Justifying the price of GCH

[DizMe]

I think we must be sisters in Disney spirit and we live in the same town! When we go I stay at the Grand and split the cost with my db. Our husbands are the same--mine loves that I go to DLR (with anyone other than him) but he's yet to get me an AP. Hmmm.

Now why have we never gone together?? We should meet up for coffee sometime and discuss it My dh went years without paying for my pass, but when it went up significantly a few years ago and I said I didn't know if I could do it, that's when he told me he'd get it and I took him up on it. That's when he said it was my therapy and I think that's a very nice way to look at it! He has golf, I have Disney, ha ha!

 

[whoever]

Now why have we never gone together?? We should meet up for coffee sometime and discuss it My dh went years without paying for my pass, but when it went up significantly a few years ago and I said I didn't know if I could do it, that's when he told me he'd get it and I took him up on it. That's when he said it was my therapy and I think that's a very nice way to look at it! He has golf, I have Disney, ha ha!

I need a gofundme to support my AP renewal price (sadly it expired in July and I did not renew).

 

[Betty_Baylor99]

We’ve only stayed there once, and it was a 2 night stay with a military discount. I could never justify paying full price/rack rate for it though. It definitely was nice to stay on-property and be within footsteps of the park. It’s a beautiful resort, but even when I stay at deluxe resorts at WDW, I’m paying half of what the rack rate is at GC so it’s hard for me not to compare when you look at the numbers.

 

[DizMe]

I need a gofundme to support my AP renewal price (sadly it expired in July and I did not renew).

Mine expires October 11. I may be going to Dapper Day but that's looking less and less likely. I'm definitely going Dec 3 so I don't plan on letting mine expire. If I do, I lose the free parking and Photopass that's grandfathered in. I guess you'd get PP if you added MP anyway though, right? I have only used the parking once, ha ha, but it's hard to let it go anyway... But yes, the AP prices are getting to that point where you don't necessarily renew automatically, especially since they removed the renewal incentive. Next year is a big question mark for me until I see how things go with SW crowds.

OP, I somewhat disagree with those who say you can enjoy all of the GCH amenities without staying there. I will tell you it isn't the same; being able to hop on the elevator and go down to the lobby, restaurants, and so on is quite different from coming in from DTD as a visitor. We sometimes sit by the fireplace in our pajamas. We get our picture taken with Santa when we see the crowds are low, sometimes also in our pajamas! Last year we dressed as elves It's true that you can visit and enjoy it, but staying there and enjoying it is much better IMO because you can do that many times a day. There is so much during the holidays!

Here I am last year with my sister. I'm in green, she's in red.

 

[only1mouse]

The first time we stayed at the Grand it was $169/night. We fell in love with both the hotel and the price. To our dismay the next time we checked it was far more expensive. But...... we wait for the deals (AP rates, welcome back rates, Visa card rates) and have stayed every year since.

For us it’s easy to justify, I split the cost with a friend, we do tours and buy the special seating because we’re old and have just become accustomed to the perks we’re willing to pay for. We go without our adult kids or husbands. It’s an annual excursion for the two of us. We’re also both AP’s.

We stayed last Christmas and is was super amazing! We’re going for Halloween on the 23rd of this month. It really depends on your individual situation.

 

[Bossy22]

I think it comes down to more how much other stuff you need to give up to do it. We have thought of staying there but we would need to cut a few days off our stay (we always stay 10-11 nights elsewhere) and the rest of the budget would be much tighter. For us, although we could afford to we choose not to because of what we would give up. I asked my wife if she would want to stay there next time as we're not going for awhile and could save up and she quickly said no, she would rather spend the extra thousand +++ on other stuff.

 

[tvguy]

I have stayed everywhere from the Anaheim KOA ( the parking structure is where it used to be) to the Grand Californian. My wife would just rather not go as often and stay at The Grand Californian. Any argument I had about staying at the Holiday Inn Express got blown out of the water when the day we were booking our trip coming up in a few weeks, when our Disney stock dividend check came in the mail. If we go once a year, stay 3 nights at the GC, our dividend check from Disney covers the cost difference.

