Author Background: Patrick Carey, 38 years old; wife, Lynne, 36 years old; two daughters, Alexandra (turned 8 in January 2002) and Madison (will be 3 in August 2002); trips to Disney World: eight trips (varying in length from three to eight days) since 1997.

I have previously written a MousePlanet review about the benefits and services available at the Concierge level at the Yacht Club resort. During our February 2002 trip to Disney World, we split our time between the Concierge level at the Animal Kingdom Lodge (three days) and at the Yacht Club (five days).

This column provides an update to the previous article regarding the Concierge services and benefits and also compares and contrasts the benefits and services at the two different resorts.

By way of description: at the Yacht Club, the Concierge level is referred to as the Regatta Club and at the AKL, the Concierge level is known as the Kilamanjaro Club. When referring to the Concierge level at each of the resorts, this column references them by those names.

Pre-arrival

After making our reservations (in mid-October for a mid-February trip), we received personalized letters from the staffs of both the Regatta Club and the Kilamanjaro Club welcoming us to the club and enclosing a trip planning itinerary form. This form asks for detailed information about arrival and departure dates, special needs, priority seating requests, ticket requests, child care requirements, etc. This form can be completed and returned, at which point the club staff will make all necessary reservations and send a written confirmation that all the requested arrangements have been made.

These forms varied significantly between the clubs. The Kilamanjaro Club form was a lovely brochure with African themed graphics printed on heavy stock paper, while the Regatta Club form was simply a pre-printed black and white form on normal bond paper. In addition to the trip planning form, the Kilamanjaro Club also sent us a copy of the WDW Guidebook listing all the dining and shopping alternatives at WDW to assist in determining which PS we might want to make and a form which we could fill out to request that the in-room refrigerator be stocked with any special items.

The Kilamanjaro Club materials were sent promptly and arrived within a week after we made our reservation, while the Regatta Club materials did not arrive until two months later (in fact, the Regatta Club materials arrived less than 60 days prior to our scheduled arrival, so if we had wanted to use the service to try to make PS to some of the more popular destinations at WDW, we would not have received the materials in time to be able to do so).

Following the receipt of the written materials, the Kilamanjaro Club staff called us several times to welcome us and ask if they could be of any assistance with our trip planning. We did not receive any similar calls from the Regatta Club staff.

Actual Planning

As a Disney World veteran, I had a pretty good idea of the necessary arrangements I would need to make for our trip. However, I was late in actually taking action to respond to the materials received from the two clubs. Thus, rather than returning the written forms and waiting for confirmation of any requested PS and other matters, I called both clubs to make arrangements for the days which we would be staying at the respective hotels.

In this regard, the service of both clubs was comparable. The staff members that assisted me were polite, pleasant and very helpful. They were very knowledgeable and rendered good advice when I asked for it. They also made a real effort to offer suggestions and alternatives when my original requests were not available.

One nice thing that did happen was that I asked the Regatta Club staff to send me an e-mail confirmation of the PS I had made with them. When the e-mail arrived, they had taken notice of the other PS in the computer system that I had previously made with the Kilamanjaro Club staff and included the confirmation of those items in the e-mail which was sent. I appreciated this effort.

Arrival

At both Yacht Club and AKL, Concierge guests get to by-pass the check in at the front desk and proceed directly to the Concierge level to check in, thereby avoiding any lines that may exist. In addition, at both hotels, the Concierge level cannot be reached unless your room key is coded to activate the elevator to take you to that floor. Thus, upon arrival, getting to the Concierge level floor to check in requires some assistance.

At AKL, I was told to tell the security guard that we were Concierge guests. She would then alert the Concierge staff that we had arrived. I did this and when I pulled up to the valet parking area to unload my bags, someone from the Kilamanjaro Club was waiting to take us up to the Concierge level to check in. We arrived early in the day (about 8:00 am), so there were no lines at the front desk, but it was still nice to be able to sit in the Concierge lounge to check in. My wife was able to get breakfast for our children from the food set out in the lounge, which was a great distraction for them while I went through the process of checking in.

At the Yacht Club, meanwhile, I was told to tell the valet that we were Concierge guests (so he could call the staff to let them know we were there), but then to proceed on my own to the Concierge level. In the materials which were sent with the trip planning form, a key card coded for our day of arrival was included so that we could get up to the Concierge level to check in. All proceeded as planned, except that the key card did not work and I had to have one of the bellman activate the elevator to get to the fifth floor. This is, apparently, a not uncommon experience, as during our stay I overheard several guests tell the Regatta Club stuff that their key cards also did not work.

Check-In

During check-in at the Kilamanjaro Club, we received a folder (printed on the same heavy paper with similar graphics to the pre-arrival materials) containing a hotel map, hotel FAQs, a copy of our itinerary for the days we were there, theme park brochures, another copy of the WDW Guidebook and a WDW transportation map. All in all, everything we would need to help us get around WDW.

