Just Back - GF/RPC

[MJS]

We just got home from a wonderful trip to WDW. We stayed at the GF in the main building in a deluxe concierge room. We were there for about 2 weeks, and here are some thoughts:

We were transported to the resort by Disney, and greeted at the door of our vehicle by a RPC CM. We were taken immediately up to the RPC where another CM checked us in and took us to our room. The room was terrific! Large and comfy, with a great balcony and view. We overlooked the new pool, and could see from just south of the Contemporary to the monorail station at the GF. We could see the nightly fireworks at Epcot! We asked before we arrived that the room be desmoked, since all rooms in the main building are smoking. Housekeeping did a terrific job! The room was noisy at night, with the music from the band. They played until 11pm each night, and while we enjoyed the music, I think I would request a room away from the main lobby next time.

Many of the CMs were wonderful, including housekeeping (they did great things with my little one's toys and stuffed animals, and they created the cute towel animals). The CMs in the food lounge of the RPC were great, and very helpful getting us milk, etc. whenever we needed it. Room service was outstanding with special requests. The CMs throughout the resort were very friendly and welcoming, with the exception of a few of the CMs in concierge. That was a "mixed bag" with some excellent people and some not so great. Several times we called to get help with PS's, etc., and it was difficult to get anyone to answer the phone, or when they did answer, (unless it was one of the excellent CMs), they did not want to be bothered. We asked to speak with the manager, and she never returned our calls.

The resort is beautiful and the location is perfect! The new pool is wonderful. We enjoyed many of the restaurants. We did many PS's, so we did not eat much in the RPC food lounge. It did seem that the selections other than breakfast were fairly meager. The offerings were pretty much the same day-to-day. I think the GM and concierge management have some work to do both on the services and amenities in the RPC.

I always wanted to stay at the GF, and I am glad that we did. We did not find the resort stuffy, and it was great for kids.

Thanks for helping us plan our trip! Questions?

[CaliforniaDreaming]

Hi MJS!!! Welcome Home!!!

So, what was your room number? Did you get any pictures of the room?

How would you compare your stay at the GF RPC to that of the PR & YC Concierges?

Thanks! ;)

Cali

[Janet2k]

MJS, welcome home! It sounds like overall you had a wonderful vacation.

Believe it or not, your review is the best one that I have read in the past few years regarding the GF & RPC. I am sorry that they still have a long way to go, yet it seems that you had a more favorable experience than others have had. Thanks for giving me hope regarding my own upcoming GF vacation. (I've been very worried.)

I agree, the GF is a beautiful resort. It is my husband's favorite and I do understand why it is (even though my favorites are the AKL & BW).

[4merlurkerchris]

Welcome back! Well, I see that the CM in concierge STILL need work! We're still trying to figure out where to stay! Which resort restaurants did you eat at? How was the transportation from the GF to other parts of the world? Thanks!
Chris

[jel0511]

Hey MJS, it's GREAT to hear such a good report!!! I'm looking forward to my trip, and your report ism aking me jealous!!! I do have one question, how was the desmoking? Could you detect any smoke odor? I'm only asking, since we're having the same thing done since my son has asthma.

[MJS]

Cali - Our room was 4422. I learned about it on these boards, and it is wonderful! I have video tape, but I did not do stills (unless my DH was able to). The room is unusual with many angles, and our camera's wide angle function did not expand enough to get good shots. I also saw the other floor plan for the deluxe room (4419/20). It is a bit bigger than the room we had, but is basically an oversized room. The view from those rooms is the old pool and the resort. You can see Space Mountain.

It is hard to rank the concierge experiences that we have had at Disney because they are all so different. In terms of service, the YC is the best, followed by the GF and the Poly (we had a bad experience there). The room was the best at the GF, followed by the Poly and YC (small rooms). The lounge/food was the best at the Poly with the YC in second. The food was not good at the GF.

I have stayed in other resorts (non Disney) that offer concierge, and Disney's service at all three of the resorts is well-behind the other resorts/hotels. I do not know if Disney has the level of service that they want, so "take-it-or-leave-it" or if there are service problems that they are trying to fix. We like have a larger room in a good location, but I do not think that concierge at Disney is really worth it in terms of service.

