CRO Tells Me: "Lots" of Canadians Going in October

[DisneyLisa]

I just called to check rates for a Moderate for October (I know, I know...you thought I'd made up my mind...but I'm still thinking about spending less on a resort & more on things like the Backstage Magic Tour @ $199 US per person, etc.). I was told there are no moderates available for "Canadian At Par" for when we're going and for most of October. CRO told me everyone he has booked for "Canadian At Par" has been for October & he's wondering why we are all going then? I thought that was kind of interesting.

I can get the FT package for any of the moderates though at $1163 US for 7 nights (with DC discount) & I've temporarily booked the CSR but still don't feel that great about it. I'm anxious to read about Bunnyfoo's CBR stay and I'm also going to spend some time checking out the POR. It's raining so I've done nothing but sit in front of this computer since 8 am "planning" our trip. What do you think of that rate? I also welcome all and any comments that might help me decide what to do...ie. good things about the moderates

I know I'm crazy but I just can't make up my mind.

 

[DisneyLisa]

Wow...I just called to get some additional resort availabilities & prices so (just for the heck of it) asked for a quote for the Poly for our dates - was given $253.22/night. I booked it the first day of "Canadian At Par" & got $202.61/night. I guess as everyone said, we got great deals that 1st day...how can I pass a rate like that up? Oh, decisions, decisions.

 

[cottontail]

Hi Lisa:

I don't think you are crazy. For us Canadians it is that darn old exchange on the room rate that is a killer. If our money was worth the same amount as the American dollar, it would be no question.

The car. beach is tropical, with rooms a little larger than the por. I think the building location is key at the car beach. You would have to ask others who have stayed there for a good recommendation.If that is what you are looking for. I have not been to the csr.

I guess that means that the poly is out, well maybe another time for you. The poly is great if you have more than 2 in the room for the space if hubby or any other children accompany you.

What about a split, if you keep calling back to see if you can get canada at par in oct at one of the moderates. As people change their minds maybe one would open up.

Deb.

 

[DisneyLisa]

I still have my Poly reservations Deb...CRO said I could keep both until I decide . Knowing what a good rate I have for the Poly makes me think it's "meant to be" . DD just got home from work so after dinner I'm going to talk to her & see what she really wants. She'd like to do Hoop de Doo, Luau (already booked for the night of her 16th birthday), a behind the scenes tour etc. so we'll have to decide what is important to us. If we stay at the Poly we can do "Keys to the Kingdom" at $58 US each but not "Backstage Magic" at $199 US each

We'll have to talk about the pros & cons of each & make a decision. It's just that if we were to choose a moderate, I don't know which to choose. DD & I both loved the look & size of POFQ but unfortunately that's not an option now .

 

[cdnmickeylover]

I've stayed at CBR a number of times over the years and really like it. We are booked to stay there in October for a week. It's a nice bright resort although it is spread out. We usually ask to stay in Jamaica which is across the bridge from Old Port Royale where the food court is. It's a nice relaxing walk and not too far. I believe it's Trinidad South which is quite a long way from the food court.

CBR was the first onsite resort we stayed in so I think that's why it's always been my favourite. I haven't stayed in the other moderates although have stayed at the BC, Poly, GF and ASSp and liked them all.

Have fun deciding.

Cdnmickeylover

 

[kimang]

Hi DisneyLisa:

I know exactly how you feel. In fact I let the "canada at par" deal pass by because we secured a great rate at the Sheraton Safari - $79 for a suite in October and I couldn't convince my DH to move on site ( I did try though) .

I can't really blame him - because I begged him to go back since we were just in WDW in November 2002 for 10 days! So I made a deal to do this trip the cheapest way possible - so no onsite this time - but maybe next time.

But I agree it is a balancing act since all our $$ are limited. I guess the decision we made was based having the $$ to do other activities and knowing that we really don't spend alot of time in our room anyway - and we can always 'hang out' at any disney hotel or go for dinner etc.

I am surprizing my DH with a day at Discovery Cove ( it will be his birthday while we are there in October). At $229 US each - it adds up - thank goodness the dollar has gone up - I made a savings of about $90 dollars for the both of us.

Good luck with your decision.

Kim

 

[bunnyfoo]

Hey Disney Lisa! I *was* working on my trip report and then we had some guests drop by unexpectedly I did a quick report on my stay at CBR, you can find it here...

