Adventures and Mousecapades: A Podcast About Disney

204. Disney Platinum Perks Showdown

• Alicea & Nathan Novak • Episode 204

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This week it's Pixie Dust or Bust! Two lifetime perks. Ten platinum options. One ruthless scoring system. We set out to answer a question Disney fans argue about forever: which benefits would actually deliver the most joy, value, and ease over a lifetime of trips?

We walk through a stacked slate of choices: Club 33 memberships on both coasts, six concierge-level Disney Cruise Line sailings every year, two Adventures by Disney trips annually, a home in Golden Oak, twelve VIP tours a year, free dining across property, free stays at any Disney resort, always-on Minnie Van access, and a one-week stay every year at every Disney parks resort worldwide. Then we do the hard thing: assign weighted scores for value, frequency, uniqueness, convenience, and wow factor. As the numbers land, expectations get flipped. Club 33 Disneyland outshines Disney World’s lounges. Free rooms quietly beat free dining. VIP tours carry more day-to-day value than most people think. And a global Disney week challenges even the dream of six luxury cruises.

Along the way we share why nostalgia matters, how logistics shape real vacations, and where prestige takes a back seat to flexibility. We debate Golden Oak versus unlimited resort stays, ABD’s cultural depth versus DCL’s restorative pace, and whether convenience perks like Minnie Vans can ever rival line-skipping power. Our final rankings deliver a surprise at the top and a few hot takes, but we also reveal our personal two picks, grounded in how we actually travel: slow mornings, stress-free days, and time to savor the magic.

Which two would you lock in for life and why? Hit play, then tell us your top picks. If you enjoy the show, follow @OurMouscapades, share with a Disney-loving friend, and leave a quick review so more fans can find us. Pixie dust thrives on word of mouth.

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Adventures & Mousecapades is a passion project from Alicea & Nathan Novak - two Seattleites addicted to The Mouse. We are not affiliated with Disney, nor are we travel agents. Opinions are our own.

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Setting The Platinum Challenge

Alicea

Hello everyone, I'm Alicea.

Nathan

And I'm Nathan.

Alicea

Welcome to episode 204 of Adventures and Mouscapades. This week we've done golden tickets, but that was just Disney World. What if we went beyond Florida and made this even harder?

Nathan

Indeed. If you listen to episode 198 just a few short weeks ago, okay, several long weeks ago is the way the world works these days. Um, yeah, we we had a list of 10 things and this we borrowed this from somebody online and expanded on it a little bit. And we had a challenge of these 10 perks, choose two uh that we would use. And we kind of thought we could make this a lot tougher on ourselves in order to choose which things we would uh we would be interested in. So that's what we're doing. We're giving ourselves our own patented, it's not patented, Disney torture test. With that, let's dive in to our 10 contestants, shall we? Let's do it. All right.

The Ten Lifetime Disney Perks

Alicea

For our platinum ticket options, these are all lifetime benefits. So permanent pixie dust.

Nathan

Exactly.

Alicea

First one, Club 33 membership at Disneyland. An ultra-exclusive private club tucked inside Disneyland. It offers fine dining, impeccable service, and access to a hidden world of Disney luxury. Membership includes special perks, events, and a level of prestige that few ever experience.

Nathan

Indeed. Second on our list of 10 is Club 33 membership at Disney World. They are separate things. This is the East Coast counterpart to Disneyland's Elite Club, granting access to private lounges in multiple parks. There's one in each park, priority reservations, and a VIP experience that transforms every visit into something extraordinary.

Alicea

Next one is six Disney Cruise line cruises a year in Concierge. Sail the season ultimate style with six annual cruises in concierge level staterooms. Every itinerary is yours to choose, and flights are covered, making global Disney Adventures effortless and luxurious.

Nathan

Or, number four, two adventures by Disney trips per year. Embark on two guided, story-rich vacations annually to destinations worldwide. These immersive experiences combined Disney level service with cultural exploration, with all flights included for stress-free travel.

Alicea

Next on the list is a house in Golden Oak and all of the membership benefits. You can own a home in Disney's most exclusive residential community. You enjoy private club access, concierge services, and a lifestyle steeped in Disney magic right outside your door.

Nathan

And for those who aren't familiar, Golden Oak is a neighborhood that is just steps away from Magic Kingdom and Epcot there in Florida.

Alicea

Multi-million dollar houses.

