Resort Thread Disney's Club Level (CL) Thread

[jpalasky]

So excited!!!! I just booked Poly CL.. We come in on December 31st. The first two nights we are at POFQ. Just to expensive for NYE. We were at poly last NYE so no bigee. On Jan 2 we head to Poly CL. We have stayed at Poly many times never CL. We just did out first CL in May at BC. We are hooked.

 

[baler31]

Here's a video of the room & view I'm talking about.

4328 and 4428 have the same layout and view. Please note that the balconies for these rooms are the same size as all standard rooms. The layout is different with the narrow hall entry where they have placed the desk since the renovations. This annoys my DH now because he cannot be at the desk and see the television.

 

[focusondisney]

Sorry, I got busy and didn't find time to get online while we were there.

I did not notice any flies on our 2 days in the RPC lounge. I'm thinking they would not be normal, even with the lobby doors.

Thanks for the info. Glad you were having a good time instead of posting!!

 

[AngiTN]

4328 and 4428 have the same layout and view. Please note that the balconies for these rooms are the same size as all standard rooms. The layout is different with the narrow hall entry where they have placed the desk since the renovations. This annoys my DH now because he cannot be at the desk and see the television.

We were in room 4429! It was a king room. My only requests were 4th floor, king room so I got exactly that. We liked out

 

[DisneyFansInNYC]

We just did a split stay - first Poly CL then CR CL. The Poly greeting was wonderful. We were met in the lobby at the Club Level check in desk ( I can't remember her name. The woman was wonderful - gave us all leis and walked us to the Hawaii building. Our stay was wonderful there. The last day of the Poly we got a call on our cell from the CR. We were told to make sure that we physically check out of the Poly to make our change smoothly. They also said that no one would greet us in the lobby of the CR and that we needed to check in on the regular line and then someone would walk us up. They said this is a new feature they are starting. I don't know how they knew we were at the Poly as these are separate reservations. When we went to check out at the Poly the CM didn't understand why the CR called us. He said they could have checked us out themselves.

We went to the CR and checked in at the lobby desk. Someone walked us up and that was that. Nothing like the greeting at the Poly. We never got a club level lounge explanation. We have stayed there before but if you didn't you wouldn't know what was being offered or when. Our rooms weren't ready until after 4pm - one was ready closer to 5pm. They said because they are painting the outside of the building and they can't clean the room when they are painting. We did get our adjoining rooms. I went to ask for a list of lounge times and the CM said it should be in the room - there wasn't in either room. In one room the phone didn't work - there wasn't enough towels in either room and one room was missing a lamp shade. We love the CR for the proximity to MK but the Poly check in made us feel so special. I didn't do online check in because we were with people that have never stayed there before and I wanted them to get the greeting but we never got it anyway. The next day we had lovely CMs in the CR CL lounge (Paul and Kathy) which made up for the check in. We love the CR but hands down the Poly wins for feeling so welcome. I really miss it. A few more days at the CR - and we are loving every minute of it I just wish they could make the check in a little better.

I wanted to add to my split stay issue was the magic band issue. All 10 of us went to the CR to check in at 11:30am and make sure our magic bands would work after coming from the Poly. Since our room wasn't ready we all went to AK. At 3pm my DH and I left to go see if our room was ready and get all the bags brought up (there were a lot). About when our room was ready (4:30 to 5pm) 5 of the 8 that were still at AK had their magic bands stop working. They were trying to shop and they couldn't use them. They were going to go to another park but instead they had to come back to get their magic bands to work. It took the CM at the CR CL about 20 minutes to get them all working. She said that this is what happens when you buy magic bands. Our magic bands weren't bought - they were the free ones from Disney - we just painted them. I just wish Disney could get the split stays and magic bands working. Again it didn't affect our time here - we love DW - it just seems like this is something they should be able to handle.

 

[DisneyFansInNYC]

We're back from an amazingly wonderful visit to BWI CL. It is by far our favorite resort on Disney property - there's just something about it that none of us can quite articulate, but it feels like home.

