best resort for little ones.....

[cropper]

I have been lurking and finally need to post a question.
Going in Dec with dd’s 23 months and 6 years. Plan to return to hotel to rest/nap each day before dinner.
Which hotel?? Do we spend the extra for a slightly larger room or go the economy?

Thanks in advance

 

[Mouse House Mama]

We stayed at Wilderness Lodge last Sept. with a 2 year old and an 8 month old. It was great because it was very close to MK. We also came back to the room for naps every day. We chose it because the last thing we wanted to do was travel around for an hour on a bus with a baby and a toddler if they were tired and cranky. It was a short boat road and I would stay there again. It was very kid orientated and me and dh loved it as well. I hope this helps.

 

[all4fun]

We stay mostly at the Boardwalk Villas (DVC members) and our last trip stayed at the Villa's at Wilderness Lodge (same place as PP, only the DVC owned part). We haven't stayed anywhere else on site but have visited a few of the other resorts and I think it's pretty safe to say that they're all "kid-friendly" with fun themed pools and such. We really love the Boardwalk because it's close to two parks (Epcot & MGM), it has a very fun themed pool with a slide that looks like a wooden roller coaster, and they always have balloons in the lobby for the little ones. There are also lots of restaurants within walking distance since it is an area with several resorts situated around the lagoon. We thought WL has a beautiful lobby with a big bubbling fountain that is the starting point of their pool (is the start of a creek that drains to the pool, very neat). DS (23mos @ the time) loves fountains and we always had to drag him away from it after running around it for 20mins every day, lol. No matter where you stay, I'm sure you will find there are entertaining things for your kids in the most unexpected places. The WL pool also has a large slide for the bigger kids, two spa pools, and a large kiddy pool.

hth,
Cheryl

 

[JeanJoe]

We were at the Polynesian when DD#1 was 18 months old, which was very convenient with monorail access, as well as walking distance to the TTC.

This year, we stayed at the Wilderness Lodge (DD 2y 10m old). While good for MK by bus, we found it a little less convenient, but still good. (But I guess, since when is WDW not good?)

Either way, on-site will make it much easier to get back to the room for a mid-day nap, which works just fine for avoiding heat and crowds anyhow.

 

[Mom to Jordan]

I look more at location than room size. The closer to your most important parks the better. The monorail hotels are ideal If they are in your budget. We love WL and it is a little less than the monorail hotels but a quick easy boat ride to MK or to the contemorary where you can catch the monorail. I agree that kids are happy anywhere. All resorts have kiddie pools and a playground. Choose where you want to stay that is within your budget and the kids will be happy!!

Jordan's mom

 

[iluvallthingsdisney]

I definitely agree with the monorail hotels. With smaller children we loved being just a monorail ride away from the magic kingdom and epcot, and the monorail hotels for meals. I believe and I'm sure that someone will correct me if I'm wrong, You don't have to fold your stroller up on the monorail, you can just wheel your child right on. Our family was very happy staying at the Polynesian, very nice pool, grounds, lovely beach to sit and relax while the kids play in the sand, water pagent parade at night is fun for the kids to watch, playgrounds and a great character breakfast at Ohana which is family style. The breakfast is really nice so you don't have to be up and down all the time at the buffet. They bring the food right to you. I aslo liked being close to the TTC saved on commuting time. Also the rooms at the poly are fairly large plenty of room for crib, and stroller in room. Also request a high chair. Good luck choosing all of the Disney resorts are wonderful.

 

[rt2dz]

We stayed at AKL with a 3.5 and 7 month old. It was wonderful. Win-win all the way. The lodge is exceptional, there is plenty to do (activity wise), just looking out the balcony at all the animals is an adventure, has a zero entry pool, & if you don't have a car, it's buses don't share with other hotels making them a quick option. It was a really good choice, both kids were always entertained & we felt like we were in a grown-up place. Plus, if you need it (kids konk out early), there is room service in addition to a food court & sit down restruants.

 

[3lilprincesses]

we stayed at GF with our then 2, 4, and 8 yr. old DD's. the locations was great. just a monorail stop away from MK, and you can also take the monorail to TTC. we had no problem with busses to AK or MGM. they were always timely. the zero entry pool was great for our 2 and 4 yr. olds, as was the kiddie pool. our 8 yr. old loved the water slide and spa. 1900 park fare has a great character breakfast w/ alice in wonderland, the mad hatter, mary poppins, and tigger and pooh. dinner is with cinderella, prince charming, fairy godmother, and suzie and perla mouse. they were both great meals, and great character interaction. the rooms were so big! we had 2 umbrella strollers and we never even bothered to fold them up. just wheeled them is and there was still plenty of room to move around. the bathrooms are great since they are so seperate from the sleeping area. we were able to get showered and ready before even waking the girls. and all 3 of them felt like princesses staying at this resort. it was really terrific!

wherever you stay, i really hope you have a fantastic trip!!

