Got a free upgrade to Club Level at POLY this week. Now is it worth PAYING for next trip?

[Kooks and Bay Bay]

We had a BB booked for Resort View at POLY this week and upon arrival we decided to go to the desk to check in just to see if maybe there was a room available since we arrived in the morning.
They said oh I see you have Club Level booked so you can hand your bags to Bell Services and enjoy the lounge until your room is ready.
We looked at each other and were so confused and said no we didn't book Club Level.
They said oh well then surprise!

We had not planned out our trip based on this so obviously we had to tweak a few things to fully take advantage and I think we did pretty well.
Having a room down the hall was great. We had breakfast daily, came back for midday snacks daily (we park hop so it was easy especially on the MK and EPCOT days), we had apps made into dinner twice, and desserts three times.

We only bought a few things to eat outside of that. And we find that we don't like to eat too much at any given time so we were not buying large expensive meals but rather smaller snack type foods.

Now doing the math that trip cost $3,150 for 2 people, POLY resort view, 3 day PH.

We decided if we want to book CL for next year we should just do a 2 day PH and really plan our days to take advantage of the offerings.
And have a semi more relaxed trip in that we'd have our first day, a day in the middle, and our last day to just hang out and then the 2 park days would be go go go but still get breakfast and midday snack between parks.

The price for 2 people, resort view CL, 2 day PH would be $3,600ish
Compare that to a non CL resort view with a 3 day PH which is still going to be right about $3,150 like it was this year.

Which would you do?

 

[ddluvsdisney]

What a great surprise!!! I didn’t think Disney was doing that anymore. We were upgraded once to CL and a turret room at GF.
I’d definitely do CL hands down!!

 

[Disneylover99]

Sure! If you really enjoyed it.
Sounds like you did.
So go for it!

 

[gottalovepluto]

For $450, I'd rather have more time in the parks on such a short trip and spend the money on LLs and some nice food. I go to Disney to go to the parks, yes some relaxing at the resort is fun but I have highlights in all the parks I love and on a short trip the parks would drive me.

But the real q is you and your SO. What each of you want out of this vacation? You know the parks, the hotel, the CL- you have everything to analyze what you'll enjoy.

 

[patty57]

For $450, I'd rather have more time in the parks on such a short trip and spend the money on LLs and some nice food. I go to Disney to go to the parks, yes some relaxing at the resort is fun but I have highlights in all the parks I love and on a short trip the parks would drive me.

But the real q is you and your SO. What each of you want out of this vacation? You know the parks, the hotel, the CL- you have everything to analyze what you'll enjoy.

I agree with all of this.

 

[Minnie1222]

The price for 2 people, resort view CL, 2 day PH would be $3,600ish
Compare that to a non CL resort view with a 3 day PH which is still going to be right about $3,150 like it was this year.

Which would you do?

3-day PH non-club. Non-negotiable. We go to Disney for the parks, not the resorts. We only stay club because we can get to a park faster in the morning with the immediate breakfasts and snacks.

 

[ktink]

We stayed for years w/out CL. I finally booked it at GDT & we loved it. Then last year @ Poly that just sealed the deal for us. We went back & forth on our upcoming trip about spending hardcore time in the parks or doing CL.

Then I decided I'm 51 & the saying "I don't think at this age, I'm meant to live an uncomfortable life" is my new motto

 

[Rory607]

I love Poly club level. It’s my happy place. If it were a longer trip, I’d say lose a park day and stay CL. But 2 park days is pretty short, especially if you want to be able to come back and enjoy the club lounge. So I have to go with 3 day PH non-club, even though it makes me sad. Or…find an extra $450 somewhere in your budget, which is easy to say when it’s not my money. This is when I would get my H to agree that we don’t need to get each other Christmas/birthday gifts because I’d rather stay CL

 

[bethclayton]

I will always choose CL over non-CL so long as I can. It’s one of my favorite things about any Disney vacation.

 

[Marthasor]

If you think spending $450 extra for CL food and beverages is worth it, go for it. We stopped staying CL long ago because I would rather spend that money on food/bev throughout the parks and resorts and not be tied to a club lounge. We ended up switching to staying more in 1-bedroom villas for the added space and stocking our own kitchen and fridge with items we like.