Resort upgrade to Grand Floridian?

[2vets]

GF all the way. I have stayed at both since the refurbs, and GF recently during construction. I like CR, but adore GF now. Those rooms are GORGEOUS. And the pools are great. As much as the photos make the construction look awful, I heard very little. It didn't impact us at all.

 

[0FF TO NEVERLAND]

Not being the best for kids? When I went, I saw more kids there than at most other deluxe resorts lol esp at the pool. It's a great property. If its free, and you will only try it once, I would try something new.

If you dislike it, at least you'll know without actually paying face value

 

[gottalovepluto]

Gaspy’s is a better quick service than Contemoo (in my opinion), which unfortunately never really got its footing back since Covid (I used to really like Contempo).

Every time I see that now I’m gonna think Contemoooooooo

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Every time I see that now I’m gonna think Contemoooooooo

Ha! Well darn, I was already sort of annoyed at myself for not spelling out Gasparilla Island Grill and I go and botch it with that too.

 

[mpb2000]

Thanks for the words of wisdom, everyone. For better or worse, I went ahead and accepted the upgrade. If we had never been to the CR, I probably wouldn’t have done it. But I doubt we would ever stay at the GF otherwise, so we figured it was worth a shot. We go to Disney often as Passholders, so it’s not as if this is our one chance and everything has to be perfect. Now, to decide on the room request. Any suggestions (buildings, facing directions, etc)? It looks like the room would have to be in Sago Key, Conch Key, or Boca Chica. The main desire would be something quiet. I’m not sure how much boat noise is a factor. We also plan on using the beach pool frequently, so proximity to that would be nice, but none of the possible buildings are particularly close.

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

Thanks for the words of wisdom, everyone. For better or worse, I went ahead and accepted the upgrade. If we had never been to the CR, I probably wouldn’t have done it. But I doubt we would ever stay at the GF otherwise, so we figured it was worth a shot. We go to Disney often as Passholders, so it’s not as if this is our one chance and everything has to be perfect. Now, to decide on the room request. Any suggestions (buildings, facing directions, etc)? It looks like the room would have to be in Sago Key, Conch Key, or Boca Chica. The main desire would be something quiet. I’m not sure how much boat noise is a factor. We also plan on using the beach pool frequently, so proximity to that would be nice, but none of the possible buildings are particularly close.

I honestly wouldn't worry about which building you should request as GF has a small footprint. I would just request "quiet room" and see where you end up being placed. Being in Sago is furthest from the pool but closest to Gaspie's and right on MK walkway. You will most likely walk to/from the pool once a day. The other buildings are all in the middle of everything. Every building is great for different reasons. Enjoy!!!

 

[BlovesC]

I think you made the right choice! Enjoy your trip!

 

[DizneyFamof4]

Our GF upgrade story. Years ago, we had reservations at WL over Thanksgiving and we really wanted to stay there for the 1st time, but then a few months before our trip they were scheduled to have construction going on during our stay. Our TA called and said that she had great news and that we were eligable to upgrade to GF park view, I remember like it was yesterday when I replied "ugh really?" and there was a long pause before she replied, well I thought this would be great
news.

We had visited GF a few times during other trips and enjoyed it but when you read on DIS posts like "it's to stuffy or fancy", "kids won't like it" etc. we were sort of leary to stay there. Well we decided to go ahead and change to GF and it was a GREAT decision. GF, eneded up being our favorite deluxe. We stayed there 1 more time but now it's just to ridiculously priced, even if it's our favorite

Have a magical trip.
BTW; You may also want to walk to the TCC when going to Epcot, the monorail between GF and Epcot was the only thing we did not like, because of how long it took.

I forgot to add that we loved staying in building Boca Chica

 

[TeamSy]

I would keep Contemporary. If a resort has to warn me about construction I would be nervous. Plus, IMO GF does not have the perk CR does — walking to the park and your own security is HUGE (for us at least). We stayed ground floor garden wing at contemporary last year and like you said — so peaceful!!! We loved being able to walk out of our room and not even have to take an elevator to the park. Easiest thing ever to visit MK! Absolute favorite stay!!! Made everything extra magical!

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Plus, IMO GF does not have the perk CR does — walking to the park and your own security is HUGE (for us at least).

FYI, there is a walking path from GF to MK with its own security, opened a couple of years ago. It’s a longer walk than CR, but pleasant/doable (unless it’s in the mid-day sun, not a ton of shade).

 

[Eastern]

In fact, I won't ever stay at a hotel undergoing construction work again. No matter what pixie dust spin Disney tries to put on it, it's annoying and impacts your vacation.

Agree!

 

[mpb2000]

FYI, there is a walking path from GF to MK with its own security, opened a couple of years ago. It’s a longer walk than CR, but pleasant/doable (unless it’s in the mid-day sun, not a ton of shade).

When you’re in the the garden wing, all the way at the end, the walk is about the same.

 

[SL6827]

How much $$$$ is this upgrade going to cost?

 

[mpb2000]

How much $$$$ is this upgrade going to cost?

$0

 

[SL6827]

$0

Ahhh. Ok. There are other reports of Disney offering upgrades, or rather upsells of resorts here lately.

 

[mpb2000]

Ahhh. Ok. There are other reports of Disney offering upgrades, or rather upsells of resorts here lately.

That I certainly wouldn’t have been interested in.

 

[JulieBeeRN]

GF is our favorite hotel. Hope that you enjoy it!

 

[mpb2000]

I wanted to report back about our trip, in case it helps anyone who stumbles upon this thread in the future. Taking the free upgrade to the Grand Floridian was 100% the right choice. It was an amazing stay. Our one stay at the Contemporary was our first stay at the MK area resorts, but it was obvious why Grand Floridian is more expensive. It was certainly nicer than the Contemporary. The new rooms are great. They are well thought out and the attention to detail was better than any other rooms we’ve stayed at. The only odd thing is the theme. Mary Poppins doesn’t fit in the Grand Floridian, but they’ve been doing that with retheming of lounges and restaurants at the resort, so it’s not a surprise. That said, the level of detail and subtlety of that theme in the new rooms is wonderful.

We had great experiences all the way around, from housekeeping to food service to the fact that you had multiple photopass photographers in the main building. Chip and Dale even made an appearance. The construction inside the lobby was no longer going on. You could see some sort of material blocking some walkways from view on the top floor or two, but other than that, everything inside was normal. There was a ton of scaffolding outside the main building, as expected. That certainly affected the view when walking around the main building, but we weren’t bothered by it. You have to consider it from our perspective. It wasn’t about going when there was construction vs. going when there wasn’t construction. It was about going to GF with that construction vs. staying at Contemporary, hoping for a room request in the garden wing and probably never staying at GF. We were able to stay at GF for about $400 a night. You can’t beat that.

Thank you to everyone for the recommendations.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Thanks for the recap @mpb2000