Microwave

The Mrs and I are planning to head to Disney World next year, and are considering either the Contemporary or Grand Floridian. In either case we'd be looking for a club-level room, and the cost for the dates we're looking at is quite similar.

Does anyone have any experience with the club rooms and amenities at these hotels? At first blush the Grand Floridian looks like it might be less of a cluster, but I realise that any on-property hotel will have a certain bit of that. We don't have kids, so don't need anything that caters specifically to them–more than anything we're looking for a personalised, un-hurried, un-rushed and calm (or as calm as can be expected) experience. I wouldn't say that cost is no object, but we're willing to spend more if it'll get us closer to our stated WDW nirvana. For what it's worth, if someone has something other than these two options to propose that may be worth considering, I'd love to hear it.

TIA for the advice and help!

Swiss Tony

What strikes me is that the club level premium for WDW hotels seems VERY steep in a lot of instances. I would just question what else you could buy with that money that would give you an even better experience.

i.e. in the GF you can get a theme park view for less than the standard club room.

Looking at the Contemporary, the club rooms run a couple of hundred a night more than the standard room in the tower. That would buy you room service breakfast for two in the morning and a bottle of champagne in the evening with change left over - oh and you have teh added bonus of not having to tolerate other people's kids at the same time

Room service menu can be found here - http://allears.net/dining/menu/conte...dining/all-day

writerguyfl

I used to work at the Disney Reservations Center. I trained the Cast Members who make reservations. I also took calls between classes. Although I've never stayed in a Club room, part of our training included touring all the Deluxe resorts.

The value of the Club level is highly subjective. There are many guests who are emphatic that the experience is worth the extra cost. Other guests will follow the advice given by Swiss Tony. Both modes of thinking are valid.

That said, I think it's worth expanding your hotel choices to include the Epcot area resorts: Disney's Boardwalk Inn, Disney's Yacht Club, Disney's Beach Club. Each of those resorts is within walking distance of the back entrance to Epcot. This vastly expands your choices when it comes to dining (provided you have theme-park admission). And while no trip to WDW is complete without visiting the Magic Kingdom, it is the most crowded park and offers the fewest upscale dining options. Being able to walk into Epcot or along the Boardwalk to eat dinner is a huge plus for many guests.

Finally, it might be worth checking out Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge. Having a room with a view of gazelles, giraffes, and zebras would certainly qualify as "calming". Staying at the Lodge is a very unique experience.

DJ_Iceman

One thing to be careful of is that the Contemporary and Grand Floridian are the only two on-site properties to have two distinct categories of Club Level rooms, with separate lounges and differences in the amenities between the two. If the rates are similar, it's likely that you're comparing the "Sugar Key" concierge at the Grand to the "Tower Concierge" at the Contemporary.

Once you figure that out, it really comes down to which resort's theme and "feel" appeal to you more. I've done both, and they're both great. I've also done concierge at the Polynesian, Boardwalk, and Animal Kingdom Lodge and would gladly do any of them again except for the shockingly substandard Polynesian. You really can't go wrong with a Disney deluxe resort, especially on the Club Level.

jabbered

Unless you're going to be mainly hanging at the resort, I don't think Club Level is worth the extra $$$.

That said, I'd probably pick the Contemporary as it's a closer stop to the Epcot monorail, which is where I'd spend more time than Magic Kingdom.

I'd personally go Beach Club, Boardwalk Inn, Animal Kingdom, then Contemporary.

Often1

Whether something is "worth" it is entirely subjective. As between Grand Floridian and Contemporary, I find the GF somewhat nicer with a better selection of what passes for fine dining and a better Club experience if you choose the main building).

Microwave

Thanks all for the great ideas. Sorry for taking so long to come back; I thought I had subscribed to the thread. Oops!

I had considered the Beach/Yacht Clubs as I stayed at the latter about 20 years ago and have fond memories. However, I also distinctly remember it being a bit of a bear to get around the parks, and we had friends staying at the Contemporary who were very happy with the direct monorail access. This is what led me to discount the EPCOT options. Have I been too hasty in that? I'd certainly not shy away from a somewhat more reasonably priced option, especially if it opens up more "fine" dining options.

Also, do the club lounges tend to be filled with unruly kids? Or is it more adults? Is that actually a dumb question? As I read it back I think it is... The reason we considered it initially is that we tend not to be wall-to-wall travellers and like to have a quiet spot to enjoy a coffee & pastry and sit down with our books—especially given we will be a bit jet lagged, this seemed to make sense for me. If they will be McDonalds playhouses, the allure dissipates for us.

