Disney's Club Level (CL) Information & Questions

[JJ2017]

My family and I spent a long weekend at Gran Destino Tower at Coronado Springs Resort. We loved the tower and the resort. This trip was a bit of an experiment. I wanted a weekend getaway where we didn't have to drive, cook, or clean. I didn't want to have to rush anywhere, so this visit was a non-parks visit. We just enjoyed the pool and resort amenities, Disney Springs shopping and dining (I love Jaleo!), and resort hopping/riding all four forms of transportation in one day. This ended up being a lot of fun and very relaxing as it was hot and I'm not sure you could have paid me to take my kids into the parks!

We stayed in a deluxe suite with club access (Chronos Lounge). Room 457 (triangle, parking lot/parks view).

The Great:
The Chronos Lounge was wonderful. The lounge is well appointed and comfortable. There are toys/games and books for kids and adults.
The lounge was busy in the morning, but didn't feel cramped. My family was always able to find seating. It was quiet in the evenings. The staff was lovely. Maria is surely the most gracious, hardest working cast member at Disney. The food was wonderful.
Breakfast offerings included: eggs, oatmeal, bacon, Mickey waffles, assorted breads and baked items, cheese and salmon, and fruit. Ask for a mimosa! The beer and wine selection was excellent and available at various times throughout the day. The evening wine and hors d'oeuvres was lovely and plentiful. Desserts were good (although there was shortage on Mickey tart shells the last couple of nights of our stay so no cute and delicious Mickey tarts). The various offerings in the evening were good (plant-based ceviche was surprisingly delicious). My children were able to find enough that suited their palate.
The coffee machine was not working during most of our stay, which was disappointing. The staff offered to get espresso coffees from the bar downstairs, but we felt bad asking them to do so since they were constantly busy in the morning.
A computer/printer was available for use since I couldn't get boarding passes to download to my phone.

The Deluxe Suite was spacious and well designed. Having a half bath made a huge difference for my family. Each room has it's own temperature control (that is illuminate all night-be prepared if you are sensitive to light when you sleep). The storage is brilliant. My family fully unpacked for our 4-night stay and had plenty of storage available. Note: There was no alarm clock in our room, which felt odd. There were plenty of USB ports. I enjoyed having a mini refrigerator.
The housekeeping was excellent during our stay! Thank you to the amazing staff. I loved the modern feel with the subtle Mickey touches. I definitely felt I was at Disney World, but a newer, fresher Disney World.

Disney internal transportation was excellent. We never waited more than 10 minutes or so for a bus to various parks. We left most days around 10 and returned in the late afternoon. Thus, we never used the bus service during peak times of day.

The Good:
We enjoyed the main pool area, playground, table tennis and arcade. I loved having life vests provided for kids of all ages. We had marshmallows at the fire pit by the pool which was fun. I do wish there were more activities scheduled. There are many great spaces around the resort that could be creatively utilized for activities.

The Bad:
We arrived after midnight on the Magical Express. At check in, there was at least one other family behind us and a large group. The one person at the front desk was very busy finding a manager or someone who could accept a compliment that a guest she had just helped was giving her instead of quickly accepting the compliment and moving on to assist the exhausted group of guests in line. I was not happy.

Our deluxe suite was on the 4th floor facing the parking lot (one morning I had a view of several delivery trucks lined up. I imagine this view costs the same as the water view rooms on the other side of the building since there is a view of fireworks, but being on the 4th floor fireworks were barely visible over the treeline except for the very highest ones. I loved our room, but management should consider charging a different rate for lower floor suites, or not making these club level. Differential pricing would allow all suite guests to feel like they are provided comparable experiences.

Disney Signature Services (DSS) called me and left a message about a week after I booked our reservation. I called DSS (available to club level guests) twice to request a rollaway bed (my children fight when they sleep in the same bed--will they every outgrow this behavior?) , an L-shaped deluxe suite to accommodate a roll away, and bottled water in our room since we would be arriving after the club lounge was closed. None of these requests were fulfilled. I was deeply disappointed, especially about the bottled water. At the very least, placing a few bottles of water in the room would be an easy way to make guests happy. In addition, I was not told that I needed to register for the Magical Express from the airport. I happened to read this on Disboards. DSS should have inquired about my travel plans to ensure that had everything settled. You don't know what you don't know, so asking me if I need anything else wasn't really useful. DSS was able to move a reservation time for me that I could not move myself on the My Disney Experience app.

Overall:
Club level enhanced our experience. I adored the Chronos Lounge. I can't imagine having a better experience anywhere.

