Need a little help picking my next resort.

[MaC410]

Hello All! So a few months ago I went on my honeymoon to Disney World and it was my first time ever visiting! It was amazing and I need to go back as soon as possible!

My wife and I had a great 10 day stay at the Yacht Club. We pretty much only spent time at the resort to sleep at night but we absolutely loved the location of the resort. It was so great to just be able to walk to Epcot since it always gave us the opportunity to walk over and enjoy the World Showcase whenever we wanted.

Anyway...For our next trip we really don't feel up to spending as much as we did on our honeymoon. The yacht club was great but man we can't keep spending those resort prices if we want to keep going back! Especially since we barely spent time at the actual hotel.

Does anyone have any suggestions for maybe moderate resort? I know we won't be able to walk to Epcot at any moderate resort but maybe we could find a good one still close to Epcot? We always prefer to not rent a car so we would always be using Disney transportation.

 

[baldy6060]

Port Orleans Riverside or Port Orleans French Quarter, for sure. They are both very beautiful. If you're going for a more romantic setting I'd go with Riverside. Horse drawn carriage rides, lovely walkways, etc. The 2 resorts are connected so you can use the pools at both locations. The path between the 2 is on along the Sassagoula River. You can take a boat over to Disney Springs from there. Check out Yehaa Bob at the River Roost Lounge at Riverside! The resorts aren't far from Epcot. We always rent a car but I'm sure the ride over on the bus is a short one. Personally, if I'm going JUST for the parks I would just stay at Pop Century. Its a great resort and Art of Animation is just a short walk across the bridge. For the money you'll be saving you can go back more frequently. I stayed at French Quarter, Wilderness Lodge and Coronado Springs before I finally got the nerve to book Pop Century. We ended up liking it better than Coronado and we usually stay there for at least the beginning of our trips and wouldn't hesitate to stay there again for a full trip.

 

[RedOne3781]

I adore Caribbean Beach Resort. It is my all time favorite moderate by a mile. I love the theming, and relaxed vibe. It is close enough to Epcot that you can see some of the bigger fireworks from Epcot from the back of Old Port Royal. It is also a close commute to Hollywood Studios.
The downside is that it is a very large resort. And it has many bus stops which can make the commute a bit longer than other moderates.

I have heard very good things about Port Orleans French Quarter as well. I am staying there for the first time next month (CBR was sold out for my dates so we needed a back up). It is a much tinier moderate. The rooms also very nice and I have heard great things about their bus service. Only one stop. Very compact property.mThere is boat access to Disney Springs and a few other resorts. That might be another good option to look into.

 

[Disneylover99]

POFQ is my favourite moderate. I also recommend trying Pop.

 

[TsLoveMickey]

I love the deluxe resorts, but stayed at Port Orleans Riverside in June and loved it. We just had a standard view but it was in a great location so I'm sure that helped. Would definitely stay there again!

 

[ChasingLeslie]

Coronado Springs is very centrally located. It's considered an AK resort, but is actually closer to DHS and also close to Epcot. The bus service is considered one of the best. CSR is beautifully themed and peaceful, and has very comfortable upgraded mattresses (similar to the deluxe resorts).

 

[MaC410]

Maybe a value resort could also be an option. When the only thing we used the resort for was to sleep I feel like it may be silly to spend any more on a hotel room than we need to. I guess I'm just worried that we were so spoiled on our first trip we will end up feeling a bit disappointed with a value resort. It would be nice to save all that money though...That will probably be the deciding factor since like I said it doesn't make much sense to spend $400+ dollars a night just to sleep.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I would consider POR or POFQ. Lovely, quiet resorts with the added perk of a boat to DS.

You may also want to consider looking into the Swan or Dolphin (we prefer the Swan). If you are a AAA or SPG (Starwood Preferred Guest - free to join) member, a nurse or teacher, you can typically score a good discount that would put the cost in the moderate range. You would not get ME with this resort, but they do offer onsite transportation to all of the parks (cab fare from MCO would run about $50, so you would need to factor that in). You also cannot get the dining plan, but you can make FP+ 60 days prior to check-in. We absolutely love the Swan/Dolphin. Great restaurants, great location and great prices!

 

[Sue M]

I also love the POR resorts and go back & forth between them and deluxe. And maybe with your second visit you'll want to spend some time enjoying your resort.
Our first trip we were so excited we were park commandoes. But since first trip we decided we would enjoy it more taking a mid day pool break back at our resort.

 

[Disneylover99]

Maybe a value resort could also be an option. When the only thing we used the resort for was to sleep I feel like it may be silly to spend any more on a hotel room than we need to. I guess I'm just worried that we were so spoiled on our first trip we will end up feeling a bit disappointed with a value resort. It would be nice to save all that money though...That will probably be the deciding factor since like I said it doesn't make much sense to spend $400+ dollars a night just to sleep.

We did a split stay last year at BC/Pop. We loved Pop more.

 

[MaC410]

We did a split stay last year at BC/Pop. We loved Pop more.

I've been looking into Pop and Art of Animation. Does Art of Animation have a motel-like set up? One place I read said it's less motel-like because it has corridors but from pictures it looks like the doors in each room just lead outside.

