Concierge Service

[sassybrendita]

I am looking into a Disney trip for my husband and I on our second anniversary. We are young and he has NEVER been to Disney. I want to make this the BEST experience for him because I LOVE Disney (I grew up in Florida and we has season passes). Since I lived in Florida (only about an hour from disney) we never stayed in any of the Resorts. I definately want to make this the best trip ever, but I have heard different things about the concierge service at each Resot that offers it. I don't want to pay a lot of extra money if it isn't going to be worth it. Can anyone help me out? The resorts I am looking at are the Contemporary, Polynesian, and the Grand Floridian...BUT I would love to hear from any others good or bad because I am still very unsure. I have heard that in some resorts the Concierge "light" (i.e. 12th floor and Tower of the Contemporary, and the 'sugar loaf' at the Grand Floridian) aren't wortt having because you get sub-par service. If anyone could help me out with experiences on their trips I would realy appreciate it. Thanks.

 

[Jasminetigger]

sassbrendita.

We have only stayed at Wilderness Lodge concierge. I picked this resort to begin with because it was the least expensive of the Deluxe resorts. We only have great things to say about Wilderness Lodge concierge level. We are headed back there this June. We really like the breakfast offerings in the morning. We like to get an early start and its nice to be able to grab a quick and very good and plentiful breakfast. We always usually come back mid day for a swim and my DD's just love being able to get their own snack. The dinner and evening snack offerings are also usually very tasty. The staff there is excellent. They always seem to get whatever PS's we want. Even those last minute ones when we have had a change of plans. The staff there always seems to go way out of their way to make sure your stay is a memorable one. The last couple of years we have been lucky enough to get a room with a view of the fire works. I highly recommend this resort's concierge level.

 

[10nis]

My only concierge experience was at the Boardwalk Inn, and it was absolutely de-lightful! I am a fan of the EPCOT resorts, enjoy being able to walk to EPCOT and having the choice of taking the boat or walking to MGM. It is convienent to have the Boardwalk entertainment/dining options, EPCOT dining options with the world showcase entrance so close and also the other resorts you can walk to easily with their dining options, so close!
My own experience with the Boardwalk on our two visits there were great!! I just get a sense of "calm" when I walk in the resort. It has always been pretty quiet on our visits and I personally think it would be a great choice for a couple visiting Disney with no kids along. Although I really enjoyed our stay at the Contemporary, IMHO I don't think that would be the best resort to stay at without kids.
I have read several times on this board that you can't justify concierge level by getting your "money's worth" out of it. Probably won't be able to "eat" your money's worth, anyway! I utilized the planning office to the fullest extent in making our priority seatings and that was so worth it! They also helped me out when we arrived by rearranging some priority seatings and also making other travel arrangements and they were GREAT about it!

I personally think that you can have a fabulous trip without concierge level, will just take more planning on your part Now that we have gone concierge level it is going to be very difficult to go back to standard rooms! Good Luck..

 

[Pig Pen]

The only concierge we used was at AKL and I can tell you we thought it was definitely worth the money. We had wonderful African themed snacks and drinks whenever we wanted, they made PS for us, it was great. We saved a ton on breakfast money as we ate concierge every morning.

The service was great and we were treated like royalty.

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

We always stay deluxe but have never stayed in a concierge room and have always wondered this as well. I always read here on the DIS that there are two benefits: the CM making PS arrangements, which is easily done myself, and the snacks on the level. We like spreading our breakfast/meals around the resorts/parks; ie. Boma, CP, Whispering Canyon, CG, room service some mornings, etc. and I don't think we would be around to eat much of the "snacks". What else is there? There must be more, like room size, or extra deluxe accomodations, bigger beds, something? It seems like you're paying a premium for not all that much more. There seems to be a lack of real concierge tips on this board beyond the PS/snack angle, IMO, and I would welcome a new take or angle on why the level so fantastic.

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

 

[sassybrendita]

I agree about the new perspective. I have laready decided I want to do a few character Breakfasts and get into a few parks early anyway. I don't think that the breakfast isn't something I couldnt' handle. I think it is interesting about the PS's. I think I would really enjoy that...simply because it is my husbands first time and I want everything to go as smoothly as possible. Also why would Contemporary be not bea good stay without kids? Are there a lot of roudy kids there? My husband is like a BIG child himself which is why we chose Disney for a vacation, but it would be nice to be in a 'grown-up' hotel if you know what I mean.
Thank you.

