AKL, Beach or Yacht Club... or Poly?

[hdrolfe]

My son (age 7) and I are going to Disney in August. I had planned to just book one of the values but am thinking we might be able to splurge on a deluxe. I have it basically narrowed down to Animal Kingdom Lodge or Beach/Yacht Club, though Poly keeps looking good too. How do I decide? We have been a few days, usually pre or post cruise. So far kiddo loved Animal Kingdom and liked Magic Kingdom and Epcot. We like to spend time by the pool, and have stayed at POP and AoA so far. We've looked at pictures, watched videos, and I can't choose! I like that at AKL there are animal walking around, but the pool area doesn't look that great. At BC/YC you can walk to Epcot, or take a boat, easy to get to Hollywood Studios which we intend to get to this time. But then Poly is right on the monorail so it seems easy to get around.

Kiddo wants a fun pool, he'd like a balcony on the room. I'm just happy if I can get coffee in the room We will be getting park hoppers if that makes a difference. I intend to stick to mostly QS to save some money (make up for staying deluxe lol) but we will probably do a couple table service though I haven't decided which yet. We have so far not made it to see any fireworks during our trips. Help! Any ideas on how to choose? The difference between AKL & Poly is about $250 for 7 nights.
Thanks

 

[hakepb]

Jambo's pool slide is the most mild pool slide on property .. and for some 7yo's that is a good thing, others may not.
There are still the pool party's that CM's run in the afternoon, and the cultural representatives in the lobby with additional activities.
At dark, there is also night vision animal viewing and a story teller by the fire pit (in the savanna overlook off the lobby)

If your son loves Animal Kingdom park..then I thinks stay at AKL would be very, very memorable.

However, QS dining is a weak point of any Deluxe. None has a Food court like a value or mod.
I think Jambo and Poly are above average QS(in terms of plain water selection for a Deluxe) BC is very limited...unless you use your park hoppers and treat Epcot WS as the best food court on property.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I would think about which parks you will visit most and make your decision from there. We go in August every year and almost always stay at an EP resort because we typically spend most of our time in EP, if not for a full day, we will at least go in for the evening for dinner. In the August heat, I like the fact that we can just walk back to the resort and not wait on any lines to access transportation. BC to EP is SUPER quick. We also love the pools at the EP resorts (including the Swan/Dolphin). The Poly pool doesn't have a lot of shade, so I'm not a big fan and the QS there is really chaotic, IMHO. With an EP resort, you have all of WS QS within walking distance. If a balcony is really important to you, I would pick YC over BC.

 

[Babsy]

I would choose YC. It has the balcony and a great pool for kiddo, coffee for you and is between both the AK and MK. It also is walking distance to Epcot and DHS. QS is limited at the Epcot resorts, but you have PH's so eating in World showcase would work. There are also a few QS spots around the Epcot resorts, marketplace at the BC, pizza window at BWI and Picabou at the Dolphin.

 

[disneygolfer1985]

The YC for the balcony and the pool. Best pool on property. I loved staying at the BC when I was younger. I would spend 2 hours a day going down the water slide. Like the previous poster stated, you have many great QS options just through the International Gateway in the WS. France has a lot of good sandwich options.

 

[Nancyg56]

I always look at where we will spend the most time, and if there is a special interest for one of the family. I don't think you can go wrong at any of the resorts that you are looking at, so I would think about what would please my son the most. The animals? A pool? Using the monorail as a main source of transportation? I also would think about how the $250 might make a difference, and if that would matter. Deluxe are not known for CS choices, but I think that Mara at AKL is really good, and the options at the Poly are as well. BC, not so much. You can use Epcot for options, but you may need hopper to fully take advantage of that.

 

[fairygagamother]

I am a huge fan of the split stay. It's not too much trouble to have your luggage delivered from one resort to the next & you get to enjoy different experiences at each resort. We plan our fast passes according to where we're staying . Just remember you'd be "homeless" until you can get into your room on your switch day. But you can still use the pools & other amenities before your room is actually ready.