Nathan

Some are incredibly large, some are stupidly large. Yes. Take your pick, whatever you want. Also on our list, 12 VIP tours per year. Skip every line and experience the parks like royalty with a personal guide. These tours offer backstage access, priority seating, and curated itineraries for the ultimate stress-free Disney day.

Alicea

Then we have free dining at any on-property restaurant. Dine like a king or queen at any Disney restaurant, parks, or resorts without ever seeing a bill. From quick bites to signature dining, every culinary craving is covered for life.

Nathan

That's a good thing we uh had lunch before we recorded this because it's starting to make me hungry thinking about all of those options. Speaking of options, number eight on our list is free accommodations at any on-property resort. Stay anywhere on Disney property in any room category at no cost. From value resorts to the most luxurious suites, your dream Disney stay is always waiting.

Alicea

Number nine, we have free minivan access, like M-I-N-N-I-E. Yeah. Yeah, Minnie mouse. For all your transportation needs at Disney World, enjoy private Disney themed transportation across property whenever you want. No waiting, no hassle, just seamless travel with a touch of pixie dust.

Nathan

And finally, on our list of 10 options, one week every year at every Disney Parks resort worldwide. Spend a week annually at each Disney destination across the globe. This includes park access, VIP tours, premium accommodations, dining, and travel, making you a true citizen of Disney's worldwide kingdom. And for those who may not know, this would include all four parks in Walt Disney World, the two parks at Disneyland of California, the two parks in Paris, the two parks in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and you know, when it finally exists, Disney and Abu Dhabi. There we go. Yeah. And it wasn't really clear in there. I want to specify for you, Alicia, that would be one VIP tour per park per year. So every year you get to go to each park. Every year you go get to go. Well, no, you get a week in each park, but you'd only get one tour per park. So you'd get a week to be in Florida, but you only get four VIP tours, one per park. Okay. I'm just making the rules. All right. So that's the list. Any questions?

Alicea

No.

Scoring System And Criteria

Nathan

What's next? All right. Let's debate. This time, because I'm a PM, I wanted to add data into the mix here. So we are going to debate our options just like we did last time. But this time we're going to use a scoring system to help us empirically decide what the best options are. We will score each option on a scale of one to 10 in each of these categories. Value, frequency of use, uniqueness, convenience, and wow factor. For value, how much monetary worth does this perk represent annually? Frequency of use, how often would you realistically use it? Uniqueness, how rare or exclusive is the experience? Convenience, how easy is it to take advantage of this perk? Time, logistics, all the rest of that stuff. And wow factor. How much does this impress or excite you personally?

Alicea

So we're doing scale of one to 10. Yes. Can we use each number only once?

Nathan

No. Okay. Individually rate each thing.

Alicea

Okay.

Nathan

I don't want to, we're not going to stack rank. That would take too long. Okay. Um, we are going to weight these categories though. Value is 30%, frequencies 20%, uniqueness is 20%, and then convenience and wow factor get 15%. If you do math, that's 100%. Wow. That's right. We will come out with a 1 to 10 score for each of these 10 options. Any questions, Alicia? You good to go?

Alicea

Good to go.

Club 33: Disneyland Vs Disney World

Nathan

All right. Let's kick off the great debate. All right. All right, Alicea, first up, we need to talk. Do we want to do Club 33 in Disneyland or Club 33 in Disney World? Which Club 33 membership offers more value and exclusivity given the differences in park size, number of lounges? One has a restaurant, another one doesn't. Overall experience. What are we doing? What are you thinking?

Alicea

Uh Disneyland.

Nathan

Yeah?

Alicea

Yeah. Because there's also the lounge over in California Adventure.

Nathan

True.

Alicea

It has a full restaurant. It's not just a lounge.

Nathan

True.

Alicea

Now, I haven't been to any of the Disney World ones, so I do not have firsthand knowledge of that. I think I'd rather do Disneyland though.

Nathan

Yeah. There's something about the nostalgia factor of the original. I think there's also the how do we want to say it? The clientele that you will likely get to rub shoulders with, you may see some more familiar faces in California than you do in Florida. Yeah. So okay. Um, value. Uh, this one's expensive. Yeah. If you're going to uh uh pay for this, I would say uh kind of given all of the other things, there's a lot of very expensive things on here. Uh I'm gonna give this, I don't know, we'll just start off. This is hard. I used to do judging for high school marching bands. Like the first band up, like where you start your scoring, dictates what scores to happen for the rest of the day. Do we want to start this one out at a seven and eight? What are you thinking?

