Already thinking about our next trip!

[DisneyMomma930]

We are heading down in August staying at AoA. I am already thinking about booking our next trip. I really wanted to stay deluxe this time. Last time we stayed Moderate at POR and loved it. But they didnt have rooms large enough so we opted for a family suite at AoA. It looks super fun and my 2 year old will love it. But next trip I want to indulge in a nicer resort and do less park time and just enjoy ourselves.

Two questions: how far ahead can I book a package? I looked online and the calendar only goes to December 2019. This trip would be late 2020 or early 2021.

Also, which deluxe resort would you recommend? We have 3 kids and by that time they will be 4, 11, and 18. I want convenience of location but also something that will have large suites. I dont want to pay for CL, thats not our thing. I would love AKL villas or one of the monorail resorts for convenience. Or maybe an Epcot resort. Ive never stayed deluxe so Im looking for recommendations....

 

[DISNEY1975]

Package booking for following years come historically have come out in August, though last year the 2019 package bookings came out in June. Not sure if they will stick with June going forward.

2021 booking would be June or August 2020.

As for resorts....Poly, GF and Contemporary have the largest rooms which sleep 5. Poly and Contemporary have their vanities inside the bathrooms, GF does not. Not sure what your preference is. With 5 people it might be beneficial to have it outside the bathroom so 2 can be getting ready at once. Contemp has a better monorial location IMO. First stop out of MK, one stop from TTC etc... GF usually offers better discounts than the other 2 also.

Wilderness Lodge is a good option budget-wise. Location and transportation is great, though the room size is about 350sq ft compared to 450+ at the monorail resorts.

YC always offers great deals. Room size is 380 sq ft. The pool and grounds are amazing and the convenience to Epcot/Boardwalk and DHS cant be beat. BC is the same, though usually only offer a small % off, compared to YC, steps away which offers 25%+. You would spend very little time in the room there as there is so much to do and see within walking distance.

Boardwalk in also is good for the wallet, great location..Im not crazy about the pool area though. That is the one draw back if youre planning on spending a lot of time at the pool each day. Also, they are at 370 sq feet...not too large.

Good luck and enjoy your trip.

 

[DisneyMomma930]

Package booking for following years come historically have come out in August, though last year the 2019 package bookings came out in June. Not sure if they will stick with June going forward.

2021 booking would be June or August 2020.

As for resorts....Poly, GF and Contemporary have the largest rooms which sleep 5. Poly and Contemporary have their vanities inside the bathrooms, GF does not. Not sure what your preference is. With 5 people it might be beneficial to have it outside the bathroom so 2 can be getting ready at once. Contemp has a better monorial location IMO. First stop out of MK, one stop from TTC etc... GF usually offers better discounts than the other 2 also.

Wilderness Lodge is a good option budget-wise. Location and transportation is great, though the room size is about 350sq ft compared to 450+ at the monorail resorts.

YC always offers great deals. Room size is 380 sq ft. The pool and grounds are amazing and the convenience to Epcot/Boardwalk and DHS cant be beat. BC is the same, though usually only offer a small % off, compared to YC, steps away which offers 25%+. You would spend very little time in the room there as there is so much to do and see within walking distance.

Boardwalk in also is good for the wallet, great location..Im not crazy about the pool area though. That is the one draw back if youre planning on spending a lot of time at the pool each day. Also, they are at 370 sq feet...not too large.

Good luck and enjoy your trip.

Thank you! I see that youve stayed at the Poly quite a bit. Is that your favorite? Ive always wanted to stay there but have heard mixed reviews. I also really love AKL, the theming and the animals. But its not on the monorail or walking distance to Epcot like the Boardwalk resorts. We really need at least a 1 bedroom suite/villa so that will be the deciding factor.

 

[mickeynut1]

We are heading down in August staying at AoA. I am already thinking about booking our next trip. I really wanted to stay deluxe this time. Last time we stayed Moderate at POR and loved it. But they didnt have rooms large enough so we opted for a family suite at AoA. It looks super fun and my 2 year old will love it. But next trip I want to indulge in a nicer resort and do less park time and just enjoy ourselves.

