Disney's YACHT & BEACH CLUB RESORTS Information & Questions

[natebenma]

page 760-761

Hope to catch up here in the next day or so.

We will be down April 19-26 for our first trip!

I'll add you to the Be Our Guest list we keep on Page 1 (Post 15). Which resort? Beach Club, Yacht Club or Beach Club Villas?

@ PCFriar80...noticed your profile, go Friars, currently a PC men's hockey season ticket holder. Do you still go to any games? Also planning trip to BCV but not until Aug.

to this thread and posting on the DIS!

I'll add you to the list for August.

Yoo hooooo.... After a much too long absence, I finally pulled the trigger on booking for my 50th birthday trip! Well, my 50th is a few weeks before the trip, but I wanted to go when the crowd levels were lower. You can put me down for August 18th - 26th at BC CL, followed by three nights on the dark side. I actually am in shock. I cannot wait to go back! My BFF and her family are coming at the same time, bringing another family with her, and we are going to work on our travel buddies to come with their kids as well. I need to take another look at my signature - I haven't been on here much since my last trip in August 2013 (when I got a concussion and a huge black eye, and was recognized in the lounge and hot tub by fellow Disboarders as a result!) I'm happy to see my picture of the cot in the room from 2012 is still in the FAQ as well. LOL.

I will have many questions, I'm sure, and will be following along until August!

back!!!!

So excited about your trip and that we will be seeing you hanging out here again.

I'll add you to the list. Where are you staying when you visit The Theme Park Which Must Not Be Named?

Hey Everyone

Just book a last minute trip to the BC, every year we stay at the Grand in July, but couldn't resist the cheap flights. We always wanted to try an EPCOT hotel and January 23rd we arrive.

I've been checking on the thread and I am getting so excited, just figured I would ask if there is anything I should know and if there is seating near or by the Beach Club Marketplace? We visit the Yacht Club every year to eat at Yachtsman but that's all I am familiar with.

Also, if anyone has an input in what I should pack for a trip in January I would appreciate that too, we have never been to WDW another time but May and July.

Thanks for the help!!

I'll add you to the list.



In response to your first question, there are a few indoor tables and seats just outside the Marketplace. Across the hall there is quite a lot of outside, but covered seating. I took a lot of pictures when I was there in October and I will post those soon. There is also a lot of lounge-like seating in the Solarium, just down the hall from the Marketplace.

As others have suggested on what to bring- a little bit of everything! You may be in shorts one day and sweatshirts the next. Bring swimsuits, just in case.

My friend just checked-in to a 1 night stay in a standard view room at Yacht Club. She was offered multiple rooms and told to "take this one" upon checking in. She is in a completed refurb:


She also said she can hear work above her on the third floor and sees painters going in and out of the rooms on the second floor.

Thanks again for the pictures! May I post these on Page 1 of this thread?

 

[MaC410]

So my wife and I just booked our next Disney World trip! Unfortunately we have a long wait since we booked a November 30 to December 9 stay. We really wanted to go for the Christmas festivities! As much as we wanted to stay at the Yacht Club again it just isn't affordable to keep doing since we like to stay for a good amount of time. We decided to stay at the Art of Animation since it is a very affordable price, has it's own bus and the Pop Warner groups don't stay at that resort (since we will be going Pop Warner week).

I can't help feel a little disappointed though about not staying in the Epcot area. Our last trip was my first disney world trip. It was our honeymoon so we went all out and boy did we feel spoiled. Staying in the Epcot area was amazing. Walking around the lake at night, boat rides to Hollywood Studios, a few minute walk to Epcot It was all so great. I know i shouldn't be disappointed. We're still going on an amazing vacation. I just can't help it. I'm sure many of you have stayed in other resorts besides the Yacht or Beach Club. Did you ever feel disappointed? How did you get rid of that disappointment?

 

[jlundeen]

So my wife and I just booked our next Disney World trip! Unfortunately we have a long wait since we booked a November 30 to December 9 stay. We really wanted to go for the Christmas festivities! As much as we wanted to stay at the Yacht Club again it just isn't affordable to keep doing since we like to stay for a good amount of time. We decided to stay at the Art of Animation since it is a very affordable price, has it's own bus and the Pop Warner groups don't stay at that resort (since we will be going Pop Warner week).

