Convince me that a moderate resort is still ok...

[Dreamsdocometrue9112]

DH and I are planning a trip the week after Thanksgiving. This will be our 1-year anniversary trip. We literally always stay value for non-occasion trips, but we agreed we would stay deluxe for our anniversary (we stayed at GF for our HM). After pricing it out today, we decided we just can't justify spending an extra $1,000 to stay deluxe when we could just stay at a moderate and use that money for food. The other option was cutting the trip a few days short. i would much rather stay longer.

i know I must sound like such a brat, but I was really looking forward to staying deluxe during the holidays, and now I'm kinda ...bummed because we never stay deluxe.

My question is: How are the decorations at the moderate resorts during the holidays? Do you still get that Christmas feel? Which would you say is the best to capture that feeling?

 

[StellaMoosh]

Hi! We feel the same way!
Might I recommend the Dolphin or Swan? It might not be "Disney owned" but it has a great location and great accommodations! It has the atmosphere of a deluxe, but the price tag of a moderate or even sometimes a value!
Nothing can beat having the ability to walk to Epcot! And having the boardwalk nearby is great for just walking along! The rooms are great, and I have to say in my opinion, the beds at the Swan/Dolphin are the nicest on property!
Hope I could somewhat help? I don't have much experiences with Moderates but.. this is what I would choose over a mod

 

[Sue M]

We happily go back & forth between POR & deluxe resorts. Both Por & POFQ are great resorts. We've had 3 stays at Por, and just returned from 10 days at POFQ. So if you want to stay at a moderate these are great. And they have some extras like the boat to DTD, horse & carriage rides, and evening entertainment in the lounge. I wish the deluxe resorts had entertainers too!!

There are some lower priced Deluxe resorts too, like WL. And it is nicely decorated for Christmas.

 

[jude&jonah]

Is WL definitely cheaper around Christmas too? I always assume (and perhaps am wrong) that it's more expensive since it seems like the ideal Christmas resort and therefore is in high demand.

The moderates are great and honestly I would wait to stay at deluxe when the resorts are cheaper. Christmas is such an expensive time that I think it's a good time to stay at moderate- then some time go during the slow seasons and you can get deluxe rooms for a lot cheaper.

I would suggest POR. I love this guys list of ranking the resorts- I like how he describes POR to be themed in a very deluxe kind of way:

************************************best-moderate-resorts-disney-world/

Hmmmm... well for some reason it did that ^^^^ to the link. Anyway it's from the Disney tourist blog.

 

[Sue M]

Nov 30th isn't peak season, it's Fall season, only a little more expensive then value season.
And there may be discounts released. You can look up the chart of Historical Discounts on Mousesavers.com to see if there were any discounts released in the past for your dates, and what they were.

 

[jude&jonah]

Ah I didn't see her dates until I looked more closely.

 

[Sue M]

Ah I didn't see her dates until I looked more closely.

Easy to miss

 

[jude&jonah]

To the OOP- how much more would WL cost? That is my dreeeeeam Christmas resort!

 

[jennabcassell]

WL is a lower priced deluxe as well as AKL. WL is my favorite too!! I have never stayed there with xmas decor up but I have been to see it. From what I remember, the decor doesn't go much past the lobby. It might be on the inside balcony lobby area up above and around the restaurants, but thats kinda the norm everywhere (just the lobby areas). Definitely check into WL pricing. Specials are always going to come out for that week later on closer to the start of school. Maybe even free dining???? If WL is not in the budget I would definitely stay mod for your one year anniversary! Or maybe a split stay? of course do the deluxe at the end of your stay!

 

[Mom2six]

We stayed at POFQ the first week in December. The lobby was decorated for Christmas, but I didn't think the resort had a huge Christmas feel. I loved having the boat to DTD, and the carriage rides could be really nice for your anniversary. They go along the water and it is pretty.

Now, having said that the resort doesn't have a huge Christmas feel, we got a lot of that at the parks. Definitely go see the Osborne lights! We also LOVED the Christmas Party. As well, you can go resort hopping to see the lobbies of some of the deluxe resorts. Visiting GF would be easy - just hop on the monorail! Go buy some gingerbread and soak up the environment. You don't have to be staying there!

I think you will have a great trip. It's a lovely time of year to visit!

 

[FantasiaMagic]

Is WL definitely cheaper around Christmas too? I always assume (and perhaps am wrong) that it's more expensive since it seems like the ideal Christmas resort and therefore is in high demand.

The moderates are great and honestly I would wait to stay at deluxe when the resorts are cheaper. Christmas is such an expensive time that I think it's a good time to stay at moderate- then some time go during the slow seasons and you can get deluxe rooms for a lot cheaper.

I would suggest POR. I love this guys list of ranking the resorts- I like how he describes POR to be themed in a very deluxe kind of way:

************************************best-moderate-resorts-disney-world/

Hmmmm... well for some reason it did that ^^^^ to the link. Anyway it's from the Disney tourist blog.

I agree with the WL idea. Have you tried pricing it? This and AKL are the cheapest deluxes. WL has a boat that goes to MK which can be helpful. I also here they have one of the best christmas trees and decorations out of the resorts!