Is Disney Cruise Line Concierge Level Worth It? My Personal Experience

I’ve had the opportunity to travel twice recently on Disney Cruise Line as a Concierge guest, and I was blown away by the service. The cruises were so much fun that I’ve booked more in the future!

Concierge includes several exclusive amenities that I thought were well worth paying for, but with pricing higher than all other cabins on the ship, you’re probably wondering whether it’s worth it to splurge on these rooms.

Let’s take a look at the amenities I used the most and my thoughts on whether it’s worth it for you to travel on Disney Cruise Line in Concierge.

How Much Does Concierge Cost?

When you travel on Disney Cruise Line, several perks are included in the Concierge package, including better-located rooms, a Concierge lounge, a private sundeck, advance access to offshore excursions, and more.

I’ve traveled Concierge twice, paying about $5,000 for a 1-bedroom suite, so it’s certainly no cheap affair! You can ease the pain a little by charging your cruise to your American Express^® Green Card, which earns 3 Membership Rewards per $1 spent on cruises.

To give you a flavor of how much Concierge costs, here are 2 examples of cruises I have booked:

• A 3-night cruise from Fort Lauderdale through the Caribbean to Nassau and back for $4,665.60 in a Concierge family stateroom with a verandah for 3 people.
• A 7-night cruise from Vancouver up to Alaska and back for $14,807.89 in a Concierge family stateroom with a verandah for 3 people.

You’ll find the typical spread of costs as follows for 2 guests on a short 3-night Caribbean cruise:

• $1,474 in an oceanview stateroom
• $1,606 in a verandah stateroom
• $3,904 in a Concierge family stateroom

As you can see, it’s over double in this scenario to upgrade from a verandah room to a base Concierge room, so it’s certainly a significant upcharge. In most cases, a Concierge room will cost approximately double that of a verandah room, with the cost being even higher for longer cruises or European and Alaska cruises, which receive an even greater premium.

Hot Tip:

Check out our article on how to best book Disney Cruise Line trips to maximize your dollars!

Things I Found Worth It

These are the things that really sold me on Concierge and the reasons I would come back again.

Concierge Lounge

On any cruise ship, not just Disney, it can be quite overwhelming to see the number of activities available and all the people roaming around. When you stay on the Concierge level, you have access to a private Concierge lounge, similar to a lounge you’d see in an airport or at a hotel.

In the lounge, a guest services area is staffed by Concierge representatives who are available throughout the journey. There are also various seating options, including couches, tables, chairs, and areas where you can plug in devices to recharge.

One of the greatest aspects of the lounge is that complimentary nonalcoholic beverages are served throughout the day in refrigerators strategically placed throughout the space. While beverages are free for regular guests in the buffet area, it’s so nice to grab a bottle of water or a can of soda … something you can’t find on the main deck. Concierge guests get served premium beverages, including Dasani sparkling and still water.

Throughout the day, food is also served. In the morning, breakfast is served, typically a continental spread with a few hot items added. Then there are morning snacks, followed by lunch, which consists of sandwiches, salads, cheeses, lunch meats, and so on. In the afternoon, it’s time for afternoon tea, so out come the scones with jam and cream, pastries, and other delectables.

In the evening, appetizers are both hot and cold. It’s so refreshing to come back to the lounge space to grab a bite to eat, even though there’s plenty of free food elsewhere on the ship. It’s a quiet atmosphere and a perfect place to relax while munching on treats.

At 5 p.m. each day, there’s a complimentary open bar. Order any drink you’d like from the bar, served by a friendly bartender. For many guests, this is one of the top reasons to book Concierge, though this alcohol is only included in the lounge and not other venues on the ship.

Hot Tip:

If you’re in the lounge, grab a glass of wine or beer and take it to dinner with you, since you’re welcome to take drinks from the lounge to other parts of the ship. This is an easy way to save money at dinner!

Private Sundeck

Included on the Concierge level is a private sundeck, which is accessible from the Concierge lounge. This is a private deck area with deck chairs, loungers, complimentary nonalcoholic drinks, and, on some ships, hot tubs and a private pool.

This Concierge deck is far less crowded than the other public decks on the ship, and those decks tend to be very noisy, with lots of adults and kids milling about. There’s a clear sense of relaxation on the Concierge level, and with far fewer people, it’s an ideal spot to take a nap or enjoy the fresh air.

Complimentary Wi-Fi

On a Disney cruise, if you’re in Concierge, you get free Wi-Fi for a single device per registered guest in the cabin for the duration of the cruise, so long as you’re in a 1-bedroom or higher-category room. With Wi-Fi packages costing upward of $40 per day, this can be an enormous savings. If you’re in a lower-category room, you receive 1 day of complimentary usage.

Priority Disembarkation

All good things must come to an end. On the final day, it can be absolute chaos as thousands of passengers try to get off the ship within a short timeframe. Even with coordinated efforts and calling passengers by group, it’s an absolute nightmare to try to get off the ship in a timely manner with just a few elevators and large suitcases.

