Child Care/Kids Clubs at WDW ??? Anyone used the Sandcastle Club?

[Momof2Disneyboys]

We are heading to WDW for our third trip in three months from today!!!!

My DH & I will be celebrating our 10th Anniversary while there. Being that we don't vacation without our kids, I am considering taking the kids to one of the kids clubs for a few hours so that we can enjoy a relaxing dinner alone. We just aren't sure of this. . . We are a little overprotective. . . I think we would prefer some kind of kids club rather than the in-room babysitting. The boys are 8 & 6 and I'm sure they would be just fine, but I'm not sure if I will be!

Does anyone have any experience with this? Any recommendations?

Thanks a bunch for any help!

 

[Nicolepa]

We are also overprotective. We have done both the in room sitters and the kids club. My kids loved both, I was a bit more at ease w/the kids club. I would book at whatever kids club is closest to where you're going to eat. Last time we went we booked at the AKL and had dinner at Boma. We were much more comfortable having them in the same place as us.

They had a great time, we had a quiet dinner. All was well.

 

[Kae]

We have used the Neverland club at the Poly DS loved it. He was there we went to Artist Point at WL. It was his favorite thing that trip he would have gone everynite? He was 4 at the time. The one at AKL looked fun.

Kae

 

[The Disney Bunch]

Can you explain the kids clubs to me? We are going down in April & I was trying to figure out something like this for my girls one time so dh & I could have a meal to ourselves!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Can you explain the kids clubs to me? We are going down in April & I was trying to figure out something like this for my girls one time so dh & I could have a meal to ourselves!

A few of the deluxe Disney hotels offer a babysitting service to Disney guests. I think it's kind of like a daycare setting. I think they run from like 4 or 5 until about midnight. There's games and activities and so on. I believe it's $11 an hour per child.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Has anyone used the Sandcastle Club at the Beach Club resort??? I was thinking of trying that one when DH & I have dinner at Le Cellier at Epcot. That way we could just walk over to the Beach Club......

Are the kids clubs open to all Disney guests or just those of that specific resort?

 

[dreamer17555]

They are open to any guest staying on site I believe. We are staying at Pop and booked (yes you need to make an ADR for a Child Care Club) two nights for DD6 at Neverland Club- one night DH and I are doing dinner at Le Cellier- the other night we are hitting some of the bigger thrill rides.

-Becca-

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

 

[tazleiten12]

Has anyone used the Sandcastle Club at the Beach Club resort??? I was thinking of trying that one when DH & I have dinner at Le Cellier at Epcot. That way we could just walk over to the Beach Club......

Are the kids clubs open to all Disney guests or just those of that specific resort?

We did just what you want to do, a couple weeks ago. It was so easy to drop them off at the Sandcastle club and then go eat at Le cellier and then come back and get them. We have taken the kids to the Sandcastle club a few times and The Neverland club at the Poly many time's. (They actually remmeber us, when we go). The kids love both clubs. They watch movies, play video games, and my daughters favorite make stuff! They like going to either club, but prefer The one at the Poly as it is larger and they always seem to come home with some cool crafts and treats! If you have any questions, let me know!

 

[Doogan]

We used the Sandcastle club during our last trip down, too, because it was easy to eat at Chef de France. Our kids (9, 8, 4) were a little hesitant at first, but once they saw the place they were ready for us to leave. We were gone for 2 hours and they would just as soon we stayed longer. They LOVED it and we felt very comfortable leaving them. We liked the fact that we were so close by, too.

We were discouraged from parking at the Yacht club, but I really don't think it would have been a problem.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Thank you for responding tazleiten12 and doogan!

Is the Sandcastle Club in the Beach Club or Yacht Club Resort? Or are those the same resort? Sorry, I've never been to the Boardwalk area yet!

How long is the walk from Epcot to Beach/Yacht Club?

Do they give the kids dinner or just a snack?

How many children are usually there at a time?

Is it $11 an hour per child?

How far in advance should I make reservations for this? Do I call the dining line to reserve this?

