PrincessAurora
<font color=blue>Hmpphh! Who needs that boy in gre
- Joined
- Oct 26, 1999
Well each year my friend Kat & I do something to celebrate our birthdays. This year we decided to stay at the Grand Californian and have dinner at Napa Rose.
Now I lived in So Cal for 14 years and have been to DL more times than I can count but never stayed in one of their hotels. Then I went to WDW and became spoiled re: hotels. I stay at Wilderness Lodge.
So, the drive up to the hotel was very nice. I think they could have done better on the exterior. I think it looks like an upper class Howard Johnsons. Like I said, spoiled from the Florida deluxes. The interior and lobby are amazing. Well, they should be. Same designer that did WL and AKL. I do prefer this lobby to the other two. They also have an AMAZING shop off the lobby that featues craftsman/arts & crafts themed swag.
Kat got us concierge level rooms so this was a real treat. We checked in and.... ummmmm.... no cherry Disney, no "Welcome Home". They say "Welcome Home" at Wilderness Lodge and I nearly cry each time. No special treatment for paying a kings randsom for ONE NIGHT on the concierge level. O kay.
We get our keys and go to check in. There is a desk with a snooty cast member in their little lobby area. They have the snacks in a key access room. I asked about renewing my 3 day park hopper and found that Disney closed that loophole. 3 day park hopper tickets use to be good for 3 years. Now it is 2 weeks. Well, that does me no good. So I have one day left I can use and then would need to buy another day tomorrow if we want to do more of the park. We decide to just do the parks that day.
We check out our room. It is around 1pm, the room is really lovely. We decide to get in some park time. We go to DCA (mostly a waste of space but there are a few rides that are worth it). We can do this park in a few hours. It is cool that it is linked directly to the hotel. It is now 4pm and we decide to check out the tea service in the concierge suite. We aren't getting snacks in the park because - hey - we have concierge and we are having a big dinner later.
Now I have read all the good, the bad and the ugly from the WDW resorts board re: concierge in The World. We were pretty much alone. There were a nice assortment of teas, free sodas (which we didnt take since we dont drink them), free water (dasani - bottled in Riverside - enough said) - So TEA IT IS! We made ourselves some tea and check out the food board. There are little sandwiches (some nice, some not so nice), fresh fruit (lovely), tiny chocolate covered strawberries, a few sweet breads and cookies. Not a ton of food but more than enough for a little snack.
We see they have booze but we have to pay for that. PAY FOR THAT! Now I usually have no problem paying for my booze but we are paying $500 for ONE NIGHT and they can't throw in one glass of complimentary champagne for concierge level.
Then the hoard arrives. About a dozen kids with no adults in sight, storm the food table and start raking chocolate strawberries and cakes onto these tiny plates, making shaky mountains. A few adults (not with them) come in and guess what? No strawberries for them! Nope because the rude piggies came and scooped up the entire tray. Now I am talking about 50 strawberries here - no lie.
Kat & I get disgusted with the behaviour and the noise and leave. Kids are suppose to be escorted. Snooty cast member is not manning the desk. We change for dinner, spend a bit shopping in DTD (which is far superior to its Florida counterpart) and then have a wonderful dinner at Napa Rose.
After dinner and fireworks we return to our room. We received turn down service which was nice. The evening offerings were not that spectacular. We took a cookie each back to our rooms for a little dessert.
Also BEWARE OF THE CHARGING FRIDGE!!! The honor bar is wired so if any item is removed or MOVED or even TOUCHED - you are charged for it. I found this out when I saw a GC refillable travel mug and took it out to show Kat. She said, you just paid for this, you realize that. I stared at her like she was from Mars. She then explained this demonic new addition to our room. Great.
Well, I wanted one anyway to take home. We get the bill in the morning and we are charged for one mug and one $5 Toblerone bar. WHAT??!!! It seems that the candy was next to the mug and was touched when I removed said mug. Thus the charge. Disney took the candy charge off but be warned of that fridge from hell. Make sure it is locked and stays that way. Especially if you have kids.
We go next door to check out the breakfast offerings. Cold cereal, fruit, juice, coffee, tiny danish, oatmeal, toast - not much to write home about. I grab some Frosted Flakes in a box to snack on later.