As part of the concierge experience, you receive priority disembarkation. This means that on the final day, you’re allowed to exit the ship into the cruise terminal with the assistance of a concierge team member and be on your way within a few minutes.

Service

When you are in Concierge, a private Concierge services desk is located within the lounge. You don’t have to visit the ship’s main guest services or front desk area at all throughout your voyage because you can always go to this desk within the Concierge lounge for any needs.

Anytime I visited this desk, I felt like the staff went above and beyond the call of duty. There was one time when we attempted to cancel a reservation for an activity past the cancellation period, and the Concierge desk quickly and professionally handled this request so we wouldn’t lose any money. I also remember the Concierge staff asking about the comfort of the room and whether they could provide different types of pillows or blankets to provide a better sleeping experience. Now that is service!

Every time I walked in the lounge, the team there remembered my name, greeted me, and asked how the voyage was going so far. Though Disney has friendly cast members all around, the ones in Concierge seemed personally invested in my experience and the activities I wanted to do, and they did everything in their power to make it a comfortable and pleasurable journey.

Better Seating at Meals

If you’re in Concierge, you have a private table to yourself at meals, which is an absolutely fantastic perk you won’t find listed on any Disney website. If you are not on the Concierge level, on the other hand, you may be seated at dinner with guests from other cabins.

Even better, based on my experience, it appears that Concierge staterooms get better tables at dinner, too. Many of the dinner restaurants on Disney ships have some sort of interactive experience, a performance, or some other element where some tables get a better vantage point than others. If you’re in Concierge, Disney does what it can to put you at these better tables.

I can remember my time on the Disney Wish, where my party was at Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure. For this restaurant, there was a stage in the center where the actors came up throughout the evening to sing songs. I was staying in a 1-bedroom Concierge room on this ship, and we were given a table directly next to the stage. In fact, during all of the dinners, we were assigned literally the best table in the house. We discovered from other cruisers that this is a hidden Concierge perk that isn’t often discussed!

Keep in mind that your table may be in the back or a less desirable part of the restaurant. If you book further in advance or reserve a nicer Concierge room, anecdotal evidence says you’re more likely to get better seating.

Things I Didn’t Find as Worth It

Concierge is a significant investment, and there are several elements that I didn’t feel were worth it.

Earlier Seating at Shows

One of the published perks of Concierge is that you are let into the main theater before all other guests so you can choose the best seats in the house when it comes time for the evening performances. Depending on the ship, you’re also offered complimentary popcorn and bottled water.

I didn’t find this as useful as you’d think. First of all, I wanted to maximize my time on the ship doing other activities, so arriving at the theater 40 minutes in advance of the show just to get a better seat was annoying. I wished they had just roped off a specific area so Concierge guests could arrive at any time.

On the 2 Concierge sailings I have done, the shows were not full, so even arriving just before showtime, I saw desirable seats still available. Of course, if the ships had been filled to capacity and everyone wanted to see the shows, it might’ve been a different story.

Bottom Line:

If you’re doing back-to-back activities on the ship, you may not be able to take advantage of the early seating for shows, so this perk may not be as valuable.

Welcome Lunch

As soon as you enter the ship from your priority boarding, you’re immediately directed to a private luncheon for Concierge guests. This is a sit-down lunch with waiter service, offering a selection of appetizers, entrees, desserts, and drinks. The menu features upscale offerings, including lobster and filet mignon. On most ships, this is located in the dining room named after Walt Disney himself (you can dine here as part of the rotational dining program, so this isn’t exclusive access to this space).

While this perk is certainly cool, the excitement of boarding a ship tends to make me not hungry! For repeat guests who value this extra time and a great start to the cruise, it can certainly be a fun thing to do, but if you’ve never been on the ship before, you may just want to explore!

Complimentary Room Service From Restaurants

One of the perks of Concierge is that you can receive room service from any of the restaurants on the ship. If you feel like hanging out in your room one night but are craving a meal from one of the theme restaurants, you can order it via room service. Similarly, if you’re in a 1-bedroom stateroom or higher, you can order a hot breakfast as room service (lower-category Concierge rooms only receive a continental breakfast).

I hardly used this benefit. My traveling party and I wanted to experience each restaurant as it was meant to be, and dinner is a fun affair on these ships. We certainly didn’t want to be cooped up in the room, even with the added convenience of room service. Outside of one time where we tried the room service breakfast just to see what it was like, we never ordered anything else from any themed restaurant.

That said, we did have the late-night munchies a few of the nights and ordered off of the regular room service menu. This menu features fan favorites like chocolate chip cookies and chicken tenders, and is available to all guests, not just those in Concierge.

Final Thoughts

There’s absolutely no question that the Disney Cruise Line Concierge experience is a lot of money, substantially more than regular rooms. But having done Concierge twice, I can safely say that I am absolutely hooked on the experience.

I found the staff to be exceptionally friendly, and there were both large and small elements throughout the cruise that really made me feel like Concierge level was worth it. On my next Disney cruise, I would definitely consider purchasing a Concierge room again and would even consider not sailing if one wasn’t available.