Reviews of Beach Club Resort (Deluxe Resort)
Reviewed by BareNecessities Review Date: 09/27/2018
Rating: (8) Recommended
This resort's proximity to Epcot and its unique pool area, keep it close to the top of our resort list. We don't stay here often, for two main reasons. It gets so crowded at the pool area that we just feel too crowded (and you need a wrist band just to take a little dip late in the day). The second reason relates to that in relation to its price. For the cost, we'd hope for an easier poolside experience. We've stayed concierge and it doesn't help make up for that extreme congestion around the pool. Nothing beats this location of course, and parking is easier than at Boardwalk or Dolphin, when you have a car, but staying during a quieter time might be our only solution for this resort.
Pros:
location and pool areaCons:
congestion at pool areaReviewed by Anonymous Review Date: 09/25/2018
Rating: (7) Recommended
We like staying at the Beach Club but it's definitely mostly about location. Everything is fine there, but many of the other Deluxe resorts compare favorably. There is no substitute for location however and the easy access to Epcot is wonderful.
Pros:
LocationCons:
Dining OptionsReviewed by mouserrificmom Review Date: 03/01/2018
Rating: (7) Recommended
This is a beautiful resort. I have no genuine complaints, but I will say the service is not quite what we have grown accustomed to at other Disney locations. I have long wanted to stay at the Beach Club having admired it for so long on visits to dine at either Cape May Cafe or Beaches and Cream.
The location is really ideal - a very quick walk to Epcot via the International gateway, easy walk or boat to HS and a short bus ride away to either the MK or Animal Kingdom. The lobby is exquisite. Boardwalk Resort is a favorite of mine, but the lobby at Beach Club is far more spacious and inviting. It is not unusual to see people relaxing in one of the little nooks with sofas.
The service is what leaves me scratching my head. Typical of Disney, the cast members were all very pleasant, but atypical of Disney, they were not very accommodating or concerned. We arrived early, certainly NOT expecting to have a room ready and planning to go straight to Epcot after checking our luggage into Bell Services. We arrived around 10 a.m. We had to visit the desk because my traveling partner and I wanted to separately link our Magic Bands as we were each paying for our own things separately. It took some time to get all of that sorted out and properly attached to each of our MDE accounts as the room was booked only under mine. It was a pleasant exchange with a helpful cast member.
I found it unusual that we had not received a room ready notification by 3 as we had arrived so early and had no special requests. I noticed however that i had a voice mail message at around noon and upon listening to it realized that the front desk had called because the bands were not properly linked (which we noticed at Epcot when trying to make purchases). I was asked to visit the front desk upon returning, which I did around 3:30 and the Magic Band situation was rectified, but the room still not ready.
I wasn't terribly upset but my travel companion is less patient than I am. She asked why the room wasn't ready and was just sort of shrugged off with no sense of urgency. We were tired, having left our home airports at around 6 a.m. At 4:00 she asked again and was told again that the room wasn't ready but they would put us in a different room if that would be acceptable (well, of course, why didn't you just assign us to a different but available room when we arrived, or when we returned at 3:30 after the official check in time?)....and so at 4:12 we FINALLY had a room assignment and went to our room. The room matched the category we had booked (Standard garden view)
The rooms are lovely, we were in a Garden View standard on the 4th floor. It was very heavily wooded, but I could see the very top of Spaceship Earth from our balcony. The room had a weird cut into it, like a block to accommodate an HVAC system or something so perhaps that is why they were trying to wait to give us a full size room? We are used to a small table and chairs in our Disney Rooms in addition to the desk, but this room had none and no room for it because of this weird block by the balcony door. It was a single door and a single window and that was all that there was room for. On inspection, one of the lights was not working. On our checkout day, Housekeeping Knocked on the door at 9:17 am hoping to begin service ..... we confirmed with her that it was our understanding that checkout was at 11, she was pleasant but obviously disappointed that we had not yet cleared the room.
Overall, it was a pleasant experience, but in all of our other years of travel and resort stays, the cast members have ALWAYS gone above and beyond to accommodate and meet our travel needs and expectations. Here we definitely felt an attitude of "you get what you get and you don't get upset". I love the resort, so I may try it again and hope for a better experience, but I have heard similar reports from others so we may go back to just visiting and admiring the Beach Club from afar.