PS--I'll post pics tomorrow.

awesome! i literally just found this thread to specifically learn more about CL at CSR. perfect timing!

 

[Rachel GB]

1. Trish makes a lot of great points! With that said, we've never stayed in a villa, but have stayed both CL and non-CL and while CL is nice, our non-CL trips have been just as fun and relaxing. The new Riveria resort looks beautiful and I've actually been looking into it for an Oct 2020 family trip. I just started planning so no definite dates or resort yet, but it is a resort I'm considering.

2. March is spring break time so it will be a little busier than other times, but I think you'd still have fun, even with crowds. With that said, there doesn't seem to be a "slow" time at Disney anymore as the slower times of year have gotten more popular over the years.



Great pics, thanks for sharing! Hope you're having a great time .



Glad you had a great time and enjoyed your first Poly CL stay .

@mickeynut1, thank you for your reply! I appreciate your input and experience.

 

[CogsworthTN]

We were not going to renew our AP’s, but with the discounts that posted this morning DH renewed his and I will just buy regular ticket. Staying club level in a cottage room at the BWI. That has always been my dream room there. Amazing rate for my Spring Break week. Happy dance...happy dance

 

[KrazeeK120]

We were not going to renew our AP’s, but with the discounts that posted this morning DH renewed his and I will just buy regular ticket. Staying club level in a cottage room at the BWI. That has always been my dream room there. Amazing rate for my Spring Break week. Happy dance...happy dance

We were magically upgraded to one of those rooms back in 2014 and we loooooved it!! I hope you have a great trip.

 

[JenniJ]

My family and I spent a long weekend at Gran Destino Tower at Coronado Springs Resort. We loved the tower and the resort. This trip was a bit of an experiment. I wanted a weekend getaway where we didn't have to drive, cook, or clean. I didn't want to have to rush anywhere, so this visit was a non-parks visit. We just enjoyed the pool and resort amenities, Disney Springs shopping and dining (I love Jaleo!), and resort hopping/riding all four forms of transportation in one day. This ended up being a lot of fun and very relaxing as it was hot and I'm not sure you could have paid me to take my kids into the parks!

We stayed in a deluxe suite with club access (Chronos Lounge). Room 457 (triangle, parking lot/parks view).

The Great:
The Chronos Lounge was wonderful. The lounge is well appointed and comfortable. There are toys/games and books for kids and adults.
The lounge was busy in the morning, but didn't feel cramped. My family was always able to find seating. It was quiet in the evenings. The staff was lovely. Maria is surely the most gracious, hardest working cast member at Disney. The food was wonderful.
Breakfast offerings included: eggs, oatmeal, bacon, Mickey waffles, assorted breads and baked items, cheese and salmon, and fruit. Ask for a mimosa! The beer and wine selection was excellent and available at various times throughout the day. The evening wine and hors d'oeuvres was lovely and plentiful. Desserts were good (although there was shortage on Mickey tart shells the last couple of nights of our stay so no cute and delicious Mickey tarts). The various offerings in the evening were good (plant-based ceviche was surprisingly delicious). My children were able to find enough that suited their palate.
The coffee machine was not working during most of our stay, which was disappointing. The staff offered to get espresso coffees from the bar downstairs, but we felt bad asking them to do so since they were constantly busy in the morning.
A computer/printer was available for use since I couldn't get boarding passes to download to my phone.

The Deluxe Suite was spacious and well designed. Having a half bath made a huge difference for my family. Each room has it's own temperature control (that is illuminate all night-be prepared if you are sensitive to light when you sleep). The storage is brilliant. My family fully unpacked for our 4-night stay and had plenty of storage available. Note: There was no alarm clock in our room, which felt odd. There were plenty of USB ports. I enjoyed having a mini refrigerator.
The housekeeping was excellent during our stay! Thank you to the amazing staff. I loved the modern feel with the subtle Mickey touches. I definitely felt I was at Disney World, but a newer, fresher Disney World.

Disney internal transportation was excellent. We never waited more than 10 minutes or so for a bus to various parks. We left most days around 10 and returned in the late afternoon. Thus, we never used the bus service during peak times of day.

The Good:
We enjoyed the main pool area, playground, table tennis and arcade. I loved having life vests provided for kids of all ages. We had marshmallows at the fire pit by the pool which was fun. I do wish there were more activities scheduled. There are many great spaces around the resort that could be creatively utilized for activities.

