Anniversary getaway

[HLL1318]

My husband and I are planning an anniversary trip next March. We spent our honeymoon in Disney 10 years ago but every trip since has involved our children. We are looking to stay deluxe and want to take advantage of nighttime in the parks. I am very undecided on where to stay. I’m between AKL, WL, Poly and Beach/Boardwalk. I love the idea of walking or taking a boat to the parks but I’ve always loved the beauty of AKL and Poly. Currently we have stayed at the Boardwalk and in 47 days we will be at WL. Looking for any suggestions on where to book and why for our couples only trip.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

AKL is lovely and quite romantic, IMHO, but if you want to take advantage of late nights in the parks, it's not very convenient.

Since you've stayed at the Boardwalk and will stay at WL, I would consider BC or Poly and I would also throw YC into the mix. YC is much quieter than BC and Poly, IMHO, but you still have the advantage of walking and boating to EP and DHS. I personally find Poly to be very loud and chaotic.

 

[kaytieeldr]

AKL isn't as inconvenient as most people think. No, you can't walk to a park like you can with the Epcot-area resorts, but it's only remote from MK. Almost everything is remote from MK.

If you want to stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge, to for it! Definitely different from your current/recent trips.

 

[ManhattanMcC]

We’ve spent 3 anniversaries now at DW (we also got hitched at the WA in Bonnet Creek…) GF for 3 year (last kiddo free) and really took advantage of the proximity, and scene. Spending an hr with a drink in Mizners listeneing to the band was a highlight of all to and fro movement. Senses is also right there & we took advantage of the couples massage. The next 2 were Poly and this past year included running Dopey… so not exactly the same. Poly is more active but we like the pools and late ones at Trader Sam’s. The MK resorts aslo have the benefits of the water transportation. We’ve more than once on off hrs we’ll walk from Poly to the TTC, Paddle boat to MK, then resort launch all the way around...

 

[mickeynut1]

My husband and I are planning an anniversary trip next March. We spent our honeymoon in Disney 10 years ago but every trip since has involved our children. We are looking to stay deluxe and want to take advantage of nighttime in the parks. I am very undecided on where to stay. I’m between AKL, WL, Poly and Beach/Boardwalk. I love the idea of walking or taking a boat to the parks but I’ve always loved the beauty of AKL and Poly. Currently we have stayed at the Boardwalk and in 47 days we will be at WL. Looking for any suggestions on where to book and why for our couples only trip.

We've stayed at all of the choices and while all of them are great, the Poly is my favorite. The tropical atmosphere is beautiful and relaxing, the beach is great for watching fireworks, and it's romantic walking around at night under the lit tiki torches. There's also a nice walkway between the Poly and GF if you want to visit the GF for dinner, shopping, etc. .

 

[GADisneyDad14]

We did two adults only long weekends last year, one at BWI and one at YC. A lot of people love BWI for good reasons, but we’re not all that into it (mostly theme based for us). We like having access to the Boardwalk and restaurants, but don’t necessarily like staying there.

I used to always ignore/overlook YC when thinking about resorts but ended up surprisingly really liking it quite a bit (first visit was this past year). Love the location, the new rooms, convenient dining, Ale & Compass lounge, etc. It just ‘felt right’ for an adults only trip (in fairness, we like it there with the kids too). Our next adults trip is booked for YC again.

I know YC wasn’t one of your choices, sorry!

 

[ManhattanMcC]

We did two adults only long weekends last year, one at BWI and one at YC. A lot of people love BWI for good reasons, but we’re not all that into it (mostly theme based for us). We like having access to the Boardwalk and restaurants, but don’t necessarily like staying there.

I used to always ignore/overlook YC when thinking about resorts but ended up surprisingly really liking it quite a bit (first visit was this past year). Love the location, the new rooms, convenient dining, Ale & Compass lounge, etc. It just ‘felt right’ for an adults only trip (in fairness, we like it there with the kids too). Our next adults trip is booked for YC again.

