Resort Thread Disney's Club Level (CL) Thread

[GADisneyDad14]

Now for perhaps the saddest news/update (not sure when this changed, sometime between July and now I guess). The daytime Poly beer fridge appears to be no more. I was actually surprised it lasted as long as it did.

It's back to sodas only during the day, but obviously beer/wine are available upon request at any time.

Coke, Diet Coke, and Sprite. We don't drink soda so I don't pay attention to this closely, but surprised not to see caffeine free options or other drinks like Ginger Ale. Not sure if they are normally available or not, but seems like other CLs have a better selection.


Beers do come back 5-10pm and it's self-serve. Current beer selection includes:

Bud Light
Longboard
Wailua Wheat
I-4 IPA
Angry Orchard

I only saw the Magic Hat #9 in here one night (12/31).



Continued on next post....

 

[CogsworthTN]

Ahiahi (evening appetizers) are served 5pm-7pm. I've said this before on this thread, but the dramatic difference in Poly CL evening apps between just two years ago and today is pretty astonishing. This is the most well-themed I've seen the menu in any of our Poly trips to date.

Personally I'm a fan of the menu - it's a bit upscale but not too much (it's still Poly CL after all), ingredients and flavors are interesting and not something you'd find at other places or restaurants. Note these are truly small plates, and perhaps now more than ever you're not really getting a meal here for the most part. Just a light snack before something else, which is totally fine.

There were generally four small plates per night. On this night:

Watermelon Salad with Balsamic & Goat Cheese
View attachment 373928


Tuna Poke
View attachment 373929


Chicken Hull Hull
Seafood Stew (shrimp, muscles, sauce, and a piece of bread for dipping
View attachment 373930


Assorted Crackers
Olive Tepanade
Assorted Cheeses
Same veggies and ranch dressing from the Afternoon Snack service
View attachment 373931


A closer look this evening's dishes. I'm sure they do this on purpose, but I do wish Poly would go with a slightly larger plate (like YC) for evening apps - would make things so much easier.
View attachment 373932


Here's a better look at the Seafood Stew - shrimp, muscles, and sauce. I've made fun of some prior-trip Poly dishes that had the tiniest little shrimps you've ever seen - but this shrimp was plenty big.
View attachment 373933


This was from a different night - 12/31 actually, so I have limited pics. The lounge can get crowded on these bigger holidays and we were pretty busy.

Same Tuna Poke from two nights earlier (I think)
Quinoa Salad
Shrimp and Polenta (or maybe it was billed as shrimp and grits, not sure)
View attachment 373934


Bread and Hummus
I didn't catch the cut of beef on the right, I think maybe prime rib (not sure)
View attachment 373935


Continued on next post...

Thanks for your review and amazing pictures. I love how the Polynesian theming is evident in the food presentation. I wanted to book Poly for our July 4th week trip, but my Dad wanted to stay at the GF.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Some misc sights and sounds around the Hawaii longhouse....

Can't see it in this pic, but they took away the third CM desk on the first floor and put in a small table with crayons for kids. It's located roughly where I'm standing taking this pic.

I always say the CL CMs here have the absolute best view of any job on property. And I realized this trip how much I've under-appreciated the small garden area under this overhang in the pic. Just beautiful.



Here's a view from the beach looking up at the CL lounge (first floor is where the CM desks are, above that is the lounge). Beautifully decorated for the holidays with lights shining bright.


Coffee station to the left of the kids TV. Abundant to-go cups.


Teas, white and brown sugar Mickey heads.



A better pic.


A view of the lounge looking down on the 2nd floor from the 3rd floor. Note the castle out the window in the background. I added the red text/arrow to note where bread/bagels/toaster are now served in the mornings. This is also where the kids items are located during evening apps. It is a 'touch' awkward to have a food station out in the lounge like this, but it does help with flow in the main serving area.



Another view of the 2nd floor portion of the lounge. This was taken after midnight by the way, the lounge space itself never closes.



This pic was also after midnight. Sodas had been left in the fridge for guests on this night.


