Best delux resort with a 6 year old?

[haley123]

My next trip my husband and I are taking are 6 year old niece along. I was wondering what delux would be the most fun with a young girl. I want to be close to the Magic Kingdom and would like a nice swimming pool since my niece loves swimming.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

My vote was for the Contemporary because it's the closet Resort to the Magic Kingdom. They are also the 1st stop on the Monorail when leaving the Magic Kingdom and they are the only Resort to have a walkway to the Magic Kingdom.

 

[theostwalts]

I voted CR as well. We have stayed at both the GF and CR. The GF is a beautiful resort and a great place to stay. However, especially since you have your 6 year old, the CR will be great. It is hard to beat the excitement of the monorail pulling into the concourse. Our first stay was at the Contemporary and we all loved it. In fact, we even took the monorail from the GF to the CR just to walk up to the room we stayed at before. You will love the CR.

 

[Calgary DISHeads]

All I would like to say is - are you not the nicest Aunty and Uncle around! I wish anyone in our entire family even liked Disney enough to go there let alone take my children - enough whining, our kids are lucky enough that we love it. Upon extensive investigation we have determined that the Poly works best for younger kids for MK and BC for Epcot. Haven't stayed at either yet though...

 

[J and R's mom]

DH and I took our 5 year old niece and 8 year old nephew several years ago and we chose WL. It was their first trip and they were BLOWN AWAY! They loved taking the boat to MK and liked the slide at the pool and LOVED the lobby and bunk beds in the room. We even took them on the boat from WL to the CR to let them catch the monorail. They liked that too.

When I was 11 and took my first trip to WDW with my parents, we stayed in some villas onsite. But when I saw the CR, I knew that was where I HAD to stay someday. The fact that the monorail went through the hotel is what awed me the most. I wasn't that impressed once we stayed there but I was 18 when that happened.

She will LOVE any of the resorts. Kids are cute that way. Have you considered letting her look at some pictures and tell you which she would prefer or is this a surprise trip for her?

 

[Cinderella]

I voted WL as this was my kids favourite at that age. In fact it is still my ten year old daughter's favourite now. But, they both say that they love any resort - so long as it's in Disney.

They also love the Poly. I would definitely stay in a MK resort with kids that age. I haven't stayed at Contemporary or GF yet, but others have said great things about both.

 

[orangekid13]

Wilderness Lodge for sure... bunk beds, great pizza downstairs in Roaring Forks, the whole setting just lets kids be kids, it's fun and a total 180 from normal hotels. Take them to dinner in Whispering Canyon Cafe and ask for ketchup... gurantee you'll all smile. I've seen many paper airplane races originating there go to one of the upper floors of the lobby for takeoff.
I'm a 21 year old kid that's loved it since I first stayed there at 12, it never gets old.

 

[Kimberle]

For a kid, WL! ALK is great, but far from MK. CR is also great, but not quite as kid friendly.

WL has 2 great pools. The boat ride to MK is fun. It's also close to FW for the campfire, pony ride, little farm zoo, etc. You can also rent bikes at WL.

 

[alldiz]

I love WL....but I voted Poly....

There's gotta be something special about your 1st time swimming at
wdw and looking at the castle.
Kerri

 

[RivaLJ]

my DS6 and I stayed at the WL and the Poly this past summer.
He LOVES the Poly, and wasn't thrilled about the WL.
IMHO, the WL was nice, but I wouldn't stay there again.
We are already planning our 2008 trip at the Poly again.

 

[bamagirl@hrt]

Of the deluxes, we've only stayed at AKL, Polynesian, Boardwalk and the Beach Club. Of those, our favorite is the Beach Club! We stayed at the BC when our DS was 5 and DD was 8. The pool is amazing! DS actually learned to swim in their "kiddie" pool -- it's huge with a sand bottom & never gets over 3' deep. He also loved when we sat out on the beach & he could play in the sand. Now, they are showing Disney movies on a big inflatible screen out on the beach at night. (We hung out a bit at the BC one evening last month) You can walk to Epcot and MGM, although MGM is a bit of a trek. We took the boat to MGM & walked to Epcot. And my children love those two parks. Bus service to MK was very efficient and prompt. Never waited more than 5 minutes for a bus. Beaches & Cream is a great burger & ice cream place there at the BC. There is also a character breakfast at Cape May Cafe, with Minnie, Goofy, Chip & Dale dressed in their beach wear.