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=378648

I was really excited to hear about the at par deal... I'm trying to convince my boyfriend to take me for my birthday in October, so I'll probably call and check out the rates sometime soon! Sounds like you got a great deal for the Poly ... do you know what the airfare rates are like for October? Any deals yet?

 

[DisneyLisa]

Cdnmickeylover: How did you find staying at a moderate after staying at a deluxe? Our very first on-site stay was ASMu & although we absolutely loved it, we had nothing to compare it to. We've since stayed at the BC & GF. I really don't care about the room size/layout, etc. (& really liked the convenience of the food court at ASMu) but what we really like about the monorail resorts is the convenience to MK & Epcot...our favourite parks. They also seem a little more compact...the moderates seem soooo huge! DD & I had a quick discussion before she headed off to the movies tonight & she said she enjoyed the room at the ASMu but would rather stay at a resort with a pool more exciting than the one we we have at home (ie. a slide) . So a moderate would have that. But the Poly is her dream resort and always has been since the first day she laid eyes on it. My favourite resort (for lay-out/decor etc.) was the BC but I hated the fact that the pool was so crowded & there was nowhere to eat when we returned from the parks at night. Just curious to see how you felt about the moderates vs deluxes on subsequent trips. I'm trying to think of as much as I can to help me make a final decision. Thanks.

bunnyfoo: I read your trip report...how lucky to be upgraded at AKL . I got a quote today for AKL & all they had was Pool View (no Standard) and its more per night than what I'm getting the Poly for. I don't think they offered too many rooms at the "At Par" rate...I can't believe that many Canadians are going in October . Good luck convincing your boyfriend to go in October ...but you'd better hurry if you want a room.

Kim: DD would love to do Discovery Cove but you're right...it's so expensive...what a great birthday treat for your DH. I think we'll save the Dolphin Swim for the Disney Cruise we're hoping to take some day. Have a great time & be sure to post how it goes when you get back.

 

[DisneyLisa]

bunnyfoo: I haven't seen any good deals on flights but I gave up & used Aeroplan for 1 ticket and Air Miles for the other. There are some great rates on US airlines from Buffalo. Check out this thread : http://disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=373457

 

[cdnmickeylover]

DisneyLisa -- We were not bothered at all by switching between moderate and deluxe. GF seemed in some ways too fancy for us but that could have been because we checked in with way too much luggage. We drove and ended up with 30 pieces of baggage which included pillows, coolers, food etc. There were 4 of us that trip though my mother, brother, son and I. We were there as part of the land/sea when Premier Cruise Lines did it. The monorail was nice especially for getting to MK. At that time AK wasn't open yet. The Poly was really nice as well. We had a ground floor room and could just walk outside directly from our room which was great.

We got bumped up to the BC on one trip for a night (free) because I believe there was an airline strike going on. It had just opened and the pool wasn't ready yet. It was a really nice room though and I'd like to go back and stay there again. The atmosphere was really pleasant and I liked it better than the GF.

We've stayed mostly at CBR though and really enjoy the layout. When my son was smaller (he's almost 17 and 6 feet!!) he used to do the mug runs which was great. He has no interest in visiting WDW now.

The last stay was at ASSp last September and we had no problem with it after staying at CBR last April. We just wanted a cheap trip with the Cdn at par rate and it was. We are booked to stay there again in July and CBR in October. The July trip is still up in the air as it depends on work but we don't mind staying in a value. The differences to us at this point don't matter -- since DS isn't coming the slide at the pool won't matter nor will the sit down restaurant as we don't eat there.

I will say go for it in terms of a hotel. If you've always wanted to stay there and can afford to go for it. We really want to stay at AKL but just can't swing the extra $ at this point because we are purchasing AP and would really like to go down at Xmas. We will stay there eventually.

Bottom line -- we don't mind moving around from deluxe, moderate and value because each are different with a different atmosphere and theme which is more important to us probably than the fact that one is a deluxe or moderate.

Cdnmickeylover

 

[PoohBWV]

DisneyLisa: With a rate of only $200 approx a night for the Poly, plus the fact that it's your daughters dream resort, I'd definitely stick with that. You can always do the tours another time, but you might not get that rate again, plus I think you're dd would remember the resort more than the tour.

