Aussie Family-Where to stay??

[aussiemum]

Hi everybody,

We are a family of four (kids ages 3 and 10), we will be visiting WDW in December 2005 for approx 12-15 nights. We also want to visit NASA and USF and IOA. There are so many resorts to choose from we just do not know which one to pick. We really will need to build in rests every afternoon so which resort has the best transport options. We want to stay on site in either the moderate or deluxe resorts and we don't mind splitting the stay in two different resorts. Any help or opinions would be much appreciated.

Many thanks

aussiemum

 

[Gillian]

If you are planning to go to USF & IOA, you may want to look at staying at one of their hotels for a few nights.

All of the Disney resorts are lovely, I can't really help there. We love AKL and find the price at a good point between moderates and other deluxes. A monorail resort is convenient for breaks, but the AKL transportation is pretty good, especially if your child loves busses like ours does!

Edited to add: WELCOME TO THE DIS!!!

 

[AJKMOM]

You could book one of the monorail resorts for a quick return from MK, EPCOT or MGM. For a 12-15 night stay, I would also plan on a few nights at one of the resorts at Universal. The front of the line perk that goes with it can't be beat. If you wanted to try 2 places in WDW, book on of the monorail resorts, Contemporary, Polynesian, or Grand Floridian.

The EPCOT resorts; Yacht, Beach, Swan, Dolphin, and Boardwalk, allow you to walk or take a boat to EPCOT and MGM. I always get a guidebook, I don't know why, really, I've been there 12 times, but I find them helpful in planning, and making sure I don't miss anything.

 

[Eeyore_lives]

I don't have experience with the deluxes (yet!) - so I can only suggest a moderate. POR is lovely and very family-friendly: it's got a fun pool, playground area, and is right by the river, so you can take the boat into DTD and there are plenty of recreation opportunities (fishing, bike rentals, surreys, etc.). I stayed there in 2003 and fell in love! What I liked best: beautifully kept grounds, the walkway along the river, the boat ride to DTD, and the lounge (also family-friendly!).... it truly felt like a vacation. It was such a pleasure after a hectic day in the parks to come back and walk around the grounds or take a dip in the pool - it is a true gem! I never had a complaint about bus service and the food court was fine - your typical disney theme park food, but Boatwrights is a GREAT place for breakfast - yummy! In my opinion it has features which will appeal to both you AND your kids! No matter where you stay, though, I'm sure it will be magical! ENJOY!

 

[disneefamily]

Disnee Dad Says.................................................Port Orleans Riverside is a fantastic moderate hotel. We stayed there on three out of four trips.If you go deluxe, the Animal Kingdom Lodge is wonderful with a savvanah view, but the rooms are no bigger than Port Orleans. Rent a car for two or three days and do all your offsite stuff while you have a car. Hope you have a great trip!

 

[aussiemickeys]

Hi, great to see some more Aussies on the DIS! Firstly, how many days are you planning on spending at Universal? I would recommend also that you stay at one of their hotels to get the Front of Line perk that they have. (I can't wait until Sept when we get to try this out). I really hesitate to recommend a particular hotel to people. This seems such a matter of personal taste. What I might suggest is (if you haven't allready), check out some of the unofficial websites that have lots of photos & details of each hotel. An excellent site for this is www.allearsnet.com. I think once you have it narrowed down a bit then ask specific questions that you need to know for your situation (such as you might need to know which rooms are closer to the food courts/bus stops or which seem to be noisier at night & so on). This discussion board is absolutely brilliant for answering even the most obscure question you might have. It helped us plan our first trip (Jan 04) so much! Also please try not to stress to much beforehand, you will end up having a ball!

 

[aussiemum]

Thanks for the help so far everyone.

aussiemickeys, we are only planning on spending 1 day each at USF and IOA, we thought we may hire a car for the days that we are off site and drive ourselves.

I went and bought the 2005 Unofficial Guide to WDW and a Frommers guide to WDW and Orlando with kids, so now I have lots of reading to do.

We like the look of the Wilderness Lodge, Boardwalk and Beach Club but today I was speaking to a friend of a friend and they recommended POR or POFQ and the Poly....trying to pick a resort is really confusing me.

I am going to checkout tripadvisors and allearsnet next.

Thanks again

aussiemum

 

[AJKMOM]

Again, I will chime in here: I would strongly recommend you stay at a Universal hotel to get the front of the line perk in June. It will be hot, and lines will otherwise be long. If you can afford a Disney deluxe, you can afford a Universal hotel. You can make a reservation for one night, and go to the parks twice. We went early on check in day, got our tickets with the FOTL passes, and walked to Islands of Adventure. Then, the next day, we checked out, packed the car, and went to Universal Studios. When we were done, we drove to the next place.

 

[aussiemickeys]

AussieMum I have just thought of something else. Are you planning on booking through a travel agent or are you going to book your hotel & tickets yourself? With a bit of research into prices you may be able to save yourselves heaps (especially considering we have to always factor in the exchange rate). A fantastic site for all the latest discounts & up to date info on packages & ticket prices & options is www.mousesavers.com. Also if you are a member of the RAC it is affiliated with the US version the AAA. So if you ever see a discount with AAA we can use our RAC card (should have a tiny little AAA logo on the new ones) to access the discount. To make certain of this the RAC will also give you a letter stating that, which you can take with you as well (just in case in the US they question it). Even if you don't use the AAA rate for anything at Disney, at Universal you can use it a lot (tickets/meal/merchandise - I think it is 10% off). Hope this has helped & hasn't overloaded you too much all at once. If you need my help with anything else please PM me (I have never used this so don't quite know how, but we will figure it out if needed).

 

[4theloveofdisney]

Three resorts are on the monorail line and they are the easiest to travel back and forth to: Grand Floridian, Contemporary and the Poly. All of the onsight properties have bus transporation which runs fairly well. Some resorts are withing walking distance to certain parks and other have boat service as well, such as Wilderness Lodge. If you are interested in fact and photos about each of the resorts, you can visit www.allearsnet.com, it's a wonderful website.

 

[4theloveofdisney]

POFQ and POR are beautiful resorts and you can't beat them for the price when comparing to a deluxe!

 

[armomof3lvsdisney]

We love POR

I have not stayed at deluxe, but love POR so much I don't know if I can change. The grounds and buildings are beautiful and there is so much to do there. The boat to Downtown Disney is a great perk. Wherever you decide to stay your family will have a great time. Welcome to the boards, you are at the right place to find answers to any question you might have. These boards are amazing and alot of fun.

Happy Planning