For GFR Royal Palm Club Regulars Only!

[focusondisney]

Thanks for posting. I'm not a RPC regular, but it will be our 3rd stay next month. I actually hesitated before booking due to the reported cutbacks. DH is very excited about the cinnamon buns! Glad I booked it now!! I just have to keep our park plans limited so we can enjoy the lounge more.

 

[Dispro1]

Tonight st Twighlight Refreshers a number of superb dishes; wonderful stuffed potato salad (a chef informed us that the potatoes were steamed rather than boiled in order to keep them from being too mushy) and spring rolls which were not overdone as they have been in the past. Thanks to the SH of V&A touch, an Irish cheddar was able to be embellished with natural honeycomb! This worked extremely well with Mumm Napa cuvée M. Oh, and there was more.

Sounds delicious! I have to admit that I'm very excited about the quiche too! And, although Patty did get us some sticky buns when we were there in June, I'm very happy to hear that no one will have to go downstairs to 1900 PF to get them for me...although it was really nice of her!! I saw this for the first time ever in June, and Blue said she had never seen it before either...although Marie said they've had it a while??
My DH was pretty happy about it, but we only saw it out once. Enjoy your trip! I have to wait until early February to go back to RPC. And the price is higher than ever considering the time of year! I'll be watching for an AP discount for sure.

 

[elaw]

The Grand Floridian Resort's Royal Palm Club is back to its pre-2015 first-rate status; in fact, thanks to its new food & beverage overseer (SH of V&A!) it's even better.

Due to many concerns expressed by guests (via Disboards, mail, online reviews and in-person discussions) the GFR responded accordingly. Our last visit in April was disappointing; however, this visit is so much better.

"Regulars" will understand!

All the best!

Just curious ... Do you know if SL will have these same offerings?

 

[Jestocost]

Just in time for our upcoming 25th anniversary pre-cruise stay at the end of September!

 

[BC1836]

We just got back home (after a horrible delay via Spirit Airlines). Next time, we drive.

As the week progressed and we continued to chat with more CMs and managers it appears that the concierge-level experience has made a distinct turn for the better, and it might be getting even a bit better. However, the CM servers would benefit (they work so very hard) if an extra CM was on hand during breakfast and Twilight Refreshers.

Note #1: Don't expect very good wines at Twilight Refreshers since most guests are satisfied with mass produced fermented grape juice. With the exception of Mumm Napa Cuvee M (a superb California sparkling wine), the other offerings are Two Vines Chardonnay (you can buy it for under $10 a bottle), Century Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon (an okay value wine) and Beringer White Zinfandel (which, arguably, isn't even wine.

Note #2: A good selections of beer are offered along with several popular cordials.

All the best!

 

[WDWKOOK]

The Grand Floridian Resort's Royal Palm Club is back to its pre-2015 first-rate status; in fact, thanks to its new food & beverage overseer (SH of V&A!) it's even better.

Due to many concerns expressed by guests (via Disboards, mail, online reviews and in-person discussions) the GFR responded accordingly. Our last visit in April was disappointing; however, this visit is so much better.

"Regulars" will understand!

All the best!

Thank you for sharing this good news, @BC1836. All the CLs have been experiencing some degradations in service, food, amenities and in some cases, all three. I'm booked for my first RPC stay next month (and first Tower Club), and I was worried after hearing about the recent declines.

I had read that the wonderful former RPC manager(s) had been transferred to Shanghai. It's too bad the good ones can't stay indefinitely, but due to "career broadening," CL managers aren't supposed to stay in the same position for more than about 4 years. Do you think the newest management is responsible for the noticeable improvements?

Tonight at Twighlight Refreshers: besides two hot items - roasted red pepper hummus with crispy pits chip, chilled carrot ginger soup, and shrimp edcabeche!

Oh, every morning: vegetarian quiche!

All the best!

Sounds delicious!

Also every morning: warm sticky buns (made with higher quality flour)!

I can smell them now...