 

[Disneylover99]

I've been looking into Pop and Art of Animation. Does Art of Animation have a motel-like set up? One place I read said it's less motel-like because it has corridors but from pictures it looks like the doors in each room just lead outside.

The suites in the Cars, Lion King and Nemo sections have indoor corridors, but they are pricey. The standard rooms in the Little Mermaid section are motel like. The mods also have outdoor corridors.

 

[MaC410]

The suites in the Cars, Lion King and Nemo sections have indoor corridors, but they are pricey. The standard rooms in the Little Mermaid section are motel like. The mods also have outdoor corridors.

Ah ok good to know. The only thing that is making me hesitant about just going with a value resort like pop or art of animation is I hear people say they are loud. I guess I don't really know what they mean by that. Does that mean in the middle of the night we are going to hear people making a lot of noise? Or are these complaints coming from people that lets say want to take a nap in the middle of the day? The only thing we want to do is sleep after a full day at the parks. If it's quiet then well then maybe a value resort should be our choice.

 

[Disneylover99]

Ah ok good to know. The only thing that is making me hesitant about just going with a value resort like pop or art of animation is I hear people say they are loud. I guess I don't really know what they mean by that. Does that mean in the middle of the night we are going to hear people making a lot of noise? Or are these complaints coming from people that lets say want to take a nap in the middle of the day? The only thing we want to do is sleep after a full day at the parks. If it's quiet then well then maybe a value resort should be our choice.

I've never found the values to be loud. Lakeside rooms at Pop have been the quietest rooms we've had. Now, the walls do seem to be thinner at the Values. We can hear toilets flush in other rooms, but keeping our washroom door closed helps to muffle those sounds. Sometimes you can hear people talking in other rooms, but for the most part, we've always had quiet neighbours. Maybe we're just lucky.

 

[mister morrow]

I would go with CBR. We stayed there last trip in January and loved it.

Although the resort is big, we loved the tropical vibe it had throughout the resort. The transportation was good, HS and EP were fastest to get to, MK and AK were a bit longer. The pool was fantastic and we all loved it.

 

[Sagginit]

I like most of the moderates. I stayed at CSR when it first opened and it was nice but big. I have had better luck at PO and CBR, it all depends on where your room is and what you consider a long walk. They have a central pool location near the food court, so we try to get a room that we can walk straight over the bridges to that area. I found PO and CBR both have good transportation, we park hopped and even hit three parks in one day with no problems.

As for noise we had some very noisy neighbors one year at CBR so I wouldn't skip value for that but I believe they have double beds not queen sized. I could not sleep in a double with my husband so for our next trip we only looked at moderate or up (always funny when you have two queens and one bed goes unused). I had a friend who bought a DVC as she was going once a year with her fiance. Prior to that they stayed at Value a few times so they could spend more on food/drinks.

 

[mrzrich]

Another option is the Swan and Dolphin. They are located in the same vicinity to Epcot/Hollywood Studios as Beachclub, but rooms can be had much cheaper. If you or spouse are a teacher, nurse, police/fire, or government employee their are even more discounts available. I recently saw the Dolphin for $149 on cheap tickets.com

There are a few sacrifices that are made to stay their, no Magical Express, no dining plan and no charging back to room.

 

[rosiebean]

I love deluxe resorts, but POR is one of my favorite resorts (a close third behind Poly and BC/YC). We stayed in POR last year, some of my family in royal rooms, some in standard garden view. The decor in both rooms was lovely. Having a door lead to an outdoor corridor wasn't an issue, as our rooms were quiet and we were never bothered by outside noise (just heard a cart once when the neighbor's luggage was being delivered).

Our Royal Room was water/pool view, so we were very close to the main complex with Boatwrigth's and Riverside Grill. My sister stayed in a standard garden view, but requested a specific area of a specific building, and her room request was met...it was a fairly close walk to the pool and then to the main building.

While it was disconcerting going to POR knowing that we'd rely only on buses to get to the parks (my last mod visit was at CBR over 15 years before, had stayed either on the monorail loop or Epcot resorts after), we found transportation quick and easy to use. A big plus, however, was the boat to Disney Springs. It was great and a big plus for staying at POR.

I also loved the theming at POR, which made it feel much less like a motel and more like a real resort. Of course, we use the property a fair amount (pool time, afternoon naps, shopping), but even if I were planning a rope drop to midnight stay, I'd chose a mod over a value. Just my personal preference due to larger rooms, nicer theming, availability of sit-down restaurants at mods, etc.

I haven't stayed at POFQ, but the grounds looked very nice when we walked through them. Also haven't stayed at CSR, but have visited, and it's lovely as well. I haven't stayed at CBR since the 90s, but I enjoyed my stay at the time...I just really think the mods offer great value.

 

[cocoachip]

POR is our favorite moderate resort! I've read many posts comparing POR to a deluxe resort. The grounds are beautiful, the food court has a great create-your-own-salad/pasta, and the boat transpotation to Disney Springs is a nice alternative. I consider General Fulton's the best resort gift shop!

 

[baler31]

I second at least looking into the Swan/Dolphin. They are often less than a moderate and on par with a Disney deluxe. We are often able to stay for around $200 per night all total with taxes/fees with AAA or a good discount.