can't decide between resorts, really confused!

[eshanna]

Hi- I love disney world and went there several times growing up, the last time I went I was 19. Well, I am almost 30 now and my friend and I are in the beginning stages of planning a trip. We plan on going in June or July (we both teach so we're limited in when we can go). Here's our issue, we want to stay inside the park and have gotten really confused as to where to stay. Previously I've stayed at the Polynesian and Dixie landings, I loved both (especially the Poly).

For both of us, staying at the Disney resorts are at least half the fun. I'm sure we'll spend some downtime just at the resort hanging out, and we want it to be nice there. But we are also on a budget. I've heard about the Value resorts (opinions ranging from dreadful to great), and we are debating whether to save some money and stay there, or splurge. To be honest, I don't really like the, uh, 'look' of the values, but it's not a huge issue, especially if they are nice, convenient, etc. The most we are willing to splurge is for the Contemporary, which I've also heard mixed things about. So I wonder if paying 250 for the contemporary would be worth it!!!! But I LOVE love love the monorail and since we are flying and won't have a rental...........anyway, one minute I'm sure we should do the value, the next I want to do animal kingdom, the contemporary, blah blah......we'll never make a decision! If anyone could give advice, or has stayed at any of the values or the contemporary, please let me know your opinions!!!

 

[twinspluscade]

Hi- I love disney world and went there several times growing up, the last time I went I was 19. Well, I am almost 30 now and my friend and I are in the beginning stages of planning a trip. We plan on going in June or July (we both teach so we're limited in when we can go). Here's our issue, we want to stay inside the park and have gotten really confused as to where to stay. Previously I've stayed at the Polynesian and Dixie landings, I loved both (especially the Poly).

For both of us, staying at the Disney resorts are at least half the fun. I'm sure we'll spend some downtime just at the resort hanging out, and we want it to be nice there. But we are also on a budget. I've heard about the Value resorts (opinions ranging from dreadful to great), and we are debating whether to save some money and stay there, or splurge. To be honest, I don't really like the, uh, 'look' of the values, but it's not a huge issue, especially if they are nice, convenient, etc. The most we are willing to splurge is for the Contemporary, which I've also heard mixed things about. So I wonder if paying 250 for the contemporary would be worth it!!!! But I LOVE love love the monorail and since we are flying and won't have a rental...........anyway, one minute I'm sure we should do the value, the next I want to do animal kingdom, the contemporary, blah blah......we'll never make a decision! If anyone could give advice, or has stayed at any of the values or the contemporary, please let me know your opinions!!!

One thing you may want to check on is availability....especially for the Contemporary standard rooms (the ones that are $250/night). Apparently they recently demolished the North Wing, thus cutting way down on available standard, garden wing rooms. Last week I checked for mid-September and there were none available; the next cheapest option was a garden view garden wing room at $305/night.

As for the values, we stayed there on our last trip in September 2006. We stayed at POP, and really liked it. It's fun and colorful. However we were traveling with kids; if it was an "adults only" trip I'd probably stay at a moderate over a value. Mods run about $145/night during value season...not sure what it is during regular season. I've haven't stayed at one yet (we're staying at POR for our Sept 2007 trip), but they look really nicely-themed and are fairly reasonably priced. POR and POFQ also have boats that go directly to Downtown Disney, so that could be a plus if you're planning on having some nights out. And Coronado Springs looks just gorgeous in the pictures (would love to stay here, but rooms won't fit our family of 5).

Kelly

 

[mommyseven]

If you want a deluxe such as Contemp or Poly you probably need to book sooner than later. They tend to fill up rather quickly if you are looking for a last minute reservation.

If you do enjoy spending time at the resort and relaxing, I would advise against a value. Your next affordable option would be the moderates. They are all quite nice and relaxing. Port Orleans Riverside is my favorite. Others really like the Coronado Springs Resort. It would be much less expensive than a deluxe yet have a more luxurious feel than a value.

Having the monorail at the resort is a bonus but it isn't necessary even if you don't have a rental. The buses run consistently with the moderates. The Port Orleans resorts (Riverside and French Quarter) have a very nice boat ride to Downtown Disney.

Whatever you choose, I'm sure you'll have a great time. Just don't take too long deciding. June/July is right around the corner.

