Disney's Club Level (CL) Information & Questions

[kcpinwdw]

Sorry to ask this again because I know it is total opinion but can you guys give me a list of your favorite club level resorts?

well here is my list, we are a family with two kids. haven't done club at AKL so leaving that off. Even the bottoms of my list were good experiences.
1. Contemporary
2. Boardwalk
3. Yacht
4. WL (maybe tie with GDT)
5. GDT at coronado (had deluxe room)
6. GF
7. Poly
8. Beach

 

[Craig W]

Could you give us a little bit of info? are you going as an adult couple or as a family? What parks do you plan to visit the most?

Sorry about that. 2 adults and 3 kids ages 9, 13, 16. We usually visit MK for 2 days and the rest 1 day but the kids also LOVE all 4 parks. We prefer bright rooms over darker rooms but hate to mark off Poly and Wilderness because of this. Wilderness is at the top of my wife's list right now haha.

We have never stayed at Boardwalk, Beach Club, or Yacht Club CL OR standard.

Thanks!!

 

[Craig W]

well here is my list, we are a family with two kids. haven't done club at AKL so leaving that off. Even the bottoms of my list were good experiences.
1. Contemporary
2. Boardwalk
3. Yacht
4. WL (maybe tie with GDT)
5. GDT at coronado (had deluxe room)
6. GF
7. Poly
8. Beach

Thank you!! Are you rating/grading only the CL experience or the combination of resort AND CL experience. And can I ask briefly what you liked about your top 3. Thanks!!

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Sorry to ask this again because I know it is total opinion but can you guys give me a list of your favorite club level resorts? We are looking for that perfect combination of great food, great experience without huge crowds, great lounge, and great location.

Thanks so much!!!!

Sorry about that. 2 adults and 3 kids ages 9, 13, 16. We usually visit MK for 2 days and the rest 1 day but the kids also LOVE all 4 parks. We prefer bright rooms over darker rooms but hate to mark off Poly and Wilderness because of this. Wilderness is at the top of my wife's list right now haha.

We have never stayed at Boardwalk, Beach Club, or Yacht Club CL OR standard.

Thanks!!

Probably stating the obvious, but it’s sooooo subjective.

Above all things, I tend to pick resort and location first, CL second. I’m ultimately there to go to WDW, so location and park convenience drive our resort decision in many cases. The CL part is a nice bonus.

But if I had to make a list... our favorite pure CL experiences:
1) AKL
2) Poly
3) YC
4) CR
5) WL (3-5 are easily tied IMO)
6) GF RPC
7) BC
8) BWI (I know this is risking fights around here, in fairness BWI CL is largely adored by many)
9) GF SL

I am not sure where I put GDT in that list - I think towards the upper part.

But you could ask me the same question tomorrow and I could answer differently as exact rankings are hard to determine, at least for how I view things.

If I had to make a list combining multiple factors - location, resort preference/amenities, transportation, plus CL, it’s probably something like:

1) Poly
2) YC
3) CR
4) WL
5) AKL
6) GF RPC
7) BWI
8) BC
9) GF SL

FWIW, I’ve swapped positions for many of the above for the last 5 minutes. Since there is no one perfect resort/CL combo and they all have the pluses and minuses, it’s so tough.

Plus there is sometimes weather, park plan, or just overall mood. Eg, I rank CR pretty highly but I don’t like the pools there all that much - I’d rather stay there when a little cooler and not so much daily pool lounging weather.

For context, we’re a family of four, kids are 9 and 5.

Our first resorts/CL trips were MK and that’s where we tend to gravitate towards. Just so much to do with the monorail, fireworks viewing, gorgeous lounges, rooms with park or grounds views, etc. As my kids are getting older, we’re now sometimes enjoying the Epcot resorts more for popping in Epcot and DHS.

FYI, since you’re a party of 5, your resort selection is a bit limited without two rooms or a suite.

Apologies for random ramblings.

 

[Babsy]

Sorry to ask this again because I know it is total opinion but can you guys give me a list of your favorite club level resorts? We are looking for that perfect combination of great food, great experience without huge crowds, great lounge, and great location.

Thanks so much!!!!