Historically, we had received a similar set of materials upon check-in at the Regatta Club. On this trip, however, no such materials were forthcoming.

There was one glitch in the Kilamanjaro Club check-in, however, which involved a PS for a coveted spot for breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table. When I had called to a few weeks earlier to make various arrangements, I asked to get a PS for that breakfast during any of the days we would be at WDW. Of course, it was sold out. However, the Kilamanjaro Club staff told me they would put me on a wait list if anything opened up. Then, we arrived and were given out itinerary for the trip and, lo and behold, a breakfast at the castle had been scheduled. However, it was for the very morning we arrived and by the time we found out about it, we would not have been able to make it from the hotel to the Magic Kingdom in time. No one had called or contacted us to tell us this had been scheduled so, reluctantly, we were forced to decline this reservation.

Rooms

The Concierge rooms at both hotels are comparable to the regular rooms at the hotels, with a few additional minor amenities (such as turn down service, an in-room robe, etc.). As both these hotels are deluxe hotels, that means the rooms are very nice.

However, at the Yacht Club, all the Concierge level rooms are on the fifth floor, which is also the floor where the Concierge lounge is located. Thus, once we made it up to the fifth floor (including activating the elevator with the room key), we could easily go to and from our room and the Concierge lounge for breakfast or a snack or another can of soda.

At the AKL, however, the lounge is on the sixth floor, but most of the Concierge rooms are on the fifth floor. Thus, every time we wanted to go to the lounge, we had to take our room key so we could activate the elevator which allowed us to get to the sixth floor lounge. This was something of a pain and not something which I had been warned about. Interestingly, there is an internal stairway from the fifth floor to the sixth floor which opens right into the Concierge lounge, but for some reason there is a sign posted telling Concierge guests not to use this stairway, but to use the elevator instead.

Lounge

The AKL Concierge lounge beat the Yacht Club lounge hands down, both for the physical aspects of the room and the food that was available.

At the AKL, the lounge is on the sixth floor on a balcony which is open to the entire lobby of the hotel. It provides a beautiful view over the entire lobby and through the back of the hotel to the savannah. At the Yacht Club, the lounge is simply a room about the size of two guest rooms put together and has a variety of tables, chairs and sofas, as well as the areas where the food is laid out. There is a nice balcony with some tables and chairs, but even this only looks at over the parking lot of the hotel.

Both lounges have televisions which show Disney videos during the day and complimentary daily newspapers (including The Wall Street Journal).

Both lounges open at 7:00 am and close for the night at 10:00 pm (with intermittent closures during the day; coffee is also put out at 6:30 am). Throughout the day, various types of food and snacks are available. In the morning a continental breakfast is served, there are snacks (chips, pretzels, cookies, fruit, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, etc.) during the day, hors d'oeurves and wine in the evening and desserts and cordials at night. Also, pop, juice boxes and water are available all day simply by asking a club staff member.

However, the food at the Kilamanjaro Club was far superior to that at the Regatta Club. Breakfast in the morning featured a wider selection of fresh fruit and much better bagels. The snacks during the day were varied and more interesting (including a spicy trail mix which I really enjoyed) and the desserts were the same as those served at the Boma buffet restaurant on the first floor of the hotel. The Regatta Club food, while serviceable, was not as varied or fresh and was disappointing in comparison.

Staff

The staffs of both clubs provided excellent service and were available throughout each day to offer suggestions, make changes to existing priority seating reservations, make new reservations, assist with obtaining tickets to shows, make tee times, etc. We used them both many times for advice and to make last minute priority seating reservations and changes. Overall, it is extremely helpful to have this resource available whenever you need it.

In addition, one morning at the Kilamanjaro Club, a staff member went around the room giving out little toy safari cars to all the children present. It was a small token, but still much appreciated by my children.

Overall

Over all, on this trip, the Kilamanjaro Club offered a somewhat higher level of service and benefits than that found at the Regatta Club. That being said, Concierge service is a wonderful thing (even for the cost) and the minor glitches identified above did not significantly detract from the experience at either hotel. If you want to experience this level of service and are prepared to pay the price, you cannot go wrong at either of these hotels (or, I am sure, at any of the other WDW Deluxe hotels which offer Concierge service).

If you'd like to write Patrick B. Carey, you can reach him at:
lcarey6219@aol.com

Photos on this page, unless otherwise noted, by Brian Bennett

For another perspective on concierge service at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge check out Sue Holland's piece, "The Concierge Life at Animal Kingdom Lodge Resort."

Also, if you want to read more about the various Walt Disney World resort hotels, including Animal Kingdom Lodge, you may want to go to the accommodations page of MousePlanet's WDW Trip Planning Guide and read through all of the "Fast Facts" pages and photo tours listed there.

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