Alicea

With this, would we have to pay for dinners and drinks? Or is that all included?

Nathan

Oh, great question.

Alicea

I'm I'm or is it just the membership itself?

Nathan

No, I think this is just the membership. This is um all of the perks you get with the membership. So this is really access to the lounges, this is access to the the restaurant. You still have to pay for food and drinks and all the rest of that stuff. Uh, you do get four annual passes, you do get uh individual day tickets, you get uh, I think it's three or four VIP tours a year. I mean, this isn't a very spendy thing to do for just the buy-in, and then there's annual dues as well. Um, but it, you know, it comes out in the wash in terms of the benefits that you get. But to your point, you're still having to pay for those dinners if you do want to eat there. What are you thinking? Uh I'm I'm kind of talking my du myself down, like maybe a six.

Alicea

Yeah, six or seven.

Nathan

I had seven originally. Uh-huh. I see what you did there. I'm not gonna acknowledge that. Um you just did. I know. Let's do whole numbers only. Six, okay. Uh frequency, how often would we use this? I I if we were it down there, I'd use it all the time.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

That's a great assumption. Let's assume we're living. Well, obviously, with number five owning a house in Florida, um, we'd have a house in Florida. But other than that, let's assume that we still live here. Okay. Other than that, don't worry about money. Which wouldn't that be nice? Um, so frequency of use of a Club 33 membership at Disneyland. I'd give this probably a six for us, a five for us.

Alicea

Um I think if we had membership down there, we'd go down a lot more often.

Nathan

True. That's okay, that's fair. Seven?

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

Okay. Uniqueness, uh, ten.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

Uh convenience, which is how easy is it to take advantage of this uh perk, you know, in terms of time and logistics. Assuming we still live here, I'm gonna still it's pretty convenient to take uh and no, it's it's actually not because we'd have to get plane tickets.

Alicea

Um it's not just like a uh technically none of these are convenient unless we're living there. Yeah, I'd say five.

Nathan

Okay. Wow factor ten.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

Yeah. Okay. All right. Cool. All right. Club 33 at Disney World. Value.

Alicea

I have no idea how much this one is.

Nathan

I don't think the price is as different as it used to be. I think it's kind of comparable.

Alicea

Okay.

Nathan

I but still, I'm gonna give it a five. It doesn't have a restaurant. Yeah. And I don't think they have the same hours. Like their lounges aren't open as late, I don't believe. I'm gonna give it a five. Frequency, I'm gonna give this was a six, five. That's a cross-country flight for us.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

Like five? Five. Yeah, okay. Uniqueness is a ten.

Alicea

Yep.

Golden Oak Vs Free Resort Stays

Nathan

Yeah. Um, convenience, four for us in our current situation. Yeah. Wow factor is a ten. Yeah. I agree. All right, cool. All right. Next up on our debate questions is a home in Golden Oak versus unlimited resort stays. Is owning a home in Golden Oak worth more than having free accommodations at any Disney resort worldwide, considering flexibility and lifestyle?

Alicea

Um, I'd go for the unlimited resort stays.

Nathan

Yeah, I actually think I would too. I would love to own a home in Golden Oak, but uh being able to go anywhere else and like even forget the the cost of travel and all the rest of that stuff. Like, if you take the cost of accommodations off the the table, like that's a huge dent in your trip. So okay, all right. So we're gonna go unlimited hotel stays, is would be our preference.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

All right. Well, let's let's do some numbers here. In terms of value, a home in Golden Oak clearly is a 10.

Alicea

Yes.

Nathan

That that is that's a lot.

Alicea

Yep, millions.

Nathan

Uh frequency of use. I mean if we owned a home in Golden Oak, we would use it all the time.

Alicea

Yes, that would be an everyday type thing, right?

Nathan

Yes, I'm gonna give that a 10. Yes. Uniqueness, 10. Convenience. That's awfully convenient. Yeah. Um, is this a 10? Yeah. Wow factor. Is it is it 10?

Alicea

Yeah. This is this is gold star.

Nathan

This is weird. This is weird. We just said this isn't the thing we would choose, and yet we just gave it tens. I love scoring.

Alicea

Well, there's scoring versus personal opinion, which are two very different things.

Nathan

Okay, that's fair. That's fair. All right, so free accommodations, value.

Alicea

I think that's a 10.