[MJS]

Janet2K - I think that we were very, very lucky we met a couple of great CMs who did a wonderful job ensuring that we had a great stay at the GF. Without them, I think that our experience would have been significantly different. We talked to many guests while we were there, and most thought that the GF/RPC was not worth it in terms of service. I would approach another stay there with caution.

[MJS]

4merlerkerchris - Transportation at the GF was great, we had no problems taking the bus to the AK, and using the boats and monorail for the rest of our stay. The location of the resort is excellent.

We tried all of the restaurants, with the exception of Narcoosee's (we had a PS for our last night there, but realized that we needed to pack!;) ). Is there a restaurant that you would like some info on? I will post a review on the restaurant board soon!

[MJS]

jel0511 - We also battle asthma, and the desmoking process worked really well. We did not have any problems. I will say that the guy next door to us smoked like a chimney, so the balcony was really bad when he was outside.

We had trouble with the thermostat in the room. It is run on a sensor. We like it cool, and it helps with breathing to have it cool. When we would set it to say 70 degrees, at night or at any time when no one was moving in the room, the thermostat would shut off and the temp. in the room would go up to 80 degrees. We had to have engineering in the room every 48 hours to override the motion sensor. Once they fixed it, it would only last 48 hours. It was a pain in the neck.

[Mario]

Welcome home!

Did the planning office contact you before your trip or did you have to contact them? Did they meet all of your requests?

Thanks!:)

[MJS]

We contacted them. I also made most of our PS's. We did ask for their help with Cindy's breakfast, and they got us a PS for that. They also met our room requests. We did feel that we had to contact them frequently to make sure that our requests were remembered.

[Mario]

When did you contact them relative to your arrival date? Do you think that they would have gotten in touch with you if you had not contacted them?

It sounds frustrating, especially given the cost of a room and the fact that this is suppose to be Disney's flagship resort.

[jel0511]

Mario - GF RPC contacted me EXACTLY 60 days before my check-in date. I did call them before to add some requests to my reservation but this call was unprompted I think. They have been GREAT so far and I hope this will continue!!

[MJS]

Mario - We contacted them first because we knew that we wanted to try to go to Cindy's breakfast, and that they could help us. Because of that PS, we wanted to be sure to let them know well in advance of the dates, so we contacted them. I like to plan vacations, so I did most of the PS's myself.

It is important to note that the planning office got us everything that we requested.

[4merlurkerchris]

MJS,
Thanks for all of the information. In the RPC concierge lounge, did they have individual plastic bottles of water for you to take or do they still pour it for you? Also, what about cans of soda?
Thanks.
Chris

[MJS]

No soda and no individual bottles of water. There are large glass bottles of two kinds of water, as well as ice, glasses and cups with lids. Given how hot it was during our stay, we got lots of cups of ice water. There was no soda out, and we never asked for it, so I do not know if it is something that they can get or not.

When is your trip? How long are you planning to stay? If you stay at the RPC, I highly recommend a deluxe room. They are not much more than a regular room, and they are large and comfy!

[Bugster]

Did your family do any of the children's activities (tea party, pirates cruise, cooking)? How about the spa?

[4merlurkerchris]

Hi again MJS,
We are still not sure where we are going to stay yet for this trip! The deluxe room sounds great. I was looking at Cali's GF site and I was wondering which type of deluxe room you had according to that site--floorplan a or b?
Thanks!
Chris

[CaliforniaDreaming]

MJS was in a type B. There are 4 type A's and 4 type B's.

:)

[4merlurkerchris]

Thanks, Cali!
Chris

[MJS]

Cali is right, but when you look at the floor plan in the FAQ, the furniture in the room is arranged differently. Not to be confusing, but the TV is where the sofa is on the plan. THe sofa is located where the easy chair is shown. The easy chair is where the table and chairs are. The table and chairs are in the TV's spot on the plan. That was, you can see the TV from the beds, chairs, etc.

[MJS]

We did not do any of the children's activities. I did visit the spa for a manicure, and it was wonderful. I highly recommend it!