Is there a minimum amount of time set for leaving them there? I was thinking about 2-3 hours would be good for a relaxing dinner and maybe a stroll around World Showcase.

That's all I can think of for now!! I'm sure I'll think of more questions later.
Thanks so much for all of your help! I am feeling a little better about it already. Now if I can convince DH!

 

[tazleiten12]

Thank you for responding tazleiten12 and doogan!

Is the Sandcastle Club in the Beach Club or Yacht Club Resort? Or are those the same resort? Sorry, I've never been to the Boardwalk area yet!
It is in the Beach Club, next to the store, off the main lobby.

How long is the walk from Epcot to Beach/Yacht Club? It takes us about 15 minutes.

Do they give the kids dinner or just a snack? Dinner is between 6-8, they give you different time choice's between 6 and 8.

How many children are usually there at a time? Im not sure how many they can take? Im not sure how many they can take, but When we drop off early like 4-5 pm, I usually only see a couple children. When I dropped off on a weekend around 6-7, there were maybe 8 children in there.
Is it $11 an hour per child? Yes, unless you get a DVC discount of 10%

How far in advance should I make reservations for this? Do I call the dining line to reserve this? I would make it right away, you can always cancel within 48 hours.Yes you can call the dining line.

Is there a minimum amount of time set for leaving them there? I was thinking about 2-3 hours would be good for a relaxing dinner and maybe a stroll around World Showcase. They never told me there was a minimum, but i did read someplace 2 hours, you may want to double check that.

That's all I can think of for now!! I'm sure I'll think of more questions later.
Thanks so much for all of your help! I am feeling a little better about it already. Now if I can convince DH!

Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.
MARIE

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

I thought I read somewhere about a beeper. . . Do they give you one?

 

[My2Cinderellas]

I thought I read somewhere about a beeper. . . Do they give you one?

When we used the Sandcastle club in 2006, they offered us a beeper, but we just gave them our cell numbers. The girls had a good time, and we will be using the Sandcastle club again on this trip. They prorated the hourly charge to the next 15 minutes which was nice. We picked them up after 2 hrs 40 minutes, and were charged for 2:45 instead of 3 hours each. I fully expected to be charged for the full 3 hours so it was a nice surprise to have it prorated.

 

[tazleiten12]

2 weeks ago at Sandcastle Club they gave us a beeper, but at The Neverland Club they asked for our cell phone #.

 

[all4fun]

I just thought I'd also point out that for anyone who cares, there's a page on The Dis about the different child care facilities at WDW
http://www.wdwinfo.com/just_for_kids/childcare.htm

We haven't used any of the WDW Kids Club yet because the minimum age is four and ds just turned four last spring... our last trip my parents came along so there was no need. I wouldn't have any qualms about using their services if we wanted to have an "adult only" evening though. I've heard so many good things about them and our ds is so social, he would probably love it. hth!

 

[thelittlemermaid83]

Thanks for that link it was very interesting

 

[rumrunnergirl]

We have used the Neverland Club in 2005 and 2006, I guess our kids were 4 and 6 the first time? I am very overprotective (heck, my kids are still in car seats/boosters and they are 6 and 8 now) but I am sure that Disney really checks into the people who work at the childcare facilities.

My kids had a blast both times. They did crafts, played videogames, watched movies - the place is so kid-friendly. They got a yummy dinner and made new friends. It was really nice and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

In 2005 and 2006 we paid $10 per hour with a minimum of 2 hours and got a beeper. They do pro-rate the hours so if you come back in 2:30 hours that's what you get charged. I made the ressies when I made my ADR's.

 

[CharmedLife]

We used Neverland Club at the Poly a few weeks ago for the first time with DD7 and DS4. They LOVED it. We hopped on the monorail over to the Contemporary for dinner at California Grill, and then just monorailed back to them when we were done. They had a great sign-in system and the kids filled out their dinner "order" with many choices (even picky DS was happy). I would not hesitate to do it again - they had fun, and we had a really nice dinner at a nice restaurant.

 

[Benducci]

Food for thought! Thanks!

Does anyone know if there is something like this at Saratoga?