 

[TammiMcMan]

SB,

With concierge, you are really just paying for a higher level of service. As others have mentioned, there is the lounge offerings. At all levels of concierge, you'll receive a deluxe continental breakfast that is usually enough to fill most belly's. Depending on where you stay, throughout the rest of the day you'll see anywhere from snack foods to more gourmet style. In full concierge, they serve complimentary wine and beer in the evening and a late night dessert offering with cordials, like Baileys & Kahlua. I don't think you need to be around for every meal offering to make it worth it, but it's nice to at least be able to take advantage of some of this.

The pre-planning department can do much more than make priority seating arrangements. They'll take care of booking transportation needs, like a towncar or limo, recreation like golf, parasailing and spa appointments, entertainment like fireworks cruises, Cirque tickets, Hoop Dee Doo and so on. If you wanted to make arrangements for a private dinner celebrating your anniversary, maybe purchasing some gifts for you before you arrive and setting them up in your room. Perhaps deliver a small replica of your wedding cake as dessert in one of the area restaurants. Really, the sky is the limit on what they can arrange for you. Anyone can make these arrangements on their own, by calling the appropriate number, you're basically paying for the convenience of someone else doing all that for you. In one e-mail, you could have your entire trip planned, as opposed to maybe a few days on the phone. That's what I mean by higher level of service.

Upon arrival, you're usually met by a greeter and escorted to a private check in area. Concierge is usually located on a secure floor or building that you'll need your room key to access. CM staff are available from 7am-10pm daily for any last minute requests that you have.

Room sizes are typically the same, but you receive bathrobes in your closet, daily newspaper delivery (Monday-Friday) and automatic turndown service. Again, these can be requested by anyone staying at a deluxe, it just comes without asking when you stay concierge.

As for "light" concierge, you definitely do not receive sub par service here. The term "light" really only pertains to the lounge offerings. You will not receive the complimentary wine/beer with their dinner serving and you might get a few extra desserts, you won't get the extensive late night dessert offering with the cordials. Other than that, you still receive all the amenities that a full service concierge provides.

I wouldn't give up on the idea and check around for discounts. They do offer them for concierge rooms.

These are just my personal opinions:

GF - offers full concierge in the main building & light concierge in SugarLoaf
CR - offers a full and light concierge, amazing MK views, full concierge is very private (limited number of rooms available, so very personal service)
Poly - wonderful concierge service, great lounge
WL - more limited concierge, no lounge yet so food is served on tables spread out around the balcony. A lounge is scheduled to be built soon.
AKL - wonderful concierge service, some extra perks like the offering of a sunrise safari (special tour of the Kiliminjaro safari followed by breakfast at the Tusker house), sunset safari (night time tour of the lodge savannah and special meal served at Jiko's)
BC - concierge rooms here are slightly bigger, small lounge, excellent pre-planning staff
YC - nice, small lounge, excellent pre-planning staff
BW- nicest of the Epcot concierge, bigger lounge, excellent pre-planning staff

Good luck with your decision,
Tammi

 

[turnlisa]

We have stayed concierage service the last two trips at the Poly and loved it! The second time it did seem a little less as special because they were in the midst of staff changes and new trainings. I am interested in staying somewhere else with concierage with my kids. They love the extra attention and the ability to get snacks throughout the day. I think the cost balances itself out with the extra attention, help with the pre-planning and it seems like every effort is made to make sure the guest is happy.

 

[tubachick]

Thanks Tammi, that was useful info on the various lounges.

 

[ead79]

I've stayed concierge at the GF (Main Building Concierge - also called Royal Palm Club), Polynesian, BoardWalk Inn, Yacht Club, and Animal Kingdom Lodge. We really enjoyed each experience and love the pampering of concierge.

