Are Deluxes really worth it???

[AdventurerKat]

I have always stayed at a moderate or a DVC rental. I am trying to justify paying approximately $260.00 or so a night for Poly (hoping for a good AP rate) as opposed to $89.00 or so for POR or $100.00 or so for a DVC rental for May.

We're not poor but we're certainly not rich either and staying at the Poly, or any of the other deluxes, would certainly be an expenditure. What makes the deluxes so much better than the moderates??? (I know what makes the moderates so much better than the values because the values, to me, are pretty tacky.)

I want to justify spending the money, especially to my DH, but I am having a hard time doing so in my head when I know I am perfectly happy at POR or OKW, even though I really would like to try Poly, etc.

Anyone?

 

[GailT]

I have stayed at the All Stars, the moderates and the deluxe. I am like you by far not well off but I do spend the money to go the deluxe route. Funny, I am going in November, I could of done the gold plan for the same as the silver plan at the BWI. I opted to stay at the BWI, once you go deluxe it is hard to go back.

 

[molly213]

Our family started with All Star Sports, Movies, French Quarter, Riverside, then on to Animal Kingdom this past year. It was nice, but I wasn't wowed by it at all. The walls were very thin, the space was hardly any bigger than the All Stars, and we are at the parks so much that we really didn't enjoy the resort enough to make up for the difference in price. The extra sink space was nice however. After 11 days at Animal Kingdom with Savannah view, we went back to all star sports - this time 2 rooms for the price of Animal Kingdom and enjoyed the extra space for the money more than the one room at Animal Kingdom. We will be doing the 2 rooms again for our next trip to Pop Centry. You can't beat 2 bathrooms when you have 2 shower hogs!

 

[disney4us2002]

This is such a personal choice matter, lol. One reason the deluxes are worth it to us is by sheer number - there are five of us so it's one deluxe room or two others. Another factor for us is location. We adored staying at the Contemporary because of the monorail or simply walking to MK. I suppose it depends how much time is spent at the resort and which parks you are likely to spend most time at. We love MK so a MK resort makes the most sense to us. I'd love to try most of Disney's resorts but Poly is our next planned stop and I'm thrilled!

 

[KatieBelle]

The Deluxes are definitely worth the extra money to us. The rooms are larger and more luxurious. We always stay at the Poly or the Grand Floridian. We love the easy access to the Magic Kingdom and Epcot via the monorail. Watching the fireworks from the beach or waking up to a view of Cinderella's Castle is truly magical! That said, no matter where you stay, your vacation will be wonderful because you are at Disney World!

 

[Stitch 03]

I know what you mean about the extra cost of staying in a deluxe. But at the same time it is a great experience. My suggestion is that you split your stay. This allows you to save on the costs a bit. In addition, you can plan to hit the parks hard in the first part of your stay. That way leaving some time to soak up the atmosphere of the deluxe property at the end of your stay.

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by molly213
Our family started with All Star Sports, Movies, French Quarter, Riverside, then on to Animal Kingdom this past year. It was nice, but I wasn't wowed by it at all. The walls were very thin, the space was hardly any bigger than the All Stars, and we are at the parks so much that we really didn't enjoy the resort enough to make up for the difference in price. The extra sink space was nice however. After 11 days at Animal Kingdom with Savannah view, we went back to all star sports - this time 2 rooms for the price of Animal Kingdom and enjoyed the extra space for the money more than the one room at Animal Kingdom. We will be doing the 2 rooms again for our next trip to Pop Centry. You can't beat 2 bathrooms when you have 2 shower hogs!

I can understand feeling that way after staying at AKL. Their rooms are not much bigger then the All Stars. The same with WL. You really need to compare a genuine deluxe resort to a value and you will definitely see a big difference. We love the Poly for the location, amenities, and room size. We always stayed at CBR and then went up to the WL. We then tried the Poly and there is just NO comparing it to the WL. AKL and the WL were never meant to be deluxe resorts and you can easily tell that by their room sizes and lack of amenities and transportation options that the other deluxe resorts have. I think once you try a true deluxe you will not want to stay in a mod or value ever again unless money is an issue.

