VIP tour VS club level at GCH

[utahgirl]

I currently have a standard room booked at the Grand (stayed there many times and love the proximity) but have been running numbers and I can either upgrade to club level for our stay (4days) or do a 1day VIP tour for similar cost. I do worry if we do the VIP tour we may never want to go back . Any opinions/thoughts on which we should do would be greatly appreciated

 

[DLgal]

Are you sure about the cost for the VIP tour? Tips aren't included in the tour price and are expected at a 20% rate.

Are you saying it's an extra $892.50per night to upgrade to Club Level? If so, that is absolutely NOT worth it in ANY way.

When we had a standard room booked at rack rate in July, CL would have been another $400/night, or $1600 for a nights. That's about half the cost of a VIP tour.

 

[utahgirl]

The room difference is about $3,000 between standard and club during our time. The tour will be a bit more, with tax & tip, We have always wanted to do club, (donut bar!) and after not traveling for close to 2 yrs we are thinking of doing a splurge. But then Hubby asked about the tour and here we are

 

[smartlabelprint]

$3k is a lot of

I’d do the VIP tour, especially with no maxpass.

 

[DLgal]

I would do the tour. Club level is nowhere near worth that much money, and I've done it at GCH. Go to Lamplight Lounge for some fresh donuts with dipping sauces instead and enjoy the VIP treatment for a day!

 

[BriannaRuth]

Definitely the tour.

 

[JWelch62]

Just did a tour in WDW. Do the tour.

 

[goooof1]

Tour

 

[PalmettoPath]

Are you sure about the cost for the VIP tour? Tips aren't included in the tour price and are expected at a 20% rate.

Are you saying it's an extra $892.50per night to upgrade to Club Level? If so, that is absolutely NOT worth it in ANY way.

When we had a standard room booked at rack rate in July, CL would have been another $400/night, or $1600 for a nights. That's about half the cost of a VIP tour.

You tip your VIP Tour Plaid $800? I can tell you we don't come anywhere near that. There are three of us. We tip them, but definitely not 20%. The number of people in the tour is a factor for the amount of the tip as far as I'm concerned. If there are 10 people, then likely a tip could be more. It would have to be a stellar Plaid who goes above and beyond. In fact, some guides have been very lacklustre to say the least, compared to others. A tip should never be "expected" at any rate.

 

[PalmettoPath]

I currently have a standard room booked at the Grand (stayed there many times and love the proximity) but have been running numbers and I can either upgrade to club level for our stay (4days) or do a 1day VIP tour for similar cost. I do worry if we do the VIP tour we may never want to go back . Any opinions/thoughts on which we should do would be greatly appreciated

Definitely the VIP Tour. Club Level is great, but if you're there for four days, I would go with the VIP Tour.

 

[Malcon10t]

You tip your VIP Tour Plaid $800? I can tell you we don't come anywhere near that. There are three of us. We tip them, but definitely not 20%. The number of people in the tour is a factor for the amount of the tip as far as I'm concerned. If there are 10 people, then likely a tip could be more. It would have to be a stellar Plaid who goes above and beyond. In fact, some guides have been very lacklustre to say the least, compared to others. A tip should never be "expected" at any rate.

There is no tax on the VIP tour. And we generally tip $200 for the guide. ($250 at Christmas.) I know MANY guides, well enough to ask if we are within "regular tips" and have been told we are slightly on the higher side. And our regular guides always want us back.

 

[DLgal]

You tip your VIP Tour Plaid $800? I can tell you we don't come anywhere near that. There are three of us. We tip them, but definitely not 20%. The number of people in the tour is a factor for the amount of the tip as far as I'm concerned. If there are 10 people, then likely a tip could be more. It would have to be a stellar Plaid who goes above and beyond. In fact, some guides have been very lacklustre to say the least, compared to others. A tip should never be "expected" at any rate.

I've never done a VIP tour. I've always heard that a 20% tip is standard practice.

 

[GoingSince1990]

VIP tour without hesitation. But tipping 20% would be ridiculous. We are doing a VIP tour in a couple of weeks and it’s $700 per hour for a 7 hour minimum, and I’m definitely not going to give a $980 tip (which would be 20%). Instead I will be tipping our usual $300 cash in an envelope.

 

[SportsMadre]

I was fortunate to go on a VIP tour during my WDW trip in March. I would definitely choose the tour over club level. Having your own personal FastPass for the day is great but that’s just part of the experience. The tour guides are also so knowledgeable and usually have some great behind the scenes stories to share.

 

[BriannaRuth]

Are you sure about the cost for the VIP tour? Tips aren't included in the tour price and are expected at a 20% rate.

No way they expect a 20% tip on a VIP tour. We tipped $200 for our 6-hour tour for 4 guests and I talked with several others who said they tipped in that range.

 

[JWelch62]

No way they expect a 20% tip on a VIP tour. We tipped $200 for our 6-hour tour for 4 guests and I talked with several others who said they tipped in that range.

On our recent tour for four we were there 8 hours. We also did not tip 20%. Our guide Kirk was fantastic. I had budgeted a certain amount but added a bit at the end because we liked him so much. Tipping discussions are always sensitive. Always give what _you_ think is right.

 

[PalmettoPath]

I've never done a VIP tour. I've always heard that a 20% tip is standard practice.

Got it. That seems on the high end to me. Unless, like I said, you have a large group and for some reason the guide went above and beyond somehow for a stellar experience and maybe everyone chipped in a good amount. It could perhaps get close to that. It's just that I would consider that amount as the standard based on our experiences.

 

[PalmettoPath]

There is no tax on the VIP tour. And we generally tip $200 for the guide. ($250 at Christmas.) I know MANY guides, well enough to ask if we are within "regular tips" and have been told we are slightly on the higher side. And our regular guides always want us back.

That's in line with our usual as well.

 

[sjmac42]

I agree to do the VIP tour. Whilst I haven’t done one, I’ve done a few “premium” experiences at various locations and theme parks around America and they are very much worth it. They are something you’ll remember forever. Conversely, I can’t think of any hotels club level that I’ve stayed in, including GCH, that is worth an extra $750 per night.
Also agree a 20% tip is exxy and definitely not expected. I generally look to tip $200 to $300 for those premium experiences depending on the quality of the experience.
I will definitely do a VIP tour at DL or WDW in the future and when I do I plan to go at least a couple of hours over the minimum time figuring an extra $1500 or so won’t really be missed 10 years after the event but the memories would last well beyond that. That’s been my attitude to these special days anyway, ymmv.

 

[Tasmen]

As someone that has done concierge and VIP at different times, I would say do the tour. You are going to have more memories associates with the tour than with concierge. We are trying to make a similar decision with our upcoming trip to WDW. We've never done a tour there but have done concierge many times. We are leaning toward tour.