AKV Concierge

[Rizzo1]

So, do the CL rooms only have windows? They don't have sliding doors as all other rooms?
Besides the safaris, daily mousekeeping service and food/drink available, what are the benefits to staying at a CL room?

 

[disneynutz]

So, do the CL rooms only have windows? They don't have sliding doors as all other rooms?
Besides the safaris, daily mousekeeping service and food/drink available, what are the benefits to staying at a CL room?

They have doors to the balcony.

The only other benefit that I can think of is that you also have access to CL Concierge but to be honest often there is a wait to see them and they don't do anything that you can't do yourself.

Bill

 

[cwdefouw]

We stayed there last year, on a trip where we only did one park, one day, Animal Kingdom, just to do the Sunrise Safari. It was nice, however we spent a lot more time in the room and in the lounge than a typical Park Warrior type of guest would. We would not do the CL for one of those types of trips. And I am not sure that we could justify the additional points spend or the worrying about whether or not I can get the stay that I want at 11 months, again.

We do like Jambo House over Kidani, mostly because of the proximity to additional restaurants. Since we only have a small contract at AKL, I think that for us, the value units will be our typical choice at 11 months. The risk of the poor view is outweighed by the low point requirement.

 

[dianeschlicht]

So are you saying that the concierge rooms there for DVC don't have good views? I did consider staying concierge, but I've gotta admit that I'm all about the views of the animals at AKV. If concierge rooms have poor views, I may not do concierge.

Even if you are lucky enough to get one of the 3 rooms on the savanna view side, you will have limited viewing of the animals because of the location. Mostly we saw the road and an occasional Ankole that happened by.

 

[dianeschlicht]

The only real benefit of CL is the Sunrise safari. Sure the "treats" are nice, but not worth the extra points, and I don't care to have housekeeping, so that was a negative instead of a positive for me.

 

[SpaceMountain77]

The allure of these coveted concierge-level villas still puzzles me. As an AKV owner, I find the value villas to be the true treasure at this resort. At 7:58am, on the 11-month mark, I am logging into the DVC website for a value villa, not a concierge villa.

While having the concierge-level villas may cost me more in maintenance fees, I would like to think that the extra amount I am paying is allowing me to stay longer in a value villa.

I should mention that we had a garden-view concierge room, in the Hawaii longhouse, at Disney's Polynesian Resort in 2003. Honestly, the cost far exceeded the service and amenities. We had nightly turndown service with a chocolate on the pillow. Food and drinks were offered at the lounge, but the selection was limited and no different from the offerings elsewhere at the resort. Finally, we did get a large Polynesian Resort chocolate bar on our last day. Although all of it was nice, looking back, the money would have been better spent on signature dining.

 

[disneynutz]

The allure of these coveted concierge-level villas still puzzles me. As an AKV owner, I find the value villas to be the true treasure at this resort. At 7:58am, on the 11-month mark, I am logging into the DVC website for a value villa, not a concierge villa.

While having the concierge-level villas may cost me more in maintenance fees, I would like to think that the extra amount I am paying is allowing me to stay longer in a value villa.

I should mention that we had a garden-view concierge room, in the Hawaii longhouse, at Disney's Polynesian Resort in 2003. Honestly, the cost far exceeded the service and amenities. We had nightly turndown service with a chocolate on the pillow. Food and drinks were offered at the lounge, but the selection was limited and no different from the offerings elsewhere at the resort. Finally, we did get a large Polynesian Resort chocolate bar on our last day. Although all of it was nice, looking back, the money would have been better spent on signature dining.

You will find the much of what Disney offers is lacking in substance but it's still a great place to vacation. I just feel sad for people that don't really know what they are signing up for.

Bill

 

[Novakm]

With all the talk about all AKV members paying so a select few can stay CL, I was wondering who really pays for concierge? A quick look at the points chart shows you need 70 to 90 more points for a week in CL vs. SV. At $5.67 per point, that's about $453.60 per unit per week, or $117,936 per year for all 5 2br units. Does it cost more than this to run CL? Hard to believe daily cleaning and snacks could cost that much.

If it costs more than that, they should adjust the points chart so CL guests pays a higher share of MF (by using more points).

 

[Deb & Bill]

Some people like club level because they aren't really spending time in the parks as much as they are spending time in the resort. They can sit in the lounge and partake of the lounge offerings while they read a book or play/work on their laptop and soak up the environment.

 

[disneynutz]

With all the talk about all AKV members paying so a select few can stay CL, I was wondering who really pays for concierge? A quick look at the points chart shows you need 70 to 90 more points for a week in CL vs. SV. At $5.67 per point, that's about $453.60 per unit per week, or $117,936 per year for all 5 2br units. Does it cost more than this to run CL? Hard to believe daily cleaning and snacks could cost that much.

If it costs more than that, they should adjust the points chart so CL guests pays a higher share of MF (by using more points).

Points have nothing to do with the cost of running CL. The AKV owners pay for the CL amenities just like BLT owners pay for TOTWL through their dues. The guest using those amenities doesn't pay for the privilege, the owners do.

Bill

 

[Rizzo1]

So, all in all...are the extra points worth it to stay at the CL? We have stayed at 1 & 2 bedroom villas at AK, Kidani Village and found them to be comfortable.

