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DisneyPrincess4590
06-11-2006, 08:53 PM
I might soon be a DVC member. We're signing up for a promo where we get 150 free pts, but we have to use them by February 2007. Since we live about 1,000 closer to DLR than to WDW, I was thinking of using those pts. to a room at GC, even though I could probably get a 1 bedroom villa in WDW for the same cost. But, we probably won't get around to visiting WDW by February.

Is the GC nice? Would it be a complete waste of pts. (they're pretty much free) and we already have APs to DLR that don't expire until December. I'd appreciate any pictures of GC rooms.

Thanks!!! :)

Niwel
06-11-2006, 11:28 PM
Check out the MP photo tour (http://www.mouseplanet.com/dca/nyeg1.htm) -- I really think is a beautiful hotel (I stayed there for only one night -- but it was very nice).

diztrips
06-12-2006, 01:12 AM
I am also planning a stay at GC, in July. We have a downtown Disney view room reserved. Any sugestions for room requests (location, view, etc.)

thanks

3894
06-12-2006, 04:43 AM
Yes, it's nice - not as nice as the Paris Ritz but the fanciest hotel at the Disneyland Resort.

kohl
06-12-2006, 06:07 AM
We have always really enjoyed staying there. It is our first choice of the 3 hotels.

geoffa
06-12-2006, 06:10 AM
We had a room on floor 4 looking over Screamin' California and the Orange Stinger with the swimming pool below and to the left of us. We would sit and watch them trialing the rides each morning before park opening. The hotel is beautiful and has its own entrance into the California Park - you enter behind the Grizzly River rapids. The lounge is superb and if you have kids the Storytellers cafe is great for character breakfasts.There is a hearth where they do story telling at night or you can sit and rock with a newspaper and coffee in the morning. There's another hearth outside if you go search for it. Napa Rose restaurant is ace for that special evening dinner - and what a huge selection of wines with knowledgeable sommeliers. As for the wing which looks down on DTD I dunno. The block runs behind some of the attractions of DTD so we wondered about noise levels particularly at night - maybe someone could comment. That side of the hotel has an entrance / exit which brings you out in DTD. I'd recommend it and give it two thumbs up. I believe the concierge level is something else but haven't tried it yet. Search MP for specific stuff - Napa Rose, Storytellers etc.

snappy
06-12-2006, 07:29 AM
I just spent the weekend there and it was nice. The only thing is we didn't spend too much time in the room. For the amount of $$ it cost I wouldn't do it again, but would opt to try another Disney property. It was nice to hang out by the pool but the Disneyland Hotel seemed to have a nicer looking pool. (my opinion) But for the experience I would say go for it. You never know what you missed unless you do it.

kisroo
06-12-2006, 09:09 AM
I love the GCH. Like 3894 said, it's not as fancy smancy as other hotels you can find outside of Anaheim, but it's the nicest one at Disney. If you were thinking of going in December, it's beautifully decorated (I hope they bring back the lobby Christmas tree...).

As far as room locations, I know people really like the park or DTD views, but I have loved the courtyard views on my 2 trips to GCH. My second visit, I actually requested this view and it was wonderful the second time around. Nice and peaceful, the ambient sounds of DTD in the background, and the monorail flowing by every once in awhile.

:sigh:

~kisroo:)

The Red Head
06-12-2006, 09:27 AM
Well, if you have to use them before Feb. or lose them, you might as well. My husband and I are DVC members. We have used our points to stay at the DLR hotels in years we are not going to WDW. We have also used it for the two of us to go on the Disney Cruise. We go to Disneyland quite a bit during the year, but we don't stay the night that often, usually only for 1 night, so I usually book in the hotel that uses the least amount of points. You are correct that you can get a bigger villa, and a longer stay at WDW for the same amount of points, but if you are not going there, staying at the GC will be a nice treat since you have never done it before. If you don't stay at the GC, what is your other option?

BlkPearlCptn
06-12-2006, 04:17 PM
Beautiful rooms, awsome service, great food, ....