Nathan

That's a 10. Yeah. Uh frequency of use.

Alicea

That's a 10 as well. I mean, we would use it all the time. All the time. How often would you realistically use it?

Nathan

Would we need a house here? Could we just travel the world living at Disney resorts? 10. Oh goodness. Yeah.

Alicea

Okay.

Nathan

Uniqueness. Mmm. This one gets knocked down in uniqueness. Seven, eight, eight, seven? Seven. Seven? Okay. Convenience. How easy is it to use that? Well, I can book a hotel room on my app.

Alicea

So yeah, it's pretty convenient.

Nathan

Yeah. Um, it it's a step down from owning the home and actually having your stuff there. You do have to pack and move. So I'm gonna knock it off a point. We'll give it a nine. Okay. All right. Wow factor. Eight?

Alicea

Yeah, I think that makes sense. Okay. It's pretty cool, but again, the whole packing and moving a week at a time.

Nathan

Yeah. Yeah. Okay. All right. All right. Next up on the great debate. And this one is actually very interesting because these two service offerings are often compared, or one is often referred to as a gateway to the other. So Disney Cruise Line Concierge, and that is six cruises a year, versus adventures by Disney, two of those a year. Would you rather explore the world by sea with six luxury cruises annually, or by land with two immersive A B D trips each year?

Alicea

Cruise line.

Nathan

Yeah, you get more use out of it.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

It's not saying I don't want to do an A B D trip or several.

Alicea

But it is um, I think the longest ABD is like 14 days.

Nathan

I disagree. The longest ABD is an outlier. It's a month long. That is the trip around the world.

Alicea

Yeah. Oh my gosh, do that twice a year. Okay.

Nathan

Okay, but I think in general, I'm with you. I would um I would do DCL concierge on six cruises a year. Yeah. Uh they would all be very long cruises.

Alicea

Oh, there's a transatlantic.

Nathan

All the transatlantics, all the Panama canals, all the long ones. Oh, there's an 11 night to uh to the Southern Caribbean. Oh, they're doing a 10 night to Alaska. All of the long ones.

Alicea

That is more our speed. While I do, I would love to do an ABD Adventures by Disney. I like the relaxation of the cruises.

Nathan

Yeah. Agreed. Agreed. Agreed. Okay. So let us do some rankings. Let's see. Do you want to do concierge on DCL first? Sure. All right. Value. Um that I would think that's actually more, that is more expensive than a Club 33 membership. Yeah. So we had Club 33 at uh a six in Disneyland.

Alicea

Eventually, I mean, if if this is if we're just doing one year, we're not though. We're doing over the lifetime of the thing. This would cost more than more than a house, too.

Nathan

That's true. Uh plus you have more experiences. Oh, should we knock that? Hmm. Do we want to go back and edit our scores or just ship it?

Alicea

Just ship it.

Nathan

I mean, we're gonna have to Are we gonna give DCL a 10? Yeah. All right. Ten on value, frequency of use. Ten. Ten. Um uniqueness. How rare or exclusive is the experience? I don't think I I'm gonna say eight. I think getting into concierge.

Alicea

I don't know that it's I still I think it's a little lower than that. I think it's seven because every ship has concierge available. True. And the newer ships have a lot more concierge rooms.

Nathan

Very true, very true. Um, convenience.

Alicea

How easy is it to take advantage of the perk? I mean, it's pretty easy.

Nathan

Yeah. We do have to travel, but the flights are included. Yeah. Nine? Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Uh, and then wow factor.

Alicea

How much does this impress or excite you personally? 10. 10.

Nathan

All right. And then the other one was ABD trips, value.

Alicea

These are, I'd say, um, they're probably they range from I think 3,000 up to 12,000 per person per ABD.

Nathan

Right. But there's also the value of the experiences. And that's like an intrinsic, like it's not a monetary value. I'm gonna give the value of this perk. I would like to give it a six or a seven.

Alicea

I was gonna say seven.

Nathan

Okay. I'm gonna ignore what I just said. You're welcome, Gen Alpha. Frequency of use. We would use the heck out of this at two times a year.

Alicea

Yep.

Nathan

Yeah. Uniqueness. I don't think this is super unique. I think some of the experiences are though.

Alicea

I think this is more unique than Disney Cruise line, though.