Also after midnight. I'm pretty sure the Nespresso machine is on/available overnight (didn't try it though) and as you see, cups/coffee toppings are available.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

An exterior view of the Hawaii longhouse - these are Lagoon and Theme Park View rooms.


Here's a pic of the reserved CL viewing area for the special 12/31 fireworks. It was reserved for both the 6:30pm and 11:50pm shows.



A ground view from the reserved viewing area.



And as the clock struck midnight. They park the Electrical Water Pageant barges out front of Poly on 7/4 and 12/31 for show audio.


Continued on next post....

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Last post... a few pics of the room.

I had a Garden View room this time. With Garden View rooms, you can either be on the first floor (patio), second floor (no outdoor space), third floor (balcony). In the past I've requested first or third floor for the outdoor space, but given the time of year, shorter trip, and a lot of lounge time, I opted not to send in any requests.

We were given 3533, which is the second closest room to the lounge on the Garden View side, third floor. Perfect... just steps from the lounge.



People sometimes comment that Poly rooms are getting a bit long in the tooth, but this particular room was immaculate. Very clean, no dents/dings.


Robes and slippers. Am I making up the Poly has not had slippers in the past??



Current toiletry selection.



When they gave this room a Gaden View classification, they weren't kidding around. The view from this particular room was smack dab at two very close palm trees.


The Oasis Pool is behind these trees. A Garden View room more towards the middle/other end of the building would provide a 'better' view.


A panorama view. That's Samoa to the right. This might not have been my favorite view for a long trip... but with the lounge just steps away, no worries from me.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

So all-in-all, a great NYE Poly CL trip. Saw several familiar faces among CL and Mousekeeping CMs, which is always nice. Poly CL has a large room count and serves a lot of guests - CMs were working hard clearing the tables, keeping things replenished, etc. We didn't experience any food shortages. We did have a few instances where the lounge was full and we had to take our plates to the third floor - this will happen from time to time. We did have one morning where table clearing seemed to take a long time.

We've 'cheated' on Poly with a few other resorts this past year, but it was very refreshing to be back. I never get tired of the location, the lounge, the resort amenities, the fireworks views, etc. Poly/Poly CL isn't the right choice for everyone, but for us it's a great resort and CL combination for our kids and individual Disney vacationing style.

Happy to answer any questions on anything I might not have covered!

 

[PolyRob]

So all-in-all, a great NYE Poly CL trip. Saw several familiar faces among CL and Mousekeeping CMs, which is always nice. Poly CL has a large room count and serves a lot of guests - CMs were working hard clearing the tables, keeping things replenished, etc. We didn't experience any food shortages. We did have a few instances where the lounge was full and we had to take our plates to the third floor - this will happen from time to time. We did have one morning where table clearing seemed to take a long time.

We've 'cheated' on Poly with a few other resorts this past year, but it was very refreshing to be back. I never get tired of the location, the lounge, the resort amenities, the fireworks views, etc. Poly/Poly CL isn't the right choice for everyone, but for us it's a great resort and CL combination for our kids and individual Disney vacationing style.

Happy to answer any questions on anything I might not have covered!

Love your in-depth review of Poly and all the offerings. That room does look immaculate! Maybe Hawaii gets the best treatment? This really makes me want to stay CL at Poly. Considering I have my 2019 plans set in place it may have to be 2020. Unless I decide to add a 4th of July or Labor Day trip.

 

[TJA]

Happy to answer any questions on anything I might not have covered!

I can't imagine there being anything you didn't cover! Thank you for the thorough review rich with details and pictures! It's good to mix things up with other CL's, but I agree always good to get back to Poly.

 

[PPFlight75]

So all-in-all, a great NYE Poly CL trip. Saw several familiar faces among CL and Mousekeeping CMs, which is always nice. Poly CL has a large room count and serves a lot of guests - CMs were working hard clearing the tables, keeping things replenished, etc. We didn't experience any food shortages. We did have a few instances where the lounge was full and we had to take our plates to the third floor - this will happen from time to time. We did have one morning where table clearing seemed to take a long time.