 

[eshanna]

for the advice! I checked online and there are a lot of moderate standard rooms available during our time frame, at least as of now. We do need to decide quickly. I guess the only thing we're wondering about is the bus service. I've never been to Disney in the summer and am assuming it's really bad timing in terms of crowds? Is bus service pretty bad during the summer? When we were at Dixie landings, my family had a rental car, so I've never used the bus services. I've heard from some people they are great, and from some they are pretty bad. I do remember how great the monorail was, though! Argh, that monorail is really throwing a wrench in our decision making! We should not pick a resort solely for the monorail!!!!!

 

[darkcyber]

We have been to WDW about 11 times and each time we stayed at Dixie Landings (now Port Orleans-River Side) every time except one...that time we stayed at CB. We love Port Orleans-River Side and would be staying there this time, but we now have two children...ages 2 and 5. So, we are staying at the Disney All Star Movies for the children.

As far as bus service, we've never had a problem anytime we've been there. During the most crowded times, the buses get really crowded at the close of the park(s), but other than that they have been fine.

On the other hand, the times we've used the monorail it has been packed out. So, we only use the monorail if we have to, but use the buses all other times.

 

[mickeymedic]

I, too, was in love with the monorail after staying at a resort on the monorail line (the Grand.) My husband and I vowed that we'd never stay anywhere but on the monorail line again. But then reality set in and we realized that we weren't made of money. My absolute favorite resort is now POR!!!! On your resort day, you will have the luxary of enjoying 2 resorts, not just one.

Also remember that the monorail only gets you to two of the parks. You will have to use the bus service for the other parks. So, you need to decide if the monorail is worth the extra $$$. You could always split your stay - spend half of your trip at a Moderate or Value, then the rest of your stay at a Deluxe on the monorail line. Just be sure to plan your resort day, MK day and an Epcot day for the deluxe half of your stay.

 

[rcraw45425]

We stayed at POFQ in July one year and the buses were very crowded. It seemed to take a lot of time with all of the stops (shared buses with POR). CSR does not share buses. We love the CR, but it does share buses with the other monorail resorts to AK and MGM. We haven't really had a problem with that though, from any of the monorail resorts and WL, there seem to be more buses, probably since so many are sharing there. The YC, BC and Boardwalk all share, sometimes with the Swan/ Dolphin, which would be an alternative for you, they offer a teachers rate that might be worth checking into. We have stayed at the Swan before for a conference, it's a very nice deluxe, the only drawback would be you can't charge back to your room key like you can with the Disney properties.

 

[hmillerbarilla]

I'm a HUGE CBR fan. We have been so happy there and the buses haven't been a problem at all. Lately, we've been renting a car since I have little kiddies & it is easier to get back quickly for nap time by car.

If it is adults only, I agree with the other post on skipping the value resorts.

Choose a moderate-you won't miss the monorail. Pick a time & go ride the monorail for fun & check out all the resorts & have a dinner at Kona in the Poly--you'll get your fix!

Have a great trip!

 

[stitchlovestink]

I saw in your post that you said you teach. Have you checked into the Swan/Dolphin? Appearantly, they offer teachers (have to have proof-paystub maybe?) excellent discounts. They seem to be very nice hotels. You'd have the advantanges of being on property, but I do believe there are a few perks that their guests cannot get. I believe those to be (but correct me if I am wrong) may not purchase Dining plan, cannot have charging privelege on your key to the world card, and cannot have pkgs sent back to your hotel. There may be others, I am not sure. But it seems like they have excellent rates for teachers, possibly worth looking into?
Good luck and enjoy your trip.

 

[rcraw45425]

Swan Dolphin is also classified as a deluxe, which helps. The Boardwalk area is fun, lots of shops and dining opportunities. The grotto pool is lovely as well. I know that Swan is a Starwood resort, if you are a card holder you get points and may be entitled to upgrades as well. If the price was right (with the teachers' discount) I'd jump on it.

 

[minnie61650]

If you are thinking about a value and deside to stay one I would suggest All Star Music.

All Star Music tends to be the quietest of the values.

More adults and couples stay at the values.

Steve Birnbaum who writes the Offical Guilds for WDW reccomends All Star Music in his WDW without children book.

All Star Music is undergoing a refurbishment ( new furniture ,curtains ,carpet, new bowed out shower cutain in the bath, new bedspreads ,and a newly added privacy curtainby the vanity closet area --making a small dressing area,)of all of the rooms and is slated to be completed by June 2007.
The Calypso and Jazz buildings (1,2,9, and 10) are finished and the last I heard they were refurbishing the Broadway buildings.


This website has some photos of a newly refurbished Jazz Inn room:
http://allearsnet.com/acc/g_asmu.htm

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All Star Music is my favorite Disney owned resort. It tends to be the quietest of all the values.