The Bad:
We arrived after midnight on the Magical Express. At check in, there was at least one other family behind us and a large group. The one person at the front desk was very busy finding a manager or someone who could accept a compliment that a guest she had just helped was giving her instead of quickly accepting the compliment and moving on to assist the exhausted group of guests in line. I was not happy.

Our deluxe suite was on the 4th floor facing the parking lot (one morning I had a view of several delivery trucks lined up. I imagine this view costs the same as the water view rooms on the other side of the building since there is a view of fireworks, but being on the 4th floor fireworks were barely visible over the treeline except for the very highest ones. I loved our room, but management should consider charging a different rate for lower floor suites, or not making these club level. Differential pricing would allow all suite guests to feel like they are provided comparable experiences.

Disney Signature Services (DSS) called me and left a message about a week after I booked our reservation. I called DSS (available to club level guests) twice to request a rollaway bed (my children fight when they sleep in the same bed--will they every outgrow this behavior?) , an L-shaped deluxe suite to accommodate a roll away, and bottled water in our room since we would be arriving after the club lounge was closed. None of these requests were fulfilled. I was deeply disappointed, especially about the bottled water. At the very least, placing a few bottles of water in the room would be an easy way to make guests happy. In addition, I was not told that I needed to register for the Magical Express from the airport. I happened to read this on Disboards. DSS should have inquired about my travel plans to ensure that had everything settled. You don't know what you don't know, so asking me if I need anything else wasn't really useful. DSS was able to move a reservation time for me that I could not move myself on the My Disney Experience app.

Overall:
Club level enhanced our experience. I adored the Chronos Lounge. I can't imagine having a better experience anywhere.

PS--I'll post pics tomorrow.

I am happy you had such a wonderful trip overall. It sounds so relaxing.
Thank you for the in depth report of your stay. We are staying CL for the 1st time the last week of August 2020 at GDT, but only for the last 2 nights of our trip. I hope CL here stays the same.

 

[ReginaRJ]

Hello! Anyone staying at GF Sugar Loaf these days? I’like to know about the breakfeast offers!

 

[Sarahslay]

We were not going to renew our AP’s, but with the discounts that posted this morning DH renewed his and I will just buy regular ticket. Staying club level in a cottage room at the BWI. That has always been my dream room there. Amazing rate for my Spring Break week. Happy dance...happy dance

I got the same this morning for end of january/february! I'm so excited! Of course I've heard now that it may be a glitch and we could possibly be at risk for losing it because it's a mistake, but they're gonna have to fight me for it.

 

[Sarahslay]

Hello! Anyone staying at GF Sugar Loaf these days? I’like to know about the breakfeast offers!

I stayed there twice this summer, mid-July and early August, it's what I consider standard breakfast offerings: cereals, fruit, toast & bagels, different little meats (ham, prosciutto), the little sticky buns with the nuts on them, tiny quiche, oatmeal and yogurt with all the toppings, deviled eggs every morning, and every other morning were regular hard boiled eggs.

 

[ReginaRJ]

I stayed there twice this summer, mid-July and early August, it's what I consider standard breakfast offerings: cereals, fruit, toast & bagels, different little meats (ham, prosciutto), the little sticky buns with the nuts on them, tiny quiche, oatmeal and yogurt with all the toppings, deviled eggs every morning, and every other morning were regular hard boiled eggs.

Thanks!

 

[flexoidar]

I'd appreciate any insight and thoughts on staying club level at the Poly v. club level at the GF (Sugar Loaf building). Thanks.

 

[LNMom]

The videos of the suite posted are accurate, so I am just going to post the few pics I have that I haven't seen elsewhere. The assortment of bath items; the kids area in the lounge (we played a lot of UNO); evening cordials served from 8-10 p.m. with desserts (beer and wine were also still available). I am posting resort pics on my Coronado Springs thread post.

 

[CogsworthTN]

I got the same this morning for end of january/february! I'm so excited! Of course I've heard now that it may be a glitch and we could possibly be at risk for losing it because it's a mistake, but they're gonna have to fight me for it.

Me too

 

[PaDisneyCouple]

Been trying the search function, but having issues: any recent menu listing for BWI? We're considering a stay there in 2020.

 

[LovesBelle]

I got the same this morning for end of january/february! I'm so excited! Of course I've heard now that it may be a glitch and we could possibly be at risk for losing it because it's a mistake, but they're gonna have to fight me for it.

What was the rate? Must have been good!

 

[Sarahslay]

What was the rate? Must have been good!