Pros:
Fabulous location and atmosphereCons:
Not quite up to par compared with other Disney locationsReviewed by jeconk Review Date: 12/27/2017
Rating: (5) Recommended
Review of the Beach Club Resort – December 2017:
We have stayed in French Quarter, Bay Lake & Boardwalk before and must be spoiled because this was my least favorite stay at a Disney Hotel. Too many little things added up.
First, you can't beat the location. It is a quick walk to the International Gate at Epcot or to the Boardwalk and either a short boat ride or 15 minute walk to Hollywood Studios. The boat dock is closer to Yacht Club than beach club but still very easy to get to. The building color and grounds are very nice and the bus stops are close to the front door.
Now for a breakdown of the various areas of service:
A.) Transportation: Obviously walking to EPCOT & Boardwalk are great perks, but to get to Future World/front gate/monorail at Epcot, you have to walk through part of International Showcase (and according to one boat Captain, it is a mile to the front.). The walk to Hollywood Studios is longer but the “Friendship Boat†service is very efficient coming and going. The boat Captains are well trained and loading/unloading are quick.
The bus service at Beach Club however is another story. Beach Club shares a bus route with Yacht Club and Y.C. is picked up and dropped off first. Many times in the morning this meant that busses to Magic Kingdom or Animal Kingdom were already full of Yacht Club guests when they arrived at Beach Club. It would take several busses to pick up the crowd waiting at Beach Club due to busses already being full. (and Beach Club guests were usually the ones who had to stand on the busses.). Strange how a DVC resort at Beach Club gets the second string on bus service.
Because of the design of the busses, those in wheelchairs require longer periods of loading & unloading and take out many seats. Unfortunately I heard many groans and complaints when busses pulled up to a stop with a person in a scooter waiting (or coming up to a bus stop with a scooter person waiting.) When my father was there in 2007, they had specific busses for handicapped/scooters and that prevented the time lost by regular busses (and the grumblings.) As more and more scooters appear at Disney, they may want to rethink that option.
B.) Check-in: Here is where another problem arose. We had arrived very early that morning and gave our luggage to bell services while we went to Hollywood Studios. We had completed online registration so we just waited for our room assignment. At 2:00 p.m., we went back to the hotel and inquired about the room and were told that our room was not ready but they would text us when it was and we could walk around the complex. At about 3:45, we were finally notified that our room was ready. Even though they knew we had arrived, it still took 8 hours for our room. (even with an 11:00 a.m. check out of the previous guests, it was still 4 ½ hours for our room.)
C.) Front Desk/Bell Services: These were all efficient, friendly and answered your questions. We had arrived early and bell services held our luggage for most of the day until we received our room assignment and they arrived with our luggage within minutes of our call.
A special shout out to the guys at the airline/luggage check in. They were friendly, helpful and it appeared they enjoyed their jobs. They made it a very great experience…even though you were checking out….lol.
D.) Housekeeping: Another area that was lacking on this trip. As stated above, our room was not ready until 3:45 and in reality, it was not ready as it appears no supervisor check was completed. Things that were wrong: No shampoo, soap, etc were left. No wash cloths and only 2 hand towels. (we had to call twice to get these items and when they finally came, they brought “bath towels†instead of wash cloths. (they got the hand towels right….). It appeared the carpet was not vacuumed. I will say that the bathroom appeared to be properly cleaned however.
E.) Room/Bathroom: The room was typical Disney resort room with two very comfortable queen beds and a fold out couch. We didn’t need to use the couch as a bed but if we had it would have made things very tight to move through. Two of the wall outlets however were missing covers. While the vanity area was spacious and had two sinks and plenty of shelf space, the toilet/tub area was smaller than others we have been in. The tub/shower had good water pressure but the water never got really hot (even with the cold turned off.). Since I have a bad back, soaking in a hot tub of water is helpful but was not really possible.
While there were plenty of computer/phone jacks on the credenza, the desk and the night stand, the problem came with the electric plugs. The plugs on the nightstand are very close together (like a power strip) and this made it impossible to plug two large plugs into it. Only one plug would work unless both were the small type.
The closet location was nice as was the safe. The refrigerator location sometimes made it tough to use (why do the doors to the cabinet and the refrigerator open opposite directions??)
The elevators were very quick and you did not have to wait long for one going up or down.