We've 'cheated' on Poly with a few other resorts this past year, but it was very refreshing to be back. I never get tired of the location, the lounge, the resort amenities, the fireworks views, etc. Poly/Poly CL isn't the right choice for everyone, but for us it's a great resort and CL combination for our kids and individual Disney vacationing style.

Happy to answer any questions on anything I might not have covered!

Thank you for the review. It’s nice to see what has changed or stayed the same as we get ready for our next visit. It also gets us excited to return! I appreciate the time you take to post all the info. Glad to see the slippers and fancy coffee machine are still there!!
Sad about the beer fridge. Can you request all day or just during services?

 

[squeezle]

We arrived yesterday at BWI CL, and I am already impressed and thrilled! First surprise, our room was ready when be checked in st 2pm and we received the exact room we requested via touring plans. Second surprise, some lovely welcome chocolates when we returned from a short trip into EPCOT.

But the best news of all is how well they have been able to accommodate my food allergies in the lounge! The chef from Flying Fish who prepared the appetizers last night was very knowledgeable and accommodating, and later for dessert service, they had a small package of gluten-free brownie bites available... all this on our arrival day! And this morning I woke to an email from the chef wanting to discuss my allergies and options for the rest of the trip. They are going above and beyond.... it’s a little overwhelming, but truly appreciated.

Now I understand them undying love foe BWI CL!

 

[mickeynut1]

Super-excited! DH and I are booked for a 3-day/3-night trip in mid-November - BWI deluxe club level (our first stay at BWI). I only just found out about the extra FP+'s - with the 90-day window, this is going to be amazing for us (expensive, but amazing), especially if the new Star Wars stuff is open. !!!! We'll be doing one full day at USO, but this means we'll still be able to do all of our most-wanted's at WDW despite the time crunch.

BWI CL is great, you will love it! Enjoy the rest of your planning .

Thank you to everyone who posted regarding the 40%AP discounts. I was excited to snag a CL yacht Club for May30-June4 th at 30% off. Just went an rebooked at 40% off! Thank you

Congrats on the discount! It's always great saving money, but makes it a little sweeter to save even more .

Cereal options each day were Special K and Fruit Loops. I seem to remember there being three options in the past, although may be confusing CLs.

You're not confusing things as there were 3 options when I was there in Oct. It was the same every day and while I can't remember one of them, I know Fruit Loops and Frosted Flakes were the other 2 .

You can return dishes/drinks on that tray to the right if you so choose, or CMs clear tables as well. When we were at Poly in July, they removed the trash cans in the lounge during our stay. Annoyingly, this has continued. There is no where to throw away a napkin, empty bottle, soda can, apple core, etc - only this tray to the right. I was told 'management' thought trash cans and CMs hauling bags of trash in the lounge were unsightly (no idea if true or not, take with a grain of salt). But as a family who likes to clean up after ourselves, not having a trash can around is annoying in my opinion.

I didn't like this at all! I can't stand walking away from a table with dirty dishes/cups left behind, so I always took my trash to that tray. Sometimes a CM would be walking through the lounge while we were still sitting and see our empty dishes and very politely take them away, but other times I cleared my own table because I just can't walk away from that .

Now for perhaps the saddest news/update (not sure when this changed, sometime between July and now I guess). The daytime Poly beer fridge appears to be no more. I was actually surprised it lasted as long as it did.

It's back to sodas only during the day, but obviously beer/wine are available upon request at any time.

This is how it was in Oct when I was there .

Here's a view from the beach looking up at the CL lounge (first floor is where the CM desks are, above that is the lounge). Beautifully decorated for the holidays with lights shining bright.
View attachment 373954

Beautiful

A view of the lounge looking down on the 2nd floor from the 3rd floor. Note the castle out the window in the background. I added the red text/arrow to note where bread/bagels/toaster are now served in the mornings. This is also where the kids items are located during evening apps. It is a 'touch' awkward to have a food station out in the lounge like this, but it does help with flow in the main serving area.

I agree about the location of the bread/bagels/toaster being awkward. It made it very crowded in that area in the morning....especially since the toaster was rather SLOW .

I had a Garden View room this time.

People sometimes comment that Poly rooms are getting a bit long in the tooth, but this particular room was immaculate. Very clean, no dents/dings.

