POR or AoA suite for family of 5?

[Ariel on Land]

Trying to decide between the two. It will be DH, myself, my twin six-year old boys, and our 26 month old daughter. DD is still napping and will sleep in a pack n play. All kids go down at about the same time at night. POR is by far the cheapest, by about $330 for the stay. We've only stayed at CBR, but were looking to do something different, and we have never stayed at a value before. The pros to POR are cost (which is obviously the biggest reason!), the more relaxed moderate atmosphere, the queen beds, and the boat to DTD. Pros to AoA are: the extra room- a separate area that DD could nap in if needed, DH and I would have the ability to "stay up" while the kids go to bed earlier, the fun themeing for the kids (we'd probably go for a cars suite for the boys) and the splash pad. Will the fact that it's a value resort be bothersome? (ie: noisier, more crowded, etc...) Although I'd probably request a room furthest from the pool. Do you think the 5 of us will be too cramped at POR? Is AoA worth the extra money?

What would you do?

 

[Coconuts]

If you are looking to save a few dollars, a regular value room would be great. We stayed at POP when my kids were 10, 7, and just under 3. It was a little cramped but honestly we were hardly ever in the room. The kids loved POP and keep asking to go back. I felt that the room size difference between a value and POR(where we usually stay) is negligible. We wish we would have stayed at a value and saved some money while we could have. Unfortunately we are now officially 5 people and have to stay at POR.

 

[Pixie Princess]

I think it depends if you think it is worth $330 for the extra room. If it were me, and spending the extra cash wouldn't be a hardship, I'd go for AoA for the extra space, the kitchenette and other advantages you mentioned. If you go with a Cars suite, you won't be near the main pool. The Cars area does have its own pool, but it is tiny so I can't imagine that it generates a whole lot of noise. Plus AoA has inside rooms which one can only hope minimizes the outside noise. AoA is a fun resort with the best food court, in terms of food, of any value or moderate resort for that matter. In terms of service, I feel it is slower than other Values or Moderates.

I love POR, so if the extra money is a tough pill to swallow, I think you'll enjoy the resort. The rooms are smaller than the rooms at CBR, but not so much so that I think you'd feel anymore cramped than you do at CBR. Our first trip we stayed at CBR, and the second we stayed at POR. We have never returned to CBR.

 

[ColonelHathi]

We were looking at both resorts for our stay as well, ended up booked POR. BUT, I would actually recommend AoA if you can afford the extra $$. If your boys are into Cars, they will likely grow out of that phase soon. My DS 7 kinda likes Lion King, but he's really grown out of the phase where he likes most of the other AoA theming, we were debating on Cars but he's "over that" . This was a big deciding criteria for us - will both kids enjoy the theming? DS actually really wanted to stay at POFQ with the sea serpant slide, but staying at POR still allows us to venture over and use the FQ pool. A lot has changed with DS between age 5-7, a LOT. Enjoy the moment with your twins while it lasts!!!

Also, having that separate room for your DD to rest, while still being able enjoy your time with your DS twins, that is so much better than triyng to shoo them out of the room. What if it (gasp) rains? Or even at night, you could move the PnP into the room where your DSs are and have some time/the room to yourselves too!

Also, for that age, unless your DSs can swim, the splash pads are much nicer than the pools, and something your DD can enjoy too with little to no worry on your part.

Hope that helps!

 

[AliceIn]

We loved the AoA and our Cars suite. At 565 square feet, the suite is nearly twice the size of a POR room. Cars building 3 is close to the main pool. The suite buildings have inside corridors like the deluxe hotels. You get a queen sizes bed in the master, and you get two bathrooms and two TVs in addition to the kitchenette. The AOA is a great resort that definitely a big step up from other values. For a 330 difference, is go AoA.

