Club 33~~Woo-HOO!!~~and some questions

[allimaree]

I just found out that through a contact of my DH, we can get reservations at Club 33 for our December trip. I know just enough about Club 33 (thanks Dis'ers!) to be sufficiently excited cool1:), but I have a lot of questions! We're trying to decide whether to just go the two of us, or try to figure out if we can invite our whole group.

1. I know kids are "allowed" at Club 33, but would bringing them just be a bad idea? We have 5 kids, ages 10 years to 4 months and two of my sisters each have one 2-year-old. If we don't bring them, are there any options for childcare at DLR? (We're not staying on property, we're staying at Carousel.)

2. I've heard that the min. charge is $75/person, but that also gets you a 1-day park hopper. Is that cost the same for kids or is it cheaper?

3. We were planning on buying 3 day park-hoppers for our trip, but if we do Club 33 one of the days, then we only need 2-day. Then we lose our one MM (EE). Is there a way to upgrade the C33 parkhoppers to 3 day and end up with the MM? We are going to be there Mon-Wed. If we went to C33 on Monday could we upgrade before Tuesday's MM? (Assuming we could get a reservation for Monday.)

4. Is there a limit to how big your party can be? If we were able to just do adults, we would be a group of 10. Is that too big? Our contact is being nice enough to get us reservations, is that asking too much to invite our whole group?

5. Anyone have a preference between lunch and dinner? I read that the dessert buffet isn't available at Dinner, you just order dessert off the menu, but the pictures of the buffet look divine! The more casual dress code for lunch might be easier, but I bet C33 is beautiful at night!

Thanks, everyone! I really appreciate all the help and advice I get on this board!

 

[Kayla's Mom]

Wow that is great! I can't answer your questions, but just wanted to congratulate you! I am so jealous!

 

[The Red Head]

1) Kids are allowed, but you might have a more enjoyable time without them, considering how many kids you would have with you. You want to enjoy your time in the Club. I don't know anything about babysitting.

2) The minimum price is the same price as a one park admission, which I think went up recently to $72. Children's one park ticket is usually $10 cheaper, so that is what their minimum would be. Of course then you also have to add, drinks, tax and tip.

3) Club 33 passes are not upgradable.

4) You can get a reservation that big, but I am not sure if it is at 10 people or over 10 people that it is considered a banquet and you have to sign a banquet contract and figure out what you are eating a head of time.

5) I prefer dinner over lunch. I think the food is better, and I love dressing up and enjoying a nice meal. Lunch is more casual.

 

[pixiewings71]

I dont' know, but I'm jealous! LOL Have a GREAT time!!

 

[LuLusApple]

I cannot answer either, but just had to add my woohoo! For you

 

[disneynerd420]

I wish i could answer your questions... but alas, I have never stepped foot into Club 33.

I want to. I will continue to say, I will do ANYTHING to get into Club 33.

 

[pinktink83]

Just my two cents...if I was going to Club 33, I wouldnt want to haul my kiddos and babies along with me! And I for sure wouldnt want others to bring kids and babies in there either (especially at dinner). I dont think DLH offers babysitting to people not staying at th ehotel, and even if they did, I dont think they watch babies that young. It looks like someone from the group may have to volunteer to babysit! (are there any tweens in the group that wouldnt mind getting to stay in the hotel for pizza and a movie with the kiddos?) I think I would pick the dessert buffet over dinner, but I am a chocolate kinda girl!!!

 

[Queenbillabong]

What hotel are you staying at? If you are staying at one of the DLR hotels, you would still get MM for the days it is available, even without a 3-day PH (you need a valid ticket, yes, but it doesn't have to be a 3-day PH)

Have a great time!! FWIW, I personally would probably enjoy it more without having to worry about the kiddos. If they were a bit older, maybe, but they're too young to appreciate it (and it is expensive!).

 

[M4travels]

2) The minimum price is the same price as a one park admission, which I think went up recently to $72. Children's one park ticket is usually $10 cheaper, so that is what their minimum would be. Of course then you also have to add, drinks, tax and tip.

