Are we going to regret staying at Bonnet Creek?

[Gillyrose779]

We have always stayed at a Disney Deluxe resort and this Thanksgiving we are going to try Bonnet Creek for the first time. I am terrified!

We are trying to keep the budget low and couldn't pass up $800 for 9 nights in a 2 bedroom suite. The pictures look great but I am so worried. 9 nights is a long time if we don't like it and I feel like I am having a hard time finding info. on the place- ie. restaurants on site with menus, daily activities, shuttle services to disney...

Can anyone give me some advice? How are the restaurants? Any quick service breakfast locations? Any daily activities for the kids? We will have a rental car but is the shuttle service better? Are we going to miss anything by not staying at a Disney Deluxe?

Thank you!

 

[buzznina]

Heres the DIS BC thread
http://www.disboards.com/threads/the-we-loooooove-bonnet-creek-thread-part-4.3366139/
BC charges $7 per person for the shuttle and you have to notify them in advance. I would just drive since you already have a rental.

 

[sharadoc]

I hear you. We keep thinking we will try it, then we chicken out. My biggest concern is that they are high rises, lots of people and cars for each building. But I really really want to try now that Disney room prices keep increasing at an exponential rate. Please come back after your stay and let us know how it went.

 

[J'Adore Disney]

You will definitely have Disney Resort Withdrawals!!!! But with that said I've stayed at the Bonnet Creek Hilton and it is beautiful, the rooms are spacious and comfortable, my kids loved the pool area and lazy river, and the breakfast buffet is top notch!

 

[pepe of ohio]

Sorry, no matter what, we will not stay off property....for any savings, it's ate up by logistics...if push came to shove...id take a value resort on property to stay on property....you're not going to find a cheaper price that includes free transportation and parking all the time....

We're fine in a single room, it's just a week and the convenience of stepping out of your resort and getting on Disney transportation can't be beat....we've gone to renting points from a broker and staying in DVC villas at moderate resort prices...call me a prude, but that's how we roll...

 

[AtlantaDisneyDreamer]

You will miss the pain of paying $3-6000 for a resort room.

There are loads of people on these boards who adore WBC. $800 for 9 days is less than you would pay to stay at Pop. Think of what you can do with the savings!

I tend to want to stay on property, too, but we will staying at WBC in April. We were at WDW in September and stayed at POFQ. We drove past the entrance to WBC several times on our way to parks or activities. It is
just as conveniently located as the majority of Disney resorts, and more conveniently located than some of them.

Biggest drawbacks for me:

No 180 +10 ADRs (but so far we have gotten everything we wanted by making ADRs at 6 am on day 180)
No 60+ day FPs (we will suck it up. We've met A&E many times and ridden SDMT 7 or 8 times, so we will be okay)
No Disney buses (but we drove almost everywhere when we stayed at POFQ anyway)
No EMH (we used them only once for about 10 minutes in September anyway)


I would think that a 9 day vacation in a 2 bedroom suite would be easier than 9 days at a value, and the cost savings over staying at a deluxe will be fabulous.

 

[Gillyrose779]

I'm not sure if I feel better or worse after ready these posts! LOL

I saw the breakfast buffet option somewhere and I thought it said kids 5 and under FREE. That sounds great... until I realize DH is trying to lose weight (he's already lost 20 lbs- woo hoo) and we are really trying to stay away from buffets for him. That is why I am hoping for more QS options but I can't find anywhere that tells me if BC has them.

We have annual passes so at least parking is free for us. DH is not used to driving and parking at the parks though so I am worried about that- he stresses out at the unknown very easily.

Wish us luck!

 

[Gillyrose779]

I hear you. We keep thinking we will try it, then we chicken out. My biggest concern is that they are high rises, lots of people and cars for each building. But I really really want to try now that Disney room prices keep increasing at an exponential rate. Please come back after your stay and let us know how it went.

I'll try to remember to come back right after vacation and give a pros/cons list. We really love the Disney bubble but we are going to try to go into this with an open mind. Fingers Crossed!

 

[married2mm]

I don't think you'll be disappointed-as I imagine you knew the "downsides" of not being on property prior to booking.
Therefore-go back to your happy place of cost etc..

I stayed in a 2 bed last month for the first time and it was lovely.
We had a split stay;
Cars suite at aoa
One night at rpr
End of vacay in WBC.

the newbie with us preferred WBC-in fact he said it was his favorite ever resort (in his 18 years on earth!!)

 

[darbykoby]

We have always stayed at a Disney Deluxe resort and this Thanksgiving we are going to try Bonnet Creek for the first time. I am terrified!

We are trying to keep the budget low and couldn't pass up $800 for 9 nights in a 2 bedroom suite. The pictures look great but I am so worried. 9 nights is a long time if we don't like it and I feel like I am having a hard time finding info. on the place- ie. restaurants on site with menus, daily activities, shuttle services to disney...