F.) Public areas: These areas are much nicer than those at Boardwalk or Bay Lake. Lots of spaces around the hotel to sit, relax, socialize, read, etc. (lobby, solarium, patios, etc.). While the marketplace is a nice place for purchasing drinks and snacks, the food choices are extremely limited. There is no food court at Beach Club (or Yacht Club or Boardwalk) and so your choices are sit down restaurants (like Cape May Café) or “fast food†type meals from the Marketplace.
We did wander over to both the Marketplaces at Yacht Club & Boardwalk and both appeared to have more merchandise selections than Beach Club while the Yacht Club Marketplace and Boardwalk Bakery have more choices. (but still not as good as a Food Court.)
Obviously the grounds around Beach Club are very pretty and the ability to see the lights of Boardwalk are nice as well.
Overall, Beach Club is a very pretty resort in a good location but it had a lot of “minor†things that added up to a not as good experience. I still rate French Quarter, Bay Lake Tower & Boardwalk above Beach Club.
Pros:
Location can't be beat, boat service, poolCons:
Poor Bus service; Housekeeping issues;Reviewed by jkkd Review Date: 05/02/2016
Rating: (10) Recommended
This was the first time we have ever stayed at the Beach Club. We absolutely loved it!!!!! It was so lovely and wow the location was outstanding. To be able to walk over to EPCOT was such a wonderful option.
The room location we got was great. We had a garden view. We thought the room was wonderful. ( I do have to say that there were a few housekeeping issues - some things that could have been cleaner on our first day - but after that everything seemed to be fine.)
When we did have to take the bus, we didn't have to wait a crazy long time and we did not have to stand in the bus. Obviously we could walk to EPCOT and also could walk to Studios, which was a good bit further walk. Yet, we still did it a couple of times. Also you have the boat option to Studios as well, and we did that also.
It is a bit slow, BUT you aren't having to walk, so it is all good.
The pool here is outstanding. We took advantage of that one morning and we really loved it. I was so glad we took time out for the pool and water slide. Tons of fun and so beautiful!
We have generally determined that Port Orleans French Quarter has been our favorite resort. . . . and we do love it. . . . . BUT wow, if we are able to swing staying at the Beach Club again, we are all in. It was worth it!!!
Pros:
LOCATIONCons:
expensiveReviewed by tinkmama60 Review Date: 10/12/2015
Rating: (8) Recommended
We stayed a few days at the DVC Beachclub Resort to enjoy the Food and Wine Festival. We loved our location, but a little surprised that the room was a tad "worn" looking. For the price/points one pays for this upscale resort, they should really update the rooms. We could see water damage in the bathroom. So obvious that we wondered why it hasn't been noticed and fixed. Overall beautiful resort and location to Food and Wine Festival.
Pros:
Awesome locationCons:
room looked a little wornReviewed by SNC Review Date: 11/30/2014
Rating: (4) Not Recommended
We stayed here for 3 days as part of our Honeymoon at Disney (Started at the Poly, then BC, then AK Lodge). Let me preface this by saying my immediate family and I have stayed at the Beach Club 3 times prior to this, including concierge level suites, and never had a problem. I could not wait to get to the BC and share the experience with my husband who had never seen it. That quickly ended at check-in. We were received without any of the warmth or welcome we experienced at the other two deluxe resorts on our trip. The gentleman behind the desk did not even acknowledge it was our honeymoon (wearing buttons and on the reservation) and then showed me where our room was to be on the map and kept asking "Is that ok?" which should have let me know something was up to begin with. We walked to the room and then they started testing the fire alarm, so the whole walk was extremely noisy rather than peaceful. When we opened the door to our room the room smelled terrible, like dirty socks! I have never experienced this at the BC, or any other resort, but the smell was so strong that I immediately returned to the front desk and asked politely to be moved ( I have never ever done this before). My room request had also not been granted. I had asked 6 months earlier for a room right on the first floor facing the quiet pool. The reservation attendant on the phone had assured me that this was a fine request for my room category, but when I returned to the desk, the gentleman at the check-in desk at the Beach Club stated that my category (Garden View) did not include rooms right on the quiet pool. I pointed out the request, and he said "Yeah, I see that in the computer…" I asked if I could pay for an upgrade to that level. He said yes and informed me it would be $300 more. I said fine (it was our honeymoon and my husband loves to swim laps!). He then had to call reservations to change the room. Upon hanging up the phone he starts showing me the map and says, ok, so it's on the second floor near the elevator. What?! That is totally the opposite of what I asked for. I then asked for my original request of a room on the quiet pool. He then tells me in a condescending tone "You have to understand…it's Thanksgiving." I told him, I was very Aware, as we were there to celebrate our Thanksgiving AND our Honeymoon. He then told me that our room category originally did not include that, and I said they had verified it by phone. He mentioned that was not his fault, but an error on the part of the reservations person. I really did not like being spoken to like a little kid rather than a grown woman. At one point, he even asked if he could call the room and talk to my husband to talk him into the 2nd floor room! (So bizarre, I said No). Eventually, we did get our room on the quiet pool, but not until it was a total upset for me. While there we enjoyed the quiet pool and Stormalong Bay, which is the biggest selling point for this place, and the nice walk to Epcot. The Check-In experience, however, totally soured my love for the BC. I could not believe I was spoken to that way after being a loyal customer and being on my honeymoon. They also weren't very happy at Check-out either, and didn't even ask about our stay. Beach Club front desk really needs to get it together in terms of customer service. Mousekeeping and the gift shop people were excellent.
