MAYBE A MAY TRIP?? 3 WEEKS SAPPHIRE FALLS 2021

[schumigirl]

Hello Carole!

I don’t know if you remember, but we metbriefly a couple years back during one of your fall trips... we were both staying at RPR when the club lounge was undergoing renovations.

I’ve enjoyed reading your trip report so far, and looking forward to seeing the full September one. We will (hopefully) be there that same time, but planning a 3 day cruise, 4 days at Disney, and then finishing up at cabana bay for another 4 days. It sounds like universal is a go for us, but unsure of what will happen with Disney and the cruise still at this point. Worst case scenario those get canceled and we add a few more days to universal!

FeetOffTheTable

Hello!!!!!

I do remember you from then.......you have a little boy I think....maybe around 2ish......????

Gosh that seems ages ago now when the lounge was being refurbed. How are you doing now, and your little boy must be growing so much.......

Your trip sounds fabulous, I hope it all goes off the way you want it to. Fingers crossed for the Disney element too. If not, well, you`ll have some extra days at Universal......

So good to see you again

 

[schumigirl]

To say we feel at home at RPR is probably an understatement.....and most folks can tell we absolutely love it there by the amount of nights we stay there.

There is something special about this hotel and I make no apologies for constantly singing it`s many praises. Of course some folks may not like it at all....….

jk…….

​

The rooms were all updated from 2015 and although we loved the theme before as it was very traditional and suited to the South Pacific feel of the hotel, the changes are beautiful.

Every tower has their own colour of giant flower in the rooms and T3 is kind of orangey peachy......T2 is yellow and T1 has purple...which of course is my favourite colour. We did get to see the purple rooms first in 2016 when we were asked if we wanted to move over to T1 to be in a revamped room.....we jumped at the chance and it was a beautiful room.

For some unknown reason I can`t see a picture of the large purple flower on the wall....I`m positive I have one, but I have so many pictures I guess it`s around somewhere. But I did see one with the purple cushions in the image......

And quite a nice pool view too from T1.

The view at that time beyond the pool was Sapphire Falls being built. It finally opened in the summer of 2016 and Jake`s plane was still in the old original position......

But, much as though we loved that room with the purple hints around in T1, we love T3.

For us, we have stayed there for most of our stays and we just prefer it. Some folks find it closer to the boat dock or the pool, but the way RPR is designed, nothing is too far from anything and with the lobby being central, it doesn`t take long to go where you want to be.

When we stayed in T1 for that trip, it took us a few minutes each day to get to the Club Lounge.....no time at all. So I wouldn`t ever tell anyone to worry about being the farthest away from the pathway or the pool. It`s a pretty compact resort we find.

We also like the 6th floor here. So it has been our regular floor for many years.

Most rooms are twin rooms, and they are very nice too. I like the assortment of rooms you can choose along with the Jurassic Park Suite which has never appealed to us at all......

The King room is also a nice one but we have never stayed in one, however we do like the King Suite which does give a lot of extra space and ideal when Kyle is with us during the Christmas visits now.

Some folks have said they find the rooms small at RP compared to others....but as we are three or two on trips, it`s never been an issue for us. Although we tend not to annoy each other and get along famously, so spending upwards of 18 nights together, it`s not a problem. Some families say they couldn`t be cooped together in one room for that length of time, but for us, it`s fine. We enjoy spending all that time as a family. But, knowing some people as I do.......I can understand them not wanting to be confined together.....lol

Having two rooms is nice though......

And with the King Suite, which is ideal for us, we have two sets of closets.....if it`s just the two of us, Tom takes the one in the hall area and I have the larger bedroom one all for me!!!!! And I can fill it easily.......yes, I do bring too many clothes, but I`d prefer that to running out and wishing I`d brought more.

Having a good luggage allowance on flights is wonderful!!! Some folks tell me they manage with a rucksack or carry on luggage only...… I`m not sure even if I was only staying for a week I`d be able to do that, but staying for the longer times we do, I absolutely couldn't manage with less.

Again, one thing that divides opinion in the rooms now is the barn sliding door between the vanity unit and the actual toilet and shower.

For us, again, it`s not an issue....after being together for more than 30 years, nothing is private anymore.......but maybe if you`re staying with someone you`re not as comfortable with, it may be something you might not be as keen on.

The showers are fabulous and have incredible water pressure. Nice and spacious too.

We do like the separate area as one can be in the shower while the other is getting ready outside at the vanity. It works for us, and even when Kyle is with us, we don`t find it too cramped.

Our bedroom here is nice and spacious and we have plenty of room for all our clothes and other stuff we have. Also plenty of storage for purchases made along the way. And although we don`t watch much tv on trips, some folks will enjoy a tv in both rooms.

