olinecoach61
Well-Known Member
I think they should keep it as a perk for DVC members in the building. They pay all that money, give them something extra.
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Allowing all guests staying at Bay Lake Tower access to the Top Of The World lounge
- Thread starter Innkeeper's Club
- Start date
puntagordabob
Well-Known Member
Yeah well I can tell you that as a BLT owner I love to go up there and yes spend $$$..... this fall we are at AKL with fellow family members (also DVC members too lol)....but I love the idea that I should (hopefully) be able to go up to my favorite hangout at the Top of the World!!
As for the restrictions on high capacity nights like NYE...I certainly HOPE DVC is smart enough to have restrictions for those nights... we have NYE reservations this year at BLT and would be sort of annoyed if the place is as crowded as Main Street USA (I avoid the MK that evening for a reason lol)....
We did NYE in 2009 there at the Totwl and it was an AWESOME evening!
puntagordabob
Well-Known Member
No dress code beyond what most would consider tastefull (ie: no bikini or men with just bottom trunks on with no shoes I suppose lol).
Lounge is most certainly kid friendly.... though if you expect a dedicated play area or anything like that you should perhaps pick alternate destination.... a lot of the children I have seen in the lounge are well behaved.....and sometimes the parents let the children unwind some of their energy out on the deck under their supervision.... the Cast Members up there are SUPER (and I cannot stress THAT enough! So be sure to tip them well....excellence should be rewarded and they are all excellent! Youll know what I mean after you have been up there a few times.) and they are great with kids of all ages...heck they even put up with me and my wife will tell you that I am 45 going on 11 at WDW lol....
Spend the evening up there...they serve good flatbreads, etc....and the sodas are bottomless so the kids will usually like that (many of us adults too! lol)
It has been extended through December 29.
NewfieFan
Well-Known Member
Thank you!
GoofGoof
Premium Member
Anyone been up there since it has been open to all DVC members? Just curious if anyone has an update on crowd sizes or if anyone couldn't get in due to large crowds. I think it could become permanent if the crowds aren't too large. Good selling feature for AK and SSR which are the biggest blocks left to sell for DVC. Similar to the pool hopping benefit.
yoyoflamingo
Well-Known Member
We were there last week. We went after dinner (around 8PM) to check out the view. There were maybe 4 people there before we came in. While we didn't stay for Wishes (wound up with a room view that we could see the fireworks from our room and we wanted to watch the Electrical Water Pageant from the beach instead), 2 people in our party decided to stay to watch them. When we asked, they said they had no problem getting a good view; they sat on a bench up until the fireworks started and then stood up and still had a good view. My wife even went up about 10 minutes before the fireworks and had no trouble getting up to the top.
GoofGoof
Premium Member
Thanks for the report. August is a pretty busy time so I would assume that other than Thanksgiving, Christmas and Spring break weeks there shouldn't be a problem. Maybe they will restrict access at really crowded times of year similar to how pool hopping works.
We went two weeks ago, went to the lounge twice during our stay at BLT. The first night we went we jumped out of the pool, changed and were at the lounge five minutes to the start of wishes. We went right to the wall and slid into a couple of spots and had a great view. I would say there was at least fifty people lined along the wall watching. Plus people on the benches behind the wall and many more in the lounge. It seemed busy to me though this was my first time up there. The second time it seemed less crowded but it was still busy. The view was amazing and it was so nice to return right to your room after the show in time for the water pageant.
Not to split hairs but I don't think the desire to sell points is driving this decision. SSR is effectively "sold out." AKV does still have points left but Disney always needs something to sell. And if anyone views TOTW access as the tipping point for a $20K purchase, well, a fool and his money...
This is a neat perk for DVC members, to be able to visit the lounge even if not staying at BLT. We stayed at BLT once and visited the lounge, and on another trip attended a "welcome home Wednesday" kind of event at the lounge, and it's a nice place with great CMs, as noted.
I do think they need to shut off that "back door" entrance, though. Not because I'm a DVC "snob" or anything, I just think that until and unless it's opened up to everyone, only those "invited" should attend. I know, I know, I'm too fond of following rules...
I do think they need to shut off that "back door" entrance, though. Not because I'm a DVC "snob" or anything, I just think that until and unless it's opened up to everyone, only those "invited" should attend. I know, I know, I'm too fond of following rules...
GoofGoof
Premium Member
They sold 25,000 points last month at SSR despite being listed as "sold out". AK is 75% sold. I really doubt anyone would buy a DVC membership because of access to the lounge. I didn't say that either. I said it would be another selling feature similar to pool hopping. Not a game breaker, just another perk.
I agree with you on the "just another perk" part.
The driving motivation behind the TotW change is to get the lounge up to some level of profitability. Up until now it's been a money pit. They can't keep good staff because the tips don't come close to what can be earned elsewhere. A handful of BLT guests dropping by for 30 minutes around fireworks time wasn't paying the bills.
Sure they'll throw it on a perks list that is handed out to prospects. But unlike pool hopping--which costs Disney absolutely nothing to offer--there is a cost associated with operating the lounge. And not just the real cost...there's also an opportunity cost to consider. That's the money Disney is sacrificing by NOT charging $10k per night to rent the lounge to convention groups and Disney brides.
If they can't find a way to make it financially viable, the lounge will close to members regardless of how many new point sales it would cost them (prediction: none.)
IMHO, anyone eyeballing a 2014 WDW wedding has a better than 50/50 shot at booking TotW lounge.
GoofGoof
Premium Member
I agree that they wouldn't lose any sales if they didn't offer it. I also agree that they had to make this move to keep the lounge open. You are probably right about the private affair rentals although unless they set up tables outside it would be a small wedding. It would also be hard to keep people out since the bathrooms are outside of the lounge in the hotel room hallway. Really if they left the outside part open to BLT guests they could rent the lounge out now and most wouldn't care. Like you said people are really there for the fireworks.
Disneykidder
Well-Known Member
I hate to bust some bubbles but when I stay there next summer, I will def. be bringing my 3 kids up to the lounge with me. We love Wishes but just once I want to see it without being packed in like a sausage. So, we will def be using it. It will be next August for anyone that wants to run for the hills.
Back to the original post...I think DVC members staying at BLT should get first priority, then all other DVC members and then regular paying BLT guests.
Back to the original post...I think DVC members staying at BLT should get first priority, then all other DVC members and then regular paying BLT guests.
I've yet to see a single report of it being even close to capacity so getting "first priority" is a non-issue. If memory serves, the max capacity of the lounge is listed around 70-80 while the outdoor viewing platform has space for around 300.
puntagordabob
Well-Known Member
I hate to bust some bubbles but when I stay there next summer, I will def. be bringing my 3 kids up to the lounge with me. We love Wishes but just once I want to see it without being packed in like a sausage. So, we will def be using it. It will be next August for anyone that wants to run for the hills.
Back to the original post...I think DVC members staying at BLT should get first priority, then all other DVC members and then regular paying BLT guests.
The bold part should never ever happen..... the lounge is nice and the way other parts of the resort are treated I would imagine this would bring a quick decline to the condition of the lounge and deck.... besides this is a nice perk for DVC members...and the talk at last years meeting if I recall correctly was that DVC members were conveying that they felt unappreciated etc...and the response was about their plans to provide more perks... allowing all dvc members up there at non-holiday periods is a perk....allowing anyone up there sorta negates that.
GoofGoof
Premium Member
I agree. Keep it to DVC members.
Anyone know if the lounge is part of the BLT budget? In other words if the lounge makes money will my dues go down since the profits will go back to BLT? I suspect the answer is no.