3 Adults & 2 Kids in a Studio (GF or Poly)

[Indecisive]

I am in the early stages of thinking about a WDW trip. It would be me, DH, my mother (who will be 69 years old and she is 5'1" tall), DS10, and DS7. We would be renting points. I would love to get a 1-Bedroom villa, but the problem is that my mother would not be able to afford to contribute much financially and a 1-Bedroom is WAY more expensive than a Studio. It is a bit of a conundrum that if we left my mother at home, my nuclear family could easily stay in a Studio but, if we bring her, we wouldn't be able to afford an upgrade to a 1-Bedroom since it is so much more expensive. She would be hurt if we left her at home, however. So, anyway, I am wondering whether it would be at all feasible for the 5 of us to stay in a Villas studio at GF or Poly? I am trying to convince myself that we would mostly be there for sleeping anyway, so maybe it would be do-able? And we would have the balcony. And my mom is short, so should be able to fit on the murphy (I think). It sounds like storage might be a hurdle. Anyway, I would love to hear your thoughts, especially from anyone who has attempted this. Thank you! If it is not do-able, it seems the next most cost-effective option might be a family suite at AOA, although our family would greatly miss the transportation convenience, balcony, and water slide, not to mention that the decor at AOA is not really our thing. Again, TIA!

 

[tjkraz]

Personally I think "transportation convenience" is one of the more overblown aspects of any Disney resort choice. No matter where you stay, there will be close parks and more distant parks. GF and Poly are a pretty quick trip to Magic Kingdom but to all other parks, there's no great advantage. Even Epcot requires a lengthy monorail trip to the TTC, train switch, then another monorail to the park.

As for your overall plan, you don't say how long of a trip you are contemplating. Speaking solely for myself, I couldn't spend more than a night or two under those conditions. 5 people, including a parent/in-law in a Studio villa makes for pretty crowded living conditions, IMO.

Sure you can argue that it's just a place to sleep...but personally I would worry about how WELL I would sleep under those conditions. If you won't spend much time in the room, that means a lot of (exhausting) hours in the theme parks. I wouldn't want to spend any length of time sharing a room with people who may snore, get up in the middle of the night, stay up late, wake up early, etc. All it takes is one person (out of 5) to impact everyone's stay in such close quarters.

A one bedroom villa at a resort that sleeps 5 would be far preferable, in my opinion. Old Key West rooms are enormous and among the cheapest DVC options available. I would GLADLY live with a few extra minutes lost to bus rides from OKW in exchange for the amenities and privacy of a One Bedroom.

That's my $.02.

 

[quandrea]

No way I would attempt this. Not with my parents or my in laws. It would be difficult for everyone.

A one bedroom has kitchen and laundry. You can offset its cost by stocking breakfast foods, snacks and beverages. Skip the dining plan because of the kitchen. The laundry allows you to pack light and avoid baggage fees.

As pp said okw provides some of the cheapest one BR accommodation on site. Animal kingdom lodge is also very affordable. They are both easy to book too.

 

[Indecisive]

I have a feeling you are both right! In fact, I think I knew this in my heart, but wanted to hear that it would be okay! You are right that it only takes one snoring person to completely ruin everyone's sleep. Part of my issue is that I have been spoiled. Last year, we stayed in a 2BR villa at BLT with DH's two parents. Of course, DH's parents were able to split the cost 50/50, which made it work for us. We LOVED the transportation convenience of BLT (e.g., the ability to go back and forth from MK to take a late afternoon break) and to walk back from MK after the fireworks when the monorail is mobbed (which I know you cannot do from GF/Poly). It is hard to imagine doing "back and forth" between AK/OKW and any park. BUT, that is almost certainly the lesser of evils as compared to squishing into a studio. Off to look at some OKW and AK villa photos . . . . Thank you for your help!

 

[3pletprincesses]

I've done AKL twice solo with my 3-4 kids (all under 8) in tow and we loved it. We never had issues with the bus nor did we have long waits. We went in Feb and August. With that said, it's not close like a monorail room. It took us about 20 minutes to MK, 15 to Epcot from Jambo building. I didn't write down time for HS nor from Kidani. Having traveled with my mom, I wouldn't stay in a studio with her. As much as I love her, I like to have my space at night away from her.

 

[rlovew]

If your mom is not very fit and limber I don't think I would plan on having her sleep on a murphy bed, we had my niece sleep there last time we went and 1 evening I laid down beside her- it took me a bit to get up and I hit my head on the way. I don't think I would want to have to get up from the bed every morning.