 

[Tinkerbellmom33]

The first time we stayed at a POFQ and everyone was happy. On our last trip we stayed at AS Movies and it was a hit. The kids loved the large Characters and Mickey in the pool. For the money it's worth it. We will be staying there again this trip. We don't spend a lot of time at the hotel and when we did it had all that we needed. It's all a matter of what you feel you need and what you're willing to spend. To me the values are enough.

 

[patrenoe]

We always stayed in monorail hotels due to the easy access to MK and Epcot. Bring a child (or children) back for naps and a swim was so much easier than having to take a bus to other resorts.

 

[funcinderella]

Have twins that were 3 when we went last Aug. I must say, the monorail is a must. Just sit the kids in the stroller and wheel them on. No having to deal with car seats, and in and out of the stoller, etc. Even for buses, you have to take them out and fold the stroller; not great at the end of the night when they are sleeping in the stroller. Our kids fell asleep in their stroller at the MK and we never had to disturb them unril we were back in the hotel room and putting them in bed. Once they're older, it won't matter so much...

 

[metta4]

We just got back from Animal Kingdom Lodge and the kids loved it. Quiet rooms, animals everywhere, friendly staff, queen sized beds and pack in plays in every room. There is also a zero depth entry at the pool as well as a wadding pool for the little ones.

Can't say enough good things about AKL!!

 

[hipporina]

I have a very unpopular opinion on this, but I love ASMo! My kids "get" the themeing here and I know a lot of the other hotels would be lost on them. They thought it was a lot of fun and adored all the big icons. We are going in Sept with 9 kids (9,7,7,6,5,5,2,2,1) and we will be going back to Movies.

 

[mm lover in Ia]

Just getting to go to to Disney is going to be exciting enough, I don't think you can go wrong at any hotel. If it is value or a deluxe hotel your kids are going to love it!!!

 

[Miller1412]

We stayed at AKL and thought it was great (with a 2 y/o and 4 y/o). The zero entry was nice at the pool and though we didn't think about it ahead...the room size was perfect. We had SO much stuff with us...suitcases, car seat, stroller, etc...I don't know how we could've gotten it into a smaller room.

 

[2d_star_to_the_right]

We have stayed at WL, All Star Music and POR as well as the Poly with infants and toddlers. All of the hotels are great and they have their benefits and detriments. All in all- though being on the monorail was easiest. We spent most of our time at the MK and to be able to roll out the door and onto the monorail was a dream- rather than getting a bus and transferring to the tram and to the monorail. WL has a direct boat link.

Also the monorail hotels have larger rooms and with children that is always a benefit as they require more roaming room and luggage!

The drawback to the monorail hotels though is the eating- you reallly don't have the cafeteria selection in the snack shops- that you do at the All Stars and moderates. They really want you to do sit down meals which is fine for some and inconveinant for others.

We always try and select our hotel based on what is likely to make our trip run the smoothest:
-- weather
-- access to a car
--swimming needs
--afternoon break need
-- strollar/nonstrollar
--food availability
--finances
--appeal to us (we like the Disney magic immersion)
--how much stuff we need to back pack for the day

just thoughts
Kim

 

[Suzanne74]

For the monorail line hotels, I would recommend Poly over GF and CR as it is a very child friendly resort. The beach, the zero entry pool, the splah fountain area, Ohana's restaurant etc... My 3 yr old dd had so many other kids to play with there and it was fairly nice being on the monorail.

With your kids ages I would pick WL over AKL as your main park will probably be MK and it is only a fun boat ride away. AKL as fun as it is, is very far out there and you will have to bus to every park.

For moderates, most of them are very spread out which may mean a lot of walking. I have heard positives about Port Orleans Riverside but I have not been there myself.

For values, Pop seems to be the clear winner here as it is newer and doesn't share buses with anyone which is a plus.

You could also look into renting DVC points from a member and stay at a studio or 1 bdrm. If you do this, I would highly recommend OKW. It is very big and quiet and although everyone raves about the buses, monorail etc.. I felt that a rented car parked literally right outside our villa door was a godsend on our trip when dd was 2. Parking was free and we rented the car for $120 for 8 days. dd would fall asleep on the way home in the afternoon or night and we would just transfer her when we got home. We stayed in a 1 bdrm with full kitchen and full laundry area for less than a value hotel. Very worth it from cost and convenience. She napped everyday and we had the living/kitchen area to ourselves. We had a light breakfast every morning and early dinner after naps before heading back out which saved a ton of money. We did do the bus to MK from OKW one time and it did take much longer. I was happy to have the car and will probably do this again the next time we go.

Even at Poly the past week, I wish we had a car, it took us 1 hr and 10min to get to the AK from the Poly bus stop waiting to hitting the tyrnstiles in AK. Way too long in my opinion. Also, a side note. If the monorail is busy, everyone collapses their strollers and you hold the baby/toddler on your lap, sorta like the buses anyway. The monorails are great, don't get me wrong but it gets very tight in there sometimes. We liked the boat transportation from Poly to MK much better

HTH - good luck with your decision