I can't help feel a little disappointed though about not staying in the Epcot area. Our last trip was my first disney world trip. It was our honeymoon so we went all out and boy did we feel spoiled. Staying in the Epcot area was amazing. Walking around the lake at night, boat rides to Hollywood Studios, a few minute walk to Epcot It was all so great. I know i shouldn't be disappointed. We're still going on an amazing vacation. I just can't help it. I'm sure many of you have stayed in other resorts besides the Yacht or Beach Club. Did you ever feel disappointed? How did you get rid of that disappointment?

I haven't found ANY way to totally get rid of that disappointment - we here know that there's nothing like the BC! But I do try to lessen it when I'm at WDW and staying in another resort - I make a special point to walk through BC, shop at Marketplace, maybe try for a reservation at Cape May or Beaches and Cream, stroll around the grounds, looking longingly at the pool over the fence, and dream of a someday return to my HOME....

 

[prgal0715]

I hope you are enjoying your trip. Wish Ethan's break was 2 weeks later and we would have been at the same resort!!!!

Next time, Kerry!! Enjoy your trip!

 

[prgal0715]

I am home from the Beach Club and absolutely loved it! The new rooms are lovely and maintain a "beachy" vibe while also feeling very classy and upscale. As I had mentioned earlier on this thread, I was in room 3701 which is a standard view with a full balcony and partial view of SAB, the Boardwalk, the Swan and the Dolphin. (I could also see the HS fireworks from the balcony.) Here's the view:

Shout out to the poster who mentioned the secret staircase near Cape May - that was a time saver!

Speaking of Cape May, one of my biggest complaints about my room location was the odor! The hallways reeked of fish at night which isn't all that pleasant; fortunately, the smell didn't make its way into the room. My other complaint is mousekeeping - it was SO inconsistent! On my arrival day, I went to make coffee in the room and found old, moldy (and stinky!) coffee pods in the maker. Yuck! On certain days, the room was beautifully made up and other days, towels weren't replenished, dirty dishes were left behind, glasses weren't replaced, etc. None of these things were deal breakers, but definitely annoyances.

Overall, BC was beautiful and I'd happily stay there again. I love the proximity to Epcot and HS as well as the vibe of the resort. Please let me know if anyone has questions!!

 

[dansdad]

So my wife and I just booked our next Disney World trip! Unfortunately we have a long wait since we booked a November 30 to December 9 stay. We really wanted to go for the Christmas festivities! As much as we wanted to stay at the Yacht Club again it just isn't affordable to keep doing since we like to stay for a good amount of time. We decided to stay at the Art of Animation since it is a very affordable price, has it's own bus and the Pop Warner groups don't stay at that resort (since we will be going Pop Warner week).

I can't help feel a little disappointed though about not staying in the Epcot area. Our last trip was my first disney world trip. It was our honeymoon so we went all out and boy did we feel spoiled. Staying in the Epcot area was amazing. Walking around the lake at night, boat rides to Hollywood Studios, a few minute walk to Epcot It was all so great. I know i shouldn't be disappointed. We're still going on an amazing vacation. I just can't help it. I'm sure many of you have stayed in other resorts besides the Yacht or Beach Club. Did you ever feel disappointed? How did you get rid of that disappointment?

I'll copy what I posted in the new thread you started.

We have stayed at all 3 levels of WDW resorts and every trip has been special in it's own way. We have found our Disney home in CBR but when we have a last minute super budget trip and stay at a Value we are having so much fun we don't notice. Plus when we do have a budget trip planned we are park commandos and stay rope drop to closing time. When we stay at CBR or a Deluxe we will have 3-4 resort only days. So we "DO" Disney different depending on where we are staying.

 

[focusondisney]

So my wife and I just booked our next Disney World trip! Unfortunately we have a long wait since we booked a November 30 to December 9 stay. We really wanted to go for the Christmas festivities! As much as we wanted to stay at the Yacht Club again it just isn't affordable to keep doing since we like to stay for a good amount of time. We decided to stay at the Art of Animation since it is a very affordable price, has it's own bus and the Pop Warner groups don't stay at that resort (since we will be going Pop Warner week).

I can't help feel a little disappointed though about not staying in the Epcot area. Our last trip was my first disney world trip. It was our honeymoon so we went all out and boy did we feel spoiled. Staying in the Epcot area was amazing. Walking around the lake at night, boat rides to Hollywood Studios, a few minute walk to Epcot It was all so great. I know i shouldn't be disappointed. We're still going on an amazing vacation. I just can't help it. I'm sure many of you have stayed in other resorts besides the Yacht or Beach Club. Did you ever feel disappointed? How did you get rid of that disappointment?

