crude diagram below shows the lay of the land.  There is still
space for the "boardwalk" but only a little; the buildings hug the
water's edge pretty much.  The "[]" represents the buildings. To
the left of the "1" is waht I suspect are the vacation club units.
The rest, to the right of the "1", would be the Boardwalk Resort.
The "2" seems to be another entrance.  I suspect "2" is the Bordwalk
resport entrance and "1" is the public entrance to reach the shops,
sports bar, and other things that are supposed to there.  The buildings
are 4-5 stories, with construction very similar to the Beach & Yacht
Clubs.  I think it's going to look great (except for the Swan and 
Dolphin looming on the West.)  I think that two of the special 
attractions are located on the water's side of "1" and "2".  There's
interesting looking steel enclosures for buildings which are in front
of the hotel buildings.

Bill A.

    MGM                                    |                    ramps to
   Entrance                                V                    World Dr.
     ||                Buena Vista Drive   N                      || ||
========================================================================
     ||                                   ~ ~to          ||       || ||
     ||                                   ~ ~MGM         ||
     ||                                [] ~ ~(boats)     ||
     ||                                [] ~ ~            ||
     ||         [][] [1][][][]          []~ ~            ||
     ||     [][]   ~~~~~~~~~ [][]      [] ~ ~            ||
     ||    []   ~~~         ~~~ []     []~   ~SWAN       ||
     || [][]  ~~               ~~[][2][]~     ~~~        ||
     ||      ~                   ~~~~~~~         ~       ||
~~~~~~~~~~~~~     Lake                   ~~~~~~~~        ||
~~~~~~~~~~~~                       ~~~~~~     DOLPHIN    ||
Boats||     ~~~                ~~~~                      ||
to   ||        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~                          ||
EPCOT||      BEACH CLUB   YACHT CLUB                     ||
     ||                                                  ||
      \\                                                //
       ==================================================
                EPCOT Resorts Drive (around both sides)

    boardwalk is now taking reservations beginning with july 1996.

    
    I received some information in the mail from Disney about the opening
    of the BoardWalk complex (Inn and Villas).  They are offering
    "BoardWalk Introductory Specials" for the first three months of
    operations.  What they quoted was "...from $269 pp for three nights
    (9/1--9/30) or from  $299 pp for three nights (7/1--8/31)".  This
    includes:
        a.  hotel accommadations
        b.  use of all Disney transportation
        c.  Sun'n'Fun package: choose 1 of 4 choices
                o 18 holes of golf (great deal if you are a golfer)
                o a massage
                o 3 hours of children's babysitting
                o character meal
    
    What I found out when I called is that there is a special room rate (at
    a good discount) plus a charge for the Sun'n'Fun package (for the
    cheapest room, it all adds up to $598 for two adults).  You can call
    CRO and ask for the BoardWalk Introductory Package, then hope that the
    agent gives you the right info.
    
    Here's what happened to me when I called (and some of the things I
    learned):
    
    I called asking for the package for 14 nights, starting on Sunday, July
    7. (**One thing I learned is that Disney no longer seems to charge a
    premium for starting your vacation on Friday or Saturday -- although
    the current AP special offers the GF for a higher price on Th, F, and
    Sat.)  The agent said that 10 days is the maximum package, so we had to
    book two packages.  She also said we had to get a S&F package for each
    person @ $35 each (for a total of $140) for each vacation package (for
    a grand total of $280).  Our room is in the Villas, a studio with
    microwave, refrigerator, dining table, 1 queen bed, 1 double sofa bed, 
    1 daybed, balcony, and water view.  This was not the least expensive
    room and we will pay $179/night plus tax ($198.69 total).  The regular
    rate is ~$250/night plus tax.
    
    We really didn't like to have to pay an extra $280, so I called again. 
    This time the (different) agent told me I didn't have to take the S&F
    package if I didn't want to, and she could give me all 14 nights on one
    reservation because I didn't take the package.  They did have a cheaper
    room with no water view, no daybed, and maybe no balcony for
    $169/night.  So I booked it even though we need the third bed and
    wanted the balcony with the water view.
    
    Then I called back and asked for my earlier reservation to be changed
    to exclude the S&F package.  I was told that, without the S&F packages,
    I was not getting the Introductory Special, so I would have to pay the
    regular rates.  I asked to speak to a supervisor and told her about my
    second reservation without the S&F.  She told me that the agent told me 
    the wrong thing.  In fact, she had booked the special with the S&F
    package, telling us that it was without it (probably she thought she
    was booking without it).
    
    So, what the supervisor did for us was to combine our two reservations
    into one (**good because only one deposit) for 14 days (**the 10-day
    limit was ONLY when LOS passes were involved - we have APs).  She
    reserved the S&F packages only for my wife and I - saving us $210.  So
    we're happy now.
    
    The moral of my story (finally) is that you should be able to get what
    you want if you know what their rules are.  But do it quickly, as these
    specials are going fast.
    
    --Jay
    

    Jay, I had called yesterday (didn't book), the Standard View
    Room rate I was quoted @ the Boardwalk Villas for 6 nights was $995
    which comes out to $165.  I was also told this special was for the
    Villas only not the Inn.
    
    Julie 

    
    Julie,  I too was told that it was for the Villas only on my first
    call.  However, the agent on my 2nd call told me I could book a room in
    the Inn on the special and quoted me a price that was very high - so it
    might not have been very "special".  The second agent seemed say a lot
    of things that I wanted to hear but eventually proved to be untrue.
    
    The $165/night sounds great.  Is that before or after taxes?  And is it
    in September?  According to the literature, the rooms were about
    $20/night cheaper in September.  If it's in July, I may have to call
    again.
    
    --Jay
    

    Jay, that $165 is before taxes and is for the 3rd week in September.
    
    Julie
    

    I have just made reservations for my Wife and I at the Boardwalk Inn.
    It is our 2nd Anniversary and I will surprize her tonight with it. We
    arrive July 14 (Our Anniversary) and stay for 3 nights. The Disney Home
    page is also updated with the Boardwalk Inn, complete with pictures,
    and a good description on it. I was surprized to find out it is a
    Deluxe Resort.
    
    I called the Magic Kingdom Club reservation desk and they have a deal
    on that is better than the Introductary offer. We got a 3 night/4 day
    package on the Classic Plan (Park Addmissions, and use of all
    facilities) for $ 881. I called about the Introductory Offer and it came
    out to $ 956.
    
    I will have a detailed trip report when I get back.
    
    Brian Clarke

    
    There is a trip report for the Boardwalk "sneak preview" held
    June 22-23 available on the web at:
    
    http://www.wdn.com/dwills/bw.htm
    
    Sounds wonderful - I can't wait!
    
    Carol