NOT impressed with the Beach Club! Just back...

[ladyandthetramp2]

Hi
First off let me say we travel to Disney twice a year from Boston. We have stayed at almost all the resorts except for Grand Floridian and Poly.

Here's some of my complaints:*remember this is a top $ resort
-BUS SERVICE-why on earth when leaving Animal Kingdom and Typhoon Lagoon is there 1 bus for 5 resorts? (Beach Club, YC,BW,Swan, Dolphin)
-BEES-there were a ton of bees around the pool area-getting a drink from the soda fountains was a challenge
-Speaking of soda fountains-the marketplace is a joke-1 set of soda fountains? 1 toaster that has only 2 spots?-horribly slow service, too small for such a big resort-never mind basically NO seating???
-Beaches and Cream-great little restaurant if you want a 90 minute wait every time! We stopped 4 separate times on vaca, all different times of day and we always got the standard response 90 minutes-even though there are empty tables inside. And why in the world can't you order a No Way Jose (my favorite sundea-lol) in the to go line? Only certain icecream things are available
-Pool side service-1 waiter for the whole pool area??? This is Deluxe service???
-Life guards, attidues! They closed the pool mulitple times while we were there for thunder and lighting which is understanble and they wait 30 minutes before opening-ok get that but why after the 30 minutes do then the lifeguard staff go in and re-set the chairs, and clean the pool deck-people are sweltering and waiting in line to use the pool-let us in!!!!
Sorry had to vent-I thought we would of had a much better experience.

 

[nolanboys]

We have stayed there once and loved it, but your points are valid. We stayed in a 2 bdrm villa, so the QS option was not an issue for us as we ate in our room. I did notice that their QS was small, and can see it getting very crowded, especially in the morning. We didn't have problems with the pool, but I can understand your frustration. The one thing I will agree with is the bus situation. We stayed there and BWV and thought they were both bad because of the multiple stops. We usually do split stays, so we usually concentrate on Epcot, our favorite park, and HS when we stay in that area. Hopefully whatever resort you pick next time will be a better for you.

 

[Srbright]

-BEES-there were a ton of bees around the pool area-getting a drink from the soda fountains was a challenge.

....edit.....

-Life guards, attidues! They closed the pool mulitple times while we were there for thunder and lighting which is understanble and they wait 30 minutes before opening-ok get that but why after the 30 minutes do then the lifeguard staff go in and re-set the chairs, and clean the pool deck-people are sweltering and waiting in line to use the pool-let us in!!!!

Bees- what do you expect them to do about the bees? Bees can fly up to 4 miles to forage; they cant kill every hive within a 16 square mile area.

Pool service- that 30 minutes for lightning is not just for your safety, but theirs as well. They are likely not allowed in the pool area (the same as you) until the 30 minutes is up. They clean the area after the 30 minutes because there is a subset of people that would complain that it wasn't clean.

Stacy

 

[Masonmj84]

One thing that always makes me hesitate to book deluxe is that I repeatedly hear that the bus service is bad.

It seems for the price Disney charges at these resorts, they should each have thier own dedicated bus.

At BC/YC, I could, perhaps, see the two resorts sharing a bus during slow times. But, for the price of these resorts, they should never have to share a bus with any of the other EP resorts.

Same goes with the Monorial resorts.

 

[disnut8]

Hi
-BEES-there were a ton of bees around the pool area-getting a drink from the soda fountains was a challenge

There's not too much Disney can do about the bees. Disney rarely will kill any living creature and I'll bet there were bees at every single resort at Disney World. Not too long ago, lots of people were concerned because bees were mysteriously dying and no one knew why. If we don't have bees, there are a lot of things we won't have around anymore. Maybe you didn't see It's Tough to be a Bug and hear the song about how they are pollinators.

Sorry you didn't have the time you thought you would.

 

[buzznina]

I'll have to agree with you about the buses, for a resort that ranges from $300-$600 a night for a standard view room, I would expect it to only share with YC for buses going to MK or AK.

 

[DAZY3BYZ]

One thing that always makes me hesitate to book deluxe is that I repeatedly hear that the bus service is bad.

It seems for the price Disney charges at these resorts, they should each have thier own dedicated bus.

At BC/YC, I could, perhaps, see the two resorts sharing a bus during slow times. But, for the price of these resorts, they should never have to share a bus with any of the other EP resorts.

Same goes with the Monorial resorts.

I completely agree! When we stayed at BC, this was one of our chief complaints as well. With the price that you pay to stay there, you should not be sharing buses with all the Epcot resorts. Also, the lack of a quick service food option was a problem here for us. We've staked at AKL,POR and Poly where our experience was much better than at BC. We really wanted to like it and did love the location but they really need to add a QS and fix their transportation options.