4) You can get a reservation that big, but I am not sure if it is at 10 people or over 10 people that it is considered a banquet and you have to sign a banquet contract and figure out what you are eating a head of time.

5) I prefer dinner over lunch. I think the food is better, and I love dressing up and enjoying a nice meal. Lunch is more casual.

They haven't upped the adult's minimum price for the meal as of yet, but they'll probably be doing it shortly and I would think by December it should definitely be set at $72. We were just there this past Wednesday evening and $69 was still printed as the minimum. It's not that difficult to go above that either!

The banquet number starts at 11 so 10 would work without a contract.

I absolutely agree that dinner is the better time; a very nice, quiet (usually!) evening in a wonderful spot with wonderfully prepared and presented food.

OP, enjoy your Club 33 dining experience.

 

[allimaree]

Kayla's Mom, pixiewings71 and LuLusApple ~ Thanks!

Thanks, Red Head for those answers--too bad the tickets are not upgradable! Anyone know if 10 people means I have to do a banquet? I don't think I could ask our contact to do that for us.

pinktink83 and Queenbillabong ~ I think I'm not going to bring the kids. It is just too much money and I would rather enjoy dinner. We are all adults so there's no "tween" to watch the kids, but maybe my younger (poor ) sisters would rather earn money watching my kids than spend money to eat at Club 33. I would just have to make it worth their while.

Queen, we're staying at Carousel so if we don't get the 3-day hopper, we're out of luck on the MM.

So which of these scenarios sounds better? Obviously, money is an issue--I'm just trying to decide if option B is worth it.

Option A: Buy a 2-day park hopper, get the thrid day for free with our reservation, pay $75 for dinner. We would have 3 days in the park with a significant portion of one of our days taken up with dinner (not that is isn't worth it ) Total cost: $218 each

Option B: Buy a 3-day parkhopper, go to the park Monday-Wednesday. Go to MM on Tuesday. Make our reservations for an early Thursday lunch and get into the park for "free" on Thursday, maybe ride a few rides before lunch. Pay $75 for lunch, then drive home that afternoon. (We're in AZ, the drive is about 6 hours--DH has to be home for work on Friday.) Total cost: $249 each, but we have to figure out what to do with our kids on Thursday.

So....what would you do?

 

[allimaree]

They haven't upped the adult's minimum price for the meal as of yet, but they'll probably be doing it shortly and I would think by December it should definitely be set at $72. We were just there this past Wednesday evening and $69 was still printed as the minimum. It's not that difficult to go above that either!

The banquet number starts at 11 so 10 would work without a contract.

I absolutely agree that dinner is the better time; a very nice, quiet (usually!) evening in a wonderful spot with wonderfully prepared and presented food.

OP, enjoy your Club 33 dining experience.

Thanks! I'm glad to hear that 10 won't be a problem. (Assuming we can find a babysitter!) We had heard $75 was the min. and that's what we were planning on, so $72 shouldn't be a problem. We don't drink alcohol, will it still be hard to stay at that price?

 

[allimaree]

Also, I think we're going to have to bring the baby with us if we're going to be there for 2 hours. He's still yoing enough that he shouldn't be a problem. Can I bring him in his stroller so he'll have a place to sleep? Is that tacky? I wouldn't normally bring a stroller to a nice restaraunt, but we are in DLR and maybe that's more common? Is the seating chairs or booths? Maybe he could lay down in a booth. This is so complicated, but I just want to get it to work. I want to go to Club 33, darnit!!

 

[pycees312]

SCREAM.. just kidding. i'm happy for you deep down lol. take pics if you can and enjoy witch ever time you go I don't think it really matters you'll be in there.

 

[amyup]

Thanks! I'm glad to hear that 10 won't be a problem. (Assuming we can find a babysitter!) We had heard $75 was the min. and that's what we were planning on, so $72 shouldn't be a problem. We don't drink alcohol, will it still be hard to stay at that price?