WORSE beds in the known universe. Rock hard (literally spent a couple of nights on the floor because it was softer..seriously). No sleep and continuious back spasms from the beds(Both of us staying there EACH had the same back problems, lack of sleep, i.e. from our respective beds). So if you want ambiance, no place can beat it. If you want a comfortable bed...then I would highly advise to stay away.

gchcm
06-12-2006, 09:01 PM
All of the beds in the hotel were changed out within the last 6 months or so... so hopefully that will help the aching back problem.

If you get a DTD view room, prepare for a long hike back to your room after a day of walking in the parks. Well, maybe not hike, but the hotel is designed kind of like a spider... the Great Hall is in the middle and the wings of the hotel spread out in different directions. Most of the DTD view rooms are at the ends/2nd halves of the "legs."

Bed types are a request only and are not guarenteed. If you're really looking forward to a king or queen/bunk beds, let reservations know... multiple times.

kisroo
06-12-2006, 09:13 PM
That's funny about the beds. I loved them. So did my husband. When we were there, we had a king room (concierge...the only way to go if you can! ;) ) and slept wonderfully on the bed. I often didn't want to get up after our mid-day nap~if it wasn't for DL waiting... :p

When I went with my mom and niece, we had a queen/queen room (concierge...I'm tellin' ya, it's the way to go!!) and again, slept wonderfully. This past time, I had experienced several back surgeries/procedures and it was very comfortable for me. I guess a firm bed is what my back likes! :)

I agree with gchcm (thanks for the great service, if you still work there!) on the room requests. We had requested a bunk room for the last trip and didn't get it. But, the hotel was booked and we were fine with the queen/queen. They did accommodate my courtyard view request and pretty much every other request (extra fridge, special turn down service, delivering goodies from Vacation Planning...).

I love the GCH. Can't wait to return for our 5th anniversary next year!!

I say go for it if you have the points. You won't be disappointed.

Have a great time!

~kisroo:)

funatdisney
06-12-2006, 09:16 PM
We had a room on the 6th floor about two weekends ago. The best experience we ever had there. The room was looking over the courtyard. The monorail ran right below our room. My DH will only stay at the GC. After our last visit, I would have to agree. We did spend a lot of our time in the room. So we did enjoy the Hotel more this trip. It was hot, so we did a lot of swimmimg. I know from past experience, the pool is heated during the fall. We did not get conciege service. I don't think it mattered. We still had a wonderful time. I would not ask for Downtown rooms. You can hear the music going on til 10pm or 11pm, depending on the schedule. Oh may I add, we had the best view from our balony for the fireworks. It was truly magical.

gchcm
06-12-2006, 10:17 PM
I should clarify the "request" thing. When booking a normal room, bedding is a request, but views (generally, unless the hotel is overbooked for some reason) are guarenteed. For example, if you booked a Pool-view room with a request for bunk beds, you would get the pool view for sure... the bedding is based upon availability. This applies to Club level rooms as well.

However, if you book a SUITE, it's the opposite case. The bedding is pretty much guarenteed (well, # of bedrooms, at least), but the view is a request. So if you booked a 2-bedroom suite but didn't put down any request for a view, it'd be open placement and you could end up with courtyard, DTD, or pool/park view.

jazzysmom
06-13-2006, 08:03 AM
The Grand is our favorite hotel at DL. I think you will enjoy it. Next time we stay there though we are going to stay longer so we have more time to enjoy the property instead of just sleeping there!:D

CamCay
06-13-2006, 04:45 PM
We didn't like the Downtown Disney view at the GCH. It seemed like the walk to the elevator took forever! I forgot my camera one time and said forget it, rather than walk back and get it. Lazy i know, but it was quite a ways. The park view room was great.

BlkPearlCptn
06-13-2006, 08:45 PM
All of the beds in the hotel were changed out within the last 6 months or so... so hopefully that will help the aching back problem.

If you get a DTD view room, prepare for a long hike back to your room after a day of walking in the parks. Well, maybe not hike, but the hotel is designed kind of like a spider... the Great Hall is in the middle and the wings of the hotel spread out in different directions. Most of the DTD view rooms are at the ends/2nd halves of the "legs."

