Which places under the Concierge Collection have you tried?

[igitur]

I'm curious to hear from anyone who has stayed at any of the hotels or resorts under the Concierge Collection and I'd love to hear what you thought of them.

I recently asked about La Quinta Resort but I'm also curious about the others as well.

The points needed vary so much in this collection...I just want to get a good feel for which places would be worth a second look and which places aren't.

Thanks everyone!

Deb

 

[ralphd]

Royal Garden in London.
We got:
Free upgrade - Overlook Kensington Garden and Kensington Palace.
Nice breakfast included.
Arrived at the hotel at 8:30am and they gave us a room immediately. The check-in time was late afternoon.
Good location on the tube.
Nice walk thru Kensington Garden/Hyde Park.
Nice friendly and helpful staff.

 

[shantay1008]

We haven't used the Concierge Collection yet (we'd have to get two rooms for our family of six...yikes), but I've read several posts here from people who have used them at the Mandarin Oriental in D.C. and had a great time. Someone also mentioned Shutters (?) in Santa Monica, and of course I don't think you could go wrong at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island.

People always say that DVC points aren't wisely used anywhere but on DVC properties, but when I look at how much we spend on park tickets, airfare, and dining at WDW, how much worse could it be to just use points at a non-DVC hotel for a few nights? Well, then I guess they'd argue that you should sell your points and use the cash for the Concierge Collection.

Good luck!

 

[Hogzilla]

We have used points at Big Cedar Lodge near Banson, MO..... and it was wonderful. We have also stayed at th Whitehall Hotel in Chicago. It was old but really nice and service was top notch.

I have looked into the Grand Hotel and it looks awesome, but not sure of the value using points. Very VERY expensive if paying rack rate.

Bottom line for us is we are using Disney to prepay and to FORCE us to take vacations, so I don't obsess over getting the absolute best bang for every point spent. We use them to go whereever we want to go.

 

[mapny90]

We've stayed a couple of places in the Concierge Collection: The Plaza (in NYC before they closed it to convert to apartments), twice at the Shelburne Murray Hill in NYC (all suite hotel, good location, nice rooms) and this past summer at Shutters on the Beach in California (which was unbelievable). The diversity of places offered in the CC is one of the reasons why we bought DVC initially. There are some places that we can drive to - such as NYC. We never would have stayed at The Plaza or Shutters on the Beach except on DVC points. The transactions were all seamless and we were treated as any other guest. We're next thinking about Atlantis in the Bahamas from the CC for summer 2007.

 

[Mary Ellen]

We've stayed at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, but paid $ rather than using our points. I'd stay there again in a heartbeat.

 

[mouseclick1]

We have also stayed at the Broadmoor, only we did use our points. The grounds are so beautiful, and the service was excellent. One day we were at the pool and it started raining very hard. Everyone took cover under the covered poolside bar/lunch area. A staff member ( I almost called her a CM ) came around offering warm towels to all guests who were wet and getting chilly. I thought it was a cool touch!

The only problem we had was we splurged and booked a mountain view room with a balcony. Sure, we had a view of the mountains, but we also had a hideous view of the construction that was going on, and we were located right over the area where the busses drop off guests. As soon as we checked in we asked to switch rooms, but were told there were no available rooms to move us to. So, we sat on our balcony, sipping our wine and gazing at the mountains, while listening to jack hammers, the beeping of backing up trucks, and running busses waiting for their turn to drop off the next group of conventioneers.

I would love to go again, but only AFTER the construction is finished!

 

[Candace]

Used points for the Boston Harbour Hotel. Lovely, elegant hotel. Did not use points for 'harbour' view, but rather the city view. Great staff, good restaurant. One *really* nice touch at this hotel was that it has a water taxi right from their dock to the airport! The location was more in the business district, so we had to walk/take a taxi or tram to some other areas, but all in all, it was a great stay.

 

[shantay1008]

We've stayed a couple of places in the Concierge Collection: The Plaza (in NYC before they closed it to convert to apartments), twice at the Shelburne Murray Hill in NYC (all suite hotel, good location, nice rooms) and this past summer at Shutters on the Beach in California (which was unbelievable). The diversity of places offered in the CC is one of the reasons why we bought DVC initially. There are some places that we can drive to - such as NYC. We never would have stayed at The Plaza or Shutters on the Beach except on DVC points. The transactions were all seamless and we were treated as any other guest. We're next thinking about Atlantis in the Bahamas from the CC for summer 2007.

I noticed that the Plaza wasn't in the Concierge Collection anymore, but I had no idea it was because it had been converted to apartments! My kids love Eloise, and we just assumed that we could go and stay at the Plaza at Christmastime someday. I wish they would have given us some notice, or something. Nuts.

 

[DisFlan]

Another thumbs up for Big Cedar Lodge. We've stayed there many times, but we've always stayed on cash. It's especially wonderful around Christmas. Gorgeous decorations. It's a beautiful resort.


DisFlan

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

We have stayed at the Sagamore on ponts. We have also stayed at the Equinox in Vermont and the Regency in NYC but using cash instead. All were excellent stays and great hotels.

HBC

 

[jekjones1558]

Kapalua, Maui (no longer a choice, I believe) Mauna Lani, Big Island of Hawaii and American Club in Kohler, WI (just got another 5 Diamond award). All 3 properties just wonderful even if they do eat up the points.