 

[aylarosie]

I just stayed at alligator bayyou in por, It was just my husband and myself I can not imagine three children there as well. You would defineately be cramped.Doable but for 330.00 I would choose the bigger rooms at AOA. The POR was a great resort and the boat was a half hour trip to downtown. I am an older parent of grownchildren (4) years ago we stayed in the treehoses so we could have some kitchen facilities and extra room and bathroom. It was great to put the kids in the other room and unwind with my husband at night. Also there was only two chairs in the POR room at the table .As another poster said what if it rains? You will have fun anyway but extra room for naps is great a tired child is a cranky one .Good luck have fun Nan

 

[PMart]

I have stayed at both resorts with 3 children myself and I would go for AoA if you can The rooms are amazing for a larger family do not get me wrong I do like POR but the extra space and extra bathroom , kitchenette, TVs were awesome.

Have an awesome trip whichever resort you choose

Pmart

 

[HHMcG]

Pros to AoA are: the extra room- a separate area that DD could nap in if needed, DH and I would have the ability to "stay up" while the kids go to bed earlier.

These are the exact reasons we stay in a family suite in Disney. Even when we only had 2 kids we still stayed at the family suite (ASMu). Our other big reason is in case "someone" (DS2) is up in the middle of the night, we have a door to close, so he won't wake up the other kids. Everyone getting a good night sleep is a necessity to a smooth vacation for us. So family suite it is. It is worth the extra money to me.
I hope once my youngest gets a bit older and will sleep like a rock, we can try out some other resorts without the family suites.

I have never stayed at a Mod, so I am no help comparing the two.

 

[MinnieLovesMickey12]

I would suggest saving even more money and staying in a family suite at All Star Music. They are cheaper than the suites at AoA and they are also 525 square feet with a Queen in the bedroom and 3 sleepers in the living room and 2 bathrooms & kitchenette.

We stayed in the Calypso building both times which is the closest to the food court but also closest to the main pool and we never had any noise problems.

 

[JDSNY10]

Going thru the same discussion with my wife and after reading the comments from the PP, my mind is now set on aoa.TYVM PP! We too have 3 kids and When we get back to the rooms they love playing and not just unwinding. Aoa has enough room for them to do that while me and wifey can sit and relax!

 

[Princess Disney Mom]

Sounds like AOA would be perfect for your family.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[TravelAgentJen]

I have stayed at a value POP with two connecting rooms which was great and we loved POP. We have also stayed at POR in one room together and it was a little cramped, the only person that really minded though was my husband(I also love PO). He said he won't go back without an extra bedroom so fine with me, suites it is!! I think I'm really going to love having the extra space+chairs at the dining table, 2 tv's and the microwave! Plus the resort is way more animated then POP so I know the kids r going to love it for sure. It still has the movies at night and pool activities and good food PLUS one bus stop that doesn't stop anywhere else-THIS IS MY FAV!!

 

[eyeheartgoofy]

If you can, I would spend the money and stay in a Cars Suite at AOA. I only have 2 kids, but we started going when the youngest was 21 months ... our first trip was on rented points and we stayed in a DVC studio - just having a kitchenette made a huge difference over a regular hotel room with a toddler - the extra sink, bigger fridge, microwave were very handy (washing sippy cups, storing food, making some easy lunches, etc.). The next year, we stayed in a one bedroom DVC unit and having that extra room was AWESOME for nap times and letting the kids fall asleep (definately very nice to relax and read or watch TV while the kids slept in the other room). Now that my kids are older, we can stay in one room without a problem ... but when they were little, having that extra space just made for a more enjoyable vacation.

We just got back from a stay in the Little Mermaid section of AOA and I was very impressed with the resort. Our room was on the top floor and faced the parking lot - it was very quiet up there (elevator service was great). Art of Animation is a great family resort. The main pool did get pretty busy and was loud midday ... but it's zero entry and has a very cute water play area. We didn't swim in the Cars pool, but the Little Mermaid pool was much quieter than the main pool ... lots of chairs and just really nice.

 

[Ariel on Land]

Alright-- well, you convinced me, now I need to convince DH!!!! I think you all are right about the extra space. It almost seems backwards since the kids will all be bigger, but I think in a few years we could get away with less space as we'll be on a similar sleep pattern for everyone. Ok.... wish me luck folks!!!!