Why Disney’s Yacht Club Is Not Disney Enough for Me

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You can always trust me to be honest about our Walt Disney World vacations and our experiences at their resorts.

I recently stayed at Disney’s Yacht Club, and starting at $374/night, I had high hopes for our visit. I’m sad to say that I was more than disappointed in our stay – other than the 3-acre pool, there was little that made our stay at this Deluxe Disney resort more special than had we stayed at one of the Moderate or Value-priced options. Sadly I don’t feel like Disney’s Yacht Club was Disney enough for me.

Here’s why I’d suggest you not waste your money booking your Disney World vacation at the Yacht Club:

Lack of Quick Service Dining Options

While I usually plan a good amount of our Disney vacation, after a day at the parks you want flexibility.

Quick Service restaurants on-site are essential for grabbing a casual meal with the kids in between the parks and bedtime – however, there are no dine-in quick service options at the Yacht Club. Even nearby Beaches & Cream at the Beach Club requires reservations and walk-up reservations averaged 1-3 hours during our summertime stay.

It was easily a 10-minute walk to the open-late Beach Club Marketplace which had a few meal options, but nowhere to sit and enjoy them.

Low Staffing

I had to visit the concierge or front desk at several times during our stay (to pick up items or ask for directions) and it was often upwards of a 10-minute wait. Often, only 2-3 staff members were working despite it being peak times during summer months.

Calling down was even worse – I was often on hold for upwards of 15 minutes, hence why I started just walking down for all of my inquiries.

I also want to point out that I never once had a positive experience with the bell hops – despite generously tipping and being polite during our 3 interactions. They even dropped bags without apology or comment, which was disappointing.

Lack of Theming

Beyond being a dingy room (ambiance, maybe?) the theming was decidedly more yacht than Disney, which is great if you want to forget that you’re at Disney World, but for me, half of the fun of staying on-property is to be immersed in the Disney theming.

Location

I originally thought that staying at an “Epcot Center Resort” would be a great location – we’re minutes away from Epcot! And the Monorail! However, with monorail shutting down often and the boats closed whenever lightning was spotted (and Orlando is the world capital for lightning), we were relegated to the same buses that everyone else uses at the further-out hotels.

The location proved to be troublesome because it’s one of 4 resorts in the area, all sharing the same buses so it took us longer to reach destinations than locations with designated buses or directly on the Monorail line (when it was working). For a family that spends most of its vacation at the Magic Kingdom, the Contemporary would have been a better choice.

Cost

Of course, the cost is obvious – but when you’re paying this much for a resort and you lack true Disney theming and miss out on even the most basic amenities that one would expect from a Disney World Resort, the cost for this resort becomes unreasonable.

While I’ll definitely be staying on WDW Resort Property again, I will never pay to stay at the Yacht Club again.

I’m curious – have you ever stayed at Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club? What is your opinion of this “Deluxe” resort?

Here are some Disney posts that you might love:

Why Disney’s Art of Animation is NOT for Me

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What Not to Buy at Walt Disney World

 5 WDW Restaurants NOT Worth Skipping 

How to Have the Best Experience at Magic Kingdom