Is Club Level worth it?

[Skjhjb]

We are currently at DLH in a Standard Room.

Debating the upgrade to Club Level with the 15% room discount. It would be about $600 US more....

Is it worth it?

 

[DizMe]

$600 more for what? A night? Several nights? How many of you are there?

I love club level, but it's value is dependent on how much I will use it and how many are in my party. With 2 people, it's a luxury and can be great but not necessarily "worth it" in a monetary sense. With 4 or 5, it's a fun addition and gives you more space to hang out as well as access to food and beverages all day. That can pay for itself, plus it's just really fun. Sometimes it's worth it to experience a little self-indulgence. It's also nice to have snacks and beer/wine when you want something. But if you will rarely be at the hotel, have other plans for meals, and don't think you'd use it much, then it's not worth it.

 

[CherylGonz]

We are currently at DLH in a Standard Room.

Debating the upgrade to Club Level with the 15% room discount. It would be about $600 US more....

Is it worth it?

So $600 a night or $600 more a night? How many people in your party? We did it when we had a 2 bedroom suite and there was 10 of us so then it was worth it.

If you don’t plan on spending a lot of time in your room then no. Having breakfast and unlimited water was nice. We did watch the fireworks and they pipe in the music which was great for my parents as my mom uses a scooter. Great way to avoid crowds. They also had snacks in the afternoon that the kids turned into lunch and they had beer and wine in the evening.

 

[cinnaminny]

I think at a Disney hotel it would not be worth it to me. At least not at this stage. I like to spend as much time as I can in the parks. I also like park food. Being on a higher floor and having some of the other extras would be nice, but not worth the cost for me.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Depends on: How many people? Adults? Kids? How many days? Will you eat breakfast there? Will you eat the appetizers? Drink alcohol? Eat desserts before 10pm?

 

[Skjhjb]

Well my friend (who is also my TA) did all the calculations - with exchange, it would be $900 (Canadian) more for our 3 nights (Just DH and I) so not worth it IMO.

I'd rather take the money and do WOC dessert party and a really nice dinner. And we also have a week of driving up to San Francisco so the extra money for that would be nice as well.

It isn't even worth it to apply the room discount that just came out to our standard room. There are no standard rooms left, so we'd have to upgrade, and it's $400 more for that even. SO we will stick with DLH standard and have the best time ever!

 

[twodogs]

I think your analysis is good. I think it is only barely "worth it" when we are 6 or more people staying in a suite (the cost for CL is per "room" per night, not per person per night, so the same price per night for a single person staying in a room as it is for 6 people staying in a suite). Dividing the cost over 6 people makes it a lot less painful. But even then, you could probably use that money more wisely to go buy food and drinks, but it might be worth it for the ability to pop up and get something when you want to (though I don't even know that the lounge is open all day long?).

Have an amazing trip!!!

 

[StormyCA]

Doesn't it run about $100-200 more per night per room? You'd have to balance that against what you normally pay per day for food and how long you're in the parks. There are usually two or three of us so that would work out to around $30-70 per day per person depending. That's pretty pricy considering that we'd probably only use the lounge for breakfast and possibly an afternoon snack.

Not to mention taking time away from time in the parks if you wanted to maximize your money by eating all meals in the lounge. That's definitely not worth it!

 

[gottalovepluto]

A hard to value benefit can be the additional space if you’re 4-5 people in a room. The club gives you someplace to hang out & relax while others nap/shower/are late risers.

 

[DizMe]

A hard to value benefit can be the additional space if you’re 4-5 people in a room. The club gives you someplace to hang out & relax while others nap/shower/are late risers.

To piggyback on this, it was very worth it when we went with my mom, who is elderly and requires a mobility device. It gave her a comfortable place to stay during the times she didn't want to be in the parks and a nice area for all 5 of us to have breakfast etc together. There was always someone who could be with mom in a more comfortable environment for her than the room (we did not have a suite).

 

[2 Pinks]

To piggyback on this, it was very worth it when we went with my mom, who is elderly and requires a mobility device. It gave her a comfortable place to stay during the times she didn't want to be in the parks and a nice area for all 5 of us to have breakfast etc together. There was always someone who could be with mom in a more comfortable environment for her than the room (we did not have a suite).

We are doing the same thing! My mother-in-law is joining us, so a total of 5 people, and we just have a regular room so the Club Level made sense. It gives her somewhere else to comfortably spend time when she doesn't want to be in the park. And we can all eat breakfast together.

If it was just DH, the girls and I? We probably wouldn't do it.