Bed types are a request only and are not guarenteed. If you're really looking forward to a king or queen/bunk beds, let reservations know... multiple times.

Was there the first week of January. The hotel was awsome, even gave us a free upgrade to a suite with a in-the-middle, straight-on view of DCA. It was just the bed thing... I used to work in the film industry..and a lot of beds you see on screen are pretty much plywood with sheets over them. That's EXACTLY what these felt like. So I guess it does depend, if you normally sleep on a hard bed .. or on a flotation mattress with a Temperpedic Topper like I do ;)

If I could get to preview the beds (at least sit on one) I might reconsider staying there again, everything else was awsome.

kohl
06-14-2006, 07:15 AM
When we were there last Nov/ Dec, they also told us they we in the process of changing all the beds in all the rooms.

pisces
06-14-2006, 10:33 AM
All of the beds in the hotel were changed out within the last 6 months or so... so hopefully that will help the aching back problem.

If you get a DTD view room, prepare for a long hike back to your room after a day of walking in the parks. Well, maybe not hike, but the hotel is designed kind of like a spider... the Great Hall is in the middle and the wings of the hotel spread out in different directions. Most of the DTD view rooms are at the ends/2nd halves of the "legs."

Bed types are a request only and are not guarenteed. If you're really looking forward to a king or queen/bunk beds, let reservations know... multiple times.

Do you work at the GCH ??? I have some questions:

What do you mean they changed the beds?

Does that mean the classic Thumper? bedspreads are no longer there?

I have tons of other questions, actually, but maybe you don't work there, so I'll wait.

stan4d_steph
06-14-2006, 10:39 AM
What do you mean they changed the beds? Does that mean the classic Thumper? bedspreads are no longer there?The mattresses were changed out, not the linens. The decor is still the same at GCH.

gchcm
06-14-2006, 09:24 PM
The mattresses were changed out, not the linens. The decor is still the same at GCH.

stan4d_steph is correct-- The linens are exactly the same, but the mattresses have been changed. I think they were changed to Simmons Beautyrest (but a hotel-only model). They were Beautyrests before, but I think another model.

However, some, if not most, of the furniture has been changed. The beds (headboards, etc.) haven't changed, but some of the nightstands, desks, and armomires have been changed out.

pisces
06-14-2006, 09:31 PM
Uh-oh. The armoires were a very distinctive design. I hope the new design is in keeping with the previous style and model.

gchcm
06-14-2006, 09:34 PM
I hope the new design is in keeping with the previous style and model.

I'm sure that the execs thought of that before deciding on the new design. It's not like the armoire doesn't match the rest of the furniture in the room.

pisces
06-14-2006, 09:46 PM
I believe the original furniture was either designed or selected by Peter Dominic.

It makes a difference. Dominic had a certain eye for design.

The color of the wood on all the furniture pieces matched perfectly. And, I mean the exact same shade of color, of say, the mirror frame, matched the headboard, which matched the exact same shade of wood of the bed-side night table, which matched the exact color of the desk.

The armoire had the exact same tree branch design, and shade of wood, as the headboard.

A lot of people feel that the GC room is nothing special, but I've always felt that the precise matching up of the furniture pieces is what gave the room a symmetry and continuity.

It might seem picky. But it really makes a difference, and it's what bumps up those rooms a notch, more so than any other hotel IMHO .

gchcm
06-14-2006, 10:29 PM
Peter Dominick was the architect and had an overall design influence during the construction of the hotel. I don't believe he designed the furniture in the standard hotel rooms... however, I do know that Warren Hile designed the furniture in the Prarie-style presidential suites and Tom Strangeland designed the furniture in the Greene + Greene presidential suites.

Of course Dominick had to do with all of the furniture, but the old armoires weren't matching the Guests' needs. The new furniture is a little lighter in color (more blonde, less red) than the original and I do agree, it does look a little off with the old bedframes in the room.