The view from the room we usually get is one of our favourite views from a room.

The pool and a little of the parks is lovely, and seeing Sapphire all lit up at night is beautiful. Many a night I pull the drapes back slightly and fall asleep looking at the lights out there.

All rooms of course have a reasonable sized safe, for anything important you can have a larger safety deposit box behind the front desk.

You can ask for extra hangers if you need them. We always bring loads of our own too as I think I`d be too embarrassed to keep asking for more! But, nothing is too much trouble for the lovely folks that are here.

And a decent sized little fridge is standard in all rooms now.....it holds a few bottles of wine easily and some other items ....folks ask me how much milk it holds at times.......











Having never bought milk there.......couldn't tell you......now how many wine bottles it holds I can answer!!!

Again, a coffee maker we never use.......

Over the years we had a few times stayed in the Hospitality Suites and they are so lovely.

The pictures I have are of the Suite before it was updated so I won`t post them....well....maybe just one or two......

These rooms are a good size for a family. We had a twin room beside this so we again felt as though we had plenty of room.

And we did enjoy the full size fridge freezer in the kitchen.

One of the nicest suites we have ever been fortune enough to have stayed in, was the Presidential Suite. You would have to be really picky to find fault with anything in this suite. We were so grateful to be able to spend 5 nights in it.
To say it was spacious is another understatement......we kept having to go search for each other when we stayed.....if one of us was at one end, we just didn`t hear each other speak! Might be good for some couples.....lol........

Excuse our bits and bobs around this suite.....but, we felt very much at home here......and I have to admit leaving this hotel is always hard, there are usually tears, and leaving this suite on this trip was even harder than normal!!!!

The full size fridge freezer again was ideal for wine, goodies and frozen cocktails alike......

For families there were full sets of cutlery, crockery and glasses if you did want to take advantage of the kitchen facilities.

We used the fridge freezer.…..

And again, the extra bathroom is perfect. We always manage just fine with one on vacation, but the extra bathroom is always fully utilised when we have them.

Yep, we loved it......and despite it being so large, it was incredibly cosy in the evenings when we came back home.....the turndown ladies and gentlemen always closed the drapes and dimmed the lights so it felt very welcoming.

The bedroom again, spacious and like all the beds in these hotels, they are incredibly comfortable. We sleep so well generally at home, we often worry if the beds in hotels will be comfortable. No need to worry here.....

They are incredibly comfortable. Tom does find the pillows a bit soft in all the hotels.....but he sleeps on pillows that feel like concrete to me at home.....there`s no mixing up our pillows that`s for sure!!

I don`t mind them and they are almost marshmallow like so you can squish them to make them more comfortable if you need to.

The star of this Suite is without doubt the main bathroom......

When we were first shown the suite, I asked our friend what the remote control was for......turns out the mirror was also a tv which tickled us no end!

I don`t think we ever used it to be honest, but I liked the idea, but not as much as Tom, who I could see immediately thinking how we could redo our master bath at home to incorporate one of those!!!! No.

We joked with the Club Lounge staff their water bill must have at least doubled while we were in that suite, as we took showers every single chance we could......I love our master bath shower at home a lot....but this knocked blocks off ours size wise!!!

It is a real party size shower if ever there was one!

It was honestly one of our favourite stays and were incredibly thankful to be able to enjoy such a beautiful suite for so long.

The first night we were in it was a HHN and we really didn`t want to go out and leave the suite......so we compromised, we went to HHN but only stayed an hour or so, then came back and ordered room service and a movie for the rest of the evening. It was so lovely.

So, that`s my views of some of the rooms on offer at RPR.

For us it has everything, especially the food options downstairs. They suit our tastes and what we like most...…and just the overall feel of the resort. And it does feel like a resort, there are some beautiful areas around the grounds and the hotel itself.

Can you tell it`s my favourite place......

Folks often ask me if there`s any negatives to the hotel. For me, there aren`t any negatives to staying here. I`m not sure exactly, but between here and Sapphire we`ve stayed around 300 nights.....maybe just under that, but it`s close. And we have no plans to change that anytime soon.

Thanks so much for still reading along, I do appreciate every comment. I don't have any updates on travel plans as the Government still haven't announced them for us. As soon as they do we may get a clearer picture if September will happen or our Christmas trip will be first.....


Food pics coming soon........

 

[J'aime Paris]

That shower is ridiculous...in the best possible way!!

Always look forward to those food pics!

 

[schumigirl]

That shower is ridiculous...in the best possible way!!

Always look forward to those food pics!

lol....yes, it was ridiculously huge!!! But.....we loved it!!!

Not sure where to start with food pics.....I have thousands of them to choose from!