We had a LV room in Oct and it was just as nice/immaculate and mousekeeping was amazing!

So all-in-all, a great NYE Poly CL trip. Saw several familiar faces among CL and Mousekeeping CMs, which is always nice. Poly CL has a large room count and serves a lot of guests - CMs were working hard clearing the tables, keeping things replenished, etc. We didn't experience any food shortages. We did have a few instances where the lounge was full and we had to take our plates to the third floor - this will happen from time to time. We did have one morning where table clearing seemed to take a long time.

Glad you had a great time. Thanks for taking the time to post a very thorough review with great pics (as always). Reading this makes me wish I was there now .

Love your in-depth review of Poly and all the offerings. That room does look immaculate! Maybe Hawaii gets the best treatment? This really makes me want to stay CL at Poly. Considering I have my 2019 plans set in place it may have to be 2020. Unless I decide to add a 4th of July or Labor Day trip.

I just had my first Poly CL stay in Oct and it was amazing! Hope you are able to squeeze in a trip .

We arrived yesterday at BWI CL, and I am already impressed and thrilled! First surprise, our room was ready when be checked in st 2pm and we received the exact room we requested via touring plans. Second surprise, some lovely welcome chocolates when we returned from a short trip into EPCOT.

But the best news of all is how well they have been able to accommodate my food allergies in the lounge! The chef from Flying Fish who prepared the appetizers last night was very knowledgeable and accommodating, and later for dessert service, they had a small package of gluten-free brownie bites available... all this on our arrival day! And this morning I woke to an email from the chef wanting to discuss my allergies and options for the rest of the trip. They are going above and beyond.... it’s a little overwhelming, but truly appreciated.

Now I understand them undying love foe BWI CL!

BWI CL is amazing, glad you're having a great time already! Enjoy the rest of your stay .

 

[KerryCM]

We arrived yesterday at BWI CL, and I am already impressed and thrilled! First surprise, our room was ready when be checked in st 2pm and we received the exact room we requested via touring plans. Second surprise, some lovely welcome chocolates when we returned from a short trip into EPCOT.

But the best news of all is how well they have been able to accommodate my food allergies in the lounge! The chef from Flying Fish who prepared the appetizers last night was very knowledgeable and accommodating, and later for dessert service, they had a small package of gluten-free brownie bites available... all this on our arrival day! And this morning I woke to an email from the chef wanting to discuss my allergies and options for the rest of the trip. They are going above and beyond.... it’s a little overwhelming, but truly appreciated.

Now I understand them undying love foe BWI CL!

I am so happy you are enjoying your stay. The chefs there are amazing, as are the rest of the cast. We will be back in just 37 more days and cannot wait.

 

[StephanieP]

So all-in-all, a great NYE Poly CL trip. Saw several familiar faces among CL and Mousekeeping CMs, which is always nice. Poly CL has a large room count and serves a lot of guests - CMs were working hard clearing the tables, keeping things replenished, etc. We didn't experience any food shortages. We did have a few instances where the lounge was full and we had to take our plates to the third floor - this will happen from time to time. We did have one morning where table clearing seemed to take a long time.

We've 'cheated' on Poly with a few other resorts this past year, but it was very refreshing to be back. I never get tired of the location, the lounge, the resort amenities, the fireworks views, etc. Poly/Poly CL isn't the right choice for everyone, but for us it's a great resort and CL combination for our kids and individual Disney vacationing style.

Happy to answer any questions on anything I might not have covered!

WOW! What a wonderful and in-depth review of Poly CL!! Thank you for taking the time to post all the pics--they're fabulous! Glad you had such a wonderful time!

 

[AngiTN]

We arrived yesterday at BWI CL, and I am already impressed and thrilled! First surprise, our room was ready when be checked in st 2pm and we received the exact room we requested via touring plans. Second surprise, some lovely welcome chocolates when we returned from a short trip into EPCOT.

