3 Sleeping Surfaces! AoA suite or deluxe room w/daybed?

[3gr8boys]

The daybeds at the deluxe are twin sized beds. My friend who is 5'10" sleeps in it and is very comfortable. It's more than adequate for kids. Mine fight over it (boys 12 and 14).

Reassuring to know. Thanks

 

[cruisin5]

Walk walk walk. It's quicker to walk, even if the boat is at the dock. Leaving at park closing leaves a really big line for the boats so walking back is the best way too.

I personally really dislike being packed like a sardine on any form of transportation.

 

[3gr8boys]

Our first visit (2015) was in an AoA family suite, and we liked it aside from the bus ride. The kids were young and needed a mid day nap. For roughly the same price we rented DVC points and got a 1 bedroom at Bay Lake Tower for our 2016 trip and enjoyed that so much we ended up purchasing DVC.

Look at the Boardwalk or Beach Club DVC studios, it would only cost around 2K to stay in one for a week and you can't beat the location at all. The family suites are going to cost a lot more than that.

Can I read into this that your experience would lead you to choose smaller
accommodations in the Boardwalk area (regular room with daybed or DVC studio with sleep chair) over having the space of an AoA suite for the sake of location .... or is that just $ advice ?

 

[3gr8boys]

We are doing a split stay at AoA and BCV next month. We stayed at AoA during Christmas/New Year 2017/2018 and having the 2nd bathroom and a room where we could go to sleep before or after the kids without having to shut everything off was SO NICE (and the weather was SO SO BAD, having more personal space saved us all.) Word of caution...the AoA buses are basically the LAST buses in the lineup when you are returning from the parks. Gondolas will change a lot of things, but the AoA/Pop buses are pretty much the last in line.


That being said, we are doing a split stay this time because I was able to get a deluxe studio at BCV for about $80/nt. more than the suite at AoA. We did NOT rent points....I was able to find it through the regular Disney booking site.

Yeah....I dread the idea of heading to the farthest bus stop at the end of park time! I am eager to read about skyliner performance/experiences once the gondolas start running.

Curious- was your DVC rate $80/nt more than the AoA rack rate or a discount rate for that time?

 

[3gr8boys]

AKL also has rooms with bunk beds. We stayed in one and my kids enjoyed it. They were 15 and 11 at the time.

They do look cool! Frankly, AKL looks awesome except that I worry transportation:to and from parks will take longer....it seems removed from everything. Is that an unfair assessment??

 

[G719]

Thanks for the input.
How did you feel about YC to HS transportation? Did you walk it? Use the boat?

We used the boat. We were on a short trip as we split with universal this time. We only did one evening at HS. I would've walked if the line had been super long at closing but we left when the rides had closed but the fireworks were still going off. We got on a boat easily.

 

[cruisin5]

They do look cool! Frankly, AKL looks awesome except that I worry transportation
:to and from parks will take longer....it seems removed from everything. Is that an unfair assessment??

If you want to continue the daily afternoon breaks, AKL might not be the best. But, it's such an amazing resort. Like Ah-mazing.

 

[wendlle]

They do look cool! Frankly, AKL looks awesome except that I worry transportation:to and from parks will take longer....it seems removed from everything. Is that an unfair assessment??

So many people will say that AKL is "so far" away from everything but it is simply not the case. And when you stay there you quickly see that it is poppycock. ALL resorts are close to one - maybe two parks with the rest being further away. Yes The Poly is close to MK but it is further to AK, same goes for AKL it's close to AK but further to MK.
We've stayed there before and have a split stay coming up at Wilderness Lodge, Boardwalk and AKL all in Studio Villas paid for by renting DVC points - no way could we afford this at Disney's prices.
ALK is amazing and it really takes the same amount of time to get to all the parks as any other resort does. We prefer Jambo House over Kidani.

 

[MainMom]

They do look cool! Frankly, AKL looks awesome except that I worry transportation:to and from parks will take longer....it seems removed from everything. Is that an unfair assessment??

No farther than AOA although when you add in the gondolas it helps with the transportation. AKL is great for breaks. The pool is our favorite on property and I love sitting by the firepit in the lobby of Jambo House.

 

[KenHutch]

I feel your pain on making this decision and share some of the issues. We are going for trip #6 in 2021 which will be my daughters last trip while living at home (she starts KU this fall engineering). Well this past June we stayed at AKL and I have to admit the deluxe bug bit me. I was planning a 10 day trip to the Poly but her younger half sister (my god daughter) wants AoA. So I have been researching AoA to convince me.

 

[3gr8boys]

So, you are wondering, what is the OP thinking now ???

First. . I really appreciate all of the feedback and the variety of viewpoints.

And:
*AoA still holds the allure of separate/more space and I think the gondola service to HS and Epcot will be a plus.
*I won't completely dismiss idea of renting DVC points.....but the less expensive 3 sleeping surfaces options are unattractively small.
*I am reassured that the deluxe room daybeds are a good option, so shouldn't dismiss Epcot area resorts (trading AoA suite space/two bathrooms for walking access to Epcot & HS and deluxe feel)
*BUT now I am daydreaming about AKL. After @MainMom mentioned the availability of bunk bed rooms, I started reading up and watching videos. I have always been park driven and never felt the appeal of a "resort day" or "scheduled resort time'," but WOW!!!! And OMG the animals. I am one of those people that loves to linger on the AK trails.

So....more thinking to do (and hopefully more feedback to consider )

ETA the boys were interested in chatting and looking at pictures .... they prefer the AoA suite layout to the AKL amenities and the walkability advantage of Epcot resorts.


(Of course, it will be awhile before true $ comparisons can be made.)

 

[clayfolks]

We are huge AKL/V fans. The transportation is surprisingly good, the restaurants are exceptional, and the resort itself is amazing. We have stayed at all of the monorail resorts, as well as BWV and AoA. None of them had the consistently good timing of the transportation that AK had. When you are on the monorail, you have trade offs when it comes to the quality of the remainder of the transport options.

 

[sbd78]

Have you checked out Old Key West 1-bedrooms? They have 3 sleeping surfaces (bed, pullout couch, twin sleeper chair) and with discounts are often priced similar to studios at the better located deluxe resorts. The downside of course is you would have to bus everywhere, although you would have a boat to Disney Springs.