Help with deciding what resort to stay at

[Jessj0012]

Next year my family will be taking a trip. I have two daughters who will be 6 and 4 when we go. I am stuck deciding on what resort we should stay at. Originally we were supposed to go in December 2020 but canceled that trip. I have continued saving so have a little extra that we can afford a different resort than originally planned. I am considering these options Caribbean Beach, Art of Animation family suite, Wilderness Lodge, or the cabins at Fort Wilderness. Would one be better than the others for children and it will be their first visit?

 

[Carol_]

I’d go AOA Family suite. Your kids will have fun no matter which you choose but that age is great for that theming.

But then again… December at Wilderness Lodge is why we bought DVC…

 

[Cheburashka]

Next year my family will be taking a trip. I have two daughters who will be 6 and 4 when we go. I am stuck deciding on what resort we should stay at. Originally we were supposed to go in December 2020 but canceled that trip. I have continued saving so have a little extra that we can afford a different resort than originally planned. I am considering these options Caribbean Beach, Art of Animation family suite, Wilderness Lodge, or the cabins at Fort Wilderness. Would one be better than the others for children and it will be their first visit?

Are you still going in December? If so, definitely stay at Wilderness Lodge if it's within your budget. It's widely considered to have the best Christmas theming of all of the Disney resorts at that time of year.

Even if you aren't staying at Christmas season, I recommend Wilderness Lodge out of the resorts you've listed. It's the most beautiful and impressive one. It's also only a pleasant boat ride away from the Magic Kingdom, which is great for a family with young kids on a first time visit in particular, since you'll probably be at MK a lot. It has good restaurants, two very nice pools, hot tubs and a water slide.

Fort Wilderness has an internal transportation system that you'd have to use before going out to the parks, which is a bit time consuming and not ideal for first timers (unless you're driving). If you are driving, Fort Wilderness can be a lot of fun, as they have (all for an upcharge) bike rentals, horseback riding, carriage rides, marshmallow roasts during movie nights, etc. You will need to check on the Covid status of these activities to see which are still available at the time of your trip. Fort Wilderness is also pretty and peaceful typically, but not as much so now as part of it has a big new building under construction. Also, Hoop Dee Doo Revue is a great comedic dinner show here, but it's currently closed due to Covid. Frankly, although I like Fort Wilderness (we tent camped there one trip), I don't think this is the best time to stay, due to Covid restrictions and construction. You can still drop by as a non-guest to ride horses (with a reservation- this activity is still available now) if you're interested in that.

Caribbean Beach (a moderate resort) and Art of Animation (a value resort) won't be as comfortable as Wilderness Lodge, which is a deluxe resort. They'll have smaller rooms, outdoor walks to get to the lobby & resort restaurants (and AOA only has a food court, no real restaurant), etc. Art of Animation also has no water slide or hot tub. If you're staying in an AOA suite, that will be bigger, but you'll still have to deal with the value resort level of amenities.

 

[DWillowBay]

Another vote here for AoA. The family suites provide two full bathrooms, a private bedroom and plenty of beds so that no one would have to share. AoA has the benefit of being a Skyliner resort, so that's fun and can be really a time saver depending on when you use it. The pool at AoA is a zero-entry pool and has music playing under water, so is so fun! The theming is terrific. When we travel with our family, we like AoA, especially for the extra room.

 

[Gehrig1B]

Wilderness Lodge without question… Christmas time or not. Wins out in every way… dining, location, grounds…

 

[bluezy]

I'll vote for a suite at AoA. We love it there (and our kids are all teens/adults!) -- it makes *us* feel like kids! When we travel to other destinations we usually stay at a "deluxe" hotel and take advantage of the amenities offered. But at Disney, we don't want to take time away from the parks so we tend to skip the amenities (and I don't like to pay for something I don't use) and we enjoy feeling totally immersed in Disney for our entire stay. AoA definitely doesn't let you forget that you're at Disney! We love the extra space in the suite as well as having the microwave for heating up leftovers and making some breakfast items (we usually eat breakfast in the room to save time on days we're doing rope drop). The separate master bedroom and 2 bathrooms is essential for our family. We don't do very much swimming but we find the pools to be perfectly fine (not sure we'd be swimming in December). We've always loved the food court there -- so many options and many "non food court" type meals. We don't mind not having a table service restaurant at the resort -- there are plenty of those in the parks and at other resorts. Even if there was a table service restaurant at the resort, we'd probably only eat there once during the week, so we'd rather have a good food court and go somewhere else for a TS meal. With the Skyliner, it's easy to hop over to CBR or Rivera for a meal and you can walk to Pop Century as well. And the bus stops at AoA are nice -- completely covered and a dedicated waiting area for each destination -- not like at the moderate and deluxe resorts where there are no lines and it's a free-for-all when the bus pulls up.

