shades of green

[jerseyjanet]

I'm lucky enough to have a military father-in-law and we've booked the suite at the SOG for a week in the fall. Does anyone know what is included in the kitchen of the suite? Specifically, is there a microwave? a cooktop? an oven? coffee maker? toaster? We're mostly interested in a hot breakfast in the morning and snacks and drinks later in the day. Thanks for any help you can offer.

[craig]

I hate to be the one to say this but perhaps contacting SOG would get you a quicker answer.

[jerseyjanet]

Gee, thanks Craig, but I tried that already. After waiting on hold for at least 25 minutes, they said they would get me an inventory list. That was over a month ago. I've stopped holding my breath in anticipation of a reply and I thought that maybe someone out there could help me.

[craig]

You know the military, Hurry up and wait! 25 minutes is an awful long time to be on hold.

[Tlg]

If you stay at Shades of Green, check the room first before moving your luggage in. I stayed there last year, and the first room I got had a horrible mildew smell, not to mention a large lizard lounging in the room. Since I arrived at 2 in the morning, Shades was full and they couldn't move me until the next day. I spent the entire next day with an uncontrollable headache. Also, transporation can be a real pain since you can only catch the Shades bus at the Transportation Center. (The 2 nights we had dinner at a WDW resort, it took 1 1/2 hours to get back to Shades.) You may want to have a rental car.

[Lani]

Tlg complained: "I stayed there last year, and the first room I got had a horrible mildew smell, not to mention a large lizard lounging in the room"

Hey there Tlg, dontcha know that that "lizard" may have been a gecko? Geckos are awesome and highly liked in Hawaii, where I'm from. They eat bugs for you, and make nice chirping noises like a bird. They are totally cool! I would've been totally stoked seeing a lizard in my hotel room. I would've taken that as a sign of extremely good luck! :cool:

Sorry about the mildew smell. Orlando is probably something like Hawaii during certain times of the year -- and when it's really hot and humid, it's hard to keep things dry. I've never stayed at SOG so I can't speak about it, although I know that it was one of our few serious options for a possible Orlando vacation (in my previous lifetime, when I was qualified to stay there).

A word of warning: Try to avoid the package that limits you to eating only at SOG. The package looks very similar to those being offered for other WDW on-property guests, except that with your limited meal options you'll miss out on the great dining experiences to be had in the rest of WDW. Although I've never eaten there myself, my friends have told me that this is the ONE THING you want to avoid.

Everything else (transportation, early entry, etc.) is similar if not the same as for your (father-in-law's) civilian colleagues. [By the way, if you've never stayed in an MWR hotel, be prepared to feel a bit out of place unless you're already accustomed to visiting your in-laws on base/post and hanging out with military folks.]

As for phoning SOG, have you been trying their reservation line at 1-407-824-3600, or direct, at 1-407-824-3400? Dialing direct might get you there a bit quicker.

You can visit the
official Shades of Green Web site (http://trol.redstone.army.mil/mwr/afrcs/shades_green.html), and there are a few other reviews of it on the Web.

Have a wonderful time!!

[Lacrosse Boy]

To keep stuff dry during hot months: AIR CONDITIONING