We started our Disney trips staying at moderates, our favorite being POR. Then we moved to staying deluxe, usually club level for about the last 18 years. We traveled with our DD & her husband a few years ago & went back to POR. We were nervous too, but fell in love with it all over again. Yes, it was different from a deluxe, but the grounds were beautiful & we enjoyed the different options in the food court that we don't get at YC.

Even trying a new deluxe, I get nervous that we'll be disappointed we're not at YC. I solve this by doing a split stay, a few nights at the new resort & the last half of our trip at YC. We do room only stays & don't do dining plans so it works well for us. Any chance you could do a split stay & end your trip with a few nights at YC?

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

I read on this thread, or perhaps the restaurant thread, that others were having difficulty booking Captain's Grille for May--not sure what is up with that, but perhaps the dates haven't yet been loaded into the system or a refurbishment may be planned and the dates are not yet certain. Your guess is as good as mine or anyone else.

As to your inquiry regarding Disney Springs--yes, there is bus service to Disney Springs and it begins fairly early in the a.m. Those buses are notoriously unreliable from a time standpoint. I would plan to be at the bus stop at least an hour ahead of your dining reservation and you may want to make that a bit more. Disney says to allow 90 minutes--it might not be a bad idea. If timing is in your favor, you will be killing time walking around Disney Springs. If timing is not in your favor you will make it on time.

You can grab a cab at the front entrance of the resort and it will have you at Disney Springs in 10 minutes. Probably cost around $15. Uber would be less expensive.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

I like to rope drop HS, and typically leave attempt to leave my room with 45 minutes to spare. If you want to be at the font of the rope drop pack, make it an hour (especially since they often open early.) I have not had a problem, nor a very long wait, when I did this in the summer, I do look out and make sure I haven't just missed a boat. In that case, walk. You can hoof it in less than 15, but the boat is much nicer!

Last trip we went to the docks to grab a boat so that we could get to DHS pre-rope drop and had a long wait. Apparently the boats didn't start running till about 30 minutes before park opening, so by the time we boarded and got to the park it was only about 10 minutes before open and there was a long line. Can't recall if that was for a morning EMH or not, and don't know how often that happens.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

So are there any details yet on the Captain's Grille refurb? We are planning a November trip and I'm wondering if the Grille will be reopened by then. Also wonder if they will be closing Crew' Cup during this time.

 

[Mainemama]

I am home from the Beach Club and absolutely loved it! The new rooms are lovely and maintain a "beachy" vibe while also feeling very classy and upscale. As I had mentioned earlier on this thread, I was in room 3701 which is a standard view with a full balcony and partial view of SAB, the Boardwalk, the Swan and the Dolphin. (I could also see the HS fireworks from the balcony.) Here's the view:

Shout out to the poster who mentioned the secret staircase near Cape May - that was a time saver!

Speaking of Cape May, one of my biggest complaints about my room location was the odor! The hallways reeked of fish at night which isn't all that pleasant; fortunately, the smell didn't make its way into the room. My other complaint is mousekeeping - it was SO inconsistent! On my arrival day, I went to make coffee in the room and found old, moldy (and stinky!) coffee pods in the maker. Yuck! On certain days, the room was beautifully made up and other days, towels weren't replenished, dirty dishes were left behind, glasses weren't replaced, etc. None of these things were deal breakers, but definitely annoyances.

Overall, BC was beautiful and I'd happily stay there again. I love the proximity to Epcot and HS as well as the vibe of the resort. Please let me know if anyone has questions!!

I had similar mousekeeping issues over my December trip. At the advice of posters on this board, I contacted guest services, and detailed the issues. I received a very apologetic phone call with assurances it would be directly communicated to head of mousekeeping at BC. Perhaps you would like to contact, too.

 

[natebenma]

page 762

So here's my question....Since I think we'll be spending most our time at the Yacht Club whats the quickest way from the Beach Club?

You can walk from the Beach Club just past Cape Mays, following a path outside, or hallway (most of the way, you exit for a short stretch) to the YC. Super easy, it is the same building. My personal favorite, though, would be to exit the lobby from either resort, and walk to the lakeside walkway. You go around SAB I. This case, and the lights from the Boardwalk (either at dawn or after dusk) are gorgeous. Midday I. Heat or rain, though, stick to the edge of the building! We prefer YC, but just returned from a BC stay, and it is still wonderful and easy to reach the YC for anything you need.