Difficult to give a hard and fast priority list to CL's in WDW as they all seem to have some good and some not so good aspects. We choose where to stay based on resorts' amenities/location and tend to rotate between them on different trips. Sometimes availability of discounts impact our choice, sometimes it is based on how long it has been since we stayed there and sometimes it depends on which theme parks will be the focus for the upcoming trip. The CL itself is not a determining factor. In fact, I usually don't tend to stay CL at the AKL or WL as I love the lobbies and am not particularly fond of the Cl location in the resort. Also, at AKL I prefer to eat breakfast at Mara's and eat outside and have dinner at one of the outstanding restaurants on property. It was also the CL where we had the most trouble accessing a table due to crowds and found going there from our very distant room a hassle.

My list, FWIW: ( sort of in order of preference, or as close as I can decide)

GF RPC - fabulous lounge with live music, afternoon tea, always 'open'*, spacious and relaxing
CR CL - love the central location of the lounge, the view from the balcony, great CMs, always open
Poly CL - view of castle from the lounge is great, we aren't fond of the typical food offerings, great location
GF SL - good food, convenient location to pool, boat, main building, always 'open'
BWI CL - wonderful CMs, friendly atmosphere, but lounge closes and is small
AKL/WL - tied IMO, good food but not fond of the CL location in the hotels, some AKL rooms really far from the lounge
YC/BC - lounges close, food hasn't been great the last times we were there (or not to our taste, anyway), but going again next week anyway (we'll see if we like it any better this time around? Years ago, the YC CL was my favourite, but back then we had lobster, shrimp or scallops as hors d'oeuvres every night. Yummy!)

GDT - haven't tried this one yet, but can hardly wait! It looks/sounds wonderful! (trying this one in January 2020)

*open means able to go in and sit down, not necessarily food available. We don't like it when lounges close between food service. The lounge is a nice place to sit and meet even if there are no food or drink items available.

All the above is subject to change as GADisneyDad14 said. So much varies with every trip and the mood of the moment almost.

Good luck finding the perfect CL! I suggest trying them all. In a way they are all perfect and imperfect.

 

[bethclayton]

I've only stayed at GF RPC 3x, Poly CL 2x, and BC CL once (or if my signature says something different, go with that, as I know that is correct and these are just off the top of my head). No other CL.

I would agree with Babsy's summaries.

We found GF RPC to be amazing. The ambience cannot be beat, imo. Terrific food offerings, terrific staff, light and airy, plenty of room and lots of sort of "tucked away" tables for some privacy, and nothing beats sitting up there listening to the live music. We also loved grabbing a glass of wine from the lounge and just wandering around the different shops in the evening.

Poly is my kids' favorite resort (ages almost 18 and almost 20). It's not mine. But, the lounge is nice. It has two story windows, amazing fireworks views with music piped in, and we liked the food. We found the staff to be grouchy but they did their jobs. It's a good location. But, it's not elegant like the GF RPC, by any means.

We were not fond of BC CL at all (although we liked the resort itself). Small, cramped lounge that wasn't aesthetically pleasing, very ho-hum food offerings (but this was in 2013), staff were grumpy and they were often not on top of things... foods ran out often, they didn't clean the dirty/ messy counters, etc. Lounge was enclosed so if you had an obnoxious party in there the noise level was unbearable. Our room was also extremely far from the lounge.

 

[TJA]

Sorry to ask this again because I know it is total opinion but can you guys give me a list of your favorite club level resorts? We are looking for that perfect combination of great food, great experience without huge crowds, great lounge, and great location.

Thanks so much!!!!

Your priorities are similar to ours. I'll only list the CL's we've stayed at. I should say the overall resort does play a factor in how much we love our CL experience.

1. GF RPC (great everything).
2. YC (great food/great location. Cozy lounge but not the wow factor like RPC).
3. Poly (great lounge/great location/bonus*great view*. We do not love evening apps).
4. BC (same as YC). YC, Poly, BC all rated about same for me, for different reasons.
5. AKL (great food/great lounge. Location keeps us from staying there).
6. CR atrium (great lounge/great location/bonus*great view*. Food was ok, but it has been a while since we've stayed there, so rating may go up/down next time we try it).
7. WL (great food/great lounge/location pretty good. Rooms keep us from staying there).
8. GF SL (great food/great location. Lounge ok, not our favorite ambiance).
9. BWI (great food/great location. Resort and Lounge not our favorite).