 

[schumigirl]

So, as of today we still have no definite news on whether this trip will go ahead, or.....it`ll turn into the longest Pre trip report in history and it`ll change to Christmas one for our later trip this year!!!

The frustration of not knowing is the worst part. But, so many are worse off than us, so we do thank our lucky stars for that.

Canadians and Brits are in a little bit of limbo right now with coming in to America. I`m sure when the decision is made we`ll have peace with that whatever it is. I have no idea when America will make the decision on letting us foreigners back into the country, just hope it`s soon. Closer to home I can`t even travel up to see my family in Scotland yet!!!

I checked our flight details and we were origianlly booked in Premium seats on the 747, and as expected they have changed our booking to the A330 which we have flown on before (only 2 engines eeek) and it is a lovely plane, but we love being up in the bubble of the Jumbo Jet. And I love having four engines for such a long flight, mostly across an endlessly deep ocean!!!!

​

I`m a worrier over certain things, but most things I can brush off...until someone points them out to me lol.......and I had never really thought about how deep the ocean was until "someone" mentioned how they`d hate to fly over the ocean.......er, ok.....at least we`d probably know nothing about it.

We love flying and would fly anytime and never really give it a second thought. If it`s your time, it`s your time. I`m sure most of you remember Panam Flight 103 that exploded over the small Scottish town of Lockerbie a few days before Christmas in 1988. One of the women killed there had stated to her family, she would never fly as the thought of flying terrified her so she was staying on land. The irony and complete set of horiffic circumstances that it was a plane that killed her stayed with me for a long time. And I think left me with the notion that, what will be will be. However, I admit to having a fleeting worry as we take off.....every single time!!! But mostly it`s fun!!!

But, on to more cheerful things.......

They have given us new seats, on the way out we are sitting apart at the moment, but on the way home we have2 together by the window, which suits us as we do like to sleep on the way home if we can. I`ll just be glad to get on the plane as of now!! I have no complaints the way Virgin have been with us. We`ve flown with them for many years occasionally opting for Thomas Cook when they were around, but Virgin we have no reason to be unhappy with them. If we do decide to not fly in September, if cases are higher than we feel is reasonably safe, then they`ll allow us to defer them until next year, and even into 2022.

We`d probably use them for September 2021 as we already have our May 2021 flights booked. Planning ahead for someone who doesnt really plan anything is unusual to say the least.

This is such an unusual situation this year. I judge no one that will still go despite the worries, and also the same for folks who don`t want to go. I`ve seen people still post it`s stupid, senseless or idiotic to still want to go right now.....I don`t see it that way. We all have our comfort zones. Best ignored.

So, that`s about as much as I know right now.....and I apologise if this does become so long. But, don`t want to start from scratch again....so if it turns into a Nov/Dec trip report....I am sorry for all the ramblings I have to do to keep it going!!!! Thankfully I`m told I am good at that part!!!

We have added no plans

Day to day we are more or less plodding along. Kyle is still working from home and will be until August I believe......I love this, but will be happy when he gets back to working with his friends and colleagues again.

Yesterday we spent some time in the morning walking along the beach. Then joy of joys.....in the afternoon we spent some time in a good friends garden enjoying a lovely socially distanced chat with them. It had been so long, no one wanted to leave!!!! It was just so lovely feeling a little normal again......and a glass of wine in the afternoon is always nice!!!

This was the beach and weird weather we are having right now.......this a short drive from us and it was deserted on the beach itself, the promenade was busier and people are all being very respectful of space.

This is our usual beach just down from us that we usually go to.....if we kept walking we`d reach the other beach....although the tide may disturb us before we got there!!!

We love living beside the beach. We are lucky to have woods and forest behind us so we have the best of both worlds on our doorstep so we have no excuses for not getting out and about......although we frequently do find one!!!!


For now we just have to look forward to whenever the next trip will be.......and being back at Sapphire Falls and Royal Pacific Resort again.


And one of the highlights of Royal Pacific is their Club Lounge which was completely revamped in 2018. The old look matched everything about the hotel, and we did worry the change wouldn`t feel like it was still RP.....but we love it. And it did need a revamp. Now it`s done it really did make the old style look very dated.

We were invited by our very good friend to go into the TM preview day (which is why the balloons are there in some images) and we were delighted by the improvements.

This is often described as an alternative home from home sitting room for us, and it really is......we have spent so much time up there and we are known as work "mom and dad" for our American kids. Over the years as you can imagine we have seen so many come and go, and we do keep in touch with several of them. More recently the Concierge manager Kayla. We met and clicked immediately and had so much fun chatting and getting to know her over the last two years. But, Kayla has moved on now but we keep in touch by email and had planned to meet up in May, so that`s a visit to look forward to in our future visits, she is just the nicest lady. And her enthusiasm for the lounge, concierge service and her staff was incredible.