Nathan

That's oh, I like that perspective. Yeah. Eight? Eight, nine, eight, eight. What did we what did we do for seven for the cruises? Nine. Nine. You got it. Convenience. I think this would be more convenient. Well, at least as convenient as DCL, which was a nine. There's only two of these trips, so it's not as true. Yeah. Can we give it a 10? They take care of you. They handle all of the transfers and all the rest. They pick you up at the airport and they drop you back off of the airport. WoW Factor, is this a nine?

VIP Tours Value Breakdown

Alicea

This is a nine, I think. Yeah. Okay. All right. Uh, the next one is VIP tours versus club 33 membership. Does skipping every line and having a personal guide 12 times a year beat the prestige and perks of Club 33 membership?

Nathan

I don't think so. I don't think so, but it's a lot closer than I think some of the discussions we had during our golden ticket episode were. Because you do get, I think it's four VIP tours a year, maybe five with a uh with a pat with the membership rather. But like having 12 tours, like that's that's pretty, that's pretty incredible, but you still have to buy the tickets and all the rest of that stuff. And I think the prestige and the perks of Clarity 3, that's something that's a different level. Yeah. So I'll I'll I'll be with you. I'll I'll agree. Club 33 will beat having 12 VIP tours a year.

Alicea

We already did Club 33, so going through the 12 VIP tours per year.

Nathan

Yep. Value. This is I want to say a nine. Those tours are, you know, including tip and everything. You're looking, you're looking at five to you know, nine, maybe even ten thousand dollars for a day times twelve.

Alicea

Yep.

Nathan

Um, I think you're getting some incredible value out of that. Now, it's it's not a multi-million dollar home. Uh you know, uh, but it ain't cheap either. So I'm gonna I'm gonna say nine. Okay. Frequency of use. Uh 12 times. Yeah, exactly. I give this a 12 on a radio. Yeah, I'm gonna give this a 10. Uniqueness.

Alicea

It's pretty exclusive, although any there's like no wait list to to get membership to this. Um eight? Yeah, yeah, that's fine.

Nathan

All right, convenience. How easy is it to take advantage of this in terms of time logistics?

Alicea

I think you just call them up and see if they have availability. That's pretty convenient.

Nathan

It is. There's a limit of availability.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

Nine? Sure. I'm gonna give it a nine. Wow factor. Uh I'm gonna give this a nine.

Alicea

Okay.

Nathan

I mean, it's up there, but yeah. Okay. All right. Next up, let's see. What is our next comparison, Alicia?

Free Dining Or Free Rooms

Alicea

Free dining versus free accommodations. Which perk saves more money and enhances the Disney experience? Never paying for food or never paying for a hotel room?

Nathan

Clearly, the answer would be both. Um your room will cost more money. Like to me, this one's just practical.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

And it comes down to value. It's not that the food isn't valuable.

Alicea

Is this assuming we do not have DVC membership? Because if this is assuming we do not have DVC membership, then yes, hotel will be better. If this is assuming we do have DVC membership, I think food would be better.

Nathan

Oh, like given our current situation, if you were gonna choose one of these, which one would make more sense? Yeah. Okay, I can go with free food. We already have it's not free, but it's prepaid accommodations. Okay, I can get behind that one.

Alicea

Well, okay. Now I'm second guessing myself.

Nathan

No, now you're arguing.

Alicea

Because free accommodation, you can pick any accommodation.

Nathan

Uh-huh. We could it's gonna be pop century. No shade.

Alicea

No, we could hit the adventureland suite every time at Disneyland Hotel.

Nathan

Uh-huh.

Alicea

I changed my mind.

Nathan

We could get the the the three-bedroom uh grand villas wherever we want to go.

Alicea

Pending availability. Yeah, I think I think room. Yeah.

Nathan

Okay. All right. We're back to room. Yep. All right. So we've already ranked free room, free accommodations. Let's look at free dining in terms of value. I mean, this is pretty valuable, but given the scale of everything else that we've gone through, yeah. Uh everything else is a lot more expensive. I'm gonna give uh four. Five?

Alicea

I think five. Food is expensive.

Nathan

That's fair. Especially if it's free and you're gonna eat more of it or eat better, make better selections.

Alicea

And if your food is paid for, like if it's if you get free food, you're gonna hit all the booths.

Nathan

Yes.

Alicea

You're gonna hit you're not gonna worry about cost for anything, and you're gonna have every single meal on property.

Nathan

Very true. Never do dishes again. Frequency of use, 10.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

Uniqueness. I don't think this is I mean, it's just five? Like, would you say four?