 

[GADisneyDad14]

YC/BC - lounges close

FYI in case this isn’t what you meant, the lounges there don’t close these days. Food areas get roped off between services, but the lounges themselves are open 24/7, which I know has not always been the case.

Thanks for the specific detail in your post! I’m glad you took the time to write out things in detail.

 

[PolyRob]

Probably stating the obvious, but it’s sooooo subjective.

Above all things, I tend to pick resort and location first, CL second. I’m ultimately there to go to WDW, so location and park convenience drive our resort decision in many cases. The CL part is a nice bonus.

But if I had to make a list... our favorite pure CL experiences:
1) AKL
2) Poly
3) YC
4) CR
5) WL (3-5 are easily tied IMO)
6) GF RPC
7) BC
8) BWI (I know this is risking fights around here, in fairness BWI CL is largely adored by many)
9) GF SL

I am not sure where I put GDT in that list - I think towards the upper part.

But you could ask me the same question tomorrow and I could answer differently as exact rankings are hard to determine, at least for how I view things.

If I had to make a list combining multiple factors - location, resort preference/amenities, transportation, plus CL, it’s probably something like:

1) Poly
2) YC
3) CR
4) WL
5) AKL
6) GF RPC
7) BWI
8) BC
9) GF SL

FWIW, I’ve swapped positions for many of the above for the last 5 minutes. Since there is no one perfect resort/CL combo and they all have the pluses and minuses, it’s so tough.

Plus there is sometimes weather, park plan, or just overall mood. Eg, I rank CR pretty highly but I don’t like the pools there all that much - I’d rather stay there when a little cooler and not so much daily pool lounging weather.

For context, we’re a family of four, kids are 9 and 5.

Our first resorts/CL trips were MK and that’s where we tend to gravitate towards. Just so much to do with the monorail, fireworks viewing, gorgeous lounges, rooms with park or grounds views, etc. As my kids are getting older, we’re now sometimes enjoying the Epcot resorts more for popping in Epcot and DHS.

FYI, since you’re a party of 5, YC and BC CL is off the list for you, unless you get a Deluxe Room at BC or larger suite at either (or 2 standard rooms).

Apologies for random ramblings.

I love how GF SL is last in BOTH of your lists

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I love how GF SL is last in BOTH of your lists

But yet I would stay there again without (much) second thought.

Unfortunately someplace has to be last in a ranking.

 

[conandrob240]

Reading back through this, just want to say I still don’t understand how anyone who’s rude or cold to guests could keep a job working with guests booking some of the most expensive rooms on property.

 

[Babsy]

FYI in case this isn’t what you meant, the lounges there don’t close these days. Food areas get roped off between services, but the lounges themselves are open 24/7, which I know has not always been the case.

Thanks for the specific detail in your post! I’m glad you took the time to write out things in detail.

I'm happy to hear that. It is nice to be able to sit in the lounge areas even when food service isn't offered. Obviously it has been a few years now since our last visit to YC/BC, so it will be nice to try YC again next week. I hope that the food has also improved since our last stay!

 

[mickeynut1]

Sorry to ask this again because I know it is total opinion but can you guys give me a list of your favorite club level resorts? We are looking for that perfect combination of great food, great experience without huge crowds, great lounge, and great location.

Thanks so much!!!!

1. Poly - decent size lounge with extra seating on 3rd floor, great view of the castle/fireworks, very friendly CMs, good food offerings

2. BWI CL - amazing CMs, great food offerings, lounge a little small compared to others but comfortable/quaint

3. YC CL - decent variety of food offerings, ice cream available 24/7, nice CMs

4. GF RPC - large spacious lounge, good variety of food offerings, nice views of the grounds, lounge overlooks the GF lobby

5. WL CL - lounge overlooks the WL lobby, great food offerings, amazing CMs

6. GF SL - not one of my favorites. I didn't care for the lounge as it had a cafeteria-like feel to it and it's located in the center of the SL building with no windows/views. This is one CL I have no desire to stay at again.

I pretty much love all the CLs above equally (except GF SL), but rated GF RPC & WL CL lower on the list as Poly/BWI/YC have been recent stays (within the last yr) and RPC & WL were quite a few yrs ago. Trying CR CL in December and hoping to try AKL CL soon .