Spending the amount of time we do, we get to know them quite well and miss them dreadfully when we`re not there, although I say that for all of the guys there. It`s a bit of a joke that everyone knows us and one man asked us one trip last year if there was anyone at the hotel we didnt know......er, not many!!! He had heard our name mentioned (in a good way) by several folks in one day that were excited we were due back......he told us he had to meet us as he seemed to the only one that hadn`t met us.....lol....that did make us blush!!

The lounge itself is very different, and is beautifully done with a plethora of new colours and designs. They all fit nicely together which I was kind of worried about when it was described to us beofre they started. We had a sneaky preview of the new design......but, when we saw it, we knew they had made the right decision.

I did wonder if they regretted leaving such a gap, as some guests have been known to wander round a little too far at times, I only go round when invited or if I ask nicely, as when I took a picture of the liquor down below. But, being "mom" it`s ok.....

Some of you may recognise the lovely Daniel from the front desk in the picture below having a pop up to see the changes too. He has the most wonderful singing voice and very beautifully gave me a birthday serenade in the lobby last year. So nice.

There is a long table missing from the picture below. They had to wait a little for those high tops to arrive, and they did add a lot of extra seating for the lounge.

They do as before, have little areas seemingly seperated so you do feel a little apart from the rest of the lounge. Usually this tv has sport or news on and they are good at putting on something if you request it. As long as it`s family friendly!!!

Up beyond the desk is an area that`s been designated as a childrens area. There`s usually only childresn tv on that tv, and now there are games, books and a games consul there for kids to play with. The kids have to put their name down for that and there is a time limit and they have to keep the volume down or it wouldn`t be classed as Royal Relaxation Hour.

As someone who hates video/computer games, I wouldn`t have them in the lounge but they do monitor it well.

One of the newer additions when it was refurbed was the fridge for cold drinks. This was a common request from many guests, so Loews listened and it was added and has been incredibly popular.


Without the high top table..........

It does look better with the high tops in the room.

During relaxation hour there are wines and beers that are complimentary for registered guests. You can also purchase hard liquor at $5 a shot and this is charged to your room.

The food of course, is one of the main reasons some people book Club Level.

These images are all from last year, so things are going to be very different now the way they operate the Club Lounge. Help yourself won`t be an option now.

But, this is an idea of what it was like.

Breakfast offered a great selection of assorted options for folks. Most folks could get something.....from pastries, cinammon bun, cereals, fruit, assorted meats and cheeses, muffins, croissants, breads, muffins all with assorted preserves, cream cheese, peanut butter and so on. All helped along with teas and coffee`s that are available all day.

The offerings at lunch times between 12 and 3pm have also imprved massively. Everything is pre-wrapped and a very good selection. I don`t know many people that are around at that time as most are in the parks, it`s always been quiet whenever we have popped in if I`m doing laundry usually. There are images of the snacks available in the RPR thread.


Evening relaxation was between 4.30-6.30pm and that is the only time alcohol is available for guests. Soft drinks and water are also available all day.


There is always one hot choice of appetiser and a salad with dressings, crudites and a cheese selection every evening. We are always around most evenings, but never use the lounge for meals as we prefer to eat around in places we don`t have at home, but we do enjoy a little taster and a glass or three of wine before we head out for dinner somewhere. Many do use it as their main meal I believe.

The potato salad and orange chicken are two dishes we will have a little sample of as an appetiser as they are both gorgeous!!!! I just pick out the onions as there are always plenty of them in dishes. Tom loves them!!!!

I actually love onions too, but over the years I`ve developed a complete intolerance to them. Now I also hate the smell of raw onions but love the smell of cooked onions.....weird.

I miss onions!!!!!! ​

There is a dessert hour too, but in all the years we have been here, I think we have made dessert hour maybe twice or three times tops.....not big dessert people at all. There are usually two or three mini desserts and a variety of cookies available.


The lounge is a lovely place to spend some time. Whether it be you come in for meals or desserts, or more like us and spend time just chilling and chatting, you`ll always get a warm welcome.

On special occasions they do do a little extra. As well as gifts and cards in our room, we came in to the lounge on my birthday to a little extra special welcome.......

And of course when Kyle came back with us in December, they had added his name too to the special reserved sign they had made for us..........that boy loves his cereal!!!!

We have been so lucky over the years to have met some very lovely people in the lounge who are also guests and we keep in touch with a lot of folks, and there are also folks we`d never want to see again!!!!