[TigrLvsPooh]

I think the key to enjoying the GF concierge is to not expect anything. LOL :p When I stayed there 8 years ago the only thing I used the concierge for on the entire trip was one dinner PS. Oh, and we grabbed a few bites of cheese one night. That was about it. But we really did enjoy our view of the castle and the monorail. Of course you can still have those things in a lagoon view room, for about 1/2 the cost. :cool:

[CaliforniaDreaming]

Okay, MJS. ;) My last trip and next trip to WDW were booked for GF Deluxe Concierge, both have been switched to GF Lagoon (I hadn't been reading favorable reviews, and with the AP rates, GF Lagoon is half the price of Deluxe Concierge) Tell me, should I give the GF Deluxe Concierge a try? I sware, I'm just gonna have to make a reservation, and forget I made it until the day before we leave! LOL, sounds like I better make it for Jan 2004! (but, I was thinking of doing the YC then!). :rolleyes: I'll never decide on anything! (for 2004, my next trip after my upcoming one this summer, I'm not sure if we'll need 1 concierge room or 2 regular rooms, it depends how many of us go).

(BTW, you had what many consider as the best room in the resort. ;))

[MJS]

Cali, the room was great, and we loved watching the fireworks every night from Epcot. If you want to try a stay at the GF/RPC, go for it. I always wanted to stay there, and I am really glad that we did.

TigrLvsPooh, given what our approx. 2 week stay cost, :p right back at you!;)

[Bugster]

Sorry, but I was away for a few days! The manicure sounds great. How much did it cost? Did you happen to see the health club? Are there any classes?

I cannot tell from your review because it seems mixed...would you stay at the GF again?

[Mickymark]

Ill be there in one of the same rooms in July/August. As the poster just before me asked - would you staye there again? I havent stayed at the GF since '89.

[betterlatethannever]

I was looking at Cali's GF site

What site is this? Do you have a link?

Thanks

Ed

[MJS]

The GF site is the GF FAQ at the top of the first page on this board.

Regarding the question of staying at the GF again, I would stay there again, and I loved the room that we had. If we could stay in that room without the concierge service, that would be perfect (I recognize that it not possible). There are so many great resorts at WDW, I look forward to trying something else on our next visit.

[4merlurkerchris]

Hi MJS,
You requested that your room be de-smoked. Did you make that request through the advanced planners or someone else? Also, did you request the specific room that you received (room 4422) or did you just make general room requests? Who did you make the requests to? Thanks so much for all of the great information!
Chris

[MJS]

We spoke mainly to the planning office, but also to a member of the RPC concierge team, who I think became our advocate and ensured that our requests were met. She saw that 4422 became available before we arrived and she told us that she held it for us. We called the planners and reminded them frequently about our requests, especially the desmoking. Their attitude was always, "we'll see what we can do" or "we cannot guarantee anything." Not too reassuring, so we called alot.

Regarding the room, IMHO 4422 is the best deluxe. The floor plans are on the FAQ here and on Disney's site. 4419 and 4420 are deluxes, but the view is awful (inside courtyard where the old pool is located). Those rooms are basically oversized hotel rooms, and 4419 is handicapped equipped, so there is no tub. 4422 and 4426 (I think it is 26) are the other floor plan, which I think is better, and the view from 22 is great. 26 faces the monorail. The same rooms are on the third floor, but that is the floor where the band is, and noise can be an issue. I hope these comments help!

[4merlurkerchris]

Thank you, MJS!
Chris

[CaliforniaDreaming]

The deluxe rooms are 4319 (handicap), 4320, 4322, 4329, 4419, 4420, 4422, and 4429. :)

[MJS]

Thanks Cali! I do know that 4419 is also a handicap room because I toured it. I would guess that both 4319 and 4419 are set up the same way.

[CaliforniaDreaming]

Interesting, MJS. I saw the floorplans at the RPC Desks, and I just thought that it was noted that 4319 is handicap. How was the bathroom set up?

:)

[MJS]

The bathroom was to the right once I entered the room. It was big. There was no tub, but a large shower area that one could easily place a wheelchair next to/into. I did not spend much time in the room. I went in, and looked around, mainly at the layout and the size, as well as seeing the balcony (small!) and the view. It was definately 4419, not 4319 because it was on our floor.

Cali, we are thinking about the BWI for our next trip. I know this is a bit off the GF subject, but do you have info. on the garden suites there (ie. square footage?). I remember you shared the floor plan with me awhile back. I wonder how the deluxe room compares to the GFs? How is the service? Thanks!