Here is a map of sports and music:

http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmap.htm
Scroll down. All Star Music is at the bottom of the page.

Here is the map of Movies:
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmovie.JPG

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DH and I enjoy the landscaping and peacefulness of All Star Music.
We enjoy relaxing by the pool (there are plenty of chairs and lounges), and the beautiful lighting at the resort by night.

I have never had the unfortunate experience of running into the any of the large
groups of teens who sometimes stay at the values on school trips.
As long as you can avoid those large groups I do not think Noise will be an issue.

*HINT if you close your bathroom door at night you might not even hear the turbo toilets.
I close my bathroom door and I don't hear them.
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I love The All Star Resorts.

I am 56 years old and travel several times a yearfor pleasure. I often stay at 4 star hotels and motels.
So the Disney owned deluxe and mod resorts are just another hotel/motel to me.
All Star is like being in the heart of the Magic and that is where I want to be.

All Star Music is my favorite. It is quieter because more couples stay there. I love staying at the Calypso building. It is closer to the pool, food court and bus stop.

Here is a site with a map of All Star Sports and All Star Music.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmap.htm
Scroll down. All Star Music is at the bottom of the page.
The Calypso buildings at All Star Music are #1 and #10 are nearest to the food court and bus stop.

The Calypso pool at ASMu has Donald Duck.

The buses are wonderful.

Bus rides are quite short from the ALL Stars according to PassPorter.com

All Star Buses-CBR buses---POPbuses--PO buses--- Contemporary
MK 20 min---- 20 min-----25 min------10 min---20 min(mono)
Epcot 10 min-- 15 min-----20 min------10 min---15 min
MGM 10 min----12 min-----15 min------15 min---20min
AK 10 min------20min-------15 min----15 min---20 min
DTD 15 min----20 min------20 min-----15 min---35 min

It only takes 10 minutes to get to Epcot, MGM and AK from All Stars.
MK is 20 min away. That's the same amount of time it takes on the monorail from the Contemporary.

A WORD ABOUT BUS SHARING

To me Bus Sharing at the All Stars is really a non issue.

In the mornings during Park opening hours each All Star usually has a dedicated bus.
During mid day it is usually just our stop and maybe one more on the way to the parks. On the way back sometimes it is all 3 but often Sports and Music share and Movies has it's own bus back. Each of the All Stars usually has it's own dedicated bus back from the MK.
That is a big plus. It seems like the Music bus stop usually has the shortest of the three All Star bus lines.

I guess some people who stay at POP see all 3 All Star names on the return sign of our bus stop when they head to the POP bus stop and think All Stars also has 3 stops on the way to the park.
(Even when we stop at another AS resort to load up it has not taken more than 5 minutes and we are on our way!)

The pools at The All Stars are very kid friendly.

When staying at the All Stars you can use any of the All Star pools.That means 3 main pools ,3 quiet pools and 3 kiddie pools to chose from.

The All Star Movie Fantasia pool has Mickey.

The Calypso pool at ASMU has Donald Duck.

And the Surfs up pool at All Star Sports has giant surf boards.

Here are a few pool photos.

All Star Sports pool.

All Star Music Donald pool.

All Star Movies Mickey Pool.

I have visited WDW more than a dozen times with the 1st time in Oct. 1971. It was brand new. I've stayed at FW, Disney Inn, a few the of Hotels on hotel Blvd., CBR and the towers at the Contemporary. I got to see the MK from my balcony at the Contemporary and I'm happy I got to experience it once. I just prefer the All Star Resorts.
The theming is pure Disney.
My last 6 visits have been at The All Stars and in the fall of 2005 when we took dd,dsil, and our grandson age 3(at the time) for 8 nights we stayed at the All Stars Music. I thought about AKL and even though we can well afford AKL I just wanted Alex to experience the Disney Magic at the All Stars on his first visit.
Where else can one find Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse at the pool?

Have a great time at Disney wherever you choose to stay!

 

[minnie61650]

Have you thought about staying at the Swan/Dolphin hotels?
They have nice discounts for teachers.

From the sticky at the top of the resorts page:

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1284875

Value season dates
January 1 - 13, 2007
June 15 - September 29, 2007
December 13 - 20, 2007


Teacher/Government/Nurse/Military Discounts
Standard View - $149.00
Lake View - $184.00
Resort view - $204.00
Resort view W/ balcony - $224.00

You could stay at a 4 star deluxe resort for about the same of a Disney Mod.