 

[Indecisive]

Thank you for the replies! 3pletprincesses, color me impressed that you do solo parenting trips to WDS w/3-4 kids under 8! Wowza! Good for you! I'm glad to know that you have found AK to be more convenient than some say. I have to say, I am quite intrigued by the Jambo and Kidani lodges! Perhaps it wouldn't be the worst thing to check them out!

rlovew, that is good to know about the murphy bed. My mom is in pretty decent condition for her age, but we all have our limits! Of course, if I was REALLY trying to convince myself this could work, I could mentally re-assign one of my DS's to the murphy and put my mom with my other DS on the fold-out . . . but we won't do that, since I think everyone has convinced me that we would all be unhappy in such cramped quarters. Thank you!

 

[quandrea]

Thank you for the replies! 3pletprincesses, color me impressed that you do solo parenting trips to WDS w/3-4 kids under 8! Wowza! Good for you! I'm glad to know that you have found AK to be more convenient than some say. I have to say, I am quite intrigued by the Jambo and Kidani lodges! Perhaps it wouldn't be the worst thing to check them out!

rlovew, that is good to know about the murphy bed. My mom is in pretty decent condition for her age, but we all have our limits! Of course, if I was REALLY trying to convince myself this could work, I could mentally re-assign one of my DS's to the murphy and put my mom with my other DS on the fold-out . . . but we won't do that, since I think everyone has convinced me that we would all be unhappy in such cramped quarters. Thank you!

Kidani is our favourite. I timed the journey from hs to Kidani. Door to door (of my villa) was 17 minutes. That's including a seven minute wait for the bus and the walk from the bus to my room. I tested it because for the first time in April I will be bussing it. I've also done mk by bus once and found it easy. That was with toddler twins in tow. Give it a try!

 

[cvjw]

No way I would stay in a studio with that many people. We booked two poly studios for my family of 4. Could not imagine 5 people in one. Look into renting points for an OKW one bedroom. Plenty of space for everyone to spread out in and the bus service is good to the parks.

 

[amystevekai&bump]

Hi - we've done exactly this!

My mom was 65, when she came with myself, DH, and our two sons who were 10 and 7. We stayed for two nights in a VGF studio & it was absolutely fine.

My eldest son slept on the pull out bed & my mum slept in the other double bed with my youngest son.

I will say that we are a close family and don't mind doing that on a Wdw holiday as we only use our rooms to sleep. I would also say that as a family of four we regularly stay ina studio at our home resort of BLT for a week & find we have plenty of room - something that when I asked on here what it would be like before buying in to BLT, most people said it would be dreadful as it would be so cramped! We travel from the UK for at least a fortnight each time, so have loads of luggage too, but still find we have ample room!

 

[Indecisive]

Wow, amystevekai&bump, that is so funny. As you say, your family configuration would be almost EXACTLY the same as mine! Crazy! That is good to know that this "cramped quarters" situation does work for some people. And we would be staying much less than a fortnight (more like 4-5 nights). Although now I feel confused!!! The others had convinced me to toss that idea right out the window. Anyway, I guess it is something I will have to discuss with my mom and DH (separately, I think, to get their honest opinions). I think this is the kind of thing that would never work unless everyone was on board 100%. We all get along but, to be honest, I think my mom may have a bit of a snoring issue. Not sure DH will want to sleep with earplugs, so perhaps my family really would be better off in a 1BR somewhere, even if that means we can't afford it at Poly or VGF. Anyway, thanks for your input!

 

[Minniesgal]

Personally I wouldn't even attempt this. I would go for a 1 or a 2 bedroom at a much cheaper resort. We have before now dropped a night to get the room size I wanted. I think space to relax after a long tiring day at the parks is important as is space to get ready in the morning

 

[Magic Band Defender]

Have you thought about a family suite at AoA? That'd get you 2 bathrooms and 3 sleeping areas.

 

[Indecisive]

Minniesgal--yes, that is a good point. Getting ready in the morning would be challenging to say the least in such a small space..

Magic Band Defender--yes, AOA is under consideration. I hesitate because we would really miss certain things, like monorail access, a water slide and, in general, a little more sophisticated atmosphere. But it may be a worthwhile trade-off given the $$$ involved. We will definitely think about it!

 

[Jenna319]

My mom and 7 year old niece may join us last minute for our trip in November, and if they do, I told them they could just join in our room. It is myself, my husband, and my 1year old daughter. We have a studio at the Grand Floridian. My mom and niece could sleep together on the pull out bed, my daughter in the pack and play and me and my husband in the queen. They were only planning on going for 3 nights, while we were staying for a week. There is no way I could justify the cost of a 1-bedroom, even though I would love it. Neither my mom or I could afford it even splitting 50/50.