Did staying at a deluxe make you want to go back sooner (and stay at a del. again)??

[Dsnygirl]

Just a question for all you out there who were value or moderate resort people who then upgraded to a deluxe at some point...

... did that stay convince you to return to WDW sooner, and at a deluxe, or did you end up going back to a moderate and keeping to whatever was your normal trip interval?

We have stayed at both CBR and the value resorts, liked them both but preferred CBR w/ our girls for both the ambience as well as the larger room, refrigerators, coffee pots, double sinks, etc. (We stayed at a value alone, and I stayed at a value alone on a g'friends wknd trip)

We are doing a split stay in Oct., splitting our time b/w CBR and AKL, 5 nights each. Mostly, it is b/c we are celebrating our 15th anniversary, but also b/c my DH would really like to enjoy a true "resort" and the amenities there, and really get to relax there, as well. Somehow, having that balcony seems to give us the idea of more "down time" at night... tuck the girls in and enjoy a glass of wine out there, instead of crawling into bed exactly when they do. Plus, they seem to have a lot of fun things for the girls to do, and we're looking forward to just chilling out at the larger pool some, too.

We were talking about all this last night, and I said to my DH, "You know, this could be what convinces us to go deluxe again next time, and I bet we'll want to go back even sooner..." and he agreed, although he's always more on the fence about when to go back than I am, as he's not the spendthrift I can want to be.

So - just curious -- what's been everyone's experience after having gone deluxe the first time??

[Dopey's Girl]

Staying deluxe did make me want to go back sooner (it really doesn't take much to convince me) but it also made me realize how much I loved the Moderate Resorts...my deluxe experience wasn't all it should have been, so I'm back to the Mods. The added expense of a deluxe ment that I had to take shorter trips. I would rather stay longer at a lesser resort any time!

[wire0monkey]

Nope.

I've stayed at a deluxe once. It was very nice, but I've stayed at a value since then.

[tinksmom02]

I can't say, as we haven't stayed Deluxe (yet!), but I sure hope so. EVERY trip we take, I get the lecture from DH: "This is the last trip." So I just wait until he suggests it, and then I contact Terrisue at MJ so fast he doesn't even have time to backtrack! :o)

So maybe once we stay at the Poly, he'll save me the lecture and let me actually take advantage of a bounceback, should there be one (they've offered bouncebacks for the past 3 trips we've taken, but he wouldn't let me book).

[jakeybake]

It depends on the Deluxe.

First off, I am already thinking about coming back about halfway through my current trip but lets put that aside for the moment.

We stayed at the WL and all I kept thinking while we were there was that I didn't find it that much better than POR. I really didn't. The food court was much worse, the rooms not much bigger and though the boat ride to MK was nice, the boat ride to DTD at POR was just as convenient for us.

Now that being said, we had the exact opposite reaction when we stayed at the Beach Club. My DW (who is a reluctant traveler at best) instantly fell in love with the place and said that she would never stay anywhere else again.

Now I'm the WDW nut of the family and as I mentioned, my wife not a travel nut at all but she loved the BC so much that she had us book a future trip at a bounceback rate before we left for home.

So IMHO it all depends on the resort.

Jay

[BMan62]

Not in the slightest.

I just can't see paying 3 - 5 times more for a Deluxe when we are not going to be in the room other than to sleep, shower, and dress.

We did stay at BWV for 3 nights in January, but were disappointed in the Studio. Loved the view and small balcony (where we took our coffee in the mornings,) but only paid Value room price. (We rented DVC points.) It did get us to stay in our room a bit longer in the mornings, but with more trips under our belt we tend to not worry about getting to the parks at rope drop anyway.

Yes, we did enjoy the proximity to Epcot and DHS, but not at the price it would be at rack rate, or 40% off when you still have to pay for all meals, or on the 'Free DDP' offer.

[DANAM]

Honestly, NO.

My mother only stays at Deluxe, so as a child/teenager that's were I stayed.

My family just sleeps in our room and we may use the pool for an hour or so per trip. This doesn't justify the cost difference for us.

Now if we spent a couple of days by the pool then maybe but I doubt it. I think staying at the values allows us to go whenever we want. And even at the value we want to go back just as soon as we leave.

[KatMark]

We started Deluxe -- CR and Poly, went to value (All Star Sports--NEVER again), went to moderate -- CSR, went back to Poly for a son's high school graduation and have since stayed back at our moderate -- CSR. We really don't have a huge desire to stay deluxe as the CSR offers everything we want in a resort and now with the queen beds, has a spa, sit down restaurant, etc., it has a lot of what a deluxe offers. Only because we had to cancel our trip this year, we plan on doing a split stay next year with a deluxe -- the AKL because I want a savannah view because I love animals (as does DH). We'll do AKL for four days and then CSR for the last five days. There is only one other deluxe we have a desire to stay in and that is the Beach Club many years down the road.

