Best place to stay in January

[goofypooh]

Hi everyone! DH & I just became DVC members less than a month ago. We are so excited! We are planning a trip for January. There will be 4 adults, 3 girls ages 12,10, & 3 and one 2 year old boy. We are thinking that because of the younger 2 it might be nice to stay near MK. We were thinking of FW Villas. We were also considering Beach Club Villas & AKL. Any thoughts?

 

[jekjones1558]

Depending on your dates you may not have lots of choices. MLK week and the marathon are both in January. Call MS tomorrow and see what is available.

 

[goofypooh]

We are planning to go January 5-12.

 

[jekjones1558]

The marathon is Jan. 10 - 13, so some of your days may be pretty well booked. That doesn't mean impossible, but your choices will be more limited and you may need to waitlist for some of the days. But you won't know until you call, so check with MS tomorrow. Good luck! That first stay, and in a 2 bedroom, will be magical.

 

[apulk]

We're going Jan 16th - 23rd and I booked about 2 weeks ago. Only things available for a 2 bedroom were Sarasota Springs and Old Key West. We booked OKW but may switch to Pop on cash so we can go to HHI (home resort) in the summer. Basically 2 rooms at Pop for a week is about $400-$500 less than something we could rent (non Disney) for a week in HHI in June or July so it seems like a better use of points. They did have a few nights in the other resorts but no more than 2-3 days in a row.

Call soon. Good luck.

 

[goofypooh]

Thanks for your replies. Ugghh..........didn't know about that marathon. We thought we were picking a great time to go. Another website we looked at listed this week as one of the least crowded!! Is there really a good time to go to Disney when it is not too crowded?

 

[BroganMc]

Thanks for your replies. Ugghh..........didn't know about that marathon. We thought we were picking a great time to go. Another website we looked at listed this week as one of the least crowded!! Is there really a good time to go to Disney when it is not too crowded?

September. After Labor Day and before the end of the month. From what I've been told, the theme park attendance drops off like a rock. It's also the cheapest time of year for DVC points.

Trouble is hurricane season hits its peak then (you always play roulette with that), and Disney offers its Free Dining promotion for paying guests. The latter makes it harder to book meal ressies closer to your travel date.

Hit near the end of the month, and you can coincide your trip with that start of the Halloween parties at MK and Food & Wine Fest at EPCOT.

As for January, keep in mind it is only 4 months away. Every resort has been open to bookings for the last 3 months. The smaller resorts tend to book faster and leave the larger ones (SSR & OKW) with rooms. But it's not all terrible.

If you're "stuck" with rooms at OKW the kids can go play in the sand at the pool and you get the largest of the DVC rooms on property. If you get "stuck" at SSR, the kids can either play in the zero entry pool or shoot each other with water cannons at the Grandstand pool. Both resorts have dedicated bus lines and use the fastest routes to the parks. A trip to Magic Kingdom from SSR takes about 15 minutes. The boat at VWL will take around 10 min.

Probably the only true fastest route from DVC to MK will be the CRV, assuming they ever build it. (That's what I'm waiting for. The ability to roll out of bed, walk 5 minutes and be at Cindy's Castle.)

Good luck with your calling!

 

[Deb & Bill]

Hi everyone! DH & I just became DVC members less than a month ago. We are so excited! We are planning a trip for January. There will be 4 adults, 3 girls ages 12,10, & 3 and one 2 year old boy. We are thinking that because of the younger 2 it might be nice to stay near MK. We were thinking of FW Villas. We were also considering Beach Club Villas & AKL. Any thoughts?

To clear up one misconception you have - there are no FW Villas. What you are thinking about is the Villas at Wilderness Lodge and they are the smallest DVC resort of all.

The full marathon is Jan 13, the half marathon on Jan 12, Family Fun Runs on Jan 11. Shouldn't have a big impact on the parks, but it could be difficult to get your lodging for that weekend.

 

[threegoofys]

We go every year in Jan. This year we will be staying 17-26 at AKV. The lines in the parks are very short (walk up to most rides) and the weather is great. Also we use less points that week and are able to have more points left over for a weekend here or there. As far as the resort you shouldn't have too hard of a time if you go with OKW or SSR. IF you want one of the smaller resorts than you'll need to book more in advance. Good Luck

 

[summergolf]

For what it is worth..I just booked 2 studios with no problems for arrival 1/13
at SSR.

 

[goofypooh]

Thank you all for your responses! I did call yesterday & booked a 2 bedroom and a 1 bedroom at SSR. DH & I stayed at SSR less than a month ago and loved it, so I am really fine with being there again. Hopefully, the marathon won't really affect the crowds at the park until the end of the week & by then we will have had a chance to get to all the parks anyway. Now I'll just keep my fingers crossed that it won't be too cold while we are there.

 

[melissalee1220]

Hey goofypooh! I'm a long time marathoner and have been to WDW for the marathon/marathon weekend 4 of the past 6 January/Januaries? Staying at SSR will be a safe bet for you because all of the Epcot resorts (BCV/BWV) are probably full and will be very busy, as they are near the race start and finish (Epcot).

In general, the weather has always been nice and the crowds have always been light. This past January, however, was an exception since the races were held on 1/6 & 1/7 which caused all of the racing crowds to coincided w/ the New Years/kids-still-out-of-school crowds. This was the first January I ever saw the parks so crowded. Being that WDW has put the races back on the 2nd week of Jan (where they have always been) I can't imagine it will be nearly as crowded as it was this past year.

Have a great time!!

 

[MinnieGi]

Thank you all for your responses! I did call yesterday & booked a 2 bedroom and a 1 bedroom at SSR. DH & I stayed at SSR less than a month ago and loved it, so I am really fine with being there again. Hopefully, the marathon won't really affect the crowds at the park until the end of the week & by then we will have had a chance to get to all the parks anyway. Now I'll just keep my fingers crossed that it won't be too cold while we are there.

We have been marathon week and over the weekend when it is run. The park crowds will still be low. It is a fantastic time to go!!! You may encounter some traffic delays b/c of the rerouting of traffic flow due to the marathon but the actual parks will be light. The last time we went over the marathon time we were at VWL and many runners were there too and at WL. Many had adorable running wear with Mickey or a Disney character sewn or put on their clothes. We even saw a Snow White runner with Snow's top and a short flowing running skirt. It was too cute!

Enjoy, you'll have a great time!