 

[caribbeandream]

I have stayed Club Level before (free upgrade!) and it's not for everyone. For us, it was perfect. First, I have a teen boy. That means someone that likes to sleep in and eats half the house for breakfast. My sister and I (the adults) LOVED having a readily available, leisurely paced *and* healthy breakfast. My son got to eat as many Mickey-shaped waffles as he could stuff in himself without ever batting an eye at the cost. If I had paid cash at the Grand Floridian Cafe he would have easily eaten $60 - $100 worth of food, just at breakfast. We got to grab complimentary sodas and water bottles on our way to the parks every day. Other than the one day we rope-dropped Animal Kingdom, we never made it to the parks before 10:00 am (on purpose). We would eat lunch at the parks and then return to the Club lounge for dinner. It was mostly fancy appetizers but my sister and I love that tapas-style dining, and we loved the complimentary beer, wine and champagne we had with dinner every night. Did I mention that I had champagne with dinner every.single.night? After dinner we would go back to the parks, or if we decided to hang out at the hotel (to watch the fireworks or enjoy the live music in the lobby) we definitely did so while sipping a complimentary cocktail, or two. I guess that was a really long-winded way to say that if you are a commando-style, rope-drop to park close type of traveler you should not waste your money.

 

[BayouQueen]

To piggyback on this, it was very worth it when we went with my mom, who is elderly and requires a mobility device. It gave her a comfortable place to stay during the times she didn't want to be in the parks and a nice area for all 5 of us to have breakfast etc together. There was always someone who could be with mom in a more comfortable environment for her than the room (we did not have a suite).

This is how I figure on "worth" of CL, too. It's not about feeling pampered or luxurious, it's more about making a particular vacation "work."

It was great when we took DD and SIL with us -- one room, but CL gave us an extra place to go while others were showering, etc.. Plus it gave working SIL a place to snack, have a beer and relax while he caught up with work. Great trip.

We have CL booked for our first trip with our grand baby. She will only be a year old, so we don't want to keep her in the parks too long, and DD and I don't want to be entirely trapped in the hotel room. This is an extravagance, but I think it will be a successful trip for all of us.

OP, I hope this is helpful.

 

[Malcon10t]

I want to clarify a couple comments.

We got to grab complimentary sodas and water bottles on our way to the parks every day.

They no longer have water bottles to go. They place 2 large (32 ounce) Dasani bottles in each room now.

We enjoy the Club level, my DIL loved it when she was studying for the bar, and could stay in the lounge with snacks and drinks during the day while studying, then join us in the parks in the evening. It doesn't make sense all the time, or if you are the type that does the park open to close.

And yes, we do Mimosa's most mornings!!

 

[caribbeandream]

They no longer have water bottles to go. They place 2 large (32 ounce) Dasani bottles in each room now.

Is this all both DL and DW? That's a bit of a disappointment. It must be a relatively recent change. We were just at DW in January of 2018.

And yes, we do Mimosa's most mornings!!

That's how you do CL!

 

[Nonsuch]

Is this all both DL and DW? That's a bit of a disappointment. It must be a relatively recent change. We were just at DW in January of 2018.

In 2012, bottled water was removed from the self service refrigerators and remained available by request.
In 2015, bottled water was no longer available.

 

[Malcon10t]

Is this all both DL and DW? That's a bit of a disappointment. It must be a relatively recent change. We were just at DW in January of 2018.

I don't know about WDW. This is the DL forum and it is the policy at DL resort hotels.

 

[caribbeandream]

I don't know about WDW. This is the DL forum and it is the policy at DL resort hotels.

I didn't mean to confuse anyone! I was not confused about the forum. I figured the question of whether staying at CL level is "worth it" is a generic one so even though I have never done so at DL I figured the same concepts apply. Just trying to be helpful.

 

[DLgal]

Wait until you check in. They will likely offer you a club level upgrade for a VERY reasonable upcharge, and less than if you do it now. We were offered an upgrade at GCH to club level for like $75 more per night, but we declined since we had brought along a bunch of alcohol and snacks already and had meal reservations for most days. This was over 4th of July weekend. We had a Courtyard room booked with a major discount. The hotels are NOT full and they are trying to get extra revenue whenever they can at check in.

 

[DizMe]

Wait until you check in. They will likely offer you a club level upgrade for a VERY reasonable upcharge, and less than if you do it now. We were offered an upgrade at GCH to club level for like $75 more per night, but we declined since we had brought along a bunch of alcohol and snacks already and had meal reservations for most days. This was over 4th of July weekend. We had a Courtyard room booked with a major discount. The hotels are NOT full and they are trying to get extra revenue whenever they can at check in.

Lucky you! I've never had this happen. I mean, I've had them offer it but at an inflated--not discounted--price.