We have never stayed at Boardwalk, Beach Club, or Yacht Club CL OR standard.

I haven't tried BC CL, but I love BWI and YC CL. With that said, I would stay YC CL again, but if I had to choose between the two, it would be BWI CL. The CMs at YC were nice, but the ones at BWI were just amazing.....very friendly and accommodating .

It is nice to be able to sit in the lounge areas even when food service isn't offered.

I agree

 

[Craig W]

Probably stating the obvious, but it’s sooooo subjective.

Above all things, I tend to pick resort and location first, CL second. I’m ultimately there to go to WDW, so location and park convenience drive our resort decision in many cases. The CL part is a nice bonus.

But if I had to make a list... our favorite pure CL experiences:
1) AKL
2) Poly
3) YC
4) CR
5) WL (3-5 are easily tied IMO)
6) GF RPC
7) BC
8) BWI (I know this is risking fights around here, in fairness BWI CL is largely adored by many)
9) GF SL

I am not sure where I put GDT in that list - I think towards the upper part.

But you could ask me the same question tomorrow and I could answer differently as exact rankings are hard to determine, at least for how I view things.

If I had to make a list combining multiple factors - location, resort preference/amenities, transportation, plus CL, it’s probably something like:

1) Poly
2) YC
3) CR
4) WL
5) AKL
6) GF RPC
7) BWI
8) BC
9) GF SL

FWIW, I’ve swapped positions for many of the above for the last 5 minutes. Since there is no one perfect resort/CL combo and they all have the pluses and minuses, it’s so tough.

Plus there is sometimes weather, park plan, or just overall mood. Eg, I rank CR pretty highly but I don’t like the pools there all that much - I’d rather stay there when a little cooler and not so much daily pool lounging weather.

For context, we’re a family of four, kids are 9 and 5.

Our first resorts/CL trips were MK and that’s where we tend to gravitate towards. Just so much to do with the monorail, fireworks viewing, gorgeous lounges, rooms with park or grounds views, etc. As my kids are getting older, we’re now sometimes enjoying the Epcot resorts more for popping in Epcot and DHS.

FYI, since you’re a party of 5, YC and BC CL is off the list for you, unless you get a Deluxe Room at BC or larger suite at either (or 2 standard rooms).

Apologies for random ramblings.

Wow! Thank you so much for the incredible detail. I totally agree you have to pick the resort first and then HOPE the CL is top notch. If GFRP is #6 on your list I can only imagine the quality of Poly and CR!!!

Also thanks for the info on YC and BC as far as a party of 5.

 

[Craig W]

Difficult to give a hard and fast priority list to CL's in WDW as they all seem to have some good and some not so good aspects. We choose where to stay based on resorts' amenities/location and tend to rotate between them on different trips. Sometimes availability of discounts impact our choice, sometimes it is based on how long it has been since we stayed there and sometimes it depends on which theme parks will be the focus for the upcoming trip. The CL itself is not a determining factor. In fact, I usually don't tend to stay CL at the AKL or WL as I love the lobbies and am not particularly fond of the Cl location in the resort. Also, at AKL I prefer to eat breakfast at Mara's and eat outside and have dinner at one of the outstanding restaurants on property. It was also the CL where we had the most trouble accessing a table due to crowds and found going there from our very distant room a hassle.

My list, FWIW: ( sort of in order of preference, or as close as I can decide)

GF RPC - fabulous lounge with live music, afternoon tea, always 'open'*, spacious and relaxing
CR CL - love the central location of the lounge, the view from the balcony, great CMs, always open
Poly CL - view of castle from the lounge is great, we aren't fond of the typical food offerings, great location
GF SL - good food, convenient location to pool, boat, main building, always 'open'
BWI CL - wonderful CMs, friendly atmosphere, but lounge closes and is small
AKL/WL - tied IMO, good food but not fond of the CL location in the hotels, some AKL rooms really far from the lounge
YC/BC - lounges close, food hasn't been great the last times we were there (or not to our taste, anyway), but going again next week anyway (we'll see if we like it any better this time around? Years ago, the YC CL was my favourite, but back then we had lobster, shrimp or scallops as hors d'oeuvres every night. Yummy!)