 

[julesann]

Now why have we never gone together?? We should meet up for coffee sometime and discuss it My dh went years without paying for my pass, but when it went up significantly a few years ago and I said I didn't know if I could do it, that's when he told me he'd get it and I took him up on it. That's when he said it was my therapy and I think that's a very nice way to look at it! He has golf, I have Disney, ha ha!

Yes, coffee sounds great. DL is definitely my therapy too (and I'm a psychotherapist lol).

 

[IslaLila]

No way can I justify $700+ a night. It will never happen. I love staying in nice places and would love to stay there, but we’re staying at the Sheraton with a friend’s discount for $91 a night. At WDW we stayed at the Wyndham bonnet creek for $900 for 7 nights, inclusive of all fees, for a lovely 2 bedroom unit. To spend almost that much for ONE NIGHT at GCH? It’s just not going to happen. I’d like to think some day we’ll make it work, but I work on education and our expenses go up faster than my paycheck so we’ll just be happy with more affordable places.

 

[Rayray650]

So glad that you posted this. I am in the same position. We are travelling with a five year old and a senior with an ankle issue at Christmas 2019. Currently we have a booking for a week at GCH but we have been considering offsite. I have stayed at DLH before but never the GCH. For me it keeps coming back to the convenience of the hotel, being able to easily break up the day, being close to all of the character dining, and the little Disney extras ..... although larger rooms and a second bathroom keep making me rethink things .... especially with the Australian exchange rate

 

[theluckyrabbit]

So glad that you posted this. I am in the same position. We are travelling with a five year old and a senior with an ankle issue at Christmas 2019. Currently we have a booking for a week at GCH but we have been considering offsite. I have stayed at DLH before but never the GCH. For me it keeps coming back to the convenience of the hotel, being able to easily break up the day, being close to all of the character dining, and the little Disney extras ..... although larger rooms and a second bathroom keep making me rethink things .... especially with the Australian exchange rate

Go ahead and book an off site hotel (or more than one) for your trip dates. Make sure to read the fine print for a no penalty cancellation policy. Then keep track of your reservations as your trip dates get closer. As the cancellation dates get closer, you'll have a much better idea of the exchange rate and will know which hotel will work best for your budget. If the GCH still falls within safe budget range, and you still feel good about it for your family, then why not? But, if the budget won't allow it, you'll already have a back up or two readily available.

 

[DizMe]

So glad that you posted this. I am in the same position. We are travelling with a five year old and a senior with an ankle issue at Christmas 2019. Currently we have a booking for a week at GCH but we have been considering offsite. I have stayed at DLH before but never the GCH. For me it keeps coming back to the convenience of the hotel, being able to easily break up the day, being close to all of the character dining, and the little Disney extras ..... although larger rooms and a second bathroom keep making me rethink things .... especially with the Australian exchange rate

One thing you might check into in your circumstances is staying concierge. Depending on the upcharge for your dates, it can make a lot of sense for a larger party and especially with a young one and a senior with limited mobility. We did this with my mom one year and it was so awesome having the lounge for my mom to use when she needed to relax. It was great having food and drink available all day, with breakfast and lunch especially nice for my mom. When we did it, the cost was very much offset by the convenience and amount of food and drink we consumed as a group of 5. The lounge staff was very helpful and it was a nice atmosphere for Mom, where she could go right into the hotel from the park if she needed to. At least one of us always stayed with her but the kids were able to do their thing, too. She needed a wheelchair while in the parks but she could walk around the hotel. However, it may be too expensive now to do that. I know I looked at prices for my sister and me in Dec, standard vs standard concierge, and for 2 of us with no real need for the lounge other than to grab something to eat or drink, it didn't make financial sense. The value increases with the number of people in the party.

 

[LizzyS]

I can't justify the cost, tbh. We've spent some time in the common areas of the Grand and thought it was great, but my upper limit on hotel rooms is just under $400 per night and I better be staying somewhere really special for that kind of money (think Hotel del Coronado, which I have gladly paid that rate for) and not just what is classed as "deluxe". We have stayed at PPH before and we did enjoy that stay a lot, but that was at the upper end of what I like to pay for a hotel room.