We checked in about 8:30am at the front desk. The CM was very nice and escorted us up to the 4th floor where we did our check in with Jackie. We've not been back to BWI CL in 3 years (we have DVC so we often are on the villas side) but we remembered Jackie and it was so so so nice to see her again

We were celebrating DS's 6th birthday and the experience exceeded our expectations. We were at YC CL in June and while it was very nice and we enjoyed Stormalong Bay, especially with unusually warm weather for early June, the BWI was far superior an experience for us. The CMs at BWI CL are the absolute best. We are extroverts (our kids are 9 and 6 and love interacting with the CMs) and we just really enjoyed chatting with the CMs in the lounge, telling them about our day etc. While all the CMs were out of this world, Jackie, Andrew, Anita and Linda went above and beyond for us. One day, we were surprised with a delivery of cupcakes to the room for DS's birthday

The food offerings were great, but the food is only a part of why we like CL. I really do love having breakfast readily available in the morning as I think it's a nice way to start our day without the stress of having to find a place before we go to the parks. CL for us is an experience - the lounge is a great place to hang out, chat with other guests (we met some really great people this time!), have some appetizers and a glass of wine. We love the service we get from the CMs and feel that it's the whole package, not just the food for us.

The exterior renovations are ongoing, but in no way impacted our good time.

The kids were really sad to leave and so were we - we'll be back for sure!

We agree we love the CMs at the BWI CL. They truly are the best. We didn't stay there this time and we missed it. We had so much fun with Lorenzo and Anita the last time - sorry we didn't get to stay there but we will be back too.

Glad you enjoyed your stay.

 

[ReginaRJ]

Here's a video of the room & view I'm talking about.

Lovely! Thanks!

 

[mommyrosa2]

Doing a split stay this October and we just switched to a Standard View YC CL room for the 2nd half of our trip...yay!! It's been a couple of years since we've stayed in a CL room at the YC so I'm looking forward to seeing the new lounge. We'll be there from 10/17-10/19...cannot wait!!!

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Just back from CR CL Atrium level. Overall, we liked the new food additions, esp the plain Greek yogurt, eggs, morning cold cuts, and improved fruit selection. I'm no fan of melon, so that pretty much means I was the evil person taking all three blueberries they offered. This time I saw blueberries, blackberries, and even a few strawberries. I as able to take some AND leave plenty for others!
(I just had to laugh previously at GF when the raspberry SERVING bowl held only 1/4 cup of berries!)

the PM soup is a welcome addition, but the three soups we saw were a bit odd. The staff called all three Southwestern something or other. I think the first was southwestern beef, then southwestern seafood chowder, then something they called chili. It wasn't what I would call chowder or chili. All three nights it was semi-spicy, semi-orange, and kind of gelatinous in a starchy-flour roux or canned-condensed soup kind of way with small flecks of red and green bell pepper.

Also want to report ALLERGY help procedure has changed slightly. They used to call a chef. Now it is more streamlined: they have guests fill out a paper form.

We were also given a single bottle of water in our room. I'll take it, but that didn't put much of a dent in our daily water intake! I counted: by 11:30am one morning, we'd each consumed 4 bottles of water (at 16 ounces each)! Some of the water we bought was electrolyte water, and it was much appreciated.

The other part of our stay was at Universal. Part at Sapphire Falls (No CL, but BEAUTIFUL resort! The quick serve Dutch Trading Company wasn't a bad sub for CL breakfasts.) and part at Royal Pacific CL. Even with the improvements at CR CL, I still say the CL food at US is better. If only the US CL's had a Nespresso machine. Sigh. One more important thing to know about US's CL's is that on check-out day, access to the lounge ends at 3pm! They also have slightly different hours than WDW's CL's, and each resort is slightly different. At Royal Pacific: breakfast 7-10am, snacks noon-3pm, appetizers 4:30pm-6:30pm, desserts 8-9pm. They also give out bottled water upon request. Currently, they are experimenting a 6 day menu rotation of their appetizers rotation.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

One more important tidbit, since it was recently discussed in this thread. For the first time ever at a WDW CL, at check-in we were given a welcome letter that included an explanation of lounge rules:

As you may know, the Atrium Club is for the exclusive use of our Club Level Guests. Our lounge offers a variety of beer, wine, and cordials at select times of the day. Our alcoholic beverages are complimentary and available for your enjoyment while in our lounge. All Guests consuming alcohol must be 21 years of age or older. Valid identification may be requested. While enjoying the lounge, we ask that an adult Guest accompany all Guests under the age of 10. In addition, proper attire and footwear are requested of all Guests. Please refrain from entering the lounge wearing robes, bathing suits, or wet clothes.

The capitalization of the word Guest is theirs. I didn't ask for clarification, but it reads like perhaps they no longer want guests to take alcohol out of the lounge? I did hear Royal Pacific staff expressly telling guests they could bring their wine to their room. Further, the US CL's give everyone a paper copy of their rules, which are similar to the paragraph above.