Great description and suggestions!

I timed the "inside" hallway route one morning and it was 5 minutes from one lobby to the other walking at a moderate pace.

I intended to time the route from the YC lobby to the Beach Club lobby by walking outside along the lake but either I forgot to do that or I did it and forgot the results of my timing test.

Well, I can now say we will be at Beach Club, trying club level, THIS YEAR!!!!!! Can't wait! Our kids are very strong swimmers compared to last time we went to Beach Club, so I can't wait to try out the pool with more relaxation! lol

So we got a night flight the day before we arrive for 1/3 the price, even taking into consideration the hotel we have to book. Beach Club wasn't available for that night in addition to our stay, so we have opted to just stay at a value that night. First time for everything! If our flight lands at 11:45pm, what time can we expect to reach the resort? We will be using magical express (we have to retrieve our own bags right?). We plan on heading straight to bed and then leaving as soon as we wake up. The kids just want to get to Beach Club. If we check into BC at 7-8am the next day, I thoroughly assume that our room won't be ready, but can we still use the lounge? Was hoping to make it for breakfast!

And one quick club level question, are we able to take a bottle of water with us to the parks in the morning? Debating if we need to order a case of water as well. Thanks for any insight!

I know someone answered your question about the time for the magical express.

I didn't see if someone answered about the water- Yes, you can take water with you to the parks. No glass permitted, though.

I recently shared my advice- I have a couple of suggestions. You can now purchase cases of water (24 bottles) for around $7 at all of the Disney resorts. Not exactly cheap, but not as outrageous as the prices in the parks, and it is pretty convenient. You can also purchase gallons of water in the Marketplace and if you bring reusable bottles, you can fill those with ice, and the water and bring that into the parks. Easier to refill a reusable bottle with a large lip than a plastic bottle. When I get a meal at a park, I ask for a cup of ice water in addition to my drink and use that to refill my bottle.

Hi Natebenma! Could you please update my info.... we now check into BEACH CLUB 2 bedroom VILLA Nov 11-16, 2017

Will do!

 

[natebenma]

page 763-764

Hi all, just booked a BC deluxe room for June 6th thru the 12th. I am loving all the info here on this thread. Thanks to all you post and put it together. Much appreciated.

to the thread!

I'll add you to the Be Our Guest list we keep on Page 1 (Post 15).

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Back from our stay at BCV for marathon weekend. I really intended to take pictures of the room, but didn't do too well. We were in a deluxe studio. I had requested an upper floor near the elevators and was granted both wishes. Our room was 422 and was quite close to the elevators. I thought the view was quite nice from this room and we could see some of the higher fireworks from Illuminations from our balcony.

The room was quite nice and the bed was good. We had three teenagers with us as well, so it was a tight fit, but we managed. The kids said the sofa bed and murphy bed were both reasonably comfortable as well. I was surprised to see a fair amount of wear and tear already in the room what with the very recently finished refurbishment, especially on the shelf holding the microwave. People can be really rough on places. But that was a minor little thing. The kids loved Stormalong Bay although the weather turned pretty cool and limited our pool time. Still it was just lovely.

It was a busy and hectic trip for us with the race weekend and squeezing in a lot of park time as well, so we didn't get to enjoy as much of the resort activities as we might have otherwise.

Bus service was good and most of the time quite prompt. The only prolonged wait we had was leaving out of Animal Kingdom one day when we saw 2-3 buses come and go from many of the other resort stops before ours arrived, but really not a big deal. We really liked being able to walk to two of the parks even though the walk to HS is a little long. The boats though were also very timely for us. We had a wonderful stay and would certainly recommend the resort to others. Thanks so much for all the great information this thread provided!!

Thank you so much for the info about your room and review of your trip. May I add a link to this post to the review section on this thread and to the BCV room description thread?

It's been a while since I visited this thread! I just booked a Mom/son trip for May 6-11 staying Beach Club. This will be new to us as we have always stayed Yacht. I am looking forward to returning for a Sunken Treasure and SAB! We did a Disney Trifecta in November - we stayed at Port Orleans Riverside for 3 days, followed by 5 days at Disney's Vero Beach, and then a 7 night cruise on the Fantasy. My ds is 9 and I am looking forward to making some memories with him.

back!