[CaliforniaDreaming]

The deluxe room at the BWI is around 500 square feet, and is just a room with an expanded sitting area (with chair, extra TV, and queen sleeper sofa). The Garden Suites are 700+ square feet, with a king in the loft (also large bathroom with jacuzzi) and a queen sleeper in the living room area (plus wet bar, tv, etc - I think there might also be a half bath).

I've heard some very good things about the BW Concierge. Their staff is supposed to be great, but the food offerings are a little less than the YC (from what I've heard, they do have a nice selection at the BW, though)

[princess angel]

hi MJS,
glad you had a great time, and enjoyed your room and view at the GF. but sorry to hear that the GF RPC cm's werent all that helpful... at that cost you should expect great service!

I noticed you said YC concierge was the best in your opinion! I agree completely!!!! :)
I also like the food in the longe better at the YC better than the Poly. in the morning, and in the evening! and during the day the YC offers quite a variety of snacks while Poly only has cookies.

I wish RPC would give more friendly service, I just cant justify staying there when I know I can stay at YC concierge and get treated wonderfully!!! :)


thanks for the report!

Laura :)

[MJS]

Laura - Thanks for your comments, and welcome back! It sounds like you had a great trip! I do love the YC! :)

One story that shows the difference between the RPC and YC service is about milk. We have a young child who drinks milk a few times a day. At the RPC, other than breakfast, we had to find a CM to get us a glass of milk. That is about 2-3 times/day for about 2 weeks. The CMs always got us what we needed from the back room, and they were very nice about it. They always gave us a small glass.

At the YC, I asked for milk for my little one, and they asked me how much we used per day, how long we would be there, etc. The the CMs at the YC concierge gave us a gallon of milk and had a refrigerator put in our room (we were not charged for it), so we would always have milk, especially of we needed some in the middle of the night! They also checked with us a couple of days later to be sure that we still had enough! That's service!

[princess angel]

perfect example of the service you get at the YC concierge, MJS!

that's the level I always get! :)

Laura :)

[imbe@aol.com]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by MJS
[B]Cali - Our room was 4422. I learned about it on these boards, and it is wonderful! [QUOTE]


COLOR=darkblue]Ahhhh you had "my" room! LOL Love that one!! [/COLOR]

[MJS]

It was your wonderful trip report that convinced me to beg for that room! ;) Thanks for posting and for all of your help!:)

PS. Now it is MY room!;)

[Familyof6]

MJS, we were at the RPC just after you left. We also were not all that thrilled with the service, but we still LOVED the place! I had to call to make PS's. I waited until about 40 days out before I decided they weren't going to call me. They were rather cold most of the time. I did finally get one that I would give mixed reviews. He was less than helpful, but I honestly think he's the reason we were in RPC instead of SugarLoaf Key. I'll detail it in my trip report...if I ever get it finished.:rolleyes:
We only once got any kind of special treatment from mousekeeping. My son had left a note that said, "Thanks for the chocolate" on his pillow when we left for the parks one morning. When we returned after dinner, my dd found a bag of chocolates left in the vanity area. I don't know if it was a forgetful housekeeper or if she left them on purpose for my son. I'd like to think that she was creating a magical moment for him. It's something he'll never forget! Otherwise we had nothing special or extra.
I agree that, other than breakfast, food offerings were slim. Especially for the children. And what was offered was only adequate to hold you until you next meal. There was nothing so fantastic that I felt I had to go back for more. The display of what they had was very appealling though, wouldn't you agree?
I'm glad you had a nice trip. I would have loved to stay 2 weeks! We only had 4 nights there (one in Conch Key) and YES, I would go back.
DH also agrees that it was wonderful. He's a been there/done that kind of person. I thought this would be our one and only trip to WDW. He's ready to go back! (but not right away:( ) Next time it'll be more on a budget. No GF for us, unless I can sweet talk him into a night or two!:p


Lisa:)

[MJS]

Welcome back! I look forward to reading your trip report! Sorry that you found the CMs to be the same as we did. Ugh! I hope Disney finds a way to improve the level of service in concierge. Even a smile would be an improvement!