One example is a family who asked the staff who we were, as so many staff members from around the hotel stopped by to say hello to us......when they were told we stay here an awful lot so they know many folks, it was apparently met by the woman`s comment of "Oh I feel sorry for them coming here all the time" just made us howl with laughter .......I guess jealousy does appear in many colours!! People like that though I give no mind to at all, there are so many lovely, genuine people around.

However they have it operating right now, if you are considering Club Level at RPR, you wouldn`t regret it. The guys and gals that work there really do look after you and care you have a wonderful experience.

The lounge does feel spacious and we have never not had somewhere to sit whenever we have gone in, and they are so accommodating you can`t help but feel welcome......we`ve been lucky enough to have been invited over to the other two Club Lounges in the past to see how they operated their lounges, and for us RPR Club Lounge is the best option.

HRH CL is tiny. It`s far too small for the amount of people they cater for, we were surprised by just how small it was. Lovely staff though who were very kind to us. And PBH, it is a good size and was badly needing a refurb, so I`m looking forward to see how it looks once it`s done.



Back soon.........

 

[I-4Bound]

Good morning (or afternoon for you!), Carole! Glad to hear you three are doing well. We are finalizing plans for our trip at the end of July. We decided on Sea world, Aquatica, and Busch Gardens. I did the while reservation system for all 3, which was pretty easy. Never been to BG or Aquatica, so that's exciting. I'm hoping the surge in cases in FL will have quieted down by then. I sure hope it all works out for you for the fall❤

 

[schumigirl]

Good morning (or afternoon for you!), Carole! Glad to hear you three are doing well. We are finalizing plans for our trip at the end of July. We decided on Sea world, Aquatica, and Busch Gardens. I did the while reservation system for all 3, which was pretty easy. Never been to BG or Aquatica, so that's exciting. I'm hoping the surge in cases in FL will have quieted down by then. I sure hope it all works out for you for the fall❤

So good to see you post Andrea! I was going to send you a pm as I hadn`t seen you post for a while, but glad you`re all ok! And thank you, yes, we`re all doing good.

I`m thrilled you have your plans in place and it`s getting closer. All those places you plan to visit I`m sure you`ll have a blast. And glad the reservations were easy to make. So many folks seem to be having issues all over the place.

You`ll have to let me know how you enjoy Busch Gardens! We never seem to make it down there, and although I`m not so keen on the animal side, the park sounds fabulous. Always thought we might go down for their Howl o Scream at some point. Never made it yet...

But, I`m so excited for you to be going on your trip....and yes, hope everything has calmed down some for you by then.

Sending many hugs as always.....

 

[macraven]

Schumi.....your reports are always so awesome!
We all appreciate how much you put into them to share with us.

 

[schumigirl]

Schumi.....your reports are always so awesome!
We all appreciate how much you put into them to share with us.

Thank you mac.......

I appreciate your comment and everyone else`s lovely posts too. I think I could talk about how much we love Universal and the hotels all day and never get bored!

But, it`s a fabulous subject to excel in talking about!!!!

 

[DisneyLifePapioNe]

So, as of today we still have no definite news on whether this trip will go ahead, or.....it`ll turn into the longest Pre trip report in history and it`ll change to Christmas one for our later trip this year!!!

The frustration of not knowing is the worst part. But, so many are worse off than us, so we do thank our lucky stars for that.

Canadians and Brits are in a little bit of limbo right now with coming in to America. I`m sure when the decision is made we`ll have peace with that whatever it is. I have no idea when America will make the decision on letting us foreigners back into the country, just hope it`s soon. Closer to home I can`t even travel up to see my family in Scotland yet!!!

I checked our flight details and we were origianlly booked in Premium seats on the 747, and as expected they have changed our booking to the A330 which we have flown on before (only 2 engines eeek) and it is a lovely plane, but we love being up in the bubble of the Jumbo Jet. And I love having four engines for such a long flight, mostly across an endlessly deep ocean!!!!

View attachment 501637

​

I`m a worrier over certain things, but most things I can brush off...until someone points them out to me lol.......and I had never really thought about how deep the ocean was until "someone" mentioned how they`d hate to fly over the ocean.......er, ok.....at least we`d probably know nothing about it.

We love flying and would fly anytime and never really give it a second thought. If it`s your time, it`s your time. I`m sure most of you remember Panam Flight 103 that exploded over the small Scottish town of Lockerbie a few days before Christmas in 1988. One of the women killed there had stated to her family, she would never fly as the thought of flying terrified her so she was staying on land. The irony and complete set of horiffic circumstances that it was a plane that killed her stayed with me for a long time. And I think left me with the notion that, what will be will be. However, I admit to having a fleeting worry as we take off.....every single time!!! But mostly it`s fun!!!

But, on to more cheerful things.......