 

[MMrules]

I just got back on the 17th and have been there 3 times. I will say that this time I agree with the buses. We went to DTD and had to wait almost an hour and 15 minutes for 1 bus to show up! The following resorts had at least 5 buses come and go in that span of time-all stars, pop century, coronado springs, OKW, Saratoga Springs, Wilderness Lodge, Fort wilderness and the Caribbean beach. To top it off we were waiting in a storm where lighting was approaching...pretty scary to be in the open air. There was a CM working there that we asked about calling for a bus, but we got no answer and he left after the huge crowd started begging for answers.

For the very expensive price tag this resort has, buses shouldn't be an issue like this. I agree with the 5 bus stops and blizzard beach coming/going to AK is also absurd. I am pretty sure there would have been a violation of overcrowding on the bus each time we went if the authorities looked into it. Way too many bus stops for a hotel!

 

[maxiesmom]

I completely agree! When we stayed at BC, this was one of our chief complaints as well. With the price that you pay to stay there, you should not be sharing buses with all the Epcot resorts. Also, the lack of a quick service food option was a problem here for us. We've staked at AKL,POR and Poly where our experience was much better than at BC. We really wanted to like it and did love the location but they really need to add a QS and fix their transportation options.

I have to agree with you. I thought I would love the Beach Club, and while the location is great, the bus service and small food service area made it not my favorite.

What really put a damper on things was that we were doing a split stay, and had stayed at the Poly before the Beach Club. Every time our bus when by the Poly, the chorus of "Why are we not still there?" would start. We had rented points for the Beach Club part of our stay, so switching back to the Poly was not an option. As much as I love Epcot, I would still stay at the Poly over the Beach Club.

 

[DisNance]

I stayed at the Beach Club for the first time last year. I didn't like it at all. We had a lot of trouble with our room and rude cast members. I guess I expected more for the money. It was such a bad experience that Disney gave me 3 free nights at any Deluxe resort of my choice. I think that overall, the service at Disney is just not as wonderful as it used to be. Hope your next trip is better.That being said, I'm still going back this September!!!

 

[disneydreamfan14]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience...

The buses concern me. Especially because we are planning on having breakfast at Cape May Cafe when we go in November and don't want to be waiting around all day for a bus to come take us to DHS after breakfast.

 

[DisneyKidds]

Hi
First off let me say we travel to Disney twice a year from Boston. We have stayed at almost all the resorts except for Grand Floridian and Poly.

Here's some of my complaints:*remember this is a top $ resort
-BUS SERVICE-why on earth when leaving Animal Kingdom and Typhoon Lagoon is there 1 bus for 5 resorts? (Beach Club, YC,BW,Swan, Dolphin)
-BEES-there were a ton of bees around the pool area-getting a drink from the soda fountains was a challenge
-Speaking of soda fountains-the marketplace is a joke-1 set of soda fountains? 1 toaster that has only 2 spots?-horribly slow service, too small for such a big resort-never mind basically NO seating???
-Beaches and Cream-great little restaurant if you want a 90 minute wait every time! We stopped 4 separate times on vaca, all different times of day and we always got the standard response 90 minutes-even though there are empty tables inside. And why in the world can't you order a No Way Jose (my favorite sundea-lol) in the to go line? Only certain icecream things are available
-Pool side service-1 waiter for the whole pool area??? This is Deluxe service???
-Life guards, attidues! They closed the pool mulitple times while we were there for thunder and lighting which is understanble and they wait 30 minutes before opening-ok get that but why after the 30 minutes do then the lifeguard staff go in and re-set the chairs, and clean the pool deck-people are sweltering and waiting in line to use the pool-let us in!!!!
Sorry had to vent-I thought we would of had a much better experience.

Sorry your experience wasn't what you wanted it to be. I'll agree that the BC doesn't have as good a QS dining options as other deluxe resorts. The food section of the Marketplace was an expansion of an existing store, and is lacking. The Poly, GF, AKL, CR have much better QS dining options. The buses I'd agree as well. For what you pay there should be better transportation than what they offer, although the few times we have used the buses from the BC we didn't have any long waits. Other than that, I don't think your complaints are something you can hold against the BC. Bees....yeah, they were a bit more agressive at Stormalong Bay then elsewhere our last trip, but what is Disney going to do about that? Beaches and Cream is always crowded, but what do you want them to do at a popular, and very small, establishment. No room to add extra staff just to make all the sundaes they would have to if they opened up the take out window more. I will agree that the pool staff at Stormalong Bay is much more regimented about the closure rules. Someone reports there is a sniff of lightning in the area and they shut down pronto, while other resorts might hold off longer to close. However, Stormalong Bay is a popular spot and the Flying Jib slide is higher than any other. The lifeguards are just following the rules given to them.