Pros:
Great Pool, Easy Walk to EpcotCons:
Terrible Check-In Experience, Cold Impersonal FeelingReviewed by PeterPanFam Review Date: 11/21/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
Stayed for two nights in November 2014. Arrived at 11 am, room wasn't ready and they said they'd text when it was. Went to the amazing pool and waited hours for the text to get into our room. It never came. Finally stopped at the desk again after the regular check-in time and got our room assignment. It was in the last hallway, as far away from the lobby as possible so it was quite a walk with luggage. But, we had a partial view of Epcot through the trees and a great balcony facing Epcot to watch Illuminations. And our walk to Epcot was about 3 minutes. So we were very happy with it. The room itself was very spacious, clean, and comfortable. Loved the double sinks for getting ready fast in the mornings. Kids loved the pool, can't beat that sand bottom for hours of entertainment. We took a boat to Hollywood Studios and that worked out great. We also enjoyed walking around the boardwalk. Overall, love the hotel, wish it was in our price range more often!
Pros:
Great pool, very close to EpcotCons:
Room far from lobby, limited quick food optionsReviewed by 5busyrussells Review Date: 09/25/2014
Rating: (6) Not Recommended
I was disappointed. Maybe there was too much hype surrounding the pool, etc., that my expectations were too high - but I doubt we will return to the Beach Club. In the past, we have stayed at Port Orleans Riverside, and I found myself wishing we were there this visit. The ability to walk to Epcot and the Boardwalk was the biggest plus, the pool was nice but not worth the extra cost. I found the hotel to feel to "busy" all the time. Every time we walked through the lobby there were kids running everywhere. Even our kids commented on how disorderly it seemed to be. On arrival, our room was ready, but none of our magic bands worked, so we had to wait until the problem was fixed to be able to go to Magic Kingdom as it would not recognize our dining reservations or Fastpasses. But I believe that problem was system-wide, not just a Beach Club problem. The pool was not available the first day we were there, which was disappointing as the kids wanted to swim for a bit before heading to MK. They ended up going to one of the quiet pools. I think the rooms are in desperate need of remodeling - they look very worn. All in all, for a vacation in excess of $5K, I think I would try the Polynesian next time, although we probably will return to Port Orleans Riverside. It was much quieter and after busy days at parks, to return to yet another busy place, Beach Club, felt like there was never any down time.
Pros:
Proximity to Epcot and BoardwalkCons:
Too "busy", not worth the extra expenseReviewed by mom2mybugs Review Date: 08/10/2014
Rating: (9) Recommended
We really loved the amenities at this room. We have 5, so being able to stay in one room was huge--the sofa bed was little but worked for my 15 year old. We loved the pool and spent a couple nights there. Location proximity to Epcot and Studios was great! We ate at both Beaches and Cream and Cape May (char.breakfast) and were very pleased with the quality.
Cons--tons of walking. We had a pool view (no standards available on the discounts) but it was a long walk to the big pool anyway, and a ridiculous distance from parking! The price is steep...you are paying for location and the pool. If that isn't a priority, the theming isn't amazing enough to justify the price. We loved it, but it was a definite splurge.