Alicea

I said four.

Nathan

I'll go four.

Alicea

Okay.

Nathan

Uh convenience, ten. Yeah. Oh, you gotta book you're getting into reservation. Do you have you're still having to play the reservations game even if you're paying for food. So it's really just is the check comped at the end of this or not? Um are you upgrading the perk?

Alicea

I I would upgrade the perk.

Nathan

Okay. If we're able to eat wherever we want, whenever we want.

Alicea

Every restaurant has a Novak table.

Nathan

Love it. No complaints there. Where are we gonna rank this in terms of convenience then? 10?

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

All right. Wow factor.

Alicea

Five.

Minnie Vans, Convenience, And Reality

Nathan

Yeah. Yeah. Agreed. Agreed. All right. Next we are comparing minivan access versus VIP tours. Look, having minivan access would be fantastic. Love it. It does not compare. It's not our VIP tour. It's not a VIP tour. Yeah. Uh I will take minivans to get to my VIP tour and back.

Alicea

Yeah. Oh no, we wouldn't need to. They'd pick us up.

Nathan

That's not how that works. You do need to meet them in the park. Damn it. Okay. But uh yeah, it's um it's it's not up.

Alicea

Okay. Minivan access value.

Nathan

Four. Three.

Alicea

Those are some expensive Ubers. Lifts.

Nathan

Yeah.

Alicea

But yeah, okay, yeah. Four.

Nathan

Okay. Frequency.

Alicea

How often would you realistically use it? We'd use it if we had this, we'd use it every single time.

Nathan

All the time. Ten?

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

Okay. Uniqueness. Four.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

Yeah. Convenience. Ten. Wow factor. Five, four. I would love it. I would use it, but it it's it's fine.

Alicea

It's just it's your show. It's your chauffeur. Yeah. It's literally what it would be. Yeah.

Nathan

I am your chauffeur when we do these trips. So no change for you, although I am more beautiful. Thanks for the stunning silence that followed that statement, hon. I love you.

Global Disney Week Debate

Alicea

Love you too. Global Disney Week versus Golden Oak home. Would you prefer one magical week every year at every Disney destination worldwide or living permanently in Disney's most exclusive neighborhood? I think I would do Global Disney Week.

Nathan

Yeah. I I could be persuaded for the sake of argument, not that we're arguing about it. I think I'd take the home. No. I'm a coin flip on this one. I really am. I and the where my brain is is if I'm not paying for housing anymore, I can probably afford a global trip somewhere. And I would love to, well, we're not on our global jaunts around the world that would, you know, consume, you know, that's what, uh six, six, seven uh weeks out of the year. Um it's everywhere. Oh my God. I would much rather be living in Orlando near all our friends.

Alicea

So there's nothing saying we wouldn't have a house there already. It doesn't have to be a Golden House Oak house.

Nathan

Okay. All right. I I will you have convinced me we're we are trotting the globe.

Alicea

Housing costs in Orlando is very different than housing costs in Seattle.

Nathan

Very, very true.

Alicea

Yes. I feel like we could get a house in Orlando that we like for a lot less than one in Seattle. Yes. And looking at the Golden Oak homes, they don't have any smaller homes.

Nathan

That's true. A lot of those places are honestly too big.

Alicea

They are humongous.

Nathan

Yeah. I don't need a 7,500 square foot estate. I I just I don't.

Alicea

No. I and that's one of the main reasons that I would go with personally the Global Disney week.

Nathan

Okay. Well, Global Disney Week is the one thing that we haven't put numbers behind yet. So value for a global Disney week. How much monetary worth does this represent? Uh this ain't cheap.

Alicea

Um This includes park access, VIP tours, accommodations, dining, and travel. This would I think this is up there. This is a nine or a ten.

Nathan

I'm gonna give this a nine because it's not uh it's not a house and it's not something that's gonna uh free accommodations for the year.

Alicea

Um this is true. It is, however, every year. The cost of a house True. You go you have to balance it out.

Nathan

We going ten?

Alicea

I I think it's either a nine or a ten. I'm just giving you devil's advocate here and saying I'm gonna go nine.

Nathan

Okay. All right. Frequency of use, ten. Ten. Um uniqueness. That's a you that hitting every park every year. Every year. Yeah. That's a that's a that's a ten. Yeah.

Alicea

Convenience. This is not super convenient because of course, neither are the six cruises a year.