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Deluxe but not as expensive as Disney's deluxe resorts.



The heavenly beds are ...well heavenly.

The Grotto pool and hot tubs are fun and relaxing.

Plus Epcot and MGM are just a short boat ride or walk away!

From Epcot hop on the monorail and head on over to the MK!

*note photos are from allearsnet

Have fun at Disney wherever you choose to stay!

 

[Tam1067]

You might consider Wilderness Lodge. It's much less expensive than the Poly, but there is a boat to MK, and the theme is very nice for adults. That's just an option.

We've also stayed at Port Orleans Riverside (back when it was Dixie Landings) and found it was nice, too. I can't imagine you not liking any of the moderates or deluxes.

 

[minnie61650]

I saw in your post that you said you teach. Have you checked into the Swan/Dolphin? Appearantly, they offer teachers (have to have proof-paystub maybe?) excellent discounts. They seem to be very nice hotels. You'd have the advantanges of being on property, but I do believe there are a few perks that their guests cannot get. I believe those to be (but correct me if I am wrong) may not purchase Dining plan, cannot have charging privelege on your key to the world card, and cannot have pkgs sent back to your hotel. There may be others, I am not sure. But it seems like they have excellent rates for teachers, possibly worth looking into?
Good luck and enjoy your trip.

Swan/Dolphin does have package delivery. The room key can be used for charging at the Swan and Dolphin hotels but not at the other resorts or parks.

You are correct the DDP cannot be purchased when staying at the Swan/Dolphin and ME service is not provided for guests who stay at the Swan and Dolphin.

But they do have Disney transportation and being able to walk or take a friendship to MGM and Epcot more than makes it up for me.

 

[pepe of ohio]

You might consider Wilderness Lodge. It's much less expensive than the Poly, but there is a boat to MK, and the theme is very nice for adults. That's just an option.

We've also stayed at Port Orleans Riverside (back when it was Dixie Landings) and found it was nice, too. I can't imagine you not liking any of the moderates or deluxes.

We had stayed at the Poly and CR numerous times and still enjoy both the quite pricey. We like being close to the MK and to solve our problem, we stay at the WL. The themeing is about the best on property, its one of the cheapest deluxes but closest to the MK, boat ride to MK, boat to CR and gain monorail access or boat to FW, very doable and gets you on the loop to all the resorts in the MK area. We like the rooms all inside corridors, seems more lush and the pool is fantastic. Night time there is very serene, peaceful and a few drinks either at Territory Lounge or take what you brought down to the pool and its heaven on earth, catch the EWP each night from the beach and catch a glimpse of the fireworks is doable but boating over to the monorail resorts is quick for a full view of all.

 

[Buzz2001]

Check out my CSR website below. Plenty of pics and info.

 

[Colleen27]

We stayed at POFQ in July one year and the buses were very crowded. It seemed to take a lot of time with all of the stops (shared buses with POR).

That was our experience too. We went during free dining '05, but the only time we really noticed the unseasonably large crowds was on the buses. Because the buses picked up at POFQ first, they were often nearly full before they ever got to us at POR.

 

[PrincessMo]

Hi there!

Wow...where to stay, where to stay. Always one, if not thee, biggest decision. I think its going to come down to what aspects are more important to you. Is it going to be more important that you are on the monorail for convenience or saving money and maybe go to a value or moderate resort? Is it more important to have a nicer, more upscale resort or again to save money? If you don't like the look of the values you may not be happy there at all but finances and availability will come into play as well for you.

Maybe make a list of which resort you'd like in order of preference. Price them out and then see based on the pricing what you can or can't swing based on your preferences. Just a thought. Maybe your #1 is affordable for you and then you will have your choice real easy. Who knows?

Good luck with your decision. Take Care.

Have A Magical Day!

 

[eshanna]

thanks for all the advice! I am thinking All star music sounds really good now, as does Wilderness lodge, after reading all the comments. I'll check into the teacher discounts at the swan, too. I think we'll make a list (as suggested!) and come to a compromise! I really want to stay at the Poly or Contemporary the most, but it's so expensive, I just don't think it would be worth it.

 

[skipperkim]

One more vote for POFQ. The grounds are beautiful. Oh, and they have 2 sinks and a curtain while the Values do not. Also, Values do not have a hot tub. The bus stops at POFQ first before to POR going to and from the parks. At MK, in the evening, it has its own bus stop back. A huge plus since there are only 7 buildings.

Here are some really good photos and a map:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=530340&page=36