Why hasn't Disney improved deluxe counter service?

[jon18uk]

I understand that when the deluxe resorts were first designed, it was expected guests at the high-end resorts would want high-end dining, so the focus was on table service restaurants. But one of the main criticisms I have read about the deluxe resorts is the size of the quick service dining areas, the limited menu and speed of service. It feels frustrating that you could get a better dining experience at Port Orleans than at Wilderness Lodge, if you just want something quick to eat.

Why hasn't Disney enlarged the quick service areas and turned them into food courts?

 

[Alesia]

Why hasn't Disney enlarged the quick service areas and turned them into food courts?

It's simple: they don't have to. Better counter service options are not going to encourage people to stay in deluxe resorts over value and moderate resorts. Increasing spending on something that won't increase revenue is just bad business.

 

[jon18uk]

It's simple: they don't have to. Better counter service options are not going to encourage people to stay in deluxe resorts over value and moderate resorts. Increasing spending on something that won't increase revenue is just bad business.

I nearly chose POR over WL because of this issue, so I assume at least a few other people factor it into their thoughts, the size & speed of QS service also features in a lot of Tripadvisor reviews of Wilderness Lodge. Also I am more likely to spend $10 on a breakfast if there is a nice place to eat it and it is served quickly, otherwise I may grab a snack or skip breakfast, so there would be some increase in revenue if they can serve more people quicker.

 

[Alesia]

I nearly chose POR over WL because of this issue, so I assume at least a few other people factor it into their thoughts, the size & speed of QS service also features in a lot of Tripadvisor reviews of Wilderness Lodge. Also I am more likely to spend $10 on a breakfast if there is a nice place to eat it and it is served quickly, otherwise I may grab a snack or skip breakfast, so there would be some increase in revenue if they can serve more people quicker.

The entire purpose for having amenities in hotels is to get "heads in beds." You will never hear anyone in their right mind say, "I was going to stay at All Star Music, but now that the Gasparilla Grill has a baked potato bar, I'll gladly spend and extra $400 per night to stay at the Grand Floridian."

If the time comes that they can't fill the rooms at deluxe resorts, they'll make changes. Not until.

 

[Alesia]

I nearly chose POR over WL because of this issue

I have to ask: Why didn't you?

 

[jon18uk]

I have to ask: Why didn't you?

Been to POR and POFQ before and my DH wanted to try a new resort. He also liked the look of WL when we walked through on a previous trip. But I remember on previous coming back after a day at Universal or somewhere and wanting a quick dinner and I was put off by the restrictive quick service menus at the deluxe resorts compared to the moderates and values.

You will never hear anyone in their right mind say, "I was going to stay at All Star Music, but now that the Gasparilla Grill has a baked potato bar, I'll gladly spend and extra $400 per night to stay at the Grand Floridian."

I was basically thinking the opposite, I would spend the extra to stay at a deluxe resort, but Port Orleans has a better food court so is it really worth upgrading. Its not that improving the food court would make people want to upgrade. Just its currently the weakest part of the deluxe resorts in reviews I've read.

 

[ineedavacation33]

With all of the great places to eat, the last place I'd probably focus on would be counter service dining at my resort.

 

[kwelch10377]

Deluxe resorts are intended to provide a high end experience for guests, which includes dining. CS is not really considered high end so they focus more on TS.

 

[Disneylover99]

The entire purpose for having amenities in hotels is to get "heads in beds." You will never hear anyone in their right mind say, "I was going to stay at All Star Music, but now that the Gasparilla Grill has a baked potato bar, I'll gladly spend and extra $400 per night to stay at the Grand Floridian."

I guess I'm not in my right mind then, because the lack of quick service options at Deluxe resorts prevents me from booking them.

 

[Alesia]

Been to POR and POFQ before and my DH wanted to try a new resort. He also liked the look of WL when we walked through on a previous trip. But I remember on previous coming back after a day at Universal or somewhere and wanting a quick dinner and I was put off by the restrictive quick service menus at the deluxe resorts compared to the moderates and values.