I agree that you see lots of posts about concierge that only refer to the snack angle. Though we enjoy the food a lot, that is not the primary reason to stay concierge. As Tammi said, concierge gets a higher level of service. While I enjoy choosing what PS places and times I want, I like not having to get on the phone to make them (especially the hard to get ones like Cindy's). Also, they can suggest neat things like getting us a cake for our anniversary delivered to our room. We always drive, but it's my understanding that they can also help with towncar or limo transportation from the airport to Disney. We enjoy the availability of the lounge, not as a way to skip a meal (except breakfast, which is a meal we often get at the lounge since we're not big breakfast eaters usually), but as a nice perk when you'd like a little snack or delicious mini-dessert. Additionally, there are some experiences available only to concierge guests like the Sunrise and Sunset Safaris for AKL concierge guests and the new Animal Kingdom Discovery Excursion available to any concierge guest. We have done the Sunrise Safari, and it was an absolutely incredible experience. We loved it!

If it helps at all, here are our impressions of the various concierges (these are only our opinions, and everyone has a different one, LOL):

--GF Royal Palm Club-we stayed here for part of our honeymoon, and we really enjoyed it. It has such an elegant lounge, and we loved relaxing in the lounge while listening to the orchestra in the evening. Plus, we were there in December, so it was nice to have such a good view of the lobby decorations. The food offerings were good here, pretty gourmet. The desserts were quite good (I'm still thinking about the delicious pumpkin pie squares, LOL). The service we received here was excellent (though there are many posts here to the contrary). We were greeted by name, which was especially nice since they used our new married name even though the ressie was in my maiden name. They actually remembered us! The pre-planning by email was quite helpful. We look forward to returning here when possible budget-wise.

--Polynesian concierge-we have stayed here 3 times, and enjoyed it each time. In our experience, this concierge lounge has by far been the busiest, so be aware of its popularity. The food offerings here are delicious and not too gourmet which we like since we are picky eaters. They have some excellent cast members here, which has made our stays wonderful. They were able to do some very nice things for us, like help us coordinate with the GF bakery to get a mini replica of our wedding cake delivered to our room. Though we think the lounge should be a bit larger to accomodate this concierge level's popularity, we like staying here. We will stay here again for sure.

--BoardWalk Inn concierge-we liked the intimate feeling of this small but elegant lounge. It was never crowded, and we liked that there were cast members in the lounge to talk with you. The food offerings here were a bit minimal compared to GF RPC where we had been for the first part of our honeymoon, but the offerings were still good. The pre-planning staff here was top-notch in every way. They were even able to get us an Illuminations cruise. The only drawback for us was the distance from our room to the lounge. We were in one of the garden suites, so we were quite far from the lounge. This wouldn't be a problem if you're not in a garden suite though. We would happily stay here again too.

--Yacht Club-we met some of the friendliest cast members here. We very much enjoyed talking to them. The food offerings here are pretty good as well--probably about the same as BWI concierge. For us, the real stand out was the excellent staff. This concierge had more adult travelers than families with kids, but kids are definitely welcome. It had a very upscale feel without being snotty, LOL. We want to return here as well.

--Animal Kingdom Lodge-we very much liked this lounge and its relaxed feeling. The staff was very good, and we felt like a member of their family. We absolutely loved doing the Sunrise Safari, and we would love to do it again. We enjoyed the lounge food offerings as well. We will definitely return here.

 

[mmluvr]

We stayed in Sugar Loaf this past February to celebrate my 40th birthday. I will also add that it was my first Disney concierge experience.

The preplanners were very helpful with making spa appointments, tour reservations and PS arrangements; we were able to secure a PS at CRT for my birthday. My husband was responsible for the planning fo this trip and all I can say is I am glad he had the assistance of the pre-planners.

Sugar Loaf is also very close to the main building and the boat launch. The only problem we experienced had to do with the self-park parking lot. Let's just say I got a really intense workout on the day we checked out!

I am sure I have repeated what others have already written.

Best of luck with your planning!

 

[Kteacher]

Just wanted to post that the concierge at the CR has been excellent so far in communicating with me regarding requests. I'm so glad I decided to switch to the 12th floor from a regular Tower room. I can't wait to see my kid's faces

 

[Angel16]

I am thinking of putting together a trip mid-September. Our AP's expire on October 8th. Can you give me your ideas/opinions on which new resort for us. Naturally we would want to stay concierge if available.