They have given us new seats, on the way out we are sitting apart at the moment, but on the way home we have2 together by the window, which suits us as we do like to sleep on the way home if we can. I`ll just be glad to get on the plane as of now!! I have no complaints the way Virgin have been with us. We`ve flown with them for many years occasionally opting for Thomas Cook when they were around, but Virgin we have no reason to be unhappy with them. If we do decide to not fly in September, if cases are higher than we feel is reasonably safe, then they`ll allow us to defer them until next year, and even into 2022.

We`d probably use them for September 2021 as we already have our May 2021 flights booked. Planning ahead for someone who doesnt really plan anything is unusual to say the least.

This is such an unusual situation this year. I judge no one that will still go despite the worries, and also the same for folks who don`t want to go. I`ve seen people still post it`s stupid, senseless or idiotic to still want to go right now.....I don`t see it that way. We all have our comfort zones. Best ignored.

So, that`s about as much as I know right now.....and I apologise if this does become so long. But, don`t want to start from scratch again....so if it turns into a Nov/Dec trip report....I am sorry for all the ramblings I have to do to keep it going!!!! Thankfully I`m told I am good at that part!!!

We have added no plans

Day to day we are more or less plodding along. Kyle is still working from home and will be until August I believe......I love this, but will be happy when he gets back to working with his friends and colleagues again.

Yesterday we spent some time in the morning walking along the beach. Then joy of joys.....in the afternoon we spent some time in a good friends garden enjoying a lovely socially distanced chat with them. It had been so long, no one wanted to leave!!!! It was just so lovely feeling a little normal again......and a glass of wine in the afternoon is always nice!!!

This was the beach and weird weather we are having right now.......this a short drive from us and it was deserted on the beach itself, the promenade was busier and people are all being very respectful of space.

This is our usual beach just down from us that we usually go to.....if we kept walking we`d reach the other beach....although the tide may disturb us before we got there!!!

We love living beside the beach. We are lucky to have woods and forest behind us so we have the best of both worlds on our doorstep so we have no excuses for not getting out and about......although we frequently do find one!!!!


For now we just have to look forward to whenever the next trip will be.......and being back at Sapphire Falls and Royal Pacific Resort again.


And one of the highlights of Royal Pacific is their Club Lounge which was completely revamped in 2018. The old look matched everything about the hotel, and we did worry the change wouldn`t feel like it was still RP.....but we love it. And it did need a revamp. Now it`s done it really did make the old style look very dated.

We were invited by our very good friend to go into the TM preview day (which is why the balloons are there in some images) and we were delighted by the improvements.

This is often described as an alternative home from home sitting room for us, and it really is......we have spent so much time up there and we are known as work "mom and dad" for our American kids. Over the years as you can imagine we have seen so many come and go, and we do keep in touch with several of them. More recently the Concierge manager Kayla. We met and clicked immediately and had so much fun chatting and getting to know her over the last two years. But, Kayla has moved on now but we keep in touch by email and had planned to meet up in May, so that`s a visit to look forward to in our future visits, she is just the nicest lady. And her enthusiasm for the lounge, concierge service and her staff was incredible.

Spending the amount of time we do, we get to know them quite well and miss them dreadfully when we`re not there, although I say that for all of the guys there. It`s a bit of a joke that everyone knows us and one man asked us one trip last year if there was anyone at the hotel we didnt know......er, not many!!! He had heard our name mentioned (in a good way) by several folks in one day that were excited we were due back......he told us he had to meet us as he seemed to the only one that hadn`t met us.....lol....that did make us blush!!

The lounge itself is very different, and is beautifully done with a plethora of new colours and designs. They all fit nicely together which I was kind of worried about when it was described to us beofre they started. We had a sneaky preview of the new design......but, when we saw it, we knew they had made the right decision.

I did wonder if they regretted leaving such a gap, as some guests have been known to wander round a little too far at times, I only go round when invited or if I ask nicely, as when I took a picture of the liquor down below. But, being "mom" it`s ok.....

Some of you may recognise the lovely Daniel from the front desk in the picture below having a pop up to see the changes too. He has the most wonderful singing voice and very beautifully gave me a birthday serenade in the lobby last year. So nice.

There is a long table missing from the picture below. They had to wait a little for those high tops to arrive, and they did add a lot of extra seating for the lounge.

They do as before, have little areas seemingly seperated so you do feel a little apart from the rest of the lounge. Usually this tv has sport or news on and they are good at putting on something if you request it. As long as it`s family friendly!!!

Up beyond the desk is an area that`s been designated as a childrens area. There`s usually only childresn tv on that tv, and now there are games, books and a games consul there for kids to play with. The kids have to put their name down for that and there is a time limit and they have to keep the volume down or it wouldn`t be classed as Royal Relaxation Hour.