 

[kellyla]

Just to let you guys know,all of the schools in Hamilton(both public and Catholic)will be closed for a week in October because of the city hosting the World Road Cycling Championships(closing them because of road closures).It runs October 6-12.So maybe there will be lots of Hamiltonians taking advantage of the at-par rates?

 

[DisneyLisa]

Well Hamilton ought to be quite empty that week Kelly...looks like they'll all be in WDW

 

[DisneyLisa]

GASP! ...DD & I just finished a nice chat & I showed her a bunch of CSR pics & maps etc. on the internet. She got all excited & said "Mom, that's the other resort I always told you I wanted to try...that pool is so cool".

I don't believe it...she says we should stay there for the following reasons:
1. we should wait & go to the Poly when there are other people with us because with just 2 of us we don't need queen size beds
2. it'll be so much easier to "get around" with just 2 people so we won't really need the monorail
3. with MK closing at 6pm each night we won't be there as much
4. without the summer heat to wear us out we probably won't do as much park hopping/breaks/rests
5. the bus service was terrible at the GF last year & it's shared with the Poly...but she said the BC & ASMU bus service was always great
6. she misses a food court at the deluxes and the Pepper Market looks cool

Go figure...that's not what I expected her to say. All I can say is WOW! I still want to give this some more thought but my decision will be much easier to make now . A part of me still wants to stay at the Poly because we got such a good rate but I have to agree with some of her comments.

 

[MaMudduck]

All the Canadians are going in OCTOBER because they haven't released the NOV OR DEC rates yet!!!!!!! and all us WDW freaks wanted a great price before we go & book stuff. I think they forget that our Thanksgiving is then (Same day as US Columbus Day) so for us it also a good time to get vacation time.
Florida is not too hot then (especial for us colder folks from then north )
Bunnyfoo- great prices with Southwest out of Buffalo.

DisneyLisa- the girl's got a good point(s)!- I went to the poly many, many years ago & it was beautiful, but I thought it looked a little "tired" last Nov.- I'm sure the rooms are beautiful...but I think AKL would be my Deluxe choice. and I like the look of CSR alot too.

 

[cottontail]

Hi Lisa:

I agree with the moderate being large enough for the two of you. The poly rooms are spacious, but maybe you could save that for a trip with more members of your family.

I agree about the food court vers sitdown restaurants, we are always so busy we like to grag a bite to eat and run to the next activity, or take our food to our room and eat and relax.

You will probably get another good rate, if you choose the right time to go to wdw.

The poly vers moderate is probably about 140 canadian more a night.

I have never stayed at the csr, but I am sure it is quite lovely,

Have fun,

Deb.

 

[TimNDansMom]

Have you made a decision yet, Lisa?

I got my confirmation yesterday and I'm pleased to see that Disney honoured the rate I was quoted the morning the @ Par started. I figured they would, from what I had read here, but it's nice to see it in writing.

 

[DisneyLisa]

I got my confirmation yesterday too Julie & got the low rate I was quoted as well .

But now there's a glitch in my plans & I'm not 100% sure what's happening. The friend I took to WDW last summer (you all remember that story ) called me this morning and is offering to pay for everything for a trip to WDW this summer for her, me & DD (resort, food & travel costs)...all I have to pay for is passes & and spending money . I'm in total shock! After paying everything for her the last 2 summers this is totally unexpected (but very welcome ). It isn't finalized yet (although I just booked the Poly for Aug 16-24th with Canadian at Par - $1787 US w/tax for 8 nights) so now it looks like DD & I may end up doing the Eastern Disney Cruise in October (if we do this trip in August). DD doesn't know any of this yet - she had left for school when I got the call. A Disney Cruise is her absolute dream & the Poly is her favourte resort so it looks like she may be getting 2 dream vacations this year.

WOW...I can't believe it. Now I have to start planning all over again .

 

[PoohBWV]

Wow! You must be really good friends with this person. I don't remember what happened last summer, but it can't be too bad if she's willing to take you with her this year. Have fun planning.

 

[DisneyLisa]

Originally posted by PoohBWV
Wow! You must be really good friends with this person. I don't remember what happened last summer, but it can't be too bad if she's willing to take you with her this year. Have fun planning.

Actually it was pretty bad at the time (even though she is my best friend) & we ended coming home early . We did discuss our "touring" styles though this morning & have come to an agreement, so this year should be better...heck how can it not be when I'm not footing the bill for a change .