Anyone ever use the childcare facilities at any of the Deluxe resorts?

[roliepolieoliefan]

We are staying at the YC in Oct. DS will be 4 when we go and DH and I are thinking about maybe using the childcare service at the YC, so we can go out alone for a couple hours. Anyone ever use any of the childcare facilities? Is it a good program to keep him occupied? Are the places secure? TIA!!!

 

[ucralum]

We used the Sandcastle Club at the Beach Club when our son was almost 8. He LOVED it and has asked to go back on our next trip. I am very safety-conscious and was quite comfortable with the setup.

 

[Tigger4life]

I took my two nieces back in July 1997. We used the Neverland Club at the Polynesian one night -- at that point we all needed a break from each other. That night and the last morning Chef Mickey's character breakfast were the highlights of their trip. They loved it! We're going in June of this year with my immediate family, and our 10 year old son wants to go there, too.

 

[pixiechick]

we used Neverland at the Poly and Simba's at AKL. DS (6yrs. old) really enjoyed both. Both facilities were clean and the staff seemed attentive. In each case, he spent about 3 hours there and did not want to leave when we picked him up.

 

[padams]

DSs 4yo and 6yo spent an evening at the Mouseketeer Clubhouse at the Contemporary three weeks ago. They loved it, and didn't want to leave when we picked them up. The CMs (2 males and a female, 1 male was in training "earning his ears") played games with DSs, and were lots of fun according to DSs. I saw lots of toys, video games, a tv with vcr, crayons and paper, etc. There were only 2 other children at MC that evening, both about DSs' ages. When we checked them in, we were given a kids' menu to select their dinners- all standard kids' menu items. DSs were given plastic Mickey straws with their dinners to keep. When we picked them up, they were having milk and cookies. They CMs were young, energetic and very nice. BTW, DH and I enjoyed our "date" at the California Grill very much that evening.

 

[vicb]

Check the family board, I posted a positive review of the Sandcastle club last week.

 

[IamSusan]

We were staying at the GF but I went to look at the Mousketeer club and was dismayed. It was very small, not "magical"...the three kids that were there were glued to Nintendo...

So I took the monorail over to the Poly, I had seen pics of the Neverland Club on this site. It was GREAT. I knew my four year old would love it. I changed my reservation. He loved it so much he cried when he had to leave! Lots of staff, big clean and organized, and MAGICAL....the kids deserve the magic too!

Hubby and I went to Victoria and Alberts. That was WONDERFUL.....expensive....but the best and most relaxing ( can anything at Disney be relaxing? ) meal I have ever had.

It was a GREAT trip Feb 3-10 2002

 

[eeyore0062]

We have used the Neverland Club twice (this is a must do for my 7 yo DD) and the Cub's Den. We were pleased with both facilities and the staff that ran them. DD does prefer the Neverland Club, because she said it is bigger, and there is much more to do there. I have heard that it is bigger and more fun than all of the other childcare facilities at the other resorts. It also doesn't have a maximum stay, as others do. Check before you make your ressies about the maximum stays... they are usually between 3-4 hours, which really doesn't give you a very long "adult's night out".

 

[RAV]

My son has attended the sand castle club several times. He is usually grateful for the opportunity to relax rather than get dressed for a late evening dinner. THe staff is very professional, and even remembered my son from year to year. They give you a beeper so they may contact you if your child is unhappy or has a problem. You may also order dinner for your child there. We have always been very pleased with the Sand Castle Club.

 

[adams66]

We stayed at AKL last month and my 2 DS's absolutely loved Simba's. The women in charge were very attentive. The kids got to do some wonderful crafts, the room was clean and the toys were well kept. They had a big screen TV with Toon Disney playing (you can get that on your room TV too, but the kids seemed to think it was better at Simba's) After the first night at Simba's, each morning they would wake up and ask when they could go back. It was actually a pretty good deal. It's $8 per hour per child which may sound steep. But as long as you get them there before 8:00 pm they will feed them dinner for no additional charge - kids' menu stuff like mac & cheese, chic fingers and cheeseburgers. The kids liked the food and I don't think I could feed them anywhere else on property for $8. Then at 9:00 they would pull out some ice cream bars and all the kids would sit around the table eating ice cream. Each night at pickup time, my kids would beg for "one more hour". Once we accomodated them and went out to the pool bar for a relaxing cocktail.

Here's an idea. The night before we had to leave, while my DH and I were packing things up, we let them go down for a little while. They had fun and they were "out of my hair" while I was trying to pack.

Any other questions, let me know.

 

[caskar]

A couple years ago we took our daughters to The Neverland Club at the Poly. They were 6 and 9 at the time. This summer we are going back to Disney and my (now) 8 year old wants to go back to Neverland. She must have had a good time because she keeps bugging me about it. It seemed very safe and secure. My daughter just told me that the kids get to pick out the food they want to eat for supper if you take them at that time and they got to watch a movie while eating along with dress up clothes. They also got a club card with a lot to do(my daughters are telling me what to write). I hope this helps.

 

[D L and K's Mom]

We used the Neverland club for my duaghter when she was 5. She loved it and begged to go back!! She even met a little friend there and the 2 of them made a playdate (with the grownups of course) to meet by the pool on one of our days there. As far as safety, they are very secure. I checked DD in at the Neverland Club and was given a "beeper" after DH ,DS and I had dinner DH went to pick her up. Well, they would not allow him to take her because he had not checked her in. DH tried to tell them he had the beeper to turn so they knew it was the same name etc and if they would just let him see DD she could "vouch for him" but NO they wouldnt budge and they would not let him see her at all. I think it was wonderful!!!!! DH didnt get angry or anything he just didnt know what to do..poor man. They called me and I had to go down to get DD. I think this is wondeful and it shows you how strict they are in their policy. I have no idea why we send DH down in the first place I think I was getting DS ready for bed. The next day we received a call from one of the CM's saying they were very sorry for the mix-up but it is their policy to only release the children to the person who signed them in . I told her it was no problem at all in fact we were very very impressed and we told her how wondeful the CMs were at the Neverland Club. I would'nt hesaitate to use them again.

 

[ducklite]

We've used the Neverland Club, the Harbor Club, Sandcastle Club and Mouseketeers Clubhouse over the years. My son was very upset when he turned 13 and could no longer go to any of them. Neverland is still his favorite. Mouseketeers Clubhouse is the only one he said was "just OK", I think he was the oldest (ten or so at the time) and was kind of bored, most of the kids were younger, and most of the stuff was for younger kids.

Anne

 

[mickey7861]

IamSusan


That funny.......my kids are now 19 and 16 1/2 but when they were young we had the same experience with the GF club. It was soooo dull compared to the Neverland club that the kids were used to. I felt so bad about leaving them at GF we went right back and got them. I guess some things never change!

 

[mom2boys]

Oour boys enjoyed the Sandcastle club when they visited it. They were 5 & 6 at the time. Two very different personalities - both thrilled with the Sandcastle club. The oldest is a video game addict (& was even at 6). The young actually plays with toys. He had a great time in the play kitchen. Both begged to go back. It was actually a nice break for all of us. And I think the unstructured play time was especially appreciated by our youngest.
I will add that my boys both have potentially life-threatening food allergies & asthma. The staff was professional & passed my grilling prior to my leaving the boys. We felt comfortable enough to leave the boys a second time during that 2 week stay.