As someone who hates video/computer games, I wouldn`t have them in the lounge but they do monitor it well.

One of the newer additions when it was refurbed was the fridge for cold drinks. This was a common request from many guests, so Loews listened and it was added and has been incredibly popular.


Without the high top table..........

It does look better with the high tops in the room.

During relaxation hour there are wines and beers that are complimentary for registered guests. You can also purchase hard liquor at $5 a shot and this is charged to your room.

The food of course, is one of the main reasons some people book Club Level.

These images are all from last year, so things are going to be very different now the way they operate the Club Lounge. Help yourself won`t be an option now.

But, this is an idea of what it was like.

Breakfast offered a great selection of assorted options for folks. Most folks could get something.....from pastries, cinammon bun, cereals, fruit, assorted meats and cheeses, muffins, croissants, breads, muffins all with assorted preserves, cream cheese, peanut butter and so on. All helped along with teas and coffee`s that are available all day.

The offerings at lunch times between 12 and 3pm have also imprved massively. Everything is pre-wrapped and a very good selection. I don`t know many people that are around at that time as most are in the parks, it`s always been quiet whenever we have popped in if I`m doing laundry usually. There are images of the snacks available in the RPR thread.


Evening relaxation was between 4.30-6.30pm and that is the only time alcohol is available for guests. Soft drinks and water are also available all day.


There is always one hot choice of appetiser and a salad with dressings, crudites and a cheese selection every evening. We are always around most evenings, but never use the lounge for meals as we prefer to eat around in places we don`t have at home, but we do enjoy a little taster and a glass or three of wine before we head out for dinner somewhere. Many do use it as their main meal I believe.

The potato salad and orange chicken are two dishes we will have a little sample of as an appetiser as they are both gorgeous!!!! I just pick out the onions as there are always plenty of them in dishes. Tom loves them!!!!

I actually love onions too, but over the years I`ve developed a complete intolerance to them. Now I also hate the smell of raw onions but love the smell of cooked onions.....weird.

View attachment 501640





I miss onions!!!!!! ​

There is a dessert hour too, but in all the years we have been here, I think we have made dessert hour maybe twice or three times tops.....not big dessert people at all. There are usually two or three mini desserts and a variety of cookies available.


The lounge is a lovely place to spend some time. Whether it be you come in for meals or desserts, or more like us and spend time just chilling and chatting, you`ll always get a warm welcome.

On special occasions they do do a little extra. As well as gifts and cards in our room, we came in to the lounge on my birthday to a little extra special welcome.......

And of course when Kyle came back with us in December, they had added his name too to the special reserved sign they had made for us..........that boy loves his cereal!!!!

We have been so lucky over the years to have met some very lovely people in the lounge who are also guests and we keep in touch with a lot of folks, and there are also folks we`d never want to see again!!!!

One example is a family who asked the staff who we were, as so many staff members from around the hotel stopped by to say hello to us......when they were told we stay here an awful lot so they know many folks, it was apparently met by the woman`s comment of "Oh I feel sorry for them coming here all the time" just made us howl with laughter .......I guess jealousy does appear in many colours!! People like that though I give no mind to at all, there are so many lovely, genuine people around.

However they have it operating right now, if you are considering Club Level at RPR, you wouldn`t regret it. The guys and gals that work there really do look after you and care you have a wonderful experience.

The lounge does feel spacious and we have never not had somewhere to sit whenever we have gone in, and they are so accommodating you can`t help but feel welcome......we`ve been lucky enough to have been invited over to the other two Club Lounges in the past to see how they operated their lounges, and for us RPR Club Lounge is the best option.

HRH CL is tiny. It`s far too small for the amount of people they cater for, we were surprised by just how small it was. Lovely staff though who were very kind to us. And PBH, it is a good size and was badly needing a refurb, so I`m looking forward to see how it looks once it`s done.



Back soon.........

Royal Pacific really is a great place, it doesn’t always win out on our planning decisions although, plenty of time spent there and surely plan to be back in the future.

I hope everything is a go in September (frankly before then so things are operating smoothly by the time your travel day comes) as I know you and Tom truly love your September trips and all that comes with a September trip like HHN, and a longer stay usually also.

We have our trip planned and I’m actually a slight bit surprised we haven’t got much for HHN 30 info yet......probably any day now!

 

[macraven]

I went back a few pages to see how the rooms have changed over the years.

know we can count on you to update the hotel pics each trip you make!

 

[macraven]

Oops, hit send too quickly....

Do you remember which year RP has the last change of the room decor and color?

It seems like it’s been 3 years.
I did not care for the change at first but now it has grown on me.