So, in the end, the less than ideal counter service options weren't the most important thing. That's how it is for most people. We say we know what we want, but when it's time to put our money down, it's a different story entirely.


The vast majority of people who stay in deluxe resorts do so simply because they want to. They don't care about cost or convenience. They stay at deluxe resorts for far less practical reasons: they like the feeling of luxury, or they have always dreamed of staying there, or it's were they always stayed as children, or they want to stay somewhere new, or they want to see Cinderella Castle from their room, or because they're resort snobs and think staying at a value resort is beneath them. We make our choices based on emotion, not logic. Disney is well aware of that.

The key to the hotel industry is keeping heads in beds - every single night. People don't really think about it, but nights at a hotel are a finite resource. If a room is empty for 1 night, you can never get that money back.

Disney is doing a good job of that. Even during slow times, they run promotions that keep the resorts full. They are spending money to keep heads in beds. Improving the counter service options at deluxe resorts is not going to achieve that.

 

[Lisaloo]

After our last stay at AKL in July I completed a few surveys. I got a call about the poor review I gave Mara( it has gone downhill tremendously since 2013) and the CM said several deluxe CS locations are going to be "upfitted" over the next two years. Meh. I'll believe it when I see it. It won't change whether or not we will stay deluxe in the future, that has been our only choice for several years now.

 

[L&Lfan]

We always stay deluxe and we've never given a second thought to the quality of the counter service available. We either do TS or room service. The few times we've availed ourselves of our resort's CS it was only for snacks or drinks so we've always found them to be adequate for our needs.

 

[laughinplace199]

Many deluxes have room service too, which may lessen the need for counter service.

 

[Masonmj84]

I think a lot of the deluxe clientele types don't want to deal with the hassle of counter service.

Conversely, they often don't mind the extra time and expense of table service because: (A) they're there for the resort experience just as much as the park experience; and (B) the extra marginal cost of table service dining just isn't that big of a deal to them.

For example, when we stayed at POR, I loved the options at the Riverside Mill but hated the chaos. Wait in at least one line to get food. Wait in another line to pay for food (while juggling food trays and kids). Scramble to try to find an empty table (while still juggling food trays and kids). Scramble to try to find condiments. Pray that you don't lose one of your kids in the process. The whole experience was unpleasant.

Contrast that to, for example, a breakfast at Kona, which is dramatically more relaxing. Yes, you pay a bit more and it maybe takes 20-30 more minutes but that's time and expense that I think most deluxe patrons are gladly willing to pay.

 

[Mikka]

Honestly, I've stayed at a Value resort every trip I've gone to Disney but one (French Quarter), and the only times we ever use our resort counter service is if someone is sick (and on our first two trips). I guess at French Quarter, we did use it, but just for snacks. Mom sometimes gets the drink and refills hers, but I usually just drink water.

What they're serving at the GF counterservice would be the last thing that would come to mind if I ever stayed there, as breakfast time I'm in the parks, lunch I'm in the parks or breaking around the parks, and dinner if I wasn't elsewhere, I would be camping Citrico's bar rather then worrying about CS. I don't think many people at the deluxe resorts use the CS that often save for maybe breakfast. They're eating TS or room service.

 

[jon18uk]

I think a lot of the deluxe clientele types don't want to deal with the hassle of counter service.

Conversely, they often don't mind the extra time and expense of table service because: (A) they're there for the resort experience just as much as the park experience; and (B) the extra marginal cost of table service dining just isn't that big of a deal to them.

For example, when we stayed at POR, I loved the options at the Riverside Mill but hated the chaos. Wait in at least one line to get food. Wait in another line to pay for food (while juggling food trays and kids). Scramble to try to find an empty table (while still juggling food trays and kids). Scramble to try to find condiments. Pray that you don't lose one of your kids in the process. The whole experience was unpleasant.

Contrast that to, for example, a breakfast at Kona, which is dramatically more relaxing. Yes, you pay a bit more and it maybe takes 20-30 more minutes but that's time and expense that I think most deluxe patrons are gladly willing to pay.