 

[gwynne]

One more important tidbit, since it was recently discussed in this thread. For the first time ever at a WDW CL, at check-in we were given a welcome letter that included an explanation of lounge rules:

As you may know, the Atrium Club is for the exclusive use of our Club Level Guests. Our lounge offers a variety of beer, wine, and cordials at select times of the day. Our alcoholic beverages are complimentary and available for your enjoyment while in our lounge. All Guests consuming alcohol must be 21 years of age or older. Valid identification may be requested. While enjoying the lounge, we ask that an adult Guest accompany all Guests under the age of 10. In addition, proper attire and footwear are requested of all Guests. Please refrain from entering the lounge wearing robes, bathing suits, or wet clothes.

The capitalization of the word Guest is theirs. I didn't ask for clarification, but it reads like perhaps they no longer want guests to take alcohol out of the lounge? I did hear Royal Pacific staff expressly telling guests they could bring their wine to their room. Further, the US CL's give everyone a paper copy of their rules, which are similar to the paragraph above.

We've brought appetizers and a glass of wine back to our room occasionally. Unless I hear different, I'll continue to do so. Sometimes the lounges get busy.
JMO-That letter reads like they are covering all the bases just in case there is an occasional situation or guest issue.

 

[chimo2u]

I just received my Magicbands! Can't wait to arrive at the Yacht Club Club Level in a few weeks!

I hope you love it! looking forward to my first stay there In NOV 2017

 

[chimo2u]

Glad you had such a good time at the BWI CL! We can't wait to get back in Dec. as it will be the first time that we have been at the BWI during the Christmas holiday season. We love Jackie and all the CM at the BWI,I don't know how they do it. Without fail they make all the world's problems just seem to disappear and for at least one week a year (or more since I keep making longer visits) I can go into vacation mode and not worry about a thing. That is priceless to me!!

I was so looking forward to meeting these "amazing" Cm's that I keep hearing great things about when we stayed at BWI CL Oct 2015 -- sadly , there was nothing to write home about. Check in was below par, the guy checking us in wasn't very friendly and didn't even welcome us. I never met any of the wonderful CM's you mention.... oh, one night Lorenzo did make it to the lounge, but he just joked and chatted with his CM friends who where putting out food, etc... never even acknowledged the guests in the lounge. So I was really disappointed and I hope my YC stay is better next year. So far, I have only felt really at home in one Club lounge, and that was AKL. I hope I don't regret moving my reservation from AKL CL to YC CL, I am open to trying new places and really hope this resort gives us a welcoming feeling. If not , it's back to AKL for future stays (or one more resort to try / if I can ever afford GF RPC I'd love to try that CL lounge )

 

[mickeyluv'r]

We've brought appetizers and a glass of wine back to our room occasionally. Unless I hear different, I'll continue to do so. Sometimes the lounges get busy.
That letter reads like they are covering all the bases just in case there is an occasional situation or guest issue.

I agree that previously it was allowed. Just to clarify, previously CM's expressly told us guests were allowed to take adult beverages out of all WDW lounges, and all three US CL's.

On our recent stay, I didn't try to take any beverages out of the CR lounge, nor did I hear any CM's say anything on the subject.

I'm only sharing the welcome letter we received at check-in. Someone just posted 12 days ago that they saw a number of guests wearing pajamas, robes, and wet bathing suits in the lounge. I'm therefore surmising that the welcome letter we received is a very recent change based perhaps, on complaints from just a few weeks ago. the wording of the letter might be general, as you say.

I can also add, during the afternoon snack period, staff EXPRESSLY put out little baggies with golden twist ties so guests could take snacks back to their room. I'd never seen that in any CL before. They called it custom trail mix. The baggies were also just big enough to hold two cookies. We brought a banana and a can of lemonade to our room, and nobody said we couldn't. We usually stay out late, past when all the dining is closed, so a late night banana is a welcome sight.

 

[gwynne]

I agree that previously it was allowed. Just to clarify, previously CM's expressly told us guests were allowed to take adult beverages out of all WDW lounges, and all three US CL's.

On our recent stay, I didn't try to take any beverages out of the CR lounge, nor did I hear any CM's say anything on the subject.

I'm only sharing the welcome letter we received at check-in. Someone just posted 12 days ago that they saw a number of guests wearing pajamas, robes, and wet bathing suits in the lounge. I'm therefore surmising that the welcome letter we received is a very recent change based perhaps, on complaints from just a few weeks ago. the wording of the letter might be general, as you say.