Putting aside the $$ value and paying for MF, etc..., is it a nice place to stay? Is the lounge nice? We are planning on going to one of the safaris, but don't have to stay at CL the whole time. We are planning on only visiting a couple of the parks this time.

In short, should we just skip our stay at CL?

 

[DebbieB]

Points have nothing to do with the cost of running CL. The AKV owners pay for the CL amenities just like BLT owners pay for TOTWL through their dues. The guest using those amenities doesn't pay for the privilege, the owners do.

Bill

I don't think it's the same. TOWL is owned by DVC, the AKL Club lounge is owned by AKL. AKL has far many more club level guests using it than the 5 or 10 DVC rooms. They run it, DVC doesn't. I'm sure there is a chargeback for the DVC rooms using it but it should be covered in the points charge.

 

[Dean]

So, all in all...are the extra points worth it to stay at the CL? We have stayed at 1 & 2 bedroom villas at AK, Kidani Village and found them to be comfortable.

Putting aside the $$ value and paying for MF, etc..., is it a nice place to stay? Is the lounge nice? We are planning on going to one of the safaris, but don't have to stay at CL the whole time. We are planning on only visiting a couple of the parks this time.

In short, should we just skip our stay at CL?

I can't speak for you but for us, it was worth it. To me the CL is more applicable if doing a non park stay or for a split stay without much park time during the CL reservation. It gives you access to tours and options not available otherwise.

 

[Dean]

I don't think it's the same. TOWL is owned by DVC, the AKL Club lounge is owned by AKL. AKL has far many more club level guests using it than the 5 or 10 DVC rooms. They run it, DVC doesn't. I'm sure there is a chargeback for the DVC rooms using it but it should be covered in the points charge.

I do think it's different but I'd point out that the AKV members as a group do pay for the lounge. I'm sure there's a credit back for the hotel guests who use it. One could argue that those DVC members who use it pay because they're using more points and thus paying more fees. Personally I don't see it that way since the usage is spread out as well but I wouldn't completely disagree with that way of looking at it.

 

[DebbieB]

I do think it's different but I'd point out that the AKV members as a group do pay for the lounge. I'm sure there's a credit back for the hotel guests who use it. One could argue that those DVC members who use it pay because they're using more points and thus paying more fees. Personally I don't see it that way since the usage is spread out as well but I wouldn't completely disagree with that way of looking at it.

So is the lounge owned by DVC? I'm not an AKV owner so I can't look at the contract.

 

[disneynutz]

So, all in all...are the extra points worth it to stay at the CL? We have stayed at 1 & 2 bedroom villas at AK, Kidani Village and found them to be comfortable.

Putting aside the $$ value and paying for MF, etc..., is it a nice place to stay? Is the lounge nice? We are planning on going to one of the safaris, but don't have to stay at CL the whole time. We are planning on only visiting a couple of the parks this time.

In short, should we just skip our stay at CL?

For us it isn't worth it. We love the views from our room and DVC CL at Jambo has really bad views.

That being said, you should try everything at least once for yourself.

Bill

 

[disneynutz]

I don't think it's the same. TOWL is owned by DVC, the AKL Club lounge is owned by AKL. AKL has far many more club level guests using it than the 5 or 10 DVC rooms. They run it, DVC doesn't. I'm sure there is a chargeback for the DVC rooms using it but it should be covered in the points charge.

How are points converted into money? AKL doesn't want points, they want to be paid for the added costs for the CL amenities like the lounge, food & drink, dedicated concierge, and daily room cleaning and turn down service.

The only way for them to be paid is through the dues of all AKV owners, Kidani and Jambo.

Bill

 

[Dean]

So is the lounge owned by DVC? I'm not an AKV owner so I can't look at the contract.

I'm not home right now to check the wording in the POS so I'm not sure if it's owned or they are simply responsible (we're in Gatlinburg on an exchange). Either way the costs should be the same and will technically be spread out among the owners at AKV (Kidani and Jambo are one resort legally). I'm assuming that there are compensations for ongoing costs from the hotel component to defer the costs proportionally to their usage. One could argue that those DVC members that use the club pay for it because they use more points. IF those five 2BR units actually produced more points from a sales process standpoint, I'd likely look at it that way myself. A somewhat comparable process, though more egregious, was the valet parking issue. That would have been a more clear cut issue where the many paid for the few had they continued it for $$$ cost.

 

[DebbieB]

How are points converted into money? AKL doesn't want points, they want to be paid for the added costs for the CL amenities like the lounge, food & drink, dedicated concierge, and daily room cleaning and turn down service.

The only way for them to be paid is through the dues of all AKV owners, Kidani and Jambo.

Bill

DVC is collecting dues on the extra points the concierge room costs. So that is where they should be getting the money.

 

[disneynutz]

DVC is collecting dues on the extra points the concierge room costs. So that is where they should be getting the money.

When an SSR owner pays their dues per point, that money goes to SSR costs. When they stay at AKV CL, they use SSR points. AKV gets nothing from the SSR owner, the AKV owner pays for the AKV costs including the extra costs for CL.

The dues paid per point isn't applied to where the points are used.

That's no different than an AKV owner using transportation at SSR that is paid for by the SSR owners.

What is different is that CL and TOTWL is an added amenity unique to only those resorts.

Bill