Nathan

No, but twist our arms, let us suffer. Eight?

Alicea

Okay.

Nathan

Yeah. Wow factor.

Alicea

This is up there.

Nathan

This is nine or ten. Nine?

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

Okay. Sounds good. All right. We have ranked everything, but

Alicea

something I've noticed here. Yeah. There is no mention of Aulani anywhere.

Nathan

Oh. Have we failed in our we get we get some perks and we we buy more points at Aualani.

Alicea

I guess that that would be accommodations at any. Well, it's not on pro that's not considered on property. Or is it its own property?

Nathan

Oh, I like it. We just backdoored our way into Aualani.

Alicea

Cool. Or Hilton Head or Vero Beach.

Head-To-Head: Cruises Vs Global Week

Nathan

Right, exactly, exactly. I mean, we're not we're not uh, you know, equal opportunities, folks. All right, we have a few more comparisons to do, and then we will look at the numbers. Disney Cruise Line Concierge versus Global Disney Week.

Alicea

Can I alternate?

Nathan

Would you rather sail the high seas?

Alicea

No, I'm gonna alternate. I'm good.

Nathan

You're gonna alternate?

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

You're gonna do global?

Alicea

No, I'm gonna do Disney Cruise Line Concierge one year, then I'm gonna go do Global Disney Week the next.

Nathan

Okay. Got it.

Alicea

I don't know.

Nathan

Um which offers the better global Disney experience? Six luxury cruises annually or visiting every Disney park worldwide once a year.

Alicea

This is a difficult one.

Nathan

This is how do you want a vacation for free?

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

This is do you want a relaxing vacation or do you want to be able to go do stuff in the parks?

Alicea

You could still relax in the parks. If you're going every single year.

Nathan

That's true. Your your must-do list is real small.

Alicea

Yeah. And it also includes a VIP tour. So you're gonna hit. You don't have to do, I'm gonna, you know what? I'm gonna do the Global Disney week. I love DCL so much. Yeah. But I think we can still do relaxing and whatnot during a global Disney week.

Nathan

Okay. I'm gonna take, I'm gonna take DCL. Okay. Um, I'll invite you on my trips, you invite me on yours.

Alicea

Perfect.

Nathan

All right. Adventures by Disney versus a global Disney week. Is the cultural depth and storytelling of ABD trips more compelling than the breadth of visiting every Disney park worldwide?

Alicea

You want to say yours first and then I'll say mine?

Nathan

I think you get more out of the Global Disney week and you're going to some unique places, you don't have to spend every day in the park, but you have accommodations and travel to get there. You have a VIP tour to maximize your park time when you're there that gives you an opportunity to use some other days on that global travel week to visit. I'm gonna take the Global Disney week.

Alicea

I was gonna do Global Disney Week, just knowing us and how we vacation. Adventures by Disney is very much a go, go, go thing. Yeah. And when we vacation, yeah, we do like to do that every once in a while, but we very much need relaxation time.

Nathan

Yes. Yes. All right, Global Disney it is. And our last comparison free dining versus club 33 membership. Does unlimited dining at any Disney restaurant rival the exclusivity and prestige of Club 33 access, where you have to pay for dinner and drinks?

Alicea

I am a snobby bougie person. I want my club 33 membership. Thank you.

Final Rankings And Tie Breakers

Nathan

Yeah, I'll take 33 as well. I just yeah. I can still get my grilled cheese at Club 33. They will.

Alicea

Can you, though?

Nathan

Yes.

Alicea

Did you do did you do that?

Nathan

No.

Alicea

I know Sterling did.

Nathan

It's there, it's possible.

Alicea

You know what? What? This is my challenge to you next time we are there.

Nathan

You're gonna make me order a grilled cheese sandwich. Can I get I would like an old-fashioned and a grilled cheese, please.

Alicea

If we ever get the same, we've we've had the same server a couple of times when we have been blessed enough to go there and she's recognized us. We'll have to, if if we get her again, we'll have to talk with her about hey, grilled cheese.

Nathan

Yeah. Okay. I love that. Yep. An old-fashioned and a grilled cheese at Club 33. Love it. Sold. Sold. All right, Alicea. It is time for some final rankings.

Alicea

Okay.

Nathan

Which order do you want to go?

Alicea

Lowest to highest.

Nathan

Okay. I don't know.

Alicea

No. What are we are we doing each one individually or total?

