Whats so great about concierge?

[ºoºalyssaluvsmickeyºoº]

What are the benefits of this.I know you get breakfast and some Kahlua at the end of the night,but what is it that makes it so special?

[robemcdo]

You can say that you stayed at the 'Concierge'
That seems to be the main benefit around here.

[DDuck66]

Different resorts have different plans for their concierge. We stayed at the lower level Concierge at CR in 2005 and it was not real special except for the nicer view from the tower. You can either do things for yourself or let the concierge staff do it. We are going to the Poly Concierge in May and they seem to offer more benefits including special tours and individual people to help plan as little or as much as you want. Also, at least at the Poly, the Concierge Rooms are have a better location, and their own lounge facing the MK for fireworks viewing. They also serve, breakfast, lunch, snacks, dinner, and deserts in the lounge. The entire building is accessed through your room key, so it is more private.

[g0189a]

I've stayed concierge at the GF twice. Once on my honeymoon in 93 and once in 2006 with my kids. Of the vacations we've taken over the past 5 years I would have to say the one where we stayed on the concierge floor for 5 days was the absolute best vacation by far.

Here's the benefits I see. They do not add up dollar-wise to pay for it but sometimes the less stress and hassle are worth it.

1) The personal attention. They greet you at the door coming off of DME and personally bring you up to the concierge desk to check you in. The concierges are just wonderful. They go over reservations and make sure you are all set. Since we've been many times it was not needed this last trip but they helped us on our honeymoon years ago.

2) The food area and it's not just for the "free" food and drink but the kids get a slight sense of independence too (even though they are at most 10 feet away). The kids (mine were 6 and 8) can sit at the little wood tables while watching Disney cartoons on the TV while mom and dad can sit at a table on the perimeter always in eyesight and a few steps away. So they are not really away from you but sitting with other kids they meet. This 10-15 minutes of peace is worth a lot and can really jump start a day. Food time is at breakfast and some snack times throughout the day. I figured $30 per day in alcohol savings alone for 2 glasses of wine each during snack time. The breakfasts would be $10-$15 per person per day. Like I said no where near adds up to the cost but very nice to be down the hall. I've also gotten my wife that all important morning cup of coffee for her at 7am when they open to help get her moving so it's semi-room service.

3) Reduced crowds and good, easy down time. As mentioned above the crowds are less during breakfast. It's nice to get away from the constant crush within a few minutes. If you spend a lot of time at the MK then it's a quick trip back for a rest or a swim. Yes, it's farther from Epcot or the park formerly known as MGM.

4) The concierge staff. During the band playing in the late afternoon, the concierges danced with my kids. This was very special and they did not need to do that. They are just wonderful and I think Disney's best - and that is saying a lot.

5) I would like to have said the bathrobes at the GF but they don't do those any more at the same quality. :-( Back in '93 they had these really plush bathrobes for you to wear down to the pool or in the room, but they went to a much cheaper model on our trip in 2006. I bought one of the ones from our honeymoon in 93 and my wife loved it. It is now a bit threadbare 14 years later and I would have loved to replace it. But even being so worn, the ones they have now are no ultra-heavy robe in comparison.

[DawsonAR]

For us it was well worth it.

We used Poly Club Level in January. We have two kids and don't spend all day at the parks. We are usually there at opening and back to the resort by 5 or so.

Each morning we ate breakfast in the lounge. There was plenty of food for all of us. We would leave and go to the park and have a TS meal around 1 pm. We ate a big lunch each day.

We returned to the resort around 5 each night. Since we ate a large lunch, no one was very hungry. The snacks were enough for us. We went back each night around 8 to enjoy dessert and the view from the lounge. It made it a much more relaxing vacation for us.

For others it might not be worth it but it worked well for us.

[BrerGnat]

For us, concierge is just about convenience. The $$$ spent cannot be DIRECTLY accounted for by the food, but what you are paying for is convenience, extra time, and a relaxed atmosphere that is "exclusive". Sometimes, it might be hard to find a quiet spot in the public areas of the hotel, and the concierge lounge will be totally empty, so it's a nice haven.

We recently stayed on the Concierge level of the Grand Californian at the Disneyland Resort with our two kids (1 and 3). It was WONDERFUL to put the baby down for a nap and then have somewhere to take the 3 year old so he wouldn't wake his brother. One of us would take him into the lounge, where they had coloring pages, crayons, cartoons on the t.v. and snacks like fresh veggies/dip, goldfish crackers, cookies, juice, etc. The lounge at this resort was open all day, and midday, it was DESERTED! It was great to have somewhere quiet for my 3 year old to unwind a bit yet be so close to our room, if we needed to go back.