Indeed! A couple of managers confirmed WDW's response to a great number of complaints and concerns from its "loyal customers."

If true, this is a promising direction for the Walt Disney Resorts' learning curve and desire to increase guest satisfaction.

Management's earlier approach seemingly focused on first-time club level guests who would not be able to compare and contrast what the Royal Palm Club experience had been.

For veteran guests, the low points included cheap wine offerings, limited food servings and the thinly-sliced msg roll disguised as turkey. We expressed our concerns to appropriate individuals...and waited. Our current GFR stay is a manifestation of "hope springs eternal."

"Twilight Refreshers" await in an hour!

All the best!

I feel like the bolded above is SOP now for Disney Resorts, Club Level and non: Let's attract new customers, who have no idea how it used to be and let's hope the loyal/old customers won't notice or care about the service and amenity changes.

Just curious ... Do you know if SL will have these same offerings?

Good question. I thought SL/RPC offerings were supposed to be identical?

We just got back home (after a horrible delay via Spirit Airlines). Next time, we drive.

As the week progressed and we continued to chat with more CMs and managers it appears that the concierge-level experience has made a distinct turn for the better, and it might be getting even a bit better. However, the CM servers would benefit (they work so very hard) if an extra CM was on hand during breakfast and Twilight Refreshers.

Note #1: Don't expect very good wines at Twilight Refreshers since most guests are satisfied with mass produced fermented grape juice. With the exception of Mumm Napa Cuvee M (a superb California sparkling wine), the other offerings are Two Vines Chardonnay (you can buy it for under $10 a bottle), Century Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon (an okay value wine) and Beringer White Zinfandel (which, arguably, isn't even wine.

Note #2: A good selections of beer are offered along with several popular cordials.

All the best!

Welcome home and thank you for your thorough RPC review. It definitely sounds like it is slowly, but surely, getting back to its old grandeur. In the same vain, it has been reported that BC CL has been getting much more positive reviews since the re-design of the lounge. I wonder if it's also "under new management?" Do you have any recent reports/experience with Tower Club? When and where is your next CL stay?

 

[BC1836]

Thank you for sharing this good news, @BC1836. All the CLs have been experiencing some degradations in service, food, amenities and in some cases, all three. I'm booked for my first RPC stay next month (and first Tower Club), and I was worried after hearing about the recent declines.

I had read that the wonderful former RPC manager(s) had been transferred to Shanghai. It's too bad the good ones can't stay indefinitely, but due to "career broadening," CL managers aren't supposed to stay in the same position for more than about 4 years. Do you think the newest management is responsible for the noticeable improvements?



Sounds delicious!



I can smell them now...



If true, this is a promising direction for the Walt Disney Resorts' learning curve and desire to increase guest satisfaction.



I feel like the bolded above is SOP now for Disney Resorts, Club Level and non: Let's attract new customers, who have no idea how it used to be and let's hope the loyal/old customers won't notice or care about the service and amenity changes.



Good question. I thought SL/RPC offerings were supposed to be identical?



Welcome home and thank you for your thorough RPC review. It definitely sounds like it is slowly, but surely, getting back to its old grandeur. In the same vain, it has been reported that BC CL has been getting much more positive reviews since the re-design of the lounge. I wonder if it's also "under new management?" Do you have any recent reports/experience with Tower Club? When and where is your next CL stay?

Howdy!

To an extent, things have improved at the GFR's concierge level since the arrival of new hotel manager MaryLouise Fitzgibbon, a personable and understanding high level CM. And we expressed hope to her that the curbside CM service will return for club level guests. And, yes, Sugar Loaf should be benefit soon, too.

Club level service at the Contemporary is satisfactory; nothing to cheer about, though. At the Innkeeper's lounge at the Boardwalk, its best aspect is the collection of first-rate concierge staffers. It gets a bit crowded at the Innkeeper's lounge because more club level rooms have been added to the mix: more rooms, more people, limited space.

We'll be back at the Boardwalk in October (an annual stop because of the F&W festival).

