CBR or BWI?...CR view or no view?...I'm driving myself mad!

[mamalovesdis]

Currently we have a split stay booked for the beginning of May- 5 nights at CBR standard followed by 2 nights at CR garden wing standard. The CR reservation was a splurge. I have wanted to stay on the monorail since our first visit due to the convenience factor. We stayed at POP previously and I really did not like the time it took to get to and from everywhere.

A little background - I'm a single mom (celebrating 40 just after our trip!) with 1 adult child and 3 younger (15,9,7). My youngest is low-functioning autistic. I don't really know how she will tolerate a busy vacation like Disney, so I need to consider the availability of down time. I honestly think she will love it (she loves rides), but if we need a mid-day break it sure would be nice to have a convenient resort location. We will have a stroller for her. We took our first Disney trip 8 years ago and haven't vacationed very much since (something I would like to change). This trip is something we have been waiting for and are all super excited about!!

I had sticker shock as we first started planning, so I booked the most reasonable option for a family of 5- CBR at $162/night with the sun & fun offer. Then I had a change of heart. Because we plan to do Epcot, HS and AKL towards the beginning of our trip, I started considering an Epcot resort. Right now the most reasonable option available for our dates is BWI at around $400/night. I've even considered CL at BWI, which we could get for around $565/night. It sounds wonderful to be at an Epcot resort for the first part of our trip and a walk to MK from CR at the end - the best of both worlds! But I keep thinking it's crazy to spend this much money. Here are the numbers...

CBR - 5 nights standard $950
BWI - 5 nights garden view $2260
BWI - 4 nights standard/CL $2262 w/ 3 nights CR garden wing/garden view $1399

Then I think, what if we don't get to go back for a while? And doesn't it make more sense to spend more and make it so much more enjoyable/tolerable for my youngest, and the rest of us? I keep reading the "I hated CBR" reviews and the great reviews about BWI. The thought of super long walks around CBR when we are already exhausted and cheerleading or dance squads everywhere isn't very appealing. Is $1300 really going to make or break us in the long run? If we are going to go to Disney, shouldn't we make the most of it? But my more sensible side says $1300 could pay for most of our dining on the trip. Or a lot of other things. The pool at CBR also looks like it would be more fun than the pool at BWI for the kids. My youngest loves water, so I would like us to spend at least one day at the resort pool.

My other decision is about the room at the CR. I really want to be in the tower with a view of something. I would be really happy with a Bay Lake view. A balcony and a view sounds amazing. I dream of waking up early to sit on the balcony with coffee while the kids are still sleeping and just breathe. $300 could achieve that. I don't need a castle view, but to see the fireworks from our room would be really special. Plus it will be Mother's Day on one of the nights we are there, and I'm celebrating 40 right? Here are the numbers on that...

CR- 2 nights garden wing/garden view $920
CR- 2 nights main tower/lake view $1227
CR- 2 nights TPV/atrium CL $1832

If I leave it the way I originally booked it, our stay is costing $1870. All of these numbers include taxes and fees. Please help me choose!! To splurge or not to splurge... and on what?

 

[DisneyWishes14]

My DS has a developmental disability and staying in resorts that are closer to the parks really works well for us. If I were you, I would drop CBR. My DS does not do well with long walks or waiting for buses and the more I can eliminate those from the vacation equation, the better it is for him. I love EP/MK resort splits, however, just know that if you do a split stay, you will have two FP+ booking windows - 60 days prior to each check-in day. If that doesn't bother you, I would do the BWI/CR split. Personally, I would do the 5-night BWI GV stay followed by two nights CR garden wing. If you stay in the garden wing, request a first floor room and consider requesting a view of the bay (though the views from all of the garden wing, garden view rooms are nice). First floor will give you a lovely patio to sit on. I really prefer the garden wing to the main tower as the elevators get incredibly congested in the tower. If you are in the garden wing, you simply walk through the lobby and to the path to MK and never have to contend with the elevators. We typically always stay deluxe, but I'm still pretty frugal. We haven't stayed CL in a long time because I can use the money saved to simply get a grocery order and stock our room fridge with all kinds of food and beverage. From CR, you can also watch the fireworks from the 4th floor observatory deck.