We also took full advantage of eating breakfast there each morning and since we put the kids down to bed early (around 7:30), it was nice to walk down the hall and grab some desserts/wine in the evening and enjoy them out on our balcony.

We have stayed concierge several times, and never really took advantage of the actual concierge staff making reservations for us or anything like that, but it IS nice to be able to do stuff like have them make change for you for tips when all you have is a large bill and you need to leave the mousekeeping tip. It's great to not have to go all the way down to the lobby, stand in line, and then come back to the room.

It's the conveniences that make it worth it for us. I think we will take advantage of concierge for at least several more years, until our kids are a bit older. Being able to eat in the lounges with little ones is priceless. Also, being able to get FRESH FRUIT and VEGETABLES on a daily basis is a really great thing when you're on vacation and you are otherwise feeding yourself (and the kids) junk.

[lockedoutlogic]

nothing....

to put it succinctly

in Manhattan...concierge can be outstanding...inside a disney resort...they have little no function whatsoever

[Catzle]

I don't think people stay conceirge just to say they did it on these boards, it's too expensive! Everyone has a different view some like it, some don't and some can't justify the cost. To each their own and you'll get a bunch of different views. We just fell into it the first year we stayed at Disney they had a superior deal and the only rooms left were conceirge since then we have been hooked

The ease of things are what brings us to do it. Able to get up and walk down and get breakfast, it's all ready and prepared, grab a drink or snack have someone planning for you if you need it. Turn down service at night, getting fresh and clean towels without calling to ask for them. Coming back from the parks mid day which we do a lot and be able to grab a drink and snack. No waits just walking in and grabbing whatever they have to offer. At the Poly we like knowing which building we are in and the views are spectacular. If you have kids they love the snacks that are offered. It is expensive, I have never stayed concerige anywhere else so I can't compare to the big hotels elsewhere.

We couldn't afford to pay full price for it but as long as we are able to get discounts or a deal we will continue to do it while the kids are young.

[busterthebronco]

i dont like it.
i dont like to eat all day.:sick:
i dont drink alcohol either.:marg::beer:
lastly i can plan and implement all my own activities.:thumbsup:

[Polynesian Dweller]

Only way that we'll stay is Concierge at the Poly. We have found it to be a far more relaxed vacation than we had before staying at the Club Level. Getting out in the morning is less rushed, its a quieter atmosphere and we can get a snack or drink when we want it. Its not the 'things' we get that justify the cost but how much more relaxing the trip is.

Some folks say that the concierge isn't up to concierge in big cities. Well, we've stayed in many high end concierge's around the world and they are all different for what you get. At Disney they do just fine. We have yet to make a request that they haven't been able to fulfill, and that includes beyond restaurants. I can't think of what they are missing at the Poly.

If a restaurant isn't fully booked, they get you in, need a car they get it, want a bottle of wine sent to the room, they'll do it, they even helped when there was a threat of a Hurricane in finding out what our options would be. Nope, nothing missing that I've found if you are realistic (i.e. don't expect to get in to a fully booked restaurant) and bother to ask them.

[jillluvsdisney]

I am hoping that we can swing a trip to WDW in December. I want to stay at the Polynesian and really would love to stay concierge.

My parents are are seniors and my mom usually spends time around whatever resort we stay at. She cannot physically do a park every day.

Reading the comments here makes me think that we would really enjoy the benefits of Poly concierge.

[Donald]

We loved the WL club level. The CM's at WL (all seemed to be named Michael!) were awesome. They answered questions , made reservations, and held my packages for me (that I was trying to hide from the kids:blush:).

The food was wonderful. It was just perfect for our family.

Our view from our room was amazing. #7056 has a great view of MK's fireworks! We would come back from the parks, grab a glass of wine or dessert and sit on our balcony to enjoy the fireworks from the MVMCP. Perfect!

[DisneyDog]

We did the Poly concierge when I was pregnant. It was wonderful! There were snacks available whenever I was hungry. And it wasn't just pretzels and chips. It was yummy pasteries and cookies and you other things. I definitely enjoyed that, and I know it was probably a once in a lifetime treat.