 

[JayCT]

Skiiwee1 - Two years ago we stayed at the Poly and loved it. After much agonizing we made reservations for WL in May. Are we really going to be that disappointed? We did love the big room sizes and the convenience at the Poly.

I will say that we considered a Moderate but I did not like the fact that most allowed people to walk into front of your window to get to their rooms. That reminds me of a motel. No privacy with the cutains opened. That made it worth it to me.

 

[MinnieFan4ever]

The main reason we choose deluxe resorts is we really spend time at the resort. Since it is just my husband and I, we don't jump out of bed at the crack of dawn. We usually head out around 8:30 or 9:00. We spend time at the pool. We like the option of eating on-site. If you know you will leave the room a dawn and return to hit the sack, then I would go with the cheapest on site room I could get. It only makes sense to save the money... maybe to plan another trip!

 

[lindamg]

And here's an opinion in direct contrast to Skiwee 1's opinion (As many people have mentioned this is such a personal choice!) My favorite deluxe is Wilderness Lodge. I love the atmosphere, and DH and I go there when we need to "get away from it all". We live in Florida, so going to the WL for us is like leaving the state! I've stayed at the GF and really thought it wasn't an experience that was worth the money I paid for it. We also enjoy Boardwalk Inn, especially if we are going for a quick weekend and spending most of our time at Epcot. The location then is worth paying for.

But, we still go back to the moderates and love them. Our favorite by a long shot is French Quarter and you can bet we'll be there the weekend it reopens! It is small and cozy and easy for DH to get his morning coffee. Since there are only two of us, we really don't mind the smaller space. We also have stayed at POR, both the Mansions and the Bayou, and Caribbean Beach and enjoyed them all. The only one we didn't like was Coronado Springs. I'm not even sure why, just didn't like it.

For us, moderates are the best bang for the buck, but we like to splure on a Deluxe now and then also. (Oh, yeah, and we can't beat the teacher rate at the Swan or Dolphin! Talk about bang for your buck!)

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by JayCT
Skiiwee1 - Two years ago we stayed at the Poly and loved it. After much agonizing we made reservations for WL in May. Are we really going to be that disappointed? We did love the big room sizes and the convenience at the Poly.

I will say that we considered a Moderate but I did not like the fact that most allowed people to walk into front of your window to get to their rooms. That reminds me of a motel. No privacy with the cutains opened. That made it worth it to me.

It would be hard to say if you would be disappointed. There are loyal followers of the WL and to them nothing compares! Everyone has their likes and dislikes and I think you have to try it for yourself. It might become your favorite hotel. I did love the interior design of the WL lobby. It is absolutely gorgeous without a doubt. I like its lobby better then the Poly lobby even but that is where is stops in comparison. What I didn't like about the WL was the small rooms, tiny overcrowded pool, poor transportation issues, and the overall feeling of being in nowhere land. It just seemed to removed from the magical feeling of WDW but that was the smallest of my dislikes. The worse was the transportation and a close second was the tiny rooms.

 

[mm lover in Ia]

We have stayed at AKL and absolutely loved! But now it is hard to stay at one of the cheaper ones, I guess you just get spoiled a little bit.

 

[ColoradoDis]

I agree - I don't like the feeling of staying in a motel. I don't do that on other vacations - so why at WDW? We've only stayed at 3 deluxes, but will have a hard time going back. We prefer the CR, but are trying a few days at the Poly in May. Maybe we'll change to a new favorite? The deluxes are closer to the magic, either the MK resorts or the Epcot resorts. Give it a shot, split your stay and you be the judge.

 

[Antonia]

I have stayed moderate and I have stayed deluxe. When we can afford it, we stay deluxe. When we needed the extra money (like when DS took a friend), we stayed moderate.
That would be the decision maker for me: if I was going to have to eat less, do less and in general feel my budget was too tight in paying for a deluxe, I would stay moderate and not worry one tiny bit about not being in a deluxe. I would rather have more money to DO more, than to have spent the extra on my room.