For our family, when our kids were young (like yours) they were far more impressed by the "fun" atmosphere and huge icons at the value resorts than they were by any of the Deluxe resorts. They couldn't care less about the amenities offered at the resort -- they just wanted to have fun! Our adult son stayed at Boardwalk on his last trip and said while the room was nice, he still prefers a suite at AoA.

Personally, I'd choose AoA and then make sure to spend some time visiting other resorts to see their Christmas decorations. You could have meals at those resorts and just wander around taking in the sites.

 

[CynBeth]

Wilderness Lodge!

 

[Disneylover99]

I’d probably go with a suite at AofA, unless you could get a standard room at Wilderness Lodge for cheaper.

 

[Obi-J Kenobi]

I have not stayed at AofA or CBR. I have walked through CBR though. It is a big resort. I'm not sure I would advise with your smaller children to do such a big resort.

Next, my DW and I took our kids (same ages) about 12 years ago to FW. We loved it. We had a cabin. We also had a golf cart. The cart was quite helpful. Like CBR, FW is huge (geographically speaking not Donald Trump speaking). But, if your kids want to go to the pool, the cart was a great option. If your kids want to go to the campfire s'more cookout, the cart was a great option. The cabin was spacious and a nice place to have a bite to eat or relax. There is plenty of elbow room for all and I was pleasantly surprised how clean and the condition of the cabin. My DW and I really enjoyed the cabin.

Lastly, I would probably vote for WL. I absolutely love the vibe of WL. I am from the upper Midwest and the whole woodsy thing is very common where I live. But, the pool, the restaurant choices, the layout of the lobby, the geyser, the boats, the buses and proximity to MK would make this my personal choice. My DW and I absolutely loved our one stay at WL. Obviously, we haven't been back, but we are explorers by nature. So, we like to stay at different hotels on property.

 

[maxmouse]

Another vote for Wilderness Lodge.

 

[RanDIZ]

If it’s Christmas time, no question WL is the place to be! I own at CCV and love every bit of it! Warm holiday feeling, great restaurants and close to MK.

Any other time of year, CBR and AoA would be good for little ones. Nicely themed and kid friendly. Both are Skyliner resorts which is great for EP and HS. CBR is quite big though with a lot of walking or internal busing. We did Little Mermaid room a few years back at AoA and it was nice. Biggest pool on property too.

 

[Skippyboo]

With the ages of your kids, assuming you are going to spend most of your park time in MK, I would go with Wilderness Lodge. It’s just a short boat ride to MK. Multiple dining options including TS and QS. Multiple pools. A slide at the big pool. It’s also a beautiful resort.

 

[Belle83]

I would pick Wilderness Lodge!

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I would always go deluxe if it’s in the budget. I’m also not a fan of paying value prices for a suite when I could stay at a deluxe for around the same price.

I would definitely do WL. With kids your ages I assume you’ll be spending a lot of time at MK and the quick boat ride is really nice

 

[JenBush]

Wilderness Lodge 100%, the kids will love the pool and the location is great

 

[raddisneyfan]

I would vote WL, not only because I love it any time if the year, but I think your daughters will love the boat ride to the MK.

 

[Eastern]

WL

 

[jimmymc]

Wilderness Lodge or Art of Animation are the top two. Art of animation would give you all more space and I think the kids would enjoy the theming more. But Wilderness Lodge is closer to Magic Kingdom. Caribbean Beach is closer to Epcot and Studios, but with a 6 and 4 year old I think you'll want to be in MK more.

 

[HopperFan]

Hands down Wilderness Lodge, especially while they are still small and space/bath isn't an issue. Beautiful resort!

When they are older and "scrappier" AoA would be a good pick for their own beds and bathroom.

 

[fordpony92]

Wilderness Lodge and it's not even close. It's actually funny reading through these posts and seeing people try to compare these other resorts to WL because there is no comparison any time of the year but especially during the holidays.