Sounds like a fantastic trip with your son.

I'll add you to the list.

Hello, Beach Club buddies!!! Long time since I checked in here. And yowzers, when I went looking for the thread, i finally found it ON PAGE 2.....NOT GOOD!!!

Anyway, I am dreaming about Beach Club, as it's been WAY WAY too long since I stayed there, but unless there is a REALLY REALLY good AP discount next fall, I don't think it's going to happen. Every trip, though, I try to at least walk through (and use the secret door) so I feel like I'm visiting my old friend!

After reading some of the recent posts here, I still feel like one of the gang...so I might hang around for a while, if it's alright with all of you!

Thanks for popping into the thread and bumping us up!

Yes, please, hang out! Hopefully there will be lots of interesting stuff going on in the coming year... the YC room refurb, work on Fittings & Fairings, Ale & Compass and hopefully the long-awaited poolside showerroom.

They are adding something similar in the Yacht Club gift shop like Beach Club marketplace.

I was told when we dined at Captain's Grille in Dec. that during the rehab, it is moving to the old Ariel's location. They were not sure if the menu would remain the same.

There will be a mix of rooms with only a shower and some with the tub/shower combo. I am not sure how they will decide who gets which room.

Thanks so much for all of this info!

I am excited for the upcoming changes at the resort!

Can you add me to the Be Our Guest List? August 22-31 YC. So excited to finally stay here!!

Will do!

So are there any details yet on the Captain's Grille refurb? We are planning a November trip and I'm wondering if the Grille will be reopened by then. Also wonder if they will be closing Crew' Cup during this time.

back!



I'll add you to the list for November. Which resort?




I haven't seen many details about the refurb like when it is starting or how long it is expected to take to complete. Sammie mentioned above that the restaurant would be temporarily moved to the Ariel's location while the work is taking place.

 

[beesly]

I might be a little behind, but does anyone have an idea of how disruptive the refurb of the pirate ship slide might be later this month? SAB was one of our primary reasons for booking at BC for the first time, and I know the pool will still be open, but it seems like they'd have to block off some space around the slide, and not just the slide - no?

 

[ZellyB]

Thank you so much for the info about your room and review of your trip. May I add a link to this post to the review section on this thread and to the BCV room description thread?

Absolutely!

 

[PCFriar80]

I might be a little behind, but does anyone have an idea of how disruptive the refurb of the pirate ship slide might be later this month? SAB was one of our primary reasons for booking at BC for the first time, and I know the pool will still be open, but it seems like they'd have to block off some space around the slide, and not just the slide - no?

I've been there when they've done similar refurb to the slide and it is minimal disruption. The "dump off" point in SAB will be closed which is not a very big portion of the pool. There will be scaffolding in the walkway under the slide but will not disrupt walkers or surrey bikes. There may be some noise from the sanding they're doing but not too terrible.

 

[shoreward]

Does any current guest at the YC have any updates on the status of construction/room refurb project?

 

[prgal0715]

I had similar mousekeeping issues over my December trip. At the advice of posters on this board, I contacted guest services, and detailed the issues. I received a very apologetic phone call with assurances it would be directly communicated to head of mousekeeping at BC. Perhaps you would like to contact, too.

I will do that, thanks! Did you use the generic guest services email address?

 

[Cait8383]

We are finally staying in the Beach Club Villas at the end of the month, so excited. I apologize if this is covered already. What's the procedure for getting into storm a long bay. All of us will have magic bands. My elderly mother has requested not to use a band and rather get a card at check in. Not a fan of new technology and I am not going to argue. Can she show her Key to the Kingdom card? Are they able to scan that similar to magic bands? Also, will we get the paper bracelets to come in and out or do we need to show our bands each time? Just want to be prepared!!! Thank you!

 

[PCFriar80]

We are finally staying in the Beach Club Villas at the end of the month, so excited. I apologize if this is covered already. What's the procedure for getting into storm a long bay. All of us will have magic bands. My elderly mother has requested not to use a band and rather get a card at check in. Not a fan of new technology and I am not going to argue. Can she show her Key to the Kingdom card? Are they able to scan that similar to magic bands? Also, will we get the paper bracelets to come in and out or do we need to show our bands each time? Just want to be prepared!!! Thank you!

The Key to the Kingdom Card will work just like the magic band. You'll get the paper bracelet first time you check in and it will be good for the rest of the day. They change up the colors each day. Have fun!