But it does not make us want to get back any faster...Disney does that itself.

[PixieMagic]

Staying at a Deluxe convinced my family to not only keep coming back sooner, but also to stay on property...the convenience and magic is truly amazing and the service/amenities ... phenomenal!!!

[VolMickey]

Yes. Never went back to another level, as yet. Still might in the future.

[offwego]

Blythe,
Not really (assuming that going last october for a long weekend (deluxe) followed by a december trip (half value half deluxe) doesn't count (to be fair the december trip was long planned).
Personally we've bopped from value to deluxe to mod to deluxe to value to deluxe and in august will go back to value.
They all have great things (and we really loved AKL) and fun options (DS likes the Pop arcade for instance) and I don't feel that it pulled us back faster I think the AP was a far bigger factor.

[figgie]

We love staying at a deluxe resort and really feel special when we do. For financial reasons we also don't mind staying at a moderate resort, many are wonderful. But you couldn't lure me into staying at a value resort. To many school groups! It is a great value if you need it for economy reasons or have large groups, but over all I find them noisey and disruptive. Guess I'm just more laid back and want a more relaxing environment.

[TikiLounger]

Hmmmm...this is a very difficult question to answer. When I first read it, I was inclined to say no...I would stay anywhere as long as I got to be in Disney World. Then, I started thinking, staring at the list of resorts we've stayed at, and reflecting on each trip...in each resort. So, now that I've given it some thought...

After our first stay at a deluxe (the Poly on our "land" portion of our land and sea cruise), we were so in love with The Polynesian, that we vowed never to stay anywhere else. Then? in between trips, our thoughts changed. We decided we want to try as many resorts as we can. We really enjoyed the cabins, and we're booked at CSR for Jan 2010 because we need three rooms and, obviously, it makes more financial sense to stay at a moderate...so I guess it doesn't matter...it's whatever works for each individual trip. BTW, the CSR looks like an amazing place. I know we'll love it. My husband and I both love Epcot, so our stay at the Beach Club made us book another for his birthday and our anniversary in Sept/Oct. We can't wait to go to the Food and Wine festival and walk home to our resort. You can't beat the location.

So...back to the question. The deluxes are special, but we are always open to a different experience. It usually comes down to what our needs are for each trip.

Oh, and my daughter REALLY wants to try Pop Century so this is on the list for sometime in the future.

[magicofdisney]

I stayed at a Deluxe once, for one night. It was very special, but in order for me to go back as often and as long as I like, I go with the values. That's my preference because I always want to return shortly after I've left.

[TikiLounger]

Sorry, but I didn't answer one of the original questions in my last post...

It definitely wouldn't make me go back sooner...I try to go as often as I can...I need no excuse to get me there.

[BelleCiavo]

Once we went deluxe we never went back to value, we've never stayed at a moderate. And yeah, having the resort amenities does increase my desire to return more often, but the wallet and the dh aren't always willing.

[Kisobel]

you're just looking for an excuse to start thinking about the next vacation. i know you. you and i both know that unless you get a pin code out of this world you can't justify staying at the deluxes. we're frugal. if we weren't i would have booked the beach club by now. on a different note- i am looking into upgrading to a moderate for my dec trip. yes i know i'm crazy.

kate

[queenstorm24]

I am glad that I reviewed this thread. My question was similiar since I already have a reservation at CBR and was thinking about changing to the Beach Club. Reading this thread it does not seem that it is going to be worth the additional $1000.

[Dsnygirl]

you're just looking for an excuse to start thinking about the next vacation. i know you. you and i both know that unless you get a pin code out of this world you can't justify staying at the deluxes. we're frugal. if we weren't i would have booked the beach club by now. on a different note- i am looking into upgrading to a moderate for my dec trip. yes i know i'm crazy.

kate

You know me too well... like I need any reason to start looking at that next trip!! But I am just hoping beyond hope that my DH falls in love with the relaxation of being at AKL... he loves Disney, no matter what, but he would really like some serious relaxing and downtime, both at the room and at the resort, and I think this will be just the ticket. (no pun intended, honest) Dashing back to our room at CBR, as wonderfully relaxing as the ambience of the resort is, to just change and/or sleep, got old for him after 7 or 8 days. He wanted to kick back and put his feet up for a bit, wander down to a lounge, hear some music, let the kids go off for an activity and/or have a drink, sit by the pool w/o it being so far from "home", that sort of thing. Not that you can't do that at a moderate - you surely can, and we love CBR's pool - but I have a feeling this will be more what he's looking for. Definitely not on an "every trip" basis, but this split stay thing could be it...

[Familyof4]

I will let you know. We are staying Deluxe this time and have always stayed at Moderate. My DH is sick of always having to take the buses with...now 3 kids. We are staying at teh COntemporary--not my first choice, but closet to MK.