Originally Posted By avromark DDP in particular I don't like since in reality it doesn't exactly "save" money. It could if implemented differently. But it shouldn't be mandatory. Think of College food Value Resorts aren't quite where they are. Yes they have better dining/pools than the Sleep Inn. However they are also much larger and noisier. As well a $100 room isn't going to attract the $40 room crowd that stays at the motels the buildings resemble. Those people are still going to stay offsite. It does aim at the Holiday Inn/Best Western price imho. But without the "Select Service" hotel amenities. Ie: air conditioned indoor corridors. Yes Disney can do Moderate, but a premium brand shouldn't do economy. Ever see a cheap Coach purse? Ever see an economy Acura? (Canada has one based on the Civic, needless to say no one remembers the EL) Hope your jacket kept you warm.
Originally Posted By avromark That said I've chosen to stay at Red Roofs over Westins before. I really wish my company would let me choose hotels from price not brand (I'm guessing they're trying to meet quota to meet their "special rates") The sad thing is even if I have enough points to do a free week at The Swan/Dolphin I'd much rather split a room with my family and stay at the Poly. But that's just me. Now a general trend I'm noticing however is the entire hotel market seems to be going upmarket. Red Roof inns now have indoor hallways, flat screen TV's wood floors (I prefer carpet in hotels though) granite countertops. These used to be the domain of more expensive properties. Some of the newer Holiday Inns have Hollidomes (kind of like looking at it as an upgraded indoor pool or a very skimpy water park). Compare a circa 1972 Contemporary room to today's Contemporary. Now whatever happened to the pamper panel? *g* Sorry to go off topic. Getting back on topic: With the economy however I'd much rather see them lower the cost per day over buy 4 get 3 free. Yes I understand it will equate to more spending (You're there longer after all). However it dilutes the brand more imho. People come to expect freebies as part and parcel of the whole package. Now a promotion such as "Share the Magic, Spread The Joy" with prices "made to bring the magic easier or to more people then ever before" or some other malarkey creates goodwill. Many companies seem to misunderstand the power of goodwill. Now you have people saying Wow, Disney's giving me more than Six Flags, why would I bother going to Six Flags? Let's return to Disney next trip!
Originally Posted By Mr X Interesting research on the GF, SuperDry. I suppose they made the decision that all their deluxe properties should be "good enough" and nothing more. Sad but interesting at the same time. Doesn't really surprise me honestly. Going for an "assembly line" approach to hotel running does make a certain amount of sense. But on the other hand, it's pretty sad they'd let the best one decline in quality in order to accomplish that, rather than prop all the others up to match. I remember reading that when the GF first opened it was rated as one of the finest hotels in the country (DisneyWorld having nothing to do with that...just on its' own stand alone merits). So much for that!
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<Is the pricing of WDW motels/hotels unreasonable?>> The simple answer? No. If it were, no one would stay there. If it gets to the point where their occupancy sucks, they run discounts. They charge exactly what the market will bear. Nothing more. Nothing less. Exactly what they should be charging according to our capitalist way of doing business.
Originally Posted By bobbelee9 And as long as we keep paying, they'll keep charging. We just had a major ice storm here in Mass. we went over 65 hours no power/heat, some stores in the area were super charging for generators, because people got desperate. At one point I swear my husband was looking to see what furniture he could throw into the wood burning stove. 2 of my daughters still don't have power, the other one just got rain.
Originally Posted By dshyates Its not so much the rate as the "little as possible" attitude to get that rate. They really provide the least amount possible to call it what ever class they are trying to sell. They don't go one inch farther than necessary to get the AAA three star for the mods and values. And charge the highest rate they can.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Good news! Just look at the LP Live picture right now, and you will see some of Mousekeeping's best towel animals! : )
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<We just had a major ice storm here in Mass. we went over 65 hours no power/heat, some stores in the area were super charging for generators, because people got desperate. At one point I swear my husband was looking to see what furniture he could throw into the wood burning stove. 2 of my daughters still don't have power, the other one just got rain.>> I just saw some footage on the news ... ice storms are beautiful to look it ... if you're indoors and don't lose your electricity! But it still looked better than SoFla today ... gloomy, windy and 80 degrees. i want to go some where wintery!