 

[AdventurerKat]

Uh oh..now you have me worried about getting spoiled at a Deluxe and not being able to go back to a moderate when need be. Hee hee.

My DH said tonight he would really like to stay at OKW this time (although I have been there a few times, he never has) and then we will split our stay with somewhere, probably Poly or maybe the Boardwalk Inn if they have a decent rate because I like the idea of being in that area.

Thanks for the input. I know its a matter of personal choice when it comes down to it but it is nice to hear opinions.

 

[AdventurerKat]

OK...we decided now.

We are going to OKW for part and then BWI if a good rate or BWV if not. I am going to save Poly for my next girls only trip. DH likes the idea of having all those restaurants nearby.

Thanks everyone!

 

[Efastpitch]

We have stayed at moderate's and deluxe's. To us it is hard to justify the difference in cost. That being said, we really like WDW, and have made it our goal to stay at every moderate and deluxe hotel in the park. The POLY. is the last on the list. Looks like we'll have to start over. Each resort offers something different.

 

[cinmell]

Deluxe resorts are our choice for a few reasons. We spend a good deal of time at our resorts either cooling off and relaxing in our room or at the pool. We don't spend the day from open to close in the parks so resort/rooms are very important to us.

We love the ease of transportation to the parks from the deluxes (we stay at MK resorts). Being able to walk to the MK from the Contemporary is wonderful, it's a short peaceful walk and you can avoid the crowds after parades/fireworks by walking back or be the 1st stop from the MK in the middle of the day when you are tired and hot and just want to get back to your room. At the GF we were able to take a quick boat ride to and from the MK. We would take the monorail to the MK and the boat back to GF. It's great not having to deal with the buses every time you go to a park.

We love sitting on the balcony watching the boats and ferries in 7 Seas Lagoon as well as the fireworks and EWP. We have also found the rooms to be bigger at CR.

I will say, we have been spoiled and haven't returned to the moderates since we first tried the deluxes.

 

[ducklite]

The first thing to think about is your budget. If it means really stretching, or worse yet going into debt for it, then no, absolutely not.

It also depends on how much time you'll spend in the room, and your vacation habits. if you are a regular WDW guest and no longer tour the parks non-stop from early entry until they toss you out of PI at the end of the night, then again, a moderate will be fine. But if you want to take some extra time and enjoy the amenities at your resort, then a deluxe might be a good choice for you.

We alway stay deluxe (or DVC) for a couple of reasons. Two queen beds in the rooms is a huge reason. DH and I simply can not sleep in a double bed. We also like having interior corridors, and a private balcony. We enjoy spending part of every day readin in our room, so the balcony gets used a lot for that. We also like having room service, etc. Because we do spend more time in our room, the larger room with comfortable seating (day bed or over stuffed chair) is important to us as well.

So really it just depends on what is important to you. Although I generally prefer to not switch resorts during a stay, in your case this might be a great idea. Spend the last night or two of your trip at a deluxe to get a taste. Thta makes sense for a couple reasons, if you end up thinking it's not really for you you haven't spent a small fortune to find out, and you'll have done a lot of your park stuff, so you can really spend some time at the resort without the parks tugging at you.

Good luck and have a great trip whatever you decide!

Anne

 

[momof3disneyholics]

I stayed at the Poly last November and it was my first deluxe experience. The whole week my husband and I kept going back and forth about the whole "Is it worth the money argument". Well, we had chosen the Poly because of the Volcano pool. We never got to use it because it was always too crowded no matter what time of day we went so we used the quiet pool the entire time. Then we were talking about how in chain hotels you always get a continental breakfast and we got nothing there. It was really hard to pay almost 3.00 for a blueberry muffin at Captain Cooks. The grounds were very pretty, but we could have just came over and walked around them for free.
We had got a rate of 200.00 per night there and we kept thinking if we had paid rack rate we would have really been disappointed.
The good things I can add about my experience at the Poly was the room was big and we had a nice balcony.