Club level

[boyd2284]

Is club level really worth it? Im thinking about getting a club level room but im wondering if it is worth the extra money

 

[ErinsMommy]

we LOVE club level, but with that said, once you go club its so hard to go back to non-club.

 

[Hopefully]

How do you define “Worth”?

 

[Sarahslay]

Being "worth" the cost is different to different people. I love the convenience of everything, I love always having something to eat during the day and little snacks the kids can grab on their way back to the room. Having breakfast in the lounge is awesome compared to having to do QS, and we are always able to grab free little bottles of water to stock our room fridge with. I just got back from a CL trip and the extra money I spent on the room was more than paid for with the meals we ate in the lounge instead of going out and paying for food. Some people would argue that's not "worth" it, but to me it 100% is. And it is true, it's really hard to go back to non-CL once you've gone CL.

 

[epcotobsessed]

We've tried it several places (Poly, AKL, YC, BC) and it is not worth the extra money for us. We never experienced any extra or better level of service for being in CL, and haven't noticed a difference between rooms of the same size while staying in CL vs. non-CL, so it really is just about the food and drink offerings. If you drink a lot of the type of beer and wine they serve then it would definitely be worth it, but we do not. The food is not worth it for us, even with four people eating it, and we don't like feeling like we have to be in the lounge for appetizers between 5-7pm, which is the most plentiful time of day in terms of food.

 

[zoo2tycoon]

We like the ability to purchase the extra FPs at busy times .

 

[mickeynut1]

Is club level really worth it? Im thinking about getting a club level room but im wondering if it is worth the extra money

Worth is subjective as it's different for everyone, but for us, CL is worth the extra cost. We spend more time at the resort than we do the parks, so when we stay CL it's more for the lounge itself. The food offerings are nice, but the lounge is our main reason for staying CL as we enjoy having another place to relax rather than in our room or around the resort .

 

[goofy4prez]

Is it worth it? There is no wrong or right answer to that. It's like asking is it worth paying more money for a Lexus instead of a Toyota. Different strokes for different folks. For me, I always go club level. I like the lounge, a couple of drinks, some desserts or appetizers, I like a quick breakfast on the go, and currently I love the option of purchasing additional FP's (three more) 90 days from checkout instead of doing my FP's at 60 days out. We stayed CL at the BWI the end of May into June for 4 nights prior to our 7 night Disney Cruise, and the ability to set up all 6 of our FP's each day was worth the additional cost alone. We had no problem getting FP's for FOP, Navi, Slinky Dog Dash, or any other attraction. I just made the call and the CM set up my FP's for each day and they saved a ton of time in the parks leaving plenty of time to do things at our pace instead of running from ride to ride, completing our 3 FP's and then hoping to no end we can get our 4th, 5th or more FP's for the day while playing on our phone app trying to get them. So with that said, Yes, it is worth it for me.

 

[CGB]

We’re a family that used to stay club level every time and loved it! Our family of four enjoyed the convenience of breakfast at the lounge and then a “light” dinner (after a big lunch in the parks) with the appetizers. Our fave was fireworks and munching on the evening snacks. It was all awesome.

Why did we stop? Having a second room for my growing kids became more important than the luxury. The kids could have their own bed, bathroom, TV, and extra space with a second room for the cost of club-level (depending on the resort, food included). Everybody’s mood improved and the trips became more enjoyable. I miss club level, but not enough to pay double for two rooms at that cost. We’ll take two value or moderate rooms instead.

 

[AngiTN]

There are probably a dozen threads that cover this exact question in depth that can be found with a quick search. They are always the same. Half responses will say nope. Half will say yep. Roughly.
There's just no answer to fit everyone here. Too many variables.
The same folks tend to say it's worth it and the same folks tend to say it's not.
Number 1 is it can only be worth it if you can use or will use it.

 

[LNMom]

We are staying CL for the first time soon. The CL suite cost the same as two non-CL rooms (which we need with growing kids--I am frugal and sad that we are at the end of sharing a double room), so cost was negligible.

This trip is a non-parks trip. We plan to enjoy the pool, resort hop, and shop and dine at DS. We tend to eat one large meal a day when we travel. So we will use the CL for breakfast and a light dinner, and drinks throughout the day. We will have a large lunch out at our fav restaurants outside the parks. Since we won't be in parks all day we should get great value for CL and break even.

My advice--map out your daily plan (especially dining and park times), identify whether you will actually have time to use the CL, and run the cost. If CL benefits you, then do not. If not, then spend the extra money in a great meal, activity, or souvenirs, or save it for the next Disney vacation!