 

[bethwc101]

I need a gofundme to support my AP renewal price (sadly it expired in July and I did not renew).

Mine expires October 11. I may be going to Dapper Day but that's looking less and less likely. I'm definitely going Dec 3 so I don't plan on letting mine expire. If I do, I lose the free parking and Photopass that's grandfathered in. I guess you'd get PP if you added MP anyway though, right? I have only used the parking once, ha ha, but it's hard to let it go anyway... But yes, the AP prices are getting to that point where you don't necessarily renew automatically, especially since they removed the renewal incentive. Next year is a big question mark for me until I see how things go with SW crowds.

OP, I somewhat disagree with those who say you can enjoy all of the GCH amenities without staying there. I will tell you it isn't the same; being able to hop on the elevator and go down to the lobby, restaurants, and so on is quite different from coming in from DTD as a visitor. We sometimes sit by the fireplace in our pajamas. We get our picture taken with Santa when we see the crowds are low, sometimes also in our pajamas! Last year we dressed as elves It's true that you can visit and enjoy it, but staying there and enjoying it is much better IMO because you can do that many times a day. There is so much during the holidays!

Here I am last year with my sister. I'm in green, she's in red.

Ours expire Nov. 4 and we will not be renewing. Luckily our exp date is dapper day so we can participate in that.
It's just too difficult to justify the cost. Especially with the increased likelihood of random and last minute notice AP blocked dates.

 

[DisneyAndreaM]

Thank you so much everyone for your amazing responses! Can cancel the Hyatt up to the day before so I’m going to think about it a bit more

 

[MacMama0930]

I have stayed on property quite a few times, at all 3 hotels. Last December we stayed GCH, theme park view room, club level. It was nice, the club level was awesome and the proximity is great, no doubt. But most recently, I took a trip with my sister and her two kids so we looked around for "suites" and decided to stay at Courtyard Marriott Theme Park Entrance. It had a separated bedroom, and the living room space had two bunk beds. It was SO awesome. And the kids LOVED the water park (which might be a moot point in December). And the walk to the park wasn't bad at all. It WAS hard to stay off site, but when I thought about what I paid for all that space and bunk beds, large balcony, etc - I gulped at how much I spent for GCH last December. I was a die hard on site kind of gal, but this last stay sort of convinced me to look at other properties because the rates are getting insane onsite. Long story short, the proximity is great - but depending on your touring style, proximity might not even be a big issue. You can still go in and enjoy all the aspects of GCH lobby without the staying in a cramped room...

 

[Rayray650]

I have stayed on property quite a few times, at all 3 hotels. Last December we stayed GCH, theme park view room, club level. It was nice, the club level was awesome and the proximity is great, no doubt. But most recently, I took a trip with my sister and her two kids so we looked around for "suites" and decided to stay at Courtyard Marriott Theme Park Entrance. It had a separated bedroom, and the living room space had two bunk beds. It was SO awesome. And the kids LOVED the water park (which might be a moot point in December). And the walk to the park wasn't bad at all. It WAS hard to stay off site, but when I thought about what I paid for all that space and bunk beds, large balcony, etc - I gulped at how much I spent for GCH last December. I was a die hard on site kind of gal, but this last stay sort of convinced me to look at other properties because the rates are getting insane onsite. Long story short, the proximity is great - but depending on your touring style, proximity might not even be a big issue. You can still go in and enjoy all the aspects of GCH lobby without the staying in a cramped room...

Just wondering what the crowds were like walking back to the hotel? This is our alternative but I fear the crowds may be too much for my daughter and grandpa to deal with.

 

[Rayray650]

Thank you so much everyone for your amazing responses! Can cancel the Hyatt up to the day before so I’m going to think about it a bit more

Thank you for posting. The responses are helping with my planning also

 

[Patty2005]

I’ll be at the courtyard Marriott theme park entrance this December. My mother will be in a wheelchair. I don’t anticipate crowd trouble.

 

[Buson808]

Some ppl love the Grand and some dont think its worth it. Its all a personal choice!!!

I myself love it and WILL not stay anywhere else!

Same in Vegas on the strip or off the strip? For me ON THE STRIP! MGM SIGNATURE is my choice!