I know YC wasn’t one of your choices, sorry!

YC/BWI… 1st time past that whole area was literally on the run during the marathon. Will have to check that out in the future.

 

[Shellyred8]

I would recommend Poly or YC. We stayed at the YC for our honeymoon. It was my first time staying on-site and I fell in love with the boardwalk area. I really like being able to walk to HS and EP. We also enjoy mini-golf and you can walk to Fantasia Gardens from the boardwalk resorts.

We enjoyed Poly because of the monorail access to MK and also being so close to the TTC that you can walk there and hop on the monorail to EP.

Have a great trip!!

 

[kiford]

Sort of depends on where you want to be at night. If you spend most of your time at HS or Epcot, then BC/YC/BWI is the place to be. If you want to spend it at MK, maybe the Poly. We like the BC ourselves; with only two of you, request a King bed room. They are usually on the corners of the wings so the space is a bit larger, the bathroom is kind of around the corner so less disruption if one person gets up earlier or in the night and you get two walls with windows. We've also had a King room at the BWI that was on the ground floor with patio doors that opened into the rose garden. Room was a bit smaller than the usual room at BWI, but it was so lovely. We used to sit out on the patio in the early evening with some wine or champagne, cheese and crackers and just relaxed in the quiet. None of the resorts have many King bed rooms but, for obvious reasons, they usually keep them for couples rather than families so you have a reasonably good chance of getting one.

AKL we didn't find to be too remote or difficult to get to/from using the buses. While it is slightly less convenient to get to the parks in the evening, we also liked to just be at the resort in the evening - being in the pool, walking around outside, sitting in Victoria Falls, sitting on our balcony.

The Poly has never really grabbed me, but this year with our APs we have pledged to stay at all of the other deluxe resorts we've never been to so we have to get there eventually. We are booked for WL and CR in the next two trips, are planning YC for September so may try Poly in December but we're both trying to find excuses to skip it and go back to GF for December.

 

[Captain Kittens]

My husband and I are planning an anniversary trip next March. We spent our honeymoon in Disney 10 years ago but every trip since has involved our children. We are looking to stay deluxe and want to take advantage of nighttime in the parks. I am very undecided on where to stay. I’m between AKL, WL, Poly and Beach/Boardwalk. I love the idea of walking or taking a boat to the parks but I’ve always loved the beauty of AKL and Poly. Currently we have stayed at the Boardwalk and in 47 days we will be at WL. Looking for any suggestions on where to book and why for our couples only trip.

AKL is where I spent my honeymoon a year ago and it was amazing (no kids). Its further from the parks but has a more quiet, intimate feel to it. Its kind of dark and always dimly lit up with amber lights but it gave it this very cozy feel (especially at night time). I just love the vibe of this place. There is also music (very low volume) of African tribal beats pumped throughout the hotel. Waking up in the morning and having a coffee on the patio (get a Savannah view so you can see animals) with the music in the background watching the sunrise was....INCREDIBLE. The pool is nice and big and we chilled in the hot-tub until about midnight when we were told to get out lol.

I cant stress enough how much I liked this hotel. I've walked around the Contemporary, Beach Club, Boardwalk and stayed at Riverside. AKL just offers a completely different atmosphere you cant get at any of the others.

 

[NH-to-FL]

My wife and I made many trips to the Boardwalk Inn over the years. We liked the theming and loved the location. For an adults only visit to WDW I think the Epcot resort area is the best place to stay. For us, being able to stroll over to the World Showcase in the evenings was quite special.