All the best!

 

[BC1836]

Additional notes:

Three liqueurs offered at Desserts & Cordials: Amarula, Disaronno and Kahlua!

For the first time ever on the fourth floor, we saw no barefoot guests or anyone in a bathrobe.

However, one morning a man made about a half dozen turkey and cheese sandwiches and brought them back to his room.

All the best!

 

[AngiTN]

So tell me, would you spend 1 night at RPC if you could? (admittedly, I may be asking the wrong crowd here, but hoping to get an honest "what would you do" answer )
We have stayed at all the Deluxe Resorts but for GF, and in CL at all but CR, Poly and YC.
We've visited GF numerous times but it's never been a huge favorite of ours so I've never booked us a stay there. I do have us a couple nights booked in a standard room in Oct but it's looking like we'll change that trip and do something in Nov instead.
I'm planning my first ever birthday trip later this month. We are currently booked in POFQ (my Resort of choice, I like the Orleans resorts better than Deluxe for the most part)
But lately I've gotten a burr under my saddle and am thinking about 1 night at GF in a Standard RPC room for my birthday. Our arrival day is 8/27, my birthday is 8/28.
We arrive about 10:00 in the morning and have no certain plans that day or night. Next day, on my birthday, the only plans we have are the Savor the Savannah Tour at AK at 6:30 PM. So we have most of both days to hang around the resort. Maybe pop over to MK for a bit on Saturday evening to catch MSEP in case we can't get back before Oct. We can stick around a bit on Sunday and head to POFQ via Uber, check in and head over to AK for the evening.
This is our 7th trip this year and wee just got back on 7/31 from a 10 day trip so we aren't really after a tremendous amounts of park time. May not be a better time to try RPC

 

[Trixie Belden]

@AngiTN how funny, we're going to be at Sugarloaf arriving on 8/26 and my birthday is 8/27! I honestly think (having only been for ADRs, this is our first actual stay) that this is probably a resort where you really want to hang around more than rush to the parks. It seems like it's going to be super relaxing with lots of gorgeous scenery to walk through, add in the music in the main building while you're in the lounge, sipping tea or beer or something and watching the boats cross Seven Seas Lagoon. Or have high tea! I'm already prepping my DH and DS that they might have some park time by themselves while I see if I can snag a half day cabana rental.

I would totally do it if I were you

 

[AngiTN]

@AngiTN how funny, we're going to be at Sugarloaf arriving on 8/26 and my birthday is 8/27! I honestly think (having only been for ADRs, this is our first actual stay) that this is probably a resort where you really want to hang around more than rush to the parks. It seems like it's going to be super relaxing with lots of gorgeous scenery to walk through, add in the music in the main building while you're in the lounge, sipping tea or beer or something and watching the boats cross Seven Seas Lagoon. Or have high tea! I'm already prepping my DH and DS that they might have some park time by themselves while I see if I can snag a half day cabana rental.

I would totally do it if I were you

Small world! I'm just slightly older (turning 53).
I like your thoughts on the matter.

 

[BC1836]

Trixie Belden's suggestions/comments are correct. And there's even more to experience when you are there.

All the best!

 

[Lisann]

Just a suggestion...since the loyal regulars made their grievances known to management, and Disney/GF responded to your satisfaction (mostly), then I suggest also letting GF Mgmt know of your approval of the recent club level changes. Let them know you appreciate them listening to you! It works both ways...they need to know you noticed.

 

[BC1836]

Just a suggestion...since the loyal regulars made their grievances known to management, and Disney/GF responded to your satisfaction (mostly), then I suggest also letting GF Mgmt know of your approval of the recent club level changes. Let them know you appreciate them listening to you! It works both ways...they need to know you noticed.

Indeed! Upon our return, I sent a letter (not an email) to MF at the GFR and explained all, even though I engaged in a conversation with her on our last day. Coincidentally, I received an acknowledgment for the letter from her office yesterday. Also, before we departed I had appropriate conversations with four other GFR managers and explained that we were pleasantly surprised at the improvements --- and urged them to continue on that path.