 

[Ciao Mickey]

My son (age 7) and I are going to Disney in August. I had planned to just book one of the values but am thinking we might be able to splurge on a deluxe. I have it basically narrowed down to Animal Kingdom Lodge or Beach/Yacht Club, though Poly keeps looking good too. How do I decide? We have been a few days, usually pre or post cruise. So far kiddo loved Animal Kingdom and liked Magic Kingdom and Epcot. We like to spend time by the pool, and have stayed at POP and AoA so far. We've looked at pictures, watched videos, and I can't choose! I like that at AKL there are animal walking around, but the pool area doesn't look that great. At BC/YC you can walk to Epcot, or take a boat, easy to get to Hollywood Studios which we intend to get to this time. But then Poly is right on the monorail so it seems easy to get around.

Kiddo wants a fun pool, he'd like a balcony on the room. I'm just happy if I can get coffee in the room We will be getting park hoppers if that makes a difference. I intend to stick to mostly QS to save some money (make up for staying deluxe lol) but we will probably do a couple table service though I haven't decided which yet. We have so far not made it to see any fireworks during our trips. Help! Any ideas on how to choose? The difference between AKL & Poly is about $250 for 7 nights.
Thanks

My first choice would be the Yacht & Beach Club, second would be the Poly.

The Y&B club has the best resort pool on property. You can walk or take a boat to Epcot and MGM. There is also the Boardwalk across the way (also the Swan/Dolphin). The Yacht Club has full balconies.

Poly is on the monorail so it's easy to get to the GF, Contemporary, MK and Epcot.

We've never stayed at AK because there is nothing around except the animals. We like to be in the middle of things.

 

[Lisann]

A 7 year old will like most any pool. Having said that, I think you should choose between YC (for the guaranteed balcony...important to me, too) or AKL. Both are perfect resorts for a little boy! No to Poly, even though you can still have fun there, I think he will enjoy AKL or YC better. And you will, too.

 

[heidijanesmith]

Our 1st stay was at AKL, there is something beautiful/magical about that resort. It is large and quiet. The QS is just one area that we thought got old after a while. There is no easy way to get to another resort for other dining options. The pool is great; large and lots of space. A pool view room at night is fantastic, we did not mind not having a savannah room as there are lots of public places to view the animals.

YC/BC as others said has the best pool on property. We spent lots of time there with our kids. We chose YC over BC as we really wanted a full balcony or patio. Almost all YC rooms have a patio or balcony. There are lots of QS options with in walking distance.

Our kids loved the Poly, it feels like you are right in the middle of Hawaii not Florida! We enjoyed the QS at the Poly and liked that we could take the monorail to the other resorts for more options.

 

[shellyj]

Animal Kingdom Lodge is our most favorite place. We prefer to stay at Jambo House, but Kidani's pool is a little cooler. The pool at Jambo is nice and big, but like someone else said, the slide is tame. It's easy to walk to either pool, though.
If you are renting points the studios at AKL are about the same price as a value.

I've never been unhappy with any Disney resort, but nothing beats AKL. It is such an experience. It's the most impressive, magical feeling when you walk in the front door. There is so much to do and see. Check the gift shop for the days and times the carver is in there working on the wooden figurines. Very cool to see. We love the drum lessons in the evenings. I like to sit and listen to them. The night viewing for the animals is awesome. As are all of the savannah lookouts. Even if your room has a savannah view, it's worth going to one of the other lookouts to see the other animals.

Boma is our most favorite restaurant, for breakfast or dinner. It's just fantastic.

I don't know the layouts as much as others do, but I've always had a balcony at AKL.

 

[hdrolfe]

Thanks everyone, I think I'm going to go with Yacht Club. The balcony is important to my kiddo and I like the fact we'll be able to walk to Epcot. He also loves boats, so he will enjoy it if we take a boat over to HS. He usually just wants toast for breakfast, I prefer more but I'm sure I can manage, as long as there is coffee! AKL looks amazing but the Savannah view is quite a bit more. I also think he'll really enjoy the pool area at YC/BC, and he likes to spend time at the pool every day.

Now to decide how many days of tickets to get! And settle on the dates. I was looking at August 20 - 27 or 27 to Sep 3. And I see we might be able to go to the Halloween party if we do the September dates, based on last year. I think it's also a little quieter in the parks that week as lots of kids have gone back to school (kiddo doesn't go back until after Labour Day). Great way to end summer vacation!