Also, which deluxe resort would you recommend? We have 3 kids and by that time they will be 4, 11, and 18. I want convenience of location but also something that will have large suites. I dont want to pay for CL, thats not our thing. I would love AKL villas or one of the monorail resorts for convenience. Or maybe an Epcot resort. Ive never stayed deluxe so Im looking for recommendations....

My suggestion would be to go with a monorail resort as the rooms are the largest of the deluxe resorts (as the pp mentioned) and all rooms come with a daybed. I haven't stayed at the CR, but have stayed at both the Poly and GF and my choice would be the Poly (my favorite overall). The GF is a beautiful resort and runs a close to second to the Poly, but I love the Poly as the tropical atmosphere is beautiful/relaxing, the volcano pool is great as it backs up to the beach with a distant view of the castle (you can watch fireworks while swimming), and Captain Cooks is great for quick meals/snacks. It's also just 2 monorail stops from MK and is a 5-7 min walk to the TTC to catch the Epcot monorail. Good luck and have fun planning .

 

[DISNEY1975]

Thank you! I see that youve stayed at the Poly quite a bit. Is that your favorite?

Ha!! No, its not MY favorite, but its my daughter and husbands favorite and with 3 kids, the large rooms area great. My boys dont care where we stay! I do love the Poly, but you'll get a mixed review from me too! Lots of pros and cons to it. Biggest con for me its a very loud crowded resort! Biggest pros..location and its beautiful! I am older now too, so tend to like a quieter resort. 20 years ago, I would probably have said it was my favorite.

AK is nice. Havent stayed in over 10 years, and when we did, we really didnt see many animals roaming around like the pictures show! Could have just been that week??? Its very secluded with limited dining options. Though I love Boma, the other restaurants dont appeal to me, so to get anywhere from there you would need to add in much travel time. The resort itself is amazing. Very unique in design and details. Pool area is great too.

I stayed at YC my last trip. Hadnt been in quite a while and now that my kids are a bit older and we spend a lot of time at Epcot (dinner almost every night) it made sense. I LOVED it. Nice and quiet, great dining options everywhere you look (Boardwalk, BC, Epcot and the resort itself), beautiful resort. Convenient to both EP and DHS.

I priced out 1 bdrms a few months ago when considering taking my daughters friend (Aug trip) Lowest cost I found was Bay Lake Towers at the Contemporary. Second was Old Key West. I dont remember what the others were. They were so outrageous I didnt look at them twice!

I think with the new skyline going in some of the mod resorts would be a good option. You could get 2 rooms there. Also check out the new Riviera Resort opening in December! I dont know pricing there or if they offer suites/1 br but might be worth looking.

 

[DisneyMomma930]

My suggestion would be to go with a monorail resort as the rooms are the largest of the deluxe resorts (as the pp mentioned) and all rooms come with a daybed. I haven't stayed at the CR, but have stayed at both the Poly and GF and my choice would be the Poly (my favorite overall). The GF is a beautiful resort and runs a close to second to the Poly, but I love the Poly as the tropical atmosphere is beautiful/relaxing, the volcano pool is great as it backs up to the beach with a distant view of the castle (you can watch fireworks while swimming), and Captain Cooks is great for quick meals/snacks. It's also just 2 monorail stops from MK and is a 5-7 min walk to the TTC to catch the Epcot monorail. Good luck and have fun planning .

I like the monorail resorts too especially for convenience. The poly has always been on my bucket list because it might be the closest I get to Hawaii for a while. I love Disney so much that I choose that over a tropical vacation even though hubby would probably opt for an island vaca. That will wait for after the kids are grown. I guess it will depend on how we do this trip and what the kids prefer. If they are still into MK then monorail would make sense. But if we really enjoy Epcot world showcase as a family then a boardwalk resort would be nice as well.