 

[keishashadow]

So, as of today we still have no definite news on whether this trip will go ahead, or.....it`ll turn into the longest Pre trip report in history and it`ll change to Christmas one for our later trip this year!!!

Well, there is something to be said for that

JK, it has to be horrid to be at the mercy of so many differing elements. You wear it very well indeed.

I had never really thought about how deep the ocean was until "someone" mentioned how they`d hate to fly over the ocean.......er, ok.....at least we`d probably know nothing about it.

It seems like it’s been 3 years.
I did not care for the change at first but now it has grown on me.

I’m at the point where they could paint the rooms all the colors of the rainbow & i’d Still be happy to visit sooner vs later. I really miss that intricately, beautifuly carved wood. The one thing I was happy to see disappear in the 1st redo was the orange-ish tropical bedspread.

Carole - the suites you book are stunning...period. Let me shake my pixie stick at you for good luck that your travels will soon resume

 

[DisneyLifePapioNe]

Oops, hit send too quickly....

Do you remember which year RP has the last change of the room decor and color?

It seems like it’s been 3 years.
I did not care for the change at first but now it has grown on me.

Hi Mac I’m thinking it was around 2016 when they did them, wow has the time gone quickly.

 

[schumigirl]

Royal Pacific really is a great place, it doesn’t always win out on our planning decisions although, plenty of time spent there and surely plan to be back in the future.

I hope everything is a go in September (frankly before then so things are operating smoothly by the time your travel day comes) as I know you and Tom truly love your September trips and all that comes with a September trip like HHN, and a longer stay usually also.

We have our trip planned and I’m actually a slight bit surprised we haven’t got much for HHN 30 info yet......probably any day now!

Thank you.

 

[schumigirl]

I went back a few pages to see how the rooms have changed over the years.

know we can count on you to update the hotel pics each trip you make!

Oops, hit send too quickly....

Do you remember which year RP has the last change of the room decor and color?

It seems like it’s been 3 years.
I did not care for the change at first but now it has grown on me.

Thanks mac, I do my best!! It really has changed a lot.....

We had the renovated room in T1 in Sept 2015.......and......purple!!! I tried and failed to convince them to do purple in T3........yeah, they didn`t go for that......lol......

We do love the changes, but I can see why some don`t like the changes......

 

[schumigirl]

Well, there is something to be said for that

JK, it has to be horrid to be at the mercy of so many differing elements. You wear it very well indeed.



I’m at the point where they could paint the rooms all the colors of the rainbow & i’d Still be happy to visit sooner vs later. I really miss that intricately, beautifuly carved wood. The one thing I was happy to see disappear in the 1st redo was the orange-ish tropical bedspread.

Carole - the suites you book are stunning...period. Let me shake my pixie stick at you for good luck that your travels will soon resume

lol.....you remembered!!!!!! I think you gave me a sleepless night all those years ago with those deep ocean thoughts.......it was funny though!!!!

I think when there is genuinely nothing we can do about situations, I don`t honestly worry. We had the airline go bust last year and we just rode the storm out......now this year we have the plague!!! I guess we`ll roll with that too......

You know me, I`m a big believer in what will be will be......hey that would make a great song.....And if the rates keep rising, we may make the decision before we have to and decide it`s too big a risk to go. Right now, I`m good with it all.....but what`s in front I have no idea how we`ll feel in 6-8 weeks.

Least we know Virgin are being fabulous through it all. So deferring the flights won`t be an issue.......

But, uncertainty and I are not the best of friends as you know.....lol......

Awww thanks.....I`ll take the pixie dust....mummy dust.....anything really!!! Yes, those suites are something else......we were very blessed to have them.

 

[keishashadow]

lol.....you remembered!!!!!! I think you gave me a sleepless night all those years ago with those deep ocean thoughts.......it was funny though!!!!

No idea that off the cuff comment hit home, sorry Not sure why the concept of looking down & not seeing dry land put me off so on our first trip across miles of it. as if it matters when push comes to shove lol

 

[schumigirl]

No idea that off the cuff comment hit home, sorry Not sure why the concept of looking down & not seeing dry land put me off so on our first trip across miles of it. as if it matters when push comes to shove lol

lol......no, we were laughing about it....when I found that deep sea meme it did remind me of it.......you know us....nothing phases us!

I was glad you never thought of it when you went to Hawaii.....now that is a deep ocean!!! Strange fact....and shows ignorance on my part.....it was only when I was around 25ish I found out where Hawaii actually was......always thought it was just off the coast......er, maybe not.......to be fair, I never really looked for it. Maybe it was watching Magnum PI that encouraged me to look......

One day we will get there.......

 

[keishashadow]

Aaaah, Tom Selleck, aged like a fine wine lol