 

[momsgoofy]

igitur...thanks for asking this question! We're in our first year as DVC members and part of why we bought was the ability to use the points outside of WDW...I know, ya'll are thinking, shame on me. We love WDW, but do want to see other parts of the world sometimes, so I appreciate hearing what ya'll have to say about the other properties.

Hogzilla and Disfan...you both metioned Big Cedar Lodge...what more can you share with me? I was just looking at their website and it looks really nice...seems like a great place to really relax and it's within a days drive for us. DH didn't think it would be such a great place for a teenage boy...DS is almost 14. I'd appreciate any more you both could share...might it be comparable to places in Gatlinburg?


jekjones1958...you mentioned the American Club in Kohler...what more could you tell about that property? Would it be something a teenage boy might find acceptable? I will try to google it also.

And for those who mentioned Shutters...wow! Again, I have to ask if it might be a place for a teenage boy? And anything else ya'll might be able to share would be great!

Well, thanks to everyone for all the great info!

 

[shellbelle1971]

We have never stayed at a CC hotel on pts, but have on $.

DH & I love the Del! We think the old building is so charming & wonderful. The new buildings have (IMO) no personality...but they do have AC, so maybe that's a factor for some people. If you do stay there, don't miss the Sunday brunch!
The Mandarin Orientals we have stayed in (DC, SF, London, others...forget which ones...) are all lovely & very luxurious.
Stein Eriksen is a short drive from our home; we've stayed there for a quick weekend getaway. Great chili! Mmmmm...just right to warm you up after a day on the slopes!

 

[jekjones1558]

American Club is a vintage hotel in a small town. Rooms are unique and furnished in period pieces. Food in the restaurant is excellent. The hotel itself might not be anything especially appealing to a teenage boy, but if he likes golf or fishing, there are great opportunities in Kohler and nearby Sheboygan. A visit to the Kohler (dream baths) showroom is a highlight for us. Amazing displays.

 

[nucpharm29]

American Club is a vintage hotel in a small town. Rooms are unique and furnished in period pieces. Food in the restaurant is excellent. The hotel itself might not be anything especially appealing to a teenage boy, but if he likes golf or fishing, there are great opportunities in Kohler and nearby Sheboygan. A visit to the Kohler (dream baths) showroom is a highlight for us. Amazing displays.

It also is adjacent to the golf course where the PGA championship was played a couple of years ago--Whistling Straits--beautiful course right on Lake Michigan. Here is their website http://www.destinationkohler.com/tac/amenities.html

 

[mapny90]

Momsgoofy,

When we went to Shutters last summer, DS was 15 - he had as good a time on vacation with his parents as any 15 year old does. He enjoyed hanging out at the pool and going to the beach. (He was braver than his parents since the water was freezing!!). Shutters is right on the beach and there is a lengthy bike/rollerblade/walk trail that runs right past Shutters. There are places to rent bikes and rollerblades. We rented bikes and went all the way down to Venice, which any teenager would love - with the funky shops, the surfers and muscle beach.

Shutters is right outside LA and there is lots to do in LA. It is also about an hour away from Disneyland which we went to twice while we were there. Not the same as WDW, but we had lots of fun anyway.

In the interest of full disclosure, I will tell you that the rooms are a bit cramped for two adults and a teenager. There are two queen beds in the room, but we had to be creative when we were dressing/showering, etc. The reality, though, is that we spent very little time in the room itself.

I will definitely go back to Shutters again.

 

[Oreo Cookie]

We've done a few exchanges with the CC.

The first one was for the Mauna Lani on the Big Island. This is an absolutely georgous resort and the rooms were fantastic. We had booked a standard view and when we arrived they gave us an ocean view. The service was outstanding and the staff was fabulous. They also have a wonderfu spa. If you like to snorkel, you can do so from the beach and we saw many fish and sea turtles. We stayed here for a week.

The second place was the Kapalua Bay hotel on Maui. We spent three nights here in an ocean viewand then headed down to Wailea. The Kapalua Bay hotel was nice, and the grounds were beautiful. This section of Maui gets more rain, and it did rain the three days we were there. The views from the hotel are wonderful.

The third place we stayed was the Fairmont in San Francisco. We were there for two nights and was a beautiful hotel. We booked a deluxe room, but the clerk gave us a beautiful signature room with a view of the bay and Alcatraz.

At all three hotels we didn't ask for upgrades, but when we checked in they gave them to us. I don't know if we just had luck on our side, or if it is because of the DVC that they give you an upgrade if one is available.

 

[Patty3]

We gave points to our DS to use for his honeymoon. He stayed at the White Swan in SanFran and at the Kapalua Bay Hotel in Maui. He said that both of these places were great. We recently came back from Maui, paid cash, and stayed at the Four Seasons. We were right next to the Grand Wailea and it was gorgeous. This is where Oprah is staying this summer and taking everyone that works for her.

 

[WithFaith50]

I chickened out of a DCL 4-night cruise and was "forced" to use the points on non-DVC resorts. Since I live close to DC, I decided to get 2 rooms at the Mandarin Oriental for the New Year's weekend. We (4 adults, two 4-year olds) had a blast! Champagne upon check in, a person playing piano in the lounge, the Christmas decorations still up, and a New Year's party that even the kid's spent a few minutes at .

If I ever have 'distressed' points again, I would definately go back!