 

[DisneyMomma930]

Ha!! No, its not MY favorite, but its my daughter and husbands favorite and with 3 kids, the large rooms area great. My boys dont care where we stay! I do love the Poly, but you'll get a mixed review from me too! Lots of pros and cons to it. Biggest con for me its a very loud crowded resort! Biggest pros..location and its beautiful! I am older now too, so tend to like a quieter resort. 20 years ago, I would probably have said it was my favorite.

AK is nice. Havent stayed in over 10 years, and when we did, we really didnt see many animals roaming around like the pictures show! Could have just been that week??? Its very secluded with limited dining options. Though I love Boma, the other restaurants dont appeal to me, so to get anywhere from there you would need to add in much travel time. The resort itself is amazing. Very unique in design and details. Pool area is great too.

I stayed at YC my last trip. Hadnt been in quite a while and now that my kids are a bit older and we spend a lot of time at Epcot (dinner almost every night) it made sense. I LOVED it. Nice and quiet, great dining options everywhere you look (Boardwalk, BC, Epcot and the resort itself), beautiful resort. Convenient to both EP and DHS.

I priced out 1 bdrms a few months ago when considering taking my daughters friend (Aug trip) Lowest cost I found was Bay Lake Towers at the Contemporary. Second was Old Key West. I dont remember what the others were. They were so outrageous I didnt look at them twice!

I think with the new skyline going in some of the mod resorts would be a good option. You could get 2 rooms there. Also check out the new Riviera Resort opening in December! I dont know pricing there or if they offer suites/1 br but might be worth looking.

I am so envious of all your trips! I love the idea of AKL but it being sort of remote in terms of transportation and the food options (hubby and kids are not adventurous eaters) make it not the best option. Contemporary to me doesnt scream disney, just because of the theming. To me its more like a Hilton except for the fact that its so close to MK. Im definitely not interested in OKW. It just doesnt look like a resort we would like. Riviera looks like its going to be pricey but maybe the discounts in the future will make it a good option. Right now Im thinking Poly or BC or BWV. I have never been interested in staying at GF, I dont know why but it doesnt appeal to me even though it is a gorgeous resort.

Thank you for your input. I cant wait for hubby to see the resorts we visit this trip and see what he says about our next plan. Hes never stayed onsite so I think right now it doesnt matter to him but once we do meals at other resorts he will have some input.

 

[DISNEY1975]

Thank you for your input. I cant wait for hubby to see the resorts we visit this trip and see what he says about our next plan. Hes never stayed onsite so I think right now it doesnt matter to him but once we do meals at other resorts he will have some input.

Yes, for sure, check out the resorts while your there. It really depends on personal taste. I agree with GF, not for me though gorgeous! Im from New England and it looks like a typical really nice hotel around here. I cant get the Poly vibe anywhere around here, so it does make it seem more like Im away on vacation. You would think YC/BC wouldnt appeal to me either, but it has a beautiful beach theme I do think Im away when Im there. I guess Im just a sucker for nautical decor!

Honestly, wherever you stay will be wonderful. After all, youll be at DISNEY WORLD

 

[Magical2017]

I have never done Bounce Back, but you could check into that. If you book your next trip during your stay, you can get a discount. Here is a link to the thread with the information. https://disboards.com/threads/bounc...k-for-2019-dates.3680214/page-9#post-60354362

 

[mickeynut1]

I like the monorail resorts too especially for convenience. The poly has always been on my bucket list because it might be the closest I get to Hawaii for a while. I love Disney so much that I choose that over a tropical vacation even though hubby would probably opt for an island vaca. That will wait for after the kids are grown. I guess it will depend on how we do this trip and what the kids prefer. If they are still into MK then monorail would make sense. But if we really enjoy Epcot world showcase as a family then a boardwalk resort would be nice as well.

I agree, the monorail resorts are convenient, but the Epcot resorts are nice if you will be spending a lot of time in world showcase .