Originally Posted By Mr X No you don't. As for the Mass Ice Storms...scary! I can't say as I EVER recall, in my lifetime, a government emergency being declared for that area (I'm sure there has been..for blizzards or noreasters or something, but I never noticed it!).
Originally Posted By Kennesaw Tom I look at the title of this thread and my answer is still YES. Keep warm boobelee. The North East will make it through your ice storm eventionally.
Originally Posted By danyoung >No. If it were, no one would stay there. If it gets to the point where their occupancy sucks, they run discounts.< There's a difference between what is reasonable and what has value for you. A Disney moderate at a discounted price is still somewhat unreasonable, but for me there is value in staying on property. It's all about when the price hits the point where there isn't enough value to overcome the high price. The deluxes for the most part are way over that point for me.
Originally Posted By MPierce >> Sorry, I've just had 60 hours and 22 minutes of no power, no heat, and no freakin' computer, I'm just catching up. << Glad to hear you're OK now. That storm was something else. We even got a light dusting of snow from it. How are the rest of your family making out?
Originally Posted By bobbelee9 Despite all the ice, which looks really beautiful on the trees, until the limbs come crashing down. My back yard looks like a cyclone hit it. Anyway the roads were clean of precip, but many in my area were unpassable because of the dropped trees. It was 18 on Saturday, 23 on Sunday, and today it's 56. Go figure. We're promised 2 more ice storms this week. My 2 daughters who live in more rural areas expect to be out of power until Friday. As of this morning, 7,000 houses in my town still have no power. I read they had 8 inches of snow just north of New Orleans, scary.
Originally Posted By NikkiLOVESMickey bobbelee, so sorry to hear about your troubles. I think that, no matter where you live, you're at risk of some type of natural disaster or major weather event. Here we have the hurricanes, you guys get the blizzards and ice storms, California gets the earthquakes,etc. I'm glad to hear you got your power back, though - I hope your daughters get theirs back soon as well. Amite, LA had 8 inches and the roof of a furniture store collapsed from the weight of the snow. We had an inch and were all in full panic mode because we didn't know how we were going to get home that day. Less than a week ago it snowed, and today it was 70 degrees. Freaky freaky weather. That's one reason I do like the summer; at least you know it's going to be sweltering hot for a few months with no change. This roller coaster weather is frustrating.
Originally Posted By dshyates I remember when winter was similar to summer in that you got a couple of months of bitter cold and snow. These roller coaster mood swings with 72 degree days in Dec./ Jan. started in the 80s. I live a mile from a ski resort, and it was 70 yesterday. They make enough snow during the cold snaps and at night, but it is WIERD to watch people skiing in shorts and t-shirts in mid-December. I'm not sure, but I think the weather is changing. Like its getting warmer or somethng. Have you guys noticed this?
Originally Posted By CarolinaDisneyDad Bobbelee, Didn't you say you have a wood stove? They can be a blessing in these times. Glad your power is back on. The hardest part is keeping your food from spoiling. We used to throw it outside and then bring it back in when the power came back on. Hope these next storms aren't as bad for you. we have always loved snow but ice is just no fun.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros "Like its getting warmer or somethng. Have you guys noticed this?" Yah...that's why it's snowing in Lousiana, right? Al Gore told me that cold spells in areas that are usually hot is due to Global Warming...go figure. I don't think it's that strange to see people skiing in shorts at Winterplace. Every time I've been there, I've seen people do it. I usually wore long pants and a jacket, but I remember it being pretty warm most times I was there. A few years ago, I was the one wearing shorts and a t-shirt, but it was at Beech in NC, and it was near the end of March too...
Originally Posted By NikkiLOVESMickey <<Like its getting warmer or somethng. Have you guys noticed this?>> Temperatures are definitely increasing. Here in N.O. we used to have at least a week or so of below freezing weather per year, with a few of those days in the teens. I don't think it got below 30 here for more than two or three nights in the past two years. I can remember waiting for parades on Fat Tuesday (when I used to do that type of thing) in well-below freezing weather, with socks on my hands and three pairs of socks on my feet. I can't tell you the last time it hit 20 degrees or below here.
Originally Posted By NikkiLOVESMickey <<I don't think it got below 30 here for more than two or three nights in the past two years.>> That should say I don't think it's gotten below, not it got below.