We look forward with great expectations to our 37th stay at the Grand Floridian.

All the best!

 

[cgh]

FWIW-We just returned from a sugarloaf stay and all of the above was true there. Same food and beverage offerings. (yogurt, however, was not in individual bowls)

 

[~tinkerbell~]

Thanks so much for taking the time to post this. I booked the Royal Palm Club for our 20th anniversary trip but I agonized over the decision because of reported cutbacks etc. We won't be there until June but still.... Thrilled to read about the improvements.

 

[tporter4]

Hi - I made CL at Sugar Loaf for Dec 2017 - never done it before. Was hoping someone here could help me. I received a voicemail from concierge confirming my reservation and telling me to email them with any requests. I did so (emailed) asking for help w/ a particular restaurant reservation and received a canned response to join my disney experience and request dining that way. (Of course I have already done that but I was trying to get a hard to get reservation.) Do they assist with dinner reservations? How do you get set up with texting for them? TIA

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Hi - I made CL at Sugar Loaf for Dec 2017 - never done it before. Was hoping someone here could help me. I received a voicemail from concierge confirming my reservation and telling me to email them with any requests. I did so (emailed) asking for help w/ a particular restaurant reservation and received a canned response to join my disney experience and request dining that way. (Of course I have already done that but I was trying to get a hard to get reservation.) Do they assist with dinner reservations? How do you get set up with texting for them? TIA

You may want to come over to the CL thread for this post vs this old thread. But question, who/what email address did you use? Disney Signatures Services will help with ADRs so I'm surprised at that response. The texting service is something setup/available on site.

 

[Dumbo7]

So tell me, would you spend 1 night at RPC if you could? (admittedly, I may be asking the wrong crowd here, but hoping to get an honest "what would you do" answer )
We have stayed at all the Deluxe Resorts but for GF, and in CL at all but CR, Poly and YC.
We've visited GF numerous times but it's never been a huge favorite of ours so I've never booked us a stay there. I do have us a couple nights booked in a standard room in Oct but it's looking like we'll change that trip and do something in Nov instead.
I'm planning my first ever birthday trip later this month. We are currently booked in POFQ (my Resort of choice, I like the Orleans resorts better than Deluxe for the most part)
But lately I've gotten a burr under my saddle and am thinking about 1 night at GF in a Standard RPC room for my birthday. Our arrival day is 8/27, my birthday is 8/28.
We arrive about 10:00 in the morning and have no certain plans that day or night. Next day, on my birthday, the only plans we have are the Savor the Savannah Tour at AK at 6:30 PM. So we have most of both days to hang around the resort. Maybe pop over to MK for a bit on Saturday evening to catch MSEP in case we can't get back before Oct. We can stick around a bit on Sunday and head to POFQ via Uber, check in and head over to AK for the evening.
This is our 7th trip this year and wee just got back on 7/31 from a 10 day trip so we aren't really after a tremendous amounts of park time. May not be a better time to try RPC

We go about 4x a year and we usually stay cl. We have annual passes. By far GF is our favorite. During summer we like to stay in the main building during early December we stay in sugar loaf. If I was staying at a moderate it would be port orleans. I think you will love it.

 

[Dumbo7]

Hi - I made CL at Sugar Loaf for Dec 2017 - never done it before. Was hoping someone here could help me. I received a voicemail from concierge confirming my reservation and telling me to email them with any requests. I did so (emailed) asking for help w/ a particular restaurant reservation and received a canned response to join my disney experience and request dining that way. (Of course I have already done that but I was trying to get a hard to get reservation.) Do they assist with dinner reservations? How do you get set up with texting for them? TIA

What reservation are you trying to get. ? The conceirege can be helpful but you're probably not going to get a hard to get reservation just because you're staying cl. But it never hurts to reach out to them. Maybe the reservation will magically appear!! Hears hoping!