1. Grand Flordian- which building would you suggest that would have a wonderful view and not be a mile or two walk from transportation?

2. YC- Where should we request a room? We like King beds. DH is 6'4"

3. We were going to stay at the Poly in May but had to cancel that trip. Should we go there? We really don't want a big crowd of people in the lounge and I have read that Poly gets very crowded. I do know they only have 2 queens in their rooms. We just can't justify the moneywith just the two of us for a suite.

Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Angel

 

[TammiMcMan]

Angel,

At the GF, full concierge is in the main building on the 3rd, 4th and 5th floors. Considering the monorail is on the 2nd floor and the bus stop is just steps from the main lobby, you won't have to worry about walking far at all. SugarLoaf is the light concierge building and you're talking about adding 2 or 3 minutes to your commute. The GF grounds might look big, but the two furthest points are probably no more than a 6 minute walk. If you were going to forego concierge, you might want to look at Sago Cay. Close to the main building for the monorail and there's a little shortcut right to the bus stop.

The YC has concierge on the 5th floor and I know that they did have king beds because someone was requesting one when I checked in. Take a look at this site, http://www.disneyzone.net/ycresort.htm . It has a great layout of all the floors and even room numbers. The rooms are color coded as to what's standard and what's water view. In either case, I would absolutely request a room in the back of the resort (lake side). Otherwise you'll probably be looking out over the parking lot and convention center roof.

Tammi

 

[Angel16]

Tammie - Thank you so much for the wonderful information. Is G.F. your favorite resort? I think the September/October idea may work. We will know in a few days. The site you referred me to is a great help and looks good. We certainly want a water view room.

I really love the picture of your son. It makes you feel like you are right there. Looks like he is excelling at his new sport. Thank you again for your help.

Angel

 

[TammiMcMan]

Hi Angel,

Yes, GF continues to be our favorite resort, especially for concierge service. I'll admit though, I really enjoyed being within walking distance of Epcot and MGM. The two resorts really offer very different things. The GF was quiet and felt sort of secluded, while the YC was lively and had more action going on around it. Going forward, I think that I'm going to try and do split stays from now on. My kids are getting older, so moving luggage really isn't an issue and it would give us the best of both worlds.

Thank you for the compliment on my son. If a mom can boast, he is actually very good at skating. He made it to Junior Nationals, but recently decided to take up ice dancing. It may have something to do with the pretty girl that asked him to be her partner , but who knows?

Tammi

 

[dreamflight99]

Hi Angel,

Yes, GF continues to be our favorite resort, especially for concierge service. I'll admit though, I really enjoyed being within walking distance of Epcot and MGM. The two resorts really offer very different things. The GF was quiet and felt sort of secluded, while the YC was lively and had more action going on around it. Going forward, I think that I'm going to try and do split stays from now on. My kids are getting older, so moving luggage really isn't an issue and it would give us the best of both worlds.

Thank you for the compliment on my son. If a mom can boast, he is actually very good at skating. He made it to Junior Nationals, but recently decided to take up ice dancing. It may have something to do with the pretty girl that asked him to be her partner , but who knows?

Tammi

Wow...I never knew your son skated. Our little neighbor (just turned "5") has been skating for two years, and recently "swept" a Disney Ice competition here in Anaheim *(the POND). The Gold Medals she received were incredible, with DONALD and DAISY featured on the front! She's competing in "World's" this July (also here in So. Cal). She skates 30+ hours per week, and has three coaches! She has to skate "up" a few levels, because of her skills, etc. So, it's so cute to see her on the ice with other girls much older and taller than Tara. She's the CUTEST (a mini Michelle Kwan)! She tells us nearly every day, she is going to the Olympics in 2012 (possibly held in NY) to win a GOLD MEDAL! Her parents say 2016 is more likely (in India...perhaps). She's a natural, destined for spot on the top block!

DF99

 

[TammiMcMan]

Doris, that is the only link layout that I am aware of. If you have another, I'm sure the OP would be happy to receive that information. I only provided that one so they could have an idea of what area of the resort that they'd like to be in.

it is not the same in-depth information.

I'm just trying to be helpful, I apologize if my advice is lacking.