We went in March for lunch and took our 3 kids...8,7, and 2. Next time we will definitely go by ourselves. They were well behaved but it would be nice to be there at night time and be able to experience the 5 course dinner which is supposed to take around 3 hours or so. I would plan to spend around $100 pp including the tip.

I must say enjoy it! I'm a diehard Disney freak (aren't we all if we're on this site??) and it was a dream come true. The staff is amazing and will take many pics of your group for you. Wohooo!!!

 

[allimaree]

SCREAM.. just kidding. i'm happy for you deep down lol. take pics if you can and enjoy witch ever time you go I don't think it really matters you'll be in there.

lol! I thought about you, pycees, when I posted this thread. Dig down really deep....

 

[M4travels]

I don't mean to burst a bubble here but you might want to talk to your contact and ask him/her to see if dinner is being served during the time of your visit. I just noticed your signature (Nov 30 - Dec 2); you may only have lunch available to you. I think (and I could be wrong!) that they only do dinner on Fri, Sat, and Sun evenings during this season.

Whatever works out, you'll have a great time!!!

 

[pinktink83]

I have a 5 month old, too...are you breastfeeding, too? (hence needing to bring her along?) I try to b/f exclusively, but will allow DD to have a bottle occasionally so I can go out. Can you pump prior and skip the one feeding? (I have to be honest, my standards would def be compromised for an experience like this LOL)

As for the stroller, it may be a tight squeeze depending on how the room is set up. Maybe one of those fabric slings? And then hopefully she'd sleep...but if it was a booth maybe you wouldnt be able to slide in with a baby strapped to your chest. Hmmmmmm. When we take DD out to restaurants we bring her bumbo seat and stick her on the table, but I dont think I'd recommend doing that in Club 33!

If you pay for your sister's tickets etc, it'd probably be cheaper than paying for the extra kids...especially if everyone pitched in. I would probably have each family pay her $50.

 

[GeneralTso]

You will LOVE it! It's really a special experience. I think you should leave the kids. I promise, you will have a better time. I can't imagine strollers in that place. We had a large group and it was fantastic. The service is flawless, the food was wonderful. Be sure to spend some time walking around and looking at things inside. The view from the balcony over New Orleans Square is very nice too. Tons of photo ops--so don't forget your camera.

Enjoy yourself!

 

[disneydawn6]

We had lunch at Club 33 the day after the premier of POTC 3. We would told Johnny Depp had eaten there the day of the premier. Also that he had spent lots of time on the balcony smoking. So of course my daughters and their friends (adults) spent lots of time on the balcony looking for cigarette butts. Never found any....

I would do dinner if you have a choice. If Fantasmic is going you can watch it from the balcony. I would not bring kids unless you have too. Remember there is a dress code even for lunch. No flip flops tanks tops cut offs..... Ask for matches they are cool looking. There are cool napkins in both restrooms. They don't care if you take some for souvenirs. Also if you use a credit card keep the pen. It's black with club 33 written on it. Ask the servers to take your picture. They wont mind... I brought a my daughter and her friends and spent a good 30 minutes just taking pictures of everything. Take a look in the restroom. There's a cut out chair in there. My daughter and her friends have all the hundreds of pictures we took.

 

[The Red Head]

Thanks! I'm glad to hear that 10 won't be a problem. (Assuming we can find a babysitter!) We had heard $75 was the min. and that's what we were planning on, so $72 shouldn't be a problem. We don't drink alcohol, will it still be hard to stay at that price?

If you go for lunch it won't be a problem, lunch is a set price. It is the minimum charge and you get to go to the buffet for salads, shrimp, cheeses, etc. Then you order your entree and there is a dessert buffet. If you go for dinner ordering a salad, entree and dessert should cover your minimum. In one of your other posts you mentioned brining the baby. That shouldn't be a problem, and you shouldn't even have to pay if the baby isn't eating. But two things, there are no booths, it is all tables. And I don't think I have ever seen a stroller upstairs near the tables at the Club. I have always seen people leave them downstairs near the coat check. So I am not sure if that is because people don't want to bring them up, or if the Club has a rule. There really isn't a lot of room for you to park a stroller upstairs.