How do you decide?

[GotLabradors]

How do you decide on a resort? Price? Number of guests? Theme? Tradition?

My family is going for the first time. I have been quite a few times as a kid and before I got married. I can't decide which resort. We're going next fall, so the allure of free dining plays into this as well.

 

[dissupermom]

discounts play a role
how much time and money I have also play a role
I'd rather spend more time in a cheaper resort than a little bit of time in a more expensive resort.
pop is my go to resort! I love the theming and the cost!!!

 

[HopperFan]

First off is budget. Figure out what your budget is for lodging and then work within that. If you are thinking about the Dining Plan and hoping for "free" then what is your eating style. Value only gets Quick Service so if that won't work for you, price the Value plus upgrading vs Moderate and up with regular plan included. Numbers in the party greatly affect whether "Free" Dining is worth it because your room will be full price. Of course what you want from your resort plays into what works best for you but for the most part if you are spending most your time at parks then determine your base requirements for your hotel.

I stay value alot, especially if just myself and a kid or three. But if DH is coming we stay moderate or up, he does not enjoy the values. Each trip is different so I choose base on what we need and my budget. AND my budget can be affected by discounts. A nice room only discount might cause me to choose a nicer hotel, but then we are a take it or leave it on Dining Plan. I can eat well with or without it.

 

[Redarrow5150]

Well my perspective is I want to spend the bulk of our time at the parks. I'm not shelling out bucks to stay at a pool when I can do that anywhere else. That's not to say people shouldn't go to Disney for the resorts but that's like going to Las Vegas to shop. I look at price but wouldn't be opposed to going to a moderates if it provided ammentities that I want. We've stayed at Caribbean Beach and liked it but would not go again unless we had a rental car because I wasn't happy with the bussing. I knew this before hand but once experienced, I knew this was important in looking at other resorts.

Proximity isn't important because my kids are now 19 & 17 years old so staying at POP the last two times is fine because they are patient in going back and forth from the parks. We do comeback in the afternoons since we are a Rope Drop family but kids and wife will be happy lounging and relaxing at any pool or resort. If we stayed say 10-14 days then a resort would become more important since we probably wouldn't go to the parks everyday.

 

[Sue M]

It depends on so many things. For me, resort theming is important. We aren't comando park touring people. We aren't at a park from opening to close, and do enjoy a resort with amenities. We do take afternoon breaks. So I'm not a fan of the values. And rooms are small there too.

But budget is my first priority. POR Riverside is my fav moderate. Because of the theme, beautiful resort along a river. Very peaceful. Has a boat to DTD, evening family entertainment in the lounge, in both POR & Pofq which is a 10 minute at most walk along the river path, and horse & carriage rides.

We also enjoy the deluxe resorts, when there's a good discount.

So Things I would consider is how many you are, and would you be comfortable with 4 in a value room, and double beds? The rest of the resorts have queens.
Will you only be in the room to sleep?

Do you want a balcony for somewhere to sit while kids are napping or at bedtime if they're young? If so maybe a deluxe would be good.

I'd look at lots of the resort photos & see what appeals to you.

 

[Squirlz]

I find the Boardwalk Inn to be perfect and I really have not seriously considered anywhere else. The proximity to HS and EPCOT is ideal and the transportation to other ares is quick and convenient. The Club lounge is very nice and negates the need for a restaurant breakfast and even dinner sometimes.

 

[DVCkidsMOM]

When paying for a room (vs using DVC points) we choose based upon how we perceive the value for price. For example, sometimes we've stayed at a value resort for "free dining" because this was a very inexpensive option and we felt that we would get value for our $. Other times, we've stayed at deluxe resort or Ft. Wilderness cabin when we wanted a different type of service, dining, theming, and transportation experience. Once we enjoyed a moderate resort - POR because we had a babysitter with us and needed the 5th person trundle bed.
All of these decisions included price/discount/special offer considerations along with the type of trip we wanted that time and our general travel preferences. Only you know the best way for your family to travel given certain situations...

 

[DVCkidsMOM]

Do note that "free dining" isn't really free. If you get the counter service only dining, then you don't have to pay gratuity - this is closer to "free dining" than the more traditional dining plan that requires you to pay gratuities for each table service meal. Either way, the "free dining" promotion comes with a non-discounted price for the room.
"Free dining" isn't always the best deal for us. I suggest when you are making your decision, you look at menus and consider what you would eat and where and the cost if. Be sure to look at children's menus if you have kids - the limitation of the children's menus was a deal-breaker for us until the children were "adult" priced. Also check the cost of a room-only reservation and possible room discounts. YMMV

 

[msmama]

It depends.

Usually for a shorter trip a value resort is fine and I go with whatever is cheapest.

For a longer trip I may want something a little fancier because we will spend more time there. Generally, I don't like moderates. I don't feel like the benefits outweigh the extra money (though I do like POFQ). Also most of them are bigger than I like (hence my love for POFQ).

Next trip is going to be a splurge CL at the beach club. We are going for Star Wars weekends so want to be able to get to HS by foot or boat. Also, except in the case of the value resorts (I've stayed at all of them) I try not to stay at the same place twice!

 

[mickeynut1]

How do you decide on a resort? Price? Number of guests? Theme? Tradition?

My family is going for the first time. I have been quite a few times as a kid and before I got married. I can't decide which resort. We're going next fall, so the allure of free dining plays into this as well.

We choose our resort by theme/decor. We love the deluxe resorts and since we spend more time at the resort than we do the parks, the resort is a big part of our trips. While it's nice to have a few transportation options for getting to one or more parks (i.e., walking, etc), we don't choose our resort by that convenience. We are never in a hurry on vacation, so having to wait for a bus, boat, etc., doesn't bother us. With all of that said, I would look at pics of the resorts that interest you and choose by the things that are most important to you. Good luck.

 

[heidijanesmith]

We decide on our resort based on theme, pool, location/transportation options and size of the resort, options of a full balcony/patio, a good view and discounts available.

We take a daily break for a swim/nap/rest and therefore spend a bit of time at our resort. I love a good theme and appreciate the monorail to MK/EPCOT and walking to EPCOT/DS. We also need a daybed as our teens do not like to share a bed.

A good discount is really important and we have changed resorts depending on the discounts available. We changed from AKL to the Poly for the discount last year.

 

[djp0630]

We don't have a ton of choices because of the size of my family. But we also like to be able to walk to a park. So we usually stay at a villa.