ABD Trip and Club 33?

[WaltD4Me]

I was just folding laundry and listening to the ABD trip show again and I was thinking about Pete saying he can't say for sure that the July trip will include Club 33 and I'm surprised Club 33 isn't included on all the ABD Hollywood trips. I know how exclusive Club 33 is, but it just seems like something that would be part of that trip. Anyway...I'm curious if the Club 33 breakfast was some magic that Kevin and John made happen or if they included it for you guys themselves or if it's something that happens on some trips and not others?

 

[denise]

From what I understand it was not included but in the future may be. The last ABD (April) was arranged by a DIS fan who is a member of Club 33. So it is not a given that each ABD will go there.

I'm sure Kevin can explain it better.

Club 33 is Magic!!! The company I work for is a member and we can celebrate work anniversaries or retirements there. I celebrated my 30 years there the same week and Kevin and John joined me for lunch. Although I had been 2 times before for anniversaries, this time was the best! There were 7 of us and it was a great time. The table was full of Disney geeks....

I am retiring in 2 weeks but will not have my retirement party there...I don't want anything to spoil my memory of that wonderful lunch!

 

[DisneyKevin]

When we originally booked the ABD Backstage Magic Adventure, I approached ABD about taking our group of Disers to Club 33.

I was given an emphatic answer of NO. I was told that it couldnt and wouldnt happen. Well....you know what happens when we're told NO.

We worked around ABD and John worked with one of our listeners (THANK YOU Glenn) who is a member to secure a reservation for our group.

After informing ABD that we wouldnt be attending the scheduled breakfast,as we had secured a reservation at Club 33, I was approached by a member of ABD management asking how I had done this. I explained how it had been done.

Shortly thereafter, I was told that ABD would be adding Club 33 to future itineraries but that it COULD NOT BE GUARANTEED for every Adventure. We were told that they would be taking us to Club 33.

The issue is that that Club 33 is a private membership club and members have first priority. This means that a club member can reserve the entire restaurant for any available date and bounce ABD from being able to access the Club.

There are dates toward the end of the year where members already have reservations meaning that ABD will not be able to take their guests to Club 33.

This did not affect us as we had a reservation through a member. Our reservation was solid.

After we announced our reservation, ABD stepped forward and offered to cover the cost of our Adventurers breakfast at Club 33 which we thought was absolutely AWESOME. ABD did not cover the cost of the additional guests that were invited by the Dis and Dreams Unlimited Travel. Those expenses were out of pocket.

The reason we are unsure of whether a Club 33 breakfast is possible for the July 25th departure is that there a question of whether that necessary date is available or not....and whether it will be once we are sure that this trip will have enough participation to depart.

We are working very hard to make this trip and a Club 33 reservation a reality.

 

[*NikkiBell*]

I think Club 33 and Imagineering would be the highlights of this trip for me. While I was initially a grumpypuss due to jealousy of this trip, after listening to the ABD show just before, I am so happy everyone had this experience. It's definitely once in a lifetime.

 

[WaltD4Me]

Thank you Denise and Kevin! Very interesting answer and also, makes sense. I'm sure club members would not be at all happy if they could not get a reservation because there was an ABD group booked.

That was very awesome of ABD to pick up your Club 33 tab. Everything I hear just makes ABD guest service sound more and more outstanding.

I wonder if the possibility of a meal at Club 33 will be advertised/included with that trip's information/itinerary? I can imagine it being really disappointing (but understandble) if it can't be arranged. I'd rather not know that it's even a possibility and then get to be VERY surprised if it does happen.

 

[DisneyKevin]

Thank you Denise and Kevin! Very interesting answer and also, makes sense. I'm sure club members would not be at all happy if they could not get a reservation because there was an ABD group booked.

That was very awesome of ABD to pick up your Club 33 tab. Everything I hear just makes ABD guest service sound more and more outstanding.