Can anyone give me some advice? How are the restaurants? Any quick service breakfast locations? Any daily activities for the kids? We will have a rental car but is the shuttle service better? Are we going to miss anything by not staying at a Disney Deluxe?

Thank you!

You will like BC. We went to Disney during Thanksgiving week two of the last three years. Both times, we did a split stay (Disney Deluxe for the first weekend, then a 2 BR at BC). We were always so happy when we arrived at BC where you actually have room to spread out and relax! The pools are great with slides and lazy rivers. They do have lots of scheduled activities but we never participated in them. We also ate most of our meals at the parks so I can't comment on the food (other than a pizza place near the pool which was OK). We never used their shuttle because driving and parking our rental car was so easy. We loved not having to wait for buses! If you haven't already found it, there is a huge thread on dis boards entitled I love Bonnet Creek that has vast amounts of information.

 

[Sue M]

I haven't stayed, but lots of people love Bonnet Creek. It's still in WDW. When we stayed at CBR we could see the roof tops.
As for food, you can order in groceries from Garden Grocer. We do stay in wdw resorts (for now) but we always breakfast in room. You'll have a kitchen. Easy to have hard boiled egg and toast, bagel, cereal, yogurt, fruit, juice, etc.
I would agree to drive. The shuttles are very costly there. Maybe getting a GPS would make husband more comfortable driving.

Another alternative is the DTD Doubletree. Although they are 1 bedrooms. They may have 2 bedrooms, not sure.
They are in the DTD hotel area, so you still feel you're in wdw. It's a 15 -20min walk to marketplace. We got a great deal on n a 1 bdrm with 2 queens, and living room had a pull out, dining area, and kitchenette with fridge, microwave, coffee maker & I think a toaster. Suite was very spacious. Thru mouse savers we got a good room discount that included free breakfast.
You also don't need a car. All the DTD hotels have free bus service running continuously every 30 min. That may make your husband more comfortable. Hotel has been recently renovated and added children's splash area.
My kids are adults, so I didn't notice children's activity. We only stayed 1 night because we decided to come in 1 day early before our POR res.
I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again.
They also have a Budget car rental desk in lobby.

 

[linzjane88]

We just got back from a Caribbean Beach stay with free dining and are planning on going back to Bonnet Creek our next trip, if not our next two trips this year.
The space was great! Being able to have two bathrooms, a bedroom, a kitchen all for about $100 a night? It seems like such a no brainer! I would much rather use my money to get 2-3 vacations vs 1 on site stay.
We rent a car every time as well.I didn't find much trouble with parking except during Park closing times where everyone was looking for a space. I recall the parking garage being the best bet. Not having the park transportation wasn't an issue for us... Disney buses are awful (from the opinion of an impatient girl who has never used public transportation). Your going to drive ten minutes to the park and wonder why on earth you ever spent an hour making that trip crammed into a bus! I can't speak for the activities as we didn't use them.
Ps :don't get suckered into a timeshare presentation! They told me to get my parking pass which I promptly ignored along with unplugging the room phone when I got in. I had no trouble parking.

 

[Southernswthrt]

We love it. The "perks" of staying at a Disney resort don't outweigh the other advantages of WBC for our family, since we prefer condo-style accommodations. If i couldn't stay Deluxe, I'd definitely stay here. We have a trip scheduled for next year with a large group and they want to stay at POR, and I'm not looking forward to it because WBC is a way better value for the same or less money. You may find you like it better! Give it a try. We recently stayed at Poly, and while I loved it, my DH really missed WBC.

 

[sharadoc]

I'll try to remember to come back right after vacation and give a pros/cons list. We really love the Disney bubble but we are going to try to go into this with an open mind. Fingers Crossed!

Thanks. I hope you have a wonderful trip.

 

[tinkerbella16]

I have never stayed there myself, but I know plenty of people who have and I have heard nothing but great things! I hope you have a great vacation!

 

[MickeyHereWeCome!]

We stayed at Bonnet Creek several years ago, and really enjoyed our stay. You really can't beat the price! The resort is beautiful, and we loved having so many choices with the pools/hot tubs. I took the advice to check off the lowest income bracket on the check-in card, and to also unplug my phone, which avoided any calls about a sales pitch! Parking wasn't an issue. If we arrived really late, we often had to use the garage, which was not a far walk for us. The shuttle worked well for us, but I just read that they charge now, which could be a deal breaker (not sure if it's $7 per trip or per visit), as we have 6 of us.

Overall, we would definitely stay again. I'm torn about where we'll stay next summer. As much as I'd love to be back on property, the cost for such a nice resort off property is a huge selling point!