We stayed at the Polynesian this year. We loved it too. The rooms are spacious and the grounds are lovely. Our DS had just turned 6 when we went. He enjoyed playing on the beach there too. We liked being able to see the fireworks from MK from the beach. And the EWP goes by each night. Being on the monorail was great - it literally took us 5 minutes to get to MK! We enjoyed 'Ohana for both dinner and the character breakfast with Lilo & Stitch. The pool is lovely, but it seemed so small after the BC's Stormalong Bay. And the pool was always so crowded. There wasn't any room to really swim, just splash around & go down the slide.

The AKL is also great for kids. We only spent 3 nights there last year (split stay w/ BC). There are tons of kids' activities to do, and kids collect a bead for each activity they complete. It is free and makes a cute souvenier. We watched the animals at night with night vision goggles. My kids also liked the storytelling at Arusha Rock.

You really can't go wrong with any of these. We liked the BC the best, because it was the most fun for all of us. The kids loved it and DH & I found it to be the most relaxing for us.

 

[vod2117]

I would say the Wilderness Lodge isthe best resort for a 6 yr old. The Wilderness Lodge has the Whisperin Canyon Restaurant that is kid oriented, they have many activities for kids under 6 yrs old and is in the Magic Kingdom section of Disney World so you can get around Disney the fastest. Also the rooms have a king size bed or a queen size bed and bunk beds.

 

[MissionMouse]

We have stayed at all the MK area resorts. The MK Area Resorts are all fine resorts to select for a six year old girl. So the bottom line is you will br fine no matter which one you select. I would steer you more toward one of the monorail resorts where you have the monorail, option of selecting MK room view options to include Wishes, easy access to 3 resort (CR/PR/GF) restaurants, and the Seven Seas Lagoon water activities (avoiding the water bridge).

CR for view and ability to walk to and from MK. I describe the CR theme to be its architecture with a sprinkle of Mickey. Prefer CR Tower MK view room. GF for princess oriented stay with Wonderland Tea Party, Afternoon Tea, etc. or PR for the MK view, earthy laid back feel and easy access to the Epcot Monorail loop. Personal ranking of MK monorail resort pools would be PR, GF and CR.

As a side note: This may or may not matter to you, but the GF and CR have conference facilities and CR property currrently has multiple constuction projects underway.

 

[cherry8502]

I stayed on Disney property, for the first time, when I was 5 years old. We stayed at the CR. I LOVED it. It has remained my favorite hotel on property. Since you are taking a 6 yr. old, and, since you would like to be close to MK, I would recommend the CR.
Now, my 2nd favorite hotel is the BC. And if you don't mind taking a bus to MK instead of the monorail, I would suggest the BC. They have one of the best pools ever. And with the BC you are within walking distance to Epcot and you can also catch a boat to MGM. You could also catch a boat or walk around to the Boardwalk.

 

[hthrbells]

The Polly!!!!!!

 

[T-i-double-g-err]

Poly is my vote. We've stayed there three times with the kids. Loved it!

 

[TJA]

Of your choices, I voted for Poly because you commented you want to be close to MK and we also have young girls and they like to see the Castle from the pool and watch Wishes from the beach. However, if you don't mind taking a bus to MK, then my favorite resort for young children (and myself!) is Beach Club. I don't know if you've stayed there before, but the sandy bottom pool is wonderful for children. They can run around and play in the pool and not fall and get hurt -- the water is shallow and also has sand on the bottom. There are also mounds of sand all around to sit and build castles. Then there is another section of the pool with a lazy tube area. And also a big, long slide. And you can walk/boat to both Epcot and MGM. And you have movies on the beach, rent surrey bikes, walk on the boardwalk, etc.

 

[5kwallace]

My family and I have stayed at all of your choices. I think that you can't go wrong with any of them. I voted for the Polynesian Resort. We are leaving in 3 weeks for our 3rd stay there. It is my favorite resort. The GF is a really close 2nd. My 6 year old DS loves the Poly the best. His 2nd favorite is the GF. DH likes them all but his favorite is the CR, followed by the WL. I think you will have a great stay at any of them! Have fun choosing.

 

[MrsJ Henry]

I think I would say CR. Now I personally don't care for it. BUT---as a child when i went to WDW I remember thinking that was about the coolest place i had ever seen. I loved that the Monorail went right through the hotel.
So thinking like a young child and what a young child would like... then I would pick CR.
For me as an adult... probably the Poly (since that is where we are going in May ))

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I voted the Poly based on what you said, but in terms of pure resort - AKL is my favorite. It is not really bead getting around from there. It may be a little aprther to MK, but it's close to AK, and reasonable to Epcot and MGM - and there is the savings.

I love the pool at AKL, I really like the activities they have there, and they have great hot tubs there.