Nathan

We're gonna stack we have stacked. I have stack Excel has stack ranked. All 10 options. Okay. So I'm gonna go from our lowest total score up to our highest. Okay. All right. Coming in at number 10, we have free minivan access at a score of 6.25.

Alicea

Okay.

Nathan

Next up is free dining with a score of 6.55. Then we have so low on the list, club 33 at Disney World at a 6.6. And then a pretty decent jump up to club 33 at Disneyland at 7.45 for our number seven spot. Next up we have at number six two ABD trips per year, scoring at 8.75. Then we have free accommodations anywhere on Disney property at 8.95. And then in the fourth position, we have 12 VIP tours a year ranked an even nine. All right. Our top three platinum ticket options coming in third place. Six Disney Cruise Line concierge cruises a year at nine point two five. However, I'm getting late breaking news. It is actually a tie for second place. And DCL is in second place because it is tied also at 9.25 with a global Disney week. Our top rated option is a Golden Oak home with a total perfect score of 10. 10. Yeah. So in theory, that means because they're tied, and we are taking the top two. We get a home in Golden Oak. We spend a week in every Disney resort worldwide, and we're taking six cruises a year, people. I love math. I love math.

Alicea

Hey Disney. Yep.

Personal Picks, Disclaimers, And CTA

Nathan

This is what we want.

Alicea

Thank you. Thank you so much.

Nathan

All right, Alicia, do you agree with the numbers? Or are we putting our thumb on the scale and choosing different options here?

Alicea

Uh well, like I said, the numbers does do not necessarily the value and whatnot does not necessarily coincide with our personal wants and options and stuff. Right. I go, I mean, I wouldn't say no.

Nathan

Yeah. I think you and I both really, really want Disneyland Club 33 membership.

Alicea

Yeah. Without having to pay for it.

Nathan

Right. I I think of if we're choosing two perks that us as a uh, you know, we as a family are getting, we as a couple are getting. That's one of them.

Alicea

Yeah.

Nathan

I don't think it's the home in Golden Oak. No. And I don't think we actually disc well, we did discuss this. What did we come out with? Was it was it cruises or Disney week?

Alicea

I would honestly. This is me just just spitballing here. Yeah. I would do cruises. You know why?

Nathan

Why?

Alicea

Because we can get the tower suites and bring friends.

Nathan

Yeah. Yep. All right. We have a Club 33 membership in Disneyland. We are taking concierge cruises six a year. Life is not golden. It's platinum people. Well, that wraps up our Disney Platinum Tickets Challenge. Back in episode 198, we thought golden tickets were tough, but these lifetime worldwide perks took things to a whole new level. Whether you're dreaming of Club 33 exclusivity, global park hopping, or a home in Golden Oak, the magic is endless. Let us know which two you'd pick and join us next time as we keep exploring the world of Disney dreams. Until then, keep the Pixie Dust alive. Yay! Thank you. Thank you.

Alicea

No, I'm clapping because Pixie Dust.

Nathan

Oh, I see what you did there.

Alicea

Please remember we are not affiliated with Disney or their subsidiaries. These are our personal opinions and suggestions based on our own experiences and our own brains.

Nathan

We mostly suggest Disney give us these things. Yes. And you could give us all 10. It's okay. You can give us more.

Alicea

We would offer much more content if we were. Yeah.

Nathan

100% more content. 100%. I would I would give more than two. I would give 200% more content. I will do three episodes a week if we had all these things.

Alicea

Wow.

Nathan

Wow.

Alicea

That's true. We recommend working with a travel agent or contacting Disney directly to plan your perfect vacation.

Nathan

If you have questions or suggestions, or would like to tell us why we are wrong and why we should choose something else from our list, or you want to talk about your own Disney experiences, please do send an email to podcast at our mousecapades.com.

Alicea

You can follow us on socials. We are at OurMouscapades. You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, threads, and YouTube.

Nathan

Please do give us a rating and review in your podcast app that really helps people find us.

Alicea

If you like this episode or any of our episodes, please share us with your friends and fellow Disney lovers of all ages.

Nathan

Thanks for listening. We'll be in your ears next week. Thank you for flying Star Tours. Bye-bye.

Alicea

Wow. You can really burp.

Nathan

I'm sorry.

Alicea

Do you want me to do the last one? You seem to have the giggles. I got it.

Nathan

Thanks for listening. We'll be in your ears next week.

Head Shot

Alicea Novak

Host
Head Shot

Nathan Novak

Host