But the best news of all is how well they have been able to accommodate my food allergies in the lounge! The chef from Flying Fish who prepared the appetizers last night was very knowledgeable and accommodating, and later for dessert service, they had a small package of gluten-free brownie bites available... all this on our arrival day! And this morning I woke to an email from the chef wanting to discuss my allergies and options for the rest of the trip. They are going above and beyond.... it’s a little overwhelming, but truly appreciated.

Now I understand them undying love foe BWI CL!

The various chefs are great with allergies. We just left on Friday and saw each of them talking to many guests about planning for their allergies. They are even great about altering (within reason) each selection. For instance, one night we had blackened fish tacos and one of the guest hated anything with spice. He cooked her an entire skillet of fish with no spices. I'm sure each chef varies in how much they'll flex for things like taste buds but they do try.

I hope it's a bit less full for y'all. We had the bad luck of overlapping a family trip of 30 guests. Who all wanted to come to the lounge at once. Needless to say, that overwhelmed everything, staff, resources, and seating. We ended up taking food back to the room one night. It's normal for them to have all the CL rooms booked but not with a single group of 30 that wants to come together. Usually, guests straggle so it's not normal to find EVERY seat was taken, plus the setting area in the hall.

 

[AngiTN]

I am so happy you are enjoying your stay. The chefs there are amazing, as are the rest of the cast. We will be back in just 37 more days and cannot wait.

You'll be happy to know that Redgie should be back working then. We went to dinner with him last week and he said he's due back to work on the 16th (he'd just found out)

I'm so happy because I'm checking in on the 19th for a short stay with a friend and I really wanted her to get to meet him, and vice versa.

 

[KerryCM]

You'll be happy to know that Redgie should be back working then. We went to dinner with him last week and he said he's due back to work on the 16th (he'd just found out)

I'm so happy because I'm checking in on the 19th for a short stay with a friend and I really wanted her to get to meet him, and vice versa.

Good to hear! We did see him briefly over our December trip when he had to drop some papers off. I am so looking forward to going back. We are a little sad I had to book the Contemporary for our April trip. Oh well, we get to try something new! Never stayed Club Level there. We will be staying on the Atrium Level. Couldn’t pass up the great rate we got. A good friend of mine from Massachusetts is getting married on April 4th at the Grand so we will be close by anyway.

 

[2vets]

Here were evening apps on yet another night

Crab Deviled Eggs
Tomato Mozzarella Salad
Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi (excellent by the way)
Kona Coffee BBQ Pulled Pork Sliders

Continued on next post...

Wow! We did Poly CL in Nov 2017, and although it was good, I don't recall the apps being quite so perfectly themed. That's fantastic - glad you had such a great trip.

 

[ToyStory3]

I go to Disney for the food, so most of my photos are related to eating... This thread was helpful to me, so I hope somebody wants food pictures.
Beach Club
View attachment 373404 View attachment 373405 View attachment 373406 View attachment 373407 View attachment 373408 View attachment 373409 View attachment 373410 View attachment 373411 View attachment 373412

Yay thank you so much for posting these!!! Mac and cheese bar???!!!

 

[ToyStory3]

I have read mixed reviews of GF outer building club level. Beach Club CL and GF are the same price in Aug. Which is the better option? staying 4 nights.

We've stayed at both and really liked both of them. But, we prefer BC overall. The layout of the outer building CL is not ideal to me. We LOVE GF itself, but the lounge had some drawbacks. And, we were on the top floor of sugarloaf and could still hear everything in the lounge from our room. We had a great time but missed the BC and are going back this summer.

 

[trishadono]

Sorry no pics of food, I don't do that
But they have a chef preparing 2 items each night, samples from ESPN, trattoria, or flying fish
Last night we had scallops over risotto or pasta with red sauce and meatballs
Another this week was pork belly Mac and cheese and fish tacos
We never make dinner reservations staying at BWI


Odd. We've been staying at BWI CL for 2 years and never encountered that. One of the reasons we like it over so many others is they are still self serve for alcohol.
Any of it is right there in the kitchen in the lounge all day. They put it in the fridge at 5

I actually had that problem with red wine my only bwi stay. However I must have asked nicely because they offered to fetch it for me after explaining they don't usually have mid-day.

Sorry I didn't get to see you. My friend Dispro said she met you on NYE .