It was about 50% for mine, which honestly next to some other amazing rates I've had the chance to get over the last 1.5 years I didn't blink at it, then I sat down after I booked it and went "wait a minute....". They have since pulled that rate and put up something new, I think around 25-30%, but Disney has not contacted me and my reservation still stands so I don't know what is going to happen and if they'll do anything at all.

 

[Crazyhorse]

It was about 50% for mine, which honestly next to some other amazing rates I've had the chance to get over the last 1.5 years I didn't blink at it, then I sat down after I booked it and went "wait a minute....". They have since pulled that rate and put up something new, I think around 25-30%, but Disney has not contacted me and my reservation still stands so I don't know what is going to happen and if they'll do anything at all.

That's my question too. I haven't been contacted...yet. How can they not honor a confirmed reservation, rates and all? I agree that $370 for a $1250 room is highway robbery on my part...but...hey!

 

[gwynne]

That's my question too. I haven't been contacted...yet. How can they not honor a confirmed reservation, rates and all? I agree that $370 for a $1250 room is highway robbery on my part...but...hey!

That's the lowest rate I have ever seen for one of those rooms by a mile. I hope they honor it for you, but if they decide not to, their game, their rules. Loads of fine print on those reservations.

 

[Crazyhorse]

I figure it would be best to delete what I copy/pasted from the reservation email...

 

[TigerlilyAJ]

I'm so confused. I got a Canadian resident discount for Jan 6-8, and was told that the 25% off was the same as the AP offer. This was at 8am before the AP stuff disappeared. Are any of these steeper than 25% AP discounts for that time frame? BWI CL deluxe room.
Am I done rate hunting or not?

 

[Jessica Geisler]

@trishadono you sound like me
We did AKL CL in July, YC in August, CSR in September & are at Poly in 2 weeks! I snagged a 1BR villa at riviera for MLK weekend and I am so excited. This next trip I’ll only have my 7 & 4yo with me so Poly is perfect (and I managed to snag a standard view AP discount at 35% and will probably never see it that cheap again) but the 1 BR with my husband and all three boys will be perfect. Parks get full? Head back to the room with lots of space. Baby needs shut in a room separate from big brothers to take a nap? They can watch a movie in the living room. Kids get to go to Disney, mommy gets to stay in a brand new hotel as their Christmas present.

I did rpc this May, poly lv cl in August, CSR deluxe suite Sep and now coming up in Oct again.

I am so freaking excited I have the 1 br at RR booked for Feb!!!

Why?

Breakfast time. You get up and the coffee pot you set up the night before has your coffee, grab a cup and get back in bed, crawl in with the kids, sit on balcony....still in your pjs! Cooking is my least favorite chore but toasting a bagel or scrambling an egg is kinda fun in a room that’s so pretty,

Midday. We come back and need a rest. Lots of room to nap. Also you won’t worry about running out of towels, throw in dryer and ta-da all set. Snacks ? We will gab stuff arrival day, bananas slice with PB, nuts, chips n salsa etc. I will get wine, I usually bring dh rum or Jameson, at 4 or 5 we will have one in the room with view or on balcony weather permitting.

We will go to eat where WE want and eat what WE want vs what the lounge provides. Fun options also are any bar attached to the TS restaurants. There are more beverage choices, and more tasty appetizers. Often we just do QS.

Getting back at night? Dd will stop QS for a cupcake and we split it. Ds will want something like chicken nuggets and dh will want a flatbread lol. One or 2 will get the food, the others go get ready for bed. When we get back to room with our items we all sit at the table and kind of share everything and talk about our day, Some are already in pjs. Rest of us get ready for bed and unwind.

The #1 biggest advantage is the Time Flexibility! You have coffee at 5am if you want, don’t have to have the adult beverages they have, buy what you want, eat when you are hungry and what you actually craving.

But Trish, you love cl??? Yes I do, I love the time savings vs a std room. However a 1 or 2 bedroom villa(or larger) for me has the same advantages as a cl room.

So when there are all 4 of us or now with dd’s bf I need 2 sleeping spaces, a villa or suite is needed. So what’s the price difference? The visa discount was big enough savings to make the villa doable , so I AM DOING!

I have gone every month of the year. An advantage to busy times are the expanded park hours, I don’t worry about crowds. I know how to do what we want , crowds or no crowds.

Just checked my 4 day weekend 2/13-17. Blt and vgf are sold out. CCV has room but would need 35-40% off to come close to discount I got. CSR suite only one close to both having 2 sleeping spaces and close to price point . It only gets 10% off with any discount and will be a bit more than what I have, So for this trip the RR is my best option to meet needs and best price point.