So, if a foodcourt and busing are very important to you I can see being disappointed. We don't do buses or food courts, so the areas where the BC is lacking don't take away from the location, decor, pool and atmosphere at the BC, for us.

 

[DisneyKidds]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience...

The buses concern me. Especially because we are planning on having breakfast at Cape May Cafe when we go in November and don't want to be waiting around all day for a bus to come take us to DHS after breakfast.

That won't be a problem. You would take a boat to DHS from the YC/BC. Either that, or you can walk. Transportation via boat will take anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes once you are at the dock. The walk to DHS is about 15 minutes or so.

 

[NHKristy76]

I leave for the BC on Thursday morning... A couple of the comments in this post really concern me!

1) Bees? If there is a bee problem, Disney DOES need to deal with it. I know they don't like to kill bees and whatnot but there are ways to handle bees so they are not a problem. For example, installing a beehive near the property to draw the bees away from the area is one resolution.

2) The buses. Why on Earth would they make deluxe resorts share a bus? I don't understand why this would be set up this way... We rely on Disney transportation and I don't have a problem waiting a reasonable amount of time for buses... But this sounds like a disaster waiting to happen...

The rest of it, eh... won't really impact my vacation at all so I'm not really worried. We are there to have fun and don't expect everything to be perfect.

But the bus thing...

 

[Tink-aholic]

We stayed there for the first time a month ago and loved it. We went to Beaches and Cream twice during our stay and walked in both times (did you have a large party?) and I had a sandwich from the quick service without a wait.

We didn't experience any rudeness at all.

The buses are what they are, and everyone knows that. Even when we stay at monorail/Epcot resorts, we rent a car when we are there because we don't like to deal with the buses.

 

[Sweettears]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience...

The buses concern me. Especially because we are planning on having breakfast at Cape May Cafe when we go in November and don't want to be waiting around all day for a bus to come take us to DHS after breakfast.

You can either walk or take the boat to DHS from the BC.

 

[mariamouse]

We stayed there for the first time a month ago and loved it. We went to Beaches and Cream twice during our stay and walked in both times (did you have a large party?) and I had a sandwich from the quick service without a wait.

We didn't experience any rudeness at all.

The buses are what they are, and everyone knows that. Even when we stay at monorail/Epcot resorts, we rent a car when we are there because we don't like to deal with the buses.

The statement that the buses "are what they are" still does not invalidate the OP's complaints. Of course any resort is bound to occasionally have bus wait issues, but there is no justification for all of the EPCOT resorts sharing one bus. No way.

 

[NHKristy76]

The statement that the buses "are what they are" still does not invalidate the OP's complaints. Of course any resort is bound to occasionally have bus wait issues, but there is no justification for all of the EPCOT resorts sharing one bus. No way.

I agree... The OP is complaining about something real (instead of, I don't know, non branded napkins?! )

This seems like something Disney could, and should, fix right away. I'm not thinking it's something that I should have to deal with it because they've made a lousy management decision.

5 resorts on 1 bus? Not acceptable!

 

[TDC Nala]

And why in the world can't you order a No Way Jose (my favorite sundea-lol) in the to go line? Only certain icecream things are available

Two words...dining plan.

That's why food and specialty sundaes are no longer available to-go at B&C.

Why on Earth would they make deluxe resorts share a bus?

Those five Epcot resorts have been sharing a bus line at DTD as far back as I can remember (way back when I used to be at Pleasure Island every night, I rarely go to DTD anymore but I'm aware that route still shares between all five resorts). Most of the time they do not all share park buses anymore. And there is no deluxe resort that doesn't have at least two stops on its bus route (even the AKL bus also stops at Kidani Village.)

Especially because we are planning on having breakfast at Cape May Cafe when we go in November and don't want to be waiting around all day for a bus to come take us to DHS after breakfast.

If you're at BC there is no bus to DHS, so don't go out to the bus stop looking, you'd just be wasting time. To get to DHS you need to either walk or take the boat.

 

[NancyIL]

One thing that always makes me hesitate to book deluxe is that I repeatedly hear that the bus service is bad.

It seems for the price Disney charges at these resorts, they should each have thier own dedicated bus.

At BC/YC, I could, perhaps, see the two resorts sharing a bus during slow times. But, for the price of these resorts, they should never have to share a bus with any of the other EP resorts.

Same goes with the Monorial resorts.

I'll have to agree with you about the buses, for a resort that ranges from $300-$600 a night for a standard view room, I would expect it to only share with YC for buses going to MK or AK.

I stay at the Swan, and the S/D share a bus to AK and MK only with the Boardwalk. The YC and BC have their own buses to the MK and AK -at least at peak times. All 5 Epcot resorts do share the bus to DD.

As to the OP's complaint about the long wait at Beaches and Cream - try getting there when they open at 11. You'll get seated then.