We also considered and initially rejected the Four Seasons, which price isn't much different than the Grand Floridian for our dates. Concern about transport to/from parks was the factor here.

Thanks again for the thoughts and feedback!

jabbered

I'm a previous cast member.

As far as noise/kids, I've never noticed it being that bad except right at peak "meal" times for the lounge or if it's all day type of rainy day.

Again, the Epcot resorts would be best for me as any trips to MK are minimal for me, where I'll take hours to visit the countries at Epcot.

As far as being jet lagged and lounging around the resort, I'd again recommend Animal Kingdom Lodge as being the most peaceful and quiet with the best scenery (not from the lounge, but anywhere else in the lodge). The Epcot resorts to me have better scenery than either the Contemporary or Grand Floridian. They also have lots of areas inside and out to sit and enjoy and have access to more high end dining options (IMO) both in the resorts and also at Epcot.

Swiss Tony

This, x10

You do have some great choices of food venues around the Boardwalk area, and being able to nip into the back of Epcot is a bonus, too. Also have some good casual dining picks, too, like the brew pub.

And while the Contemporary is good for getting to Epcot, getting back is a bit of a pain as you have to go all the way around the monorail loop.

Often1

The Grand Floridian (Main Building) is a cut above the Contemporary, but both have direct monorail access to Magic Kingdom. That's great if you have kids. If you are adults without kids and will likely spend more time at Epcot, that is a PITA from either Grand Floridian or Contemporary.

Beach Club is the same in reverse. It's a 3-5 minute walk to Epcot (and you use the smaller and less crowded entrance), but a 20-25 minute bus ride to Magic Kingdom (or a walk through Epcot to the monorail). Beach Club also has a substantially nicer pool and a somehow less noisy & crowded environment.

None of the club levels are anything special. Basically Four Seasons prices for Marriott service.

Mary2e

I agree with what everyone else has said.

You're paying 5* prices for a 3* experience, even in club level rooms. There aren't any real special amenities

My only other comment is that at that price point the kids you will encounter generally are experienced travelers and well behaved. I've not seen unruly kids in the clubs.

That said, if you want a 5* hotel, well, stay at the Four Seasons that just opened. You'll have boat access to the Magic Kingdom and you'll be paying the same amount of money for a superior product and services.

writerguyfl

I've seen you say this several times on FT. Many people would disagree, including the trained inspectors from AAA.

As of January 2014, all of Disney's Deluxe category resorts earned a AAA 4-Diamond rating. (Disney's Wilderness Lodge is new to the list. It was upgraded from their previous 3-Diamond rating.)

AAA's definition of a 4-Diamond hotel: "These establishments are upscale in all areas. Accommodations are progressively more refined and stylish. The physical attributes reflect an obvious enhanced level of quality throughout. The fundamental hallmarks at this level include an extensive array of amenities combined with a high degree of hospitality, service, and attention to detail."

Source: http://ww2.aaa.com/aaa/common/Tourbo...hatisthis.html

DJ_Iceman

Thank you, writerguyfl, for more eloquently stating what I've thought to myself every time I read Mary2e's unsubstantiated (and exaggerated) degrading of Disney's deluxe hotels.

Mary2e

LOL.... AAA ratings are about as good as the BBB ratings

You guys have your opinions and I have mine. I can tell you that most people who have actually stayed in 5* hotels do not consider Disney hotels anywhere near 5*.

The difference in $$$ is not for service and amenities of the hotel itself, it's for the ambience and theming of being on Disney property.

I've stayed in just about all the deluxe hotels, some many multiple times. They ain't no Four Seasons. They ain't even a Park Hyatt.

hhoope01

I do believe the new Four Seasons hotel received a AAA 5* rating. So there is at least one 5* rated on-site hotel to choose from (should you want it.)

At Universal Studios, the Portofino and the Royal Pacific are both rated 4*s. I've stayed numerous times at both and they aren't really close to each other in a lot of aspects. The rooms in the Portofino are noticably bigger, the room furnishings are much better, there are more pools, there are much better restaurants, it goes on. Yet both are rated as 4*s. To me that means there can be a very wide range of differences between hotel services and experiences within the same * rating.

But at the end of the day, I would tend to agree, if you want to stay on-site at Disney (or even Universal) you should (and probably will) pay a premium for that privilege. So is it worth it to you to stay on-site? For a number of folks, it is; for others, it isn't. (For me, at Universal, it is very, very worth it. But for me at Disney there are still benefits, but not as much and I don't always stay on-site.)

Is getting a club-room worth it? Some would say yes, some wouldn't. If money, isn't your primary concern, you might be able to find some "quiet" time in the lounges. If that is a big benefit, it might well be worth it to you.