GDT - haven't tried this one yet, but can hardly wait! It looks/sounds wonderful! (trying this one in January 2020)

*open means able to go in and sit down, not necessarily food available. We don't like it when lounges close between food service. The lounge is a nice place to sit and meet even if there are no food or drink items available.

All the above is subject to change as GADisneyDad14 said. So much varies with every trip and the mood of the moment almost.

Good luck finding the perfect CL! I suggest trying them all. In a way they are all perfect and imperfect.

Thanks! Especially on the CL location for AKL and WL. WL was at the top of the list but now we may have to look a little deeper into your top 3.

 

[Craig W]

I've only stayed at GF RPC 3x, Poly CL 2x, and BC CL once (or if my signature says something different, go with that, as I know that is correct and these are just off the top of my head). No other CL.

I would agree with Babsy's summaries.

We found GF RPC to be amazing. The ambience cannot be beat, imo. Terrific food offerings, terrific staff, light and airy, plenty of room and lots of sort of "tucked away" tables for some privacy, and nothing beats sitting up there listening to the live music. We also loved grabbing a glass of wine from the lounge and just wandering around the different shops in the evening.

Poly is my kids' favorite resort (ages almost 18 and almost 20). It's not mine. But, the lounge is nice. It has two story windows, amazing fireworks views with music piped in, and we liked the food. We found the staff to be grouchy but they did their jobs. It's a good location. But, it's not elegant like the GF RPC, by any means.

We were not fond of BC CL at all (although we liked the resort itself). Small, cramped lounge that wasn't aesthetically pleasing, very ho-hum food offerings (but this was in 2013), staff were grumpy and they were often not on top of things... foods ran out often, they didn't clean the dirty/ messy counters, etc. Lounge was enclosed so if you had an obnoxious party in there the noise level was unbearable. Our room was also extremely far from the lounge.

Thanks!! We had a pretty below average room at Poly this year so it has changed my opinion of the resort in general. I'm sure the CL would be a totally different experience. They put us in Fiji and we were disappointed overall.

 

[Craig W]

Your priorities are similar to ours. I'll only list the CL's we've stayed at. I should say the overall resort does play a factor in how much we love our CL experience.

1. GF RPC (great everything).
2. YC (great food/great location. Cozy lounge but not the wow factor like RPC).
3. Poly (great lounge/great location/bonus*great view*. We do not love evening apps).
4. BC (same as YC). YC, Poly, BC all rated about same for me, for different reasons.
5. AKL (great food/great lounge. Location keeps us from staying there).
6. CR atrium (great lounge/great location/bonus*great view*. Food was ok, but it has been a while since we've stayed there, so rating may go up/down next time we try it).
7. WL (great food/great lounge/location pretty good. Rooms keep us from staying there).
8. GF SL (great food/great location. Lounge ok, not our favorite ambiance).
9. BWI (great food/great location. Resort and Lounge not our favorite).

Thank you! Quick question - why don't you like the rooms at WL. Just curious. Thanks again!!

 

[GADisneyDad14]

If GFRP is #6 on your list I can only imagine the quality of Poly and CR!!!

Lol, see, that's where it's so dangerous. Most around here are probably going to say that GF RPC blows away the "quality" of Poly CL from a pure CL perspective. I just happen to like CL experience/food/beverage at Poly better and I've never been totally in love with the same at GF. But a lot of people would strongly disagree with this and say food/beverage at GF RPC is far superior to Poly CL (which is kinda true). Just so darn hard with all the pluses/minuses of each.

 

[TJA]

But yet I would stay there again without (much) second thought.

Unfortunately someplace has to be last in a ranking.

I'm thinking I will book GF SL again once the bridge to MK is done, probably around MNSSHP time.

 

[gwynne]

Sorry to ask this again because I know it is total opinion but can you guys give me a list of your favorite club level resorts? We are looking for that perfect combination of great food, great experience without huge crowds, great lounge, and great location.

Thanks so much!!!!

1. BWI CL-We love the experience there, and being so close to Epcot is another bonus. If it's available it's our first choice. Very nice quiet pool. So peaceful!

2. AKL CL-Wonderful place! For us, it's better for shorter stays or a split. Beautiful pool area.

3. WL CL- Good CL.

4. YC CL-Nice CL, Stormalong Bay is a plus.

5. Contemporary CL-Good MK location.