 

[buzznina]

We did it once and found that it was not "worth" it for us. The day(s) we hung around the resort it was very nice to have CL, but a 9-10 day trip, we usually just have 2 days set aside for resort and when we go to the parks we are there all day. For our family, we found the breakfast lacking and on park days, by the time we got back they only had deserts out. I think it really comes down to how you are planning on using it and how often you are going to be at the resort.

 

[KerryCM]

My family always stays club level. We have stayed at mainly the Epcot resorts, but Boardwalk is our favorite. My son and his family enjoy it for the extra fast passes, the snacks for the kids and the convenience of grabbing a quick breakfast. They also like it to use the lounge as a space to wait while some are in the room getting ready for the day. My husband and I enjoy being able to relax in the lounge with a cup of tea or coffee, we also enjoy the food offerings the BWI provides and will eat a late lunch to enjoy the evening offerings.

Our biggest draw is the cast members though. They are what can make or break your trip. The cast at the Boardwalk are just amazing and have become like family. We love relaxing in the lounge, it just give us an extra place to relax.

 

[Simba's Girl]

For me the answer is that "worth it" is very subjective. It will always be more expensive, but you can often find discounts available. That said, for my family when we go as a family it is always "worth it" to us. My kids are picky and strange eaters even though they are all basically teens so from that standpoint for us it is worth it. DH & I have a hard time justifying it if we were traveling together, just the 2 of us, unless there's something really special we're going for.

 

[TexanInTheMidwest]

I think, in part, Club Level, may also be what restaurant is in the resort (and therefore what kitchen) the club level food is being planned/prepared in. We stayed at the GF in Club Level last January and DH loved it so much, we are going back with his entire family this coming January. In part because of the club - as his mom is going to be 90 and has no desire to go to any of the parks but can wander in and out of the club and around the resort all day. And she will love it.

For us, there was enough food to sustain us for 80% of our meals and we cancelled several ADRs. And, we DID go back to the resort mid afternoon (tea time) to rest and grab a snack.

 

[OurLaughingPlace]

We tried it one trip and will do it again sometime for a special treat. But, we did it in a way that made it 'worth it' to us. We had a 12 day trip and did the first 8 days at a moderate (PORS) / used the dining plan / had tons of park time. The last 4 days were CL at BC and we relaxed after our hectic park days, enjoyed the pool at BC, used the lounge a lot, including drinks at night. We simply enjoyed the Boardwalk area and stayed close to BC. Also, on our check out day we had a late flight so it was nice to have the lounge to snack, play cards, read and wait for our Magical Express pick up time.
Also, we are almost always impressed with Disney Service and the CM's at the Club Level were excellent / kind / helpful.

 

[Day-Day]

We can load our room up with a week's worth of food and drinks from the grocery store for less than cost of the CL option for one night. I like being flexible and don't want to feel tied to the lounge to get my money's worth. We do a pretty good job of getting fastpasses using refresh in the parks. I would enjoy CL but don't see the value for the overall cost.

 

[Llama mama]

I book it if I can get a discount. As a passholder I was able to grab a YC CL. 40% off and this time I got a 30% off. So when you are paying 399-480 for Yacht Club Club Level. Definitely yes ! Rack rate no.

 

[Mainsail Minnie]

After several WDW trips, we tend to spend a lot of time at the resort and not as much at the parks as we used to. We know our favorite rides in each park, and have learned how to tour efficiently to get them done and then go back to the resort to chill out. We've done tons of ADRs in past trips, and don't feel the need to do them daily anymore. We also no longer attend the evening shows. So in that context, with lots of resort time and a preference for eating small meals on a drop-in basis, it makes sense for us to stay club level, as we do make regular use of the lounge food offerings. The 90-day FPs are an incentive for us, too, as they make our park touring more efficient and allow us to skip rope drop. So the trip becomes more relaxing, more of a true vacation.

 

[Traveler Steve]

I would say that if you can easily afford it - as in, treat it as a luxury - then yes, do it. Think of it as a few more tools in your belt. Say you happen to be back at the hotel and want a snack, but don't want to buy anything, then the club benefit will come into play. I'm going by memory (we did it once back in the 90)s, but the CMs there were able to help us with dinner reservations and other information that, while we could have done it ourselves, was easier just to have someone else handle it. I'm pretty sure this is still a feature. Worth is subjective, but if within your means, there is nothing wrong with having more options in your life.