Extra space or extra savings? POR vs. suites

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

I am so undecided. I've been looking at options with the new spring offer. For the package I am looking at (with reg.dining and WP&more tickets) POR is almost $1,200.00 cheaper than our next option up in price which would be an AsMu suite. Every year I consider POR because it is our lowest price option, but every year I chicken out because I'm just so unsure on the crowding issue. What is it really like with 5 in a room????

[dansdad]

We have done 5 in a room at POR for 9 days with no problems. You do have to be organized, but it was not a problem at all. If I could SAVE $1200 and stay at moderate over a value, I would jump at the chance.

[jmcghee2024]

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[minnie mum]

I'm with dansdad. For $1,200 I can stand a bit of crowding.

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

Originally Posted by dansdad

We have done 5 in a room at POR for 9 days with no problems. You do have to be organized, but it was not a problem at all. If I could SAVE $1200 and stay at moderate over a value, I would jump at the chance.

Thanks, I guess I'm just a little leery since I have 2 teens, and this would be a 10 night trip! And then there's the fact that my kids are only used to staying in 3br condos. I am pretty good at organizing when I have to though! At least I know my ds8 would probably like the murphy bed! Decisions, decisions...

[dansdad]

Originally Posted by BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM

Thanks, I guess I'm just a little leery since I have 2 teens, and this would be a 10 night trip! And then there's the fact that my kids are only used to staying in 3br condos. I am pretty good at organizing when I have to though! At least I know my ds8 would probably like the murphy bed! Decisions, decisions...

Well you know your family best. We had a teen niece and a teen nephew go with us and it was a breeze. We had an order every day for the shower which was a huge help.

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

Originally Posted by dansdad

Well you know your family best. We had a teen niece and a teen nephew go with us and it was a breeze. We had an order every day for the shower which was a huge help.

Hearing that it "was a breeze" definitely makes me feel better! And, yes, we would have a shower schedule for sure!

[Sunnywho]

The in-between option between POR and a suite is to rent two value resort rooms. It is cheaper than a suite by several hundred dollars over a longer stay.

Are YES tickets an option? There's a good discount on the premium wp&more for the kids

[pigletto]

I would go the two value rooms route. We brought a friend of dd15 for our last trip and I agonized over what to do. We went back and forth and back and forth. In the end we ended up in a Fort Wilderness Cabin with free dining which saved some money and gave us space. It would have been too much with all of us in one room no matter how good the price tag was. Now, you are all family so it's a little more comfortable, but even then, it would have to be some good natured teenagers for me to cram us all into one room. Sometimes a little more space keeps the peace better in my experience.

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

Originally Posted by Sunnywho

The in-between option between POR and a suite is to rent two value resort rooms. It is cheaper than a suite by several hundred dollars over a longer stay.

Are YES tickets an option? There's a good discount on the premium wp&more for the kids

The two rooms could be an option although for the length of the trip( unless I knocked some days off) POR is already above my original budget.. As far as the YES tickets go, I cannot get the dining plan with those and that's one of the reasons I was going to try on site.

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

Originally Posted by pigletto

I would go the two value rooms route. We brought a friend of dd15 for our last trip and I agonized over what to do. We went back and forth and back and forth. In the end we ended up in a Fort Wilderness Cabin with free dining which saved some money and gave us space. It would have been too much with all of us in one room no matter how good the price tag was. Now, you are all family so it's a little more comfortable, but even then, it would have to be some good natured teenagers for me to cram us all into one room. Sometimes a little more space keeps the peace better in my experience.

Well, umm, everyone is good natured except my teenage daughter...but I assume that is all teenage girls! I suppose I could cover the room in Justin Bieber posters and she would be happier even if crowded! lol

[MinnieLovesMickey12]

I have done the same thing 2 different times. I originally booked POR for the 5 of us because it was so much cheaper than the family suite but after thinking it over I just couldn't stand the thought of all 5 of us in one room with just one bathroom. And both times I have called and changed our resort to ASMu family suite.

I will stay in a mod when it is just DH and I because the value room beds are so hard they give me a headache and backache when I wake up.

But any time our whole family goes we will be in a family suite.

All 5 of us in one room there would just simply be no place for all 5 of our bags.

There's plenty of room for everybody's bags in the family suite. You have 2 closet areas near the bathroom sink where you can store your bags and there is room in the living room, even with the beds all pulled out for a few bags in there too.

We also just like having privacy away from the kids when we sleep. And the kids all need to have a TV on when they fall asleep and we don't. DH and I like it quiet and dark when we go to sleep.

It costs more for the room and it also cost me more for housekeeping tips. If I had stayed at POR I would have just tipped $5 but staying in a 2 room suite with 2 bathrooms and 4 beds to make up I always tip $10. We got excellent housekeeping service.

I don't mind not having a sit down restaurant at ASMu, we love the food court just fine and Boatwright's menu doesn't appeal to any of us so we wouldn't eat there anyway.

The one thing I would like better about staying at POR is the pool slide for the kids and the boat to DTD. But there is a ping pong table down by the pool at ASMu and my kids went down there and played it every evening and also watched the movie outside.

ALso when you stay at a value, even though you pay more per night, you only get QSDP when free dining is offered. ANd then it costs more to upgrade to DDP.

[Coconuts]

Originally Posted by minnie mum

I'm with dansdad. For $1,200 I can stand a bit of crowding.

Agreed.

[nkereina]

Normally I'm all about saving money but in your situation with 2 teens and 10 nights, the real question is whether $1200 is worth your sanity. What's the cost of two rooms at a value? Whether you do that or the suite, the 2 bathrooms will be key and so will the extra space.

Also, how old is the 5th person in the room? The new murphy beds in POR that holds the 5th person is no longer a trundle. It is suspended from the wall under the TV, basically in the middle of the room. It's meant for children 11 or 12 and under. No one bigger could fit due to the size of it, plus weight restrictions. Although I haven't experienced the new bed down yet, it looks like it would make the room even more crowded due to the placement of it being basically in the middle of the room. It's not like the trundle on the side of the bed out of the way.

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

Originally Posted by nkereina

Normally I'm all about saving money but in your situation with 2 teens and 10 nights, the real question is whether $1200 is worth your sanity. What's the cost of two rooms at a value? Whether you do that or the suite, the 2 bathrooms will be key and so will the extra space.

Also, how old is the 5th person in the room? The new murphy beds in POR that holds the 5th person is no longer a trundle. It is suspended from the wall under the TV, basically in the middle of the room. It's meant for children 11 or 12 and under. No one bigger could fit due to the size of it, plus weight restrictions. Although I haven't experienced the new bed down yet, it looks like it would make the room even more crowded due to the placement of it being basically in the middle of the room. It's not like the trundle on the side of the bed out of the way.

Haven't priced two values yet, but my 5th person just turned 8yrs. old so he would be fine on the trundle. Of course I realize it would still be somewhat crowded even if he is only 8.