Can you get breakfast at Kona without a reservation? That of course is the other problem with restaurants at DisneyWorld, they are very booked up.

Most city centre hotels don't get as booked up and of course in a city centre you can walk down the street to find another place to eat.

 

[bluezy]

It's simple: they don't have to. Better counter service options are not going to encourage people to stay in deluxe resorts over value and moderate resorts. Increasing spending on something that won't increase revenue is just bad business.

I nearly chose POR over WL because of this issue, so I assume at least a few other people factor it into their thoughts, the size & speed of QS service also features in a lot of Tripadvisor reviews of Wilderness Lodge. Also I am more likely to spend $10 on a breakfast if there is a nice place to eat it and it is served quickly, otherwise I may grab a snack or skip breakfast, so there would be some increase in revenue if they can serve more people quicker.

I guess I'm not in my right mind then, because the lack of quick service options at Deluxe resorts prevents me from booking them.

Add us to the list. It's the #1 thing that stops us from booking at a Deluxe resort. We stay in a suite at AoA instead...and usually pay more for that room than we would for a standard room at a Deluxe with the discounts offered. We prefer to be able to grab a quick meal at our resort while we're back there for a break in the afternoon or when we're returning to the resort at the end of the day. We do very few Table Service meals because we don't want to be tied down to that much of a schedule and we don't want to have to allot 60-90 minutes for a meal.

After our last stay at AKL in July I completed a few surveys. I got a call about the poor review I gave Mara( it has gone downhill tremendously since 2013) and the CM said several deluxe CS locations are going to be "upfitted" over the next two years. Meh. I'll believe it when I see it. It won't change whether or not we will stay deluxe in the future, that has been our only choice for several years now.

I agree, we were not impressed with Mara on our trip in June. We ate there and at Contempo Cafe on that trip and in both cases we found the offerings to be very limited (compared to the offerings at AoA and across the bridge at Pop) and the food was "ok" at best. And don't even get me started on the inability of both of those places to move people through the ordering and paying processes quickly. And then the wait for the food (and keep in mind, we're accustomed to waiting as most of the entrees are custom made at AoA). In both restaurants we waited over 10 minutes just to order our food -- mostly because there was *ONE* CM taking orders even though it was 5:00-5:30. Then we waited another 10 minutes for the food. And finding a table....there was not enough space at either one of those locations for the amount of people eating there during high volume times. We've eaten at Capt. Cooks on a previous trip and found that to be a little better. So as of now, the QS at CR and AKL have done nothing to impress us or make us consider staying there. I know Disney doesn't care...they have plenty of people filling up those rooms. But based on the long lines at those QS locations, I'm guessing many of their guests are looking for a QS meal while staying there.

 

[Quellman]

Contempo Cafe is great counter service at the Contemporary. Have never had issues with wait time or finding a table. I eat there often since we stay at Bay Lake Towers.
Polynesian Captain Cooks isn't too bad either.
Grand Floridain's Gasparilla Island Grill has a huge selection of food, though it can be a bit slower to place an order when busy, but everything is made super fresh there and it is open 24 hours.

I think you are more concerned with the weird counter service at Wilderness Lodge, Beach Club, etc where it is usually an afterthought and attached to a gift shop. I agree that those locations are not the most amazing counter service meal you could ever eat and the selection is limited if not uninspiring.

 

[Hopefully]

I understand that when the deluxe resorts were first designed, it was expected guests at the high-end resorts would want high-end dining, so the focus was on table service restaurants. But one of the main criticisms I have read about the deluxe resorts is the size of the quick service dining areas, the limited menu and speed of service. It feels frustrating that you could get a better dining experience at Port Orleans than at Wilderness Lodge, if you just want something quick to eat.

Why hasn't Disney enlarged the quick service areas and turned them into food courts?

I fervently pray they never do. Each level of resort has appropriate amenities. IMO. The current Deluxe QS options are adequate.

 

[jon18uk]

I fervently pray they never do. Each level of resort has appropriate amenities. IMO. The current Deluxe QS options are adequate.

Why settle for adequate when they could be excellent?