Advice plz--Boardwalk CL, Poly, GF or elsewhere?

[Ursula_Fan]

Longtime reader, first time poster. Thank you to everyone who shares their experience and advice! I've found the boards to be really helpful.

We have previously stayed at Copper Creek and Beach Club. We loved Copper Creek but were not crazy about the food options there and felt it was a bit too isolated for us. Beach Club had a great location but my dad (who has some mobility issues) felt it too really spread out.

I'm planning a trip for October--it will be me, my 5 yo, my 4 yo, and my parents. I'd like to do a 1/2 day or full day at Epcot for food & wine, and we will be going to the Halloween party at MK.

Our tentative itinerary is:
Day 1--fly in, resort evening
Day 2--resort day then MNSSHP at night at MK (arriving around 4 pm to MK)
Day 3--Epcot for food and wine
Day 4--HS (probably leave after lunch, then resort)
Day 5--rest or 1/2 day at MK, then fly home

Right now I have a Poly standard room for the trip. I thought it would be nice to be on the monorail and near TTC, plus great pools for the kids, but some reviews have me nervous that the Poly is showing its age. I started looking at Boardwalk because of its proximity to Epcot and HS, and a club level is available but I'm not sure it's worth the extra money. Finally, GF has always been on my bucket list--we are celebrating both my bday and my 5 yo's. The GF room is in the middle--more than Poly but less than Boardwalk. We would ideally go to a place with a good pool for the kids, and decent, varied food options nearby.

Which would you choose? TIA!

 

[CynBeth]

I would keep the Poly. No matter where we go on vacation Disney or elsewhere there are always partly or fully negative reviews about hotels or restaurants so we tend to go and form our own opinions. Usually we were glad we did not listen.

 

[heidijanesmith]

We love the Poly it's beautiful and a great location. Walking to the TTC to catch the EPCOT monorail is super easy.

We have been staying at the BW recently as we love to walk to EPCOT and DS. I thought the BWI CL was one of the better CL experiences we have had. Staff is great, food options were very good. DD and I still talk about the potato soup!

If the Poly is less, I would keep that reservation.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I would do GF. It has more restaurants than any other resort and I find it quieter than Poly. Poly restaurants are virtually impossible to get into and there’s no shade at the pool. I love BWI but that is not convenient on a party night.

 

[SheriRae]

Boardwalk is our favorite resort! We love being minutes away from Epcot and HS. Using the International Gateway entrance is so quick, never much of a line. You breeze in and out of Epcot. We have enjoyed CL @ BW and thought it was worth the price and a nice treat. Plenty of restaurants on the Boardwalk and you're within walking distance to Yacht Club and Beach Club restaurants as well.

Honestly, Poly, GF and BW are all beautiful resorts. You'll have an amazing time at any of those choices.

 

[pixiedustedme]

I recommend the Boardwalk Club Level, primarily because of your father's mobility issues. It isn't small, but it is more compact than Poly or GF. The Boardwalk is also beautiful with charming, period-styled decor. It has a very nice, compact pool with a roller coaster-themed spiral slide. And staying Club Level is huge in terms of easy food accessibility, which will be helpful for your father and make feeding the whole family a lot easier. You won't eat there for every meal, but even just snacks, drinks & breakfast being so easily accessible and complimentary is a perk not to be underestimated at a Disney World resort.

 

[MeganS721]

We’ve stayed at all 3 in the last year and loved them all. The pools at Poly and GF are better for kids in my opinion. I didn’t care for the quick service at Boardwalk. I enjoyed the food better at GF and Poly. We liked the rooms at the GF the best out of the 3. I’d either stick with the Poly or go with GF.

 

[mickeynut1]

I would go with the Poly. I've stayed at all 3 and while both BWI CL and GF are great, I think the Poly would be the best fit. The tropical atmosphere is relaxing, Captain Cooks is great for quick meals/snacks, the volcano pool is fun and backs up to the beach with the castle in the distance (you can watch fireworks while swimming), and it's just 2 monorail stops from MK and a quick 5-7 min walk to the TTC to catch the Epcot monorail. I agree with a pp about the reviews. If I had not stayed at some resorts based on bad/not-so-good reviews, we would have missed out on some great stays. With that said, I just stayed at the Poly in Oct and our room was immaculate and housekeeping was wonderful!

 

[cutigerlady]

Have you considered YC CL? We have stayed at the Poly and GF (both club level rooms), as well as YC. GF RPC is our absolute favorite, but it’s so expensive!

We loved the YC and it was a huge hit with our parents. They loved the close proximity to 2 parks, plus walking distance to so many resorts. It was a great place for our “base camp”. Plus the CL offerings were more than enough for us at breakfast and dinner (they always have at least one entree like roast beef/mashed potatoes or salmon/lentils). The staff was amazing and went out of their way to help.

We didn’t love the Poly. The CL staff seemed bothered when we asked for simple things like soy milk for my son. It was January and the tail end of holiday season and everything was chaotic. The monorail wasn’t working part of our trip, and the bus service took forever because of the road construction.

 

[VAfamily1998]

If your Dad felt that beach club was too spread out, I'd look hard at how large and spread out Grand Floridian and Polynesian are. Maybe figure the "worst case scenario" of how far away your room could be, and determine if that would be too far for you Dad? I've always felt like Beach Club was actually was one of the more compact resorts at Disney.

 

[Ashleybritton]

We stayed at the GF last time and loved it! We’re doing Beach Club and the Poly this time. While I’m excited to try out these resorts, I’m sad we’re not at the GF again.

 

[justme0729]

I think what makes a resort seem spread out to me is when you have to walk through a long hallway to get anywhere. Boardwalk has very long hallways, at least from our room at the very end. Poly and GF feel much more compact because it is an enjoyable walk to get anywhere outside as you are looking around. For the most compact, I would do Polynesian. The pools are close to many rooms, the lobby isn't more than a 5 minute walk max, the beach is right there for fireworks, and it is the easiest to get to both MK and Epcot since you can walk to the TTC for Epcot. With that said, if GF is on your bucket list, it if you prefer that theme, do GF because size/ location is similar to Poly.

 

[Ursula_Fan]

Thanks to everyone for your input! We ended up going with Boardwalk CL. After speaking with my dad, having a lounge nearby where he can get snacks will be helpful because he will likely not join us at some of the parks (recent knee replacement that didn't go well) and he would prefer to stick close to the room. The BWI location will let me & my mom pop in and out of F&W after the kiddos go to bed. We are planning on Epcot and HS for at least 3 days of our stay and might do a Minnie Van after the Halloween party. Thanks again to everyone for the different perspectives and advice--I really appreciate the thoughts and considerations, and will definitely think about this for our next trip!