 

[reluctantredhead]

I actually really like all the hotels you listed as possibilities. But my two favorite "rooms for couples" that we've stayed in have been:

1) The garden cottage rooms at BWI. To us, these were heaven on earth. We loved having the downstairs living room area, a second half bath down there, a guaranteed king bed, that fabulous jacuzzi tub, and the separate shower area...plus, the little garden in front or balcony (which our room had) was awesome too. It's so quiet where these rooms are, and ours was directly across from the quiet pool, which was also fantastic. We loved it so much we have a stay there coming up in February. Added bonus: I've seen these rooms pop up several times at 40% off rack rate. We either got 35% or 40% off for our upcoming February stay...can't remember which off the top of my head. Plus, in my mind the CL offerings at BWI just can't be beat in terms of the quality of the food and the incomparable Chef Redgie.

2) The honeymoon rooms in the GF main building. These rooms have a jacuzzi tub too, but it's quite a bit smaller than the one in the garden cottages at BWI. We had an absolutely magical view of Cinderella Castle from our room (though I understand that's not guaranteed). The decor is so lovely at the GF, the lounge is gorgeous, and for me I've never felt as fancy as when I got to push that elevator button and ride up to my room right there in the main building, lol.

For us, given that EP is our favorite park (both for attractions and food!), we really love staying at BWI because it's an easy walk over there. Plus, there is quite a price jump between the garden cottages at BWI and the main building at GF, so we haven't pulled the trigger and booked GF main building recently...but we're planning to as a little gift to ourselves when our daughter starts college.

Good luck with your decision!

 

[Babsy]

We've stayed at all of the choices and while all of them are great, the Poly is my favorite. The tropical atmosphere is beautiful and relaxing, the beach is great for watching fireworks, and it's romantic walking around at night under the lit tiki torches. There's also a nice walkway between the Poly and GF if you want to visit the GF for dinner, shopping, etc. .

This!
yes, there is a special romantic atmosphere at the Poly. If you decide that an MK area resort is the location that you prefer, either the Poly (romantic) or the GF (elegant) would be lovely. Sitting on our balcony, sipping a favourite beverage, with a view of the castle is one of my favourite ways to relax in WDW.

We did two adults only long weekends last year, one at BWI and one at YC. A lot of people love BWI for good reasons, but we’re not all that into it (mostly theme based for us). We like having access to the Boardwalk and restaurants, but don’t necessarily like staying there.

I used to always ignore/overlook YC when thinking about resorts but ended up surprisingly really liking it quite a bit (first visit was this past year). Love the location, the new rooms, convenient dining, Ale & Compass lounge, etc. It just ‘felt right’ for an adults only trip (in fairness, we like it there with the kids too). Our next adults trip is booked for YC again.

I know YC wasn’t one of your choices, sorry!

For adults only, a YC stay would be a great choice in the Epcot area. Almost all the rooms have full balconies and it is so nice to be next door to Ws in Epcot for dining or an evening stroll.

What I would do, FWIW:
If you are going for a week or more, a split stay with a 3+ nights each in a Mk and an Epcot resort would make a near perfect anniversary stay, IMO. In fact, that is what we did for our 45th!

 

[reluctantredhead]

This!

What I would do, FWIW:
If you are going for a week or more, a split stay with a 3+ nights each in a Mk and an Epcot resort would make a near perfect anniversary stay, IMO. In fact, that is what we did for our 45th!

ITA! Our upcoming 25th anniversary/H's birthday February trip is a split between a BWI Garden Cottage and GF SL. Best of both worlds!

 

[katyjeka]

Our anniversary trip was spent at GF with no regrets. I love the quiet of AKL but save it for visits with our girls as it is their favorite. WL has great concierge and made for a special trip.

 

[KerryCM]

I will say I am a BW lover! I have stayed at every one of the resorts, except for the Poly. We love the BW and will be returning in just 13 days for our 47th anniversary. We enjoy strolling over to Epcot and wandering through the countries. We enjoy walking the loop around Crescent Lake at night and sitting on the Boardwalk.

 

[mickeynut1]

If you are going for a week or more, a split stay with a 3+ nights each in a Mk and an Epcot resort would make a near perfect anniversary stay, IMO.

Great idea