If the two FP+ booking days bothers you, I would consider staying at BWI the whole time if you will spend most of your time at DHS/EP. BWI's pool is much nicer than CR's.

 

[Hi Pluto]

I would skip club level and do the split between BWI and CR. CBR will be a LOT of walking and waiting... in line for the bus, on the bus, around the resort, etc. At least with both CR and BWI you can have a quiet, leisurely stroll to 3 out of 4 parks.

I might consider flipping the order of the hotels. Do CR first since that will be a little more "exciting", then end with the slightly longer, more relaxed BWI. But then again, it might just be because I feel like Magic Kingdom should always be the first park we visit.

 

[FSU Girl]

I love the convenience of being able to walk to parks. It really helps if you need an afternoon break too. For your autistic child, get a disability pass at guest services that will help with avoiding standing in lines. DH's daughter is autistic and this was a life saver because she could not wait in any long lines. You basically will go up to the ride, they'll can the child's magic band and give you a return time for everyone to go on, essentially creating a fast pass for your family. These can overlap with actual fast passes made. I found that having a good schedule that she knew about so she knew what to plan for helped. We stayed at Bay Lake Tower so we could walk back from Magic Kingdom or a quick monorail ride from Epcot. She didn't handle waiting for the bus to Hollywood Studios well and had a little meltdown so we opted to drive to the parks farther away after that. I think the buses were tough because they can be a long wait and the times on the board can change if traffic delays the bus. Then there is a possibility that the bus is really crowded and you could be required to stand instead of getting a seat. If you don't do the walking distance resorts I highly recommend doing Uber/Minnie Van instead of waiting for a bus.

 

[cinderaimee]

I have stayed at the Boardwalk and CBR, and I much prefer Boardwalk - it is so great being able to walk to two parks.

It might be too late to find a BWV room for your dates, but if you look into renting DVC points, it can be much cheaper than the rack rate at the Deluxe resorts.

 

[Babsy]

My DS has a developmental disability and staying in resorts that are closer to the parks really works well for us. If I were you, I would drop CBR. My DS does not do well with long walks or waiting for buses and the more I can eliminate those from the vacation equation, the better it is for him. I love EP/MK resort splits, however, just know that if you do a split stay, you will have two FP+ booking windows - 60 days prior to each check-in day. If that doesn't bother you, I would do the BWI/CR split. Personally, I would do the 5-night BWI GV stay followed by two nights CR garden wing. If you stay in the garden wing, request a first floor room and consider requesting a view of the bay (though the views from all of the garden wing, garden view rooms are nice). First floor will give you a lovely patio to sit on. I really prefer the garden wing to the main tower as the elevators get incredibly congested in the tower. If you are in the garden wing, you simply walk through the lobby and to the path to MK and never have to contend with the elevators. We typically always stay deluxe, but I'm still pretty frugal. We haven't stayed CL in a long time because I can use the money saved to simply get a grocery order and stock our room fridge with all kinds of food and beverage. From CR, you can also watch the fireworks from the 4th floor observatory deck.

If the two FP+ booking days bothers you, I would consider staying at BWI the whole time if you will spend most of your time at DHS/EP. BWI's pool is much nicer than CR's.

Agree with this 100%!

 

[Trip planner]

I would stay at CBR. Disney can get expensive, especially when you add in food and I think the expensive resort will just will make you wonder if it is worth it the entire time. Disney is most fun when you don’t blow the budget! You can try and request a room closer to amenities to minimize walking. (I stayed there once and we were just over a little bridge from the food area)
Also- while CR is close to MK, it is a bustling resort and you will still encounter crowds when you use transportation.
FWIW- A friend on mine is a Disney lover with an autistic son and she opts to stay offsite with him because it helps for him to take a break from all of the magic at night.

 

[mamalovesdis]

Thank you all for your input! I did change our reservations. A studio villa at Poly popped up for the 10th-13th so I decided to grab that because of the 2 showers...and its Poly! Also a studio villa at Boardwalk Villas popped up for the 6th-10th, so I went ahead and dropped CBR and reserved that. I'm so exited to stay deluxe and have great locations at both resorts! I think it will really make the entire trip less stressful.