The hotel is really lovely but in my opinion concierge is WAY overpriced for what you get. It is just not worth it. If you want to splurge, stay at the hotel but concierge is just a waste.
Now I lived in So Cal for 14 years and have been to DL more times than I can count but never stayed in one of their hotels. Then I went to WDW and became spoiled re: hotels. I stay at Wilderness Lodge.
So, the drive up to the hotel was very nice. I think they could have done better on the exterior. I think it looks like an upper class Howard Johnsons. Like I said, spoiled from the Florida deluxes. The interior and lobby are amazing. Well, they should be. Same designer that did WL and AKL. I do prefer this lobby to the other two. They also have an AMAZING shop off the lobby that featues craftsman/arts & crafts themed swag.
Kat got us concierge level rooms so this was a real treat. We checked in and.... ummmmm.... no cherry Disney, no "Welcome Home". They say "Welcome Home" at Wilderness Lodge and I nearly cry each time. No special treatment for paying a kings randsom for ONE NIGHT on the concierge level. O kay.
We get our keys and go to check in. There is a desk with a snooty cast member in their little lobby area. They have the snacks in a key access room. I asked about renewing my 3 day park hopper and found that Disney closed that loophole. 3 day park hopper tickets use to be good for 3 years. Now it is 2 weeks. Well, that does me no good. So I have one day left I can use and then would need to buy another day tomorrow if we want to do more of the park. We decide to just do the parks that day.
We check out our room. It is around 1pm, the room is really lovely. We decide to get in some park time. We go to DCA (mostly a waste of space but there are a few rides that are worth it). We can do this park in a few hours. It is cool that it is linked directly to the hotel. It is now 4pm and we decide to check out the tea service in the concierge suite. We aren't getting snacks in the park because - hey - we have concierge and we are having a big dinner later.
Now I have read all the good, the bad and the ugly from the WDW resorts board re: concierge in The World. We were pretty much alone. There were a nice assortment of teas, free sodas (which we didnt take since we dont drink them), free water (dasani - bottled in Riverside - enough said) - So TEA IT IS! We made ourselves some tea and check out the food board. There are little sandwiches (some nice, some not so nice), fresh fruit (lovely), tiny chocolate covered strawberries, a few sweet breads and cookies. Not a ton of food but more than enough for a little snack.
We see they have booze but we have to pay for that. PAY FOR THAT! Now I usually have no problem paying for my booze but we are paying $500 for ONE NIGHT and they can't throw in one glass of complimentary champagne for concierge level.
Then the hoard arrives. About a dozen kids with no adults in sight, storm the food table and start raking chocolate strawberries and cakes onto these tiny plates, making shaky mountains. A few adults (not with them) come in and guess what? No strawberries for them! Nope because the rude piggies came and scooped up the entire tray. Now I am talking about 50 strawberries here - no lie.
Kat & I get disgusted with the behaviour and the noise and leave. Kids are suppose to be escorted. Snooty cast member is not manning the desk. We change for dinner, spend a bit shopping in DTD (which is far superior to its Florida counterpart) and then have a wonderful dinner at Napa Rose.
After dinner and fireworks we return to our room. We received turn down service which was nice. The evening offerings were not that spectacular. We took a cookie each back to our rooms for a little dessert.
Also BEWARE OF THE CHARGING FRIDGE!!! The honor bar is wired so if any item is removed or MOVED or even TOUCHED - you are charged for it. I found this out when I saw a GC refillable travel mug and took it out to show Kat. She said, you just paid for this, you realize that. I stared at her like she was from Mars. She then explained this demonic new addition to our room. Great.
Well, I wanted one anyway to take home. We get the bill in the morning and we are charged for one mug and one $5 Toblerone bar. WHAT??!!! It seems that the candy was next to the mug and was touched when I removed said mug. Thus the charge. Disney took the candy charge off but be warned of that fridge from hell. Make sure it is locked and stays that way. Especially if you have kids.
We go next door to check out the breakfast offerings. Cold cereal, fruit, juice, coffee, tiny danish, oatmeal, toast - not much to write home about. I grab some Frosted Flakes in a box to snack on later.
The hotel is really lovely but in my opinion concierge is WAY overpriced for what you get. It is just not worth it. If you want to splurge, stay at the hotel but concierge is just a waste.