I can also add, during the afternoon snack period, staff EXPRESSLY put out little baggies with golden twist ties so guests could take snacks back to their room. I'd never seen that in any CL before. They called it custom trail mix. The baggies were also just big enough to hold two cookies. We brought a banana and a can of lemonade to our room, and nobody said we couldn't. We usually stay out late, past when all the dining is closed, so a late night banana is a welcome sight.

Aren't those little cello bags fun? They had them at BWI when I was there last week. I used one to save a couple of cookies so I could enjoy them on the plane.

 

[michashell]

Just back from CR CL Atrium level. Overall, we liked the new food additions, esp the plain Greek yogurt, eggs, morning cold cuts, and improved fruit selection. I'm no fan of melon, so that pretty much means I was the evil person taking all three blueberries they offered. This time I saw blueberries, blackberries, and even a few strawberries. I as able to take some AND leave plenty for others!
(I just had to laugh previously at GF when the raspberry SERVING bowl held only 1/4 cup of berries!)

the PM soup is a welcome addition, but the three soups we saw were a bit odd. The staff called all three Southwestern something or other. I think the first was southwestern beef, then southwestern seafood chowder, then something they called chili. It wasn't what I would call chowder or chili. All three nights it was semi-spicy, semi-orange, and kind of gelatinous in a starchy-flour roux or canned-condensed soup kind of way with small flecks of red and green bell pepper.

Also want to report ALLERGY help procedure has changed slightly. They used to call a chef. Now it is more streamlined: they have guests fill out a paper form.

We were also given a single bottle of water in our room. I'll take it, but that didn't put much of a dent in our daily water intake! I counted: by 11:30am one morning, we'd each consumed 4 bottles of water (at 16 ounces each)! Some of the water we bought was electrolyte water, and it was much appreciated.

The other part of our stay was at Universal. Part at Sapphire Falls (No CL, but BEAUTIFUL resort! The quick serve Dutch Trading Company wasn't a bad sub for CL breakfasts.) and part at Royal Pacific CL. Even with the improvements at CR CL, I still say the CL food at US is better. If only the US CL's had a Nespresso machine. Sigh. One more important thing to know about US's CL's is that on check-out day, access to the lounge ends at 3pm! They also have slightly different hours than WDW's CL's, and each resort is slightly different. At Royal Pacific: breakfast 7-10am, snacks noon-3pm, appetizers 4:30pm-6:30pm, desserts 8-9pm. They also give out bottled water upon request. Currently, they are experimenting a 6 day menu rotation of their appetizers rotation.

Can you please expand on the ALLERGY procedure? Do you mean for the club lounge? We will be staying CR CL in October with our boys who both have a peanut allergy and are intolerant to artificial colors, flavors and preservatives. We were going to email the club level support staff with give them a heads up about the peanut allergy. It's not airborne, so that's good. We needed a little information on the other foods to get an idea of what they can eat (if anything). Thanks!

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I was so looking forward to meeting these "amazing" Cm's that I keep hearing great things about when we stayed at BWI CL Oct 2015 -- sadly , there was nothing to write home about.

We have stayed at all the CL's. Our experience with CM's has varied from resort to resort, and even from visit to visit at the same resort, and even a bit from day to day.


Truly, we didn't have a very memorable stay at BWI either. We've had memorable experiences at most of the other lounges though. They tend to be more social with us during slower times of the day, and get more friendly the more they get to know us.

On the last day of our most recent visit, I thanked a CM and told her CR was one of our favorite CL's. She asked why, and I said, "A big part of it is the wonderful staff you have here."

The smile of gratitude she gave me was priceless. (Well, okay...it was more like $500/night appreciative, but still, she was quite appreciative!)

 

[Skywise]

I've gotten into the habit of grabbing a spare can of soda during the day when at the CLs to take back to the room. I've had too many instances where I've come back after a long day at the parks and the CL fridge is empty. Although I try to be respectful of my usage. (no more than 2 cans at a time which includes the one I intend to drink, don't hog the treats, etc)

I've always taken both alcoholic beverages and snacks back to the room without any problem.

 

[Gondingl]

Does CL (specifically BC since that is where we are staying) offer bottled water? Debating on if I need to add a Publix stop on our way in!

 

[Linleedo]

I hope you love it! looking forward to my first stay there In NOV 2017

Thank you. I'm sure you will love it also. It's probably our 5th stay there at club level. It's awesome. It's the greatest location for visiting Epcot (enjoying the Food and Wine Festival),and Hollywood Studios. We've always been pleased with the service. We love the pool too. Best wishes for a fabulous trip.