I wonder if the possibility of a meal at Club 33 will be advertised/included with that trip's information/itinerary? I can imagine it being really disappointing (but understandble) if it can't be arranged. I'd rather not know that it's even a possibility and then get to be VERY surprised if it does happen.

I'm sure ABD would prefer that this not be public knowledge, as it makes for a very Magical Moment for the unsuspecting guest.

That being said, the internet and discussion boards have made keeping things a secret nearly impossible.

I would imagine that this could lead to some disappointment on the part of guests unable to visit Club 33. That being said, a member could bump a group the day prior to the scheduled visit. Without a solid reservation made by a member, you have to play the "wait and see" game.

Having our solid reservation was the only reason we felt comfortable announcing this to our Disers.

 

[BriarRosie]

I went on this ABD adventure in December 2008. There were things I thought should have been part of the ABD trip and weren't, but the parts that were included convinced me to book it. I thought Henson Studios, Imagineering and Walt's apartment justified every penny.

However, a part of me wished we could have spent less time at Griffith Park and the useless bus tour to do the Archives. And at Disneyland, the same part of me wanted a peek inside Club 33 and the Dream Suite. I didn't care if I ate at Club 33 if we were allowed to tour it.

I still think this adventure was worth it without the extras. Maybe I am too greedy for wanting more!

 

[BriarRosie]

Just clearing out the double post.

 

[DisneyKevin]

As we said on the show....the details of this Adventure can change based on what's available.

If the Dreams Suite had been occupied, we wouldnt have been able to view it.

I have no actual idea, but I think we spent about 90 minutes at Griffith Park.

The Archives are in Imagineering....at least the ones we saw were inside the Imagineering building.

I cant think of anything we didnt get to see that I would have wanted to see.

 

[WaltD4Me]

As we said on the show....the details of this Adventure can change based on what's available.

If the Dreams Suite had been occupied, we wouldnt have been able to view it.

I have no actual idea, but I think we spent about 90 minutes at Griffith Park.

The Archives are in Imagineering....at least the ones we saw were inside the Imagineering building.

I cant think of anything we didnt get to see that I would have wanted to see.

I'm confused. You saw the Archives in the Imagineering building, but remember that building Whoopi went into when The View was filming from Disney Studios? Isn't that the Archives? Or is that where you went?

 

[ImTooExcitedToSleep]

I'm confused. You saw the Archives in the Imagineering building, but remember that building Whoopi went into when The View was filming from Disney Studios? Isn't that the Archives? Or is that where you went?

The archives, at least the offices of Dave Smith, etc, are at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank.

The ABD tour went to both Imagineering in Glendale and the Studios in Burbank.

 

[BriarRosie]

The archives, at least the offices of Dave Smith, etc, are at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank.

The ABD tour went to both Imagineering in Glendale and the Studios in Burbank.

The Archives with Dave Smith were what I was referring to when I mentioned them. I was lucky enough to visit there in 1996, and I would have loved seeing it again.

 

[DisneyKevin]

The archives, at least the offices of Dave Smith, etc, are at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank.

The ABD tour went to both Imagineering in Glendale and the Studios in Burbank.

I apologize....I am mistaken. The Archives we visited were in the Studios and not Imagineering.

This was Dave Smith's office and we missed him by minutes. He had a family function to attend.

The Archives we visited were in a small office and not the warehouse Whoppi visited on the View.

There was a great deal to see and we got to hold one of Walt's Academy Awards.

 

[ScotteHansen]

This made for a very interesting segment to listen to. I wish you could record more about some of the details Pete wanted to withold.

For those of us who don't mind spoilers, we could listen!

Anyways. Thanks!

 

[Dodie]

This made for a very interesting segment to listen to. I wish you could record more about some of the details Pete wanted to withold.

For those of us who don't mind spoilers, we could listen!

Anyways. Thanks!

Many of us on the trip have written detailed trip reports (with photos). You'll find a link to mine in my signature. Check the "sticky" thread from our trip for links to others.